A unique book – in terms of text as well as photos and illustrations – about the passenger ships which sailed to and from Rotterdam. It is also about the cruise trade, which during the past few years has become increasingly more important for the port of Rotterdam. Having a cruise terminal located near the center of the city, makes Rotterdam even more attractive for cruise shipping companies.

Photography:
Eppo W. Notenboom
Text:
Bram Oosterwijk
Design and lay-out:
Herbert R. Verhey, Denpasar, Bali
Production, coördination and PR:
Peter Egge,
Egge PR international, Rotterdam
T: +31 (0)10 4137550
E: info@rotterdamendezee.nl
Printing and binding:
De Groot, Goudriaan

Rotterdam and the Sea: Four centuries of passenger travel

It began four centuries ago with the departure of the Pilgrim Fathers from Delfshaven (nearby Rotterdam), who began the first part of their journey to North America with the small ship Speedwell.
Thereafter, the era of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (United East India Company), the first steamship services and – halfway through the 19th century – the passenger trade to the Dutch East Indies began, and somewhat later to the United States. During this time passenger travel by steamship between Rotterdam and England was on the rise. The ship owner Willem Ruys set up the Rotterdamsche Lloyd (the Rotterdam Lloyd). In 1873, the company Plate, Reuchlin and Co. became the Nederlandsch-Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij (the Netherlands American Steamship Company), later known as the Holland America Line.
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