My husband and I enjoyed a very special tour on one of our at-sea days during our recent Caribbean cruise aboard Holland America Line‘s ms Nieuw Amsterdam. While all cruise guests can take a quick, self-guided tour of the galley on most cruises, the multiple-hour, exclusive, behind-the-scenes trek we experienced is limited to between six and twelve guests through special arrangements and/or a fee. The small group size allows its members access to areas usually off-limits to cruise guests, providing entrée to crew quarters, storage rooms, galley prep areas and more.

The tour actually takes place over the course of two days, and unfortunately, we were in port and had a shore excursion already booked when we learned we had been gifted the tour through friends at Holland America. That meant we missed what I’m sure was a fascinating visit to the bridge and a chat with some of the officers responsible for helming the 86,000-ton, 936-foot-long cruise liner. Hoping we’d catch that segment during the following week (we didn’t, as the minimum number of guests required for the tour wasn’t met), we proceeded the next day to begin Part Two with a literal peek behind the curtain of the Showroom at Sea main show lounge. We chatted with the stage manager as we learned a few backstage secrets and visited the dressing rooms and costume storage facilities.

We also trekked far forward and to the lower levels of the ship to see where the five-man tailoring crew sew and maintain all the uniforms for the ship’s 929 crew members. (They can construct an officer’s dress uniform in about 10 hours . . . impressive!) From there, our guides (Corbin, a marketing officer, and Judith, a young intern just starting her stint on the ship and studying for a degree in International Hospitality Management) allowed us a view of their respective quarters. Corbin, as an officer, enjoyed a private cabin with a porthole, some creature comforts and reasonable storage.   Judith, on the other hand, shared her inside quarters with another junior crew member, each with a single bunk and sharing closet, desk and limited storage space and a tiny bathroom. Seeing these living quarters and knowing the long hours and their seven-days-a-week schedules, I was even more impressed with the individuals who work on these cruise ships.

We saw almost every aspect of the workings of the Nieuw Amsterdam, from the garbage room, where everything is sorted carefully to maximize recycling and proper disposal,   to the laundry facilities, which operate around the clock. We saw massive washing machines, dryers and wet-cleaning machines (which use environmentally friendly organic compounds instead of dry-cleaning chemicals) and what seemed to be at least a dozen different steamers designed to smooth out the wrinkles on an assortment of shapes, from collars to waistbands to even t-shirts!   We were most fascinated by an enormous machine, roughly the size of a standard stateroom, which pressed and then folded linens, from pillowcases to king-sized sheets, all with the push of a button.

Sylvie, an assistant store master, took us through a series of storerooms, each temperature-controlled (from sub-zero and up) and containing stacks of liquor, mixers and soda;      fresh fruit and produce;   dry goods and spices; seafood and meats. She explained, only half-joking, as we observed pallets stacked with massive sacks of grain, that the cruise ship would cease to operate without two things: fuel and rice: fuel for the engines and rice for the predominantly Indonesian and Filipino crew. One specialized storeroom caught our eye when we noticed the label on the door: “Coffin Store.” It’s a requirement that large vessels be prepared to accommodate a body, but the majority of the time this room does double duty, pleasantly, as storage for all the fresh flowers and foliage used in arrangements around the ship.

The final leg of our ship tour took us through several food preparation areas, including the bakery with its massive ovens and tantalizing aroma of fresh-baked bread, the butcher’s room,     and assorted kitchens filled with massive kettles and mixers.    We finally passed through the galley where final plating occurs before dishes go to the dining rooms. Here a large chart on the wall identified every dish for each meal in the dining room for the week, demonstrating how each should look, down to the last dollop of sauce or sprig of garnish.

Our three-hour tour (really!) concluded in a lounge where we sipped Champagne and canapés while chatting with Corbin and asking last-minute questions. Each guest received a gift bag containing a cookbook by Holland America’s executive chef, Rudi Sodamin, and other mementos, providing us a tangible reminder of a thoroughly entertaining and enlightening morning exploring this floating community.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor