The Stoomvaart Maatschappij Nederland was based in Amsterdam, but initially its ships could not reach that city. From 1870 to 1879 the company's ships therefore sailed from Den Helder (Nieuwediep) to Java. The company also had its own warehouses in Nieuwediep for loading and unloading to smaller ships, that could reach Amsterdam via the Noordhollandsch Kanaal. Passengers, mail and some freight that required fast service could go by train to and from Naples, Marseilles or Genoa in order to keep the travelling time as short as possible, but this was not done on the first trips.