Fred Olsen River Cruise on the Brabant from Bernkastel to Dusseldorf 8th to 11th October 2018

I boarded the river boat in Bernkastel on the Moselle to complete a seven-night sailing that started in Basel. I arrived about 12.45 and was just in time to have lunch in the main restaurant.

My cabin was ready just after 2pm. It was a Juliette balcony room on Mozart deck, deck 3. Decks 2 and 3 have cabins with Juliette balconies while deck 1 has standard cabins with a window which is quite high to see out of. They are all the same size, approx. 161 sqft. The bathroom was a good size with a shower. The cabin was also quite spacious and was equipped with a TV, hairdryer, safe, double wardrobe and drawers. The toiletries in the bathroom were by Rituals. Bottled water was provided and replenished daily. There is no room service. The plugs were 2 pin European type. There was no kettle in the room, but we were told that because of client feedback they would supply these next year along with dressing gowns and slippers. Coffee, tea and hot chocolate was available 24/7 in the Amadeus lounge to the aft of the ship.

Breakfast was buffet service in the restaurant, but you could order omelettes, poached eggs, pancakes etc. There was a light option breakfast and lunch in the Panorama Bar. Afternoon tea and late-night snacks were also served in the bar. Lunch and dinner in the restaurant were one seating at 7pm and it was a three-course lunch and five course dinner. There were choices for each course. With the main course there was a choice of meat, fish and vegetarian option. The food was served piping hot.

The Panorama Bar was spacious and had an outside terrace. There was a small dance floor and a pianist and singer performed there in the evening. One evening we had a quiz. The drinks were very reasonably priced. Sparkling wine and wines from £3.50 per glass, a small beer from £3.00, gins and whiskeys from £3.90 plus mixers.

You can purchase a drinks package for wines, beers and soft drinks with lunch and dinner for £10 per day. Gratuities are £8 per person per day. Excursions are extra. From 1st to 21st October this year Fred Olsen have an offer that if you pay £200 per person per week extra you get a excursions every day, it does not matter what the cost is, plus you get the free lunch and dinner drinks package and free gratuities. This is a very good value offer.

There is a small gym on board and a hairdressers and spa. The prices are good with a 25-minute massage costing £35 and a 50-minute massage costing £60. A lady’s blow and dry is £25 and a cut and blow dry is £35. A man’s cut if from £11.

The first afternoon I had a walk into Bernkastel-Kues which is a beautiful medieval town with cobbled streets. There are some good gift shops, bars and restaurants here. It was buzzing with tourists.

The second day we stopped at Cochem, a small old town with just 5000 inhabitants. On a hill overlooking the town is the Reichsburg Castle. We did a wine tasting tour in Cochem, a little train took us on a tour of the town to the wine tasting venue. The guide and owner of the winery were very informative. We sampled 5 different Moselle wines.

We sailed at lunchtime towards Cologne. The scenery was stunning with views of the hills covered in vines. The weather was fantastic for the time of year and we were able to sit out on the sun deck. The following day we arrived in Cologne on the Rhine. The excursion today was a city tour and visit to the famous Cathedral. The guide was very knowledgeable and informative.

We left early afternoon for our final destination, Dusseldorf. The scenery just outside Cologne was quite industrial but soon returned to the beautiful green hills and vineyards. We arrived in Dusseldorf around pm and went for a walk into town. It is a modern city with a small older sector. We disembarked the following morning at 11am for our direct flight back to London.

The age group of the clients onboard was about 50 plus. The boat is not suitable for people with mobility issues as there are no facilities for wheelchairs or mobility scooters. The ramps on and off the ship can be steep at times and there is no lift access to the sun deck where you need to be able to negotiate 12 steps. There is a lift serving the 3 floors onboard. Also, sometimes the boat must raft next to other boats in the busy season which may mean negotiating from one boat to another to get ashore. The staff were friendly, and the ship was spotlessly clean, but the décor was a bit dated.

Brabant does a number of interesting itineraries on the Danube, Rhine, Moselle and Main rivers from 5 to 25 nights, the majority of 7-night duration. Flights are included in the price, but you can do cruise only with a reduction at this current time of £300 per person for the flights and transfers.