AIDA lover reveals secret tips after 1,300 days at sea!

AIDA lover reveals secret tips after 1,300 days at sea!

Angelika Jäger, a 69-year-old pensioner from Berlin, is a passionate cruiser and has already spent over 1,300 days on AIDA ships. Her passion for cruising is not just limited to her travels, but is also reflected in her committed community. She founded a Facebook group called “AIDA List Captains & Hotel Directors”, which now has over 5,000 members. This group serves to exchange information about captains, hotel managers and entertainment managers, with Jäger particularly emphasizing the importance of the crew to the overall experience, which she highlights in her report Mercury emphasized.

Your personal travel directory includes detailed information about all your cruises, including ships, routes, captains and crew details that are usually kept secret before the trip. Despite small changes in the AIDA program, Jäger remains true to her passion and is already planning new trips, including to Hawaii. Her first cruise was from Venice to Crete in 2004 and since then she has taken around 88 cruises. She is currently scheduled for another trip in 2024.

Increasing popularity of cruises

Cruises continue to enjoy increasing popularity. In 2023, around 31.7 million passengers worldwide took a cruise. Hamburg is considered the leading cruise port in Germany, where around 1.2 million passengers boarded in 2023. Experts predict over three million German guests on the high seas by 2024, which underlines the growing fascination for this form of travel.

However, there are also challenges. There is currently a norovirus outbreak on cruise ships in Norway, particularly on the MS Artania, where up to 200 passengers have become ill. According to the CDC, there were already more norovirus outbreaks in 2025 than in the record year 2024. Norovirus is transmitted through the fecal-oral route and poses a particular risk to the elderly and children. Therefore, the CDC recommends regular hand washing and avoiding raw foods to prevent infections. The situation shows that, despite the great joy of cruises, appropriate precautions must also be taken to ensure the health of passengers.

However, Angelika Jäger remains optimistic and is clearly in favor of enjoying the advantages of cruise travel. According to her, it is the experiences and community on board that no one can resist and she looks forward to more unforgettable adventures at sea. Given the encouraging statistics and the loyalty of fans like Jäger, it remains to be seen how the cruise industry will evolve in the coming years, both in terms of safety measures and guests' wishes.