Windstar Cruises has unveiled its 2027 lineup of culinary cruises featuring chefs from the James Beard Foundation. The program includes five voyages where renowned culinary figures will guide passengers on itineraries across three continents. Each cruise will be linked to a chef and a destination that has left a lasting mark on their cuisine, offering travelers the opportunity to experience that connection firsthand.
"We are very grateful to Windstar Cruises for their continued support of the James Beard Foundation," said Clare Reichenbach, the foundation's chief executive officer.
"This collaboration brings something new and exciting to every cruise experience, connecting travelers with renowned chefs and emerging culinary talent. The chefs selected by the James Beard Foundation represent exceptional talent and maintain a deep connection to the destinations, bringing these voyages to life through local ingredients, traditional dishes, and culinary heritage.".
Windstar has been the official cruise line of the James Beard Foundation for over a decade. This partnership brings chefs recognized by the foundation and their recipes to the sea, both through culinary cruises with guest chefs and through more than 80 dishes created by these professionals and served across the Windstar fleet. The goal is to connect passengers to each destination through the people, ingredients, and culinary traditions that define it.
“The most important thing is that fine dining is an integral part of the everyday experience on board Windstar,” said Stijn Creupelandt, the cruise line’s chief operating officer. “These cruises offer our passengers an exceptional opportunity to spend time with extraordinary chefs and discover the destinations we visit from their culinary perspective.”.
Passengers will enjoy exclusive dinners with guest chefs, wine pairings, and recipes created specifically for each itinerary, with a focus on regional ingredients and local traditions. Live cooking demonstrations will offer insights into the inspiration, techniques, and stories behind each dish.
In certain ports, visits to local markets will be organized with the guest chef and Windstar's executive chef to discover firsthand the region's ingredients, many of which will later appear on the menus.
With capacity for between 148 and 342 passengers, Windstar yachts offer an intimate environment where experiences are lived in a personal and close way.
Guest chefs and their itineraries for 2027
– Treasures of the Greek Islands, with Roel Alcudia – July 13-20, 2027 | Wind Surf
Roel Alcudia, executive chef of House of Stefas in the Hudson Valley, New York, is known for his "freestyle" Greek cooking style, adapting the flavors and traditions of the Aegean Sea to American audiences without losing sight of his roots.
A member of the James Beard Foundation's chef community, Alcudia was part of the opening team of Stissing House, a 2023 James Beard Awards semi-finalist for best new restaurant, and has cooked at Platform by JBF, the foundation's New York gastronomic space.
The itinerary will take passengers to Mykonos, Patmos, Santorini, Monemvasia, and Nafplio, destinations that have inspired his cuisine. Passengers will travel aboard the recently renovated Wind Surf.
– Maori Storytellers and Treasures of French Polynesia, with Felix Tai – September 5-16, 2027 | Star Breeze
Born in Malaysia and currently executive chef of Hawaii's Polynesian Cultural Center, Felix Tai has dedicated his career to preserving and celebrating Pacific culinary traditions.
He will host the Māori Storytellers cruise , which will travel through French Polynesia with stops in Papeete, the Cook Islands, and Bora Bora. Drawing on his years of exploring and interpreting Pacific cuisines, Tai will show passengers how gastronomy, storytelling, and the islands' cultural traditions are intertwined.
Felix Tai was an advisor to the James Beard Foundation's Legacy program in 2026.
– An Odyssey across the Aegean Sea through the Corinth Canal, with Cara Tobin – September 8-16, 2027 | Star Legend
Cara Tobin, chef and co-owner of Honey Road and Grey Jay restaurants in Burlington, Vermont, has been nominated twice for the James Beard Awards and has reached the semifinals three times. She is considered one of the leading representatives of Eastern Mediterranean cuisine in the United States.
For more than a decade she has traveled through Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and Greece, cooking with local women in their homes and learning the recipes and traditions that shape the region's food culture.
On this itinerary, which will sail from the Turkish coast to Istanbul, passengers will discover how those experiences have influenced their culinary offerings.
– Enchanting Greece and the Amalfi Coast, with Cody Hogan – October 14-21, 2027 | Wind Surf
Cody Hogan, executive chef of Lidia's Kansas City, trained at Chez Panisse before joining Lidia Bastianich's culinary team in 1998.
For nearly three decades, he has worked alongside the renowned chef in her restaurants, as head chef of her studio, and as a culinary assistant on her Emmy Award-winning PBS show. He has also participated in events held at the historic James Beard House.
The cruise will depart from Athens and end in Rome, combining the medieval Greek ports of Monemvasia and Gythion with a tour of Sicily and the Amalfi Coast. The itinerary will include destinations such as Taormina, Pompeii, and Sorrento.
– Legends of East Asia, with Christine Lau – November 4-14, 2027 | Star Seeker
Born in Hong Kong, Christine Lau has developed a culinary career that blends Chinese, Japanese, and Italian influences into a style recognized by The New York Times. Her restaurant, Kimika, was a James Beard Award semifinalist in 2022.
Her experience makes her an ideal guide for this itinerary through Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam, where passengers can discover the diversity and surprising connections between the culinary traditions of East Asia.
The James Beard Foundation experience on all cruises
The five voyages featuring guest chefs are the most prominent offerings of the collaboration between Windstar and the James Beard Foundation, but they are not the only ones. All cruises in the fleet include recipes developed by chefs recognized by the foundation, so this collaboration is also present on itineraries that do not have a guest chef on board.
For the past 11 years, the partnership has enabled more than 40 renowned chefs, selected in collaboration with the foundation, to sail with Windstar. Of these, 31 have directly contributed dishes to the menus of Amphora, the cruise line's restaurant.
For example, the Treasures of Southern Spain & Morocco, taking place from March 14 to 22, 2027, aboard the Wind Spirit, will offer menus inspired by the flavors of Spain and Morocco. Although no guest chefs will be on board for this itinerary, recipes created by chefs affiliated with the James Beard Foundation will still be part of the culinary experience.
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