Dis embarkation on Fred Olsen

We will be on our first Fred Olsen cruise in January and wonder what the system is for dis embarking (on Balmoral at Southampton)Can you self disemark and if so what is the earliest time? If you are given a time what times is it usually between?We are wanting to buy an advance train ticket nearer the time so it would be useful to know.

We will be on our first Fred Olsen cruise in January and wonder what the system is for dis embarking (on Balmoral at Southampton)Can you self disemark and if so what is the earliest time? If you are given a time what times is it usually between?We are wanting to buy an advance train ticket nearer the time so it would be useful to know.

At UK ports we have always been disembarked in deck order straight after breakfast. According to Fred's website, disembarkation is usually completed by 09:30. There is also a list of upcoming cruise disembarkation times on the website.

Pugwash123

At UK ports we have always been disembarked in deck order straight after breakfast. According to Fred's website, disembarkation is usually completed by 09:30. There is also a list of upcoming cruise disembarkation times on the website.

Pugwash123

Thank you. According to the website the dis embarkation time is 8 am Are the times pretty accurate?

Thank you. According to the website the dis embarkation time is 8 am Are the times pretty accurate?

All depends on any delays in docking and unloading luggage, but if it starts at 8am, do not assume you can just walk off when you want as there is a priority sequence for disembarkation which does broadly follow deck order but can also include specific groups with common travel connections arranged through Fred etc.

Thank you. According to the website the dis embarkation time is 8 am Are the times pretty accurate?

It is in Fred's interest to get everyone off the boat as quickly as possible and in our experience disembarkation at British ports has always been pretty rapid and has started with deck 8 first and worked its way down but as mentioned by Mark_T there can be exceptions.

Pugwash123

Thanks for your replies.Will probably book a train just after 10am :)

On our last two cruises, one Newcastle and one Southampton, disembarkation has been by groups first and then by deck. This means even if you are on the top deck it can be a while before you disembark depending on how many groups there are. Usually Eavesway are first followed by all the others, Saga, etc.

Ok thanks for the info:)

On our last two cruises, one Newcastle and one Southampton, disembarkation has been by groups first and then by deck. This means even if you are on the top deck it can be a while before you disembark depending on how many groups there are. Usually Eavesway are first followed by all the others, Saga, etc.

This was our experience last Monday just as described when we left Balmoral. We were called just after eight o'clock and it caught us still in the cabin doing our last check around, last use of the loo etc.

We were on our way quickly with the only problem being the shortage of and slowness of :(the lifts, as the stairs were not an option.

Thanks.we will probably buy an open return ticket rather than an advance fare just to be safe

I have cruised many times with FOCL. The disembarkation seems to be getting earlier as the years roll by. I sailed on the "Black Watch" a few weeks ago and the ship arrived an Dover at 0400 and passengers were gonig ashore at shortly after 0700. I was being picked up at 0900 but all passengers were ashore well before then.

I have cruised many times with FOCL. The disembarkation seems to be getting earlier as the years roll by. I sailed on the "Black Watch" a few weeks ago and the ship arrived an Dover at 0400 and passengers were gonig ashore at shortly after 0700. I was being picked up at 0900 but all passengers were ashore well before then.

Interesting! Can you remember the official dis embarkation time according to the list?

The only time we have been disembarked that early was when the ship was relocating.

I agree that Fred disembark a lot earlier if the ship is then re locating to another port to pick up passengers for the next cruise, which they have started doing. We had to be out of our cabins by 7am in a case like that lat year, though 8am is the normal time to vacate cabins. Even when called you do not have to get off immediately, if there are still other people to disembark (though they do have an annoying habit of closing most toilets for cleaning). I agree with Parsman that they do like to get everyone off fairly early if they can though.

Regards the original question. We have left cruise ships before getting a train home a couple of times over the last year. We still booked advance train fares, but for trains leaving after 11.30am, or even later. The we have also looked at Google Earth and located a cafe or pub where we can hole up for a while if we need to do so. There is a Wetherspoons, which is open at breakfast time in High Street, Southampton for instance. I emailed a pub in Dover to ask if they will be open in the early morning, which they were.

Advance tickets are far cheaper for us so it is worth booking to avoid the enormous cost of open tickets, which will still be available on the day, if for some reason we do not get the train booked and the very low cost of the advance ticket is all we would loose, if for some reason we did not get our train. Just giving you another option if you fancy a nice, relaxed disembarkation day.

I agree that Fred disembark a lot earlier if the ship is then re locating to another port to pick up passengers for the next cruise, which they have started doing. We had to be out of our cabins by 7am in a case like that lat year, though 8am is the normal time to vacate cabins. Even when called you do not have to get off immediately, if there are still other people to disembark (though they do have an annoying habit of closing most toilets for cleaning). I agree with Parsman that they do like to get everyone off fairly early if they can though.

 

Regards the original question. We have left cruise ships before getting a train home a couple of times over the last year. We still booked advance train fares, but for trains leaving after 11.30am, or even later. The we have also looked at Google Earth and located a cafe or pub where we can hole up for a while if we need to do so. There is a Wetherspoons, which is open at breakfast time in High Street, Southampton for instance. I emailed a pub in Dover to ask if they will be open in the early morning, which they were.

 

Advance tickets are far cheaper for us so it is worth booking to avoid the enormous cost of open tickets, which will still be available on the day, if for some reason we do not get the train booked and the very low cost of the advance ticket is all we would loose, if for some reason we did not get our train. Just giving you another option if you fancy a nice, relaxed disembarkation day.

Thank you for your reply.Last time we booked Advance tickets and sat in the Costa coffee bar opposite the Rail Station using their free wi fi and reading the papers(also free!)We will probably wait until the time the advance tickets are released and if they are a lot cheaper than open returns we will book, otherwise we will buy an open return

We left Braemar this morning and were driving out of the terminal at 8.20. We were asked to be out of the cabin by 8.30. In the event breakfast was open sitting in all restaurants between 6-8am. We went to breakfast about 7.15 leaving our hand luggage in the cabin. As we were finishing a call was put out saying car keys for those who had booked parking with Abp were available in the Neptune Lounge. By the time my husband had collected our keys our deck - 7 was called to disembark. They disembark by deck order, except for some reason after our deck they called Deck 4 Starboard. Easy to get our cases in the terminal, not a lot there. So all very efficient.