I was very grateful to be able to take an early morning trip down to Southampton, one day in April to take a visit on board Fred Olsen Borealis before it sails down to Amsterdam. Throughout the visit I was able to experience what our customers would get to experience whilst on board Fred Olsen.
Whilst this was my first ever cruise visit, it blew me away and exceeded the expectations I had before stepping foot onto the ship.
Throughout the visit I mainly focused on the service that the Fred Olsen crew provide for their guests, and the accessibility is truly like for our Fred Olsen customers.
The day started off with arriving at the Horizon terminal where we completed security checks before embarking onto Borealis, where we were greeted by Fred Olsen staff with a smile on their faces which made me feel very welcomed onto the ship. Throughout the entire visit on Borealis the staff were accommodating to everyone and were always happy to help if needed. When we first got onboard the ship we headed up to Deck 9 in the lifts with our group, where we headed into The Observatory which we were greeted by Fred Olsen team and sat at a table which had a range of pastries for us to have. Shortly after sitting down the staff came over to the table taking orders for drinks. I had an English tea and the service from the team was very quick, which made the experience much better. In this time, we were there for about 30/45 minutes we got to talk amongst ourselves and had a look around. The observatory is an open plan area of the ship which consists of tables and chairs, big open windows looking out on the beautiful views including seats Infront of the windows and binoculars. There was also a central bar in the middle of The Observatory with a beautiful fabric world map behind this. The Observatory is used for many activities including afternoon tea, silent discos and even quizzes. This would be the most ideal place to relax with a cup of tea looking into the horizon on a sea day! After a short break we were then split into groups where we started our tour of the lovely Borealis.
Firstly, we stopped off at the Lido deck where we visited the pool area which also had 2 jacuzzies and plenty of sun beds to relax on! To make the pool area even better there is a retractable roof for customers to even enjoy the space in not so sunny weather. On this deck we also visited the Atlantas spa and fitness centre, where we were greeted by the lovely staff members who welcomed us all which made the experience even better! The Atlantas spa have a range of treatments you as a customer can experience including manicures to even having your hair done on board.
We then were shown into the fitness centre which is a nice open space gym with all equipment and big, tall windows to enjoy the view whilst working out in the gym. After viewing the gym what a wonderful way to end the tour of the lido deck by visiting the thermal suite, where you don't have to share with other customers you can hire it for yourselves or the group you are travelling with. What a perfect experience, including an outdoor balcony for you to relax on the bench a sauna, jacuzzi and even heated stone beds for you to relax on.
Now we were next taken into the buffet restaurant where there is a range of savoury and even sweet treats in here. This Restaurant, even though it's a self-service when you walk in your greeted by the lovely Fred Olsen team and taken over to your table. In this buffet restaurant there is seats for everyone, my focus of the tour was looking at the accessibility on board Borealis, which was amazing the restaurant had tables with the blue bade on which were specified for accessibility users, these were located next to the food and had plenty of space around the table and even around where you go up to get your food.
Next, we walked down the steps to Deck 7 where we had a tour around the first cabin, cabin 7040 which was an adapted premier suite. As you walked through into the cabin there was plenty of space including a wet room on the left on side which included a walk-in shower and a bath. There was also plenty of space in the cabin around the bed and seating area and enough storage. We then got to walk out onto the balcony which was a good space with 2 loungers as well. In my opinion this is a good-sized cabin for an accessible cabin for our customers.
Shortly after we also then visited an adapted superior ocean view, cabin number 6104, An open plan cabin which had twin bed and a seating area for guests and a good sized bathroom which included a walk-in shower and plenty of handrails to help customers.
After a fantastic tour of the cabins onboard Borealis we then got to visit the Neptune lounge where all the main entertainment takes place which holds over 1000 + guests. There are two main shows in the evening to fit in with the dinner seating times for customers. We were lucky enough to be able to meet the new entertainment team who were rehearsing their new show ready to perform that evening. In Neptune the seats are soft sofa material, and they also had accessible rows for the guests if needed which had plenty of space.
I was very lucky to experience a three-course meal in the Aurora restaurant onboard. What wonderful service we received in here! We were immediately greeted by the waiters who took us over to our tables where we all sat down and had a wonderful view of Southampton. Before the waiters took our orders they checked with everyone if there were any dietary requirements or allergies, so they were aware which I thought was great. My colleague Onya made them aware she was vegetarian the waiter was very reassuring to her and explained the options what Onya could select, which I also thought was amazing as they knew their products very well. This is very reassuring as it shows they know how to meet everyone's needs which makes the service on Fred Olsen 10 times better. I had ordered a ham hock terrine for my starter, stuffed chicken breast for my main and finally a sticky toffee pudding and ice cream for dessert. This food was amazing and what topped off our experience in Aurora. Food took about 5 minutes in-between each meal to when you would receive your next course. On every meal we got to indulge on, the service was brilliant they were always checking our food was okay, if we wanted another drink or if we could get anything else. Amazing experience!
Finally, we were all put back together with over 36 travel agents who sat in a corned off space in the restaurant where we were with the Fred Olsen product management team who completed a PowerPoint with what's coming for Fred Olsen and to talk about our experience onboard the ship. We even got to try some chocolates from the Bookmark cafe. The best part! we were then guided back off the ship into the terminal where we walked back to the short walk to the car park ready for our journeys home.
Overall, I had an amazing day! If you are interested in cruising with Fred Olsen, why not contact me on 01452 345 623 or visit me in our Gloucester shop. I would be happy to help!
