New Holland America Cruise Line Nieuw Amsterdam

She cost £380 million, has 11 passenger decks, carries 2,104 passengers and 929 crew and has just set sail for the first time.

But her name has been around since the 1600s, when Dutch settlers in the USA bestowed it on the city that we now call New York . And she’s al so the fourth Holland America Line ship to carry the name, so there’s a proud history for her to live up to. How does she measure up to her lineage?

Well there’s ship-wide wifi, which is a boost for the many who have to check in with home or work while they are away, but the price (approx £22 per hour) makes that sense of connection a pretty costly one. There’s a flatscreen tv in every stateroom which al so has a good sized bathroom (no knocking your elbows on the shower surround as you brush your teeth, and a balcony. Fabio Viviani from Café Firenze Italian Restaurant and Martini Bar is onboard as the Guest Chef for a week from 14 November. He’s famous in the USA , raised in Florence he offers a blended Italian, French and Spanish cuisine and he’s al so William Shatner's private chef. For those who want privacy rather than food, there are cabanas for hire, that contain double sunbeds, natty robes and fruit plates.

It’s not just the passenger offering that contains this attention to detail. Rubbish is so rted for recycling and the sewage is given an ultraviolet treatment that makes it far cleaner and safer than even the strongest current legislation requires, so that when it is disposed of, it has the minimum impact on the marine environment. Nieuw Amsterdam is heading off for her maiden winter’s sailing in the Caribbean , and the glowing comments from her first passengers suggest she is set to become a big player, not just a new kid on the cruise block.