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The Maritime Web Site Award is completely free and exists to promote the maritime world on the internet. Anyone can apply to have their non-commercial maritime websites considered HERE. The following Dutch sites have recently applied for, and have been granted the prestigious GOLD and SILVER awards as they have proven to display an exemplary, informative maritime content.
In the view of the judges, the following sites are worth visiting by anyone interested in the maritime world, however, for legal reasons, we have to state that while we found these sites worthy of an award at the time of assessment, all sites linked to are external and we can take no responsibilty for the contents of any of the sites listed.
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THE "NORDNES" WEBSITE A truely unique website, created by the crew of the rock-carrying vessel NORDNES, where you can get to know how the vessel operates, (currently in the North Sea), what it does and the real people on board, all with a wry sense of humour. Throughout the website, the emphasis on 'Safety First' on board the vessel is underlined (with great presentations about coming on board for the first time). How we wish the crews of other vessels would create similar websites as this well presented and designed site (all in perfect English). After the tragedy that this vessel (when formerly the ROCKNES) suffered, it is great to see her back at work again and we strongly suggest you visit the website. You'll enjoy it ! |
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MARITIME MEMORIES OF FRED CLAESSEN Now retired, but having worked at sea, Fred Claessen has created this wonderful website, full of memories of trips on board cruise ships since 1957 to the present day. The site has recently been completely updated with lots of memorabilia, photos, videos and full of nostalgia. A great appetiser for anyone thinking of taking a cruise, especially in the Caribbean. In English and Dutch. |
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NIELS'S HOMEPAGE WEBSITE A special flag flying for this one ! For 20 years, Niels E. Hansen served at sea (from 1957 - 1977) and he has created this lovely website documenting all the vessels he sailed on during that time. A great historical record from this Dane who has now lived in the Netherlands for over 20 years...so a Dutch winner with a Danish flavour. All pages have triple language (English / Dutch, Danish). Niels says that English is the language of the sea. I have found that in emergencies at sea, people panic in their own language, whatever that may be !!! - a real mariner's website- great stuff !! |
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HOLLAND AMERICA LIJN FANCLUB WEBSITE
Anybody who has an interest in the present day fleet of Holland America Line, or would like to delve into some of its history, then this website by Ruud Mudde should keep you absorbed for ages. As well as interesting facts about the Holland America vessels, past and present, there are some wonderful pages of maritime art, depicting the Holland America Line vessels. Much (although not all) of the site provides an English translation. |
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VRIENDEN VAN DE KONINKLIJKE MARINE
The volunteers of the "Stichting Vrienden van de Koninklijke Marine" (VVKM, Friends of the Royal Dutch Navy) are working on restoring the former research vessel Hr. Ms. Snellius to such a level that visitors can enjoy good old times again. At the same time, the former minesweeper Hr. Ms. Hoogeveen serves as lodging vessel but she also requires regular heavy repairs and maintenance. This great website (currently only in Dutch) logs the work of restoration with photos and information as the association lovingly restores these historic vessels. |
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"LEGEND OF THE SEAS" CRUISE 2005
"VOLENDAM" CRUISE 2004 Normally, websites commemorating personal trips as passengers on cruise ships do not merit a Maritime Web Award, but Mark van Gool's websites are something else. As well as a tremendous log of his voyages on the "VOLENDAM" in 2004, the VOYAGER OF THE SEAS in 2005 (and again soon 2006 !), the information given and the photos are absoutely superb. A very "sticky" website with lots of information about ocean cruises that will entice both fellow cruise passengers and those just curious alike. |
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FREIGHT CONTAINERS IN THE PORT OF ANTWERP
For many people, a shipping container is simply a 20 or 40 foot oblong box, but for those involved in the shipping trade, they are objects of functional beauty. Corné has produced a tremendous inter-active website to help identify the container lease operators involved from his growing database of boxes that pass through the port of Antwerp. Numerous ways of interrogating his extensive database, with facts and figures made available, as well as superbly photographed examples of the various container types and operators. While very useful to shippers, the information should be also of great interest to those who want to know more about the boxes we all see on the back of lorries on our roads. |
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Hr. Ms. JAGUAR F822 Any former sailors in the Royal Netherlands Navy will love this website about the Royal Dutch Navy frigate JAGUAR. Memories of the 1980s, a full log of its travels and the crew on board. Pim van Wijngaarden has created this very novel site as a great record of a beloved ship. Currently in Dutch and gradually being translated into English with special features on Aldis lamp signalling. |
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VRIJWILLIGERS VAN DE ZEESLEEPBOOT "HOLLAND" The HOLLAND is a grand old ocean going Dutch tug (built 1951) which has now been lovingly restored to her former glory by a small army of volunteers, but now as a museum boat. Fully active, she is to be seen at maritime gatherings throughout the Netherlands. A fun website designed by Hans Biersteker, yet full of facts and records of the events that the HOLLAND goes to (even visited by Queen Beatrix in August 2005 !) with photos and memories for many to enjoy. Really outstanding websites (like this one) prove that you do not have to provide an English translation in all cases, but Hans says that nevertheless, they will work towards an English translation soon. |
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VESSEL TRAFFIC SERVICES OF EUROPOORT MEMORIES OF A NAVAL CAREER in the ROYAL NETHERLANDS NAVY Two great websites by H.W.Kompagne. The first (in perfect English) provides detailed information about the Vessel Traffic Services in the Hook of Holland, Europoort and New Waterway areas, packed with easily understood details and links to other VTS websites. The second (in Dutch only currently) is a personal history in words and photos, of sailing with the Dutch Navy between 1966 and 1972 - all the ships served on and events participated in. Both sites are superbly designed. |
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NASM 1873 WEBSITE A wonderful history of the Holland America Line (Nederlansch Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij) with a large collection of photos of the vessels from the early days, right through to modern times. Ben van Zeijl has provided us with a well researched and catalogued timeline for Holland America Line, with posters and other memorabilia - a real labour of love, and well designed. Currently mainly in Dutch, there are some pages in English. |
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CRUISEROTTERDAM.TK Recently upgraded to a Gold Award following a huge re-design, including an ENGLISH version !, this is a very useful website for anyone living in or visiting the Rotterdam area, as Sander has provided not only a great photo collection of recent cruise ship visits to Rotterdam, but has also posted a list of which ships are to visit in the near future. Although I sadly agree with Sander that being on a cruise ship is not what it was a few years ago, he gives us a history of his years at sea. If anyone wants to know which cruise ships they are likely to see coming into Rotterdamm then visit Sander's site first ! (Currently in Dutch and English) |
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SPARKS ENZA After 17 years at sea, all over the world, Johan "swallowed the anchor" and came ashore, but he has created a super website recalling some great strories from his time at sea along with photos of the ships he served on and places he visited. A great historical snapshot of the Dutch merchant marine in the 1970-80s. Currently only in Dutch, (a great site for Dutch speakers) but Johan may get to put up an English version. |
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CRUISELIFE.NL A tremendous website about the cruise industry, with up-to-date news and information on all the major cruise lines plus an extensive gallery of the vessel each with technical information. Currently only in Dutchm this great website would otherwise have won the Gold Award. (Go on Ruud, give us an English version, please !), but still easy to navigate around even if you cannot speak Dutch - and worth the effort. |
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Hr. Ms. UTRECHT WEBSITE Another example of a great Dutch website, as a tribute to the Royal Netherlands Navy destroyer Hr. Ms. UTRECHT. She came into service on 1st October 1957 and served faithfully until 1st August 1980. Mario van der Plas provides an historically important record and photo gallery of this fine vessel, as well as a meeting place for former shipmates of the Hr. Ms. UTRECHT. Currently only in Dutch, but clear enough for non-Dutch speakers to understand most of it. |
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SAND & ROCKS An unofficial (but none the less charming) meeting place for crew members (and ex-crewmembers) of the Van Oord Group, the Dutch offshore dredging and surveying company. Bert deRuiter's site is still growing with many pictures sent in by serving crew members during their operations at sea and other contacts within the group. |
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The NEDSHIPS website Ships always look their very best when photographed for official postcards. Rein Meijer has produced a great website that focuses on the many ship's postcards of the 1950's to 1970's. For example, the old "triple island" tankers are now but a distant memory, but by looking at their official postcards, we can see how grand they used to be in their heyday. A great historical record that is easy to navigate around, with delightful pictures on every page. |
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DUTCH STEAM SOCIETY (VERENIGUNG STOOMVAART) The Dutch Steam Society has been around for nearly 30 years, and has a great website showing the steam vessels in the society (including photos and a full history of each vessel) as well as a great historical section on Dutch steam vessels in general. In perfect English as well as Dutch, the site provides details of up-coming events of the Society as well as the Society's contact details. A "must-see" for anyone fascinated by steam powered vessels. |
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SCHUT SCHEEPVAART Richard Schut comes from a maritime family and has already served on a number of vessels around the world, most recently with JoTankers, all of which are logged his his very extensive website along with a huge list of links (over 450 !!) to maritime sites. Richard's site is in Dutch and English (with a little help from his friends) and has all sorts of interesting things, including a video clip of the launching of the "Vossdiep". |
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M.S. "VICTOR" This is a great website for anyone interested in the inland cargo vessels of Europe that are seen sailing up and down the Rhine, Mosel, and Danube every day. Mennojan Slemmer is a crew member on board the 3,010 ton barge,M.S. VICTOR and on his website, he introduces us to his vessel and fellow crew members. Photo albums of the various parts of the vessel, and some of the fantastic views along the major rivers of northern Europe. Currently only in Dutch, Mennojan promises to create English and German versions soon. |
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HOLLANDS GLORIE A previous Silver Award winner, Hans Van der Aar has massively increased the size of his website with good English translations of the whole site. Hans served in the Dutch marine salvage industry (with Smit and Wijsmuller) and his lifetime of experience and knowledge of ocean-going tugs shine through on every page. Great accounts of salvage operations INCLUDING a full story of the TORREY CANYON salvage attempts. This is an excellent site worth visiting. |
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HANS BREEMAN MARITIEM Hans is an excellent maritime artist, specialising in the Dutch passenger vessels of the 1950's and 1960's (Unusual, but a welcome change to paintings of sailing ships !!). A really nice website (in Dutch and NOW also in perfect English !). The paintings he exhibits there are worth looking at, as they capture the spirit of those times when they really knew HOW to make good ships. We're delighted that this website has grown even better since being awarded the Silver Award and now has been up-graded to Gold. |
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MAKKUM NAUTIEK WEBSITE A nice straighforward site created by j.c. de Does of the Netherlands that provides a useful gallery of vessel photographs. The website is in Dutch, but all vessel types are categorised and should be easy to follow in any language ! There is also a useful links section and photo archive. |
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HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEY WEBSITE OF PETER DE RUIJTER The first website to apply for an award which focuses on hydrographic survey work and the vessels used in the pipelaying/telecomunication cable lay operations and now that Peter has provided an English translation of his work, we are delighted to have upgraded his award to GOLD. One vessel used in the trench-filling of pipelay operations was, of course, the ROCKNES, which Peter has numerous photos and diagrams of, along with details of other similar vessels. Extensive links to other hydrographic societies and related websites. An important website that explains a lot about hydrographic survey and rock dumping at sea. |
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CONTAINERS !!! Michael van der Meer used to work for Evergreen, but more recently in his family container truck business. He has created a huge site (now with a much easier to remember URL) that gives extensive information about the carriage of containers (especially the vessels that carry them) with a huge a gallery of photos. All you could ever want to know about containers - a really educational site that exemplifies a GOLD award winner. |
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V.N.S. WEBSITE A meeting place for former crew members and old employees of the Vereenigde Nederlandsche Scheepvaartmaatschappij line of the Netherlands. A huge amount of work has gone into listing the crew members of the vessels of this fleet in the 1950s, many of whom are still around and keep in regular contact. DUTCH ONLY language. |
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NEDERLANSE CRUISE SITE PICTURES Originally intended for Dutch and Belgian holiday makers, Harm Brink has created a website with tons of information about the world's cruise ship industry - where to go, when in the year to choose and lots of information on the cruise vessels and lines, all done in a very artistic way. For anyone (anywhere) who feels they need some SENSIBLE advice about taking a cruise, then this site will probably be able to answer many of your questions. |
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PORT PICTURES. NL This is a recent UPGRADE from Silver to Gold Award, following extensive additions to Danny's website. Working in Rotterdam Port, Danny Cornelissen makes good use of his camera to provide us with pictures and news of vessels and their cargoes at the world's largest port, plus a few photos of when things don't quite go to plan......(in English and Dutch). Lots to see and learn about on this website. |
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WILLEM'S MARITIME PAGES Willem Van der Leek has created a super website that is an eclectic collection of maritime stories, histories, and pictures about the Holland America Line; it's vessels old and new and photos of the newer vessels today. You could get lost for hours in this website, so take a cup of coffee with you when you go. |
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MARITIME ART OF HOLLAND Bert Otto is a fine Dutch maritime artist, working in water colours and acrylics, who has provided a wonderful gallery of his works for us all to walk through and enjoy, on-line. Bert's work has been exhibited all over Holland and the website is in Dutch and (perfect !) English. Bert's works as "Giclee" prints, are available. |
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CRUISING THE 21st CENTURY Anyone who loves the design of modern cruise ships will love this site, where Onno Heesbeen has compiled a wonderful collection of today's cruise ships from around the world. The photos are wonderfully presented and capture the spirit of each vessel rather than simple profiles. In perfect English, this website is very artistic as well as being very useful to those needing information about the cruise ship industry. |
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MARINE RADIO AMATEUR CLUB Amateur radio enthusiasts often start whilst serving at sea, and in the Netherlands there is a club for maritime amateur radio fans, which already has over 450 members around the world. John Thomassen (the webmaster) provides a website in both Dutch and excellent English, that shows how important radio communication still is at sea (despite more hi-tech methods of communications these days !). The club's radio address is P14MRC |
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TUGS AND TOWAGE This site has been removed as it is now only a link to a commercial website. |
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POOLVOS RESTAURANTIE SITE Restoring classic and historical vessels is a very labour and time consuming labour of love. Klaas de Groot has created a wonderful site about the on-going restoration of the POOLVOS, a 1922 built yacht, with an amazing history (It was actually hidden from the Germans in a barn during WW2 !) The restoration has been taking place since 1992 and the boat is scheduled to be launched again, in all her glory, in 2004. So visit this great site with lots of pictures and some English translations, to see the progress to date (regularly updated). (Apologies for the late announcement of this award) |
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AUKE VISSER'S ESSO TANKER SITE After a working lifetime at sea, Auke has created a most comprehensive site that covers the subject of tankers very extensively. Although Auke worked for Esso, his site is completely non-commerical and provides the information for fellow ship enthusiasts. A large gallery of the world's supertankers (VLCCs and ULCCs) including the latest HELLESPONT mega-monsters is worth viewing. Details about the vessels are provided, all in excellent English. |
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SCALDIS CARDBOARD MODEL CLUB
A really novel and fascinating website, where Wim Van der Meer exhibits his models of the great vessels of the past (along with many histories of the vessels). It is possible to buy the kits for the models direct, but the award is given for the amount of information given on each ship and the design of the website. |
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MARK-PRUMMEL.TK
Link and award removed as the site no longer displays the award symbol. |
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TUGBOAT.NL
Yet another Dutch winner ! Anton Schoo has created this site all about tugboats (especially Dutch ones), with information and links enough to satisfy most people's curiosity about these workhorses ( ponies ?) of the maritime world.In English and Dutch. |
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SHIPS OFF TERNEUZEN
Terneuzen sits on the banks of the Schelde river that leads to the port of Antwerp. Marcel van Luik has created this wonderfully graphic website about the ships that pass by on this major shipping route. Sites that are largely collections of vessel photos do not usually manage to win the Gold Award, but Marcel's site is that extra bit special in the way it has been designed. |
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ON THE WATER.NL Stefan Roest is unashamedly (but rightly) proud of his home port of Rotterdam - the world's biggest port (...so he tells me !). A wonderful website full of useful facts, photo tours and information, as well as a very good forum for maritime discussions! - All in perfect English !!! |
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GRONINGSE POTJE "ANDA". A labour of love, Bas van den Bos has created a website about the history and restoration of a Dutch coastal vessel, the "ANDA". Although largely in Dutch, Bas is slowly translating the pages into English, but the ANDA is lovely example of 1930s/40's built Dutch coastal vessels and his website has useful historical information about this class of vessel. |
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GEZIEN TUSSEN HOEK EN STAD Largely in Dutch, this site that Hans Lingbeek in Holland has created provides a lot of information about the Dutch merchant marine - lots of photos, well organised site. Hans regularly updates his website with new photos and is worth re-visiting regularly, especially if interested in the vessels visiting Rotterdam. |
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GRONINGER KUSTVAART Yet another superb Dutch website, which focusses on the coastal craft of the Low Countries from the 50s and 60s (largely now sadly just a memory). Jelle Bijlsma has created this site in ENGLISH as well as Dutch and deserves a visit. |
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HR. Ms. POTVIS WEBSITE A website dedicated to the Royal Duch Navy submarine Hr Ms POTVIS, a revolutionary triple-hull design of submarine that served through the 1960s - 1990s, finally being de-commissioned in 1992 and broken up in 1994. A full history of her service record and lots of information, incuded a "guided tour". |
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SCHEEPSPRAAT (Shiptalk) The humour on board vessels can be...earthy, and Jos Komen of the Netherlands has created a very humerous website (in Dutch and English) that is a worthy GOLD award winner (recently upgraded from SILVER). Some of the humour might not be suitable for children (so be warned), but is a true (male) mariners website ! |
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DUIVENDIJK Leon van Duivendijk in the Netherlands has created a real labour of love with more historical photos and maritime links on his site than we've seen in a long time. |
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The Dutch Submarines Website A well researched and presented website, recording the history of the Royal Dutch Navy's Submarine service. The information made available is historically very important and a worthy winner of the GOLD award. |
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If you have a maritime website or know of one worthy of the Maritime Web Award, then CLICK HERE to apply, with an e-mail headed "Award Application".
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