By
Rebecca Gibson |
Holland America Line has become the third of Carnival Corporation’s cruise brands to get approval to sail from the US to Cuba.
Staring on 27 December 2017, Veendam will begin sailing roundtrips from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Cuba. The first will be a 12-day ‘Christmas & New Year’ voyage to Havana and Cienfuegos, and will be followed by nine seven-day itineraries, an eleven-day spring cruise departing on 17 March 2018, and a final seven-day Cuba sailing departs on 18 April 2018. Most of the voyages include an extended call at Havana
Depending on the departure day, the itineraries include calls at Cuba ports, and a combination of Caribbean ports including Amber Cove, Dominican Republic; Belize City, Belize; Costa Maya and Cozumel, Mexico; George Town, Grand Cayman; Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos; Key West, Florida; and Montego Bay, Jamaica.
“For many, travel is about seeking new places to explore and discovering meaningful new cultural opportunities, and Cuba is one of the most sought-after new destinations for many of our guests,” said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line. “We are excited to finally be able to include Cuba in our itineraries, and our guests and travel partners have been anxiously awaiting a premium cruise experience to this relatively undiscovered Caribbean treasure.”
Holland America’s Explorations Central (EXC) programme will enable guests to enjoy educational and cultural EXC Tours in and near Havana and Cienfuegos. Onboard the ship, EXC Guides will lead onboard presentations about the destinations, as well as EXC Encounters to help guests understand the culture and history of Cuba before they arrive.