Fred Olsen Cruise Lines

Ships: Balmoral, Black Watch, Boudicca, Braemar

The company originated in Hvitsten, a small town on Oslofjord in Norway, in 1848 when three Olsen brothers – Fredrik Christian, Petter and Andreas – bought their first ships and began an international shipping company.

Now into the fifth generation of the family, they operate companies skilled in various aspects of the cruise and passenger shipping trade as well as aviation, ships’ crewing, shipbuilding and offshore industries.

Aside from the transportation industries, the Fred Olsen group also has interests in the luxury hotel sector, estate management, property development, and electronics companies.

Black Watch

Black Watch


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31st December 1996
28,613
320
807
4 Stars

Delightfully relaxed in mood and reassuringly human in scale, resplendent Black Watch offers you the best of all cruise worlds. Featuring 67 cabins and suites with balconies to make cruising to every destination that much more special. Having undergone a refit in Spring 2007, her sophisticated décor looks fresher than ever, with many traditional cruising features.




Boudicca

Boudicca


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1st February 2006
28,338
320
839
4 Stars

A truly world class cruise ship with a light and airy design, Boudicca's scale creates a sense of warmth and welcome from the moment you embark. Boudicca has attracted a band of loyal followers, thanks to her spacious layout and stylish interiors. An appropriate British historical theme is reflected throughout, with each public room, lounge and restaurant designed to ensure the mood is in keeping with her sister ship Black Watch.






Braemar

Braemar


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1st January 2001
24,344
400
987
4 Stars

Elegant and captivating describes the atmosphere that abounds on Braemar. She is perfectly suited for warm weather cruising and continues to attract plaudits. Since her major refit and lengthening procedure, Braemar now features over eighty passenger cabins and suites with balconies. She has also become the second of our ships to feature a pub, which, on occasion, offers entertainment in the form of a late night comedian or jazz.




Fred Olsen's Distinction

Welcome to the Fred Olsen fellowship
As a family-operated company, we are justly proud of our fleet of smaller, more intimate ships as such as our successful art of cruising. We understand our passengers like a more personalized experience, one that is unashamedly British. Our personable and long-serving crew are well-versed in ensuring your relax the moment you step aboard. For many passengers, it is the happy blend of agreeable companions that is our distinction, a point wholly endorsed by one of our loyal Oceans club members below. Wherever you choose to cruise with out you will soon feel part of the Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ fraternity and enjoy a friendly ‘home-away-from-home’ camaraderie.

Reassuringly ‘there’ every time
Manny cruise ships visit the same or similar places, so why we always choose “Fred Olsen”? You might as well as ask me why I married my wife! It is all about emotions. You expect quality on a good ship, but Fred Olsen knows from very long experience, and from listening to their customers, what makes a special cruise; one that it a real emotional experience, and one that leaves us wanting more. We are never processed; everyone is an individual. The staff has a real interest in their passenger, their likes and their dislikes, and have an amazing desire to please. We know that the home we leave at the end of each cruise will be the home we enter next time we board. Can one ask for anything more?

At home the world over
The staff are themselves a very happily family, but we become part of their family and they become part of ours. The chemistry between staff and passengers creates a sense of belonging, a genuine feeling or warmth. Everyone on board has their part to play and everyone joins in. And we know we shall always be welcomed back as friends – not just as passengers. I remember we once stood in Main Street Gibraltar and the rain was tippling down. We looked at each other and said “Oh lets go home” – and we meant the ship. You do not believe me? Home is where the heart is!.

Golf - Great courses the world over

The relaxing yet invigorating pursuit of golf is the perfect complement to cruising. What better way to play renowned courses than when your Captain calls at ports where 18 landscaped holes are but a short putt away? On all our ships we have tee times at a host of challenging courses at many destinations worldwide.

Links, parkland and heathfield courses, some designed by Jack Nicklaus and Robert Fream, offer tight fairways that lead past heavy rough to signature holes, Braemar’s Caribbean golf programme offers championship pay on several Robert Trent Jones’ designed courses where water hazards and manicured greens are aplenty.

+ A happy medium
During rounds ashore, our resident PGNA Pro will play with you, offering advice and course management tips. We appreciate that the make-up of the playing group is important to player’s enjoyment and we strive to ensure a happy medium is made – sometimes good players are grouped together, other times the social element of playing with new found friends is more important.

+ CSwing
By way of a special we delighted to offer video lessons with the aid of our easy to use advanced video swing analysis system – ‘cSwing’. For a small additional charge these half-hour lesson provide immediate visual feedback that hopefully will result in lower scores!
Golfing regions
+ Mediterranean Golf
It is hard to imagine a more agreeable region in which to play golf than in the Mediterranean. Helped by an extremely pleasant climate, an attractive diversity of landscapes and a great range of t – on course facilities, the Med brings together the many elements that golfers look for in their holies. The courses included will generate a number of golfing stories – those monster drive, those birdie chances and hopefully not too many missed putts.

+ Canaries Golf
The ideal setting of golf – warm sun weather year-round and some of the most breathtaking scenery anywhere in the world. The Canary Islands are a long –establish golfing destination, hosting several PGA events each year.

+ Caribbean Golf
The Caribbean serves you year-round golf with generous helpings of sun, sand, wind and water, plus the skill of the top architect's with most courses being on the cost of the Caribbean islands, a ‘links’ feels extend to many – with the associated challenges – although perhaps with more consistent weather. Not two courses or island are alike. There are mountains, volcanoes, rainforests, coral cliffs, sandy beaches, marshland and even desert-like terrain.

+ Baltic Golf
The up-and-coming golfing destination in the golfing world! In recent years, the vision of talented course architects has been successfully employed to attract visitors who want to sample something more avant-garde than the longer- established golfing destinations. Warm weather and long, light evenings mean condition for playing golf are excellent. Some courses are still young and developing, yet the natural terrain makers for beautifully landscaped challenges for players of all levels.

+ Book early
The number of places available on our cruises, particularly onboard Black Prince are limited, so early booking is recommended


Prices and what is included
Flagship Golf packages include
* 4 rounds of golf including Green Fees and transportation for /from each course
* A welcome party for golfers and partners
* Free practice facilities on board
* Up to five sessions of tuitions with our resident PGA Pro (time and conditions permitting)
* On-board lectures on a variety of golf subjects
* Fun competitions on-board, and on the course
* End of cruise price-giving

Caribbean fly/cruises. A valid handicap certificate is required, as is a relevant golf insurance.
Golfers will be responsible for payment of all the golf course, including club hire, buggy hire, caddies etc. These items need not be booked in advance and can be ordered at the course on the day of play. Golfing in the Baltic, the Canary Island, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean may often be much warmer than in the United Kingdom. It is always advisable to carry some bottled water, although some golf courses do provide a roving drinks buggy!
A dedicated brochure is available on Flagship Golf. As for a copy, see your travel agent or visit the special section on our website.

Life on Board

The civilized way to travel
Your holiday begins the moment you embark; you unpack only once and in no time, an array of destinations are almost delivered to your cabin door. As the cruise progresses you choose whether to relax or on board or head off in search of new experiences. No one insists you make an acquaintance with ports that lie at the bottom of the gangway, the choice is entirely yours; there is compulsion to indulge in organised activities, you make your own schedule; you need not dress up every night, as there are no strict regimes. What there is the best – the most relaxing – holiday at sea, on the ultimate touring resort.

Variety, the spice of life
Life at Fred Olsen is colonial in the true sense, and as you ply the world’s oceans you soon unwind and learn to take life less seriously, more sedately. Relax around the swimming pool; read a best-seller borrowed from the library; stay in touch with friends at the Internet Centre; enjoy a classical concert; improve your golf or bridge technique under the guidance of our experts, pamper yourself in the beauty salon, keep fit at our fitness classes; or perhaps some shopping? By day and by night, when our ships are at sea, this special time is devoted to you.

Come sundown
As the sun dips towards the horizon and the afternoon dissolves slowly into dusk, the shipboard mood changes as our programme begins to focus on the pleasures of the evening ahead. Every night on board our ships is an occasion: whether is be cocktails with new-found friends in your favourite bar; a sumptuous five-courses a la carte dinner in our formal restaurants; lively and diverse entertainment in the revue show; traditional dancing to the accompaniment of our band; an amble around the open decks under a star-kissed sky – we make it a night to remember. It’s like having a night on the town – every night.

Make the most of your cruise with Arts Club

One each ArtsClub cruise you can look forward to travelling with our team of chosen experts, selected for their world-renown; and, in keeping with the Fred Olsen philosophy, for their personal touch. Each is a celebrated master in their own field, yet they have a passion for sharing their knowledge in an informative, yet informal way.
Something that we know you will also have in common with them is that they too love cruising! You will enjoy a fine balance of performances and lectures, discussions, practice sessions and social get-together, And arrangements are never intrusive, so your travelling companions are free to enjoy the cruise as suites them best.

+ Best of the both worlds
Indeed more than anything else, a Fred Olsen cruise is about friendship and companionship. But is also about choice. Our Artsclub cruises therefore combine the very best of both holiday worlds – indulging a special interests close to your heart with a supremely relaxing cruise, offering all the traditional pleasures of shipboard life. Equally, enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike can savour a relaxing break – together, without compromise on their part!

*Typical ArtsClub Programmes
Our ArtsClubs programme operates mainly during days at sea. Programmes vary depending on the subject and the number of artists involved. For example, ArtsClub Antiques cruises include lectures and presentations, practical hints and tips sessions on how and where to buy antiques, and also occasionally, our own ‘All-at-Sea Antiques Roadshow’ – a nautical version of the popular antiques TV programme. ArtsClub Music cruises enable you to listen and learn form classical performers through a programme of concerts and recitals, open rehearsals, Desert Island Discs interview sessions, music quizzes and the increasingly popular passenger choir. Selected themes lend themselves to shore tours when it is hoped our experts will escort visits ashore.

Overall the programmes are diverse, and offer a great deal of choice – however far you decide to participate.

*The cruise for your favourite interest
Find out more
If you are interesting in booking one or our ArtsClub cruises, you will be naturally keen to discover more about the programme for your preferred them and to enquire about any special shore tours. Full details about confirmed artists will be available when you call us about your booking. A dedicated brochure is, also produced regularly as new information becomes available. Just as for a copy to be sent, or ask your travel agent. Alternatively, if you visit our website, ArtsClub enjoys its own section with all the latest information, links to other sites, and from where you can download an electronic version of ArtsClub brochure.
Welcome abroad and prepare master your art!

Wine & Dine

Superb cuisine and attentive service
Offering a range of dining choices is our speciality. Start the day with a full English breakfast in the conviviality of our main restaurants - water served, of course; or perhaps a continental collation in the privacy for your cabin. Lunch can be a casual, al fresco affair at the poolside Lido, or in our brasserie – style cafes, but the restaurants are always open, awaiting your pleasure. Come night time the mood assumes an air of dignity, especially in our tastefully-appointed restaurants. From the lavish affairs that are the Captain’s dinners, to the less formal options, our award-winging chefs have a feast in store.

Simply the best food
Unlike many other cruise lines we appreciate the British plate. By using only high quality provisions our celebrated chefs prepare menus that are a varied as they are delicious. Dine in grand style in our formal restaurants; indulge in an array of Oriental and Indian themed treats in our less formal, but nonetheless refined cafes; then push then push the boat out and savour our late-night feasts. Catering to your whims and caprices, our chefs will ensure everything is cooked to your looking; you only have to ask. When it comes to gala occasions, our speciality nights and celebrity menus are second menus are second to none.

Enjoying your wine
In response to passenger requests we now have a celebrated and commended wine list which offers a comprehensive range of eminently-drinkable vintages. This list includes a selection of high-quality wines from the New World as well as classic Old World favourites. What better opportunity to indulge in the juice of the grape from differing countries than when you are cruising? In additional there are several Champagnes for that special occasion; and a section of ports as the perfect digestif. And the list is reasonably – priced for your drinking pleasure at every meal; not just on gala nights. Many now take advantage of our pre-order service each day, to ensure the wines are served in optimum condition.

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