Holland America Line: More Cruises from the Netherlands
New: Standby cruises for travelers who are extremely flexible
Holland America Line will focus even more on cruises from the Netherlands in the coming years. The number of beds from the Netherlands will be increased to almost 75,000 by 2025. This is what Gus Antorcha, President of Holland America Line, said during his recent visit to the Netherlands. Together with Nico Bleichrodt, Vice President International Sales at HAL, he gives an explanation to TravMagazine. The conversation with Antorcha and Bleichrodt takes place in the former boardroom of Holland America Line in Hotel New York in Rotterdam. The room offers a view of the accompanying terrace below, behind which the Maas glistens in the sun and the Euromast towers in the distance. This place on the current Kop van Zuid is the cradle of the famous shipping company with Rotterdam roots.
Largest office
Antorcha is optimistic about the 2024 financial year. Overall, bookings are better than before, and also better than in the pre-corona year of 2019. The Dutch market is showing the greatest growth, says Antorcha, who once again emphasizes Holland America Line’s Dutch background. ‘We sail under the Dutch flag and our largest office outside the US is located here in Rotterdam. Some of our officers and hotel staff are Dutch. And our ships are medium-sized. These are the kinds of things that set us apart from other providers.’ Bleichrodt: ‘We see that more and more people want to leave the Netherlands. In addition to Dutch guests, we mainly have Belgian and German travellers who come to Rotterdam because they want to leave here and American passengers who embark on a cruise through Europe in the Netherlands.’
Pre-corona level
Recent figures from cruise organization CLIA, which represents the interests of the sector, also show that the number of cruise passengers is increasing worldwide. In 2023, there were 31.7 million cruise travelers worldwide. This is 6.8 percent more than in the pre-corona year of 2019, when 29.7 million cruise passengers were counted. North America is the largest cruise market, with 18.1 million passengers. Europe follows, albeit at an appropriate distance, in second place with 8.2 million cruise passengers. In the Netherlands, 120,000 cruise passengers were counted last year. This means that the number of Dutch cruise passengers is almost back to the pre-corona level of 2019, when 123,000 Dutch people took a cruise. With these figures, the Netherlands is the sixth largest cruise market in Europe. These are figures from all shipping companies combined. HAL’s market share is not disclosed. 
New passengers
Bleichrodt identifies a number of positive trends in the Dutch market. “More and more consumers are taking a cruise into consideration when choosing a holiday. We are also seeing significant growth in the number of new cruise passengers. In addition, it is striking that more and more guests are opting for our Have it All package, with many included, such as drinks and Wi-Fi on board. And we are seeing an increase in the popularity of faraway destinations such as Asia, South America, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. And finally, we are seeing an increasing demand for longer cruises, of 14 days and more.’ The positive developments are reason enough for Holland America Line to focus more on the Dutch market, or rather on departures from the Netherlands. The number of departures from the Netherlands will be increased from the current 24 this year to 28 in 2025. Whereas in 2024 Amsterdam and IJmuiden will still be called at occasionally, next year’s departures will take place from home port Rotterdam, with the ships Rotterdam VII (19 times) and Nieuw Statendam (9 times). At the same time, the number of beds from the Netherlands will also increase: from 62,616 this year to 74,686 beds in 2025.
Standby Cruises
For 2026, the ambitions are even higher: the Rotterdam VII (HAL’s flagship) and the Nieuw Statendam will return to Rotterdam. The number of departures from the Netherlands will increase to 36. However, in that year the Volendam made one call in the Netherlands as part of its Grand World Voyage. To fill the last cabins on board the ships, Holland America Line is launching so-called standby cruises for travelers who are extremely flexible and can depart at the last minute. The prices are competitive and start with 69 euros per day for a stateroom (sea view or inside cabin). For 99 euros, travelers have a Porch stateroom. The prices include taxes and apply to both double occupancy and solo travelers. The standby concept gives guests maximum flexibility and helps Holland America Line fill the last cabins. “It’s a win-win situation,” says Antorcha. 
Flexibility
Under the Standby program, travelers can choose from approximately 22 HAL cruises in 2024 for a period of two to three months prior to departure. They pay the fare in advance and receive confirmation two to seven days before the departure of their chosen cruise, subject to availability. ‘In case of cancellations a week before departure, it is difficult to sell the vacant cabins. In this way, this concept works both ways’, says Antorcha. He says he is not afraid that the new concept will cannibalize the regular cruise offer and that potential customers will wait to book. ‘These are seats that become available because other passengers have to cancel their cruise at the last minute, sometimes within a week before departure. So these cabins would otherwise remain unoccupied, which is why we offer them through our Standy program. As a customer, you need to have the flexibility to leave within a few days. This new concept will actually expand our market.’
Partnerships
The good news is that the standby cruises can also be booked through travel agents, who receive the regular commission for doing so. ‘We believe in partnerships. We have grown with that and we will continue to do so,” says Bleichrodt. As with other types of holidays, Antorcha also signals an increase in prices for cruises this year. ‘But you still get a lot of value for money with us. Many things, such as meals, are included. What’s more, you don’t have to fly on many of our cruises.’ When asked which measures he introduced during corona and which of them are still successful, Antorcha says: ‘We used the break during corona to see how we can do better as a company. Who is our guest, how can we serve them better? We wanted to come back stronger. We were able to improve a lot. The library is back on board, daily tea time is back and this year we have launched a Dutch Day on King’s Day, with a Dutch dinner, an Orange party, stroopwafels and poffertjes.’ Bleichrodt emphasizes that HAL continues to invest heavily in the knowledge of (travel agent) partners. ‘We will continue to do so, as well as with our successful marketing, with radio and TV commercials featuring the music of Wouter Hamel. The commercials can be heard alternately on radio for a week and on TV for a week.’
