Having booked Oriana early, we then found ourselves rapidly making the best out of a bad job when P&O cancelled 5 weeks before sailing. Ventura had a similar itinerary sailing during the same timeframe. Many other cancelled guests did the same and we ended up on an overcrowded ship with pressure on every venue. In order to get a decent seat in the theatre people were queuing from 5.20 pm to get into the Freedom dining restaurant each evening.

The Waterside buffet was impossible to get around at peak times.

The choice of food everywhere was very good and the menus read as you would expect from fine dining but what a shame they couldn’t deliver! Generally, as food is cooked ahead of time except in eating places that charged extra, it was mostly below par. Overcooked fish, green beans every day even if it wasn’t incuded in your choice from the menu .. It amounted to a piece of meat or fish with veg and potatoes on the whole each day and even the mash was grey! Read more