Holland America Line
From cruise.travel.com
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Holland America Line was founded in 1873 as the Dutch-America Steamship Company, a shipping and passenger line. Because it was headquartered in Rotterdam and provided service to the Americas, it became known as Holland America Line (HAL).
Within 25 years, HAL owned a fleet of six cargo and passenger ships, and operated between the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies via the newly constructed Suez Canal. The line was a principal carrier of immigrants from Europe to the United States until well after the turn of the century, carrying 850,000 to new lives in the New World.
Though transportation and shipping were the primary sources of revenue, in 1895 the company offered its first vacation cruise. Its second leisure cruise, from New York to the Holy Land, was first offered in 1910. In 1971, HAL suspended its transatlantic passenger trade and, in 1973, the company sold its cargo shipping division. In 1989, HAL became a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival Corp., the largest cruise company in the world.
In addition to its fleet of cruise ships, Holland America also owns the Westmark Hotels hotel chain which operates in Alaska and the Yukon, the bus companies Gray Line of Seattle and Gray Line of Alaska, and Worldwide Shore Services, which provides warehouse and logistical support for the company. HAL shares its headquarters in Seattle's Lower Queen Anne district with the above mentioned subsidiaries. Finally, HAL owns "Half Moon Cay" (its own private island in the Caribbean, officially known as Little San Salvador Island); nearly all of the line's cruises through the region spend at least a day there.
Current Ships
| Ship | Built | Refurb. | Registry | Tonnage | Pax (Basis 2) | Pax Decks | Crew | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam | 2000 | 2005 | Netherlands | 62,735 | 1,380 | 10 | 647 | R Class |
| Eurodam | 2008 | - | Netherlands | 86,700 | 2,104 | 11 | 929 | Signature Class |
| Maasdam | 1993 | 2006 | Netherlands | 55,575 | 1,258 | 10 | 557 | S Class |
| Noordam | 2006 | - | Netherlands | 82,318 | 1,918 | 11 | 800 | Vista Class |
| Oosterdam | 2003 | 2007 | Netherlands | 81,769 | 1,848 | 11 | 800 | Vista Class |
| Prinsendam | 1988 | 2007 | Netherlands | 37,848 | 793 | 9 | 428 | - |
| Rotterdam | 1997 | 2007 | Netherlands | 59,855 | 1,316 | 10 | 593 | R Class |
| Ryndam | 1994 | 2004 | Netherlands | 55,819 | 1,258 | 10 | 588 | S Class |
| Statendam | 1993 | 2007 | Netherlands | 55,819 | 1,258 | 10 | 557 | S Class |
| Veendam | 1996 | 2006 | Netherlands | 55,758 | 1,258 | 10 | 557 | S Class |
| Volendam | 1999 | 2005 | Netherlands | 61,396 | 1,432 | 10 | 588 | R Class |
| Westerdam | 2004 | 2007 | Netherlands | 82,500 | 1,916 | 11 | 800 | Vista Class |
| Zaandam | 2000 | 2007 | Netherlands | 61,396 | 1,432 | 10 | 607 | R Class |
| Zuiderdam | 2002 | 2005 | Netherlands | 81,769 | 1,848 | 11 | 800 | Vista Class |