Oceania Cruises®, the world's leading culinary- and destination-focused cruise line, has expanded its signature range of immersive Culinary Discovery Tours™ with the addition of 12 new gourmet excursions for 2025.
New Culinary Discovery Tour highlights include:
VALLETTA: CHEF-LED TOUR ARTISANAL MALTA TREASURES (3 hours):
This carefully curated, small-group experience introduces guests to Maltese cuisine while sampling artisanal foods in a stunning grotto that was transformed into a restaurant decades ago. A short but scenic drive inland brings travelers to Rabat, where they will first visit a bakery that has been in the same family for generations. While showing how traditional Maltese breads are made, the baker will invite guests to help prepare a loaf and sample another bread straight from the oven.
Indulge in more local specialties in the Grotto Tavern, which occupies a cave once used as a bomb shelter in World War II. In this unusual setting, guests will watch the chef prepare pastizzi – a flaky pastry stuffed with ricotta cheese or curried peas – and then enjoy samples. As an accompaniment, local cheeses such as gbejna and a special tomato paste to slather on bread will be offered.
The new chef-led tours are in diverse locations spanning the globe from Europe and the UK with new excursions in Amsterdam, Belfast, Invergordon, Valencia, and Valletta; to Asia with three new options for Japan sailings in Kobe, Kochi, and Shimizu, plus Busan in South Korea; and North America where new tours are available in Halifax, Quebec City, and Victoria.
The additions mean Oceania Cruises now offers a total of 46 Culinary Discovery Tours, available on its four larger ships, Marina™, Riviera™, Vista™, and Allura™, which debuts in July 2025.
The Culinary Discovery Tours are an integral part of the line's renowned food-focused enrichment program, which includes The Culinary Center, the first-ever hands-on cooking school at sea, offering unparalleled experiences for gourmands wanting to learn and to explore cultures through food.
Limited to 18 guests and led by Oceania Cruises' team of expert Chef Instructors, each of the Culinary Discovery Tours goes beyond traditional sightseeing, providing access to local markets, acclaimed restaurants, and hands-on cooking classes, both on board and ashore.
From foraging for wild sea herbs on Belfast's rugged coast to indulging in a plant-to-plate luncheon inside an Amsterdam greenhouse where ingredients are harvested moments before they reach a guest's fork, these tours give travelers an intimate look at local life through the lens of food and its impact on the culture and community.
Chef Kathryn Kelly, Oceania Cruises' Director of Culinary Enrichment, is the founder and driving force behind The Culinary Center and the chief architect of the robust range of Culinary Discovery Tours.
She commented: "Food has the power to connect people to places in meaningful ways and our fabulous Culinary Discovery Tours provide an insider's look at local markets, artisans, and traditions, allowing guests to take a piece of the destination home with them – not just in their memories, but in the skills and recipes they acquire along the way."
