Oceania Cruises is taking another step toward positioning itself as "the cruise line for foodies" with the expansion of its portfolio of Culinary Discovery Tours in a handful of its European ports of call.
The food-focused tours, which immerse guests in the cuisine and culture of the areas they're visiting, are already offered on dozens of Oceania's sailings in Europe, Australia and South America. They provide the opportunity for small groups to explore local food markets, restaurants, vineyards and culinary schools, accompanied by Oceania chefs and local food and wine experts.
Kathryn Kelly, Oceania Cruises’ director of culinary enrichment, gives shopping tips at Central Market in Livorno. Photo Credit: Mike Kelly
The newest culinary tours, which are being rolled out this spring and summer, are in Barcelona; Marseille, France; Antibes, France; Catania in Sicily; and Iraklion, on the Greek island of Crete.
The Miami-based cruise line staked its claim a few years ago to being an epicurean favorite with the 2011 launch of the first hands-on gourmet cooking school at sea. Its Bon Appetit Culinary Center, created in conjunction with Bon Appetit magazine, now operates on two Oceania ships, the Marina and Riviera.
Like all of Oceania's culinary tours, the newest ones were designed by Kathryn Kelly, the cruise line's executive chef and director of culinary enrichment. Kelly uses the contacts she's made through her long association with the Culinary Institute of America and other culinary organizations to line up authentic experiences for travelers.
"These tours started with people asking me, 'Chef, where are you going today [in port]?' and I'd say I'm going to the market or I'm going to go visit my friend who has a winery or I'm going to go press some olives with someone. And the guests wanted to come along.
"So I realized three or four years ago when we started the program that the most important thing for me … was to follow my own heart, to go to places where I would want to go, where I would enjoy spending my afternoon. I'd like to hang out with my friends and enjoy some food with a nice bottle of wine. I wanted to replicate that experience for our guests."
Several of the culinary tours conclude with a private class aboard ship, making and sampling dishes from ingredients purchased while ashore. Of course, Oceania isn't the only cruise line offering food-focused shore excursions, but Kelly explained that her culinary tours are not of the cookie-cutter variety.
Dozens of varieties of cheeses and meats are available in the small shops of Livorno, a city in Tuscany. Photo Credit: Mike Kelly
"We travel around and find these little places, and we get to know the people, if we don't already know them," she said. "Then we basically talk [the chefs and proprietors] into it. We get access to places other people don't.
"If we were ever in a restaurant and a tour bus pulled up outside, that would be the last time we'd be in that restaurant."
Maximum group sizes range from about 12 to 25 people, depending on the tour. Kelly said that is a real advantage. "Instead of walking around with a ridiculous sign [for guests to follow], we try to take a lower profile," she said.
Tour highlights
In Barcelona, guests will explore La Boqueria, one of Europe's biggest and most famous farm markets, after which they're escorted through the Gothic Quarter to the much smaller Santa Caterina market, a favorite destination for locals and visiting chefs alike. Other stops include a tapas restaurant for small-plate food and wine and a quaint little pastry shop.
The Marseille tour focuses on the cuisine of Provence, with the highlight being a visit to the commune of Lourmarin, where Michelin-starred Chef Reine Sammut operates a cooking school, restaurant and boutique hotel. After a cooking demonstration by Sammut, guests will be treated to a menu of her authentic Provencal dishes.
Chef David Gastaldin helps a visitor prepare a pizza at the Torre a Cenaia Estate in Italy’s Tuscany region. Photo Credit: Mike Kelly
In the Sicilian city of Catania, guests will be shown how to make their own cannoli, then have lunch at a restaurant, where they will be served by slow-food chef Turi Siligato.
Guests on the Iraklion tour will help prepare stuffed grape leaves and cheese pies, learn about Greek olive oil and enjoy a Cretan-style meal accompanied by a sampling of local wines.
Kelly said the cruise line's culinary tours generally appeal to two types of passengers.
"First, there are the foodies, who are drawn to anything epicurean," she said. "And then there are the people who have cruised with us before — more than half of Oceania's guests are repeat customers — and are looking for a new type of experience that will blow their socks off.
"We try to thread the needle between an educational experience and the fact that this is, after all, a vacation."
Oceania's five midsize ships call on more than 330 ports around the world, and about 1 in 10 of its shore excursions are culinary tours. The cost of the tours ranges from $169 to $419.