Fred Olsen today announced its plans for resuming cruising in 2021, with new ship Borealis’s maiden voyage leading the way on 23 April.
The new timetable shows that Borealis first to sail with a six-night Scottish Lochs and Isles cruise. Bolette will follow on 29 May and Balmoral on 9 June.
Due to having an extensive fly-cruise programme, Braemar will remain in lay-up until 2022.
All guests booked onto a cancelled sailing will be provided with a number of options including a no-quibble refund as part of Fred Olsen’s Plain Sailing Guarantee.
Peter Deer, the line’s Managing Director, said: “While it is regrettable that our pause in operations is longer than we originally anticipated, we have said right from the start that we will not resume sailing until we are confident that it is safe for us to do so, and we stand by that.
“The safety of our guests and crew remains our utmost priority, and it is important that we fully understand the advances in the roll-out of the vaccine, testing capabilities and other scientific developments and what they mean for how we can operate.
“This is not a process to be rushed, and we are confident that by deferring our return to sailing just a while longer, with our two new ships among the fleet, we can come back better and stronger than ever without compromising on guest experience.”