P&O Oceana.......Too Small Or Too Big?...Here Is My Review

I think many cruise passengers who travel with P&O may overlook the Oceana for their cruising needs - even if it does do an itinerary they want i get the impression that the Oceana does not appeal to passengers who like small ships - because its slightly too big OR passengers who like big ships because she is slightly too small, kind of stuck in the middle of the P&O fleet, you have the charm and large public spaces of the Oriana & Aurora, the adult only aspect of the Arcadia, the larger more modern feel of the Ventura & Azura and then the small ship experience with the new Adonia.



I travelled on the Oceana for a mini/party cruise and thought she was a fantastic ship, very cruise ship looking!! sleek & white and still very modern in cruise ship terms, here are the stats to begin with:

Former Name - Ocean Princess
Built - 2000
Refit - 2002
Tonnage - 77000
Passengers - 2016
Crew - 900
Officers - British/Italian

As you embark you will see the main part of the ship is the Atrium which is open plan from decks 5 to 8 with sweeping staircases and glass lifts. This is the first part of ship you see as you embark which is very impressive. Here you will find many bars including Explorers with Wi-Fi, restaurants, reception, shops and the photographers on formal nights.

Dining
Dining on Oceana was fantastic, I opted for freedom dining, we ate our evening meals in the Ligurian Restaurant on deck 5. Because I did not mind sharing with other guests we were seated as soon as we decided to go for our evening meal but when I did want a table for 2 it was only a 20 minute wait at peak times.
Café Jardin and the Horizon Grill are speciality restaurants with a cover charge in the evening, but are both complementary for during the day. At the Horizon Grill at lunchtime they serve burgers, hotdogs, baked potatoes, chicken goujons and fish and chips
There is also the Plaza Buffet option which serves food throughout the day also teas and coffees, water etc - the good thing about the Plaza if you have kids is that they serve a children's tea at 5:15pm which helps top get the kids sorted and off the evening clubs.

Cabin
I had an outside cabin on the Oceana at the front of E deck, the cabins are not overly generous in size but do the job well enough, I don't really spend a lot of time in the cabin so it was perfect but if your a cruise guest that does then you may want to consider upgrading. The wardrobe space was adequate and i did not suffer from any noise from the above theatre.

Entertainment
The entertainment with P&O is pretty much the same fleet wide - I didn't find to much glitz and glamour involved but the singers they had were very good and the comedian did a good stand up routine, you did however have to get the the theatre well in advance for a good seat.

Overall
I do rate the Oceana, I think she was best served in the Caribbean as the embarkation and disembarkation process was very easy at the various Caribbean islands - definitely worth considering if you do want to move away from smaller ships - I will sum her up by saying she is not too big and not too small!!!