Fred Olsen Black Watch Reviews

We booked a cruise with Iglu on the Fred Olsen's Black Watch to tour the UK and Ireland. Iglu were very easy to contact, staff very helpful and all the appropriate documents arrived quickly by email. This was our first time on the Black Watch and we were interested to try this ship after numerous successful trips on the Balmoral and the Boudicca. Black Watch is the smaller of the three ships and easy to find your way around. The staff and crew, as on all Fred Olsen ships were extremely helpful and friendly - there's always a cheery smile and some friendly banter to make you feel at home. We did find there was quite a bit of queueing at meal times though, something we hadn't experienced previously on the slightly larger ships. On this UK and Ireland cruise the ports of call were fine, although Milford Haven didn't warrant a full day and perhaps Cardiff would have been preferable. The weather was brilliant and enhanced the visits to Dublin and Belfast. Kirkwall was disappointing as on a Sunday everywhere was closed. Overall it was a lovely cruise and different being able to sail around the UK instead of going abroad. Looking forward to our next cruise when we would like to see what it's like on the Braemar.

Have just returned from the Bergen and Fjords cruise. My wife and I were really impressed with everyhting; the service, the manners of the staff, the information always at your fingertips and of course, the food. The only fault, which was not down to Fred Olsen. was that we had to forgo sailing to Flam, because the Cunard 'Queen Victoria' was accepted, and there wasn't room. So, for the 'Norway in a nutshell Tour', we had a 2 hour coach trip to Flam, then one hour on the famous Flam Railway, then 3 hours from there back to Bergen by public railway. A long and very expensive day. 

My wife, 13 year old daughter and I sailed on the Black Watch from Southampton on the 'Icelandic Anthology' cruise - taking in 3 Ports of call in Ireland, 4 Ports of call in Iceland and also the Faroes. It took some convincing getting my Wife and Daughter to agree to Cruise in a northerly direction, having only Cruised the Med and the Atlantic to Morocco previously. This Cruise was the best yet! The Black Watch is a typical Fred Olsen ship - smaller than the majority of Cruise ships but at the same time having a surprisingly spacious feel, as well as an excellent friendly atmosphere. The Staff are always happy to help and will often refer to you by name and remember your favourite drink! after only a few days (amazing when you consider the number of people they must meet). The in-house Show Company were very good and the guest entertainers (Irish Band and Dancers; Magician; Comedian; Singer) provided excellent evening entertainment. The Food, whether taken in the Formal split-sitting Dining Room or in the Buffet cafe, was nothing short of Very Good and even Excellent. Daily activites? - You can plan your day from the 'Daily Times' delivered to your cabin each evening. There is always far to much to do than time allows - Deck games, Port talks, Swimming, Gym, Bridge classes, Dancing Classes, Craft lessons (Water Color Painting in this case), just sitting and reading etc etc. The Highlight? well that was Iceland, what an amazing Country. Even those, like our daughter, who did not think they had the slightest interest in Geology or Geography, were astounded by the amazing features - Active Geysers throwing water from the earth 30 metres into the sky every few minutes; Standing on the perimeter of, and looking down into, an active Volcano crater; Walking across the most amazing Lava Fields; watching the bubbling steamy water in the natural hot springs (and suffering the strong smell of sulphur!); swimming in the Blue Lagoon, an outside pool of naturally heated water; standing in the spray of some fantastic waterfalls; standing at the point where the European and North American Continental Shelves meet, the list goes on. Some say that Fred Olsin does not cater for Children - our daughter will happily tell anyone that she had a great holiday, enjoying the days at sea as much as (if not more than) the days ashore. Will we sail with Fred Olsen again? Oh Yes!

We had a great Christmas and New Year on Fred. Olsen's Black Watch. It is a fantastic ship and very friendly crew. May I wish every one at Iglu a Very Happy New Year, and I thank every one for the prompt and hassle free way my booking was handled. Not sure when our next holiday will be, but I will definately make Iglu my first choice for re booking a holiday or cruise. Many Thanks again"