Nieuw Amsterdam News

With the completion of shore power installation on Volendam, Holland America Line's entire fleet is now shore power-capable. Volendam completed installation in Vancouver, British Columbia, and connected to the port's shoreside electricity for the first full day on Sept. 27.The cruise line began converting ships to have shore power connectivity in 2006 with its four Vista Class ships; its Pinnacle Class ships (Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam and Rotterdam) all were built with shore power systems installed…

My father was on the new construction team of the 1958 SS Rotterdam V, a visually iconic passenger liner that is presently a static hotel and event space in Rotterdam Harbor. When she entered service, her looks were much discussed and generally compared to her very graceful older running partner, the 1936 SS Nieuw Amsterdam II.I have pictures of both vessels in my office and I think the older vessel is the prettier vessel. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but, regardless…

U.S. Coast Guard 17th District Alaska medevaced a woman from a cruise ship near Ketchikan, according to an official press release.A 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Coast Guard Station Ketchikan medevaced the 71-year-old passenger displaying stroke symptoms and brought her to awaiting EMS in Bar Harbor, Ketchikan.Coast Guard watchstanders in the Sector Juneau command center received the request for the medevac from the cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam at about 9 p.m.The Coast Guard boat crew met up with the cruise ship in Revillagigado Channel where the patient, her husband and a medical attendant were brought aboard and transported…

The Port of San Diego is preparing to welcome 83 cruise calls during the 2017-2018 cruise season, with a wide variety of itineraries visiting this inspiring destination. This season Holland America Line remains a strong presence on San Diego Bay along with continued growth from Disney Cruise Line. On Thursday, October 5, the Disney Wonder will be in port, along with Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam. Approximately 242,000 passengers are expected this year, up from last year’s 224,000. The number of cruise calls remains about the same. Passengers this season will be able to experience a relaxing California Coast cruise, an adventurous voyage around the globe, South Pacific cruises and much more.

Caribbean shipyard Grand Bahama Shipyard Limited (GBSL) said it will complete work on 10 cruise vessels within first quarter of 2017. Scope of works included significant propulsion and technical systems overhauls, hull treatment, accommodations and public spaces upgrades and the addition of onboard attraction facilities. GBSL shared highlights of 10 of the 23 cruise vessels owned and/or operated by major players in the industry planned for dry-docking in the first quarter of 2017.

The Port of Seattle begins the 2016 cruise season welcoming the first ship call, Holland America Cruise Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam. Larger vessels and more cruises will make this the biggest cruise season ever with nearly one million revenue passengers. Each homeported cruise vessel is estimated to bring in $2.6 million for the local economy. “Cruising to Alaska continues to be an economic driver for our region," said Port of Seattle Commissioner John Creighton. Seattle’s cruise business—currently leading all cruise homeports on the west coast in passenger volume—is responsible for over 3,700 jobs, $459 million in annual business revenue, and $17.6 million annually in state and local tax revenue.

Holland America Line’s newest ship Koningsdam was delivered today at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Marghera. The new ship will officially be presented on Saturday April 2 in a Handover Ceremony. At 99,800 gross tons, almost 300 meters long, with accommodation for up to 2,650 passengers on board in more than 1,300 cabins, 70 percent of which with private balcony overlooking the sea, the new unit will not only be a new Pinnacle class ship, but also the 15th unit realized by Fincantieri for Holland America Line…

As part of a $300-million brand enhancement initiative, Carnival Corporation’s Holland America Line is planning enhancements to its top staterooms with new furnishings, décor, amenities and upgrades for all suites on the line’s Signature-, Vista- and R-Class ships. The first ships to undergo the suite transformation will be ms Eurodam and ms Oosterdam, followed by ms Nieuw Amsterdam, ms Westerdam, ms Zuiderdam and ms Noordam. Additionally, ms Amsterdam, ms Rotterdam, ms Volendam…

The Panama Canal cruise ship season 2015-2016 will officially begin on October 3 with the transit of Costa Luminosa, on a voyage from Italy around the world. “Approximately 220 cruise ships are expected to transit through the Panama Canal during this season that spans from October 2015 to April 2016,” said international trade specialist Albano G. Aguilar of the Vice Presidency for Planning and Business Development. Just like previous years, the main cruise lines including Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Celebrity Cruise Line and Norwegian Cruise Line will offer itineraries of 10 or more days, including the Panama Canal as part of the experience.

On recent routine United States Public Health inspections (USPHI) conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Holland America Line’s ms Statendam, ms Nieuw Amsterdam and ms Ryndam achieved perfect scores of 100. For Statendam, the unannounced inspection was Feb. 19, 2015, at Hilo, Hawaii, during a 30-day Tahiti and Marquesas cruise roundtrip from San Diego. CDC officials surprised Nieuw Amsterdam, on March 1, 2015, at Fort Lauderdale, Florida, while preparing for its seven-day Caribbean cruise. Ryndam completed its inspection March 8 in Tampa, Florida, while also getting ready for a seven-day Caribbean cruise. Prior to these inspections, Statendam received a score of 100 in June 2014 during a call at Ketchikan, Alaska.

Carnival Corporation today announced it will begin welcoming guests at its new $85 million Amber Cove port in the Dominican Republic beginning in October 2015. The facility, which represents the largest cruise industry investment ever made in the Dominican Republic, is expected to host more than 250,000 passengers in its first year of operation. The port facility will allow cruise ships to make stops along the Dominican Republic's Amber Coast, a northern coastline that hasn't been visited by cruise ships since the 1980s. Six of Carnival Corporation’s nine brands will call on Amber Cove.

Holland America Line revealed the name of its new 99,500-ton cruise ship slated for delivery in February 2016 will be ms Koningsdam. While the name pays homage to the company’s rich heritage and deep roots in the Netherlands, it also reflects a new era with a bold name that is an original in Holland America Line’s 141-year history. Fincantieri’s Marghera shipyard. Since 1883 every Holland America passenger vessel has borne the “dam” suffix, and ms Koningsdam carries on that tradition. The word koning means “king” in Dutch, and the name celebrates the majestic new ship. The name also pays honor to His Majesty King Willem-Alexander, the first king of the Netherlands in over a century. Holland America Line has a long, proud history with the Netherlands.

Travelers looking for an intimate, mid-sized cruise experience in the Caribbean have 126 itineraries to choose from during Holland America Line’s 2014-15 Caribbean season. well as partial transits of the Panama Canal. The diverse itineraries visit 30 ports and give discerning guests more options than any other premium line exploring the region. From October 2014 through April 2015, ms Eurodam, ms Maasdam, ms Nieuw Amsterdam, ms Noordam, ms Ryndam, ms Westerdam and ms Zuiderdam sail regular Caribbean voyages, while ms Amsterdam and ms Prinsendam each sail one December holiday cruise in the region. The ships feature 21 different seven-, 10-, 11- and 14-day itineraries that can be combined into longer Collectors’ Voyages ranging from 14 to 25 days.

The company's new Pinnacle-class cruise ship to feature interiors designed by two leading firms. Holland America Line has selected two design companies to create the interior spaces of the line's new 99,000-ton ship that is slated for delivery in February 2016. The first in a new Pinnacle-class of vessel, the ship will showcase decors by designer Adam D. Tihany and designer and architect Bjorn Storbraaten. Tihany will join Storbraaten, who successfully worked with Holland America Line on Eurodam and  Nieuw Amsterdam, in designing the ship's public rooms. Adam D.

Carnival Corporation & plc orders new ships, one each for Its Holland America Line and Carnival Cruise Lines brands. A memorandum of agreement has been signed with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri for the construction of a 2,660-passenger ship for Holland America Line scheduled for delivery in fall 2015 and a 4,000-passenger ship for Carnival Cruise Lines scheduled for delivery in winter 2016. The total cost for the two vessels combined, which includes the U.S. dollar denominated contract price and all owner's costs, will be approximately $195,000 per lower berth. The memorandum of agreement is subject to customary closing conditions, including execution of shipbuilding contracts and financing.

You don't really know a boat until she's hauled. Plying her trade on the water, her best half's submerged out of sight. We think we recognize her - "oh, there's Odin," or "Shelby Rose," or "Twintube" - but what are we seeing? The lines of the deckhouse, the shape and placement of the wheelhouse, the arrangement of the stacks? These are the parts known as the superstructure - "super," in this case, meaning simply "upon." It's a little like saying we recognize someone by his hat. The boat's defining structure starts at the main deck and goes downward from there. What little we see of it is low on the horizon. There's the deck's line, along with a smattering of bulwarks.

The latest in the saga surrounding the remaining vessels of the American Classic Voyages' (AMCV's) fleet involves the vessel, which was formerly known as M/S Patriot. Carnival Corp.'s Holland America Line brand has entered into a long- term agreement to charter the cruise ship, which was also once known as m/s Nieuw Amsterdam, to Cypress-based Louis Cruises, which will subcharter the vessel to Thomson Holidays in the U.K. The vessel will be marketed as the Thomson Spirit. Holland America sold the vessel to U.S. Lines, a subsidiary of AMCV in 2000, which operated the ship in Hawaii under the name Patriot, however, it was reclaimed by Holland America in foreclosure proceedings earlier this year. The charter became effective yesterday.

A fire broke out aboard a Dutch cruise ship carrying nearly 1,700 passengers and crew as it steamed through Glacier Bay National Park last Tuesday morning, the U.S. Coast Guard said. No one was seriously injured. The fire aboard the Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam was reported at 9:40 a.m. and doused within 45 minutes, the Coast Guard said. The blaze was confined to the rear section of the ship, in the crew quarters and below the main passenger deck. One person sustained minor injuries that were attributed to the fire. "A passenger was disoriented, fell and hit his head," said Coast Guard Petty Officer Mitchell Fletcher. A four-person team…

A cruise ship hit by fire early Tuesday has been cleared to continue its voyage and was headed Wednesday to its final port of Seward, Alaska, the U.S. Coast Guard said. Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam, a ship with nearly 1,200 passengers and 542 crew members, departed Bartlett Cove in southeast Alaska's Glacier Bay National Park late Tuesday after investigators began their probe of the fire, the Coast Guard said. No one was seriously injured in the blaze, which occurred in crew quarters and was put out within 45 minutes. However, one passenger was evacuated from the ship after becoming disoriented and suffering a head injury, the Coast Guard said. The cause of the fire was still unknown Wednesday, said Coast Guard Lt. Troy Dixon of the agency's marine safety office in Juneau.

Since beginning his cruise industry career as Royal Caribbean's first ever marketing director — Roderick K. (Rod) McLeod has been an instrumental force in the cruise industry. He now heads up what is arguably the world’s most watched cruise ship newbuild program. Having a discussion with Rod McLeod is like talking to an old friend that you haven't been in touch with for awhile. Even though you may have not spoken for months — or even years — you always manage to find enough to talk about. That was the case when McLeod recently spoke with MR/EN regarding his current endeavors as president and COO of AMCV, as well as his past experiences — both professionally and personally.

Since 1999, when American Classic Voyages (AMCV) first announced its intention to construct two U.S.-flagged cruise ships that would be staffed by American officers and crew, the U.S. shipbuilding industry received a boost back into an area that it had not participated for almost 30 years — the cruise shipping market. Prior to the construction of the two vessels by Litton Ingalls Shipbuilding, AMCV wanted to start making money right away — it purchased the 17-year-old ms Nieuw Amsterdam for $114.5 million from Holland America. AMCV then received an official notice from Congress that provided exemption from the Jones Act, thus allowing the U.S. Coast Guard to re-flag the foreign registered vessel.

United States Lines' premiere vessel, the 1,212-passenger MS Patriot arrived on Thursday at its homeport of Honululu, Oahu as the newest and largest cruise vessel serving the Hawaiian Islands year-round. The vessel, which breaks a 40-year stagnation within the U.S. cruise ship industry, is scheduled to be christened today by Maggie Inouye, wife of Senator Daniel Inouye, who will perform the official dedication. Formerly known as Holland America's MS Nieuw Amsterdam, the vessel was purchased by American Classic Voyages (AMCV), by U.S. Lines parent company, AMCV for $114.5 million in 1999. Following an extensive refurbishment process,…

Carnival Corporation reported net income of $194.2 million on revenues of $989.2 million for its second quarter ended May 31, 2002, compared to net income of $187 million on revenues of $1.08 billion for the same quarter in 2001. Net income for the six months ended May 31, 2002 was $323.8 million on revenues of $1.89 billion, compared to net income of $314.9 million on revenues of $2.09 billion for the same period in 2001. Earnings for the second quarter of 2002 were reduced by a $9 million loss, including related expenses, on the sale of Holland America Line's Nieuw Amsterdam and by $12 million from cancelled cruises. number of guests purchasing air transportation from the company. partially offset by an increase in cruise capacity of 2.1 percent.