12 Night Cruise sailing from Venice roundtrip aboard Nieuw Amsterdam.

Launched from Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard in Venice on July 4, 2010, the 86,000-ton Nieuw Amsterdam celebrates the glamour and history of New York City, formerly called Nieuw Amsterdam, with its inspired interior design and art collection.

Holland America Line has installed an array of works valued at over $3 million, ranging from antiques by traditional Dutch masters to creations by renowned contemporary artists. Some pieces reflect the Dutch Golden Age while others, such as the spectacular centerpiece in the atrium, express a contemporary curiosity. Adorning the ceiling of Nieuw Amsterdam is an eye-catching abstract sculpture of the inverted New York skyline made from clear translucent blocks that hang upside-down. The sculpture was created by husband and wife Italian artists Gilbert Lebigre and Corinne Roger of Creazioni Lebigre & Roger. The significant collection, which includes works by celebrated artists Andy Warhol, Richard Estes and Roy Lichtenstein, continues with astounding displays throughout the ship.

Nieuw Amsterdam joins the recently launched Eurodam to further define and expand the Holland America Line premium brand with new concepts such as the innovative pan-Asian Tamarind restaurant and Silk Den lounge surrounded by panoramic views overlooking the ocean expanse and the Lido pool. Other additions are an Explorer's Lounge Bar, a premium wine-tasting lounge, an elegant luxury jewelry boutique, new atrium bar area, enhanced and reconfigured The Showroom at Sea, and a new photographic and imaging center.

The new ship continues several much-admired Holland America Line features, including outside-view, glass elevators at midship; the Explorations Cafe -- a cyber-coffee house powered by The New York Times; the Pinnacle Grill and Pinnacle Bar; the innovative Culinary Arts Center presented by Food & Wine Magazine, where culinary experts provide cooking demonstrations and intimate classes in a state-of-the-art onboard show kitchens; an expanded Greenhouse Spa and Salon with thermal suites and hydro-pool, the largest gymnasium ever built for Holland America Line; and a youth facility that includes the teens-only Loft. In addition the ship will feature the family-style Canaletto Italian restaurant.

Nieuw Amsterdam features 11 guest decks and staterooms spotlight all the Signature of Excellence® premium amenities. Also featured are innovative spa staterooms with additional spa amenities.

Highlights of this cruise:

Venice
Your eyes deceive you as you get closer. An entire stone city concocted from spires and cupolas seems to float on water. The optics seem off, but by now you're too far charmed to turn back. Cruise to Venice with Holland American Line and start easily. Have a bicerin, a hot mix of espresso, drinking chocolate and whole milk. Then step out into the palatial arcades and outdoor cafes of St. Mark's Square. Ready? Now you can really get going. Venice has 117 islands and a million stories of empire, longing, and glory.

Katakolon
Gateway to Olympus, site of the original Olympic Stadium and host to some games of the 2004 Olympiad.

Athens
There's no escaping the Parthenon. The temple to Athena looms over Athens from its perch atop the Acropolis, and it looms across the Western imagination as an icon of art and civilization. You may as well give in and start your cruise visit there. And why not? Completed in 438 B.C., the temple still astounds as the flowering of Greek art and architecture. When you come down off the hill, be sure to visit the Ancient Agora, Syntagma Square, the National Archaeological Museum, and the city's infinite impromptu byways. As you sample some souvlaki or a frappe, take a glance back up the hill from time to time and give the goddess her due.

Istanbul
Cross the Galata Bridge to the old city, past the Süleymaniye Mosque, whose 174-foot dome was once the highest in the Ottoman Empire. Pass the ancient city walls, built by Constantine, and beneath the epic Roman aqueduct. You've come for spice; for the scent of curry, saffron, and myrrh; for a taste of something ancient. A cruise to Istanbul (nee Constantinople nee Byzantium) with Holland America Line takes you to the world's only two-continent metropolis, thick with nearly 10 millennia of history.

Kusadasi
Ephesus is a beautiful ghost. In the first century B.C., the city was one of the largest cites in the world. It's amphitheater sat 24,000 people. Its Temple of Artemis was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The Library of Celsus was perhaps the finest in creation. Today, the amphitheater is a ruin, the temple is gone, and the library is a shell, open to the sky. Still, your cruise excursion will reveal glory in the old stones. Ephesus has one of the largest collections of ruins in the eastern Mediterranean. Prime among them is the library, whose two-story façade still stands, and the house said to be the last residence of Mary, mother of Jesus.

Argostoli
Greece's best-kept secret. Discover enticing beaches, tasty white wine, a superb museum, the fishing village of Fiskardo where you may while away the afternoon schmoozing with the locals.