Luxury cruise liner Crystal Cruises now has a trip made specifically for beer connoisseurs, setting sail in November from New York City and making its final stop in Miami.
Steaming down the east coast beginning November 5, the microbrew-themed Colonial Collection includes ports of call such as Baltimore, Norfolk, Charleston, and parts of the Caribbean such as Curacao before docking in Miami on November 19.
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The cruise is perfect for any South Florida beer traveler looking for a good excuse to get underway and having the final stop bring you home. But the two-week cruise is a bit pricey, starting at $4,710 per person for a deluxe stateroom to $27,870 for a Crystal penthouse. A shorter, 11-day version of the cruise is also available departing from Baltimore, with fares starting at $3,700 per person. However, the price pays for more than just living arrangements.
The amenities also include brewery tours featuring micro-breweries and nano-breweries in New York City and Charleston. The package includes several on-board tastings, beer dinners and featured speakers as well. Stephen Beaumont, a published author on beer literature, will lead several craft beer presentations and tastings.
Anthony Caporale, producer and host of the Art of the Drink TV series on YouTube, who will teach a seminar and tasting on beer cocktails.
Jon Ashton, a frequent guest chef for The Today Show and The Tonight Show, will lead hands-on cooking classes on how to use beer as an ingredient. Beer dinners will follow each demonstration.
The ship is being led by Captain Egil Giske, a native of Norway. According to signaturetravelnetwork.com, Giske got his sea legs while working on a fishing boat sailing to Newfoundland and Labrador. He eventually earned his captain's license after graduating school in 1991.
Other guest speakers include chief White House correspondent for U.S. News & World Report Kenneth Walsh, former chief executive of the Falkland Islands government Ronald Sampson, and Clint Van Zandt, a retired profiler for the FBI.
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