Holland America Line Extends Pause in Cruise Operations

As Holland America Line continues to prepare and develop its plans to meet the Framework for Conditional Sailing Order issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the company is extending its pause of cruise operations for all departures through April 30, 2021. This includes Alaska, Mexican Riviera, Pacific Coast, Caribbean, Mediterranean and Canada/New England departures.

The line also will cancel all Alaska cruises through mid-May, Alaska departures on three ships through early June, any Land+Sea Journeys connected with canceled Alaska sailings, Mediterranean cruises through early June and Zaandam’s Canada/New England itineraries through August.

Cruises impacted by this pause in operation are:

• All cruise departures through April 30, 2021.

Alaska: Eurodam and Oosterdam through the first week of June (roundtrip from Seattle); Koningsdam through mid-May (roundtrip from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada); Nieuw Amsterdam and Noordam through mid-May (roundtrip Vancouver and between Vancouver and Whittier, Alaska); and Zuiderdam though early June (roundtrip from Vancouver).

Mediterranean: Volendam cruises through early June (between Venice and Civitavecchia [Rome], Italy); Westerdam though early June (roundtrip from Venice or between Venice and Piraeus [Athens], Greece).

Canada/New England: Zaandam cruises through August (between Boston, Massachusetts, and Montreal, Quebec, Canada).

Guests and their travel agents are being notified of the cancellations and options for Future Cruise Credits (FCC) and rebooking.

Holland America Line is closely following the protocol set forth by the CDC, and is preparing ships and implementing procedures to meet all requirements for approval to sail following the pause.

Guests Automatically Receive Bonus Future Cruise Credit
Cruises impacted automatically will be canceled, and no action is needed when opting for the Future Cruise Credit. All guests will receive an FCC per person as follows:

• Paid in Full: Those who have paid in full will receive 125% FCC of the base cruise fare paid to Holland America Line.

• Not Paid in Full: Those with bookings not paid in full will receive an FCC of double the amount of their deposit. The minimum FCC is $100 and the maximum will be an amount up to the base cruise fare paid.

The FCC is valid for 12 months from the date of issue and may be used to book sailings departing through Dec. 31, 2022. Noncruise fare purchases — such as shore excursions, gifts, dining and spa — will not be transferred to a new booking and will be refunded to the original form of payment. Other funds such as air fares paid to Holland America Line may be transferred to a new booking or will automatically be refunded via the method of payment used to purchase the services.

Full Refund Option Also Available
Guests who prefer a 100% refund of monies paid to Holland America Line can visit the Cancellation Preferences Form to indicate their preference no later than Feb. 15, 2021.

The above options are not applicable to guests booked on a charter sailing. Other booking and cancellation conditions and policies may apply if the cruise was not booked through Holland America Line. See the terms and conditions in the Cancellation Preferences Form for all details.

Holland America Line previously paused global cruise operations and canceled all departures on all ships through March 31, 2021.

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37 Comments

  1. Rebecca Vickery January 6, 2021 at 2:40 pm - Reply

    How confident are you that Alaskan cruises, in August, out of Vancouver will be allowed?

  2. Catherine M Sullivan January 6, 2021 at 3:16 pm - Reply

    I just purchased my trip on the Statendam out of FT. Lauderdale for April 11-18, 2021. It took me over 4 hours to get set up, including airfare on American. what in the world do I do now? Will Holland america cancel the flights also, as they were the ones who got them. Being 84 years old, this is just a bit hard to interpret. I would like a response as to what I should do for Mary Franks and Catherine Sullivan. Thank you..thank you …

  3. Belinda January 6, 2021 at 4:24 pm - Reply

    So, now we’ve had three cruises cancelled since the original pause of operations in 2020 (we were two weeks from sailing then). The most recent being sailing on the Nieuw Statendam on 4/11/21. We had not put a deposit down since final payment wasn’t due until 2/10/21. Now we will receive no compensation for the cancelled cruise because we had not put a deposit down? I really think that is unfair. We have been loyal to cruising and are eager to sail again. We has also received a great Casino/Black Friday offer that included free wi-fi and $150 Casino cash on this cruise. Now we will not have that when re-booking our next cruise.

  4. Gerrit Schuit January 7, 2021 at 10:12 am - Reply

    Pity

  5. Judith Milnet January 8, 2021 at 7:36 pm - Reply

    What about cruises for late July to Alaska … are those set to go? I’m going for my 66 Birthday!!!
    Please advise .
    Thank you!!!!—Judith

  6. Dwi Susilo Nugroho Hadi Kusumo Putro January 9, 2021 at 8:55 pm - Reply

    Please stay safe and keep healthy

  7. Brenda Apsey January 9, 2021 at 9:58 pm - Reply

    I have a Land Sea round trip from Seattle in August 2021. What is the chance that this will be cancelled. Also, if we decide the risks are too great-as we are older and have underlying medical conditions- when would we need to cancel by to get a refund of our money?

  8. Kenneth Dick January 16, 2021 at 3:15 am - Reply

    So far my May 23, 2021 Nieuw Amsterdam Double Denali is a “go”. Realistically (I realize no one had a crystal ball) when might the next pause (if any) drop?

  9. Diana January 22, 2021 at 10:19 am - Reply

    I am booked on the konigsdam 29 th may 2021 from Vancouver inside passage and back to Vancouver can you let me know if it as been cancelled

  10. Louise Sherwood January 27, 2021 at 12:14 pm - Reply

    My husband and I are 4 star Mariners. We can not find any information about the status and usability of this program. Why?

  11. Kenneth Dick January 28, 2021 at 4:25 pm - Reply

    Julie: Diana & I posted blogs on May 2021 Alaska cruises – crickets. Louise posts an inquiry yesterday afternoon about Mariner Society & a response in less than 24 hours. Why?

  12. Kenneth Dick January 31, 2021 at 6:48 pm - Reply

    Alaska cruise (May 23, 2021) still a “go”, but not too optimistic. Cruise paid in part by cash; in part by FCC from canceled September 2020 cruise. IF my cruise is canceled how does the FCC used to pay for it get handled? Returned to My Account? Does expiration date get adjusted? Refunded at face value?

  13. Charles Blanchard February 5, 2021 at 9:48 am - Reply

    Since the decision that Canada has made on 2/4/21 to close their ports until 2022, are there going to be any cruises to Alaska in 2021?

  14. Kenneth Dick February 7, 2021 at 2:45 am - Reply

    With Canada’s new cruise ban it’s pretty obvious that some or all of the 2021 Alaska cruise season is toast. Maybe Canada will change their ban if the pandemic is better controlled. But, don’t think that’s going to happen soon enough for the May (and likely June) portion. When is HAL likely to decide when to extend the pause? And, lack of CDC guidance doesn’t help, either.

  15. Larry E Wissinger February 9, 2021 at 8:48 am - Reply

    Morning Julie, We are cruising with my brother & sister-in-law to Alaska the first week of Aug. Can you tell us when Holland Amer. will make a decision on cancellation considering the new policy by the Canadian Government? If it is cancelled we will rebook for 2022 but afraid if we wait to long, cruises for the dates and the ship we want might be full.

    Thanks, Larry

  16. Kenneth Dick February 14, 2021 at 3:00 pm - Reply

    Booked on NA 23 May 2021 out of Vancouver. Know lots of discussion ongoing (w/Canada; Feds over foreign port requirement; CDC over test cruises). But, considering it’s less than 100 days until sailing; do you realistically think this cruise will happen? When do you expect a decision so I (and other HAL fans) can make other plans?

  17. Carol February 17, 2021 at 1:10 pm - Reply

    Do The Holland America Cruise ships that are booked with 3rd party vendors such as Star Vista for special Themes such as The 70’s Cruise, Malt Shop, or Rock n Roll Cruise follows the same guidelines as Holland America. You tell them if they have to cancel or pause the cruise? Do you also have the option to advise them to refund money if someone has died, become ill or doesn’t want to cruise at all due to the pandemic? Regardless of insurance on the trip or not. (this is an unusual situation that the world is in) I feel policy changes need to be changed. Allow flexibility and not PRESSURE people to sail or loose money, that they may not have anymore! It’s almost a legal situation, people are networking.

  18. Eugene Hirschfeld & Maria Coban February 23, 2021 at 2:33 pm - Reply

    My Wife and I are 4 Star Mariners and thank Holland America for enabling us to visit more than 51 countries. We miss your ships and hope, as more people get vaccinated, Holland America will, again cruise the oceans. There was talk of “test cruises” just before opening to the general public. We are both vaccinated (both shots) and live close to Port Everglades and can be ready in a short time if and when your company decides to test the new protocols, I am sure your will be initiating on your future cruises. (We are also Carnival Cruise Line Stock Holders)
    Please let us know. We are ready and willing.

  19. Laura March 3, 2021 at 9:35 pm - Reply

    I have never read or comment on a blog before, I just stumbled on this because we have a cruise to Alaska booked for July and one booked for December of this year to Mexico. My family and I have been cruising with Holland America for over 20 years, so I am going to say this with all the kindness that I possibly can to the person that said they have a cruise booked but have not paid for it and the cruise got cancelled, so they think that Holland America should still reimburse them. Just in case you haven’t notice, there is a crisis in the world with the COVID, and the cruise and travel industry was and is being hit very hard by this, so instead of trying to get something for nothing, maybe you should be grateful that you are alive to even go on a future cruise. Holland America does not owe you anything, because you have not paid them anything. For those of you who are more understanding about all the cancellations, I am sure that the cruise industry appreciates your understanding. I wish you all the very best and many happy cruises in the future.

  20. Kenneth Dick March 9, 2021 at 2:40 am - Reply

    When the pause was announced it was my intention to take the FCC option – still is. Rebooking by HAL to a similar 2022 cruise didn’t interest me – I had already booked one. But, per recent emails my TA and I received in order to do this: (1) HAL is going to automatically rebook me (whether I want it or not); (2) then at some future date (TBD) my TA will be able to cancel that rebook and start the FCC process. Seems like extra work on HAL’s part, and added delay in giving me what I REALLY want; NOT what HAL seems to think I want. It took 130 days to get the FCC when my 2020 Alaska cruise was canceled. I imagine automatic rebooking; then canceling the rebook; then requesting FCC; and then HAL processing and posting my FCC.

  21. Nancy Wyatt April 7, 2021 at 9:31 am - Reply

    My 2020 Norway cruise was moved to 2021. When I was assisted in this move due to cancellation, it was a very smooth transition as it was paid in full with Platinum Insurance coverage. Yesterday I called HAL to speak about again moving the cruise to 2022, this time I was treaded with complete disregard at the circumstances concerning getting to Amsterdam from the states etc.. I was told “the ship is sailing” and would have to pay over $1000 to rebook..not very nice considering it is not my issue that travel bans and non essential restrictions, quarantines, still exist. I am now hoping it cancels so I can move it effortlessly to 2022.

  22. Diane April 10, 2021 at 7:35 pm - Reply

    Honestly what is your opinion of my European cruise sailing out of Venice September 11, 2021. We had to cancel once already

  23. Linda Godek April 11, 2021 at 8:11 pm - Reply

    We are currently booked on the inaugural voyage of the MS Rotterdam out of Venice (Trieste) on August 1, 2021. Cannot find any information on the status of that trip and whether it will be postponed as it was this spring instead of being cancelled. Any update would be appreciated.

  24. Kenneth Dick April 16, 2021 at 6:15 pm - Reply

    Based on previous cancellation/FCC experience I expected it would take weeks/months to cancel the automatic rebook/process my FCC request. Instead, it only took a couple weeks. A very nice lady called to let me know she had processed my request and that i would receive my email notice shortly. Thank you. My only regret is i forgot to write down her name so i could personally recognize her good work.

  25. Rosemary April 23, 2021 at 10:08 pm - Reply

    This will be our third cruise with HAL. The two guys that took care of our room and needs were fantastic. The first day we were on board they knew our names and always greeted us asked how we were and what could they do to help every time they saw us. The food was great. The server in the Ocean lounge greeted us each evening when we stopped for a before dinner drink, she recognized us by sight greeted us by name and was great. Looking forward to our Alaska cruise in September, hoping it will not be cancelled! This will be our first cruise on the Oosterdam, our past two cruises were aboard the Amsterdam, will really miss the smaller ship.

  26. larry C dotson May 24, 2021 at 2:15 pm - Reply

    HAL cancelled the Nieuw Statendam for our August 8, 2021, but we rebooked on the New Rotterdam out of Rome for the same dates. Have not cancelled flights into and out of Amsterdam. Hopefully, Rotterdam will sail for its inaugural and we will get to cruise this summer with her.
    Fingers crossed!!

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