Ambiance and atmosphere

As we near the end of our comparison series of posts today we look at how the atmosphere and ambiance on board  ORIANA and Crown Class VENTURA compare.
Firstly it was noting as was mentioned by ORIANA's first master Commodore Ian Gibb in our interview with him several months ago it is not only a the ship alone that creates atmosphere but the ship's crew who serve both the ship and her passengers who are the key with this in mind it is only fair to sat that the same level of high service which is the hallmark of P&O's cruising style is available throughout both despite ORIANA being a mid sized traditional ocean liner styled cruise ship and VENTURA being a more mass market cruise ship.
While the cruise experience from the two ships are vastly different they do both at offer at heart the P&O style of cruising  albeit with their own individual flare.
So what exactly is the P&O experience that ORIANA and fleet mates shares?
Put simply it is effortless elegance in traditional and modern surroundings with a distinctly British atmosphere.
While mostly aimed at the UK market P&O does also attract other repeat passengers of other nationalities mostly but not exclusively during their world cruises who find the cruising style to be a enjoyable one, while most on who cruise with P&O find the expeirance to be a excellent on occasion those who have previously

cruised with more international aimed lines the "Britishness" can be a little overbearing at times in particular with the Cunard clientèle whose perceptions of a British Experience are somewhat different from P&O's.

 Dinner on board ORIANA is always a high class affair as it is with her fleet mates.

 Until November last year ORIANA and VENTURA both offered the family cruising product to their passengers both having ample space mostly aft dedicated to the younger passenger, in the opinion of the author ORIANA with her size and passenger numbers and passenger to space ratio was more effective as keeping all age ranges happier than was the case with VENTURA and her larger size.

VENTURA when she entered service was heavily marketed towards the family and as such features so called family cabins, larger suites which alongside the main bedroom,sitting room, Bathroom and Balcony it also features a second bedroom to accommodate large families and groups, VENTURA still attracts older passengers although in a strange enigma those among the older passengers who are unhappy around the younger passengers yet they still return the ship on a regular basis.
As a result of being a ship aimed at a broad range of passengers VENTURA is a much more informal ship than some some of her fleet mates, instead of the 3 evening dress codes Black Tie,Smart and Casual she only has 2 Black tie and casual  the idea being that along with OCEANA she would able to cater for passengers who preferred the more informal approach such as regulars of the disbanded Ocean Village brand. 
 Of course the differences are now more apparent between ORIANA and VENTURA with the former now being a dedicated adults only ship like her fleet mates ARCADIA and ADONIA.

Having not yet cruised on board ORIANA since her conversion it is hard to tell if the change in role has had any effect the ship's on board atmosphere although review of a recent cruise on board refers to ORIANA as being a very formal ship with everyone board turning out in their evening best on the formal, this indicates at least she reveals that she retains the air of formality which has made her famous for her traditions and elegance a point perhaps enforced by a shot of a formal night on P&O's website being on board ORIANA as seen below.

 Interestingly the review continues to say that ORIANA's Main Restaurant's food was far superior than on board QUEEN ELIZABETH with much better choice available and the quality being far higher.

Another aspect of the two vessels which varied a lot was something which is harder to define than atmosphere and that is character.
ORIANA has a very distinct character created by the such things as the various public rooms designs and layout the flow of passengers and general surroundings.
Often as is the case with VENTURA being a larger ship there is a slight hint of character forming after 4 years in service but I think it will be several more years before she distinguishes  herself, the character she already has is indeed a very good one and one fitting of P&O and its history and elegance in the case of VENTURA though it is slightly harder to distinguish herself being one of class of almost identical ships including AZURA who's interiors in some respects almost duplicate each other  .
While VENTURA is still attracting new passengers and building her own character she does remain a valued and elegant member of the fleet
ORIANA on the other hand has a very distinct, and established personality of her own , this of course has been building over the past 17 years and is greatly aided by not having an identical sibling but as her first master Commodore Gibb revealed during her Maiden Voyage despite resevartions by some and a famous namesake to live up to she had already developed part of her own in just a short time in service.