Holland America Line launches new Food and Wine themed cruises

Holland America Line is expanding its culinary offering with Food and Wined themed cruises on a range of sailings. Two European cruises will showcase UK guest chefs and food and wine experts.

The first sailing to feature culinary guests on-board will be the 12-night Western Europe Explorer itinerary on ms Ryndam departing from Harwich on 4 May 2015 and will call at destinations in France, Portugal and Spain.

Staff from Berry Bros. & Rudd, Britain’s oldest wine and spirit merchant, will be on-board. Rebecca Lamont, head of their Wine School, will be hosting tastings, dinners and food and wine matching evenings while Master of Wine and buyer Simon Field will be sharing his knowledge and passion for wines through lectures and tasting sessions.

Executive chef Antony Bennett, famed for revolutionising menus at the Spanish restaurant chain La Tasca, will also be on-board offering cookery demonstrations.

The second sailing to feature culinary guests on-board is the 12-night Mediterranean Empires itinerary on ms Nieuw Amsterdam departing from Venice on 9 June and will call at ports in Greece and Turkey.

The Tse sisters who run Manchester’s renowned Sweet Mandarin Chinese Restaurant will be on-board to host cookery masterclasses and demonstrations showing guests how to cook Asian cuisine.

For those looking for a longer break Holland America Line also recently announced an 83-night epic Mediterranean, Iberian and North African adventure that calls at 44 destinations. ms Rotterdam will depart Southampton on 27 September and prices start from just £6,399 per person (based on two sharing an inside cabin and subject to availability) – equivalent to less than £78 per person per night. This itinerary includes overnight stops in Barcelona, Venice, Istanbul, Piraeus (for Athens), and Lisbon.

Holland America Line is currently running the ReadySetSail promotion, which offers free cabin upgrades, discounts on third and fourth guest cruise fares and added extras on selected sailings when booked before 15 March 2015.