Janet&Carl

Speedy response by Costa to my phone call and email requesting clarification of charges. Mistakes happen everywhere and this one was easily fixed.

We did a fantastic and reasonably priced tour with Wonders travel and Tourism in 2019. It included a lovely lunch and was not too strenuous. Although I did feel sorry for the horses clattering up the cobbles at speed with too many tourists in the cart and suggest you walk and enjoy the experience rather than take the horses.

I have cut and pasted their details.  They collected us in a small van at the port - they were ready and waiting for us.  Then transferred us to Petra.  After the walk through Petra we went to "mamas" for lunch and then a leisurely ride back to the ship.

Does anyone have any experience of getting charges to a Visa card reversed?

I have had charges applied to my account after I left the ship.  I could let a few dollars go but not over $500 worth !!! 

Has this happened to anyone else ? What did you do ?

I applied and it was on my booking the very next day.  Super quick.  However, when I sailed it was not applied to my account.  In fact they have charged me over 500 euros for things that I did not spend after the cruise ended and I had left the ship.

11 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

 

Interesting insights, thanks, especially given I am going on my first ever cruise early next year. Couple of questions:

 

1) Where were you sailing?

 

2) What suite were you in, fore or aft?

 

Sorry to hear you got seasick, this also somewhat concerns me because I perhaps foolishly have chosen to sail around Cape Horn and to the Falklands where I gather things can get pretty spicy!

Thats one I wouldnt do on a small ship lol.  I have only ever been seasick on older vessels.  The newer bigger ships don't bother me at all.  But on a bigger ship the queues bother me !  So each has their benefits and drawbacks.  I take a tablet called "Avomine" which I get sent from England.  They are brilliant.  The doctor I spoke to on the ship advised one of the "wristbands"  for seasickness and he said they worked.  I personally haven't tried them. 

We sailed in the Mediterranean on a Spain intensive cruise.  The ports were fabulous and I did enjoy my cruise.  Unfortunately, most of the entertainment is up the front of the ship which rocks around more so I was not able to go to a couple of the lectures, I missed a bingo and I missed a few shows because of the rough seas.  Rougher than normal because I usually do not need medication in the med.  We had a Club Continent suite on deck 8 in the middle of the ship so it wasnt the location that bothered me.  I thought perhaps it could be because I wasnt sleeping well.  I think if I was booking a bigger suite it would have to be aft.  This is where the restaurants are located on all the ships I've sailed on, so I guess it is less affected by rough seas than the front of the ship.

Enjoy your cruise, but beware cruising is very addictive 😉 

I have just returned home after my first Azamara cruise.  I actually was very excited to go on Azamara because the things I read impressed me and I thought we would be a good fit.  We are usually quiet people and we absolutely loved parts of our cruise but didn't fit with other parts. Should we find a great deal on a port intensive cruise we will cruise again.

The positives were the food was the best we have had on a cruise.  We missed going out on the Azamazing Evening and the entertainment that was brought onboard was not as good as I expected it would be.  They had "Flamenco Ballet", 8 women who danced very well but were very repetitive.  White night was held indoors but still enjoyed.  The ships cast were good and entertaining but I found the piano player a very mediocre entertainer.  The band upstairs were very good and lively for those that want more volume and groove 🙂.

Another upside was the length of time spent in port.  No rush to see as much as you can in as little time as you can and race back.  That we could take our time and park in close was a big plus.

The downside for me was the size and age of the ship.  We took a last minute upgrade to a suite.  I checked on the spreadsheet and no one else seemed to have  had an issue with the suite we were in but I could not sleep because  of the creaking and groaning in the ceiling every night.  We had maintenance look at it but eventually had to be moved to another suite.  This one had a bath which I would struggle to get in an out of, fortunately we had payed for spa access so I showered in the spa area.  We had very rough seas - on one night an 8 metre swell, consequently I was very sea sick even after medication.  

I have never been on any cruise line that does not provide a hair dryer.  They have been there on the three Costa cruises I have been on.  As for alcohol it is not allowed to be brought onboard.  

In my experience this has been the case

There is three levels of choice when pricing your cruise ranging from very cheap to very expensive depending on what you choose.

Ranging from lowest to highest......

first choose the cabin - inside, ocean view, balcony or suite.

next choose the level of service, Bella, Fantastica, Aurea, Yacht Club - each come with their own inclusions - the more you pay the more included.  Only Yacht Club includes drinks as a standard inclusion.

Then check on any specials/ deals - for slightly more cost you may be able to choose a package that includes drinks/ wifi/ gratuities etc.... as an add on at any of the cabin or service levels.

I would check in the excursions for your cruise - I know there is one on ours

I have received an email from Azamara which has confused me and would appreciate any advice from recent Azamara boarding procedures.  Can anyone tell me if current testing is required?

The problem I have is I am going from one cruise to another with a very short time frame inbetween and having disembarked in Savona I am boarding Azamara in Rome.  I thought that Azamara and stopped requiring a negative covid test on boarding.  I received an email this morning  which states that testing is required as follows ; 

11 hours ago, marinaro44 said:

 

 

Is it really that big an issue to go at 6:30 instead of 7, or at 8 instead of 7:30?  Just go a few minutes late or early as is your preference.

For me the issue is flexibility which you dont get with set dining times as opposed to any time  dining.  Why should I have to book in advance - (lets say at least 10 nights in advance on a 12 night cruise) when I dont' know what time I will want to eat - I'm on holiday - I want to be flexible.  I  might be ashore having a late lunch and then not be ready to eat at a booked time of 6.30 - or I might book for 8.30 and have missed lunch and will be hungry and want to eat earlier.   Its about flexibility and being able to use the facilities I have paid for at a time convenient to me.  

I have just checked in and have a couple of questions - the boarding information states "

Do you still have to book into the specialty restaurants for a specific time if you are in a suite ? 

Our cruise is not fully booked to date there is approximately 150 rooms occupied - will this make the availability for dining different as we prefer "any time" dining when we are in port and I was surprised to read that there were set time sittings

5 hours ago, KevintheIrishDJ said:

You hit the nail on the head. Pricing is usually smoke and mirrors (lower price less perks).

 

Thats also what we found - I could have booked my cruise cheaper the following month.  $500 cheaper.  I booked when there was $1000 OBC which I can spend anywhere and the following month the cruise was $500 cheaper but the OBC was also $500 less and could only be spent on excursions.  I am happy with the deal I got and kept it - although now I am trying to spend loads of OBC with very few excursions that we want to go on. 🙂 swings and roundabouts, smoke and mirrors - they basically turn out the same.  Just book when there is a deal you are happy about.

I have been watching Azamara sales for a while - we too are new to the company and have booked our first cruise - I tried to get friends to join us but the same deal was not available however a new deal was.  The next month the same deal was available again.  

It appears to me that each month is a different deal and if you wait long enough a better deal will come up.   The price of the cabins appear to remain the same but the additional benefits like OBC, Wifi and upgrade deals change every month.

If there is plenty of time before your intended travel I would be inclined to wait and see.

On 8/11/2022 at 3:41 PM, MmmmJason said:

 

 

For comparison, I had unlimited Perrier-Jouët on Celebrity in the Penthouse (Retreat-level), and a bottle of Moet was included on embark day on NCL in an Owner's suite.  Generally, I was disappointed by what MSC considered "premium".

 

And "for comparison" sake - what was the difference in price - say a 7 day NCL  owners suite with a 7 day Royal Suite in YC - I'm sure there is a difference ~!!

For comparison I did a dummy booking for 1 week Caribbean cruise in October next year - NCL $20,533 YC $14,208  

You are going to pay over $6k a week more on NCL

let me know what currency the price is and I will make sure I bring it 😉 

sounds like our kind of thing - much prefer this to sitting on a big tour bus with a group of french people with a french guide and shoppers who don't stick to the timetable - last costa cruise we hardly had any english speaking guides and lots of people who couldnt tell the time which resulted in us waiting for them after stops and missing half the itinerary 

On 10/8/2022 at 6:52 PM, Aeroplex said:

By the way for Casablanca and Rabat I am not happy with the tours Costa offers. 
 

Therefore my plan is to organize my own tour for that day, full day to Casablanca and to Rabat with a local guide. 
 

Anyone interested ? 

We are also looking at DIY so let me know what you are up to and we will see if we can join you.

9 hours ago, Wansbrough said:

Cruising in suite or MSC's YC holds no interest for us, I'd sooner take two cruises. 😉

 

Lucky for you you dont have long haul to get to them 🙂 we would cruise much more if we didnt have to fly (usually) more than 30 hours to get there and back.  The flying takes some getting over. Living on a island at the bottom of Australia can be a drawback sometimes.

We like MSC have had 10 cruises with them - their suite experience far surpasses Costa.  We get to try both in the next 6 months as well as an Azamara cruise, so we'll see which one we stick with.  Like @BVILady we primarily book for the itinerary but the price has to be right too as we have to book airfares from Australia which are lengthy and expensive.

unfortunately, I got the same result.  I will ring them again and let them know that I still cant book but others can.  If all else fails maybe I can book onboard.

No not at all - I get this when I click on the "Activate the package" button 

4 minutes ago, Aeroplex said:

Thats correct. 7. Nov - 18. Nov.

 

I can book and cancel all the extras. Including drink packages, excursions etc. etc. 

 

Here in Germany, the 3 excursion package is 139€. But many half day or full day excursions are blacked out. 

 

 

Have you tried to book it ? - I get a message that it is unavailable - would be interested to know if it can be booked.  I just tried again with no luck.

The restaurants will have a more extensive wine list that is separate from the bar list that is posted above.   There will be different inclusions for each level of drink package.

There is also a Wine Bar onboard most Costa ships and a Sommelier to help with choices.  All wines in the wine bar will not be in the lower level drink package but some will be included in the premium package.

I hope this helps 🙂