The Cologne-based family company's nautical trainees win 1st place in the BMDV, BDB and BDS video blog competition
What makes the job of a bargeman so exciting and varied? The video blog series by nautical trainees Jennifer Rittel, Cedric Adam and Jason Jänicke, which has been available to follow on the Instagram channel of KölnTourist Personenschifffahrt over the past few months, provided a little insight behind the scenes with funny and informative video clips and showed - always with a little wink - their day-to-day work. This also impressed the experts on the jury of the "Really, bargemen?" video blog competition: With their vlog, the four trainees and cameraman and director Tobias Nahrendorf from KölnTourist promptly won the top spot.
On Tuesday, 18.03.2025, Renate Bartelt-Lehrfeld from the Inland Navigation Department of the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport held the award ceremony on board the training ship "Rhein" in Duisburg. Angelika Schmitz, Managing Director of KölnTourist Personenschifffahrt, is overjoyed: "I am so incredibly proud of our young colleagues. With a lot of heart and humor, they have managed to convincingly convey the diversity and fun of the inland navigation profession to other young people. This is proof that our industry in general and our company in particular are well equipped for the future."
The video blog project was led by Tobias Nahrendorf. As part of the team, he was responsible for coordinating with the trainees and their trainers Sarah Fischer and Christian Hentschel, as well as shooting and editing the video clips. After completing his training as an event manager at KölnTourist in 2023, he is now part of the team responsible for the company's social media presence on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. "There are several hours of work in each of the short videos, but also a lot of fun," explains Tobias Nahrendorf. "Jenni, Jason and Cedric were always fully involved. Sometimes we filmed short tutorials, such as how to put on a lifejacket properly, or told stories about the nautical workshop for inland navigation trainees on board. Sometimes the clips were a little longer, for example when instructor Christian Hentschel carried out a complete oil filter change in the engine room together with trainee Jenny. We wanted the videos to inform as well as entertain. We are delighted that our clips impressed the jury so much."
The traditional craft of an inland waterway boatman involves three years of training. It is also possible to train directly as an inland waterway captain in three and a half years. Both training paths take place in the dual system. The apprentices learn the practical part of the profession on the ships of their training companies. During the annual three-month block course at the Schiffer-Berufskolleg Rhein vocational college in Duisburg-Homberg, subject-specific theoretical and practical lessons take place. During this time, the prospective bargemen and bargewomen are accommodated on the training ship "Rhein" in the Homberg city harbor. Once they have passed their final examination, they become a permanent and important part of the inland navigation crew.
Photo: Award ceremony on the training ship "Rhein" | from left to right: Jason Jänicke, Jennifer Rittel, Tobias Nahrendorf, Cedric Adam
About KölnTourist Personenschiffahrt:
KölnTourist offers boat trips and boat charters at the most important junctions on the Rhine in the Cologne/Bonn area, an unforgettable and exclusive variety of experiences for a real change of perspective, plenty of relaxation and lots of good humor on one of the most beautiful rivers in Europe. A personal and individual service, delicious food from our own buffet service RheinGastro and a very good price-performance ratio round off the offer.
KölnTourist is a privately run shipping company with decades of tradition and shipping expertise. The fleet is technically state-of-the-art, because the safety of the passengers is always the focus. The interior of the fleet is always well maintained. With a view to the environment and future generations, the company embarked on a journey towards greater sustainability in passenger shipping some time ago. KölnTourist sees itself as a true friend and partner to its guests and is open to the world. The employees are authentic and love what they do - with regard to their fleet, their offers, their guests and the team.