Holland America Line Proudly Announces Name of Newest Ship

The newest ship in the Holland America Line will have an old name. Due for delivery in May 2021, the next Pinnacle Class ship will be called – drum roll, please – Ryndam.

Holland America Line’s president Orlando Ashford announced the name at a media luncheon aboard Nieuw Statendam before the official start of Seatrade 2019 in Miami.

It will be the fourth ship in the company’s history to carry the Ryndam name.

“Holland America Line honors the timeless tradition of cruising while also embracing new innovations for today’s travelers, and the name Ryndam reflects the unique history of this company while honoring previous ships that were progressive in their time as this last Ryndam will be,” Ashford said.

“From the first Ryndam more than 100 years ago to the most recent, the namesake ships have been beloved by our guests,” he said. “The next Ryndam will bring new life to one of the most notable series of vessels in our history.”

Ryndam will be similar to sister ships Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam, weighing 99,500 tons and carrying 2,666 guests. As the third in the series, Ryndam will feature enhanced Pinnacle Class amenities and innovations, along with Holland America Line hallmarks that drive one of the highest guest repeat rates in the industry.

The new ship will continue Holland America’s focus on three main themes for guests, Ashford said. “We focus on destinations for modern explorers. We focus on food. And we focus on live music.”

The steel cutting for Ryndam, signifying the official beginning of the building process, was held March 13, 2019, at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Marghera, Italy.

This will be the 17th ship constructed for Holland America Line by the Italian shipbuilder, which most recently delivered Nieuw Statendam.

The first Ryndam was part of the Holland America Line fleet from 1901 to 1929, starting as Rijndam before receiving the English spelling in 1923. In 1927 Ryndam I became the first Holland America Line ship to sail a world cruise, although it was chartered as a floating school at sea for that voyage.

The second Ryndam served from 1951 to 1973, and the third sailed in the fleet from 1993 through 2015, when it was transferred to sister brand P&O Australia and now cruises as Pacific Aria.

“I’m really proud of what we’re doing,” Ashford said. He added that he also is proud that he was able to convert a non-cruiser into a cruise lover – his own father.

Imagine, Ashford said, being president of a cruise company and having a father who would not cruise.

“Dad said, ‘I haven’t been on a boat since the military and I’m not going to do it now,’” Ashford said.

However, Ashford said his father really wanted to visit Cuba so Ashford offered him a Cuban visit on a Holland America cruise.

“Dad is a man of very few words,” Ashford said. But one night on the cruise, “my Dad leaned over and said, ‘Son, I could do this again … He is going to Alaska on a cruise this summer.”

By Jackie Sheckler Finch