For those of you that have had the pleasure to sail on her, just a pic of what she looks like today. She's having work done to remove asbestos before being towed to her new home in the City of Rotterdam
ss Rotterdam V (1959-present) Built in 1959 as ss Rotterdam by the Rotterdamsche Droogdok Maatschappij (Rotterdam Drydock Company), Rotterdam, the Netherlands for the Holland Amerika Lijn/Holland America Line for which she would become their very popular flagship. At 748 feet long, 94 feet wide and weighing 38,650 tons, she would be the largest ship ever built in the Netherlands and she would sail for HAL for 39 years!
She was the fifth ship in the line's history to bear the name of Rotterdam, the principal city in the Dutch province of Zuid (South) Holland, second largest municipality in the Netherlands and the largest port in Europe. The name 'Rotterdam' originally comes from a dam built on the river Rotte.
On 13 September 1958, Rotterdam V was launched by her godmother, HRH Queen Juliana of The Netherlands. Upon the completion of succesful sea trials, she set out on her maiden voyage from Rotterdam to New York, via Le Havre, France and Southampton, England, on 3 September 1959, arriving in New York on 11 September. One of her passengers was the then Crown Princess of The Netherlands, Princess, now Queen, Beatrix.
She then departed New York on her first cruise on 11 December, 1959, a 49-day cruise circumnavigating South America. She would make her first world cruise in 1961, a seventy seven-day roundtrip from New York. In 1969, Rotterdam made her last regularly scheduled transatlantic crossing and was converted to a one-class cruise ship. She would, however, make four more world cruises in 1993, 1995, 1996, and 1997.
From September until October 1989, she received a $15 million dollar (mostly interior) refit at a Portland, Oregon shipyard. On 31 January 1996, HAL announced that the much loved ship would be taken out of service as of 30 September 1997. The reason given by her owners (later disputed) was the new SOLAS (Safety Of Life At Sea) requirements coming into effect and the funds, supposedly U.S. 40 million, required to update the thirty-eight year old vessel. Rotterdam would make a farewell cruise at the end of her Alaska season from Vancouver, BC to Ft Lauderdale, Fl.
In October 1997, she was purchased by Premier Cruises who had her upgraded to SOLAS standards and renamed Rembrandt. Premier kept her classic ocean liner 'feel' and on 21 December 1997, she departed on her first cruise to South America. The summer of 1998 found her cruising in the Mediterranean. Premier however, also had grandiose plans to rename the ship 'Big Red Boat IV' and to paint her hull a bright red, an idea not very popular with her fans. As Big Red Boat IV she would sail out of Los Angeles on three and four-day party cruises to Mexico in the winter and out of Vancouver, BC on seven-day Alaska cruises in the summer.
As faith would have it, Premier Cruise Line ran into financial difficulties. On 13 September, 2000 during a northbound New England/Canada cruise, her captain was ordered to return his ship to Halifax, Nova Scotia. After off-loading her passengers, the ss Rembrandt was placed under arrest. As a special condition of her warrants, she was allowed to depart for Freeport, the Bahamas where she arrived on 30 December 2000 and was laid-up pending sale. Premier Cruise Lines filed for bankruptcy and went out of business.
On 7 May 2003 Rembrandt became the property of s.s. Rotterdam BV (part of RDM holding or Rotterdamse Droogdok Maatschappij, her original builders). On 17 June 2004, the Polish ocean-going tug 'Englishman' towed her from the Bahamas to the Camell Laird yard at Gibraltar where she arrived on 12 July 2004 and where renovation work was scheduled for her. She would remain docked at the British Crown Colony until October 2005 (see below). By that time, she also had new owner, 'Rederij De Rotterdam BV'.
On 25 October 2005, after a tow from Gibraltar by the Spanish tug 'V B Artico', she arrived at Cadiz, Spain, for additional (dry) dock maintenance including the repainting of her hull in her original light gray color. In addition, she was renamed Rotterdam and registered in the same city. 'V B Artico' would tow her again, this time from 10 to 27 February 2006, from Cadiz to Gdansk, Poland where her asbestos was removed and further renovating would take place (see below).
On 25 August 2006 she received yet another tow, this time to Wilhelmshaven, Germany (see below) where she stayed until August 2008 for additional exterior restoration work.
On 2 September 2008, she left Wilhelmshaven and on 4 September 2008, she made her triumphant return (see above and below) to her city of birth, Rotterdam, where she was berthed at the “Katendrechtse Hoofd” (Head of Katendrecht) located on the northern edge of Rotterdam Zuid (South) in the Maashaven (River Maas harbor) and where she will serve as a floating hotel, static museum ship and conference center.
Our first HAL cruise was on this ship! It was May 30, 1997, a Southbound Alaska itinerary. What a grand old ship she was. We enjoyed the ship's tour showing us all the behind the scene details of how they kept the first class passengers separated from the rest of the passengers.
Our first HAL cruise was on this ship! It was May 30, 1997, a Southbound Alaska itinerary. What a grand old ship she was. We enjoyed the ship's tour showing us all the behind the scene details of how they kept the first class passengers separated from the rest of the passengers.
Thanks for the details and pictures.
You're welcome Ma'am - Would really like to visit her in Rotterdam
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altought the hotel is not taking bookings until September. 
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