Holland America Line Details Delivery of New Ships

Holland America Line (HAL) announced a revised delivery schedule of ships from Fincantieri-Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A. As previously announced, the first of the vessels, Holland America Line's 1,848 passenger ms Zuiderdam will be delivered Nov. 15, 2002 and sail on its maiden voyage Dec. 14, 2002, on a seven-day Caribbean cruise from Ft. Lauderdale. Holland America Line's new ms Oosterdam, is scheduled for delivery in June 2003. Two other vessels, currently unnamed, are scheduled for delivery to Holland America Line in April 2004 and October 2005. The fifth ship, a new build option, if exercised, will be delivered in May 2006. A vessel delivery time previously planned for HAL in January 2005 will be assigned to a sister company, Cunard Line. The shipbuilding slot with the yard has been transferred to Cunard. Both Holland America Line and Cunard are units of Carnival Corporation. "Assigning this building slot to Cunard allows our sister company to quickly expand its presence in the lucrative British cruising market, and does not dramatically impact HAL's plans for new vessels," said A. Kirk Lanterman, chairman and CEO, Holland America Line. At 85,000 tons, HAL's "Project Vista" series of premium ships are the largest ever built for the company, they also will boast the highest passenger space ratio of its fleet at 46, keeping the company firmly placed as the leader in premium cruising. The Vista-class ships feature innovative "exterior elevators," located on both sides of the vessel and vertically transversing 10 decks, providing guests with panoramic sea views. The ships also include a wide range of spacious accommodation categories. About 85 percent of the staterooms feature an ocean view, with approximately 80 percent of those offering private verandahs. The 951-ft.-long ships build upon the hallmarks of the Holland America brand, and displays extensive multi-million-dollar art collections and a signature Waterford Crystal installation in the ship's atrium. The vessels feature numerous dining options, from elegant full-service meals to casual Lido Restaurant service. The ships also will continue other trademark features of Holland America ships, including the Explorers Lounge, Ocean Bar, an exterior covered promenade deck encircling the entire ship, a large Lido pool with a retractable dome, and Holland America's signature "Crow's Nest" observation lounge. The ship also will offer a new "cabaret-style" show lounge complementing a new three-deck main show lounge. Other new features include a sophisticated nightclub, the casual "round-the-clock" Windstar cafe, an Internet cafe, the largest spa facilities in the fleet, Internet/e-mail data ports in all staterooms, an extensive Club HAL children's facility with inside and outside play areas, a concierge lounge for the exclusive use of Penthouse and Deluxe Verandah Suite guests and two interior promenade decks. The new vessels' propulsion system includes a full-scale diesel-electric power plant, backed up by a gas turbine as an additional power source, giving the vessel the capability to operate on either diesel or gas turbine power. The ships also will use the Azipod propulsion system.