Majestic Princess Kicks Off Repositioning Cruise to Boston

Majestic Princess Kicks Off Repositioning Cruise to Boston

The Majestic Princess recently sailed from Southampton to kick off a repositioning cruise to Canada and New England.

After sailing from the British port on July 18, the Princess Cruises vessel is now offering a 15-night voyage that will end in Boston.

The trans-Atlantic cruise features visits to destinations in Iceland and Canada, including Reykjavik, Isafjord and Grundarfjordur, as well as Charlottetown, Sydney and Halifax.

After arriving at its new homeport in North America, the Majestic Princess is set to kick off its first-ever fall foliage season in Canada and New England.

Sailing round-trip from Boston, the vessel offers seven-night cruises around the region that include visits to Portland, Halifax, Sydney, Eastport and Saint John.

In September, the Majestic Princess is also scheduled to offer open-jaw itineraries that sail between Quebec City and Boston.

Upon completing the deployment on the East Coast, the 141,000-ton ship is set to reposition to Fort Lauderdale for itineraries in the Caribbean.

Before arriving in Florida, the vessel offers a 14-night “Canada and Colonial America” itinerary that sails between Quebec City and Port Everglades.

The open-jaw itinerary includes visits to Saguenay, Charlottetown, Sydney, Halifax, Boston, New York City, Newport and Norfolk.

As part of its 2025-26 winter season, the Royal-class ship offers six- to eight-night cruises from Fort Lauderdale to destinations in the Western, Southern and Eastern Caribbean.

Originally designed for service in China and Asia, the Majestic Princess was built at the Fincantieri shipyard in 2017.

Before kicking off its maiden season in the Mediterranean earlier this year, the 3,600-guest ship underwent a major refurbishment at a shipyard in Italy.

As part of the modernisation project, the vessel debuted new venues, reimagined spaces and refined touches, including the addition of O’Malley’s Irish Pub and Bellini’s Cocktail Bar.

The Majestic Princess also got new dining options, such as the Ocean Terrace Sushi Bar, Alfredo’s Slice and The Salty Dog Grill.

Westerdam Embarks on Cruise to Alaska and Arctic Circle

Westerdam Embarks on Cruise to Alaska and Arctic Circle

The Westerdam set sail from Seattle earlier this month for the second annual edition of Holland America Line’s “Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice” itinerary.

Cruising round-trip from the Pacific Northwest, the 28-night voyage will sail all the way to the Bering Strait while visiting 14 destinations in Alaska and Canada.

Described by the company as its most exclusive itinerary in the region, the month-long cruise sails to unique destinations, such as Nome and Dutch Harbor.

Other highlights of the itinerary include an overnight visit to Anchorage, as well as stops in Valdez and Kodiak.

Before returning to Seattle, the Westerdam is also scheduled to visit Haines, Juneau, Sitka, Wrangell, Ketchikan and Prince Rupert.

The voyage features scenic cruising as well, sailing across the Inside Passage, the Hubbard Glacier, Tracy Arm Fjord and Glacier Bay National Park.

A similar summer solstice itinerary to the Arctic Circle is set to be offered by the Noordam in early June 2026.

Part of Holland America’s six-ship season in Alaska, the Westerdam is set to offer seven-night cruises from Seattle after completing its summer solstice voyage.

Offering the company’s “Alaska Explorer” itinerary, the vessel sails from its homeport every Sunday for cruises that visit Victoria, Ketchikan, Sitka, Juneau and Tracy Arm Fjord.

The 2004-built ship also offers a unique month-long cruise that combines visits to destinations in Alaska and Hawaii.

Offered in partnership with the History Channel, the “Legendary Glaciers & Volcanoes” cruise is scheduled to sail round-trip from Seattle on August 31, 2025.

The 28-night cruise features four destinations in Hawaii, including Honolulu, where the ship is set to spend two days docked.

Other ports of call set to be visited include Vancouver, Dutch Harbour and Kodiak, as well as Valdez and Anchorage.

In addition to the Westerdam, other Holland America Line ships sailing in Alaska in 2025 include the Eurodam, the Koningsdam, the Nieuw Amsterdam, the Noordam and the Zaandam.

Holland America Line 2024 Cruise Capacity Breakdown

HAL Westerdam in Glacia Bay Alaska photo credit Spacejunkie2 flickr images

According to the 2024 Cruise Industry News Annual Report, Holland America Line is offering a balanced deployment mix in 2024 across its 11-ship fleet.

Alaska continues to concentrate most of the company’s offerings, with a total of six ships sailing in the region this summer.

Offering seven-night cruises from Vancouver, the Koningsdam is Holland America’s largest vessel in Alaska this year.

Other ships sailing in the region include the Nieuw Amsterdam, the Eurodam, the Noordam, the Westerdam and the Zaandam.

Holland America Line is also building up its Caribbean offering in 2024, with roughly a 15 per cent increase in capacity compared to 2023.

Mostly sailing from Port Everglades, seven ships are set to offer week-long or longer cruises in the region this year.

The Caribbean deployment is highlighted by a 21-night cruise that sails roundtrip from the Port of Boston.

Scheduled for October, the unique itinerary sails onboard the Zuiderdam and features visits to destinations in the Southern and Eastern Caribbean, as well as the Bahamas and Bermuda.

After seeing a significant capacity increase in 2023,  Northern Europe completes the brand’s top three cruise capacity regions.

Other regions with significant cruise capacity from Holland America Line include the West Coast, the Mediterranean and Canada/New England.

With summer and fall programs onboard the Volendam and the Zuiderdam, the latter is seeing an 18 per cent capacity spike in 2024.

The Holland America fleet is also offering itineraries to South America, Australia, Hawaii, the Panama Canal, the Canaries, and the Asia/Pacific region, as well as a full world cruise and repositioning trans-Atlantic sailings.