Holland America Line has received approval to restart cruising from Greece from August.
Four departures aboard Eurodam will sail from Piraeus (Athens), with bookings opening from May 6.
Guests must have had both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine at least 14 days prior to boarding, and provide proof.
Departing August 15 and 29, HAL’s seven-day Idyllic Greek Isles itinerary calls at Kotor, Montenegro, plus the Greek isles of Corfu, Santorini and Mykonos.
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An Ancient Wonders itinerary departs August 22, calling at Haifa, Israel, as well as Náfplion, Mykonos and Rhodes in Greece. Both cruises can be combined to form a longer, back-to-back 14-day Collectors’ Voyage.
A seven-day “Adriatic Allure” itinerary departs on September 5 and will sail from Piraeus to Venice, Italy, with calls at Mykonos, Katakolon (Olympia) and Crete (Chania), Greece, as well as Sarandë, Albania.
HAL said additional Mediterranean cruises aboard Eurodam through the autumn will be announced in the coming weeks and include ports in Italy and Greece.
Eurodam is scheduled to return to the United States to begin sailing its published Caribbean cruises in mid-November.
Fares for Eurodam’s seven-day Greece cruises begin at a ‘Have it All’ fare of £1,949 per person (based on a Veranda stateroom) including one shore excursion, a drinks package, speciality dining and WiFi. Free air travel is also included from London and select regional airports including transfers between ship and airport and late arrival protection.
“Everyone at Holland America Line has been preparing for our return to service, and we are grateful to the government of Greece for allowing us to show that we can safely operate our cruises,” said Gus Antorcha, president of Holland America Line.
“The beautiful islands of Greece have been a highlight of our Mediterranean itineraries for decades, and we are honoured to be able to restart out of Athens and give our guests a memorable vacation after all this time without cruise travel.”
Greek tourism minister Harry Theoharis added: “The Greek Islands have been welcoming Holland America Line ships for many years, and we are proud to work together to welcome the cruise line back this summer.
“We are sure that all visitors to Greece will once again have unique experiences to our beautiful destinations and fully enjoy the rich history, culture and gastronomy of our nation.”
To accommodate the new Greece sailings, Eurodam’s published Seattle roundtrip Alaska cruises will be moved to similar accommodations on sister ship Nieuw Amsterdam, which is scheduled to sail on the same departure dates.
European cruises departing from July 1 to 25 on Volendam and July 1 to August 31 on Westerdam will be cancelled. HAL said guests who were booked on impacted cruises and their travel agents are being notified.
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