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Holland America to make first round-Australia voyage
Tuesday, 13 Feb, 2009
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Holland America Line will feature new itineraries throughout the southern hemisphere in 2010 including a circumnavigation of Australia for the first time.
The 34-day voyage by 1,432-passenger MS Volendam from Sydney includes two days cruising the Great Barrier Reef during daylight hours and visits to 18 ports of call.
HAL claims to be is the only premium cruise line to offer daylight scenic cruising along the Reef’s coastline.
Volendam will mark a first for the line on March 14, 2010 when the ship departs on the 34-day voyage around Australia.
The new itinerary features a two-day Great Barrier Reef daylight scenic cruise through Torres Strait and The Far North Region before anchoring for an overnight at Sherrard Island.
The ship will also make overnight calls at Hobart, Perth and Sydney. Other ports of call include Melbourne, Adelaide, Albany, Exmouth, Darwin, Cairns, Whitsunday Island and Brisbane.
An optional, fully escorted shore excursion to Komodo National Park in Indonesia will be available.
Additionally, a series of 14-day cruises from Sydney throughout the region will focus on the cultures and landscape of Australia and New Zealand.
Two cruises, departing January 20 and February 28, are set to spend more time discovering the terrain of New Zealand than any other premium cruise line. A third cruise, departing January 6, highlights the South Pacific.
The January 20 and February 28 sailings will cover the North and South islands of New Zealand, each with six different port calls.
Both itineraries feature extensive scenic cruising opportunities in Fiordland National Park – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – as well as Queen Charlotte Sound.
Additionally, HAL will call at Picton, the gateway to the South Island and the hub of Marlborough Sounds’ thriving wine country.
The 14-day Pacific Treasures cruise from January 6 will kick-start the year sailing through the South Pacific. As the ship departs Sydney it heads for Noumea, Mouli and Ile des Pins, New Caledonia; Port Vila and Luganville, Vanuatu, and Lautoka and Levuka, Fiji, before returning to Sydney.
Pre- or post-cruise land tours are offered to sites such as Ayers Rock or Alice Springs.
In the spring of 2010, Volendam will sail across the Pacific on 26-day cruise from Sydney to Vancouver.
by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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