Holland America Line and Food & Wine Savor Successful Recipe for Culinary Cruises

SEATTLE, June 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Holland America Line continues its successful on-board culinary program through 2006 and 2007 in conjunction with Food & Wine magazine. The multi-year partnership provides guests on select Holland America Line cruises an opportunity to experience demonstrations and seminars conducted by top chefs, wine experts and leading cookbook authors affiliated with Food & Wine. The partnership developed in response to consumers' increasing interest in learning about fine wines and international cuisine.

The initiative is part of the line's Culinary Arts Center program, which is offered on every sailing. As a part of the line's $225 million Signature of Excellence initiative, Holland America Line has spent more than $13 million to create and install the Culinary Arts Center facilities. The Culinary Arts Centers are now in place on all but one of the fleet of 13 premium cruising vessels including the new 1,918-passenger ms Noordam; the remaining ship ms Oosterdam will be completed in October of 2006.

Resembling the elaborate show kitchens used by celebrity chefs on television cooking programs, each Culinary Arts Center features an innovative theater-style venue. The state-of-the-art "show kitchen at sea" has two large plasma video screens to display overhead and close-up video views of the food preparation, and a large cooking display counter where guests can learn new cooking techniques and dishes. Culinary demonstrations are filmed and aired on the in-stateroom televisions.

The Culinary Arts Center presented by Food & Wine magazine brings the pages of the epicurean magazine alive on dozens of sailings of the world's leading premium cruise line. The program debuted in Fall of 2005.

"This collaboration has been a total success and we could not be more pleased. The dynamic partnership with Food & Wine magazine demonstrates how travelers love the opportunity to hone and enrich their epicurean knowledge and skills," said Richard D. Meadows, CTC, Holland America Line's senior vice president, marketing and sales. "Our guests learn from and mingle with acclaimed culinary experts, these are rare experiences found exclusively on Holland America Line."

"Our enthusiasm continues to grow with the myriad possibilities of this partnership," said Julie McGowan, Food & Wine's senior vice president/publisher. "By pairing Holland America Line's stellar reputation and worldwide itineraries with Food & Wine's expertise and celebration of the epicurean lifestyle, we attract the most dynamic, sought-after talents in the world of food and wine."

Guests learn tricks-of-the-trade from top professionals and can try their hand at preparing dishes and tasting wines representative of specific ports- of-call. Food & Wine also designs and provides recipe cards and wine-tasting notes that guests can take home along with copies of the magazine. Other opportunities include book signings, question-and-answer sessions, market tours in ports of call, specially designed on-board menus and more.

Food & Wine provides chefs, wine experts and cookbook authors who appear in the magazine's pages as well as those featured at the publication's premier culinary events, specifically the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Colorado held each June. The following culinary experts are scheduled to sail in the latter half of 2006:

-- Cat Cora, host and producer of The Cat Cora Show and frequent guest and host on various Food Network shows, sails June 23rd aboard ms Zaandam to Alaska. -- Jim Coleman, chef, Normandy Farm and host of Flavors of America, sailing on the June 25th Alaska sailing aboard the ms Veendam. -- Nick Stellino, chef, author and host of public television's Nick Stellino's Family Kitchen, sailing on the July 9th Alaska cruise aboard the ms Westerdam. -- Ari Nieminen, Executive Chef, Water's Edge; former Chef at FireBird, on the ms Maasdam's Transatlantic cruise July 10th. -- Clay Conley, Chef, Azul at Mandarin Oriental sails aboard ms Volendam in Alaska on July 19th. -- Gerald Dawes, expert in Spanish food, wine and culture, sailing on the July 20th Western Mediterranean cruise aboard Noordam. -- Jean-Francis & Alessandra Quaglia, chefs/proprietors, Provence Mediterranean Grill and Provence Marinaside, sailing on the July 22nd Alaska cruise aboard the ms Zuiderdam. -- Akira Oshima, Executive Chef, Hotel Okura cruising aboard the Ryndam in Alaska on July 23rd. -- John Howie, Chef at Seastar Restaurant cruising aboard Noordam in the Mediterranean on July 30th. -- Mark Fiorentino, chef boulanger, Daniel, sailing on the August 11th Baltic cruise aboard the ms Amsterdam. -- James Boyce, chef, Studio at Montage Resort & Spa, sailing on the August 14th Europe cruise aboard the ms Prinsendam. -- Dean Fearing of the Mansion on Turtle Creek sails to Canada/New England August 19th aboard Maasdam. -- Aaron Sanchez, chef, Paladar, and regular on TV Food Network, sailing aboard the August 27th Alaska cruise aboard Westerdam. -- Charles Dale, founder, Range and Rustique, sailing on the September 18th Western Mediterranean cruise aboard Noordam. -- John Besh, executive chef, Restaurant August, sailing on the September 28th Alaska cruise aboard the ms Veendam. -- James Mazzio, executive chef, The Studio of Long Grove, sailing on the September 30th Panama Canal cruise aboard Zuiderdam. -- Sharon Kramis and Julie Kramis Hearne, mother-daughter duo and authors, The Cast Iron Skillet, sailing on the October 11th Canada/New England cruise aboard Amsterdam. -- Ernie Pino, Culinary Instructor, cruises in the Mediterranean on ms Rotterdam Oct. 22nd. -- Marcus Samuelsson, chef/owner, Aquavit and Riingo, sailing on the October 22nd Mexico cruise aboard the ms Zaandam. -- Anthony Giglio, wine and spirits expert, sailing on the November 25th Caribbean cruise aboard the ms Noordam.

Culinary experts for 2007 cruises will be announced in the next few months.

In addition to the program with Food & Wine magazine, Holland America Line offers culinary demonstrations, wine tasting and hands-on cooking classes in its Culinary Arts Center program aboard every sailing. These include culinary demonstrations by the line's own executive chefs and culinary staff as well as regional and specialty chefs from the ports visited on Mexico, Alaska, Europe and Asia/Pacific cruises.

- http://www.hollandamerica.com/ - Food & Wine

Food & Wine is the modern, stylish, talent-seeking, trend-spotting epicurean magazine. Published by American Express Publishing, the leader in luxury lifestyle magazines, Food & Wine has a circulation of nearly 1 million. For more information on the magazine and other special events please visit http://www.foodandwine.com/.

About Holland America Line [a division of Carnival Corporation and plc ]

With the introduction of the 1,918-passenger ms Noordam in early 2006, Holland America Line's fleet grew to 13 ships, offering nearly 500 cruises from more than 25 home ports. Itineraries range from two to 108 days and visit all seven continents, including new Australia/New Zealand and Asia sailings, a world cruise and popular sailings to ports in the Caribbean, Alaska, Mexico, South America, Hawaii, Canada/New England and Europe.

Holland America Line's $225 million, fleetwide Signature of Excellence enhancements feature new programs and amenities including the Culinary Arts Center presented by Food & Wine magazine -- a state-of-the-art onboard show kitchen where more than 60 celebrated guest chefs and culinary experts will provide cooking demonstrations and classes -- Explorations Café powered by the New York Times, teens-only activity areas and all new cabin amenities highlighted by flat-panel TVs and plush-top Mariner's Dream Beds. Signature of Excellence enhancements has been completed on 12 ships, with the final ship receiving enhancements by the fall of 2006. For more information, consult a travel agent, call 1-877-SAIL-HAL (877-724-5425) or visit http://www.hollandamerica.com/.

World's Leading Cruise Lines

The highest-rated premium cruise line in the world, Holland America Line is a member of the exclusive World's Leading Cruise Lines alliance, which also includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line, Seabourn Cruise Line, Costa Cruises and Windstar Cruises. Sharing a passion to please each guest and a commitment to quality and value, these lines appeal to a wide range of lifestyles and budgets. The World's Leading Cruise Lines offer exciting and enriching cruise vacations to the world's most desirable destinations.

Contact: Mary Schimmelman; Rose Abello Phone: 206-301-5318; 206-313-7673 international cell phone Fax: 206-262-5934 E-mail: pr@hollandamerica.com