Holland America Line continues their pristine health score record with ms Veendam earning a perfect score of 100 recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The ship also earned a perfect score on its Health Canada inspection.
Veendam‘s inspection was held on May 21 during a turnaround call in Boston, at the beginning of a week-long Bermuda sailing. On May 12, Health Canada inspected the ship in Halifax, Nova Scotia in the middle of a Canada/New England cruise. Prior to these inspections, the ship received a perfect score last August in Boston as well.
In March of this year, the cruise line’s ms Eurodam earned its 10th score of 100 in a row, making it the first ship in the company’s history to receive that many consecutive 100s. Last year, seven Holland America ships received a total of 10 perfect scores: Eurodam, ms Nieuw Amsterdam, ms Noordam, ms Ryndam, ms Statendam, and ms Veendam.
CDC inspections are unannounced and are carried out twice a year per ship. Health Canada harmonizes with the US program, and are conducted once a year when cruise ships visit Canadian ports. The score is assigned based on hygiene and sanitation of food, galley cleanliness, water, shipboard personnel, and the ship as a whole.