Hearty Lunch

A message from Fred Olsen saying I should have a hearty lunch before boarding Black Watch. Not quite what I expect from a cruise. Not a good first impression.

Best wishes, Stephen.

I don't know what all the fuss is about lunch on Fred. Olsen ships. They have never served lunch when sailing from UK ports and nowhere in their publicity do they say so. It makes sense to have a meal en route to the departure port. The quality of the meals on board will compensate for a so-called "missed" lunch.

I don't know what all the fuss is about lunch on Fred. Olsen ships. They have never served lunch when sailing from UK ports and nowhere in their publicity do they say so. It makes sense to have a meal en route to the departure port. The quality of the meals on board will compensate for a so-called "missed" lunch.

Having travelled with Fred Olsen before (x2) I would not expect lunch. Apparently there will not be an embarkation afternoon tea on my cruise. We are boarding later than usual.

I just think it odd to be advised to eat well before boarding a cruise. Generally pictures of food are used to sell cruises in brochures. Perhaps not the best first impression.

Best wishes, Stephen.

Is that the cruise from Tilbury on the 11th Nov? I see they are dropping the previous passengers at Harwich that morning, so it could be dinner time as you board - what are the embarkation times?

These 'drop off and pick up at another port' days seem to be delayed on a fairly regular basis. Perhaps it was not such a good idea to schedule them. We were disembarked very early from Dover after the May Mystery Cruise yet, problems meant the ship was still extremely late getting into Southampton to pick up and I have noticed other problems as well.

Not that cruise. A two night mystery cruise from Harwich at the end of October. A chance to try Black Watch. As it is two nights the mystery will be quite a limited. A Chanel port perhaps. Though I did get an email from Fred Olsen warning me about the Zika virus on my cruise.

That you for the information that we may be delayed. I will set my expectations accordingly. If this cruise gets any shorter it will hardly be worth it.

Best wishes, Stephen.

Not that cruise. A two night mystery cruise from Harwich at the end of October. A chance to try Black Watch. As it is two nights the mystery will be quite a limited. A Chanel port perhaps. Though I did get an email from Fred Olsen warning me about the Zika virus on my cruise.

 

That you for the information that we may be delayed. I will set my expectations accordingly. If this cruise gets any shorter it will hardly be worth it.

 

Best wishes, Stephen.

According to the brochure, the ship drops passengers at Rosyth the day before so hopefully you will be OK. Good luck anyway.

Zika virus on a one night from the UK!!!

Thank you. Should be fine.

I think they must have made a mistake with the mailing.

Best wishes, Stephen.

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I would recommend downloading VESSELFINDER onto your iphone and then you can track the ship as it approaches from its other port. We had the experience last year of a late arrival from Rosyth to our departure port for our embarkation and what the staff were telling us was not exactly what was really happening.

It's all in a day's work to them, I suppose. But it's not so funny when medication is needed and stress should be avoided. :(

Just to let you know what happened regarding a hearty lunch, late boarding and no food before dinner. Black watch sailed past my hotel at about 10AM. I arrived at the dock for 12PM and sat outside in the sun with a pot of tea from the cafe. Check in opened at 1PM and was onboard by 1.30Pm. A embarkation afternoon tea was waiting for us. The terminal and ship were very quiet as we had all been told not to arrive until 3PM to 4PM.

A rather good cruise I thought with excellent food and service. On the whole the ship is in very good condition. The carpets and seat cushions all seem new. Not what I expected just before a refit. The only place that seemed to need work was the outside decks on the top of the ship.

The mystery destination turned out to be Amsterdam. Disembarkation was very easy. I was called just after breakfast and left as they made the last call for departing passengers. All in all a very civilised, relaxed and enjoyable cruise. Cruising like it use to be.

Best wishes, Stephen.

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