Having sailed with Fred Olsen twice previously we thought we would try 5* luxury as Azamara had reduced the price following the itinerary change.

Flew Turkish Airlines from LHR to Istanbul, good flight there & back, excellent cabin service. Embarkation was a bit hit & miss airport to ship but smooth once onboard. Had late lunch at the Pool Grill & then to cabin 6067 to unpack. Called up to main dining room as the muster point for the safety drill which lasted 1 hour as 500 or 600 people waited for 2 latecomers, ridiculous. The drill was not as detailed as on FO. & could easily been done in 15 minutes. Luckily we had opted for dining at 8.30 pm & so we could unpack & get cleaned up in time for pre dinner G&T.

My wife has a very strong aversion to garlic so we spoke to the Maitre D to arrange garlic free food. No problem, she would be given the next day's menu to choose her meal & it would be cooked garlic free. Dinner that night was good, a pleasant occasion with our 4 dining companions. Read more