Today Holland America is 148 years young and although 2020 was the most challenging year in its history as far as sailing goes, we will weather this storm and we will continue.  Our history has taught us many valuable lessons and gives ample proof we the company is able to weather any storm. Whether it was War, Depression, the onset of the Airplane, or the Mass market cruisers,   the company has always navigated safely through every challenge.  So I am confident that we will sail through the Covid Storm as well.

In November this year I will be sailing for Holland America for 40 years in those years I have seen how strong this company is in dealing with challenging great and small.

So Happy Birth Day Holland America. Two years to go to the big 150

As a small tribute I have created a company time line from the beginning to the current day.

Please find below the highlights of our History, year by year, condensed to two sentences. Every year has several highlights and what are considered the most important greatly depends on an historians personal insights. These are mine. I have tried to find an illustration in my collection which relates to the year concerned,

For more information, under the drop down box of HAL history on this website, I have also brought the company history up-to-date with more information and photos.

Enjoy

Capt. Albert

1816   The first Steamboat visits Rotterdam and the public and business community gets the first glimpse of what can be done without sails.

1825   The first river boats with (auxiliary) stream propulsion arrive on the Dutch inland waterways and thoughts in Rotterdam are going towards using steam for deep sea.

1863   The Dutch Government agrees to create a “New Waterway”, capable of accommodating deep drafted Steamships, which will link the port of Rotterdam with the North Sea.

1871   On February 08, the forebear of the Holland America line is founded; by means of the private company C.V Plate, Reuchlin & Co. and two new steamships are ordered in Scotland.

1872   The Nieuwe Waterweg .e.g. New Water Way is opened. On October 15, the first ship of the new company the ss Rotterdam (I) departs for New York.

1873   On April 18, the private company goes public to obtain funds for more ships and the Nederlandsch Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij or NASM sees the light of day. We consider this  the official birthday of Holland America Line.

1874  Two new ships are added to the Fleet, the s.s. W.A Scholten and the s.s. P. Caland. With four ships a regular steamship service to New York can now be maintained.

1875   The “Nieuwe Waterweg” starts to silt up and the ships have to take a circumstantial inland water route to reach Rotterdam or discharge cargo to reduce the draft. All costing time and money.

1876   The new company is in crisis as there is an economic slump in the USA and no investments can be made as there is not much money coming in.

1877 Trade picks up and a fifth ship, the ss Schiedam (I), is added to the fleet. This is an existing ship which is taken over from English Company and could thus be directly slotted into the fleet.

1878   Holland America at this time was primarily an emigrant carrier and in this year it started to work together with the local authorities to ensure good local hotel facilities for the waiting emigrants.

1879 Profits are up and the company orders a new ship. The ss Amsterdam (I) would arrive in March 1880. Also this year dividend could be paid again to the shareholders.

1880   A sister ship to the Amsterdam (I) was ordered and arrived in 1881, called the Edam (I) The ships now had a permanent dock location in Rotterdam where the company would stay until 1891.

1881   Also on the American side a permanent pier was leased. The company settled down at the Hoboken side of the river. Here the leases were cheaper and the docks were also closer to the railroad station.

1882   Competition from a company in Amsterdam had to be warded off and for the next 10 years Holland America also sailed from this port. Using charter ships in the beginning and own tonnage later.

1883   The ss Maas, the 2^nd ship of the company went for a refit and the company grabbed the opportunity to rename her in Maasdam (I) establishing the naming pattern which has lasted to the current day.

1884   The ss Amsterdam (I) was lost due to a fire caused by an exploding petrol lamp and the ship was not directly replaced as trade was not as brisk as was hoped for.

1885   By now a trade war had broken out on the North Atlantic. More ships meant more berths to fill and thus the emigrant ticket prices went down. It would not be until 1892 that a solution was derived at.

1886   Trade started to pick up again and in a few years’ time seven more ships were added to the fleet. Rotterdam (II), Amsterdam (II), Maasdam (II), Obdam, Werkendam, Veendam (I), Spaarndam (I).

1887   Another ship was lost, the W.A Scholten from 1874, which sank after a collision. The man after which the ship was named came from the town of Veendam and hence a new Veendam (I) was added.

1888   A new headquarters was established at “Het Poort Gebouw” in Rotterdam. Easily recognizable as the entrance road into the dock area went under the office areas. The company would stay here until 1891.

1889   The company decided to diversify and opened a service to Argentina with the Zaandam (I) taking the first sailing to Buenos Aires in December.

1890 The trade to Argentina look promising and two new ships were ordered for this route. The Didam and the Dubbeldam. However a revolution broke out and the venture came to an untimely end.

1891 The Head Office moved to the Wilhelminakade in the center of the port and here it would keep it main office until the passenger side was moved to New York in 1971.

1892   Very important for the survival of most of the North Atlantic steamship company’s was the creation of the North Atlantic Steam Association which from now on regulated the prices for emigrant crossings.

1893   The World Fair took place in Paris and the HAL ships started to call at the French Port of Boulogne Sur Mer. BSM would remain the regular French port of call for the company until the 2^nd world war.

1894   At Hoboken a 2^nd pier was leased from the port Authority at 7^th. Street and here the company would keep its terminal until 1964 when it fully moved to the Manhattan side of the Hudson River.

1895 The ss Rotterdam (II) made the first cruise for Holland America with an “excursion” to the Kieler Kanal. The success would help to decide the entry into cruising a number of years later.

1896   The Directors of the NASM finally accepted the fact that everybody called the company Holland America Line and not by its very long founding name. Both titles were now to be used.

1897   The ss Rotterdam (III) entered service and she was the first twin screw vessel for the company. This ship was still built in Great Britain as the Dutch yards could not yet deliver ships of this size.

1898   A near sister if the Rotterdam (III), the Statendam (I) entered service and she has been credited with being the first ship where the management took a great interest in the interior lay out of the vessel.

1899   A new route was opened to Newport News for cargo ships and this was so successful that 3 new cargo-only ships were ordered. These all received names with Dijk endings such as ss Amsteldijk (I).

1900   The ships with a DAM name ending were now designated as Passenger ships and three new ones were brought into service. The ss Potsdam (1900), ss Noordam (I) (1901) and the ss Rijndam (I) (1902)

1901 The Banker and Rail Road magnate J.P Morgan obtained control of a large number of HAL shares and also those of some other companies. Idea was to create a “railroad at sea” without competition.

1902   More than 51% of the shares came under his control and timetables were brought in line with the sailings of the other companies. It was not until well into WWI before HAL was independent again.

1903   The company established a French Subsidiary in Boulogne Sur Mer, called the Compagnie Franco Hollando Americaine, needed to operate its tenders as the ships stayed at anchor at this port.

1904   Telegraphy arrived on the ships and the ss Noordam (I) was the first to receive such an installation. Not operated by the company’s officers but by the Marconi Company who controlled the trade.

1905   With the Ticket prices regulated competition had become fair again and the company had ordered two new and very big ships the Nieuw Amsterdam (I) and the Rotterdam (IV).

1906 The Nieuw Amsterdam (I) arrived this year and with a tonnage of 16967 Grt. It was one of the 10 largest ships in the world for that year. It could carry 2350 emigrants but also 440 First Class and 246 second class pax.

1907   The service to Newport News was expanded with regular calls at other ports and would remain part of the Holland America route system to well into the late 1960’s.

1908   The Rotterdam (IV) was 30% larger than the Nieuw Amsterdam but its emigrant accommodation was smaller as the company was now offering more elbow room for even its cheapest fare guests.

1909   The British Neptune Line to Newport News was taken over and with it came six cargo ships, greatly expanding the fleet. In New York Holland America took part in the Hudson – Festivities.

1910 The Statendam (I) made a cruise to the Holy Land in March and its success made sure that the ss Rotterdam (IV) would eventually be used for similar voyages.

1911   Another service, started in 1910, became a permanent feature with cargo ships sailing from Rotterdam to Savannah. This route was called the “Burg Lijn” and was carried out for a Dutch brokerage company.

1912   A new cargo service to Cuba, Mexico and New Orleans was opened. This was such a success that after WWI a series of 4 passenger cargo ships was built especially for this route.

1913   To have sufficient capacity for all these new routes, new cargo ships were taken into service. The Oosterdijk, Westerdijk and Zuiderdijk, all named after the main points of a compass.

1914   On the 6^th. of July, the Statendam (II) was launched with the intention to have her enter service in 1915. War interfered and she was torpedoed in 1917 as the troopship Justicia sailing for the British.

1915   The Netherlands was neutral during WWI and most ships continued sailing but under very difficult circumstances. 3 ships hit a mine and all ships were subject to strict inspections by the allied forces.

1916   The U-boat danger was now so grave that the ss Rotterdam (IV) was laid up but the profits made with the other ships were so high that the 1915 dividend was set at 50% over each share.

1917   Two cargo ships, the Noorderdijk (I) and Zaandijk (I) were torpedoed on the same day and sunk. The Noordam (I) ran on a mine for the 2^nd time. But profits continued to be good and  the company managed to buy back all foreign held shares. Making it a fully independent company again.

1918   All the HAL ships that were laid up in USA ports had been seized in 1917 and forced into service for the US Government. The Oosterdijk sank after a collision and the ss Rijndam (I) became a US troopship.

1919   With the war over reconstruction could begin. Cargo ships from Germany were taken over, two replacement passengerships were ordered for the sunk ss Justicia and 60,000 tons of steel was received as compensation.

1920   Holland America participated in a joint venture with other Dutch companies called the VNS or United Shipping for services to the Far East and Africa. Each company participated with entering own ships.

1921   Plans to return to the pre-war emigrant trade were dashed when US congress approved a Quota Act to reduce the number of emigrants entering the USA. Basically now only 10% of the postwar emigrant numbers were allowed to be landed by each company. Other sources of income had to be found.

1922   Two medium seized passenger ships entered service, the Veendam (II) and Volendam (I) their immigrant capacity reduced from 1200 Third class to 484 Tourist Class.

1923   With the 60,000 tons steel a series o f cargo ships were built called the B class. Construction of a new Statendam (III) started in 1920 was halted. Holland America changed the spelling of the ships names from IJ to Y. So a Dutch Dijk became an American Dyk.

1924   The hull of the Statendam (III) was launched without ceremony and promptly laid up with all work suspended due to lack of money.

1925 The Rotterdam (IV) had resumed the pre-war Holy Land cruises from New York and would from now on make each year such a cruise during the North Atlantic Off-season of January, February and March.

1926   A more un-usual cruise was made this year, the Ryndam (I) went for a seven month around the World cruise as a floating University. The 506 students on board visited the countries they studied about on board, saw the sights, and also met Mussolini and the King of Siam.

1927   The hull of the laid up Statendam (II) was towed to Holland for completion and would enter service in 1929. Finally there was money to complete the ship which was quite similar to the ill fated  Statendam (II)

1928   Two new motor ships (Delftdyk/Damsterdyk) had been ordered for the North Pacific service to Vancouver in 1927 and would come into service in 1929 and 1930. Each could carry 50 passengers.

1929   There was the Wall Street Crash and the maiden voyage of the ss Statendam (III). The company now had 3 large passenger ships in service but at the same time revenue plummeted.

  1930 Most of the Cargo ships were laid up and carrying passengers to Cuba and the Gulf of Mexico was completely stopped and the route only continued as a cargo service.

1931 Cost savings had to be made and Sea and Shore side personnel were laid off. Contributions to the pension fund were reduced and some permanent labour contracts were changed to “by the day”.

1932 Ticket prices were reduced by up to 40%. Laid up cargo ships were sold off or scrapped. The Nieuw Amsterdam (I) was sold for scrap in 1931 and no feasible plans could be considered for a replacement.

1933 The shareholders became so worried about their investments that a special “strong man” from outside the company was appointed to restructure the company at save it for the future.

1934   The new company structure was successful and as world trade slowly improved plans were drawn up to build a running mate for the Statendam (III) which eventually entered service in 1938

1935   The company made a profit again and decided to design 4 passenger cargo ships for the direct intermediate service to New York with a one class accommodation of 125 passengers.

1936   A sign of things to come was when the Statendam (III) carried an airplane to the Netherlands for the Royal Dutch Airlines. It were the airplanes which eventually brought the regular passenger liner service to an end.

1937 On the 10^th of April Queen Wilhelmina launched the new flagship of the company the Nieuw Amsterdam (II) and two new cargo ships were ordered, the Sloterdyk (II) and Sommelsdyk (III).

1938   The first of the four passenger cargo ships the Noordam (II) came into service in April followed by Nieuw Amsterdam (II) in May. With a size of £36,287 gt. She could carry 1200+ passengers in 3 classes.

1939 The Red Star Line was bought. Owned by the Jewish Mr. Bernstein who could no longer operate the company due being under arrest in Germany. Two ships the ss Pennland and the ss Westernland were taken over.

1940   On 10 May 1940 Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands. Luckily most of the fleet was outside the home port and joined the Allied war effort. The Statendam (III) caught fire and burnt out. As resistance was fierce, the City of Rotterdam was bombed causing the Dutch to surrender.

1941   The cargo ship ss Beemsterdyk was torpedoed and the ss Pennland sank after air attacks off Greece. Shortly after the ss Maasdam (II) was also torpedoed and sank while in convoy when a nearby ship exploded.

1942 Apart from the cargo ship ss Breedyk also  the ppassenger cargo liner ss Zaandam (II) was torpedoed and suffered 127 casualties including two Holland America Line captains.

1943   The passenger ships were all converted to troopships. The ms Noordam (II) designed for 125 passengers could now carry 2300 troops and the ss Nieuw Amsterdam (II) just short of 9000.

1944   At home two cargo passenger ships, Westerdam  (I) and Zuiderdam (I) had been under construction when the war started and were now used as blockade ships to keep the expected invasion out the ports.

1945 After the liberation on the 10 th. of May 1945 the rebuiling started at once. Holland America had lost 50% of its fleet, 265 employees had lost their lives and nearly all the Rotterdam property was damaged beyond repair and needed to be rebuilt from scratch.

1946   The Nieuw Amsterdam (II) arrived home on 10 April 1946 with a war record of having steamed 530,452 miles and carried 378,361 troops. A record only broken by the Cunard Queens who were double the size.

1947   Part of the rebuilt program was the acquisition of 10 Victory cargo ships who were called the A class. The Veendam (II) which had spent the war in Germany returned to service as well as the Nieuw Amsterdam (II).

1948   In three years’ time 19 ships were added to the fleet and 5 passenger ships were in operation. Plans were drawn up for new ships for the West Coast service and to replace the Veendam (II) and Volendam (I)

1949   A new service was opened to South America and the company became an important carrier of goods for the Marshall Plan, the support program the USA had set up to get Europe back on its feet again.

1950 Two pre-war ships employed on the North Pacific service  were completely refurbished and renamed.  This service ran from Hamburg via Rotterdam, Panama Canal along the whole Pacific Coast of North America to Vancouver.

1951   The ss Ryndam (II) was commissioned followed by a sister ship the ss Maasdam (IV) and they took over from the aging V ships. Because the original hull design had been meant for a cargo ship they were known to be very ” lively”.

1952   For the booming emigrant trade the HAL took over the troopship Groote Beer from the Dutch Government and used her for emigrant services to the USA and Canada and student trips to Europe.

1953   Business was going well and thoughts went towards an intermediate liner which could also be used for cruises and a running mate for the Nieuw Amsterdam (II) which would become the Rotterdam (V).

1954   The company expanded once again their cargo network with opening a new route to the Great Lakes when access locks to the St. Lawrence River were enlarged. The K-class ships were built.

1955   The name ss Statendam (IV) was announced for the intermediate Liner which was to enter service in 1957 and the order for the Rotterdam (V) was given to the Rotterdam Dry-dock Company in Rotterdam.

1956   The clasas concept of the Ryndam (II) had proven very successful and thus the Statendam (IV) also was designed with a small First Class and a large Tourist Class capacity making it easy for one class cruising.

1957   The ss Statendam (IV) came into service on the North Atlantic route and would make in 1958 the First World cruise for the company with normal guests on board.

1958   The Statendam (IV) made the first world cruise for regular passengers and the ss Rotterdam (V) was launched on the 13^th. of September by her Majesty Queen Juliana of the Netherlands.

1959   In 1958 the airplane had carried as many travellers as all the ships on the North Atlantic route together and thus cruising became more and more important. Hence the new Flagship was optimized in layout for one class cruising during the North Atlantic off-season.

1960   The step by step arrival of the container in the cargo business meant that conventional cargo ships became less and less effective. Competitors from the past now joined up to form joint ventures to reduce the costs.

1961 New cargo ships, called the G-class were introduced especially for the Gulf of Mexico service and the older A class cargos ships were sold off one after the other and were all gone by 1969.

1962 With both the North Atlantic and the cargo business facing an uncertain future, the company decided to diversify with investments outside its core business. Acquisitions were made in hotels, an airline, travel agencies, a dredging company etc. etc.

1963   Between the end of 1962 and mid 1964 Holland America moved its operation from the Hoboken side of the Hudson to downtown Manhattan where it had taken a lease on the brand new Pier 40.

1964 A small passenger- cargo ship the Prinses Margriet which had been in charter for a while was taken over and used for North Atlantic crossings and well attended “cargo cruises” from New York to the Caribbean.

1965 The last conventional cargo ship the ms Moerdyk (II) came into service. The next step would be to invest in container ships and the company participated in the Atlantic Container Line.

1966   When the company was founded in 1873 it had been scheduled for a lifespan of 100 years. To avoid the company from being abolished in 1973 a new charter was adopted for an open ended future.

1967 The English company Cunard joined the ACL combine and each company would now participate with two ships. One slow, one fast. Holland America brought in the Atlantic Star and the fast Atlantic Crown.

1968   The North Atlantic service was coming to an end and the operating structure on board the passenger ships was changed to a Hotel setup with an integrated service led by a Hotel manager.

1969   The shore side operating structure was also re-organized with more clearly defined departments and overlaps were removed. The last ship of the A class the ss Andyk (II) was sold.

1970 An order was placed for two small cruise ships as the company wanted to experiment with an own design for the future cruise fleet. In the end only one was built. As the Dutch Tax system became so progressive the HAL introduced Indonesian crewmembers on the ships.

1971   A 70% share was taken in the Westours Tour Organization of Seattle which gave Holland America access to Alaska. The cruise ships were refurbished and a new “Wave” logo and hull color appeared.

1972   The company had also just introduced the ms Bilderdyk (II) a LASH (Lighter Aboard SHip) barge carrier for the Gulf service. 83 barges could be left behind for loading and un-loading while the ship continued its voyage.

1973   Now 100 years young and the company brought into service two ex-American passenger ships under the names of Volendam (II) and Veendam (III). But due to the oil crises they had to be laid up again.

1974 The 8900 ton Prinsendam (I) arrived carrying 374 guests was sent to Alaska and Indonesia for summer and winter cruises. It was also decided to sell off the complete cargo division as per 01 January 1975.

1975   The Veendam and Volendam came back into service but for a Subsidiary called Monarch Cruises with trips to the Caribbean from Miami. The Lease of Pier 40 in New York was sold and the offices moved to Two Penn Plaza.

1976   Although Holland America had pulled out of Europe with its ships and marketing, the company bought a British travel Agency chain as it was noted that many British Guests took P&O ships to the USA and Alaska.

1977  In 1973/74 the registration of the cruise ships had been moved from Rotterdam the Netherlands to Willemstad, Curacao.  In this year the financial seat of HAL was moved here was well.

1978 Monarch Cruises had been absorbed into a new company Holland America Tours. Investments were made in the Alaska infrastructure with buying more hotels, a day boat for the Lynn Canal and more coaches.

1979   As part of the Coach expansion The “Gray line of Seattle” franchise was bought. The buses were used to bring guests from Seattle airport to the ships in Vancouver and for sightseeing tours.

1980   Experience with the Prinsendam (I) had learned how much more economical a purposely designed ship was compared to the older tonnage such as the Statendam (IV). Two enlarged Prinsendam versions were ordered in France.

1981 The Prinsendam (I) would never see her larger sister as she sank in autumn 1980 in the Gulf of Alaska  due to an engine room fire; luckily without any casualties. A sightseeing company in the Prince William Sound was bought to provide glacier tours in College Fjord.

1982   More investments took place in Alaska and by now Westours / HAL controlled 65% of the Alaska Tour trade. The Statendam (IV) was sold to French Operators.

1983 The operating costs of the older ships had weighed heavily the balance sheet and this year was a crucial year in turning the company around by moving away from the old ways of operating and cost control. The first new build the Nieuw Amsterdam (III) entered service.

1984   The 2^nd new build the Noordam (III) entered service in April. The V ships were sold off but the Rotterdam (V) stayed as she could still very well cope with the changes in the Cruise Industry.

1985   Apart from the yearly world cruise of the Rotterdam (V) all three ships were now employed on short but very profitable cruises to Alaska, Mexico and the Caribbean.

1986  The company started to employ Ladies from the Philippines  in the Front Office and in the Bars.

1987   The Rotterdam (V) made her last world cruise as the revenue on the shorter cruise was much higher. A 50% share in Windstar Sail Cruises was taken and the company bought outright in 1988

1988   The next acquisition was buying the Home Line ships, Atlantic and Homeric. The Atlantic was chartered out and then sold off but the Homeric became the Westerdam (II) and was with 42000 tons the largest ship ever to sail under the Holland America Line flag.

1989   On 15 January Holland America became un-expectedly an independent subsidiary of the Carnival Corporation of Miami. They operated Carnival Cruise Lines but now wanted access to the premium market.

1990 Money was made available to order 3 new ships called the S-class in Italy. Each to be in the region of 55,000 tons with 1266 lower beds. A new hotel was built overlooking Ketchikan in a joint venture with the local Indian tribe.

1991   17 more coaches were added to the Alaska coach fleet and they were quite special as they had a small kitchen/bar with stewardess on board at the end of the cabin.

1992   The company now geared up for a major tour de force, doubling the fleet by adding a new ship every year for the next 3 years and needing to train up about 3000 new crewmembers.

1993 The first new built ms Statendam (V) was delayed entering service by 6 weeks but made a big impact as, although carrying more guests, her space ratio compared to the N ships was 43.8 against 27.9. The Maasdam (V) followed in October.

1994   The ms Statendam (V) was send on a world cruise but it was decided to move the cruise back to the Rotterdam which had done made the 1993 World Cruise. With all the extra capacity available the company started to sail in European waters in the summer as well and not just to Alaska.

1995   With the arrival of the Ryndam (III) the fleet was complete but a fourth sister the Veendam (IV) had been ordered for 1996. HAL ships were now sailing to all corners of the world.

1996   Project “Fastdam” was embarked upon. A ship which could take over the role of the Rotterdam (V) and with a 25 knot speed visit more ports on longer (world cruises) in a same time period.

1997   The company leased 15000 acres of Little San Salvador Island in the Bahamas as a resort and renamed it Half Moon Cay.  The Rotterdam (V) left Holland America on September 30^th. but a new Rotterdam (VI) filled the void.

1998   Now 125 years young the company was thriving as never before. In this year 120 departures to Alaska were offered and a sister ship for the Rotterdam (VI) was ordered.

1999   Competition was fierce in Alaska with Princess Cruises bringing in larger and larger ships. The answer was the Vista class; a series of four ships with 1900 guests but with the same space ratio as the S class.

2000   The Volendam (III) had entered service in 1999 and was followed by her sister the Zaandam (III) in this year. Also the Amsterdam (III) was commissioned, completing the R Class of four ships.

2001 The Nieuw Amsterdam (II) had been sold to United States Lines in 2000 and renamed in Patriot only to return after USL went bankrupt. The ship was eventually sold on and chartered by TUI for many years.

2002   The Prinsendam (II) arrived. Transferred by Carnival Corporation from Seabourn / Cunard to HAL who needed a smaller ship for longer cruises which also able to go into smaller ports.

2003  The Signature of Excellence program started. This was an investment program to bring all the existing ship up to the highest standards by investing in remakes of public areas, new soft goods in then cabins and back of the house upgrades.

2004   In 2002 the first Vista class ship had entered service; the Zuiderdam (II), followed by the Oosterdam in 2003 and now the Westerdam (III) in 2004. Eventually the Noordam (IV) followed in 2006.

2005 While the SOE program continued, more new ships were considered and an upgraded version of the Vista class, the Signature class was decided upon. One to enter service in 2008 and one in 2010

2006   One of the “back of the House” upgrades was the introduction of “Hoteling”. When a ship was in port it could now be connected to the shore side power grid and for the duration its own engines were not needed. All ships from the Amsterdam (III) onwards were upgraded in this way.

2007 Windstar became less and less compatible with the core operation of the company and was sold off. Investments were made in the offices both in Rotterdam and Seattle.

2008   The ms Eurodam was dedicated in Rotterdam by HM Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. The ship had an additional Far East themed restaurant on board and with it came the first female Indonesian employees.

2009   As part of the SOE the “Mix” was introduced on the ships, a central public area with bars and entertainment. Computer classes were given and the facilities on Half Moon Cay were expanded.

2010   The capacity of the ms Prinsendam (II) was increased with 22 cabins at the aft part of the ship and the Nieuw Amsterdam (IV) the 2^nd ship of the Signature class entered service.

2011   Seabourn Cruises became a daughter company of Holland America and this resulted in cost reductions as the operations departments could merge or work closer together.

2012   The number of cruises starting in Europe had been expanding through the years and this year the Rotterdam (VI) sailed all year around from the port of Rotterdam on long and short cruises.

2013   The HAL Group was created within Carnival Corporation consisting out of Holland America, Seabourn, Princess, P&O Australia and the Alaskan Land Operations. A new ship was ordered in Italy.

2014   Statendam (V) and Ryndam (III) were transferred to P&O Australia to make room for the new class of ships, The Pinnacle Class of which a 2^nd one was ordered this year.

2015   Re-alignment in the HAL Group continued with the creation of two branches. Brands (Marketing and Sales and related ) and Marine Services (Support, HR, IT, Nautical, Technical and related)

2016   The first ship of the Pinnacle Class arrived, the ms Koningsdam. With a size of 99,500 tons she could carry 2500 guests. The main theme on board was music with musical art and multiple musical venues.

2017 Holland America built a new Head Office in Seattle, one block away from the old one, but now solely occupied by the HAL Group. A 3^rd Pinnacle Class ship was ordered with a delivery date of spring 2021.

2018   The company continued to invest in Alaska by expanding its McKinley Chalet Resort hotel in Denali Park with and extra hotel wing having 99 rooms. The Nieuw Statendam (VI) entered service in December.

2019   In June 2019 the ms Prinsendam (II) left the company and was sold to a German Operator. On 21 November 2019 the keel of the 3^rd Pinnacle Class ship the ms Ryndam (IV) was laid.

2020   On 14 March 2020 the company ordered a stop to all cruise operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic and all ships were ordered to disembark their guests. The ships went into Warm Lay-up.  4 ships were sold to other operators. On 20 July it was announced that the ms Ryndam (IV) would enter service as the ms Rotterdam (VII)

2021   The ships continued in lay-up waiting for the Pandemic to be brought under control with the vaccination programs and various countries opening their ports again.

Published 18 April 2021

Last Update 28 April 2021