Onboard holiday festivities

Princess Cruises

Seasonal style: Traditional and well-rounded, with exceptional options for those celebrating Hanukkah.

Thanksgiving: All ships will feature a typical Thanksgiving feast of roast turkey, stuffing and pie.

Hanukkah: Hanukkah will be celebrated on each of the eight nights with the lighting of the menorah, games, religious services, traditional songs and special holiday meals that will feature kosher foods, latkes, matzo ball soup and gefilte fish.

Christmas: Christmas Eve will include a special show, caroling, parades and music throughout the ship. There's a midnight mass; Christmas Day brings Santa, eggnog, a special Christmas feast and a children's nativity play. Other Christmas celebrations will feature a "gingerbread challenge," a photo ornament craft activity, a Christmas carol pop star talent show, holiday films and even an onboard reading of "The Night Before Christmas." Ships will be trimmed with festive holiday décor, and cabins will be decorated with traditional burning Yule logs.

For the second year in a row, Princess' Christmas revelry will feature a daily snowfall aboard all December sailings (with the exception of Pacific Princess, Tahitian Princess and Royal Princess). Innovative snow-making machines will create romantic winter flurries in the atrium, allowing passengers to experience a white Christmas without the need for mittens or a coat!

New Year's Eve: Clackers, hats, streamers and Champagne are all on hand to help the captain count down to 2009. Passengers will enjoy a special New Year's Eve menu.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Seasonal style: Traditional.

Thanksgiving: A special Thanksgiving dinner is planned.

Hanukkah: A rabbi will be onboard to lead Hanukkah prayers.

Christmas: The ships will be festively decorated for the holiday season, and passengers can attend holiday-themed entertainment and enrichment offerings and delight in a special Christmas dinner. A priest will also be onboard.

New Year's Eve: A special New Year's dinner is planned. Weather permitting, a New Year's Under the Stars party on deck will include complimentary Champagne and the playing of “Auld Lang Syne” by the ship's band.

Royal Caribbean

Seasonal style: Traditional and vibrant, with special activities for kids.

Thanksgiving: Expect the usual: a special menu with roast turkey and all the fixin's, seasonal decor, Thanksgiving arts and crafts, and family activities and games.

Hanukkah: A rabbi will be onboard for services. Hanukkah will be celebrated with lighting ceremonies, songs, games, food and even a kids' history of Hanukkah.

Christmas: Christmas celebrations will feature holiday music and decorations, as well as screenings of holiday movie classics in the theater, an ice-skating party (on ships that have rinks), a special Christmas menu and religious services, led by an onboard priest. Kids in Adventure Ocean can enjoy a parade of Santa and his elves, Christmas cookie decorating and a professional face painter or caricaturist.

New Year's Eve: Kids can celebrate with countdown parties for kids and teens and extended hours in the children's center; for adults, each lounge will have a New Year's Eve party, complete with party favors and decorations. The captain and cruise director will lead a countdown at midnight.

Seabourn Cruises

Seasonal style: Traditional.

Thanksgiving: Seabourn will offer a traditional American-style Thanksgiving dinner with roast turkey and all the trimmings.

Hanukkah: A traditional menorah will be on display.

Christmas: Seabourn ships will be decked out for the holidays with a gingerbread “village” (complete with cookies to keep guests from eating the display), Christmas trees on all the landings of the main stairway and evergreen decorations on the railings. A special Christmas performance will showcase holiday music throughout the ages, and a formal dinner will include a holiday feast, paper crowns and Christmas crackers. A Catholic priest will be onboard during these cruises.

New Year's Eve: The gala evening will be made festive with a formal dinner and a holiday ball in the main show lounge.

Silversea Cruises

Seasonal style: Traditional with an old-fashioned flair.

Hanukkah: A rabbi will be onboard during Hanukkah to lead services and light the menorah.

Thanksgiving: Expect a traditional meal of roast turkey and typical fall decor.

Christmas: Not only will the ships be decorated for the season, but the cruise line's master chefs get into the act as well. Cheery and whimsical gingerbread cottages, chocolate creations and cookies add to the decor, along with the traditional greenery and ornaments. Christmas services will also be led by onboard clergy.

During the season, eggnog, mulled wine and hot chocolate will be available to guests; both passengers and crew will participate in caroling. There will also be a special holiday offering in the show lounge and a visit from Santa Claus for all onboard.

New Year's Eve: Complimentary Champagne, streamers, party hats and noisemakers will all be on hand for the gala New Year's Eve celebrations, which are scheduled to start early with a pre-dinner performance in the show lounge and continue with dinner and dancing in the main restaurant. Live music, gifts and surprises will continue until the countdown to 2009.

Windstar Cruises

Seasonal style: Traditional, though low-key.

Thanksgiving: Windstar will offer a special Thanksgiving menu. Culinary delights are to include pumpkin soup; Tom turkey with chestnut-cornbread stuffing and native cranberry-orange relish; and American apple pie with toasted pecan ice cream, a crab apple coulis and caramel.

Hanukkah: A menorah will be on display.

Christmas: Each Windstar ship will be decorated with beautiful holiday decorations including trees, wreathes, garland and lights. The ships' executive chefs will go all out with a special holiday menu, featuring foie gras, roasted butternut squash soup and traditional roast turkey with gravy, cranberry sauce, apple-pecan stuffing and whipped sweet potatoes.

New Year's Eve: Windstar will serve up caviar and Champagne on New Year's Eve. A special New Year's Eve dinner will also be served. It is tradition on Windstar ships for the oldest crewmember to ring out the old year and the youngest to ring in the new. Guests will be able to partake in a festive New Year's Eve party, complete with party favors, live music, an official countdown by the Captain and a Champagne toast.

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