New Caribbean and Latin American cruise follows an old Pan Am Clipper route

Nostalgia for Pan American World Airways, an aviation pioneer born in South Florida, has reached the high seas. Cruise line Holland America and Pan American World Airways are teaming up to offer a 28-day cruise to the Caribbean and Latin America that retraces the original flying Clipper routes. The voyage, timed for the 100th anniversary of Pan Am’s founding, will depart PortMiami in the US state of Florida on October 30, 2027, and return the following month. The MS Zuiderdam will visit 18 ports, heading south to Jamaica, east to Puerto Rico, southwest to Colombia, and returning to Miami with stops in Panama and Mexico. During one stretch, the ship will make six ports of call in six days. Holland, owned by Florida-based Carnival, is calling the cruise the 28-Day Pan Am 100th Anniversary Legendary Voyage. The trip serves as a reminder of the strong ties that some in South Florida have with the former airline, which filed for bankruptcy protection in January 1991 and shut down operations by the end of that year. Pan Am was founded in 1927 as the first international airline in the US, initially in Key West, Florida. In 1928, the airline opened a terminal and airfield on the site of the original Miami International Airport. Several of its buildings there remain intact. The idea for the cruise came when a Holland executive read the book Stranded in the Sky: The Untold Story of Pan Am Luxury Airliners Trapped on the Day of Infamy, by Phillip Jett. The work chronicles Pan Am’s predicament during the bombing of Pearl Harbour and the flying boat service the carrier had in the Pacific. “The genesis really came from reading the book,” Paul Grigsby, vice-president of itinerary planning and deployment for Holland America Line, said. “It got me thinking about the service network that they created” in that era and at that delicate time. Then, about a year ago, Grigsby contacted Pan American World Airways, the company that owns the branding and logos of the long-bankrupt airline. “I got a pretty quick response,” the Holland executive said. The voyage was finalised in September. Pan Am’s Clipper service was created as “ships of the air” but with high levels of comfort and elegance, said Craig Carter, chief executive officer for Pan American World Airways. That included multi-course meals served on fine china and cocktail lounges. In 2024, Carter acquired the trademark, logo and intellectual property, including the name Pan American World Airways. “Pan Am’s Clipper ships played a pivotal role in shaping modern air travel – and expanding tourism across the Caribbean,” Holland said in a statement. With boat-like hulls, Clippers could land on water, transforming virtually any harbour into an airport and enabling access to destinations without established runways, the cruise line said. Of the 18 ports in the 2027 cruise, nine were original Pan Am destinations. They include Nassau, San Juan, Charlotte Amalie and Progreso. Nassau, Bahamas, was an early Pan Am destination in the Caribbean, and is what Holland considers “a cornerstone of regional aviation history”. San Juan, Puerto Rico, was Pan Am’s link between South America and North America. Meanwhile, Willemstad, Curacao, was a key refuelling stop for the Allies during World War II. Through themed meals, decor from the era, talks and multimedia presentations, Holland hopes to have “guests experience the magic of travel’s golden era”. The voyage will not include stops in Cuba or Venezuela, key destinations for Pan Am in the early years. The cost of the trip starts at US$3,274 based on double occupancy, including taxes and fees. Holland America’s collaboration with Pan Am is part of the cruise line’s commemoration of the United States’ 250th anniversary. Many details of what will take place during the cruise have not yet been finalised, Amy Carter, vice-president of brands and licensing for Pan American World Airways, said in an interview with the Herald. Ideas include creating Pan Am-branded cocktail lounges and cocktails aboard the ship. Adding art from Pan Am’s heyday, showing films and having lectures are also under consideration. “None of this is set in stone,” she said. Grigsby saw parallels between Holland’s history and that of Pan Am, such as its large network of destinations. He wished a former co-worker Andrew Sherry was around to see the cruise take place. Sherry, who sat in an office next to the executive, died in 2015. Before joining Holland, he worked for Pan Am. He closed the door on the last Pan Am last flight out of Seattle, recalled Grigsby. “I think about him,” he said. “He made an impression on us.” Sherry often talked glowingly about Pan Am, Grigsby said. “It’s something that runs in the blood.”

New Caribbean and Latin American cruise follows an old Pan Am Clipper route

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}A nostalgic 28-day cruise on the MS Zuiderdam will call at ports across the Caribbean on its way to Colombia, before returning to Miami

A nostalgic 28-day cruise on the MS Zuiderdam will call at ports across the Caribbean on its way to Colombia, before returning to Miami