We last sailed on Oceana in May 2018 and enjoyed it so much, we booked for a 7 night Adriatic trip from 27th to 4th July 2019. Oceana is just a beautiful, elegant ship. She may be classed as mid-sized but as you gaze up at her from the Malta cruise terminal, she ought to be big enough for anyone! We were so fortunate with the weather - we had wall to wall sunshine from beginning to end with calm, flat seas which was just perfect. Our route took us from Malta to Dubrovnik, Hvar, Venice and Split. Croatia was a revelation to us and we realized that the best way to visit this beautiful country is surely by ship. We were met with stunning landscapes at every port call. Venice was amazing and the early morning approach into this amazing city was unbelievable - sights that will stay in our memories forever.

Oceana for us, is perfect. From the first step onboard looking up into her fabulous atrium, you’d have to be a cynic not to be impressed. The restaurants are all varied and serve delicious food. We had a slight problem finding a table for two in The Ligurian freedom dining restaurant (last year there were four of us and it was easier) but we had drinks while we waited for our handset to buzz! The food in the MDR (Ligurian) was perfect - lots of choice with P and O favorites (prawn cocktail and sirloin steaks) if you didn’t want to be more adventurous. The Beach House and Cafe Jardin (fee paying restaurants) were delicious, although I think they ought to rethink the Trio of Desserts in Cafe Jardin - not good. The sunbed situation needs sorting. So many people go out early and reserve their sun beds with towels and personal belongings. We thought this needs to be “policed’ as the area around the beautiful sun deck and pools is a no go area if you can’t sit anywhere. The promenade deck is good to sit on, but even this area gets crowded later on. There is an aft adult only area with its own plunge pool, but we had parents pushing buggies around eyeing up any available sun beds, so unfortunately rules and regulations don’t seem to matter onboard a ship!

We had a balcony queen bed cabin. These aren’t massive, but most of our time was spent out and about but it was great to go back and sit on the balcony with a drink and a book! The room steward (Rose) was wonderful - in fact all the hard working staff on the ship need medals. They play a great part in enhancing the cruise and always with a smile. P and O are so meticulous in providing an amazing service for their customers - nothing is left out, even to the signage to the best viewing points for the early morning arrival into Venice that magically appeared overnight. Security is so tight when arriving at ports. Read more