When you’ve booked a 132-day trip, what’s one more day? Fun – that’s what it is. Holland America Line has rescheduled the back half of its 2026 Grand World Voyage, which is now a day longer than originally scheduled — but for an interesting reason.
Due to ongoing unrest in the Red Sea region, the cruise line recently rescheduled the last 54 days of its epic voyage on the 1,432-passenger Volendum, which will round-trip from Fort Lauderdale on January 4, 2026. Because the cruise replaced the Middle East and Europe with more destinations in Asia and Central America, the ship will cross the International Date Line twice (rather than once, as originally planned) while passing through the Pacific Ocean.
When a ship crosses the invisible IDL—the one that goes from the North Pole to the South Pole—to the west for the first time, it will skip a day, making it shorter than expected based on its landing and disembarkation dates. Under the original itinerary, the voyage was 132 days, with crossings to the west of the line.
Then, returning to Fort Lauderdale to finish the cruise, the ship will head east across the line, repeating a day there. When the ship heads east the date resets to the previous date, in essence sending the ship back in time. That means the revised itinerary will be a day longer but will still end on May 17, 2026 — the trip’s originally scheduled end date.
The sailing, which will last just shy of 4 1/2 months, features calls at 51 ports in 23 countries and territories. Originally, the trip included all seven continents, but after removing Africa and Europe, it will now visit five of the seven.
Following the changes, booked passengers will experience previously scheduled late night calls and overnights to popular ports such as Nagasaki, Japan, Tokyo and Hong Kong, as well as Rio de Janeiro, Tahiti, Sydney and more. Another notable addition included the complete transit of the Panama Canal.
“We know that immersive experiences in exciting destinations have always been a major draw for people choosing world cruises,” Beth Bodensteiner, Holland America Line’s chief commercial officer, said in a statement about the changes.
The ship’s new, revised route will take guests south from Fort Lauderdale along the east coast of South America. From there, the ship will cross the equator and head towards Antarctica before heading to Easter Island and stopping at several South Pacific islands en route to Australia. Next are calls to Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan, followed by another Pacific crossing to Alaska.
Volendam will then sail from southern Alaska to Seattle and San Diego, and then on to ports in Central America. The trip concludes with a visit to Colombia before transiting the Panama Canal and returning to Fort Lauderdale.
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Passengers can expect plenty of sea days to relax and enjoy the ship’s entertainment, which will include special offers exclusive to Grand World Voyages. These include watercolor instruction, block parties, creative writing workshops, and ballroom and ballet dance classes, as well as more standard offerings such as comedy performances, culinary demonstrations, and enrichment lectures. At night, the Ship’s Theater will host more than a dozen shows with odes from pop and rock greats like Carole King, The Carpenters, The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac.
Guests can also take advantage of the ship’s pool, spa and fitness center.
The lowest-priced inside cabins start at $30,354 per person for the entire trip. The updated itinerary will be available for booking through the Holland America website from October 30. Cruisers who don’t want to wait can book the entire tour immediately by calling 1-877-932-4259.
Segments are also available, with six options ranging in length from 21 to 61 days. Passengers can choose legs from Fort Lauderdale to Santiago, Chile departing on January 4, 2026; Fort Lauderdale to Sydney, also departing January 4, 2026; Departing Santiago, Chile, Singapore, February 10, 2026; Singapore to Fort Lauderdale, departing March 24, 2026; Singapore to Tokyo, also departing on March 24, 2026; or Tokyo to Fort Lauderdale, departing April 14, 2026.
For the interior cabin, starting prices range from $9,074 to $15,934 for the first three segments. Fares for the last three segments will be available when they are released for booking on November 13.
Through June 16, 2025, guests booking 133-day Grand World Voyages will each receive up to $2,000 onboard credit, a 3% pay-in-full discount and a basic Wi-Fi package. Cruisers who book early and also book their flights through Holland America will receive a $500 air credit per person and round-trip airport transfers to and from Fort Lauderdale Airport.
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