Overview
When she was built in 1995, Oriana was the first new ship commissioned for P&O Cruises, and the first to be designed specifically for the British cruise market. She is the longest serving ship in the fleet, having been in continuous service with the company since she was launched. She is the second ship to carry the name Oriana, and is named in tribute to the SS Oriana, which served for Orient Line and P&O from 1959 until 1986. After a lengthy campaign, P&O Cruises were permitted to allocate the new Oriana with the call sign 'GVSN', which is the same call sign as the former SS Oriana.
From 1995 when she was built, until 2000, Oriana was owned by the Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company. In 2000, P&O de-merged its cruise ship operations, with ownership of Oriana transferring to the new company, P&O Princess Cruises. In 2003, P&O Princess merged with Carnival Corporation. Despite these changes of ownership, Oriana has been operated by P&O Cruises throughout.
In 2006, she was re-registered to Bermuda so that weddings could be conducted on board, and as a result, her call sign was changed to ZCDU9. From the 30 November 2011, following a refit, Oriana has become a ship exclusively for adults. She along with the Arcadia & Adonia are adult only ships.
Read more about this topic: MV Oriana (1995)