Fred Olsen Brabant

In my last blog i told you all about my Fred Olsen River cruise and where went to, this time i wanted to share with you some details of the ship and what i thought…

As i had not done a River cruise before i didn’t no it i would like it or not and the fact that the ship is much smaller than the Ocean cruise lines, however once on board i loved it, it is a small ship carrying around 156 passengers but has everything that you would need on board.

There is a main restaurant called the Panorama restaurant for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, which i must say the food was amazing, not complaints from me at all! It was self service for breakfast with plenty of choice and then waiter service from lunch and dinner. Also on a lunch time upstairs in the bar they put out a lighter lunch which was cold snacks such as salad and sandwiches, which was good if you had filled up at breakfast.

The main bar upstairs was lovely, with great views out on to the water, they would often have a singer in the evening with a pianist too and also things like wine tasting and quizzes, so not the big shows you get on the ocean liners but still enough to keep you entertained if you wanted in the evening.

Up on top deck it was lovely and open with plenty of sun loungers and chairs to sit and relax and watch the beautiful scenery, they had a small bar up there too offering gin and tonics etc and also sometimes ice cream and afternoon tea (if you could fit it in after all the food at breakfast and lunch!) There was also a small pool too which you could dip in to cool off in the warm weather.Other facilities on board included a fitness room, hair salon, main desk and the Panorama bar which was at the back of the ship where you could help yourself to tea and coffee whilst reading a book or just enjoying the views.

Now for the cabins, i was lucky enough to get a Juliette Balcony room to my self which was lovely, i would say the same size as a standard cabin on any ocean cruise line, it had twin beds, dressing table area, table and chair near the juliette balcony so you could sit there with the doors open and enjoy the fresh air. The bathroom was a good size too, which a toilet, sink and shower. All very clean and the decor was tidy and bright and airy. Other cabin types that you would find on board are the entry level cabins which are the Standard rooms, these are the same as the Juliette balcony in size and layout but have a window instead and these are head height. There is also a couple of Juliette balcony suites on board, if you are looking for something a bit more special, these are more spacious and have a sofa area and the bathroom has a bathtub.

Overall i was impressed by this ship, the cabins, food and staff were all brilliant i could not fault it all, so if you get the chance to sail on Brabant i would say go for it!