MS Zuiderdam
Zuiderdam departing from Fremantle on a 129-night Grand World Voyage cruise in February 2023
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History | |
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Name | Zuiderdam |
Namesake | Named for the southern compass point |
Operator | Holland America Line |
Port of registry | Rotterdam, |
Builder | Fincantieri |
Yard number | Marghera 6075[2] |
Launched | 14 December 2001[2] |
Acquired | 15 November 2002[2] |
Maiden voyage | 14 December 2002[2] |
In service | 14 December 2002[2] |
Identification | |
Status | In service |
General characteristics [2] | |
Class and type | Vista-class cruise ship |
Tonnage | |
Length | 291 m (954 ft 9 in)[1] |
Beam | 32 m (105 ft 0 in)[1] |
Height | 57.83 m (189 ft 9 in) keel to funnel top[citation needed] |
Draught | 7.80 m (25 ft 7 in) max |
Decks | 11 passenger decks, 15 total |
Installed power | |
Propulsion | Azipod |
Speed |
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Capacity | |
Crew | 842[3] |
MS Zuiderdam /ˈzaɪdərdæm/[8] is a Vista-class cruise ship owned and operated by Holland America Line (HAL). It is the lead ship of the Vista-class vessels, so named for the extensive use of glass in their superstructure, and is sister to three other HAL ships, Oosterdam, Westerdam, and Noordam. The prefixes of the four ships' names represent the four directions of the compass in Dutch.
The ship shares similar exterior dimensions with Carnival Cruise Lines' and Costa Cruises' Spirit class. Cunard Line's Queen Victoria is an enlarged version of the same design, as is HAL's Signature class.
As with all Vista-class ships, Zuiderdam is equipped with a diesel-electric power plant and an Azipod propulsion system, and eighty-five percent of her staterooms have ocean views and sixty-seven percent have verandahs. Her art collection carries a Venetian theme throughout the ship; the most dazzling features figures in the time of Carnival in Venice, created by Daniel Ogier.[4]
Service history
[edit]Zuiderdam was christened by American broadcaster Joan Lunden at Port Everglades on 14 December 2002.[9] Between October and April, Zuiderdam largely runs a southern Caribbean itinerary which includes a half-transit of the Panama Canal through the Gatun Locks. From May to September, the vessel travels to Alaska or the Northern Europe/Baltic region.
On 9 June 2019, the ship's departure from the Kiel was delayed when members of climate activist group Smash Cruiseshit used smaller boats to block the seaport.[10]
Technical information
[edit]The machinery spaces of Zuiderdam are vast and stretch along with two of its lowest decks for the most part of the vessel.
MS Zuiderdam is powered by a CODAG propulsion system encompassing five (three 16-cylinder and two 12-cylinder) Sulzer ZAV40S diesel engines (built under license by Grandi Motori Trieste, now owned by Wärtsilä, in Trieste, Italy)[6][7][11][12] and a GE LM2500 Gas Turbine. Zuiderdam was the first Holland America Line ship to use a CODAG propulsion arrangement, a GE LM2500 turbine or ABB Azipod propulsors.[5][13] It is propelled by two 17.62 MW, 160 rpm synchronous freshwater-cooled ABB Azipod propulsors.
Past Zuiderdams
[edit]The first vessel with the "Zuider" prefix launched in 1912 as the 5,211-ton cargo ship Zuiderdijk; at the time, "dijk" or "dyk" was the suffix used for cargo vessels, "dam" was used for passenger ships. She sailed between Rotterdam and Savannah, Georgia, for Holland America through 1922 as well as during World War I as a transport.
The second NASM ship to have the name prefix "Zuider", and the first to be whole "Zuiderdam", was launched from a shipyard in Rotterdam for outfitting in 1941. However, on 28 August 1941, she was damaged by a British air raid. The ensuing blaze was fought for at least two days with sergeant W. Ollesch from the German Fire Regiment "Sachsen" killed while fighting the fire aboard the ship on 30 August 1941. The Germans raised her hull and re-floated her by 25 July 1942 only to be scuttled in order to block the port of Rotterdam to Allied forces by 22 September 1944. She was raised a final time after World War II, but the ship was never completed.[14][15]
References
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Vessel details ZUIDERDAM". 9 April 2010. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f Micke Asklander. "M/S Zuiderdam (2002)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved 22 December 2007.
- ^ a b Ward, Douglas (2006). Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships. Singapore: Berlitz. ISBN 981-246-739-4.
- ^ a b "ms Zuiderdam". Holland America Lines. Archived from the original on 14 May 2006. Retrieved 13 May 2006.
- ^ a b "Holland America's Zuiderdam Cruises Using GE Gas Turbine". General Electric – Aviation. 4 March 2003. Retrieved 8 April 2010.
- ^ a b "Ms. Zuiderdam". Retrieved 8 April 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "M/S Zuiderdam: Modern With Elegant Taste". 12 February 2003. Retrieved 8 April 2010.
- ^ Ward, Douglas (2007). Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships. Singapore: Berlitz. p. 674. ISBN 978-981-246-984-7.
- ^ "Distinguished Journalist Joan Lunden to Be Godmother to ms Zuiderdam, Holland America Line's Newest Ship". PR Newswire. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
- ^ "Climate activists use small boats to blockade cruise ship in German harbour". Local. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
- ^ "Wärtsilä In Italy". 18 March 2010. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
- ^ "Propulsion Engines for Cruise Ships" (PDF). May 1991. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 18 March 2010.
- ^ "90580P001 Marine Brochure" (PDF). April 2004. Retrieved 8 April 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "Names Of Holland America's Vista Series Ships Reflect Deep Roots In Shipping Tradition". News release. Holland America Lines. 6 December 2002. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
- ^ "Sheepvaartnieuws" (in Dutch and West Flemish). 28 August 2008. Retrieved 8 April 2010.
Bibliography
[edit]- Plowman, Peter (2007). Australian Cruise Ships. Dural, NSW: Rosenberg Publishing. ISBN 9781877058509.
- Saunders, Aaron (2013). Giants of the Seas: The Ships that Transformed Modern Cruising. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 9781848321724.
- Smith, Peter C. (2010). Cruise Ships: The World's Most Luxurious Vessels. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Pen & Sword Maritime. ISBN 9781848842182.
External links
[edit]- Official Zuiderdam page
- "Zuiderdam" – review by Douglas Ward in The Daily Telegraph, London.