It evokes the golden age of cruising and is now a permanent fixture in downtown Rotterdam. LYDIA BELL gets piped on board the revamped liner SS Rotterdam

REMEMBER  at the beginning of the Hollywood blockbuster Titanic, when the elderly heroine reminisces about what once was and, with astounding digital imaging, we see the Grand Dame Titanic recreated? "It's been 84 years and I can still smell the fresh paint, " says Rose. "The china had never been used. Titanic was called the 'Ship of Dreams' and it was. It really was."

Well that's how nostalgic former passengers must feel as they revisit the SS Rotterdam this week, now docked permanently in the Katendrecht district of Rotterdam.

This icon has undergone a £109million revamp, keeping as faithfully to its original design as possible, amid a fanfare of publicity. Launched in 1958, the Netherlands' finest artisans were employed to create its murals, reliefs, designer furniture, joinery, soft furnishings and art.

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It retired in 1997 and happily didn't end up where most cruise liners do; in the ship-breaking docks of India. Instead it has become the centrepiece in the £1billion rebirth of an industrial downtown neighbourhood and a vast, government-funded exercise in recycling. This ship, which has stayed true to its Fifties' roots down to the original furniture and swimming pool tiles, now comprises a 257-room hotel, corporate meeting rooms and a museum.

I head along the narrow corridors to my simply furnished, compact cabin, which retains the original joinery but now comes with a flat-screen television and a sleek, modern en-suite bathroom.

The more expensive outside cabins have portholes rather than the obligatory balconies found on new cruise ships.

I sneak a peek at the Queen's Cabin, where Crown Princess Beatrix spent the ship's maiden voyage. The cabin, which anyone can book, is smaller than my bedroom with a tiny make-up stool and dresser; people must have had smaller bottoms in the Fifties.

Pictures in the liner's museum document everything from the ship being built to setting off on its maiden voyage to New York, thronged by crowds, just as it is today at its inaugural opening with people taking on-board tours.

It has had a fascinating history, from transporting the Dutch to new lives in America to becoming the flagship for the HollandAmerica Line in 1971 and taking holidaymakers on transatlantic and round-the-world cruises.

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In one picture the ship is snapped in the water through the long perspective of a Manhattan street; it looks as if it is floating on land. The Fifties' promotional shots are extremely evocative. Stylish blondes with beehives sip drinks in bars and restaurants that look much the same today.

I head to the promenade deck and the industrial-looking Lido restaurant, replete with acres of steel, for a high tea of Rotterdam cheese, petits fours and bonbons with jam.

It opens on to a large deck so that in warmer weather you can take a dip in the shallow pool overlooking the Nieuwe Maas river skyline. From here you can see the Euromast, Europe's tallest observation tower, and the jagged, futuristic skyscrapers that make this city beloved of architects.

There is none of the casino-style décor often found on cruise ships; the public spaces are elegant recreations of sophistication.

Guests can also drink at the slinky Ocean Bar, which has a ceiling upholstered in what look like fish scales. Other large public rooms are off limits unless you're on an organised tour of the ship or invited to an event.

These include the Ambassador Lounge, the ultimate in nautical chic with leather modernist chairs and a timber dancefloor; and the theatre, which is to host the occasional piece of Dutch drama, a vision in purple, with velveteen curtains and upholstered walls.

The ship's gift shop is refined, stocking Delft pottery, nautical wear (budgerigar-yellow raincoats, striped jumpers and sailor suits for children) and marine-themed toys.

Stepping on terra firma, at first glance Rotterdam looks like a bleak and sprawling port but its uncompromisingly modern architecture first alienates then beguiles.

Decimated by both Luftwaffe and Allied bombs during the Second World War, the city chose to embrace cutting-edge design.

As a result "Manhattan on the Maas" became Europe's most architecturally experimental city.

Almost every building delights, from Ben van Berkel's futuristic Erasmus Bridge to Piet Blom's kooky cube houses.

It's also a great place to just amble around, discovering intriguing restaurants, from Michelin-starred fine dining to hole-in-the-wall organic cafés and world-class museums.

6S YOU'D expect, Rotterdam is home to some excellent architectural museums; its two best are the Netherlands Architecture Institute and The Kunsthal. The Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen houses a collection of Dutch art that beats Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum.

I catch a water taxi back to SS Rotterdam from Veerhaven, a small inner-city port filled with old vessels and pre-war buildings.

Across the dark choppy waters, the white cruise ship towers, still a behemoth in the cityscape.
Staying on her is a great way to glimpse the true soul of this watery city.

GETTING THERE:

SS Rotterdam Cruise Hotel (dialling from the UK: 0031 102 973 097/www.cruisehotel.nl) offers cabin rooms from £83 per night (two sharing).

www.transavia.com (0906 680 0065) offers return flights from Gatwick to Rotterdam from £48.

Netherlands Board of Tourism: 0207 539 7950/ www.holland.com