Celebrity Announces New Culinary Cruises

Celebrity Cruises has announced its 2011 lineup for “Savor Your Destination,” a guest chef program. Celebrity will present 12 guest chef theme cruises on its Solstice Class ships. Each cruise will offer food-and-wine themed activities that may include a meet-and-greet cocktail reception, guest chef-led cooking demonstrations highlighting techniques and ingredients, book signings, and a “Star Chefs” cook-off featuring an interactive cooking competition. For a fee, guests also can participate in hands-on cooking classes led by the guest chef in the ship’s galley or enjoy an exclusive food-and-wine-pairing dinner designed and presented by the guest chef in either Murano or Tuscan Grille.

Among the guests chefs will be the Food Network’s Sara Moulton, who will sail on the Celebrity Eclipse, which departs March 26 on a seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise roundtrip from Miami; Dean James Max of 3030 Ocean in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., sailing on the Celebrity Eclipse on March 12; Timon Balloo of Sugarcane in Miami, sailing on the Celebrity Equinox on April 1; Govind Armstrong of 8 Oz. Burger Bar in Louisiana, Los Angeles and Miami’s South Beach, sailing on the Celebrity Equinox on April 11; John Suley of Gotham Steak at Miami’s Fontainebleau Resort, sailing on the Celebrity Equinox on April 22; Angel Palacios of La Broche in Madrid, Spain, sailing on the Celebrity Solstice on June 7; and Jordi Valles of The Ritz-Carlton in Cancun, Mexico, sailing on the Celebrity Solstice on Oct. 11. The guest chefs for two additional “Savor Your Destination” theme in 2011 -- one on the Celebrity Eclipse on Dec. 10 and the other on the Celebrity Equinox on Dec. 12 -- will be announced at a later date. Fares start at $699 per person, double.

Celebrity is also offering five “Savor Your Destination” guest winemaker theme cruises and five “Guest Glass Artist” cruises highlighting “The Hot Glass Show” on its Solstice Class ships, this year