This was our first cruise with Fred Olsen and we booked it because of the itinerary and because it got us away from the madness that is Christmas in the U.K.
The initial itinerary was changed and the Gambia and Senegal were dropped from our original ports of call due to worries about the Ebola virus. This is quite understandable but the replacement ports of call, in particular Proto Novo in Cape Verde, were a great disappointment and beg the question as to why Fred Olsen thought anyone would want to visit there in the first place. The "town" was like something from the third world and the local shops didn't even accept euros, should you have ben fortunate to see anything you wished to buy.
We had paid £29.95 per person, per night for the all inclusive drinks package, However, it turned out to be anything but all inclusive, with many exceptions including tea and coffee at the pool deck and even bottled water in the cabin. In reality, what you got for nothing was half a glass of wine in most bars and local spirits, which with regard to the white rum, tasted nothing like Bacardi.