It used to be that the only personal growth you could reasonably expect on a cruise was in the size of your waistline. These days, however, more and more cruises are focused on enrichment: Depending on which trip you book, you’ll find shipboard scholars illuminating ancient art, naturalists interpreting wilderness ecosystems, vintners decoding regional wines and life coaches encouraging you to unleash your best self.

While some ships offer single-interest themed voyages (often produced by outside organizations), others have varied menus of self-improvement courses on every sailing. Princess Cruises’ ScholarShip@Sea, for example, offers classes in everything from pottery-making to party-planning. As part of Crystal’s Creative Learning Institute, passengers can take piano lessons, brush up on Spanish or learn tai chi. Cunard’s highbrow curriculum includes acting lessons with members of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and lectures on the influence of Winston Churchill. Passengers may, in fact, find themselves s enthralled by the offerings on these floating universities that the ports become secondary. “People are looking at ships as destinations unto themselves,” say cruise planners Mike and Diana Bogart, based in Charleston, SC. “When you have all that onboard, why get off in Cozumel?” Here are nine cruises that just might leave you smarter, fitter or more fulfilled, if you’re willing to take the chance.

PICTURE PERFECT
Board Cruise West’s 148-passenger Amadeus Diamond in Vienna and travel the photogenic Danube River through six countries on the medieval trade route between Vienna and Bucharest. A professional photographer conducts workshops onboard and in the field, and helps you improve your composition and image-management skills. Several state-of-the-art Pentax digital SLR cameras and lenses are available for participants’ use. Oct. 13–24; cruisewest.com; from $4,899* 

HIT THE HIGH NOTES
On Holland America’s Amsterdam, cruise up the coast from Seattle to Alaska’s aria-inspiring Inside Passage in the company of a noted musicologist, a composer/ pianist and mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato. With fellow opera buffs, you’ll attend onboard lectures, recitals and social gatherings. The voyage ends in Victoria, British Columbia, with a grand finale dinner served onstage at the landmark Royal Theater, home of the Pacific Opera Victoria. The excursion is co-produced by New York’s Metropolitan Opera Guild and Insight Cruises. Aug. 29–Sept. 5; insightcruises.com; from $1,079, opera program additional $1,675

FLOATING IDEAS
Aspiring novelists and screenwriters will spend part of their days in workshops and discussions with top agents, script doctors, editors, publishers and writers as they sail roundtrip from Los Angeles along the Mexican Riviera on Norwegian Cruise Lines’ Norwegian Star. Stops include Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta. Two workshops will be led by featured speaker Josefina Lopez, one of the most published Latina playwrights in the United States. Lopez is co-writer of the film Real Women Have Curves, which won a prize at the Sundance Film Festival; it will be screened onboard. April 10–17, 2010; writerscruise.com; from $899

VINEYARD HOPS
Taste your way from Vancouver to San Diego on a Celebrity cruise, aboard either the 1,886-passenger Mercury or the 2,034-passenger Millennium. You’ll stop for wine-focused excursions into British Columbia’s Cowichan Valley, Oregon’s Willamette Valley and California’s Napa Valley, plus tastings in Seattle and San Francisco. Onboard, guest speakers opine on pinot and pairings, and expert sommeliers preside over dinners that showcase featured vintners. Sept. 28–Oct. 10 or Oct. 12–23; celebritycruises.com; from $959

ART AT SEA
On the classic 1904 tall-ship schooner Maple Leaf, eight budding artists will have the chance to work on their painting and drawing techniques with professional artist instructors. The spectacular coastal landscapes of British Columbia’s Gulf Islands and Queen Charlotte Islands serve as inspiring open-air classrooms. To round out the six-day voyage, artists can leave their easels behind to go on sailing, fishing and hiking excursions, or wildlife-viewing expeditions, both marine and terrestrial. Gulf Islands: Apr. 15–20, 2010; from $1,750. Queen Charlotte Islands: May 9–17, 2010; from $3,580. mapleleafadventures.com

SWING TIME
During this nine-day golf-centric voyage on Silversea’s 382-passenger Silver Shadow, you’ll work on your game with PGA-pro instructors as you sail from Fort Lauderdale to Bridgetown, Barbados. Golfers get to disembark for rounds at some of the Caribbean’s best courses, on Grand Turk, the Dominican Republic, St. Lucia and Barbados. Top-of-the-line club rental is available on the ship. Loosen up in the onboard fitness center, where aerobics, yoga, Pilates and circuit training classes are offered daily. Dec. 2–11; silversea.com; from $3,047

BON APPÉTIT
On this two-week equator-crossing cruise from Rio de Janeiro to Fort Lauderdale, passengers enrolled in the Le Cordon Bleu Workshop on Regent’s Seven Seas Voyager take part in several French cooking workshops. Demonstrations by onboard Cordon Bleu instructors are just icing on the cake. The course culminates with a private dinner with the chefs—and the ceremonial presentation of toques and aprons to graduates. Dec. 4–18; rssc.com; from $5,795, cooking program an additional $499

THINK YOU CAN DANCE?
Ballroom dancing is the focus of this trans-Atlantic voyage from Lisbon to Miami aboard Crystal’s Serenity, with stops in the Azores and on Grand Turk Island. Dance instructors put passengers through their paces as they learn mambo, swing, samba, salsa, tango, foxtrot, waltz and rhumba steps— while prepping for upcoming dance competitions onboard. Nov. 12–22; crystalcruises.com; from $3,165

ANTIQUES ROADSHOW ON WATER
While the 100-passenger, all-suite Clelia II makes its way through the Great Lakes, you and your fellow antiques lovers learn the secrets to spotting treasures, guided by Antiques Roadshow personality Stuart Whitehurst. You also get a behind-the-scenes look at the PBS series from executive producer Marsha Bemko. Sailing from Duluth, MN, the recently launched ship visits Canadian and American ports, stopping at Thunder Bay, the Keweenaw Peninsula, Mackinac Island, Niagara Falls and the Welland Canal before docking in Toronto. Passengers can bring three of their own antique items on board for a professional appraisal. Aug. 29– Sept. 5; traveldynamicsinternational.com; from $5,595

*Prices are per person, double occupancy; additional fees and taxes apply.

NOTE: Information may have changed since publication. Please confirm key details before planning your trip.