Holland America Brings the Caribbean On Board

I capture a few images of Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam against a backdrop of a sparkling blue sea and powder-soft sand. Before tucking my phone away, I check the weather app and see that when the cruise ends, I’ll be returning home to single-digit wind chills and a snowy forecast.

Until then, I’m sailing the warm, sultry islands of the Caribbean, eager to indulge in all they have to offer.

Fortunately, Holland America provides two innovative Caribbean-themed programs that enhance the experience.

A Taste of the Caribbean…Literally!

On all Holland America Caribbean sailings, island classics—marked with a special “Port to Plate” logo—supplement the superb menus the line is known for. While Main Dining Room guests can stick with traditional offerings, why not savor local flavors with a spicy chili Caribbean shrimp cocktail, Jamaican beef patty, jerk lamb shank, or spiced pork belly with pineapple salsa? Even the Pinnacle Grill features Caribbean-inspired dishes like jerked chicken bao and crab and shrimp cakes alongside its full steakhouse menu.

Once, during a seven-day sailing, the Lido Market hosts a Caribbean-themed buffet dinner. Begin your meal with cauliflower and coconut bisque before enjoying dishes like pork ribs, jerked chicken, fish cou-cou, Caribbean empanadas, breaded shrimp, seafood paella, and tender jerked pork belly from the live carving station. A delectable selection of Caribbean breads and salads showcasing tropical fruits and vegetables complements the meal.

At the Lido Market, guests can also experience Holland America’s Caribbean Seafood Boil—a tropical twist on the popular Alaskan Seafood Boil. Priced at $35 per person (plus an 18% service charge), this specialty dining experience features unlimited fresh Caribbean seafood sourced through Holland America’s Global Fresh Fish program, ensuring sustainable, wild-caught, and responsibly farmed fish are delivered from port to plate within 48 hours.

If you’re craving Caribbean flavors before dinner, check out Holland America’s Caribbean brunch, offering Jamaican Banana Pancakes with Toasted Pecans, a spicy Jerk Burger, and a Bahamian Fire Engine and Egg Skillet—a sizzling dish of rice, black beans, corned beef, and red peppers topped with a fried egg.

Yo Ho Ho…And Some Bottles of Rum!

For those who enjoy a drink, the Caribbean is synonymous with rum, and Holland America has launched an innovative Rum Ambassador Program aboard all its ships sailing in the region. Developed in partnership with James Beard Award-winning drinks historian David Wondrich and Jeff Berry, dubbed “The Indiana Jones of Tiki Drinks” by The New York Times, the program offers tastings, seminars, and five newly created cocktails, including a rum punch reminiscent of what was consumed by 17th-century Caribbean pirates. Pirates Punch—a blend of rich, pot-distilled rum, Cointreau, citrus, and a sprinkle of nutmeg—will even be served in individual conch shell punch bowls at Holland America’s Ocean Bar!

Aboard the Nieuw Amsterdam, Anne Marie Cruz Garcia, who joined Holland America in 2011 as a beverage server and became a bartender two and a half years later, has been appointed the ship’s Rum Ambassador. In this role, she shares insights about rum’s origins and anecdotes during interactive lectures and tastings that explore its historical and modern formulations, aromas, and flavor profiles. Each Holland America ship sailing the Caribbean features its own Rum Ambassador, trained extensively in rum’s rich history and flavors.

Want a sneak peek? Try making a Green Swizzle, one of the cocktails from Holland America’s Rum Ambassador Program. You might find yourself thirsty for more!

El Presidente
– 1.5 oz. Plantation/Planteray 3-Star White Rum
– 1.5 oz. Dolin Blanc Vermouth
– 1 tsp. Orange Cacao
– 1/2 tsp. Grenadine
– Orange Twist

Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker, shake, and garnish with an orange twist.