Regent Seven Seas Cruises has announced new venues for the Regent Explorer, to be delivered in 2016.

The will feature the brand’s first culinary instruction center called the Culinary Arts Kitchen, and will debut a new social venue named the Meridian Lounge.

The Culinary Arts Kitchen will offer eighteen individual cooking stations for guests. Guests attending classes in the Culinary Arts Kitchen will receive highly-individualized instruction, according to Regent, as each student will cook from their own personal workstation for authentic, hands-on training.

The instruction at the Culinary Arts Kitchen will cover an array of topics including healthy cooking, fish and shellfish preparation, perfect food and wine pairings for entertaining, delectable mini-desserts, high-heat grilling, and classes inspired by the destinations visited by the ship. The Culinary Arts Kitchen will debut with over a dozen classes.

Meridian Lounge

Also announced is the new Meridian Lounge on deck 5.

According to Regent:

The lounge is inviting with elegant taupe leather furnishings and dark wood accent tables sitting atop soothing blue carpet.  Polished antique brown granite flooring surrounds a curved bar with an antique silver finish and back-lit alabaster top, while across the room a rosewood parquet dance floor leads to an intimate stage that will host live musical performances.

Steps away from the entrance to the Constellation Theater, the Meridian Lounge is the ideal location to enjoy pre- or post-show cocktails, or simply savor a libation while peering out the floor-to-ceiling windows, soaking in the breathtaking views over the horizon.