All aboard the beautiful Bolette

I had always been a little dubious when it came to cruises. I think a combination of the misconception that they were for older people and years of watching Carry on cruising with my grandparents when I was a kid put me off.

However!

I went to a presentation about cruises a while back and those involved were so enthusiastic about cruises that I thought I would give it a go.

Ashley didn’t need much convincing.

So we looked at the cruises available when we were both off work and chose the Norwegian Fjords with Fred Olsen cruises. Neither us of had been to Norway before so this was ideal for us.

https://www.fredolsencruises.com

Once we chose our holiday, It was very simple and easy to manage with the app. We received an information booklet with the details of the boat, the itinerary and the available on shore tours for us to choose from. This came with our luggage labels, to which there were 3 each and were a grey which indicated our time to check in.

A few weeks before we received notification that the tours were open to book and the tickets arrived by email. Any other information regarding departure was available on the app.

We were sailing from Newcastle so stayed overnight the night before in the local budget hotel and got a taxi to the port where we met a freind for breakfast that morning eagerly awaiting our time to board.

Check in and boarding was also simple, we got to the ferry terminal with our bags all tagged up handed them over and then went to check in. They gave us our key card, which were told would get us on and off the ship, in our room and for charging things to the room. We went through security and onto a shuttle bus and to the ship.

As it was our first cruise we opted for the basic room and did not go for the drinks package, as Ashley is not a huge drinker.

We arrived on board and started trying to familiarise ourselves with the ships 9 decks comprising of an indoor and outdoor pool, jacuzzi, spa and multiple bars and restaurants.

Then with cocktail in hand we set sail.

In the evening we went to the main restaurant where we sat at our table with another couple who we were paired with for our evening meals. Which we were a bit apprehensive about as we did not know who we would get but we were keen to meet mew people, we were so fortunate we were paired with a lovely couple who we got on very well with and conversation flowed well from day 1 to the end. You also have the same serving staff at your set table everyday which makes it much more personal as they get to know you very quickly and know what your personal preferences are.

That night before and after dinner we went to the bar and watched the fabulous singer Hazel I beleive her name was and her live band, who was there every night.

Day 2 was a full day at sea. It took us a while to get used to relaxing and not being online, or having to dash here and there entertaining people. We decided not to pay for WiFi so we were truley switched off whilst on holiday. There were a huge amount of activities on board from quizzes and talks to dance classes, sports games shows and all.

We sat by the pool everyday and read our daily times, which is the ship newsletter with all the details of goings on around the ship and where to be that day.

That night we also had the formal event, where we were all invited to dress in our best dresses and suits and go to the auditorium and meet the senior crew members with complimentary canapes and drinks. Following that we went to the restaurant for our meal. Fabulously presented and served as always.

After our dinner we went up to the observation deck bar where they had a silent disco, where we got chatting to some other passengers and having a few drinks before the DJ started.

At just after midnight we went up on deck which is when Ashley got down on one knee and asked me to marry him (btw I said yes just in case anyone was wondering) so back to the bar we went for a bottle of bubbly.

The next day we docked a Flam. We had a pre booked a trip on the Flam railway. It was an absolutely beautiful trip up into the mountains, stopping at waterfalls to the top where it was snowing.

We spent the day docked at Flam for some free time and had to be back to the ship for a 5pm so that we could set sail overnight for Stavenger.

Next day was a day in Stavanger, the weather was beautiful and although there were lots of tours on we chose to just explore, we had a nice coffee and walked around the shops and parks taking in the sights

After leaving Stavanger the ship then travelled down the fjords

We then went had another fabulous evening of dinner and drinks.

The final day and another day at sea. We joined in with the quizes and watched the cha cha cha lesson. Then went to the pool bar for lunch, expecting it to be just burgers and chips but the food really surprised us. There were burgers and chips too, but the quality of the food like with everywhere else was amazing.

All in all it was an amazing and relaxing experience. The food was spectacular and you could literally eat and drink all day. As for the other passengers I was surprised by the ranges of people and ages with lots of children on board.

One thing I have not commented on which deserves a special mention are the staff, the staff are the most hard working professonal people I have met. They could not do enough for you everyone one was polite and happy. From the cleaners, to the waiting staff and crew all of them were happy to stop say hello and ask how we were.

Those who spring to mind were Paulo our waiter in the Terrace restaurant, Bunny who seemed to be at just about every bar we were at serving our drinks and Dennis who liked to sing Rick Astley too us. What a lovely bunch of people.

We are definitely both cruise converts and will definitely be planning a cruise in the future.