It’s all about the experience’ with Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines in 2017/18

Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines is excited to announce that, in 2017/18, its fleet of four smaller, more intimate ships – Balmoral, Braemar, Boudicca and Black Watch – will be visiting no fewer than 220 destinations in 70 countries around the globe, plus 118 areas of scenic cruising. The new 2017/18 itineraries will go on general sale from 18^th March 2016.

Fred. Olsen will be sailing from a total of ten convenient, regional UK departure ports in 2017/18 – Southampton, Dover, Harwich, Tilbury, Falmouth, Liverpool, Newcastle, Rosyth (for Edinburgh), Greenock (for Glasgow)and Belfast.

Nathan Philpot, Sales and Marketing Director for Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, said: “At Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, we have a very clear vision for our 2017/18 cruise season: ‘It’s all about the experience!’ We are renowned for giving our guests a very different kind of cruise holiday, tailoring our itineraries to celebrate great events and festivals, providing authentic shore tours and creating memories that ‘last a lifetime’.

“For 2017/18, we have worked even harder than ever to create over 100 unique and innovative sailings, which will enable our guests to see the world in a very different, and very special, way.”

Fred. Olsen’s new 2017/18 cruise programme will include nine maiden calls, as follows:

Lipari, Italy; Heligoland, Germany; Amalfi, Italy; Lajes das Flores, Azores; Southwold, England; Ghent, Belgium; Olbia, on the island of Sardinia, Italy; Sorrento, Italy; and Pula, Croatia.

In 2017/18, Fred. Olsen will be reconfirming its commitment to the port of Newcastle,offering a record 13 departures, between May and September 2017, aboard its 1,350-guest flagship Balmoral.Departures include a five-night ‘Norwegian Fjords’ cruise, an 11-night ‘Swedish Waterways’ holiday and a 15-night ‘Authentic Andalusia’ adventure, taking in seven sunshine ports of call in Spain, Portugal and Gibraltar.

Fred. Olsen’s Boudicca will be setting sail on 10 unique adventures from the Port of Liverpool in 2017/18, including a 26-night ‘Azores & the America’s Cup’ cruise, which has been specially crafted for guests to be able to enjoy the action of the 35^th America’s Cup in Hamilton, Bermuda; an eight-night ‘Lochs of Scotland’ cruise; and a 16-night ‘Glitz & Glamour of the French Riviera’ holiday, with calls into eight beautiful locations, including Barcelona, Monaco and Cannes.

Fred. Olsen will also be reinforcing its reputation as the ‘local, global cruise line of choice’ in 2017/18, with 12 departures from Scotland, a country that has historically been very close to the Olsen family: three from Greenock (Glasgow) and nine from Rosyth (Edinburgh). Cruise holidays on offer to Scottish guests include a 10-night ‘French Rivers’ experience, departing from Rosyth on 4^th October 2017, and a 10-night ‘Iceland’ adventure from Greenock, setting sail on 16^th May 2017.

Fred. Olsen’s Black Watch and Balmoral will be embarking on two epic ‘Grand Voyages’ in January 2018, visiting a total of 46 ports in 35 countries between them.

Black Watch will be setting sail on a 108-night ‘Wonders of the World’ cruise, whereby guests will experience five of the seven ‘New Wonders of the World’ – Chichén Itzá, the Colosseum, the ‘Lost City’ of Petra, Machu Picchu, and the Taj Mahal – plus the only surviving ‘Ancient Wonder’, the Great Pyramid of Giza. This incredible ‘Holiday of a Lifetime’ is bursting with magical, unforgettable experiences!

Balmoral will be cruising to mighty South America on a 46-night ‘Rio Carnival and River Plate’ adventure, filled with sun, sea, sand and Samba! Highlights include four days in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the famous Rio Carnival, plus calls to Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a full day in Montevideo, Uruguay.

In 2017/18, Fred. Olsen will be making the most of its smaller-sized ships by offering even more river, fjords and scenic cruising, taking guests along narrow sea passages and waterways, and past awe-inspiring scenery. Fred. Olsen will be visiting 118 picturesque scenic sea passages and waterways in 2017/18, totalling almost 1,000 hours of scenic cruising.

Guests can enjoy leisurely trips past Swedish fjords, the Amalfi coast in Italy, fascinating formations in Iceland, including the infamous Eyjafjallajökull Volcano, Elephant Rock and Dinosaur Rock, and impressive Bonafacio, on the southern tip of Corsica.

Highlights of Fred. Olsen’s new 2017/18 cruise programme are as follows:

- For the first time ever, Fred. Olsen is offering guests the chance to experience a ‘location vacation’, visiting film settings featured in top blockbusters and hit TV series, including James Bond’s Skyfall, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Braveheart, Game of Thrones, Broadchurch and Poldark. Fred. Olsen will be offering two new ‘UK Set-jetting’ cruises in 2017/18: the first ‘UK Scenes from the Silver Screen’ is a 10-night cruise aboard Braemar, and the second is an eight-night adventure aboard Balmoral.

- Following its tremendous popularity in 2016, Fred. Olsen will now be offering its ‘Lochs of Scotland’ itinerary across all four of its ships. This ‘Fred. favourite’ showcases Scotland’s glorious, unspoilt countryside, mountainous landscapes and vast, peaceful lochs.

- Fred. Olsen will continue to build on its reputation as THE ‘Fjords Specialist’, with a nine-night ‘Greatest Fjords of Norway’ cruise,showcasing many scenic cruising gems, from the Seven Sisters Waterfall and Pulpit Rock, to the mesmerising backdrops of Nærøyfjord and Hardangerfjord; and a 27-night ‘Exploring the Fjords of the Arctic’, taking in the splendid destinations of Norway, Spitsbergen, Iceland, Greenland, and even the secluded Faroe Islands.

- Go in search of Seals, Orcas, Basking Sharks, Golden Eagles, Dolphins, Minke Whales, Puffins and Shetland Ponies on an eight-night ‘Wildlife of England & Scotland’ adventure from Liverpool, which includes a maiden call to Southwold, in East Anglia, close to Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines’ Ipswich Head Office. Here, guests can enjoy the pretty coastal Suffolk town, famous for its pastel-coloured beach huts and Pier; or take a shore tour to the Minsmere RSPB Reserve, which has been featured extensively at a backdrop for the BBC’s bird-watching series, Springwatch. 

- Back after huge demand in 2016 is Fred. Olsen’s five-night ‘Norwegian Fjords’ cruise. Fred. Olsen will be offering two of these in 2017/18, departing on either 25^th May 2017 or 23^rd August 2017: importantly, they will only require three days’ leave from work, as both sailings incorporate a Bank Holiday.

- Fred. Olsen is offering even more rivers and waterways cruises on shallow-drafted Braemar, including two seven-night ‘Waterways of Belgium & Holland’ holidays, with a maiden call to Ghent, in Belgium.

- Discover ‘Authentic Croatia & Venice’ on an in-depth 25-night sailing of the Dalmatian coast, taking in 12 destinations, including maiden calls in historic Pula, Croatia, and Lipari, the largest of the Aeolian Islands, in Italy, plus an overnight stay in Venice. Guests can also experience a full day in the stunning island of Hvar, cruising past Dubrovnik’s Old Town harbour.

- Set sail on a 40-night ‘Caribbean Discovery’ from Southampton aboard Balmoral, visiting 15 sun-soaked destinations.

- Undertake an incredible circumnavigation of Great Britain, featuring many destinations harbouring intriguing links to Royalty, on Braemar’s 10-night ‘The Braemar Highland Games’ sailing. Stroll along the ‘Royal Mile’ in Edinburgh; head to Glamis Castle and the Royal Castle of Mey – both former residences of The Queen Mother; and don’t miss the chance to see the annual Braemar Highland Games, attended each year by The Queen and Prince Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh.

- Enjoy the warm weather along the UNESCO-listed Amalfi Coast, on Boudicca’s 16-night sailing from Falmouth, boasting calls into Rome, Sorrento and Amalfi, plus Palermo, in Sicily, and a maiden call to Olbia, in Sardinia.

For further information on Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, visit the website at www.fredolsencruises.com or call 0800 0355 242.