Holland America Line has had a very good year. The number of departures from the Netherlands came to 22 in 2023, together accounting for 58,000 beds. That number will only increase in the coming years. 24 sailings are planned for 2024, with almost 63,000 beds. By 2025, HAL has 28 sailings from the Netherlands on the agenda, with 75,000 beds. “Local sailings are important for the development of the cruise market,” said Nico Bleichrodt, Vice President International Sales at HAL, on Thursday at an end-of-year event for partners in Rotterdam. The meeting took place in Sociëteit aan de Maas, a chic building on the water, now a national monument, which is the home of the Royal Rowing and Sailing Association De Maas. Diagonally opposite, on the other side of the river, are the headquarters of Holland America Line and the Rotterdam cruise terminal. That cruise terminal has been quite busy in the past year. With more than 50 invitees/partners, we looked back on 2023, in which Holland America Line celebrated its 150th anniversary. HAL’s newest ship, the Rotterdam VII, will start cruises from Rotterdam at the end of April next year. The Nieuw Statendam, which was christened by Oprah Winfrey in 2019, will sail from Amsterdam from July next year. Both ships will come to Rotterdam in 2025. In addition to Holland America Line’s 150th anniversary, 2023 is also an anniversary year for Nico Bleichrodt himself. In December 2008 he started working at HAL in Rotterdam, with which he completed his 15 years this year. The meeting ended musically with a performance by Wouter Hamel and Lilian Hak, whose song Lucky Streak can be heard in HAL’s radio and TV commercials. Photo: Nico Bleichrodt (Vice President International Sales) and Pascal Driever (Senior Sales Manager EMEA & LAC).
