Watch the 2026 Solar Eclipse While on a Holland America Cruise

Solar eclipses happen about every 18 months and are an amazing experience to behold. What could make it better? Watching one while on a cruise of course! And that’s exactly what Holland America thinks too as they announced three different solar eclipse cruises for the August 12, 2026 eclipse. 

The way solar eclipses work is that they can only be visible from certain points on earth. For the August 12, 2026 solar eclipse this is roughly an area going over the arctic, Greenland, Iceland, and Spain. Most of the viewable range will be in the Arctic Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, and a bit in the Mediterranean Sea, perfect for cruise ships.

Holland America is positioning three cruises to be in the path of totality for the solar eclipse. Two will be off the coast of Iceland and one will be off the coast of Spain. The three cruises will be accompanied by guest lectures offering in-depth information on solar eclipses, Q&A, and live commentary. 

Professor Meers Oppenheim will be on the Zuiderdam off the coast of Iceland.

Boston University Professor of Astronomy Meers Oppenheim will be a part of the 35-day cruise from Boston aboard the Zuiderdam. Oppenheim is the Associate Director of the BU Center for Space Physics and studies phenomena that occur within our solar systems and has expertise in ionospheric and solar plasmas, as well as the physics of meteors. Suffice to say he will have a lot of good knowledge to impart for the solar eclipse. 

The Zuiderdam will be positioned off the coast of Iceland in the path of totality for the solar eclipse. There will also be an 18-day segment of the cruise available for booking if 35 days is too long for you. The shorter segment will be sailing from Rotterdam.

Professor Adam Burgasser will be on the Oosterdam off the coast of Spain.

Dr. Burgasser is a Professor of Physics at the University of California San Diego. He is an observational astrophysicist investigating the lowest-mass stars, coldest brown dwarfs and exoplanets. Aside from being an author and a professor, he also advocates for improving equality and inclusion in the sciences. 

You will find Dr. Burgasser on the 13-day cruise aboard Oosterdam from Lisbon to Piraeus (Athens). The ship will sail off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean in the path of totality for the solar eclipse.

As a bonus, Dr. Burgasser will be delivering additional science lectures on the cruise about the latest astrophysics research and the connections between astronomy and Mediterranean history.

Astronomer Tom Vassos will be on the Nieuw Statendam off the coast of Iceland as well.

Tom Vassos is the founder of Cosmologists Without Borders, a member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, a contributing member of Astronomers Without Borders and a science advocate for the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has taught courses at several universities including the University of Toronto.

The Nieuw Statendam will be on a 28-day cruise from Dover around Greenland and Scotland. The ship will be in the path of totality off the coast of Iceland. 

More solar eclipse activities.

Holland America will also be providing other enrichment events on the solar eclipse cruises. You can look forward to themed activities and themed culinary offerings throughout the day of the solar eclipse. And don’t worry, they will also include safety glasses for safe viewing. 

If 2026 is too early for you to consider, Holland America is already planning their 2027 cruises for the August, 2, 2027 solar eclipse.