Holland America is restarts operations from the Port of San Diego with one of its newest cruise ships, Koningsdam. With the ship remaining on hold since the start of the pandemic, guests can finally experience one of the most advanced ships in the fleet.
Koningsdam is Back!
The Holland America cruise ship set sail on October 10 from the Port of San Diego in California with guests onboard for the first time since the start of the pandemic. Koningsdam is departed on a seven-night California Coast voyage.
“We are thrilled to get back to cruising from San Diego and to supporting this wonderful city and the ports we visit along the West Coast — from Mexico to Washington,” said Gus Antorcha, president of Holland America Line. “Our guests are eager to be back on board and our team members look forward to reconnecting with them and providing a memorable vacation. We’re ready for a successful season of cruising.”
The itinerary includes calls to Catalina Island, San Fransisco, and Ensenada in Mexico. The cruise will also have two full days at sea and return to San Diego on October 17, 2021. Koningsdam will continue to sail California and Mexican Riviera itineraries through the remainder of the year.
Even though the vessel is resuming operations from the port, the ship has already spent some time preparing to welcome guests back on board. On September 30, the ship arrived at the port to take on provisions, and on October 2, Koningsdam entered the port again to take on more crew members to prepare for guest operations.
Earlier this year when Holland America announced Koningsdam’s restart, Gus Antorcha, president of Holland America Line said, “San Diego has always been an incredible homeport for our ships, and we are eager to restart on the West Coast with two ships operating an expanded season, including the debut of Koningsdam on these itineraries and close-to-home California cruises that our guests are going to love.”
Also Read: All Holland America Cruise Ships to Be Back in Service by Late Spring 2022
Koningsdam is one of the newest in the fleet and the first Pinnacle-class cruise ship that entered service in 2018. The vessel has a guest capacity of 2,650, and all guests must be fully vaccinated to be allowed to cruise. Proof of a negative test result taken within two days before departure must also be shown before being allowed to board.
Holland America Line is well underway with its restart plan. Zuiderdam is soon to begin cruises from the West Coast, and Nieuw Amsterdam will begin to sail to the Caribbean from Florida later this month. More ships will make a comeback from Florida through November 2021.
