Kreuzfahrtberater.de

What Kreuzfahrtberater.de does

Kreuzfahrtberater.de is a German online cruise booking portal founded in 2003 and headquartered in Ahrensburg, Germany. It serves individual German-speaking travelers (families, seniors, luxury seekers, singles) with a curated inventory of approximately 29,000 to 31,883 cruise offers aggregated across 20+ cruise line partners, including AIDA, TUI/Mein Schiff, MSC, Phoenix Reisen, Costa, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian, Hapag-Lloyd, Holland America, and nicko cruises. The platform's product surface combines a price-comparison search engine, ship reviews (200+), deck plans, price alerts, wishlist functionality, a non-binding option booking feature, and a Cruise Bonus Club loyalty program, all anchored by a long-standing Bestpreis-Garantie.

The underlying business model is commission-based: Kreuzfahrtberater.de earns referral commissions from cruise line partners on bookings made through the portal, with no consumer-facing booking fees surfaced in the available information. The platform is positioned as a premium comparator in the German-speaking cruise market, validated by a 4.8/5 Trustpilot rating from 1,700+ verified reviews, the WELT #1 Cruise Portal Preis Champion 2026 award, and the Handelsblatt Best Online Portal 2025 award.

Strategic positioning is centered on the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). The company is privately held with no disclosed external investors, operates with 51-100 employees, and has begun extending its vertical scope beyond ocean cruises into themed offerings (LGBTQ, wellness, gourmet) and, through a Celebrity Cruises partnership, river cruises launching in 2027. There is no documented AI/ML capability, no disclosed revenue, and no public signal of international expansion outside the DACH footprint.

Name

Kreuzfahrtberater.de

Legal name

Der Kreuzfahrtberater

Website

https://kreuzfahrtberater.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Kreuzfahrtberater.de is a German online cruise booking portal founded in 2003, comparing ~30,000 offers from 20+ cruise lines for DACH consumers via a commission-based model and features like price alerts, ship reviews, and a loyalty club.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Cruise Booking

NAICS

Tour Operators (561520), Tour Operators (56152)

SIC

Water Transportation (4400)

akta.pro primary industry

Online Cruise Agencies & Cruise Booking Platforms (THAKAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cruise Booking Platforms (THALAFAG), Cruise Travel Agencies & Specialist Cruise Consultants (THAEAFAB)

Keywords

• Cruise booking platform
• Online travel agency
• Cruise comparison portal
• Ocean cruise booking
• River cruise booking

Headquarters

HQ city

Schleswig

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. Travel Agency Commissions: Kreuzfahrtberater.de operates as a travel agency earning commissions from cruise lines for bookings made through their platform. The company offers exclusive special prices and advantage packages with many inclusive features, suggesting negotiated rates with partner cruise lines.
2. Cruise Packages and Add-ons: Revenue generated from selling complete cruise packages including flights, hotels, pre- and post-programs, and Deutsche Bahn train connections. Additional services include shore excursions and travel insurance upsells.
3. Cruise Bonus Club Membership: Loyalty program offering exclusive benefits and bonuses to members, driving repeat bookings and customer retention.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kreuzfahrtberater.de operates an online cruise booking platform that aggregates cruise offerings from more than 20 cruise lines and resells them to German-speaking consumers as an authorized travel agency. The platform supports comparison shopping across ocean, river, and luxury cruises and offers expert telephone consultation 365 days per year, with add-on services such as flight packages and Deutsche Bahn rail integration for end-to-end travel planning.

Product overview

Kreuzfahrtberater.de is a German online cruise booking platform founded in 2003, offering access to over 30,000 cruises from multiple cruise lines. The platform functions as a metasearch and direct booking site with features including an advanced cruise search engine with filtering options, a wishlist (Merkliste) for saving and sharing favorites, best price guarantee (Bestpreis-Garantie), a loyalty program (Cruise Bonus Club), price alerts, ship finder with deck plans and reviews, and integrated add-on services such as flight packages and Deutsche Bahn train bookings. The platform specializes in both ocean cruises (Hochseekreuzfahrten) and river cruises (Flusskreuzfahrten), with various themed cruise categories.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Kreuzfahrtberater: Main cruise booking platform offering online cruise search, booking, and consultation services
• KFB Bestpreis-Garantie
• Cruise Bonus Club

Products and services

• Online Cruise Booking Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 4.8/5 Trustpilot rating from over 1,700 customer reviews
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AIDA CruisescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTop partner cruise line featured prominently on the platform. AIDA is a leading German cruise line offering cruises primarily in the Mediterranean, Canary Islands, and Norwegian fjords. Kreuzfahrtberater.de offers over 240 cruises on AIDA ships including AIDAnova and AIDAcosma.
• TUI Cruises - Mein SchiffcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPremium German cruise line partnership featuring Mein Schiff fleet with 9 ships. Offers all-inclusive Premium-Inklusivleistungen concept. Featured with dedicated landing pages and exclusive deals on Kreuzfahrtberater.de.
• MSC CruisescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWorld's largest privately-owned cruise line (Aponte family) offering Mediterranean lifestyle and modern cruise experiences. Featured as TOP 50 Partner 2026. Over 70 countries and nearly 200 destinations covered.
• Phoenix ReisencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGerman cruise operator since 1973 offering ocean and river cruises with family atmosphere. Fleet includes 4 ocean ships, 1 motor yacht, and 25+ river ships. Known for German-language service and personalized experiences.
• Royal CaribbeancoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWorld's second largest cruise line with 29 ships including the innovative Icon class vessels. Offers global itineraries from Caribbean to Alaska and Asia. Known for action-packed entertainment and family-friendly features.
• Celebrity CruisescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPremium cruise line since 1989, part of Royal Caribbean Group. 15 modern ships featuring innovative design and excellent service. Known for luxury experiences including The Retreat and Magic Carpet. Expanding into river cruises from 2027.
• nicko cruisesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGerman operator from Stuttgart with 30+ years in cruise industry. Fleet includes 1 ocean ship (Vasco da Gama) and 21 river ships. Specializes in intimate experiences on smaller vessels with German-speaking service.
• Costa KreuzfahrtenminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorItalian cruise line offering Mediterranean and international destinations with Italian flair. Popular for La Dolce Vita concept featuring included drinks, pizza, and gelato.
• Hapag-Lloyd CruisesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPremium German cruise line for luxury and expedition experiences. Known for high-quality service and unique itineraries to remote destinations.
• Holland America LineminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTraditional American cruise line with classic style and focus on destination-intensive itineraries including Alaska and world cruises.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• weg.de: German online travel agency offering package holidays, cruises, and city trips; competes for travel budgets but covers a much broader category mix than a cruise-only specialist.
• Check24: Germany's largest price-comparison platform offering cruises alongside flights, hotels, and insurance; competes for the same DACH consumer but spans many travel and non-travel verticals.
• HolidayCheck: DACH travel review and booking platform; overlaps in cruise content/reviews and in the funnel of cruise shoppers, although cruise is one of many categories it serves.
• TUI Group: Europe's largest integrated tourism group; TUI Cruises (Mein Schiff) is a core partner of Kreuzfahrtberater.de, so the two overlap commercially — TUI is both a supplier and a competitive channel via its own direct booking site.
• Booking.com: Global OTA with a growing cruise offering and dominant SEM presence; competes for the same DACH traveler demand but operates at vastly greater scale and breadth.

Others

• Cruise Critic: Largest English-language cruise reviews and price-comparison community; adjacent ecosystem participant that overlaps with Kreuzfahrtberater.de's reviews/content strategy and increasingly with cruise booking referrals.

Direct peers

• e-hoi: Germany-focused online cruise agency selling ocean and river cruises from major lines with similar price-comparison and advisor support; competes directly for the same DACH consumer segment.
• Kreuzfahrten.de: German cruise-only online agency offering search, comparison, and booking across multiple cruise lines — directly overlapping with Kreuzfahrtberater.de in target customer and product mix.
• Dreamlines: Berlin-based online cruise specialist targeting German-speaking consumers with a comparable cruise-search, advisor, and pricing model — the closest head-to-head competitor of Kreuzfahrtberater.de in the German cruise-OTA segment.
• cruise.de: German cruise-specialist portal offering river and ocean cruises with personal consultation; comparable in focus and DACH-centric positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/KFBerater
• Facebookfacebook.com/kreuzfahrtberater
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kreuzfahrtberater-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kreuzfahrtberater.de