Coravel

I've never seen the point of locking the laundrettes so early in the evening and

Fred is no exception. But we once had a cabin next door to the laundrette and were not bothered by noise at all. In fact it was incredibly convenient! :)

We've been with Fred Olsen in August on several occasions and can confirm that there are very few children on board. To be fair, the entertainment staff organise activities for them during sea days so you are unlikely to bump into any. You stand a good chance of seeing the meteor shower though. It's near perfect conditions for them in 2015 with no Moon visible and enhanced activity predicted.

Part of the problem is that there are only around eight washing machines and eight dryers in each laundrette. The machines have a quick wash cycle which is perfectly adequate for most purposes but the majority of users will put their clothes on a long cycle which ties the machine up for hours. The same applies to the dryers and the majority of people walk away to do something else. Many find this annoying and some will remove the washing into a basket as Tring has described. But I've seen others just tip the washing onto the floor in sheer frustration. That happened on my last long cruise and it resulted in a fight between the two women involved. This was subsequently transferred to their husbands who had fisticuffs on the deck. The result was that all four were unceremoniously dumped at the quayside of the next port of call which happened to be El Salvador. A chilling prospect if ever there was one! :D

There are two, one on a lower deck and one on an upper deck. For £2 you get a washer, drier and powder thrown in. The wash quality is excellent. Pick your times to do your washing as the laundrettes can get busy on sea days. But that back to back will allow you one day when you will have the machines to yourself. But beware, 90% of fights on board start in the laundry rooms, and if you are involved you will get thrown off even if the other person started it. :D

Last time we were on it was that 79 night cruise around South America in 2012. I believe you were on that one too Parsman. :)

The cabin drinks prices are what you will pay for bottles delivered to your cabin for drinking during the cruise. Towards the end of the holiday they will offer a similar list with reduced prices which are apparently duty free.

You said "permanent norovirus" which is untrue.

Well the ship keeps going in for 'deep cleans' and the norovirus persists so it must be permanent. This has been going on for years. But if you've had a sickness -free holiday that's great. I have a discount off my next cruise on the Braemar because it was my wife's turn to catch norovirus on our last (and I mean that literally!) voyage on the Boudicca.

What do you mean "permanent norovirus"....? Where did that come from? I have been on Boudicca many times and never experienced it once! Just got off it in September and had a wonderful time.

I suspect you must have been very lucky tiggertom because you only have to read through the pages of this forum or Google 'Boudicca + Norovirus' to corroborate what I say. We've been on it and along with almost every passenger and member of crew have had norovirus. It's most unpleasant and spoils the holiday. Perhaps they have managed to solve the problem at long last - I hope so!

Thanks very much for the reply. Is it possible to request a table for 2 in the Dining Room. I agree £15 for a bottle of wine is very reasonable especially compared to RCI where the cheapest is about $35 plus 15% service charge.

Yes, you can certainly request a table for 2 and also choose early or late sitting.

The Balmoral is the largest of Olsen's ships and therefore has more facilities. The decor is the same throughout all four ships and the atmosphere is very friendly. The ship to avoid is the Boudicca which sadly seems to have permanent Norovirus. The food quality is excellent in the dining rooms and buffet. You will be allocated a table and that is where you will be seated for the duration of the cruise but there will be a casual dining room where you can sit where you want if you don't like your table companions. A bottle of wine starts off at about £15 which is not too bad. Hope that helps!

I'd be very surprised if solar eclipse glasses weren't supplied owing to the danger of looking at the Sun without them. Besides, they cost very little money. When we went on the Boudicca to see the northern lights we were all supplied with free snow grips. I wish you all the best of luck in seeing the eclipse because I'm on the same cruise. For what it's worth, I have a good track record of seeing these events which may bode well. But the Faroes in March is a huge challenge so be prepared to be disappointed. :)