Fred. Olsen Balmoral cruise review days ten and 11: Farewell Party

Here is the final entry.

Returning to work delayed my final log from the Fred. Olsen Balmoral - lots to do in my new role and didn't find the time to finish this off!

Our last day on the Balmoral was spent at sea, which was a very relaxing end to the trip and very needed.

I was determined to do as much as I could before we docked back at Rosyth so I set an early alarm.

Nicole and I had a brief moment of confusion upon waking up, as my phone had changed time zones with where we were at sea, leading us to not have a clue what time it actually was!

Luckily, it wasn't too late so I got up and headed to the Neptune Lounge for a photojournalism talk by renowned photographer John Ferguson.

John Ferguson led a very interesting talk on photojournalism. (Image: Newsquest) This was very interesting - he talked the audience through his career from working under Piers Morgan to travelling the world taking on personal projects.

Some of his projects included looking at minority groups and learning more about them, capturing their stories in his photographs.

These groups included black cowboys, albinos, blind people and gambling addicts, with each photo telling a thousand words about their lives.

I was really glad I went and was glad to see it had been so well-attended by the passengers.

The barbecue on Deck 7. (Image: Newsquest) Nicole had grabbed herself a seat at the Bookmark Cafe, taking in the last of the iced lattes there.

Chef Michael had told us the night before that he was setting up an outdoor barbecue on Deck 7 and a fish bar in the Avon and Spey restaurants.

I hadn't eaten yet so we went to the barbecue first and sat at the back of the ship to enjoy our burgers - the sun was pouring down and thankfully the wind wasn't too bad so we could enjoy our food.

Inside for the fish bar, there were trays upon trays of various seafood on offer - which I had become very partial to over the 10 days.

The seafood platter. (Image: Newsquest) That day was no different - I filled my plate with salmon, prawns and vegetables - Nicole is not one for fish so she steered clear!

After sampling the additional food bars, we had been booked in for traditional afternoon tea in the Observatory with Mike.

My tea journey continued, helping myself to some classic Earl Gray this time around - the server there was also very surprised that I had barely drank tea!

Mike, myself and Nicole during afternoon tea in the Observatory. (Image: Newsquest) The Earl Gray was nice, felt very smooth and more like what I thought tea would taste like, while the sandwich and nibbles platter was very enjoyable - just far too much after the barbecue and fish bars!

The sun was beating down in the Observatory and making it very hot, so Nicole and I finished up our tea quickly and headed back to our rooms.

I was feeling rather sentimental with the time on the cruise drawing to a close, so went on a walk around the whole ship myself.

Afternoon tea. (Image: Newsquest) I started by walking down to Deck 3 and working my way up, stopping in every public room I could.

As I got up to Deck 7, I was flagged down by a couple who had asked me about my blog entries on the Balmoral.

Not only that, they lived three streets away from where I grew up, even recognising my mum from the shop she used to work in!

We chatted away for around 20 minutes before I decided to head back to Nicole, who was relaxing in the pool on Deck 11 for one last trip.

The San Juan String Trio serenaded us during afternoon tea. (Image: Newsquest) Nobody else was there so we got to relax by the hot tubs for around 45 minutes, taking in the views around the ship.

Due to it being the last night, the entertainment schedule was brought forward to allow passengers to get an early night ahead of disembarkation.

That night's show was the Balmoral Show Company again, who performed Motown Classics for the Neptune Lounge - this time around, the highlight was certainly Love Train by The O'Jays or Stayin Alive by the Bee Gees.

A moderl of the Balmoral I passed during my walk. (Image: Newsquest) Table 119 at the Ballindalloch had been set up one last time for us - only three chairs this time for myself, Nicole and Mike.

Dinner that night was lovely, we all reflected on our favourite parts of the trip and found we didn't have a bad word to say about the Balmoral cruise.

We did all agree though that we were going to be very sad to get off the next morning.

For my meal, as expected I went for the spicy marinated prawn dish, which was a strong contender for my best dinner of the whole holiday - one I'll definitely be looking to replicate at home.

Not the best view for me but a great show! (Image: Newsquest) As we left, we gave a strong thank you to the crew who had taken good care of us during dinner - Ray and Jerome.

One last night at the Lido Lounge beckoned, so we bid farewell to Mike for the final time and headed upstairs to get an early seat for the quiz.

Ken presented tonight and we got 8/15 this time - it would have been nine but myself and a nearby table who had joined our team outvoted Nicole on the capital of New Zealand.

The last supper - spicy marinated prawns. (Image: Newsquest) She was certain it was Wellington, but we all said Auckland - safe to say, she enjoyed her moment when we all looked rather silly afterwards!

Instead of a gameshow, cruise director Tom had put together a medley of fan-favourite tracks from the 60s, 70s and 80s for a farewell party at the Lido Lounge.

The atmosphere was the best it had been on Deck 10 the whole holiday as the dance floor became absolutely packed for couples wishing to dance along.

Not content watching on, I got Nicole up to join in, while entertainment hosts Ken and Madison also took part.

Cruise director Tom McGarrity led the Farewell Party in the Lido Lounge. (Image: Newsquest) Tom was a fantastic singer and kept the energy high with tune after tune, eventually ending on an Abba medley.

We were all puffed out by that point and took our seats to watch the last few songs - I couldn't help but smile at everyone enjoying themselves on their last night.

Everyone applauded as Tom brought the show to an end and gradually passengers began to disperse to their rooms for the final time.

Not saying much due to tiredness, and perhaps a hint of sadness too, we headed back to our cabin as well to finish our packing for the next morning.

Our final look at the MS Balmoral. (Image: Newsquest) We had a bright and early rise on the Tuesday morning as we docked back in Rosyth.

Nicole and I found some seats near the Morning Light Pub to wait for our luggage colour to be called before making our way down the gangway and back onto land.

Ken and Ray were both on hand to help us down the ramp and back onto the dock, so I gave one big thank you to Ken for all the entertainment in the Lido Lounge.

We got one last look at the MS Balmoral as we got into the car to drive off, bringing our Fred. Olsen cruise experience to an end.