Port Royal is set to join the list of Jamaican ports welcoming visitors as its first cruise ship since the start of the season, the Nieuw Statendam, one of Holland America’s newest vessels, will dock on Thursday, November 25.
The ship, which departed Florida’s Port Everglades on November 21, is on a seven-night Caribbean cruise. It made a stop in Ocho Rios and will make further stops in The Bahamas at Nassau and Half Moon Cay, Holland America’s private island destination.
The Nieuw Statendam is the fifth ship to resume operations for Holland America, joining sister ships — Rotterdam, Koningsdam, Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam.
It will be in the Caribbean from November to April, 2022, including Jamaica, on cruises ranging from seven to 11 days, all roundtrips from Port Everglades.
Assistant Vice President for Marketing and Promotions at the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ), Kimberly Stiff, welcomed the cruise ship to Port Royal.
“We welcome Holland America, an important cruise partner, back to Jamaica, especially Port Royal, which will be receiving its first vessel since the resumption of cruise shipping,” she said.
“The anticipation is great over here in Port Royal and as we did in Ocho Rios, Port Antonio and Falmouth, we expect that everything will go as smoothly and as seamlessly as possible… with all the health and safety protocols being followed,” Stiff added.
Chairman of the island’s Resilient Corridors Committee, John Byles, said that “it is such a delight” to see cruise shipping start to take shape once again at the various cruise ports.
“We are still in November and the numbers keep increasing by the week. The last two weeks, we would have seen 13 ships, a sure sign that we are on the road to recovery,” he said.
For his part, Senior Strategist/Adviser in the Ministry of Tourism, Delano Seiveright, said Holland America has always been a strong partner and “a true believer” in the Jamaican cruise product.
Built in Italy, the Nieuw Statendam originally entered service in 2018, as a sister to the 2016-built Koningsdam.
The 2,666-guest ship reflects the ongoing evolution of its fleet and blends rich heritage and classic style with state-of-the-art enhancements, according to Holland America Line.
After a 16-month hiatus, Holland America Line first resumed guest operations in July, offering a summer season in Alaska, and later expanded its restart to other regions, including the Mediterranean and the West Coast.
Source: Jamaica Information Service (JIS)
