My Day With Charlie Chaplin

 

Since starting with Cruise.co.uk, I have been extremely fortunate to be able to see some of the most luxurious and exclusive cruise ships afloat and if you have read my previous write ups you will see that I have been on Oceania, Silversea, Regent and Seabourn. However on the 20^th September I went along to Southampton to have a look around the P&O Cruises, Adults Only, Oriana and she was Beautiful.

I must say I noticed a much more relaxed and down to earth atmosphere on board. The very first cruise I ever did was an Ocean Village one which was the old P&O Arcadia. Ocean Village had 2 ships which have both now gone to P&O Australia and are part of the Pacific Fleet.

Oriana is the second smallest ship in the Fleet, with the smallest being the Adonia, which is the same size as the last write up on the Oceania Nautica. The Oriana is 69,840 gross tons and was named ‘M V Oriana’ by her Majesty the Queen on the 6^th April 1995 in the port of Southampton. She holds 1880 passengers and has 789 crew.

Oriana went under a major refurbishment in November 2011, with the biggest change from Family Friendly to Adults Only. The Children clubs have been removed for ‘relaxing’ areas and the addition of Single Cabins. The Azura and Ventura are the only other ships with these single cabins, however when the Arcadia has her refurbishment later this year she will have these put in along with the first Balcony single cabins. The Children’s Club on the back has also be transformed.

The ship was docked in Mayflower Terminal which is starting the look slightly old.  The City Terminal and the Ocean Terminal are used more so I suppose it makes sense to do these ones up before the less used docks and it does unfortunately show, although a little tired I suppose you are only in here for a short while and the excitement would overwhelm what the terminal building looks like.

The Oriana has ten passenger decks.  Deck one is given to a medical centre so I suppose you could say she really only has the 9, but I thought I would mention it for all those that get a little sea sick.

When you board Oriana the main deck for Embarkation and Disembarkation would be deck 2.  As you get on you are welcomed by a bright and airy space, Oriana has a lot of light colours used the carpets are a light green mix with cream and at the bottom of the Atrium you have the reception. There is a large staircase to the next level with a large seating area both sides. There was also a large amount of flower displays which bring an element of homeliness and warm in.

On decks one and two there are two other sets of stairs. These were different colours to give you an idea of where you are – Blue, Cream and Green, on the lower decks you only have the front and middle, and once you get up to deck 3 the third set comes in although I know there is a set front, middle and back – don’t ask me what colour was which as I still got lost. For a smaller ship the staircases where extremely large and spacious. There was also 5 lifts with each set of stairs, just in case you are interested.

On Deck 2 up to 4 you also have the addition of the main Atrium staircase, this floats in between the decks, Deck 2 is also known as ‘Garden Court’ as you take the floating staircase up to Deck 3 this is known also as ‘Queens Court’.

On this deck at the main Atrium you have the Emporium and this is where you can get the day to day essentials from books to glasses, sweets to shavers. There is also an array of P&O Branded gifts in here.

Next to the Emporium you have Knightsbridge.  This is your clothing Boutique and had also sorts of bits in here from t-shirts to dresses and shoes to jewellery. Just think – you could go without any clothes and do the shopping on board!! There is also a heavy influence of ‘Swarovski’ jewellery and with all shopping being tax free you can certainly pick up a bargain.

The rest of the forward space on board the Oriana is used for passenger accommodation. On these lower decks are all of the inside and ocean view cabins. At the back of deck 3 you have the two main restaurants, ‘The Peninsular Restaurant’ and the ‘The Oriental Restaurant’

As you take the Atrium staircase or one of the three sets of stairs or maybe even a lift up a level, you reach the Promenade Deck.  This again is also known as the ‘Royal Court’. If we start at the Aft of the ship you have the Pacific Lounge, this is a show lounge where you get a more relaxed level of entertainment.  There are comedians and karaoke going on in here or you can just grab a drink and relax and soak in the atmosphere.

The outside deck also wraps around the whole ship so you can go for an early morning walk all the way around if you wish.

As you walk out of the Pacific Lounge towards the middle of the ship, you have the first set of stairs and a couple of lifts. Next from here you have a main corridor and this is where they have a lot of the art gallery. You can purchase some very commemorative piece of art to celebrate the 175 years of P&O.

In this area you also have the Lord’s Tavern.  This is the onboard sportS bar, where they will show selected sports from Sky. This is also depending on the satellite signals to what sports they have on here.

Next up we have Harlequins.  Back in its day the Oriana had the largest dance floor at sea and for a ship of her size this is probably still the case. P&O have had many cruises where they have brought on Strictly Come Dancing stars and Oriana is one of the ships they had their special cruises on. They also have male host should you have a husband who doesn’t like dancing.

Here we also have the middle staircase and a couple more lifts and the next bar down from here is Andersons.  Arthur Anderson (1792 – 1862) was the Co-Founder of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. Again this is just another bar where you have a quiet drink with friends.

Hidden on the other side of Andersons is Monte Carlo Club this is the Casino and was rather small, and the thing I liked was that you didn’t have to go in here to get anywhere so should you not want to enter the Casino you don’t need to.

As you go forward a little more you get to the Atrium Area where you have another Knightsbridge shop. This is more your fine jewellery and watches and also next door is the duty free alcohol and cigarettes.

You also have the Explorers desk and as the name suggests, this is the shore excursion desk and you also have the future cruise sales consultant who can arrange your future cruises here.

Now to one of my favourite areas of the ship – the Royal Theatre.  This felt like a real theatre – you have a gangway with pictures of people in show business from times gone by. This is dimmed and you feel like you are going in to an oldie worldly theatre. Once inside it’s a vast open space where you would find your Broadway shows. Not forgetting that there is the main staircase along here with more lifts!

So if we back track a little bit towards midship we get back to the Atrium.  If you go up the final set of stairs to deck 5  (this is the top of the Atrium), there is a Coffee shop up here called Tiffany’s, and ironically the deck is known as Tiffany Court. The top of the Atrium ceiling is finished with a glass layer, this is Tiffany glass hence the name of the café and the deck.

Tiffany Café as I said is the coffee shop so here you can get a nice cup of tea or a latte to enjoy.  There is also patisserie up here to enjoy with your mid-morning drink or when you get back from a long day exploring.

Also if you don’t mind heights you can see all the way back down to deck 2.

Next on this deck is Ocean Grill at the Curzon Room, this is the restaurant by Marco Pierre White. This offers a relaxed yet sophisticated ambience. Here there are a mixture of seafood dishes and steak dishes. The food has been inspired from great London Grill restaurants. This does come with a small cover fee, but nowhere near as much as you would expect to pay in one of his London restaurants, so you are getting the experience at half the cost. There are also speciality dishes such as Gloucester Old Spot Double Pork Chop or a Salt Marsh Lamb Rack and how about a Valrhona Chocolate Truffle Tart or a Popping Candy Black Forest Mille Feuille, Hungry anyone?

Also, us brits love our Bridge and card games. You have Crichton’s which is a huge room which can be set up to hold lots of card tables or also as a lounge area to have guest speakers on to do speeches about where you are cruising to.

As you go through the double doors you arrive at the expansive library and it did feel like I was in a grand manor house.  Here you can grab a scrabble board and have a game or two, borrow a DVD to watch in your cabin or grab a book to read on deck.

There is also another room joined on to the Library called the Thackeray Room, this is a quiet area to sit and relax and read a book – there is no bar in here, just seating.

Next up was where I met the man himself, Charlie Chaplin.  He runs the on board cinema.

Now I wasn’t excepting this but they have a full cinema on board where you can chill out and watch a film and this is aptly named Chaplin’s Cinema.

At the back you have some staterooms.  There are a few balconies on this deck but other than here they are on deck 7.  Also one of the things I love about the Oriana is the tiered back. From here upwards the upper decks are tiered with the five decks above looking down over the bottom deck as you can see in the picture.  There is also a pool and whirlpool spa here, as well as the sunset spa. Perfect places to come as you are leaving port. This is also a big sun trap and is fairly hidden away so although you can see it, it can be a bit of a maze to find it. With the back of the ship being tiered, this enables a lot of outside space for relaxing and getting a nice tan and it offers a lot more privacy.

Decks 6, 7 and 8 are all stateroom decks.  Deck 7 is the only deck other than the few on deck 5 to have balconies and there are balconies, mini suites and suites all on this deck along with some inside cabins,

Deck 9 is the main pool deck.  The Oriana has two pools – the Rivera Pool, this is on the forward part of the ship and is the more lively pool and has two whirlpool spas, and on an elevated deck behind the pool is a small stage area so look out here for your evening entertainment.

On the Aft part of the pool deck there is the Crystal Pool.  This is the quieter pool and there are no whirlpool spas, just one large pool. This is where you can come to have an early morning swim before grabbing a sun lounger and relaxing on deck. As the ship also has the tiered back there is always a quiet secluded area where you can get a quick cat nap.

At the back of the deck is The Conservatory and this is the onboard buffet restaurant. There is also the open deck out the back to sit on in the morning and enjoy your breakfast – again this looks down and over the back of the ship and out to sea.  The Buffet is the casual and carefree dining venue on board.

In the evenings the back of The Conservatory is closed off and reopened as Sorrento’s, the on board Italian restaurant.  This does come with a small cover fee however it is worth it just for the view of the sun setting and the food in here is 1^st Class.  Maybe a Scaloppini Milanese or Fungi al Forno and for dessert Gelati or Vanilla Panna Cotta.

There is also a terrace bar here for afternoon drinks.

At the front of this deck is the third speciality restaurant this is called Al Fresco and offers as the name suggests, Al Fresco dining. Next to this is Riviera Bar where you can grab a drink, be it morning, noon or night.

Right at the front you have the spa. The promenade again wraps around this so you can walk all the way around. On the tip of the bow you have an open deck where they can set up Deck Tennis or put out the sun decks for relaxing. There is also a fully equipped gymnasium. There are notes in here to say about not dropping the weights as there are cabins below so I would be inclined to now take this on board when looking at cabins and avoid directly below this area.

As you walk through the gym you also have the Spa which has a large relaxing area and a large Sauna.  Oasis Spa is overlooking the ocean and there is also a large whirlpool spa in this area and a couple of heat beds. The spa, I must say, did look quite small if I was being honest.

As you leave the spa you have 5 treatment rooms and also the Oasis Salon to get a couple treatments done. If you come here during a port day you will find savings on treatments.

The top deck (the Sun deck) overlooks the below pool deck and over the pools, there is no set jogging track as there is the wrap around promenade deck. You can choose to either jog on the Prom Deck or up here on the Sun Deck both over outstanding views. On the back of the Sun Deck you have the Shuffleboard and Deck Quoits.

At the front of the Sun Deck you have Cyb@Study which is the onboard internet café which was surprisingly large and had about 20 computers.  There was also space if you have brought your own laptop to sit down and use it.

You also have the Medina Room – this room has outstanding views to sea and is the wedding venue on board the Oriana, although it can be used as a conference room. This does not have daily use and is more of an occasion room.

Last port of call is the Crow’s Nest which is the main bar and meeting place on board. Sitting right at the front on the very top deck, it has complete floor to ceiling glass meaning amazing views can be seem from up here. This is where you could chill out and relax, maybe read a book, meet a group of friends for pre-dinner drinks or maybe come for a quite night café before bed. It was extremely light and airy.

In fact the ship seemed to be very vast and light for its size. The corridors are well lit by large windows which let the light in and give you the views whilst walking around the ship. The way the ship is laid out means there is only one main inside corridor on decks 4 and 5 which means they are wider and of course there is the outside promenade which you can walk on either side of.

So that’s the ship, now lets have a look at the accommodation you could stay in should you choose to cruise on Oriana.

In the refurbishment back in November 2011 there was the addition of Inside Single staterooms. These are at a cheaper cost than having a double with single supplement although these sell extremely fast. These are on the Promenade deck and have the decking and pool outside. If it was me this would be where I would want to be.

Inside single cabins are approximately 130 square feet and have a single bed, they have everything that you would expect in a P&O stateroom including an en-suite bathroom with shower and toilet, closet space and a television. You will also receive a pamper pack and mineral water on arrival.

The double inside and ocean view stateroom are identical in size and facilities with the exception of the window should you be in an inside stateroom. Some of the Oceanview staterooms will have an Obstucted view and there is a few onboard the Oriana that have port holes. The staterooms will also feature a walk in closet.

A few notes to bear in mind – Obstructed view staterooms will have only a shower.

The Clear view outside staterooms will have the shower over the bath.

There are also Deluxe Outside staterooms which are on C Deck and are much bigger than the standard ocean view staterooms. The double inside and ocean view staterooms range from 137 – 181 square feet.

As on the Oriana there is only one deck of balcony staterooms, there are no standard balconies.  All are Deluxe Balcony staterooms.  These are much bigger that the standard balcony cabins found on other ships in the fleet and range from 246 – 256 square feet including the balcony. In addition to the features found in the Inside and Outside staterooms, you will also get a separate sitting area with a sofa to lie out on. The bathrooms do vary with some only having a shower and others having a shower over the bath. The balcony is found through floor to ceiling sliding glass doors where you can relax in your own private haven in reclining chairs and there is also a table to put your drink on.

Next on the list is the suites – so what are the benefits of having one? If you go for the Suite Categories (not including the Mini Suites) you will receive a Butler 24 hours a day – this is inclusive but optional.

All suites including the Mini Suites will receive as follows,

–          Mineral water on arrival

–          Luxurious premier pamper pack

–          Coffee machine

–          Bathrobes and slippers

–          Magazine and newspaper selection

–          Atlas and Binoculars

–          Daily Canapés

–          Fruit Basket

–          Flowers, Champagne and Chocolates on arrival

Mini Suites are around 368-384 square feet including a large balcony, the bathrooms feature a separate shower and whirlpool bath, dual sink vanity unit and toilet. You will also get an Iron and Ironing board for use whilst on board and a trouser press. You will have a separate seating area and master bedroom with large built in storage for all those clothes.  You also have floor to ceiling glass doors leading on to your private balcony.

The top stateroom on the Oriana is the Suite and these are extremely vast and range from 449-753 square feet.  They have a separate enclosed bedroom leading on to a walk in closet and en suite bathroom. There is also a guest bathroom so friends and family visiting your suite do not need to intrude into your bedroom. There is a large balcony with table and chairs and a separate seating area inside the suite. You also have a writing desk should you want to write home about your experience.

Now, we all like new ships and yes they do have a new feel to them but I must stress although Oriana is an older ship, please give her a try. I was blown away by the ship and although I probably shouldn’t say this, preferred her to some of the newer ships and more expensive ships I have been on.

If you do already have a holiday planned on her, let me know what you think. Oh, and please say ‘hi’ to Charlie from me.

0800 408 6143 – www.tomstravels.co.uk – [email protected]