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Is Fred. Olsen for us?


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Cheers for attempting to get things back on track :D

 

We both like all types of music and especially enjoy 50s and 60s - both our mothers had excellent musical taste! So I suppose worrying about the entertainment is a little silly. We also enjoy ballroom dancing, although I am at a much lower skill level than my wife - she is a qualified teacher, I am very much a beginner!

 

I think that a Fred. Olsen cruise would suit us rather well. In all honesty, I can be 'old beyond my years' sometimes - I like classical, jazz, swing, big band and rock'n'roll and am very partial to the odd Werthers Original :p

 

When are the summer 2017 cruises normally available to look at on the website?

 

Cheers,

 

Rob.

 

We booked our holiday for this summer in February 2014 however I think it's usually a little later than that for the summer ones normally - I think about March.

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We both like all types of music and especially enjoy 50s and 60s - both our mothers had excellent musical taste! So I suppose worrying about the entertainment is a little silly. We also enjoy ballroom dancing, although I am at a much lower skill level than my wife - she is a qualified teacher, I am very much a beginner!

 

I think that a Fred. Olsen cruise would suit us rather well. In all honesty, I can be 'old beyond my years' sometimes - I like classical, jazz, swing, big band and rock'n'roll and am very partial to the odd Werthers Original :p

 

Cheers,

 

Rob.

 

Keep practising the dancing and you may end up on some cruises as dance teacher and assistant.

 

Enjoy

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In reply to previous posts we are 62 & 60 and have done FO cruises for the last 3 years & just returned from Scandinavian & Baltic cruise, first time on Balmoral as previous two cruises were on Braemar. All the cruises were lovely we have done a Norway Fjord one & Arctic Circle one both from Dover on Braemar and the last one was from Southampton on Balmoral. The food is excellent and we found the entertainment to be of a high standard, for example on this last cruise we enjoyed a pre-dinner drink in the Lido Bar while watching an excellent Cabaret on several nights, and on other nights music in the same bar from 4th Dimension band, then on to an excellent dinner in the Ballindolach restaurant followed by a show in the Neptune lounge, we were second sitting for dinner which suits us so after the show it would be 10.45 pm and we could go on to the Lido Bar again for more 4th Dimension followed by the late night Disco, or on some nights up to the Observatory Bar for the late night Comedy Club. We enjoy the Formal nights as don't get the chance to dress up much to go out at home, but for those who don't then you can opt to go to The Palms restaurant for dinner instead. I read the forum posts and am often sad to see disparaging posts about FO ships from people who have previously been on the larger ships which perhaps have more wow factor with ice rinks, climbing walls and umpteen dining options this is am unfair comparison to make as FO does not offer this, theirs are smaller intimate ships and so they can get directly into the smaller ports, we went down the Keil Canal this time and on previous cruises have detoured down small Fjords in the evenings as an added bonus. We spend alot of time on deck watching the ship go into the sea locks or docking and you really feel closely connected to the ship and part of the action. Yes the FO clientele tends to be older but this is possibly because the UK departures appeal to older people, but also they are very loyal to FO and keep returning year after year. We have met lovely people from all walks of life and all ages.

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I think you will love it and the food is far better than I have experienced on any other cruise line. I think it is a bit of a fallacy about only elderly people cruising with Fred. On our recent cruise every decade was well represented from children to people in their eighties.

 

You are right, there are alot of oeople in their 70's or older but we also met people our age, 60's, and we were told they are expecting quite a few children on Balmoral this week, we have noticed that grandparents who like FO often bring the grandchildren along. I have met some lovely older people on FO cruises who are really interesting to talk to.

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.... and we were told they are expecting quite a few children on Balmoral this week, we have noticed that grandparents who like FO often bring the grandchildren along.

 

This is what we are doing at the weekend on Black Watch from Liverpool - husband, myself and two grandchildren. Our average age is 41 - exactly the same as the OP, but I suppose this is quite a meaningless statistic really :-)) Still, it reduces the FO average cruiser age!

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I'm an American who sailed for several years on those large, glitzy ships but have discovered that sailing on small ships is a far more enjoyable experience. For example, I'll take Swan Hellenic's marvelous library or the wonderful conversations at breakfast over sailing with 2000-5000 people in a gilded atrium any day.

 

I'm looking forward to my first Fred Olsen cruise next summer.

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We have never travelled on any of the large, (so called glitzy) ships so cannot compare first hand. Swan Hellenic, though always always has a place in our hearts. Their perfect organisation, customer service, ports and the overall feel of their ships cannot be bettered we feel and is a complete contrast to Fred. It is a shame Swan only run one ship so options are a little limited.

 

For a cheap option though, Fred can have its place at times. We chose to pay a high price for a higher grade cabin and were also taken with the convenience of a local port for our Black Watch recently and this was a mistake for us on reflection. A local port is an advantage for a short cruise, but for a month long cruise the quality of the holiday is far more important in our opinion.

 

Each has their own preferences for their own reasons and it is always worth trying a number of options to know what is best for you.

Edited by tring
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