With some 11 luxury ships sailing to more than 280 ports of call and scenic cruising destinations on all seven continents, including Antarctica, Holland America<.> Line recently announced a revised delivery schedule of ships from Fincantieri-Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.

As previously announced, the first of the vessels, Holland America Line`s 1,848 passenger ms Zuiderdam will be delivered Nov. 15, 2002 and sail on her maiden voyage Dec. 14, 2002, on a seven-day Caribbean cruise from Ft. Lauderdale. Member of the exclusive World`s Leading Cruise Lines alliance, Holland America Line`s new ms Oosterdam, is scheduled for delivery in June 2003.

Two other vessels, currently unnamed, are scheduled for delivery to Holland America Line in April 2004 and October 2005. The fifth ship, a new build option, if exercised, will be delivered in May 2006.

A vessel delivery time previously planned for HAL in January 2005 will be assigned to a sister company, Cunard Line. The ship building slot with the yard has been transferred to Cunard. Both Holland America Line and Cunard are units of Carnival Corporation.

At 85,000 tons, HAL`s Project Vista series of premium ships are the largest ever built for the company, they also will boast the highest passenger space ratio of its fleet at 46, keeping the company firmly placed as the leader in premium cruising. The Vista-class ships feature innovative exterior elevators, located on both sides of the vessel and vertically transversing 10 decks, providing guests with panoramic sea views. The ships also include a wide range of spacious accommodation categories. About 85 percent of the staterooms feature an ocean view, with approximately 80 percent of those offering private verandahs.