What does the future have in store for the Prinsendam?

We just finished our 9th HAL cruise and the thrill is starting to fade. In fact we've made Oceania our new default cruise line due to their expanded itineraries, great food and professional lectures on sea days, regardless of the length of the cruise (most of the time).

However, while we were on an Alaskan cruise on the Amsterdam last week, we asked the HAL future cruise person about the future of the Prinsendam because we thought we'd give her a try in early 2020 as a comparable to Oceania's R Class ships. She mentioned she didn't think the Prinsendam would be around in 2020. Has anyone else heard that projection? Any updates on the Prinsendam will be greatly appreciated.

...........................She mentioned she didn't think the Prinsendam would be around in 2020. Has anyone else heard that projection? Any updates on the Prinsendam will be greatly appreciated.

Prinsendam will be 30 years old next year (2018). She has been for sale for some time. When/if the right buyer comes along, she will be outtahere. Having said that, when that moment comes, there will more than likely be a "farewell tour" on her

Back when we cruised on her in 2013, we were told she had 5 years. But since then, they have made some major investments in refurbishments, so who knows?

We are sailing in 2018 partially for the itinerary and partially because we love the ship and her fantastic crew and know it may be the last time on her.

So, we'll sail her while she is in the water and mourn when she goes. I fear there will be no replacement and there is no other HAL ship like her.

O cannot match some of the P'dam's itineraries. Very few ships can. While some are "standard" many are unique. So unique that ports we are going to have limited tour guides so I am glad we started looking early ;)

We are hoping that Holland will get 1 of Seaborn ships to replace the Prinsendam. Orlando said Holland won't build a New ship the size of the Prinsendam. But he did not say Holland won't take a existing ship on.

Prinsendam will be 30 years old next year (2018). She has been for sale for some time. When/if the right buyer comes along, she will be outtahere. Having said that, when that moment comes, there will more than likely be a "farewell tour" on her

This may be a silly question, but will she make all scheduled cruises after she is sold? I guess HAL has a right to cancel future cruises and send refunds to everyone with reservations on them.

This may be a silly question, but will she make all scheduled cruises after she is sold? I guess HAL has a right to cancel future cruises and send refunds to everyone with reservations on them.

HAL's history over the last 20 years (which is when I have been paying attention) is that the hand over of the ships is scheduled far enough out that planned cruises are completed. The final cruise is set, and made a special one for those final passengers.

Thanks everyone! I guess we'll just have to wait, watch and see.

Prinsendam will be 30 years old next year (2018). She has been for sale for some time. When/if the right buyer comes along, she will be outtahere. Having said that, when that moment comes, there will more than likely be a "farewell tour" on her

When asked a question about Prinsendam, the Captain on our recent Viking Passage explained that at 32 years a major inspection and "bringing the ship up to modern code" is required.

When asked a question about Prinsendam, the Captain on our recent Viking Passage explained that at 32 years a major inspection and "bringing the ship up to modern code" is required.

With HAL's current "rebranding" and cost-cutting efforts going on, it will be interesting to see what they wind up doing.

We are scheduled to sail on the Prinsendam Jan -Mar 2019. It will be our first time on that ship. I've noticed that nothing is scheduled for Dec 2018 so wondered if she will be in dry dock then.

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We are scheduled to sail on the Prinsendam Jan -Mar 2019. It will be our first time on that ship. I've noticed that nothing is scheduled for Dec 2018 so wondered if she will be in dry dock then.

 

 

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The Prinsendam is scheduled for the Amazon cruise ending Dec 9th and the holiday cruise starting Dec 21st. There does appear to be a gap between those dates so it is dry dock or they have have been chartered. So dry dock is a good guess!

We hope we have a few more years to sail on her. She is definitely our favorite ship. We too love her unique itineraries.

The big ships go to places that we saw when we first started sailing. And while it is fun to re-see some of those ports again, the ones I remember best are the unique ports that the Prinsendam visits such as Aalborg, Denmark, Bordeaux, Limerick, etc.

This may be a silly question, but will she make all scheduled cruises after she is sold? I guess HAL has a right to cancel future cruises and send refunds to everyone with reservations on them.

That would totally depend on when a prospective sale is made and when a transfer date to the new owner is agreed upon. It will not be a (hypothetical) "OK, Prinsendam is sold on February 1st 2018, and she'll leave the fleet a month later type of transfer".

If you look at the last six HAL vessels that have left the fleet, you get an idea of the time it usually takes from the first announcement of a ship leaving to the time that transfer actually occurs; in these cases, anywhere from nine months to a year and a half

For instance; HAL announced in May 2014 that Statendam and Ryndam were to be internally transferred (within the Carnival Corp.) to P&O Australia. That transfer took place one year and a half later, in November 2015.

On January 15, 2004, HAL announced that Noordam III, the second of the two "N"-class ships, would leave the fleet eleven months later, on November 12, 2004, on a long-term charter to UK-based Thomson Cruises

On March 29, 2001, HAL announced that Westerdam II (the former Homeric) would be internally transferred to Costa Crociere/Costa Cruises; that transfer took place one year later on March 10, 2002.

In August 1999, HAL announced that Nieuw Amsterdam III, the first of the two "N"-class vessels, would be sold to American Classic Voyages. That transfer took place fourteen months later on October 18, 2000

On 31 December 1996, HAL announced that Rotterdam V would be decommissioned on 20 September 1997. Rotterdam V was then sold to Cruise Holdings Ltd, decommissioned on 30 September 1996, and handed over to Premier Cruises on October 2, 1997, a little over nine months after the initial announcement

Looking at the history of cruise ships very few have operated beyond 35-40 years service, and those that have usually spend their last years for low budget foreign carriers where little investment is made beyond basic seaworthiness standards. Prinsendam is rapidly approaching a point where keeping her to the standards anticipated by HAL clients and keeping her up from a seaworthiness standard are both going to become cost prohibitive.

At some point HAL will either have to replace the Prinsendam with a newer ship of equal capabilities or decide to abandon the market segment that Prinsendam has served so well. As has been said they have publicly stated no intention of building a newer, smaller ship, so that leaves only the internal transfer of a smaller ship from another Carnival corp brand OR the acquisition of a smaller ship from another line. The Seabourn ships do not fit the HAL mold well due to their more yacht-like design and very low density, also they are relatively new and costly ships that would price most HAL clients out if transferred over. A better fit would be one of the former Renaissance "R" class ships, two of which are owned by Carnival Corp (P&O Adonia and Pacific Princess) I would say of these two Adonia would be the more prime candidate for transfer. The other 6 R class ships all seem to have found long term homes with Oceania and Azamara and I don't foresee them leaving those fleets any time soon. Question is, what ports and itineraries does Prinsendam serve that the R-class vessels could not, either due to vessel length or air draft, and are those ports/itineraries important enough to the HAL portfolio long term?

We are hoping that Holland will get 1 of Seaborn ships to replace the Prinsendam. Orlando said Holland won't build a New ship the size of the Prinsendam. But he did not say Holland won't take a existing ship on.

I have thought that for a very long time and have so stated on this Message Board. Carnival Corporation likes to use the same hull configuration for many of their ships across all of their Brands. A "new Prinsendam" could be, I think, economically built by adding a deck to the existing Seabourn ships which might add the necessary "yield" from the newbuild to make it feasible.

I would like to add that when the time comes for the Prinsendam leaves the fleet and HAL schedules a final voyage to wherever: BOOK IT!

Having sailed on the final voyage of the Statendam to Singapore, HAL pulled out all the stops. Everything, and I mean everything--cuisine, service, entertainment, ship maintenance, crew and officer interaction and attitudes with guests--were "the HAL that many of us love and fondly remember". Having an extremely experienced Hotel Director contributed to the pleasure of the voyage as well, in my opinion.

 

Having sailed on the final voyage of the Statendam to Singapore, HAL pulled out all the stops. Everything, and I mean everything--cuisine, service, entertainment, ship maintenance, crew and officer interaction and attitudes with guests--were "the HAL that many of us love and fondly remember".

Perhaps whether they make the final cruise special will show how important tradition still is (or not) with HAL.

That would totally depend on when a prospective sale is made and when a transfer date to the new owner is agreed upon. It will not be a (hypothetical) "OK, Prinsendam is sold on February 1st 2018, and she'll leave the fleet a month later type of transfer".

If you look at the last six HAL vessels that have left the fleet, you get an idea of the time it usually takes from the first announcement of a ship leaving to the time that transfer actually occurs; in these cases, anywhere from nine months to a year and a half

For instance; HAL announced in May 2014 that Statendam and Ryndam were to be internally transferred (within the Carnival Corp.) to P&O Australia. That transfer took place one year and a half later, in November 2015.

On January 15, 2004, HAL announced that Noordam III, the second of the two "N"-class ships, would leave the fleet eleven months later, on November 12, 2004, on a long-term charter to UK-based Thomson Cruises

On March 29, 2001, HAL announced that Westerdam II (the former Homeric) would be internally transferred to Costa Crociere/Costa Cruises; that transfer took place one year later on March 10, 2002.

In August 1999, HAL announced that Nieuw Amsterdam III, the first of the two "N"-class vessels, would be sold to American Classic Voyages. That transfer took place fourteen months later on October 18, 2000

On 31 December 1996, HAL announced that Rotterdam V would be decommissioned on 20 September 1997. Rotterdam V was then sold to Cruise Holdings Ltd, decommissioned on 30 September 1996, and handed over to Premier Cruises on October 2, 1997, a little over nine months after the initial announcement

The information available on this forum is remarkable. Thank you. I would be interested to know if any cruises were cancelled after these sales, although I know that would be an even deeper dive into their history!

The information available on this forum is remarkable. Thank you. I would be interested to know if any cruises were cancelled after these sales, although I know that would be an even deeper dive into their history!

That one, I can't help you with, specifically ;) Having said that, as of today, you can book a cruise on Prinsendam's 35-day Grand South America and Antarctica voyage which departs Buenos Aires, Argentine on February 18, 2019! That's a year and a half from now; nine months beyond the time it took from Rotterdam Vs press release on 31 Dec 1996 and her Oct 2, 1997 departure from the HAL fleet

Looking at the history of cruise ships very few have operated beyond 35-40 years service, and those that have usually spend their last years for low budget foreign carriers where little investment is made beyond basic seaworthiness standards. Prinsendam is rapidly approaching a point where keeping her to the standards anticipated by HAL clients and keeping her up from a seaworthiness standard are both going to become cost prohibitive.

 

At some point HAL will either have to replace the Prinsendam with a newer ship of equal capabilities or decide to abandon the market segment that Prinsendam has served so well. As has been said they have publicly stated no intention of building a newer, smaller ship, so that leaves only the internal transfer of a smaller ship from another Carnival corp brand OR the acquisition of a smaller ship from another line. The Seabourn ships do not fit the HAL mold well due to their more yacht-like design and very low density, also they are relatively new and costly ships that would price most HAL clients out if transferred over. A better fit would be one of the former Renaissance "R" class ships, two of which are owned by Carnival Corp (P&O Adonia and Pacific Princess) I would say of these two Adonia would be the more prime candidate for transfer. The other 6 R class ships all seem to have found long term homes with Oceania and Azamara and I don't foresee them leaving those fleets any time soon. Question is, what ports and itineraries does Prinsendam serve that the R-class vessels could not, either due to vessel length or air draft, and are those ports/itineraries important enough to the HAL portfolio long term?

The Prinsendam is able to sail to Aalborg, Denmark; through the Kiel Canal; up the Bordeaux River and dock in downtown Bordeaux; sail up the Seine River and dock Rouen and sail up the Shannon River in Ireland and dock near Limerick. The reason is that it is able to put her masts down and sail under bridges that the R Class ships can't.

She even can sail some routes through the fjords of Norway due to being able to go under bridges. When we docked in Tromso, she docked in the center of town due to being able to go under a bridge. She is also the only HAL ship that has been going to Spitsbergen. As to whether the R class ships can go there, I am not sure. I suspect they are too large to dock.

The Prinsendam is able to sail to Aalborg, Denmark; through the Kiel Canal; up the Bordeaux River and dock in downtown Bordeaux; sail up the Seine River and dock Rouen and sail up the Shannon River in Ireland and dock near Limerick. The reason is that it is able to put her masts down and sail under bridges that the R Class ships can't.

 

She even can sail some routes through the fjords of Norway due to being able to go under bridges. When we docked in Tromso, she docked in the center of town due to being able to go under a bridge. She is also the only HAL ship that has been going to Spitsbergen. As to whether the R class ships can go there, I am not sure. I suspect they are too large to dock.

(bolding by me)Prinsendam is obviously one of the few ships allowed to cruise some of the fjords in Svalbard (Spitsbergen) - it was a wonderful experience by the way. Big ships up to huge MSC Meraviglia , which is an Oasis class type with 5700 passengers - do cruise to Spitsbergen but mostly just to the "biggest" port which is Longyearbyen. I simply can't imagine ships of that or similar size docking there as infrastructure is quite limited even in Longyearbyen...

A good point raised above. Perhaps there are some ports/areas where the ability to dock isn't the only limitation -- the infrastructure for large ships is perhaps not there. (Although I know larger ships call at the Greenland ports where there is little infrastructure.)

I am on a Prinsendam itinerary in 2018 called the river explorer. Not sure many larger ships could go "upriver" as this itinerary does: on the Scheldt river (for Antwerp), on the Seine (for Rouen), down the Gironde (for Bordeaux), and on the Tagus (for Lisbon).

As to age, my favorite cruise ship at the moment is Aegean Odyssey; she was built as a ferry in 1973 and converted to a cruise ship in the 1980s. It's not her lines that I love but the places she takes me and the excellent service and enrichment lectures on board.

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(bolding by me)Prinsendam is obviously one of the few ships allowed to cruise some of the fjords in Svalbard (Spitsbergen) - it was a wonderful experience by the way. Big ships up to huge MSC Meraviglia , which is an Oasis class type with 5700 passengers - do cruise to Spitsbergen but mostly just to the "biggest" port which is Longyearbyen. I simply can't imagine ships of that or similar size docking there as infrastructure is quite limited even in Longyearbyen...

But the large ships aren't allowed to go to Ny Alesund which is on the island of Spitsbergen as they don't use light marine fuel. And while Longyearben was nice, Ny Alesund and sailing through the fjord and to the Arctic Ice Cape was worth being on the Prinsendam.

But the large ships aren't allowed to go to Ny Alesund which is on the island of Spitsbergen as they don't use light marine fuel. And while Longyearben was nice, Ny Alesund and sailing through the fjord and to the Arctic Ice Cape was worth being on the Prinsendam.

Again, I absolutely agree. I still remember the crowds disembarking Prinsendam in Ny Alesund and walking along the roped-off walking track and the loooong lines in front of the single shop. I simply don't have the ability to imagine 5.500 passengers even if they were allowed to dock in such a remote place.

What I'm hoping for is that perhaps good old Maasdam might be a second ship in the HAL fleet raking in revenue by offering unique itineraries similar to Prinsendam as shown in the new cruise schedules. Maasdam's bigger, of course, but not that big and could perhaps offer a similar experience. ( We haven't sailed on her yet but surely will...)

Again, I absolutely agree. I still remember the crowds disembarking Prinsendam in Ny Alesund and walking along the roped-off walking track and the loooong lines in front of the single shop. I simply don't have the ability to imagine 5.500 passengers even if they were allowed to dock in such a remote place.

What I'm hoping for is that perhaps good old Maasdam might be a second ship in the HAL fleet raking in revenue by offering unique itineraries similar to Prinsendam as shown in the new cruise schedules. Maasdam's bigger, of course, but not that big and could perhaps offer a similar experience. ( We haven't sailed on her yet but surely will...)

Sorry, no Maasdam can't do it. We did two tender ports in the Canary Islands that were supposed to be tenders.

Both were done by docking on the P'dam. One was the first ever docking by a cruise ship there. No one else was small enough or brave enough to do it. But, Captain Gundersen did :)

P'dam was the first ship to visit Fuengirola (sp?) and this year the first to actually arrive in Bantry - not the other port.

I still remember the joy of those on the island when we arrived. First was the announcement by our CD - I'm sorry ladies and gentleman we can't tender here - you will have to walk off - we have docked ;)

That island was so happy to see us and treated us and the ship royally. In fact, they offered a tour of the island and before we set off to cross the pond we were offered a sail around the island. A pilot came on board and we sailed around this beautiful island whose geography changes every moment. I will never forget it.

Next year we are going to a lot of tiny ports in Ireland among other places. If you look at pics for those ports you see the EE. NO way could Maasdam do them.

Only the smaller explorer vessels can and I guess that is why HAL calls the P'dam the Elegant Explorer as she does explore.

I will only have 100+ days on this ship on my next sailing but without a doubt she goes to places that the other HAL ships can't. They are just too big.

Sorry, no Maasdam can't do it. We did two tender ports in the Canary Islands that were supposed to be tenders.

 

Both were done by docking on the P'dam. One was the first ever docking by a cruise ship there. No one else was small enough or brave enough to do it. But, Captain Gundersen did :)

 

P'dam was the first ship to visit Fuengirola (sp?) and this year the first to actually arrive in Bantry - not the other port.

 

I still remember the joy of those on the island when we arrived. First was the announcement by our CD - I'm sorry ladies and gentleman we can't tender here - you will have to walk off - we have docked ;)

 

That island was so happy to see us and treated us and the ship royally. In fact, they offered a tour of the island and before we set off to cross the pond we were offered a sail around the island. A pilot came on board and we sailed around this beautiful island whose geography changes every moment. I will never forget it.

 

Next year we are going to a lot of tiny ports in Ireland among other places. If you look at pics for those ports you see the EE. NO way could Maasdam do them.

 

Only the smaller explorer vessels can and I guess that is why HAL calls the P'dam the Elegant Explorer as she does explore.

 

I will only have 100+ days on this ship on my next sailing but without a doubt she goes to places that the other HAL ships can't. They are just too big.

I agree, the Maasdam is too big. She can't get under the bridges. Only about 6 ships can go through the Kiel Canal. The Prinsendam is one of them. And she has a following when she does the Kiel Canal. Also, I believe the Maasdam days are numbered. And she wasn't built to the same high standard that the Prinsendam was. Chief Engineer Peter feels that the Prinsendam could sail as long as the Rotterdam V. I just wish that the itinerary planners would take the Prinsendam to ports that the big ships don't go. Unfortunately, they often plan too many port calls at ports that the S, R, Vista, Signature and Pinnacle class can go. I wish they wouldn't make the an itinerary that is similar to The Koningsdam.

We are on the European River Cruise for 2018. And all the good staterooms are booked for this a repositioning cruise. And we booked almost as soon as the itinerary was released. The Prinsendam is going to Antwerp, up the Scheldt River. Up the Seine River to Rouen. Up the Bordeaux to Bordeaux. Bigger ships have to dock several miles down river. We docked downtown. The center of the old city. Cruise also goes up the Tagus, but the R class ships can visit Lisbon.

And the Prinsendam is able to do some very unique ports on the west of Ireland. The bigger ships only do Belfast, Dublin and possibly Cobh. Cruising around Ireland is one of my favorite cruises as the Prinsendam has an unique itinerary every time she does it.