BALMORAL or BLACK WATCH

[cruisermsoon]

Fred Olsen regulars:

Enticed by the Fred Olsen 3-for-2 offer, I am looking at 3 consecutive cruises on BALMORAL and also BLACK WATCH.

As I would be spending 30 or more days on board, I'd be interested to hear opinions on which is your favourite ship, and why.

I have not cruised on Fred before, however they seem like the type of smaller ships I prefer, and the itineraries are of interest.

 

[Coravel]

It's hard to choose between the two ships as, apart from the Balmoral being slightly larger, they are very similar in all other aspects.  Just decide on your preferred itinerary and go with it.  

[tiggertom]

Balmoral Is far superior to Black Watch. The cabins are larger and there is more lounge space. The outside areas on Balmoral are nicer and there are better restaurants. This is my opinion of course but the worst cabins I had were on three separate occasions on Black Watch. 

[tring]

We do not like Black Watch because it has a lot of cabins with fixed beds in L shaped configuration - this means you cannot even have a bedside table.  I agree Balmoral has slightly bigger cabins in general.  Look at Fred's website and search for cabins in a mock booking and you will see the size/layout of the cabin.  By layout, I mean twin or double beds and the ability or not to convert to the other.  You can still book via an agent for any extra discount offerred.

 

We would still go with the itineraries we preferred though and the departure location of the cruise.

[cruisermsoon]

Thanks for your comments. We have decided to base our final choice on itineraries, so have booked 3 June cruises, BLACK WATCH Arctic Circle, BALMORAL Norwegian Fjords and BALMORAL Iceland. Fares are on the high side, so have used the 3-for-2 promotion rather than wait for late booking reductions.

 

[Coravel]

I'm sure you will have a very enjoyable time.  The scenery is magnificent!