Silversea Cruises Promotes Relais & Châteaux L'École des Chefs Cooking School

Twenty of Silversea Cruises voyages in 2012 will feature the exclusive Relais & Châteaux L'École des Chefs interactive cooking school.

Silversea enjoys the privilege of featuring the only Relais & Châteaux L'École des Chefs cooking school at sea. The innovative programme, which is offered completely free of charge, provides guests with a special culinary curriculum, including hands-on instruction, and entertaining events hosted by Silversea culinary trainer David Bilsland, a former instructor at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in London. He presents a program developed in collaboration with Jacques Thorel, the owner of L'Auberge Bretonne and a consulting Grand Chef Relais & Châteaux.

The curriculum for each of these cruises is carefully designed to celebrate the cultural flavour of the ship's itinerary. Highlights include specialized workshops covering a range of topics from basic knife skills and kitchen terminology to sauces and baking; cooking demonstrations with wine pairings and interactive Q&A sessions; lively cooking competitions between Chef Bilsland and the ship's own culinary team; a "Lunch and Learn" event offering small groups of guests a chance to sample a delicious meal of specially prepared dishes; and inspired "Take It Home" recipes that will give guests an edge when entertaining at home.

Also offered on certain voyages, when the itinerary permits, is a "Market to Plate" experience that provides an escorted tour of a local market followed by a cooking class, and a "Culinary Outing," an instructor-escorted excursion to a local restaurant, hotel or other venue where guests can enjoy a unique culinary exploration.

"Our L'École des Chefs cooking school is a fun and entertaining enrichment programme that lets guests discover new cooking techniques and sample dishes that highlight the culinary traditions of the ship's itinerary," said Rudi Scholdis, Silversea's Director of Culinary Development.

A selection of L'École des Chefs voyages for 2012 includes:

Voyage 2235: Silver Wind departs Athens 12 November on a 16-day sailing to Dubai with calls in Alexandria, Sharm el Sheikh, Aqaba, Safaga, Muscat and Fujairah. Fares start at $8,958.

Voyage 2236: Silver Wind departs 28 November on a 7-day round trip sailing from Dubai with calls in Abu Dhabi, Kuwait City, Al Manama, Doha and Khasab. Fares start at $5,198.

Voyage 4208: Silver Whisper departs Bangkok 26 March on an 18-day sailing to Dubai (a segment of World Cruise 2012) with calls in Koh Samui, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Cochin, Mormugao, Mumbai and Fujairah. Fares start at $9,598.

Voyage 3211: Silver Shadow departs Tokyo 25 April on an 11-day sailing to Shanghai with calls in Hiroshima, Busan, Jeju, Dalian and Tianjin (Beijing). Fares start at $7,238.

Voyage 4229: Silver Whisper departs 1 November on a 7-day roundtrip sailing from Barbados with calls in Curaçao, Aruba, Bonaire, Isla Margarita and Grenada. Fares start at $2,798.

Voyage 4230: Silver Whisper departs Barbados 8 November on a 9-day sailing to Fort Lauderdale with calls in St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Barts and St. Croix. Fares start at $3,638.

Voyage 1218: Silver Cloud departs Copenhagen 10 July on a 16-day sailing to London with calls in Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Stockholm, Riga, Warnemunde (Rostock), Hamburg and Amsterdam. Fares start at $8,398.

Voyage 5204: Silver Spirit departs Buenos Aires 12 February on a 7-day sailing to Rio de Janeiro with calls in Punta del Este, Rio Grande do Sul, Santos (Sao Paulo), Parati and Buzios. Fares start at $4,838.

Voyage 5205: Silver Spirit departs Rio de Janeiro 19 February on a 15-day sailing to Barbados with calls in Salvador de Bahia, Recife, Fortaleza, Belém, Tobago and Grenada. Fares start at $7,598.

Voyage 3227: Silver Shadow departs Vancouver 6 September on a 16-day sailing to Tokyo with calls in Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Kodiak, Kamchatka, Hakodate and Sendai. Fares start at $7,798.

Fares listed above are per person, based on double occupancy for a Vista Suite. Silver Savings is a capacity-controlled program and subject to availability, terms and conditions apply.

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