Thomson Cruises, a UK-based cruise line, has launched a competition for people to demonstrate their culinary skills by preparing a three course dinner fit for the a la carte restaurant, the Grill, on board the Platinum Thomson Dream.
Contestants creating the Cruise Kitchen menu are required to prepare a masterpiece dinner choosing from a range of ingredients and trimmings, deciding on a central element for the dish and the suited cooking style. Entrants are also invited to describe their dishes to make them sound as appetising as possible.
An expert panel will select three finalists from the entries. The finalists will be offered a seven-night cruise on the Thomson Celebration in March 2014, to experience the Colourful Coasts tour of the Canary Islands. On board, the chef will cook up each menu for the ship’s captain, Thomson Cruises director, and Thomson Cruises manager, who will then choose an overall winner.
The lucky winner will win a trip on the Pride of Panama cruise around the Caribbean, sailing on board the Thomson Dream from its new home port, Montego Bay, Jamaica. Their winning menu will also feature in the a la carte restaurant during the cruise.
Fraser Ellacott, customer operations director for Thomson, First Choice and Thomson Cruises, said: ‘We are hoping that this competition will really raise awareness among our customers about how much dining variety we have available on board our ships. From high end a la carte to cooked to order restaurants, we really do have something to suit a range of tastes.
‘The new technology being used to develop this cruise kitchen menu creator is yet another way we are modernising the holiday experience for our customers as well as giving them the chance to really feel part of life on board our ships. The fact that they have the chance to win a trip of a lifetime on board the Pride of Panama itinerary sailing from the Thomson Dream’s new homeport of Montego Bay, Jamaica, is also fantastic and should encourage loads of people to enter.’
The competition will close at 23:59 on January 12, 2014.
A part of TUI UK & Ireland, Thomson Cruises has four ships in its fleet, Thomson Dream, Thomson Celebration Thomson Spirit and Thomson Majesty. Thomson Cruises won three awards at the 2013 Cruise Critic UK Cruisers’ Choice Awards and Cruise Critic Cruisers’ Choice Awards, including two awards for Best Entertainment and one for Best Service. Thomson Spirit, Thomson Celebration and Thomson Dream were ranked in the top five for Best Shore Excursions.