ROLL CALL - Tropicale 5/30/05

[Bob Barker]

Hello!

 

First post on this website. Looks like I can find a bunch of beginner info on here! Anyways, just curious if anyone is aboard the Tropicale on 5/30/05.

 

Can't find many trip reports or other information regarding this ship. My girlfriend and I are sure looking forward to Ibizia though! :D

[cdngirl74]

Myself and 2 friends are on the Tropicale on 7/25/05. I can't find much in terms of reviews/comments either. But you are right, Ibiza sounds like a lot of fun - the main reason we're taking this cruise! I'd be much appreciated if you could post something on it once you get back. Have a great time!

[Bob Barker]

Myself and 2 friends are on the Tropicale on 7/25/05. I can't find much in terms of reviews/comments either. But you are right, Ibiza sounds like a lot of fun - the main reason we're taking this cruise! I'd be much appreciated if you could post something on it once you get back. Have a great time!

 

Will do! Only 2 more days till I graduate college and just about 2 weeks till the cruise, LIFE IS GOOD!

[cdngirl74]

Good goin'... that's a well deserved grad present!

 

btw - have you pre-booked any excursions or are you just going to book once on board?

Any insight on the excusions once you get back would be great too!

[Bob Barker]

Good goin'... that's a well deserved grad present!

 

btw - have you pre-booked any excursions or are you just going to book once on board?

Any insight on the excusions once you get back would be great too!

 

Thank you! The cruise was actually won on the Price is Right, just making it into a nice grad present for myself and my g/f. So thank you Bob if your reading! ha ha

 

We just received our cruise tickets the other day and the excursions are ranging from 40-50 Euros. There's about 6 trips you can do, we haven't decided what ones we are going on as of yet. But, I know we'll do at least one or two. From what it sounds like, sometimes they are canceled due to lack of English speaking guides. So we'll see...I'll fill you in on the details after the trip.

[cdngirl74]

Thank you! The cruise was actually won on the Price is Right, just making it into a nice grad present for myself and my g/f. So thank you Bob if your reading! ha ha

 

We just received our cruise tickets the other day and the excursions are ranging from 40-50 Euros. There's about 6 trips you can do, we haven't decided what ones we are going on as of yet. But, I know we'll do at least one or two. From what it sounds like, sometimes they are canceled due to lack of English speaking guides. So we'll see...I'll fill you in on the details after the trip.

 

Hey Bob...Your trip is just around the corner! I hope you and your g/f have a great time! Can't wait to hear all about it...and which PR game you won the trip on...that's AWESOME :) Happy sailing!

[2cruiseagain]

We're on the July 4 Tropicale sailing. Let us know how the ship is when you get back. There doesn't seem to be a lot posted about it.

[Bob Barker]

Finally back in the USA! I only have a limited amount of time to post a review of the Costa Tropicale, but I'll try my best. Since this is my first cruise experience please go easy on me!

 

On a scale of 1-10 for the overall cruise experience: 5

 

The good:

 

- The ports of call (other than Tunis) were excellent

- Had a great dinner table (only one other english speaking couple)

- Staff was generally good at speaking English

 

The bad:

 

- The food, seems to be a constant thing with Costa. The restaurant food was OK at best, but beyond that from the midnight buffets and the other buffet on board was horrible. Selection of food was non-existent, the same items were served over and over again. Breakfast was really heart-breaking (runny scrambled eggs, fruits and veggies were not ripe, and again very limited selection)

 

- With only 80 other English speaking tourists aboard the ship, we were often treated second rate for shows and other entertainment options aboard the ship.

 

- Limited entertainment options on board the ship (espically during the day). It basically came down to either spending money at the casino, drinking very high priced drinks, or watching second rate live shows.

 

- Embarkation (sp?) procedures were HORRIBLE. After spending 10 hours on a plane sitting in cramped coach, all we wanted to do was board the ship. We arrived shortly before 2pm (the scheduled time to embark) and found hundreds of people in the terminal with very limited places to sit. They board by numbers (based upon the time you arrive at the terminal), we were #15. We ended up waiting over two hours until we finally were able to board the ship. Only two people were processing everyone in the terminal.

 

It's hard to give a fair report of the trip since it was won as a prize, but if I did have to pay for it I wouldn't be very impressed compared to many of my other friends they say the cruises they have been on back in the states were top notch.

 

The only thing that saved this cruise was the ports of call. The first port in Catania, you MUST do the excursion to Taromina. It's a city you imagine everything Italy to be. The city is amazing! Since it took about an hour to get there by bus, we had only an hour of free time in the city. We ditched the tour guide when we got there and went on our own way to maxamize the time we had available to us.

 

The time is almost up on the computer at the libary but I'll try to post more later! Please ask any questions and I'll gladly answer!

[2cruiseagain]

Thanks for the quick review. I wish the news were better on the food.

 

I do have a couple of questions:(

 

 

Where did you disembark from? I thought it would be easier with the ship being smaller than the new mega-ships.

 

 

Was it ok just sitting around the pool during sea time? (expensive drinks aside)

 

 

I know this was your first cruise but, did the ship seem small to you?

 

 

I’ll be with a group of around 25 Americans, do you think that will make a difference?

[cdngirl74]

Hi Bob

 

Welcome back! Sorry to hear everything wasn't ideal.

 

Other than the food, how was the ship in general? What type of cabin did you have? How about the people on board - was it more families? couples? young? old? or a good mix of everyone?

 

How expensive were the drinks? My friends and I were debating on smuggling in our own alcohol - think we should?

 

What did you not like about Tunis? Other people on these boards have not really liked that port either. How about Ibiza? Which ports do you recommend us seeing on our own?

 

Although language is not a major issue for me as I speak Italian and French, I am glad to hear that there was enough english on board to allow for the tours. And it's nice to know that the staff were friendly too.

 

That's all I can think of...for now! Sorry for all the questions but you seem to be the only one who's lived to tell the tale of the Tropicale! :)

 

Anything else you can think of sharing is most welcome!

[Bob Barker]

Ok, finally at my g/f's house to take advantage of her internet (shhhhh! Don't tell her! ha ha)

 

2cruiseagain:

 

The disembarkation (sp?), the getting off part, was very smooth. We had the first time slot available at 9am and our bags were ready to go once we got off. We only had to wait about another 20-30 minutes for other people to ride the bus back to the airport.

 

We actually sat at the pool only a couple times during the trip. There were lots of kids running around, but I think we came to expect that. They played music and we tried our best to turn our heads the other way when many women took off their tops beside us. Not that I don't have a problem with that, but there was some women where it was better for them to leave it on! Oh yea, and I've seen my quota for the next 10 years of speedos running around to with the guys!

 

The ship did seem small to me. I think this is part in fact of the limited entertainment options available on board. But, I guess it really comes down to what you want and expect. We met two women on board that were on the ship from the previous cruise and were going to be on it the next week as well for a total of 3 weeks! But, they said they like the smaller size so go figure.

 

I think your large english speaking group will only make it better. More people to share and enjoy your experience.

 

Hope this helps....

 

cdngirl74:

 

In general the ship was in good condition and was up kept very well in my opinion. We always saw people cleaning away. Our cabin was decent. We had a queen size bed that was a little on the firm side, but not to bad. The TV was fairly small and only one English speaking channel available to us, the BBC news channel, so needless to say we knew what was happening in world at any given moment throughout the cruise. There were a host of other Italian channels available so you should get a kick out of that. We found the information channels on where the ship presently was along with the speed of the ship and current temprature to be very helpful all while playing some decent background music.

 

For the English speaking people it was mainly older couples with a few younger couples such as us. For the Italians it was mainly famlies with usually their grand parents it seemed like. So I guess you could say it was a good mix.

 

A Corona on the ship was 4.25 Euros and a Margarita was 5.75 Euros and then tack on the 15% service sharge and it starts to become pretty spendy especially for us poor college kids. Even though my g/f and I are pretty good drinkers, we stayed away from getting crazy for one being the cost and didn't want any hangovers that could have made the trip worst than it was. So yes, smuggle it on! They are pretty lax about checking bags, but I still would put Vodka in a water bottle for example just to play it safe.

 

Tunis was just dirty plain and simple. I don't know if we would have taken an excursion if it would have help or hurt. We did go down to the 'Medina' where all the little shops are and found that to be interesting to say the least. The shop owners do ANYTHING to try to get you in their shop and buy something. They are very pushy and will not take no for an answer. One of them held onto my g/f by the wrist and wouldn't let go. We did not have enough time to make it to Carthage (I think it was the 2nd oldest city in the Roman Empire) so we were mad about that, but we just wanted to get back on the ship.

 

They do offer one excursion for Ibiza, but since you have all day its a waste I think. Just by us wandering around we found many cool spots to go. Make sure to proceed up to the church on the hill for a great view and many cool shops along the way. And plus the ship basically drops you off right where everything is so you don't have to travel to far.

 

Palma was another city where I personally think you could do it on your own. I suggest to take a taxi from the ship and proceed to the very large Cathredral and go from there. It was 3 Euros to enter the Cathredral and was worth every cent, its an amazing place.

 

Ajaccio (the last port of call), I know I spelled that wrong since I don't have anything in front of me to look at, but we arrived there on Sunday and at least 75% of the town is shut down. It was really a bummer since it is very beautiful and easy to navigate. The ship again drops you off right in the heart of the town and we walked from one side of the town to the next in about 15-20 mintues.

 

Well my fingers are starting to numb so this will be it for now. Ask away if you have any other questions. I'm just happy to be home and just enjoyed the local Chinese buffet!!!! :)

[cdngirl74]

Thanks for your reply Bob. You shed a lot of light on what we should expect.

That was awesome that you priced the coronas and margaritas, they're my 2 favourites! And thanks for the heads up about the speedos and topless ladies and kids running around (what a picture i've conjured up!) I fear it will be worse for us since school will be out by the time we get there!!!:eek: Oh well!

 

Just a few more questions...

...since embarking sounded like a royal pain, if you had to do it again would you get there very early or really late? I hate to stand around with no where to sit for nothing. Especially in the heat that were bound to have in July! If we get there last minute, at least that would give us more time in Rome!

 

Also was booking excursions on the ship a problem? Did you get the tour you wanted? I'm torn, I hate to pre-book and then not be able to change my mind once we're on board...but then I'd hate to wait until we're on and have everything sold out. After your comments and from what i've heard from other, I think I'll do the tour of Taoramina.

 

Did you have a bar fridge in your cabin? Anything you suggest we should bring that we might not think of?

Is there an adult only pool? How about a pizzeria, do they have one on board? As long as they have pizza (and I LOVE the thin crust Italian style pizza) I'll be good for the week!

 

Lastly, what about these wine/soda packages people have been talking about in other threads...did you get any? Is it worth it? How much is it for say a diet coke if you don't have a soda package?

 

Oh yeah, how was the formal night? Really dressy? Which night(s) was it?

 

Thanks again for taking the time to answer all the questions!:)

[Bob Barker]

Hey cdngirl again,

 

I'm back at the libary so my time is limited, but I'll try my best to crank this one out quick.

 

Yea, I still have a bad taste in my mouth from the embarking terminal. Arriving early is for sure your best bet. How early? Well can't tell you that one. But, when we arrived at about 1:30pm and 2pm was the scheduled time to hop on board (or so we thought) that place was jam packed. Maybe around 10 or 11? I don't really know. But, earlier the better and you could drop of your bags, get your number in line and then maybe have some time to expore the city, if there's anything to expore.

 

Booking the exursions was not a problem on board. The first night the exursion desk was jam packed, but we managed to get our Taromina trip all set that night. YOU MUST DO THIS EXURSION! Trust me you won't regret it! It sucks since it takes about an hour to get there so now two hours are already wasted. You should find out what time the bus meets to return to the port and then just go and do your own thing. It's a place where you want to do your shopping and take awesome pictures! After Taromina, you are on your own to decide which other ones to do. I think Palma would be another great exursion to book before hand as well.

 

There was no fridge in our room. So didn't have to worry about late night binges! But, there was snacks in our room that sat there and wanted us to eat them, but we knew better! The pizza place was actually really good. It's only open from like 9pm-12am. But, you get your own little pizza and it's sure tasty! They do have pizza in some of the buffets, but not as good as the ones you can get at night.

 

We didn't have any wine packages, but we did buy the water package for like 23 Euros. I think it's definately worth it, you get like 20 large bottles of water. All you do is redeem one of your 20 slips for the water at any bar and your set! Just make sure to start using them early! 20 is alot!

 

Well that's about it for now. Hope I didn't miss much. Make sure to write back once you return from your trip! Hopefully we're both on the same page! Lata!

[cdngirl74]

Will do. Thanks for all your insight!!!

[fligel]

going on Tropicale on 7/4/05 good info from Bob