SS Rotterdam
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| SS Rotterdam V | |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | October 27, 1955 |
| Laid down: | December 14, 1956 |
| Launched: | September 14, 1958 |
| Maiden voyage: | September 3, 1959 |
| Fate: | Retired from Holland-America Line September 30, 1997 In service with Premier Cruises as the SS Rembrandt Laid up in Freeport, Bahamas September 21, 2000 following Premier's financial collapse Purchased by the Rotterdam Drydock Company May 1, 2003 for conversion to hotel/casino Departed Freeport for Gibraltar, June 17, 2004 Sold to De Rotterdam BV June 30, 2005 Rotterdam is expected to be permanently docked at Rivierkwartier, in the Katendrecht section of the city of Rotterdam |
| General characteristics | |
| Builder: | Rotterdam Drydock Company mij., Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Tonnage: | 38,650 gross tons |
| Displacement: | 31,530 tons |
| Length: | 228.0 m (748 ft) |
| Beam: | 28.7 m (94 ft) |
| Draft: | 9 m (29.5 ft) |
| Height: | 49.8 m (163.5 ft) |
| Power: | 38,000 horsepower @ 135.5 RPM |
| Propulsion: | 2 triple expansion steam turbines manufactured by de Schelde, Vlissingen (Flushing), Netherlands 4 V2M 640PSI Boilers (3 active, 1 reserve), designed by Combustion Engineering and manufactured by de Schelde |
| Speed: | 21.5 knots |
| Complement: | 1,456 passengers 776 officers and crew |
| Cost: | $(US) 30,000,000 (1959) |
The Rotterdam V, known as "The Grande Dame", is one of the most famous post-war ocean liners. With a career spanning forty years, she was also one of the most successful passenger vessels of all time. She sailed from 1959 until her final retirement in the fall of 2000.
Originally she was conceived as running mate to the popular Nieuw Amsterdam of 1938, but work was put on hold at the outbreak of war in Europe. When economic conditions once again became favorable for completion of the new ship in early 1954, the beginning of the end of ocean liners as basic transport was visible on the horizon. The designers took this in mind and created a groundbreaking vessel, a two-class, horizontally divided ship with movable partitions and a unique double staircase allowing for easy conversion to cruising. Rotterdam's machinery was shifted aft, to the now-traditional two-thirds aft position, and in lieu of a funnel twin uptake pipes were fitted. To provide balance, a large deckhouse was built atop the superstructure in the midships position of a typical funnel. While very controversial at the time, Rotterdam's appearance became groundbreaking, and her unique design features can be found on cruise ships to this day today.
After retiring from transatlantic service in 1969, the ten year old Rotterdam got a small refit for permanent cruising and began her new life as a full-time cruise ship. By the 1980s a routine of winters in the Caribbean and summers in Alaska was settled into, with the occasional (and very popular) world cruise.
Much to the dismay of the ship's loyal fans, Holland America Line announced that changing safety regulations made it necessary to retire the ship, and a replacement was ordered (Rotterdam VI) from Fincantieri shipyards in Italy. A gala finale cruise ended her final season on September 30, 1997.
Picked up by Premier Cruises and re-named SS Rembrandt, the ship continued on in cruise service until the sudden financial collapse of the company forced the ship's layup in Freeport, Bahamas. After years of laying idle, the former SS Rotterdam departed the Bahamas for a new life as a hotel and tourist attraction in her former home port of Rotterdam.
