Holland America Line is looking to 2025 for a record-breaking first that will span five continents over the course of 133 days and allow your clients to visit both Antarctica and the Arctic Circle in one trip. Not only that, but the line is offering its first Grand Voyage “Pole-to-Pole” simultaneously with its 2025 Grand Voyage, a 124-day trip that will take travelers to six continents.
The best part? Both vessels sail on roundtrips from a U.S. homeport, making it much easier to book your clients. If your clients are interested, you can already call in to make a deposited Future Cruise Request. These will get priority booking confirmation before reservations open up to the public on May 24, 2023.
“This will be a truly historic pair of voyages,” said Holland America Line president Gus Antorcha in a press statement. “Our Grand World Voyage travels east to west and our other Grands focus on one region, so designing this first-of-its-kind route that explores south to north roundtrip from the U.S. is an incredible way to allow our guests two different choices to travel across the world.”
The amount of planning that went into these two trips was immense, and, according to v.p. for deployment and itinerary planning Paul Grigsby, they “even timed it so the two voyages will meet-up to share an overnight experience in Barcelona.”
More on the Two Epic Voyages from Holland America Line
The Grand Voyage “Pole-to-Pole” departs on Jan. 25, 2025, roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, aboard the Volendam. The vessel will sail on a south-north-south route, taking your clients through the Panama Canal, down South America to Antarctica, where it will spend four days, then back up by Argentina and Brazil to the Amazon River. From there, it will sail across the Atlantic to Africa, north to Europe and up across the Arctic Circle to the North Cape and into the northern Atlantic Ocean to Iceland and Greenland, then back down the eastern seaboard of the U.S. There will be 68 ports of call in total, with 28 countries visited on five continents and eight overnights in ports along the route.
The 2025 Grand World Voyage aboard Zuiderdam departs on Jan. 4, 2025, also roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It will stop in 46 ports in 32 countries across six continents, with nine overnight calls and seven late-night departures for maximum destination enjoyment. From Florida, it goes through the Panama Canal to Easter Island, where it crosses the Pacific Ocean to Australia. There your clients will have time to explore the Great Barrier Reef before heading over to Indonesia and Sri Lanka, then down to Cape Town, South Africa, with a stop in Seychelles, back up along the east coast of Africa through the Suez Canal on to Portugal before making its transatlantic crossing back to the states.
The aforementioned Barcelona meet-up will take place on April 24, 2025, when both ships will be in port on an overnight call—your clients can expect some serious celebration to go on for this feat of planning.
Of note: Holland America Line is offering an early booking bonus for booking either Grand itinerary by June 3, 2024, of onboard spending credits and amenities valued at up to $8,800 or $8,500, respectively, per person.
For more information, visit hollandamerica.com.
