Fred Olsen Cruises, Boudicca Review

Overall Rating

The itinerary was a little strange, with the ship first sailing north, then south and then north again once we arrived in Norway. This gave the impression that the trip was not organised simply to explore the fjords, but also to burn some time in-between - as was the perhaps too leisurely return to base at Greenock. This latter venture was not helped by a gale that rose steadily over some hours from force 7 to almost force 9 (as estimated by the fact that the tables with our suitcases was hurled right across our cabin together with crockery and fruit etc. The staff really came into their own during this 8 hour period, which happened during the day, helping many passengers who could not otherwise have safely negotiated the staircases and decks. The only seriously bad point to raise here was that in the ship's log which was posted subsequent to this, the weather was logged as being Force 4 - which was an outright lie. Someone rather charitably commented that perhaps this had been written before the storm.

Would-be passengers should know that these trips seem to attract those who are retired and who are often considerably older. This did not at all affect our perception of the cruise in a negative way as we met some very nice people. On the other hand the "old-style" comic, who could be very funny, at times resorted to jokes that were inappropriate- which was a shame. The formal dressing up would not be to everyone's taste - although for me this provided a surprisingly welcome respite from having to gaze at acres of wobbly flesh during mealtimes - and also made it feel that the dinners, which were excellent, were worth dressing for. The "red white and blue" "British" night seemed at first to be a poor quality joke - but we made the best of it.

This is a review of the BP813 cruise taken on the Black Prince in June 2008. The BW is an oldish ship which is scheduled to be withdrawn from service in 2010. Despite this, the ship was very clean and hygiene was maintained to a very high standard, as was witnessed when one staff member went down with a bug.
The restaurant service was excellent - over and above expectations - and overall the crew and service staff were very helpful and courteous, especially to those passengers who were frail and infirm. The entertainment, which was aimed to those born from the 1930s to late 1940s, was also excellent and generally very entertaining, with a few bad points (see below). Swimming pools were warm and were emptied and cleaned each evening. The food was excellent - especially for my wife, who is a vegetarian - but who did not once have to cope with the rigors of "goats cheese" that so often feature on bland UK menus. Embarkation and disembarkation were achieved with fluent efficiency and with no fuss. Tours were well organised.
Overall good. Nice sized ship. Great service from crew and service staff.