Iona cabins to avoid

How we checked this: we read P&O's own Iona deck plan (the 2025 edition) to see what sits above and below every cabin, then compared it with what passengers have reported on Cruise Critic and P&O cruise blogs. We haven't sailed on Iona ourselves. Checked in October 2026; cabins and venues can change, so look at P&O's current deck plan before you book. Cabin numbers are written the way you book them: 15449 is deck 15, cabin 449 (P&O's plan shows it as 15.449).

The short answer

• The quietest decks are 10, 11, 12 and 14. P&O's plan shows cabins directly above and below them along the whole ship. (There's no deck 13.)
• Light sleepers should think twice about deck 15 from cabin 15401 back. That half of the deck sits under the Lido Deck: the SkyDome, two bars, the Horizon buffet and the Infinity Pool.
• Deck 8 balconies face the Promenade Deck, the public walkway around the ship, which has hot tubs. People pass right outside, and ten of these cabins have an obstructed view.
• Aft-facing balconies have the best views but are overlooked from above, and there are reports of water spilling onto the centre ones from the Infinity Pool.
• Forward-facing balconies can be overlooked by the bridge, and P&O can close them in high winds.

What's above and below each deck

This is the quickest way to judge any cabin, not just the ones we name. It comes straight from P&O's deck plan; Iona has cabins on decks 4, 5, 8 to 12 and 14 to 17.

Cabins to think twice about

Deck 15, from about 15401 back: under the Lido Deck

According to P&O's plan, the back half of deck 15 sits directly under deck 16's busiest spaces: the Laguna Bar and SkyDome in the middle of the ship (roughly 15401–15457), then the Crystal Bar, The Beach House and the Horizon buffet (roughly 15458–15715), and the Infinity Pool at the stern (roughly 15716–15737). The SkyDome is a glass-roofed pool by day and a show venue at night.

What passengers have reported:

• In 15449, under the SkyDome, a couple heard the entertainment until about 11:15pm and were woken around 5:30am by crew moving furniture overhead (Cruise Critic review, January 2023).
• Another passenger said chairs being dragged and people running about on the Infinity Pool deck cost them sleep every night until midnight (Cruise Critic review, August 2025).

P&O also marks the balconies along this stretch (15514–15537, 15601–15633 and 15701–15730) as shaded, so expect little direct sun. The front half of deck 15, up to about 15400, has cabins above it and is a different story.

Deck 8: the Promenade Deck cabins

Iona's deck 8 cabins sit at the front of the ship and open onto the Promenade Deck, the walkway that runs around the outside, with hot tubs on each side. P&O's plan marks most of these balconies as visible from the promenade or from above, and you see the sea over the walkway rather than straight down. A blogger in conservatory mini-suite 8304 found people walking past and teenagers in the hot tubs were part of the view, though the frosted glass kept them out of sight once they sat down (Emma Cruises).

• Obstructed views: P&O's plan marks 8309, 8310, 8311, 8312, 8322, 8323, 8325, 8326, 8329 and 8330 as obstructed. They're the cabins beside the hot tubs.
• No balcony: P&O notes that suites 8109 and 8110 don't have one.
• Above the theatre: roughly 8111–8237 are over Headliners Theatre, and the cabins behind them are over the casino and Brodie's. We've seen warnings about show noise but no first-hand complaints.

Balconies above the promenade hot tubs

The deck 8 hot tubs are below the outside cabins numbered roughly 320–343 and 401–404 on decks 9 to 14 (for example 10322 or 11401). A passenger whose balcony looked down onto the promenade said the talking and shouting from the hot tubs went on from dawn until late at night (Cruise Critic review, July 2024).

Aft-facing balconies

The balconies across the stern, on decks 9 to 14, have the widest views, but P&O marks them as visible from above: the decks step back, so the balconies overlook each other. The Infinity Pool sits at the very back of deck 16, above them. One passenger in 10745 said water came down from above at times and was "fairly annoying" (reader comment on Emma Online, November 2022), and forum threads mention the same for other centre cabins; we haven't seen reports about the corners.

On deck 9, the aft cabins also sit right above The Club House and the Sunset Bar (see below).

Deck 9, back half: above the Promenade Deck's bars

Under the back half of deck 9, P&O's plan shows the Promenade Deck's places to eat and drink: The Keel & Cow, Ripples, Sindhu, The Quays and The Olive Grove, then The Club House and its stage under the aft-most cabins (roughly 9705–9752). The Club House hosts game shows, tribute acts and music nights, so those are the deck 9 cabins most likely to hear it. We've seen warnings but no first-hand complaints. The front half of deck 9 has cabins below it.

Decks 16 and 17: under restaurants and the pool deck

Deck 16's cabins are all in the front half of the ship. The ones at the very front (roughly 16201–16240) sit under deck 17's Epicurean restaurant and Ivory Suite; further back, deck 16 has cabins or open deck above it. A passenger in a large corner balcony under the Epicurean heard kitchen clatter until about 11:30pm, and once at 4am (Cruise Critic review, October 2021). Deck 17's own cabins sit under the Beachcomber pool and bar and the sun loungers on deck 18.

Forward-facing balconies

P&O's deck plan notes that balconies at the front of the ship can be overlooked by the bridge. It also marks the forward-facing ones (for example 10101–10110) as having restricted access in high winds and as steel-fronted, so you look out over a solid front rather than glass. Cabins high up and far forward also feel the most movement in rough seas.

Decks 4 and 5

• Deck 5 has public rooms above every cabin. All of deck 6 is public space. The Limelight Club, a cabaret venue with comedy nights, is over roughly 5332–5404, and the Grand Atrium over roughly 5405–5467. We found no first-hand complaints, but it's worth knowing.
• Deck 5 balconies are cut into the hull, and P&O marks them as shaded. The blogger who stayed in 5454 rated deck 5 highly for being close to the main public rooms (Emma Online).
• Under the gym and spa: the front cabins on deck 4, roughly 4201–4253, are below the Oasis Gym, its studio and the thermal suite.
• Next to the boarding area: 4307–4310 are beside the area P&O's plan marks for boarding.

Launderettes

Decks 4, 5 and 9 to 15 each have a launderette in the middle of the ship, beside the midship lifts; on deck 16 it's at the front. If you'd rather avoid the comings and goings, skip the cabins right next to one, such as 5466 or 15463.

Where we'd book

• A balcony in the middle of deck 10, 11, 12 or 14: cabins above and below, close to the midship lifts, and the least movement you'll get with a balcony.
• The front half of deck 9: cabins below as well as above.
• Set on a stern view? Accept that you'll be overlooked, and if water spills would bother you, choose a corner rather than the centre: the spill reports we've seen were all about the centre cabins.
• Prone to seasickness? Go low and in the middle of the ship.

Sources

• P&O Cruises: Iona deck plan (2025 edition)
• Cruise Critic member review of cabin 15449 (sailed January 2023)
• Cruise Critic member review (sailed August 2025)
• Cruise Critic member review (sailed October 2021)
• Cruise Critic member review (sailed July 2024)
• Emma Online: Iona cabins to avoid, with a reader comment about 10745 (November 2022)
• Emma Online: Iona deck 5 balcony cabin review (5454)
• Emma Cruises: Iona conservatory mini-suite 8304
• Cruise Critic: Iona activities and entertainment (The Club House)
• CruiseMapper: comedy nights in the Limelight Club

Sailing on Iona? See its terminal, sailing dates and parking.