7 cruises for foodies and wine lovers

When it comes to cruising, there’s a style, ship, and itinerary for everyone. Long gone are the days of massive buffets and sub-par dining. Cruise ships are now culinary beacons where guests can try new cuisines on and off the vessel. Every year, it seems the wine and culinary cruise options keep improving. Some of the best itineraries in 2025 include wine tasting on a river cruise through Bordeaux, sailing through the heart of the Columbia and Snake rivers for regional wine tastings, and cruising around the Mediterranean with the James Beard Foundation.

(Related: How Gen Z and Millennials are making cruising cool again)

1. Explore Bordeaux with Viking

Viking is known for its incredible sailings that take guests from big cosmopolitan cities to tiny towns down the world's most exciting rivers. One itinerary worth exploring for wine lovers is the eight-day Chateaux, Rivers & Wine cruise through Bordeaux, France. In just a week, you’ll see the UNESCO-listed Port of Moon, enjoy a wine and oyster pairing, have the chance to learn the art of truffle hunting, and taste some of the sweetest wine in France in Sauternes. The sailing is on Viking Forseti, a 190-guest, 443-foot-long ship. Departures are from March through November and start at $2,499 per person. 

2. Taste your way from Amsterdam to Luxembourg 

Explore multiple German wine regions on the Vineyards of the Rhine & Moselle Wine Cruise with AmaWaterways. Throughout the seven-night itinerary, you’ll sail from Amsterdam to Luxembourg, stopping at a handful of destinations along the way. You’ll spend your first two days in Amsterdam, where you can enjoy some time on your own and take a canal cruise through a few of the 165 canals in the city. Before the wine starts flowing, you’ll stop in Cologne for a Kölsch beer tasting. Then in Rüdesheim am Rhein, you can see the city from above on a gondola tour paired with wine. The cruise ends with a visit to Bernkastel-Kues for a wine tasting. Along with exploring vineyards and sampling the vintages, you’ll also see plenty of castles, making this feel more like a fairytale than a vacation. There are two departures of this sailing, one in April and one in July, and prices start at $3,639.

3. A West Coast food and wine cruise

Sail through the heart of Oregon and Washington on the National Geographic Expeditions Columbia and Snake Rivers: Food, Wine, and History cruise. The eight-day cruise is limited to just 62 people. Highlights of the itinerary include a beer and oyster tasting in Astoria, learning about the Columbia Plateau from a geologist, and a private wine tasting in a WWII airplane hangar. Onboard, you’ll be joined by two National Geographic experts who will share insights into the land, plus the executive wine editor of Food & Wine magazine, who can share more details about the wine region. 2025 sailings depart from March through October and start at $5,827.

4. Sail with the James Beard Foundation

Windstar Cruises is the official cruise line of the James Beard Foundation, which means menus onboard are created by James Beard Award-winning chefs and served nightly to guests. Throughout the year, Windstar also offers themed cruises where you can learn cooking skills directly from the chefs. Each sailing features chef demos, hosted dinners and wine pairings, a trip to a local market with the chef, and more. This year, sailings go to Canada, the Baltic, Greece, and Spain on seven to 12-day journeys from March to October. Prices vary based on the itinerary. 

5. An onboard dining extravaganza 

Virgin Voyages is known for its boundary pushing, adult-only ocean voyages. One of the brand’s premier events is its award-winning Eat & Drink Festival, which takes place this year fleet-wide from June 29 through July 27. This year’s festival is themed to “A Taste of Brilliant,” a tribute to the brand’s newest ship, Brilliant Lady, which will set sail September 5. The festival is inspired by ports Brilliant Lady will call upon, including New York City, Miami, Los Angeles, and Seattle. A few highlights of the themed sailings include getting a culinary passport to help you taste everything onboard, a new menu at the Korean BBQ restaurant (Gunbae) on every ship, and a new speakeasy experience. 

(Related: What to pack for a cruise)

6. Revel in Japan's unique dining experiences

The ultra-luxury cruise line, Regent Seven Seas, is setting sail for Japan, and with it comes a host of new culinary experiences, dubbed Epicurean Explorer Tours. The extra-cost, cuisine-focused excursions are limited to 18 guests per session, so each one feels exclusive. One such trip is Regent’s 11-night Japanese Traditions & Temples itinerary, which sails round-trip from Tokyo. On the voyage, guests can enjoy a chef-led culinary journey that includes learning how Japanese kitchen knives are made, dining on Kobe beef, and learning the art of teppanyaki in Kyoto. In Kochi, guests can join a chef to tour Hirome Market and learn about bonito. In Shimizu, join a chef for a tour of the Kashi-no-Ichi fish market and take a hands-on sushi-making class. This itinerary departs on October 28, 2025, and fares start at $9,599.

(Related: Everything you should know before visiting Japan)

7. A new cruise ship with culinary prowess 

Oceania Cruises is launching its newest ship, Allura, in July. The new 1,200-guest vessel has one chef for every 10 guests, so the culinary standards onboard are high. The culinary team has created more than 270 new recipes for the ship’s Grand Dining Room. But even more culinary adventures await on its 10-day Mediterranean Allure itinerary, which takes place August 5 through 15, with a route from Monte Carlo to Athens. Some highlight excursions include visiting a winery and an ancient villa near Mount Vesuvius in Sorrento, Italy; a cooking lesson and lunch in Rhodes, Greece; and a wine pairing lunch at Tua Rita winery in Livorno, Italy. Fares start at $4,505 per guest.