MS Volendam is a Rotterdam-class (R-class) cruise ship belonging to Holland America Line. It was built in 1999 as the third of four Rotterdam-class vessels which she has ten decks, with passenger cabins spread across six of them. The Volendam's theming prominently features flowers, and the decor throughout the ship emphasizes floral patterns. She sails out of Australia, Asia, and conducts cruises of the Inside Passage, traversing British Columbia and Alaska.

Design and description

As a Rotterdam-class (R-class) cruise ship, the Volendam has three sister ships in the fleet, Zaandam, Amsterdam and Rotterdam. She follows the Rotterdam, the lead ship of her class, as the second ship launched in 1999. Volendam is 237 m (778 ft) long, has a 32.3 m (106 ft) beam, and an 8.1 m (27 ft) draft. She has ten decks, and contains cabins for passengers (called state rooms) on six decks, with a ship's capacity of 1,432 guests.

The ship's theme is flowers, and she features floral designs throughout. The atrium contains a sculpture spanning three decks which was created by Luciano Vistosi. Volendam was christened by former professional tennis player Chris Evert on 12 November 1999, who became the ship's godmother.

She was refurbished in both 2006 and 2011, when she entered drydock for a refit in Singapore.

Ports of call

She first entered the Australian market in 2009. Volendam cancelled a visit to Batemans Bay during a trip circumnavigating Australia in 2010, only giving 48 hours' notice due to "operational issues" which was interpreted by local media as a failure by the town's council to meet the requirements set out by Holland America regarding the town's wharf some twelve months prior to the expected arrival of the ship. During 2011 she was chartered to visit match relevant destinations during the 2011 Rugby World Cup, which was hosted in New Zealand.

In 2016, Volendam sails out of Australia/New Zealand and South Pacific, and during the Northern Hemisphere summer sails out of Vancouver, Canada, conducting cruises of the Inside Passage to Alaska. She hosted an Inside Passage cruise in September 2012 to celebrate a hundred years of the Vancouver Sun. In 2013 when Volendam returned to Australian waters, she visited Kangaroo Island for the first time, after a new landing pontoon was installed on the island to allow for it to become a cruise ship destination. After she left Australia for Asia, she visited a variety of Asian countries including Japan, China, South Korea and Vietnam.

On 9 March 2016 she witnessed a total solar eclipse in the Makassar Straight while sailing through Indonesia as part of an extended tour of Asia, hosting a number of astronomy groups and eclipse followers.

In popular culture

In the 2005 film Into the Blue, Volendam makes a brief cameo when she was docked in the Prince George Wharf port of Nassau, Bahamas.