Just Add Water
Spring forward with the latest Virtuoso, The Magazine. We’re beaching it in the Adriatic, highlighting the joys of small-ship cruising, and catching up with chef Curtis Stone for his Playa del Carmen recs. Scroll on to take the plunge.
This Cruise Was the Best Way to Get a Taste of My Croatian Heritage
At a wooden table inside a restaurant near the trailhead at Kamacnik Canyon, I shared platters of local cheese, deer salami, and fresh vegetables with my fiancé, Mak; about a dozen of our fellow travelers; and our guide, Smila, who declared the canyon “the greenest place on earth.”
Take on Japan, the Med, and More, Small-Ship Style
Fishing boats bearing colorful banners waved us into Uwajima on Shikoku, the smallest of Japan’s major islands. Our ship, the Abercrombie & Kent-chartered Soléal, docked in the port city, which rarely sees cruise calls, for an architecture tour in the nearby towns of Ozu and Uchiko.
Packing a Sketchbook Helped Me
Travel Deeper
By the time the bartender slid my amaretto sidecar onto the marble counter, I’d sketched a few outlines in my notebook: pink granite, a buttery bit of seaweed, a lonely-looking pine cloaked in pale lichen. That morning, I’d walked through spruce forest on Ship Harbor Trail to a rocky headland in Maine’s Acadia National Park.
AmaWaterways Adds New Ships, Sailings, and Programs in 2026
As the largest cruise line devoted exclusively to plying the world’s major rivers, AmaWaterways has long set the standard with its elegant fleet, diverse onboard programming, immersive shore excursions, and expert-led specialty itineraries. This year, it continues to raise the bar.
What to Expect on an Expedition Cruise to Norway’s Svalbard Archipelago
There are beautiful coastlines and ancient history, of course, but it’s what’s on the plate that makes the Mediterranean’s most alluring destinations truly appetizing. Luxury small-ship cruise line Silversea celebrates the Med’s gourmet cachet through S.A.L.T. (Sea and Land Taste), its comprehensive culinary program that brings an authentic, locavore focus to onboard dining, cooking classes, shipboard talks, and exclusive shore excursions.
Curtis Stone, the chef behind Woodend at Maroma, a Belmond Hotel, Riviera Maya, shares what he’s been loving lately.
Packing: Timekettle translator earbuds. I don’t need to do much prep; I just speak into them, and the earbuds translate in real time.
Reading: Dish magazine from New Zealand, and I read The New York Times online every morning.
Referencing: The Italian app Osterie d’Italia highlights restaurants focused on natural, local, and slow food. I’ve found some incredibly authentic places through it.
Dreaming of: Korea! I’ve never been and would love to go. I’d also love to take my wife back to Cartagena, which is a beautiful place.
Beach season is coming – prep with a
Ritz-Carlton x Kilometre Paris bag
. Singapore’s acclaimed 1,300-bottle gin bar, Atlas, has launched its own
