On December 5, 2018, we boarded Holland America’s newest ship, the ms Nieuw Statendam for its 14-Day Premiere Voyage from Civitavecchia, Italy (the cruise port for Rome) to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
The Nieuw Statendam is the second “Pinnacle Class” ship in Holland America’s fleet. The ms Koningsdam — launched in 2016 — was the first.
The 99,500-gross ton Nieuw Statendam is 975 ft. long and has capacity for 2,666 guests. The ship has two swimming pools, one under a retractable roof.
The aft pool is reserved for adults, and is flanked by the Sea View Bar. There is also covered outdoor seating here for those who want to enjoy their meal outside, overlooking the ocean.
On the aft end of the Nieuw Statendam’s Panorama Deck (Deck 10), there is a new outdoor seating area near the Tamarind restaurant, overlooking the pool.
A unique, $4 million contemporary art collection is found throughout the Nieuw Statendam. The 6-foot copy of Michelangelo’s David statue — crafted from clear resin and holding an iPhone in its right hand — is a popular “selfie” spot on the ship.
The ship’s art collection includes work from 180 artists. Two art consultants, London-based Artlink and Norway’s YSA Design, assembled the collection for the Nieuw Statendam.
A different kind of collectible is found at the top of the Nieuw Statendam’s Sky Deck. If you look closely– one deck above the Crow’s Nest — you can find the commemorative coin that was welded into the ship’s mast in a time-honored maritime tradition.
The coin ceremony is a tradition that dates back to ancient Romans who believed that attaching coins to a ship provided divine protection. The coin ceremony for the Nieuw Statendam was nearly one year before the new ship’s first voyage with paying guests.
While the Nieuw Statendam continues the Holland America Line tradition of having a wrap-around deck for walking on the Promenade Deck, the walkway is narrow in some spots, as its sister ship the Koningsdam.
Captain Sybe de Boer and Hotel Director Don Habets led the launch of the Nieuw Statendam cruise ship. They hosted the Mariner Reception for the Premiere Voyage on the World Stage.
Have you sailed on the Nieuw Statendam?
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Learn more about the Koningsdam, the sister ship to the Nieuw Statendam:
- A Photo Tour of Holland America’s Newest Cruise Ship: the ms Koningsdam
- A Photo Tour of Entertainment on Holland America’s Koningsdam
- Dining on Holland America’s Koningsdam Cruise Ship
- Views from Holland America’s Koningsdam Cruise Ship
- A Look Inside a Vista Suite on Holland America’s Koningsdam Cruise Ship
- The Taste of De Librije on Holland America’s ms Koningsdam