Oriana Review
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There's a lot that's right about Oriana. Our main impression was of a well designed ship with lovely public rooms which were fit for purpose. The Pacific Lounge isn't huge but a good size for a medium-sized ship and it offers much better views of the artists than does the equivalent on Azura. If you like dancing then you will enjoy Harlequins, much better than being stuck down on a small floor in the Atrium as you are on some ships. The pub was a very good size, light and airy. The theatre offered good views with only a couple of pillars to get in the way. There were quiet, comfy rooms if you wanted to sit and read and a decent sized coffee shop area. The cinema was a very good size for this size of ship. We were in the Oriental restaurant which was pleasant and the Conservatory was, as on most ships, adequate but small for the number of passengers wanting to use it on a sea day when the weather's not so good!
One thing we particularly liked about Oriana was that you could sit in the sun on the open deck without being bombarded by loud music. There was music sometimes around the Riviera pool but if you wanted peace and quiet then the other two pools offered that - Azura take note!!
Our feelings before this cruise about the food on P&O were that standards had dropped a bit. On Oriana we would say that the food was good, better in fact than we had on Azura at Christmas. However, when it comes to choice then Celebrity offers a much wider choice in their buffets. We understand that P&O are moving to plated meals very shortly, which is a pity.
Cabin Review
Listed as a JC grade by P&O this is an ocean view which has a shower over the bath and a small corner settee. There are drawers by the side of the bed and a further set of four drawers, the top of which forms a dressing table with a narrower drawer which holds the hairdryer. We had the bed in queen configuration and there is just enough room to walk down either side - watch yourself on the corner of the dressing table if you're on the right - it's a narrow gap! The cabin was perfectly comfy and light although the window could have done with cleaning a bit from the outside. Hot water is plentiful and it's a good pressure shower. Your clothes in the wardrobe will hang front to back, ie away from you, which isn't the easiest for accessibility and the safe is almost at floor level. There is adequate hanging space but never enough hangers - ask your steward for more. There is a small fridge, kettle and a box with your tea, coffee, biscuits etc in. A small tv stands on top of the fridge. This cabin is on the deck below the gym and you can hear people running on the treadmills above you. This wasn't really a problem for us and we did still manage to get an afternoon nap!It's at the front of the ship so handy for going down to the theatre but, of course, you will need to get to the back of the ship for your food. Not really a problem as Oriana is only a mid-size ship. It seemed quicker to walk across the open decks than all the way down the corridor, though I don't know why that should be! We never had a problem getting lifts. When we had a few days of rough seas, this cabin seemed quite quiet - there was no issue with creaking in the cabin and we were a little bit away from the lift/stair-well where it did creak and groan a bit in rough seas.