Holland America Line reveals MS Koningsdam as name for new flagship

Holland America Line, which has cruise ships visiting both Dubai in the Middle East and the South African cruise port of Cape Town in the 2014 and 2015 cruise seasons, has at last announced the name of its new flagship currently under construction in Italy.

Holland America Line, which is widely regarded as Europe’s answer to the British cruise line Cunard (even though both are now American-owned) will name its new ship MS Koningsdam. The 2,650-passenger cruise liner is currently being built at Fincantieri shipyard in Italy and will enter service in February 2016.

At 99,500-gross tons, Koningsdam will be the largest cruise ship ever built for Holland America Line, which traces its roots back to 1873 when it was a Dutch passenger and cargo line operating between The Netherlands and North America.

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Her name pays honour to the new Dutch monarch, King Willem-Alexander as koning means “king” in Dutch, which doubles up as a nice reference to the rich history of the cruise line. Since 1883 ever Holland America Line ship, apart from the 1951-built SS Zuiderkruis has carried the ‘dam’ suffix.

MS Koningsdam will be the first cruise ship in the new Pinnacle-Class, and fittingly she is also the first Holland America Line cruise ship to carry the name Koningsdam. Indeed, along with the Eurodam, this new flagship is only the second Holland America Line vessel not named after a former HAL liner.

The launch of Konigsdam will restore the cruise line’s passenger capacity which will be partially lost next year when two of their oldest cruise ships are transferred to the P&O Australia fleet, which is also owned the Carnival Corporation, the largest cruise company in the world.

Holland America Line has for several years been a regular fixture in both the South African and Dubai cruise calendars. In 2015, their ship MS Rotterdam will once more visit Dubai, with Holland America Line offering a 17-night Dubai to Singapore cruise departing on January 31st, 2015.

On the 23rd of March, her sister ship MS Amsterdam will depart Dubai on a 38-night cruise to Fort Lauderdale, while further Dubai cruise departures for Holland America Line have been confirmed for 2016.

Later in the year, MS Rotterdam can be found in Cape Town, where she will depart the city on November 14th bound for Southampton, a 35-night South African cruise that features an immersive West African itinerary.