P&O Oriana Reviews

Went on the Oriana in july for 16 days to Malaga, Venice, Dubronvik, Split, Corfu, Cadiz. What a fantastic cruise, price was excellant value, the food was great the staff were friendly, great, the facilities were very good, the enternainment was very proffesional, the Captain was approachable and very funny witty, when interviewed, the lecturers,and lectures on board were very interested and informated, the cinema with upto date films, we attended twice, the cabins were good size we had inside, very spacious, tv, tea/coffee, good size wardrobe, cupboard space, very clean, cabin steward did an excellent job. I would recommend this cruise with P&O and would book with Iglu again - for their exceptional value for money, thank you.

My first cruise was on the Oriana and I will admit that I was sure that cruising was for me I thought it was just for old people. I couldn't have been more wrong it was a fantastic experience and the food selection was beyond belief. Full breakfast, followed by coffee and cakes mid-morning, followed by lunch, afternoon tea, five course dinner and supper if required. The first few days, I'm embarrassed to say, I eat constantly I felt that it was getting my money's worth. Needless to say, but by day 3 I could barely move and by day 5 I was back to my normal routine (well, nearly). The whole experience was worth every penny and I was delighted with my first cruise.

When we saw an Iglu advert on the Internet in May 2009 for a cruise to Ireland, Greenland, Iceland and Norway at half-price (£1800 down to £900) we booked immediately, and it proved to be a fascinating trip. We had a day each in Cobh and Dublin, then north across the Atlantic to Greenland where we had a day cruising along a fiord through ice-floes before a day ashore at Nuuk, the capital. In Iceland we had an excellent shore excursion from Rekyavik to visit the geysirs and waterfalls. The cruise then took us to Alesund, Nordfiord, Bergen and Stavanger in Norway, each with interesting sites and activities. As usual with P&O, the onboard services and staff were excellent, and our cabin (one of the cheaper inside ones) very comfortable. We chose to eat most evenings in the Conservatory where we enjoyed the 'themed menus' from around the world with great food and lovely views of the scenery as we sailed down fiords etc in the bright evening sunshine, and watching the sun dip on to the horizon before rising almost immediately in the land of the midnight sun! Excellent in every way.

We chose this cruise of the Mediterranean partly because we had very much enjoyed a previous trip on the Oriana, but mainly because it included a number of 'must-see' sites which we were keen to visit. These included Santiago-de-Compostela (from Vigo), Lisbon, Mt. Etna in Sicily, Corinth from Piraeus, Ephesus from Kusadasi in Turkey, and Rhodes. The shore excursions were excellent value, very well organised, and had informative local guides. This was our third cruise with P&O and once again the overall experience was very good, with excellent food, varied menus, efficient friendly service both in the restaurants and in our cabin. Also, unlike some cruise lines, the bar prices were reasonable and in many cases cheaper than in UK pubs and restaurants.  Although we had one of the cheaper inside cabins, it was quite roomy and well-appointed with plenty of storage space, and there are plenty of public areas both inside and out to sit and read etc.  We were not very impressed however with the onboard entertainment which had a hint of 'Butlins at sea' about it. In particular the Headliners' shows were much the same as on the previous cruises and seemed to be getting rather stale.  There was though an excellent programme of talks on Shakespeare, his plays, poetry and life.  By booking through Iglu we were able to get a fantastic price, with generous on-board spend, which in fact covered most of our shore excursions.  Overall a very pleasant holiday with good site-seeing and at £75 per person per day for everything, excellent value.

The Oriana is still as lovely as I remember her from a few years ago. Had a long 35 nights cruising to the Caribbean and New Orleans (two nights) plus Florida Keys and Fort Lauderdale. Such a friendly ship and good polite staff. I always enjoy a P&0 cruise. There is certainly adequate food and  it is very good too. I would recommend cruising with  P&0. I  am hoping to go again later this year.

We married in Southampton and had our honeymoon onboard Oriana with our family. What a great service provided by P&O, it was fab and since then we have always enjoyed this vessel more than the others — it has everything we need to enjoy ourselves. My wifes big birthday is coming up this year, so I have booked the mini cruise in November to finish the celebrations off for 2011.

This was my first cruise. I went on my own and had a brilliant time. There was so much to do, food was excellent and cabin stewards and waiters were so courteous, nothing was too much trouble. I am planning my next cruise depending on finances - hopefully early 2012.

We have just got home after our first ever cruise, it was fantastic and we are now looking to book our next one. Oriana was lovely all the waiting staff and crew should be commended for there excellence of professionalism even when dealing with the most rudest of the general public all of which seemed to be of a certain age. I however found everything to be of the upper most the food was varied and at all times was in abundance there was always something to do and I never found myself board or wishing I was at home, I’m now at home wishing I was onboard LOL

This was my first experience of "cruising”, my husband gets terrible sickness so I went with my parents who are old hands at this sea lark! Well from the moment I went onboard I was I guess star struck but not with celebrity, with the awesome power of the ship, I can’t describe it, but she was totally 10 star! The staff made you feel like you were a queen, the decor and facilities like the west end and the food well the food was to die for! We set sail and I was totally in love with cruising! I am now waiting to go again on Sept 20th on the Arcadia, this time for two weeks again with my parents and I can’t wait to feel like a queen again! Will let u know what happens, oh and by the way, I’m only 36 so it’s definitely for all ages!