Holland America's newly acquired 794-passenger Prinsendam arrived in New York in June, 2002 and if ever there was an example of a ship being transformed from an outclassed dowager to a clubby world cruiser, this is it. The moniker that HAL applies to the vessel - Elegant Explorer - is aptly chosen.
Originally completed in late 1988 as the Royal Viking Sun for the Royal
Viking Line, she was designed to bring back roominess and space to that
fleet. Royal Viking's original three ships, built in the early 1970s, were
later "stretched" with new midsections inserted, boosting their passenger
capacity to 750 and their size to 28,500 gross tons. The Royal Viking Sun
carried 758 passengers within 37,845 gross tons.
The ship was first sold to Norwegian Cruise Line; then Carnival Corporation
moved her to its Cunard Line, where the Royal Viking Sun soon became the
Seabourn Sun for the Seabourn division -- an awkward fit, since she was so
much larger than the original three Seabourn vessels and the Sea Goddess
pair.
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With a spare Scandinavian décor, she had a loyal following, but many felt
she
lacked warmth and bordered on the dull. Some improvements were made under
the
Cunard Seabourn banner; and now after more than a month in a Norfolk,
Virginia shipyard, she has re-emerged with a new look that wooed nearly
everyone I spoke to on the two inaugural sailings, notwithstanding some
ongoing refurbishment of cabins and bathrooms.
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The "new" Prinsendam remains roomy, with a passenger space ratio (gross
tonnage divided by passenger capacity) of 47.86. She has taken on some
familiar Holland America Line features, but with half the usual passenger
capacity and a clubby atmosphere, she is quite distinctive, and well suited
for ambitious worldwide itineraries. The captain remains Norwegian and the
crew of 443 includes some Dutch but mostly Indonesians and Filipinos.
Apart from the 1983-built Noordam, the entire HAL fleet design is based on
the Statendam model, with subsequent vessels adding more upper-category
cabins, increased tonnage and -- in the case of the Rotterdam and Amsterdam
-- a couple of knots of extra speed.
Now with the Prinsendam, HAL has a distinctive ship suited to the upper end
of the premium market, with brochure rates five to 10 per cent higher than
the rest of the fleet.
As you approach the ship, you'll notice her newly painted blue hull. Once
aboard, you'll see a curved double staircase rising through the five-deck
atrium, decorated with handsome glass bas relief, tubular glass sculpture
and
Dutch maritime art.
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Prinsendam's Promenade Deck is "Grand Central," and from the atrium, the
ship's public rooms (renamed to coincide with the rest of the HAL fleet)
range fore and aft. Forward, the Queens Lounge, the ship's 424-seat show
room, presents five new productions for each cruise on a new stage, with new
lighting.
Walking aft, you'll pass the Erasmus Library, furnished with four leather
chairs. Then the angled corridor becomes a shopping arcade leading past the
100-seat Wajang Theater, used for films and lectures. The clubby Java Bar
and
Cafe� connects to the Oak Room, a largely unchanged masculine-style smoking
lounge with electric fireplace; and to the moderately small casino, offering
roulette, poker games, blackjack, dice and slot machines.
On the starboard side, the former Compass Rose has been freshly transformed
into the Explorer's Lounge, a walk-through piano bar with tan leather
chairs,
dark veneer paneling and a patterned wine-red carpet. The artwork is a
traditional style of Dutch maritime painting on aluminum (because of Coast
Guard safety regulations), and a set of drawings touting early Dutch
exploration.
Lower Promenade features a continuous wraparound walking deck where four
laps
equal a mile. The width permits easy passing, but not a line of lounge-style
deck chairs as with the rest of the fleet.
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In the restaurants, you'll find significant changes. The main restaurant was
originally built to handle all passengers at one seating, but to match the
rest of the HAL fleet, it has been downsized to accommodate two sittings.
Most passengers will want to secure a table in the big window section aft
rather than in the starboard side passage.
Tables are set with Rosenthal china and Holland America embossed silverware.
For dinner, the chairs were covered with a white drapery, giving the
otherwise handsome room a sterile look. The upholstery beneath is plum
purple
with a pattern.
The former mid-ship section of the restaurant was converted into Holland
America's trademark Ocean Bar, the ship's social center, with the varnished
wood deck passage running through the lower lounge section parallel to the
promenade deck windows; the bar, dance floor and bandstand are recessed on
the raised interior portion.
The piece de résistance is this ship's Odyssey Restaurant, the alternative
dining venue offering an Italian menu at no extra charge. Unlike the fleet's
other Odysseys, which are windowless, this one looks out onto the Lower
Promenade. It offers just 48 seats in a lovely paneled setting, with Murano
glass wall scones set against a wine red and pale yellow fabric, the rich
colors also matching the carpet. Happily, the Odyssey is also open for
lunch,
but reservations for more than one night per cruise will be hard to come by.
Suite passengers get the first shot at reservations.
Moving to a different part of the ship, the Crow's Nest high up on Sports
Deck is a lovely blue, green and aquamarine observation lounge, bar and
piano
bar. Its scale is more intimate--and better arranged for viewing--than the
vast three-sectioned Crow's Nests on the bigger HAL ships.
Outdoor spaces include cozy fore and aft sections on several decks and the
standard lido-style pool deck. This ship does not have a Magrodome, and the
oversized whirlpool is almost as large as the small swimming pool. A larger
pool is tucked aft behind the spa, gym and beauty salon complex. The lido
restaurant is designed with double lines, plus a terrace grill, ice cream
bar
and sit-up bar, and a most attractive awning-covered seating area aft, a la
Seabourn and Silversea.
Other spaces include an 11-station Internet Cafe, meeting and card rooms,
art
gallery, practice tennis, volleyball/basketball court and golf driving
range.
The ship's 398 cabins, in seven categories, include just 25 insides and 151
with private verandas. A new block of 10 poorly designed balcony cabins is
clustered aft in a private section of promenade deck. Eight have balconies
that can easily be seen by those on the deck above, and two have smoked
glass
enclosures jutting out onto the aft deck. The Midnight Sun Lounge was sadly
sacrificed to increase the passenger capacity.
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Twenty-five standard inside cabins measure 128-138 square feet; two outside
singles 191 sq. ft.; 220 large outsides 181-191 sq. ft.; 82 deluxe veranda
outsides 228-238 sq. ft. (including a 51 sq. ft. veranda); 50 superior
veranda suites are 362 sq. ft. (including a 75 sq. ft. veranda); 18 deluxe
veranda suites measure 488 sq. ft. (with a 97 sq. ft. veranda); and the one
penthouse veranda suite is 724 sq. ft. (including 147 sq. ft. of veranda).
This latter unit features a whirlpool set in an alcove on an enclosed
veranda. The 19 suites on Sports and Lido decks have use of the Neptune
Lounge for reading, snacks and concierge services.
All cabins have telephones with computerized wake-up service, multi-channel
music system and closed circuit TV. Eight cabins are handicapped-equipped.
During the refit, not all cabin bathrooms were redone, and some soft
furnishings will be replaced, both ongoing projects. All but the inside
cabins have full tub baths.
The biggest project of all was fitting 41,000 connections to provide the
latest fire sprinkling system. (The previous Prinsendam, completed in 1972,
burned and sank off Alaska in 1980.)
Holland America Line
300 Elliott Avenue West
Seattle, WA 98119
800-426-0327 www.hollandamerica.com
