After 17 years, Holland America Line said goodbye to one of their own as Prinsendam sailed away to another cruise line. Holland America is not the first to bid the Prinsendam farewell however, she has seen a handful of owners in the past.
She was built in 1988 as the Royal Viking Sun for Royal Viking Line, then briefly owned by both Cunard and Seabourn before joining the Holland America fleet in 2002.
“Prinsendam has proudly served our guests since 2002, and we share in the fondness that many of our loyal cruisers have for this special ship,” said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line.
“As we look to the future and focus on delivering the programming and innovations that our guests are asking for, we remain focused on exceeding guest expectations on every cruise and will continue to offer the unique itineraries that Prinsendam sailed on our other, smaller ships.”
The Prinsendam was actually sold last July to German cruise company Phoenix Reisen but was then chartered back to Holland America Line to fulfill itineraries that were already booked through July 1, 2019. Prinsendam‘s itineraries will now be covered by Rotterdam, Volendam, and Veendam.
After the month-long dry dock, the 835-guest ship will be renamed the Amera and will sail from Northern Europe and the Mediterranean beginning August 21, 2019, under Phoenix Reisen.
