Description

STEAMSHIP SS VEENDAM

FULLY BUILT AND READY TO DISPLAY MUSEUM QUALITY SHIP MODEL

Dimension approx.: 35L X 5W X 10H
The model is already built, NOT a model ship kit
Handcrafted from scratch using finest woods & metal fittings
BEAUTIFUL MUSEUM QUALITY MODEL
This beautiful model is already built, NOT a kit.
Handcrafted from finest wood and metal fittings.
Open die cut side hull windows, NOT painted like those built by most other companies.
The model is 100% hand built by artisans from scratch
Hand-painted to match the actual ship.

Veendam (ex‑Argentina) — Holland America Line Era, 1972–1984

Medium‑length narrative with citations from your document

When Moore‑McCormack finally won government approval to sell its two subsidized liners, Argentina began a new life in 1972 under Holland America Lines. Renamed Veendam, the third ship in the fleet to carry the name, she entered transatlantic service between Rotterdam and New York, marking a dramatic shift from her earlier South American routes. As the document notes, “Holland America Lines, Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles, renamed the ship Veendam… The ship was placed on the line’s Atlantic service between Rotterdam and New York.”

Her early years with the company were turbulent. Fuel prices soared, operating costs climbed, and the once‑proud American‑built liners struggled to remain profitable. By late 1973, Veendam was being used for short‑notice cruises from Baltimore—sailings that briefly filled to near capacity but ultimately could not save the ship from lay‑up. According to the document, “In February 1974 the line announced cancellation of scheduled cruises… with plans to sell the two former U.S. liners due to high operating costs.”

Holland America repeatedly sought ways to keep the ship working. Between 1974 and 1978, Veendam was chartered twice and temporarily sailed under different names. First she became Brasil for a Rio‑based winter season, then Monarch Star under Monarch Cruise Lines, operating with Panamanian registry. The document records that “the ship was chartered… to operate cruises out of Rio de Janeiro as Brasil… [and later] chartered to Monarch Cruise Lines and renamed Monarch Star.”

By 1977, Holland America reacquired the vessel through its Panama entity and restored the name Veendam. She found new purpose in Alaska, operating under the Holland America Line–Westours partnership. Despite an engine failure during her Monarch Star period and a minor grounding in Alaska in 1979, she remained serviceable and adaptable. As the document states, “The ship was chartered by Westours… operating in Alaska… [and] in 1979 the ship hit a reef but suffered only repairable damage.”

In her final years with the company, Veendam received additional cabins and shifted to Bermuda cruising before her registry was moved once more within the Holland America corporate structure. By 1984, after more than a decade of shifting roles, charters, and reinventions, the ship was sold—ending her Holland America chapter and beginning her next life as Bermuda Star.