Holland America Line took honours Saturday as the first cruise line to return to Canada following a more than two-year industrywide pause due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. The Koningsdam called in Victoria, BC, on April 9 and continued on to end its seven-day cruise on Sunday at Port of Vancouver, its homeport for the summer Alaska season.

In early March, Canada gave cruise ships the go-ahead to dock in Canadian ports for the season, which runs from April to November.

The first ship the season was supposed to dock three days earlier, but the Caribbean Princess decided to forego its stops in Victoria and Vancouver and headed straight to Portland, Ore., reportedly for maintenance, however the ship was also listed as having “orange status” for COVID cases by the US Center for Disease Control, which prompts an investigation.

Ian Robertson, CEO of the Greater Victoria Harbour Authority, says the (green-listed COVID-free) Koningsdam arrived at Ogden Point around 9:40 a.m., about 20 minutes early and was cleared by the Canadian Border Services Agency before its 1,215 passengers began exploring the capital. “It’s been a long time coming,” he said.

Passengers were required to have two shots of COVID-19 vaccine and a negative test at least 24 hours before they boarded.

Robertson says Victoria is expecting around 790,000 passengers this year, the same number as it saw in 2019.

The long-awaited visit of a cruise ship was met with celebratory events by officials in both cities, with CLIA president and CEO Kelly Craighead declaring, “We’ve worked a long time to make this day happen and we are delighted to be back.”

Similarly, Holland America president Gus Antorcha stated, “We are thrilled to be the first cruise line back into Canada after such a long absence,” said HAL, adding, “(HAL) has a robust schedule of cruises that explore Canadian ports on both coasts with Alaska, Hawaii, transatlantic and Canada and New England itineraries.”

Koningsdam’s call at Victoria marked 905 days since a cruise ship visited the port, and it also was also a maiden call for the ship. To mark the milestones, Antorcha and local government officials were on hand in both Victoria and Vancouver to celebrate the return to Canadian cruising and address the importance of Canada and Alaska to Holland America Line.

In 2022, six Holland America Line ships will call at Victoria and Vancouver for the Alaska cruise season. In total, the six ships will make 45 calls at Victoria and bring nearly 75,000 guests to the port, and 76 cruises begin or end at Vancouver, welcoming approximately 140,000 guests.

For Canada and New England cruising on the East Coast, two ships return in May and cruise between Boston, Massachusetts, and Quebec City or Montreal, Quebec. Nieuw Statendam and Zaandam offer itineraries ranging from seven to 24 days to more than 12 Canadian ports. In total for 2022, Holland America Line will operate 141 cruises on eight ships in Canada with more than 250,000 guests visiting both coasts.

“The cruise industry is an important sector within Canada’s tourism economy,” said Beth Potter, CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC). “Prior to 2020, it contributed more than $4 billion to the Canadian economy annually and supported 30,000 jobs. The past two years have been incredibly difficult…”