Holland America Line and Princess return to California cruising

Carnival Corp. sister brands Holland America Line and Princess Cruises both resumed California cruises this month, from San Diego and Los Angeles, respectively. 

 Travel Weekly is tracking the cruise ships that have returned to service and the ones yet to come.

The Oct. 10 departure of the Koningsdam from the Port of San Diego is the first of four HAL ships slated to cruise from San Diego in the coming months. The ship is the largest of the line’s fleet to be positioned on the West Coast, where it launched the first in a series of 23 seven-day cruise to the California Coast or Mexico that run through April 3. 

The Koningsdam will be joined by the Zuiderdam, also sailing roundtrip cruises from San Diego on longer Mexico trips, a monthlong voyage to Tahiti and Panama Canal departures. The Eurodam will sail one four-day cruise from San Diego to Vancouver, departing April 25, and the Nieuw Amsterdam will offer one five-day cruise from San Diego to Vancouver, on April 26. 

“We are thrilled to get back to cruising from San Diego and to supporting this wonderful city and the ports we visit along the West Coast from Mexico to Washington,” Holland America Line president Gus Antorcha said in a statement.

The Majestic Princess relaunched from the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro on Oct. 6, the first of 14 scheduled roundtrip departures through the end of the year. Itineraries include the Mexican Riviera, California Coast and West Coast Getaways, ranging in length from three to 10 days.

Both brands touted their economic contribution to their homeport cities. Princess said every cruise ship visit infuses more than $1 million into the local economy and that Princess, which calls itself Los Angeles’ hometown cruise line and sails more frequently from Southern California than any other cruise line, contributed $594 million to the Los Angeles economy in 2019. 

HAL said it will bring more than 81,000 guests to San Diego, which will result in more than $35 million in direct spending.

The two brands joined Carnival Cruise Line in California, which launched the Carnival Panorama from Long Beach on Aug. 21. It was the first cruise ship to sail from the Golden State since March 2020. 

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