For many of the 2,100 or so passengers on Holland America Line’s glittery “Dancing With the Stars: At Sea” theme cruises, meeting Emmy Award-winner and five-time “Dancing with the Stars” champion Derek Hough, Kym Johnson, Joey Fatone and Sabrina Bryan is an item to check off the bucket list. In fact, for one passenger on the Jan. 12 Champions cruise aboard the ms Nieuw Amsterdam, Johnson, the statuesque Aussie dancing pro and two-time mirror ball trophy winner was the bucket list adventure.

“A passenger told me I was on her husband’s bucket list,” said Johnson. “He wanted to dance with me.”

While the celebs appreciate they are the adventure for some — and Johnson did oblige the husband with a dance — each has his or her own wish list item, too. Carson Kressley, the Emmy-winning television star, celebrity stylist and fashion designer, wants to shop the great cities of the world. Irish dancer Tristan MacManus fancies a visit to Australia. Fatone, perhaps best known as a member of the boyband ’N Sync, wants to see the Northern Lights. Actress/singer Bryan, who starred in “The Cheetah Girl” movies, would love to do a two-week cruise — aboard a Holland America Line (HAL) cruise ship, of course — to New Zealand.

“To go to different places, to experience different cultures — it’s the spice of life,” said Emma Slater, who hopes to explore Southeast Asia. The English-born dancer/actress, who joined “DWTS” in 2012, also played Hen in the 2008 movie, “Mamma Mia!” “It makes us who we are.”

Talk about spice. To be among the more than 16 million viewers who tune in weekly to watch the fancy footwork unfold on ABC’s hit “Dancing With the Stars” TV show is one thing. To see the stars perform in person from one of the less than 900 seats in the Nieuw Amsterdam’s multilevel Showroom at Sea — so close you can observe the sequins from the dancers’ costumes flying loose and scattering across the stage — is something else.

Add to this the sheer accessibility of the stars featured on Holland America cruises — dance lessons with the “DWTS” pros; Q&As with the stars; formal photographs with the full celebrity lineup; autograph signing sessions; a fashion show with the stars glammed up in “DWTS” show costumes; chance encounters all over the ship — plus a chance to weigh in on the guest competitors’ performances via the “applause-o-meter,” and you’ve got one supersized bucket list adventure.

The 2013 Dancing With the Stars: At Sea theme cruises culminated this year on the January Champions cruise. That cruise brought together the passenger-winners from each of HAL’s 15 cruise ships to compete for the legendary mirror ball trophy. The highlight? Watching celebrity judges Hough, Johnson, MacManus, Slater, “DWTS” dancing pro Sharna Burgess, dancer and choreographer Jaymz Tuaileva and Nieuw Amsterdam’s cruise director, Eric Dowis, critique the competitors during several elimination performances. The stars’ interactions and Dowis’ dry, mostly off-topic observations brought down the house.

The fun continued through 2014, with “Dancing with the Stars: At Sea” programming on every sailing throughout the year. Once again, the program culminated with a Champions cruise guest dance-off competition, this year an early-December Caribbean sailing aboard the ms Westerdam. Additionally, there are six theme cruises this year featuring “Dancing with the Stars” events, including dance lessons, a chance to meet the stars, ask questions and take photos — and a killer production number starring the celebrities and dance pros.

Don’t-miss moments

• Lounging in a super squishy chaise in a wooden, sherbet-colored cabana at Half Moon Cay, Holland America’s private Caribbean island, and enjoying a misting fan, a fridge stocked with cold drinks and an afternoon snack of tortilla chips, veggies, fresh fruit and assorted dips. Oh, and sipping refreshingly delicious margaritas from the pirate-ship bar mere steps away.

• Bumping into the “DWTS” celebs while ordering a latte at Explorations Cafe, lounging in the Silk Den, sipping a cordial in the Piano Bar and working out on the elliptical machine in the fitness center. The beauty of the HAL “DWTS” theme cruises is the accessibility of the stars. You can pass the time of day with them, swap gossip — even pose for a quick photo.

• Sampling different foods, atmosphere and gastronomical theatricality each evening: spa cuisine at the two-tiered Manhattan Dining Room, Southeast Asian delicacies at Tamarind, Italian share-size dishes at Canaletto, artisanal nibbles at Pinnacle Grill.

• Enjoying poolside lounging and ocean views from the comfy confines of your (rented) cabana on Lido deck. It’s stocked with lots of goodies and the wait staff brings champagne in the afternoon. Even better: renting one of the more private and exclusive Cabana Club tented retreats on the 11th deck. It comes with all the amenities, plus snob appeal.

• Being front row center at the “Dancing With the Stars: At Sea” Championship Finale and seeing the first-ever “DWTS” Mirror Ball Trophy at sea awarded. Allyse Ishino, who represented HAL’s ms Westerdam, came from behind and knocked the audience on its collective ear with her impassioned tango, snatching the trophy from Todd Greenquist (ms Amsterdam) and Kristin Capaldo (ms Noordam) with her professional-level dancing and showmanship.

Gear to take along

On a HAL “Dancing With the Stars: At Sea” cruise, you need shoes. Lots and lots of shoes — for dinner and dancing, clubbing and calisthenics, shore touring and shopping. Biaggi makes a bag sized perfectly to hold a half dozen pairs of shoes or more with room left over for cosmetic and 3-1-1 bags: the 5.3-lb. Contempo 18-inch Foldable 2-Wheel Fashion Tote in hardwearing nylon. ($159.99, www.Biaggi.com)

Smaller than the average carry-on bag, soft-sided and flexible, this tote will always find a spot to squish into in the increasingly crowded overhead bins. The compact size and light weight make it manageable to heft — even loaded with your shoes. The bag has several organizing pockets, including one on the exterior to tuck your cellphone and boarding passes into. Once aboard your cruise ship, it can be quickly unpacked, collapsed and stowed neatly beneath the bed or in a closet.

Utilitarian features aside, this bag — like all Biaggi bags — has a beautiful sheen to it no matter which color you pick (black, brown, purple, aqua) and comes with a storage bag with carry handles, a nice touch. Trims in contrasting colors add a bit of glam and the signature Biaggi padded lining provides extra protection. Wheels are sturdy and cooperative when pulling the tote through the terminal or down a skinny airplane aisle.