Fred Olsen Balmoral Reviews

The transfer from the airport at Bangkok was awful. The ship was good if a little dated. The food was excellent and all the staff were first class. The entertainment was also very good and well presented. On other cruises there have been on deck cinemas showing films or football matches. There was none of this and the cruise was aimed at peace and quiet for an older generation. All in all we thoroughly enjoyed the cruise.

Our first cruise and traveled around South East Asia. Allocated a room on 3rd deck with just one wardrobe and did not find out that other cabins had 2 until the last few days. Entertainment seems to be pitched for an older age group than ourselves albeit in our 60s. Main entertainment room - Neptune Lounge given over to mainly single elderly women dancing with mail staff dancers which cause the majority of people to leave the room. Mixed views about some of the excursions for example arrived in Bangkok after 12 hour flight and went to see Grand Palace the following day but not aware it involved a 7 hour return trip. Generally the speakers were poor. The ship is small and we liked this the food was excellent but service in the main restaurant the Ballindaloch? was not good with poor attitude from waiters. The Spey and Avon restaurants were much better with good staff. Overall we have mixed views in respect of our first cruise but would book with Fred Olsen again.

We booked through Iglu for a weeks cruise in November 2011 on the Balmoral. We were travelling with an elderly relative who had restricted walking and the staff were amazingly helpful getting him on/off the ship. He was thoroughly looked after and we couldn't have asked for more. As it was quite a late booking single cabins usually get booked quickly but there was availability for an inside cabin, which turned out to be really spacious. The food onboard is very good quality, and plenty of it. Drinks are reasonably priced. Entertainment was varied and the on board entertainments crew where excellent, I have to say on this trip the show team were not the best I've seen in a long time. Overall we had a great trip to Germany and Belguim. We are just looking for other cruises on this ship and leaving from Southampton.

We have just returned from a seven day Germany and Belgium cruise on Balmoral. We had a wonderful price deal on this cruise, but the standard of ship and food was excellent. Tables always laid in immaculate clothes, no queues and very pleasant staff with nothing too much trouble. I have cruised many times on various ships, but this equalled most and bettered some. The entertainment was good with a fabulous Polish violinist. I would say that the ship theatre crew were not the best. There was plenty to do around the ship. We will travel with this line again and look forward to the experience

This was my 2nd Fred Olsen cruise - the first on Braemar being faultless. However my review of this cruise is mixed. Restaurant staff were excellent - nothing being too much trouble for them & the food was to a very high standard. Cabin staff also excellent. Evening entertainment was also very good & varied. Top quality comedian, magician & violinist gave plenty of variety. However there were too many late arrivals at ports which was extremely disappointing. Very late arrivals in Dubrovnik & Lisbon meant time was very limited in these 2 ports. Disembarking the ship in Dubrovnik was chaotic, some people having no time to get to the old city. I got the impression that the itinerary was unworkable, as we struggled to arrive at a number of ports on time. We als spent a Sunday morning in Ibiza when nearly everything was shut. Although I was very happy with staff, food & entertainment, the late arrival problems mean I will look very closely at the itinerary in future. The poor planning of the cruise detracted to the very pleasant & friendly atmosphere on the ship.

My wife, daughter and I took a mini cruise on the Balmoral to Holland, Belguim and France. As it was our first time, I pestered the poor staff at Iglu with so many stupid questions, all of which they answered with great professionalism and patience! The Balmoral was an amazing ship. We felt as if we were dreaming! The entertainment was fantastic and the staff were always so kind, courteous and friendly. We loved every minute of our cruise and never wanted it to end. The people and the destinations were fabulous and now our only thought is when we can go again....

We arrived at the ship in Southampton in the most awful weather imaginable. By the time we got on to the ship we were soaked and our luggage was wet. However, once we set sail we had a fantastic time. Our accommodation was good. The food was outstanding and the entertainment was most enjoyable. We were travelling toward St. Petersburg and this was a great destination. We went on the organised tours here and enjoyed them very much. The other stops we had we went off on our own. Can't wait to an my next cruise.

We have travelled twice on this ship and also on two of Fred Olsen smaller ships. We like this ship because it has all the amenities, restaurants, fitness suits and swimming pools that you would expect to get on a much larger ship. The ship is a small cruise ship in comparison to most but we like that fact that you are able to visit smaller ports and less crowded places, including the Kiel Canal. The service, food and cleanliness are excellent and the cheerfulness and courtesy of the crew has been second to none, nothing is too much trouble. I would thoroughly recommend Fred Olsen cruises. I would also like to add that Iglu also is excellent and gave sound advice and had good knowledge of the company.