Bobby Flay cruise sets sail on Norwegian Joy in 2026
A star chef roster is heading to sea. Sixthman, in partnership with Entertainment Benefits Group, unveiled "Chefs Making Waves Presents: Bobby Flay & Friends," a five-night culinary cruise aboard Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Joy. The roundtrip itinerary departs Miami for Montego Bay, Jamaica, and George Town, Grand Cayman from November 6 to 11, 2026. Presale signups opened September 25, 2025 and close October 13, 2025, with public on-sale starting October 15, 2025 at 2 p.m. ET. Guests can secure a cabin with a $100 per-person deposit using automatic monthly billing.
Key points
- Why it matters: Celebrity chefs anchor a growing festival at sea segment with bundled dining and programming.
- Travel impact: Unlimited open bar and curated dining are included, reducing onboard add-on planning.
- What's next: Public on-sale begins October 15, 2025 at 2 p.m. ET; presale access closes October 13, 2025.
- Norwegian Joy offers go-karts, waterslides, spa, and multiple dining venues during the culinary cruise.
- The chef lineup features Bobby Flay, Brooke Williamson, Leah Cohen, Scott Conant, Antonia Lofaso, Marc Murphy, Michael Voltaggio, Ayesha Nurdjaja, and Damaris Phillips.
Snapshot
Across five nights, travelers will pair Caribbean ports with a festival-style schedule of cooking and mixology demonstrations, Q&A sessions with chefs, curated dining experiences, panel discussions, signings, wellness activities, and themed events. The sailing includes an unlimited open bar package, a notable upgrade for a specialty event at sea. Norwegian Joy, among the line's larger ships, adds resort-like amenities between sessions, including a two-level go-kart track, waterslides, casino, and Mandara Spa. Shoreside, the cruise calls at Montego Bay and George Town, offering beach time, snorkeling, and culinary excursions that complement the onboard programming. Sixthman emphasizes intimate access to talent and community-driven experiences as a differentiator from standard sailings.
Background
Sixthman has built a two-decade track record producing "festivals at sea," expanding from music into comedy, sports, and now culinary concepts. Its model bundles entertainment with a like-minded audience and curated access to talent. The 2026 Bobby Flay cruise follows earlier chef-focused voyages and aims to scale the format with more chefs and a larger ship. Entertainment Benefits Group brings additional distribution and packaging expertise. Norwegian Joy, which typically splits time between Alaska, the Caribbean, and repositioning seasons, offers capacity and venue flexibility suited to multi-track events. For travelers, culinary cruises concentrate hard-to-get dining experiences into a single, pre-paid week, echoing broader trends toward ticketed, limited-capacity experiences at sea. For context on that shift, see our coverage of the rise of ticketed cruise entertainment. Ticketed Cruise Entertainment Is Having a Moment
Latest developments
Presale timeline and what's included for the culinary cruise
Presale signups opened on September 25, 2025 and close on October 13, 2025, giving priority access before the public on-sale at 2 p.m. ET on October 15, 2025. A $100 per-person deposit is available when guests enroll in automatic monthly billing, softening upfront costs for cabins. Event programming promises exclusive cooking and mixology demonstrations, chef Q&As, panel discussions, and signings, alongside wellness and themed events. An unlimited open bar package is included with every booking, while specialty experiences like The Bobby Flay Residence and the Culinary Collectives will open for reservations closer to sailing, with early access tied to presale participation. Norwegian Joy's amenities provide capacity for both large showcases and intimate sessions between port calls.
Ship fit: Why Norwegian Joy works for a festival at sea
Norwegian Joy's size and venue mix underwrite the "more chefs, more ship" promise. Multiple main dining rooms, specialty venues, lounges, and theaters let producers schedule concurrent sessions without bottlenecks. Between events, travelers can make the most of the ship's go-karts, waterslides, pool decks, casino, and spa. The itinerary's two-port cadence balances sea days for programming with time ashore in Montego Bay and Grand Cayman. For more on Norwegian's broader deployment, including Joy's role within the fleet, see our coverage of NCL's 2027 program. Norwegian Unveils 500 Voyages for Spring and Summer 2027
Analysis
Culinary-led sailings are maturing from novelty to repeatable product. Sixthman's approach mirrors music charters: concentrate fandom, guarantee talent access, and bundle premium experiences to justify pricing. Including an unlimited open bar simplifies budgeting and eliminates one of the most common friction points on mainstream sailings. The chef slate mixes TV familiarity with restaurant credibility, which should broaden demand beyond hardcore foodies. Operationally, Norwegian Joy's theater, atrium, and specialty rooms create natural tiers for demonstrations, tastings, and small-format dinners. Two port calls maintain vacation balance without fragmenting the schedule.
For travelers, the presale window is the lever. Early booking unlocks priority for The Bobby Flay Residence and Culinary Collectives reservations when they open, which will matter if capacity is capped by venue size and turn times. Watch for staggered reservation waves and set alarms around the October 13 presale cutoff. If you are comparing options, weigh this all-in culinary cruise against a standard Caribbean voyage plus land-based chef events; here, access density and community are the differentiators. Expect rapid sell-through on suites and club-level cabins given their double Latitudes point accrual on some event sailings, a detail frequent NCL travelers will notice.
Final thoughts
For fans of food TV and serious dining, this Bobby Flay cruise packages access you would normally chase across cities into five days at sea, with two classic Caribbean stops. The presale clock dictates your place in line for chef-driven dining reservations, so act before October 13, then watch for the October 15 public on-sale if you miss it. If your 2026 calendar can flex, this is a straightforward way to trade a standard week in the Caribbean for an all-in culinary festival at sea, anchored by the Bobby Flay cruise.