11 Brand New Cruise Ships

877/724-5425; hollandamerica.com; 7 days from $699

Launch Date: July 2010

Cabins: 1,053; from 170 to 1,318 square feet

Routes: 7-day Caribbean itineraries; 12–24-day Mediterranean cruises

Top Features: Pool deck with private cabanas (spray misters; preloaded iPods); Culinary Arts Center show kitchen for classes and demonstrations; Asian-influenced Silk Den lounge; Greenhouse Spa & Salon with thermal suites, hydrotherapy pool, and Turkish hammam–style lounge; Art Deco–inspired theater, Showroom at Sea; Pinnacle Grill for such specialties as pan-seared duck with blackberry relish and a top-notch wine list.

Don’t Miss: Rijsttafel, the Dutch-colonial take on a traditional Indonesian feast, at the Pan-Asian Tamarind restaurant.

800/728-6273; cunard.com; 5 days from $1,195

Launch Date: October 2010

Cabins: 1,046; from 152 to 1,500 square feet

Routes: 5–22-day sailings through the Canary Islands, the Mediterranean, northern Europe, and the Caribbean

Top Features: Grand Ballroom with a 1,000-square-foot dance floor; 6,000-volume library with stained glass and a spiral staircase; games deck (paddle tennis courts; croquet lawns); dinner and dancing in the glass-roofed conservatory; the formal Britannia restaurant for dishes like lobster à l’américaine and chateaubriand; bangers and mash and pints of beer at the Golden Lion gastropub.

Don’t Miss: An evening performance (with champagne and petits fours) at the dazzling three-story Royal Court Theatre.

888/227-6482; carnival.com; 7 days from $539

Launch Date: September 2009

Cabins: 1,823; from 185 to 430 square feet

Routes: 7-day trips through the Caribbean

Top Features: 12 nightlife venues, from a sing-along piano bar to the line’s first comedy club; sports complex (mini golf; Ping-Pong; basketball; volleyball); outdoor LED screen with a 70,000-watt sound system for alfresco movies; expansive aquapark with a 303-foot corkscrew waterslide; three restaurants, including the 139-seat Chef’s Art steak house.

Don’t Miss: The 23,750-square-foot Cloud 9 Spa, with 17 treatment rooms, a mud lounge, thalassotherapy pool, Thermal Suite, aromatherapy, and rain showers.

800/234-7350; ncl.com; 7 days from $949

Launch Date: June 2010

Cabins: 2,114; from 100 to 1,000 square feet

Routes: 7-day Caribbean sailings

Top Features: 18 nightlife venues, including the Ice Bar, kept at 17 degrees with faux-fur coats on loan; three-slide water park; sports arena with rock-climbing wall and batting cages; six bowling lanes; two kids’ and teens’ clubs (surround-sound cinema; light-up dance floor); state-of-the-art fitness center with squash court and Kinesis room; 20 restaurants, from an Argentinean churrascaria to a Tuscan trattoria.

Don’t Miss: The world-class entertainment options: the Blue Man Group, Cirque Dreams and Dinner Show, and Second City comedy troupe.

800/531-5658; oceaniacruises.com; prices not yet released

Launch Date: Late 2010

Cabins: 629; from 174 to 2,500 square feet

Routes: 10–18-day itineraries through the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Western Europe, and Scandinavia and Russia

Top Features: Special “owner’s suites” with Ralph Lauren décor; 16-room Canyon Ranch SpaClub; putting green and boccie courts; art studio offering classes from artists-in-residence; four bars, including a martini lounge; six restaurants, including the Asian-fusion Red Ginger and Jacques Pépin, serving Lyonnaise-inspired dishes (country pâté with gherkins; salmon rillettes).

Don’t Miss: A master-chef workshop at the Culinary Studio at Sea, with local market excursions and private wine tastings.

800/722-9955; silversea.com; 7 nights from $3,078

Launch Date: December 2009

Cabins: 270; from 312 to 1,168 square feet

Routes: 14-day transatlantic crossings; 7-night itineraries in the Mediterranean and Caribbean

Top Features: Butler service for every cabin, along with flat-screen TV’s; the Show Lounge, which hosts theater productions as well as Silversea’s new culinary program, L’École des Chefs; six restaurants, including a 1930’s-style supper club and the healthy Pool Grille, with individual volcanic-rock plates for grilling vegetables and lean meats.

Don’t Miss: Customizing your in-room scent; you have a choice of three from Italian perfumer Laura Tonatto.

Royal Caribbean’s long-anticipated mega-ship Oasis of the Seas (866/562-7625; royalcaribbean.com) launched recently; for more, see T+L’s exclusive behind-the-scenes look in March’s issue.

The 92,600-ton Costa Deliziosa from Costa Cruises (877/882-6782; costacruises.com), twin to last year’s Luminosa, was delivered in January.

Starting in March, the energy-efficent MSC Magnifica (800/666-9333; msccruisesusa.com) will cruise year-round in the Mediterranean. The Celebrity Eclipse (800/647-2251; celebritycruises.com) sets sail in May and the Seabourn Sojourn (800/929-9391; seabourn.com) in June.