Tui River Cruises will soon start constructing its first new-build ship, with sailings along the Douro beginning in summer 2025.
Tui Alma, which will become the fifth ship in the line’s fleet, will offer seven-night trips for up to 123 guests.
Chris Logan, Tui’s managing director for specialist businesses, said: “This is a huge moment for Tui River Cruises and a defining moment in our journey. Given we only launched back in 2021, it’s a testament to the response of our customers that we’re able to deliver a new-build ship.”
More: Tui River Cruises reports ‘best-ever sales day’
Tui Alma – Alma means ‘soul’ in Portuguese – will be purpose-built for the Douro, with trips focusing on daytime sailing.
Katy Berzins, Tui’s head of river cruises, said the dining options on the four-deck, 62-cabin ship were being designed to ensure guests have flexibility.
“The itineraries are beautiful but for me the ship has got to work really hard to give some of that flexibility we want to offer at Tui River Cruises,” said Berzins, who added that Tui Alma would be “very different from competitors”.
Tui’s airline will operate one flight a week to Porto for the sailings, said Berzins, allowing the company to have control over the “end-to-end journey”.
Independent travel agents will play a crucial role in driving sales for Tui River Cruises, according to Berzins.
“We’ve invested to build these relationships with agents because they’re so important for the expertise they give to the customer,” she said.
On the potential for Tui River Cruises to grow further, Berzins said: “We want to bring more people to river cruise – the opportunity is fantastic, but we’ve got to do strategic and considered growth.”
Earlier this year, the brand announced that Nile sailings would begin in November 2024 using refurbished ship Tui Al Horeya.
The other ships in the fleet are Tui Isla, Tui Maya and Tui Skyla.
Construction on Tui Alma is scheduled to begin early in 2024.
Photo: A digital artist’s impression of Tui Alma