What is the Hamburg cruise ship and when does it visit Gibraltar?
Short answer
Hamburg is a small German-speaking cruise ship run by Plantours Kreuzfahrten, carrying up to 400 guests. Its upcoming visits to Gibraltar, with times and expected passengers, are listed on this page.
Upcoming visits to Gibraltar
Wednesday 23 December 2026, in port 08:00–23:30, about 420 passengers expected
Also in port: Celestyal Discovery, Explora II, Star Explorer.
From the Port of Gibraltar schedule, last checked 15 October 2026.
Detailed answer
Hamburg was built by MTW at Wismar in Germany in 1997 and sailed as Columbus for Hapag-Lloyd Cruises until 2012. Plantours' parent company, the Ligabue Group, took over ownership of the ship in 2025. Plantours gives a gross tonnage of 15,000, a length of 144 metres, a maximum of 400 guests and a crew of 150. The ship has ice class 1B and carries Zodiacs for expedition-style landings. Plantours describes it as small and refined, with a concierge service, lectures and many quiet corners. German is the language on board. A refit near Istanbul, due to finish on Friday 11 December 2026, renews the cabins, adds four mini-suites with balconies and refreshes the lounge and pool deck.
How busy will town be?
The upcoming visits listed on this page show the passengers expected on each call and any other ships in port the same day. Town is busiest when several ships are in at once or a large ship arrives at a weekend. A ship carrying a few hundred passengers makes little difference on its own.
Can you sail on it from nearby?
Yes. Plantours lists a Malaga to Lisbon New Year voyage from Tuesday 22 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027 via Madeira, and a longer version from Malaga to Hamburg ending Wednesday 13 January 2027. The ship's post-refit voyage from Istanbul ends in Malaga on Tuesday 22 December 2026, and a Lisbon to Hamburg voyage runs from Monday 4 January 2027. The rest of 2027 is mostly from Hamburg and Kiel. Sales are aimed at German speakers.