Isolde Susset to hand over the reins of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises to Salika Kebschull
After around 30 years with Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, Isolde Susset is set to retire at the end of the year. The long-standing cruise expert has had a particularly significant influence on the brand’s expedition segment and played a key role in the development of the three expedition ships: HANSEATIC nature, HANSEATIC inspiration and HANSEATIC spirit.
Since 2024, as Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises and a member of the Executive Board of TUI Cruises GmbH, she has been responsible for the entire Hapag-Lloyd Cruises fleet. Salika Kebschull will take over her position on 1 January 2027.
Isolde Susset will remain in post until the end of the year. Salika Kebschull will join Hapag-Lloyd Cruises on 1 November 2026 and, during a two-month transition period, will work alongside Isolde Susset to prepare for the handover. On 1 January 2027, Salika Kebschull will officially take up the position of Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises.
“Isolde Susset has shaped Hapag-Lloyd Cruises over three decades with great expertise and passion, and has in particular played a decisive role in driving forward the development of our expedition segment. We are extremely grateful to her for this,” says Wybcke Meier, CEO of TUI Cruises.
“In Salika Kebschull, we are gaining an experienced leader who combines expertise in the international luxury hotel industry with sales expertise and cruise experience. The joint transition phase creates the ideal conditions for a seamless handover at the start of the year.”
Isolde Susset, Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises: “Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has been a constant presence and a defining influence throughout many years of my professional life. I am grateful for the many special developments I have been able to shape together with fantastic teams, particularly the establishment and further development of our expedition segment. I am therefore all the more delighted to now hand over responsibility to Salika Kebschull during a personal handover period, and I wish her every success and fulfilment in her new role.”
Salika Kebschull, future Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises: “Hapag-Lloyd Cruises stands for extraordinary travel experiences, the highest quality and a clear positioning in the luxury and expedition segments. I am very much looking forward to getting to know the teams, the ships and crews, and our partners, and to shaping the brand’s future development together. The opportunity to work closely with Isolde Susset from November onwards and to benefit from her many years of experience is a particularly valuable start to my new role.”
Salika Kebschull’s professional career has been characterised by leadership roles in the international luxury hotel industry and in tourism sales. Her career has taken her through renowned establishments and international hotel groups, as well as into senior roles in the areas of sales, marketing, revenue management, distribution, e-commerce and business development. Among other roles, she was General Manager of the Hotel München Palace, Director of Membership Services at Relais & Châteaux and Director of Cruise Consultancy at Sea Cloud Cruises.
Most recently, she has been advising international hotel projects on strategic positioning, sales, guest experience and process optimisation.
Salika Kebschull completed her training at the Altötting Hotel Management School and at the renowned Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in Hamburg. Study visits to Cornell University and an MBA from Reims Business School/NEOMA Business School round off her profile.
(Isolde Susset to hand over the reins of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises to Salika Kebschull)
