Contrary to popular belief, cruising isn’t just a woman’s vacation. Look past the Lido Deck and the umbrella drinks, and you’ll find that some cruises offer plenty of opportunities to celebrate such traditionally male pursuits as golf, basketball, fishing, and of course round-the-clock dining.

Adventurous shore excursions

It’s no secret that men like some adventure on vacation and a number of cruise lines offer shore excursions that don’t leave the testosterone at the dock. There are hiking, zip-lining, mountain biking, SCUBA, kayaking, river rafting, race car driving, and dune buggy adventures, just to name a few.

Still, there’s one type of shore excursion that tends to be the manliest of them all – fishing. There’s just something about guys bonding over fish stories. Virtually every cruise to Alaska, the Caribbean and Mexican Riviera offers fishing excursions. In Alaska, there are fishing trips in every port with opportunities to catch king salmon, coho salmon, and halibut. In the Caribbean, depending upon the island, cruise vacationers can fish for bonefish, sailfish, wahoo, grouper, snapper, and tuna. In the Mexican Riviera the port stops of Cabo San Lucas and Mazatlan, manly guests have opportunities to seek out deep water fishing for big game fish like marlin.

Golfing

You can’t practice your drives off the back of the ship, but many cruise lines are adding many more golf opportunities to their itineraries. For example, golfers can play a variety of beautiful and challenging courses throughout the Caribbean, Canada, Hawaii, Mexico and Europe on select cruises offered by a number of cruise lines.

A number of cruises also offer the services of a certified golf professional, who conducts private lessons, specialty golf clinics and putting contests; accompanies golfers on golf excursions; and organizes golf tournaments. Some ships offer “V1 Digital Coaching System”, swing-analysis software that captures the golfer’s swing and puts it up on a split screen for analysis and comparison with legendary golfers and the hotshots on tour. Additionally most cruise lines offer rentals of equipment — everything from clubs to shoes.

Fitness center and spa

Want to continue that workout at sea? Today’s cruise ships offer a cornucopia of exercise options from terrific jogging tracks and basketball courts to state-of-the-art gyms and equipment. There’s no better way to work off that sumptuous cruise cuisine than doing a few laps around a track atop the ship’s upper deck, breathing in fresh sea air and taking in amazing ocean views.

The spa may not seem like the manliest place on the ship, but look at it this way: ladies love a man with soft kissable skin! Most cruise line spas now offer treatments just for men that offer a masculine focus on what was once primarily feminine territory. Treatments include a pro-collagen shave, frangipani hair conditioning, facials, and aroma stone therapy massage – great after a hardcore workout in the gym.

Vice time: wine, beer, cigars

There is no shortage of bars on most cruise ships. A number of cruise lines have brewer showcases of signature and specialty beers with many offering onboard beer-tastings. For the more sophisticated palate, wine-tasting opportunities abound. A number of cruise lines offer wine seminars, wine flight tasting sessions, and some cruises are known to have wine experts onboard who will teach the finer points of wine-tasting. Additionally, depending upon the cruise itinerary, some shore excursions offer visits to wineries or fine dining establishments with world-class wine cellars.

Most cruise ships also feature cigar bars with wood-paneled walls and sumptuous leather chairs that offer an expansive assortment of stogies to choose from. Additionally, most offer a fine selection of cognacs to go along with the cigars. The good life indeed.

Fine dining

There’s no better way to win a man’s heart than through his stomach. On a cruise vacation it’s sure to be love at first bite as men wine and dine on gourmet fare. Most cruise lines allow guests a choice of where to dine either in a traditional dining room, small specialty venue or in a casual eatery.

The best part is that there is virtually no limit on what or how much one can order. Have the late night munchies? Check out the late night dining venues, or order room service. Most cruise ships offer 24-hour room service, which is included in the price. Contrary to popular belief, it’s quite easy to stick to a healthy diet and still enjoy all the good stuff. Most cruise lines offer low-calorie and spa type cuisine in addition to their regular menu.

The message is clear: Don’t miss the boat, man!

Anita Dunham-Potter is a Pittsburgh-based travel journalist specializing in cruise travel and cruise vacations. In addition to writing pieces for Princess Cruises, Anita is a weekly travel columnist for MSNBC.com and Tripso, and she is a contributor to Fodor's "Complete Guide to Caribbean Cruises 2007.