22 September 2026 — Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has unveiled an initial overview of 129 itineraries for 2029 covering its two luxury ships, EUROPA and EUROPA 2, and its expedition vessels HANSEATIC nature, HANSEATIC inspiration and HANSEATIC spirit.
The programme spans Hawaii, Oceania, the Far East, North and South America, the polar regions, the Amazon and the Northwest Passage. Non-binding pre-bookings are available online, by phone through the customer centre and via travel agencies. Detailed information, including prices, will be published when bookings officially open on 1 December 2026. Printed route brochures are scheduled for publication in March 2027.
EUROPA returns to Hawaii
EUROPA will return to Hawaii in January 2029 for the first time in nine years. The voyage from Panama City will include Costa Rica, Mexico and calls at Oahu, Hawaii, Maui and Kauai before continuing along the west coast of North America to Canada.
In February, the ship will operate a three-week voyage to the USA, Mexico, Guatemala and Costa Rica before continuing towards South America. Further itineraries will combine Chile, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, Buenos Aires, Montevideo and Rio de Janeiro.
An 18-day voyage will call at five Brazilian ports and the Cape Verde islands of Santiago and São Vicente before continuing to the Mediterranean, including Lisbon, Civitavecchia, Piraeus, Dubrovnik and Palma de Mallorca.
Two short cruises will offer an introduction to EUROPA and its concept. In winter, the ship will return to southern Africa, with itineraries covering Namibia, South Africa, Madagascar, the Seychelles, Kenya and Tanzania.
EUROPA 2 spans Oceania and Asia
EUROPA 2 will begin 2029 with a 16-day voyage from Singapore via Bali and the Indonesian archipelago to Australia, including the country’s southern and eastern coasts, before continuing to New Zealand.
Oceania will also return to the ship’s programme after an absence in recent years. In March, EUROPA 2 will sail through Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia before continuing to Asia.
In April, the ship will travel from Ho Chi Minh City to Yokohama, with subsequent itineraries linking Shanghai and Hong Kong with Southeast Asia and Japan. Later voyages will include Sri Lanka, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Zanzibar and Madagascar.
Following its European summer season, EUROPA 2 will sail to eastern Canada for the first time in autumn, with calls including Prince Edward Island, Gaspé, Saguenay and Halifax. Later Caribbean voyages will cover the Bahamas, the ABC Islands, Isla Tortuga, Bocas del Toro and Isla de Providencia.
A special cruise will travel along both coasts of Costa Rica, including a passage through the Panama Canal and calls at several Caribbean destinations. The season will conclude with a 17-day festive cruise from and to Miami, calling at destinations including Key West, Tampa and New Orleans, as well as the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, Roatán and the Caribbean coast of Mexico.
Expedition fleet covers polar regions
The three HANSEATIC expedition ships will begin the year between Antarctica and Scandinavia before operating voyages from the Arctic and Central America to the Amazon and West Africa.
HANSEATIC nature will return to winter cruises from northern Germany to Norway after a break in the 2027/28 season. The programme will then include the wintry Baltic Sea and Baltic States before continuing to the Mediterranean.
HANSEATIC inspiration will operate in Central America, including a new Baja California destination timed around the annual migration of grey whales. It will then continue through the Panama Canal and into the Amazon as far as Iquitos.
In late summer, HANSEATIC nature and HANSEATIC spirit will focus on Greenland and the Canadian Arctic, with itineraries covering Eureka, Disko Bay and Sisimiut. This will be followed by the Northwest Passage and premiere calls at Iqaluit, the Button Islands and Torngat Mountains National Park.
HANSEATIC inspiration will also operate several 10-day Svalbard circumnavigations from and to Longyearbyen and Tromsø, with routes determined by local ice and weather conditions. The programme will include two nights in central London, with the compact ships able to sail up the Thames and pass beneath Tower Bridge.
Later in the year, HANSEATIC nature and HANSEATIC spirit will return to Antarctica, while HANSEATIC inspiration heads south along the west coast of Africa via South Africa and the Seychelles to Mauritius.
Special-format cruises return
Selected themed formats will return aboard EUROPA and EUROPA 2, including IN 2 BALANCE and EUROPA WELL-BEING. The programmes will combine travel with content covering medicine, science, sport, nutrition, mindfulness, politics, history and current affairs, supported by talks from hosts and experts.
Source: Official Press Release from Hapag Lloyd Cruises on 22 September 2026
