My First P&O Cruise - my thoughts

[anniebea]

I have just returned from a week on P&O Oceania sailing from Venice to Genoa. My previous two cruises were with Celebrity so you could say I have limited experience, but I thought it worth penning my thoughts on the cruise, good and bad.

 

I hope I won’t be shot down in flames by the experienced P&O cruisers and I know that Oceania may not be the same as some of the more modern ships in the P&O fleet but these are my thought on the experience I had on Oceania.

 

I chose this cruise because of the Ports that it called at and I really enjoyed each one. Rather than do lots of excursions we explored the area in the Ports independently either through a city tour or just on foot. None of the Ports disappointed although the weather could have been better, it has rained at home though since we have been away!!!

The ship

 

Oceania is an old ship but I found her comfortable and although there was maintenance going on most days in port, (we were warned of this in advance) it wasn’t disruptive or noisy. The state room was fine the only real issue was that the bathroom is really small and the shower has a curtain and not a screen. Having said that it wasn’t a problem for me as I didn’t spend much time in the bathroom.

 

One area I was disappointed with was that there were no parasols on any of the areas with sunbeds. I like to sit out in the fresh air but not in the glare of the sun, in fact for health reasons I can’t sit in direct sunshine.

 

The sunbeds on deck are also so close together and there is little or no room to move them. I found this quite uncomfortable.

 

There is meant to be a no reservation policy on sunbeds. On Celebrity if a person tries to reserve a sunbed with their towel etc and doesn’t use it for a period the pool attendant removes the towel, secures it safely and makes it available for others. The policy seems to exist on Oceania (as per an announcement given on the sea day) but is not implemented.

 

Embarkation., luggage delivery and Muster

 

I thought it would be good to check your luggage in at Manchester Airport and not see it till it was delivered to your cabin door. The delivery of luggage to the cabin was really late. We arrived on board ship around 11.30, our luggage arrived at 6pm. We “found” one case outside the wrong numbered cabin, even though it was clearly marked with the cabin tags for our cabin. There was no sense of urgency in delivering the luggage resulting in many exasperated passengers on our deck, wandering around searching for their bags.

 

The embarkation process was good, we had a person travelling who needed assistance and that was readily given at all points.

 

The muster drill which took place at 5:30 was good over in less than 30 mins, it was well organised and attended. We had a tender on our first port and the tender familiarisation was really good, especially for those with some mobility problems.

 

Dining options, Waiters and wine

 

We had changed our dining option from freedom dining to Select about 6 weeks prior to departure, that wasn’t reflected on the ships information, however it was soon sorted with little fuss.

 

We ate in the Main Dining Room. The MDR is definitely less noisy that the one on Celebrity. I think that’s because the MDR is on one level, noise doesn’t echo to the upper levels as it does in Celebrity. The Dress code in the MDR appeared to be well followed and it was nice to see people dressing up for the formal evening and to be smart casual for the non-formal days. I can’t recall seeing any Jeans in the MDR.

 

For me the meals in the MDR were fine, reasonable sized portions and if you wanted extra (chips, larger portions etc) you only had to ask. The food did lack the “wow” factor. The Plaza self-service on the top deck was good, there isn’t as wide a choice as with celebrity but I was happy with was on offer there. We ate there for breakfast most days in the Plaza, as it was more flexible.

 

I think there was a better choice of more reasonably priced wines on P&O that on Celebrity. Our wine waiter was very good as were the waiters in the MDR. Staff did seem to have a lot of tables to work, but we did get to know them a little during the week which is what I prefer.

 

Entertainment

 

We went to the theatre most evenings, however I thought the standard of the entertainment there was poor and I was really disappointed with what was on offer. On our cruise the entertainment in the theatre comprised of a Beatles Tribute band, a 4-piece male vocal group the Octaves, Roy Walker the Comedian, an Illusionist (who I think gave the most professional performance of all of them) and the Ships Theatre company who basically did song and dance routines.

 

I didn’t go to the Sail always however there was a BBQ around the pool to celebrate the Queen’s Birthday on a sea day which we decided to attend. It can best be described as a chaotic mess. Food ran out and none of the servers seemed to know what was happening, whether more food was coming and no-one appeared to be taking charge. The Entertainment round the pool during the BBQ seemed more apt for a holiday camp than a cruise ship.

 

I would sail with P&O again if the itinerary went to places that I wanted to visit but it probably wouldn't be my first choice if other lines did the same or similar itineraries

[daiB]

No need to worry about being shot down, yours is a fair balanced review. The ship is quite old and the cabins small with the very small bathrooms. Possibly like this as it was built for very short Caribbean cruises with Princess. The sun bed issue seems to be found on a number of ships on many cruise lines. I am in the happy position of never using them. :)

 

 

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[Florry]

We have been on Oceana twice and in 2012 we decided we wouldn't travel on her again. Whilst there are some who love her we didn't for many of the same reasons you describe [emoji53]

Edited June 15, 2016 by Florry

[Harry Peterson]

I think you'd find the entertainment rather better on one of the larger ships. The Headliners, for example, are excellent.

 

As for food, though, that won't be any better. It's adequate, but, as you say, lacking the wow factor that used to exist. Frankly, it's disappointing, and a very clear indication of P&O's cost-cutting measures over recent years. Think office canteen and you'll not be far out - OK, but no more than that. I hear Celebrity are better for food but I have no direct experience.

[anniebea]

I think you'd find the entertainment rather better on one of the larger ships. The Headliners, for example, are excellent.

 

As for food, though, that won't be any better. It's adequate, but, as you say, lacking the wow factor that used to exist. Frankly, it's disappointing, and a very clear indication of P&O's cost-cutting measures over recent years. Think office canteen and you'll not be far out - OK, but no more than that. I hear Celebrity are better for food but I have no direct experience.

 

On Celebrity the food does have the WOW factor which it lacked on P&O, Having said that I enjoyed the food.

 

On Celebrity which is what I can compare with, the stage show by the on board company includes a lot of Arial work by the dancers and isn't just a song and dance show which I found rather boring,

[anniebea]

No need to worry about being shot down, yours is a fair balanced review. The ship is quite old and the cabins small with the very small bathrooms. Possibly like this as it was built for very short Caribbean cruises with Princess. The sun bed issue seems to be found on a number of ships on many cruise lines. I am in the happy position of never using them. :)

 

 

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The sun beds on Celebrity did have space between them to at least put down your bag/book etc and some Parasols. I love being outside but cant take the full sun, so for days at sea this was a real problem for me trying to find any outside space with shade.

 

As far as the no reservation policy on sunbeds, there were pool attendants who were supposed to implement it - they just didn't. If you have a policy then P&O must be prepared to implement it or don't have a policy in the first place.

[joeholiday2]

Anniebea.

 

Have you considered one of those parasols that clip onto a child's pushchair?

They will pack into a large case.

 

We have one for MIL's wheelchair as she won't wear a hat.

It also can be fitted to the sunbeds. It doesn't give full shade, just head and shoulders, but it's something that might suit you.

 

Just a thought.

Joe.

[kevinyork]

The sun beds on Celebrity did have space between them to at least put down your bag/book etc and some Parasols. I love being outside but cant take the full sun, so for days at sea this was a real problem for me trying to find any outside space with shade.

 

 

 

As far as the no reservation policy on sunbeds, there were pool attendants who were supposed to implement it - they just didn't. If you have a policy then P&O must be prepared to implement it or don't have a policy in the first place.

 

 

I agree re the enforcement of sun beds, it is better (but not perfect) on Celebrity. The sun beds have a laminated card placed on them each morning warning of a removal of belongings and it is replaced each time the sun bed is tidied by the pool butlers.

 

I'm not sure the beds are further apart than on P&O though. Here is a pic of the pool deck on a Celebrity a Eclipse two weeks ago. The arms of the beds are all touching:

 

 

 

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Edited June 16, 2016 by kevinyork