First cruise with costa, AND I'M SCARED!

[bazbov]

I have done 10 cruises so far and out of Royal caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Costa and Norwegian, Costa was the best. Great food, excellent entertainment(lots of great live music and crowds dancing, great disco, , happy faces all around, etc.). Younger crowds will tend to like Costa better than the rest. The elderly - stick to quiat RC.

 

I've been on Costa Serena and just booked a TA on Costa Favolosa. Should be fabilousa.

 

Hello Ku4anci. pleased that you enjoyed Costa cruises. We've sailed various lines too and Costa is as enjoyable as the rest. Happy cruising.:)

[Ku4anci]

Hello Ku4anci. pleased that you enjoyed Costa cruises. We've sailed various lines too and Costa is as enjoyable as the rest. Happy cruising.:)

 

 

I have 3 cruises coming up in the next 4 months - 1 on Norwegian Escape and Navigator of the Seas out of Miami, but the one i am really looking forward to is Costa Favolosa. I really have no idea what some others are complaining about.

[Big Chik]

You sound like me!

I just booked a bargain deal with Costa leaving in 2 weeks time. The reviews are decidedly mixed. But reading between the lines it seems like Costa is just fine if you remember you are going to live in Italy for the duration. Food tends towards the basic/rustic style but well cooked with fresh ingredients. Queueing is a concept rather than a practice. People get excited easily. etc At least that's what I'm hoping! But to be honest, for the money I'm paying, anything better than a youth hostel will be OK! :-)

 

PS. Given the date of the OP, did you eventually go? What was it like?

[Big Chik]

PS. Given the date of the OP, did you eventually go? What was it like?

 

I just noticed the OP said they booked for Dec 2016 so they won't have sailed yet - they might even be on the same one as me! Sorry for the misdirection...:eek:

[Dancer Bob]

Just got off Pacifica a couple of weeks ago. Much broader age range than I expected this time of year, no real problems with children. Everybody seemed to queue nicely at the buffet, smoking was almost non-existent (there's a smoking lounge). Because of various OBC's and a "more trips than last year" upgrade, I ended up in what used to be the premium restaurant, very nice, (different menus, standard for suites but still also for sale).

For the price I paid, excellent value.

Edited November 29, 2016 by Dancer Bob

[Dancer Bob]

Forgot to mention buffet was comparable to 4-star hotels I stayed at on Costa Brava in Spain. Not fabulous, but decent by European standards. Eggs cooked to order were available at breakfast, but I'm finding the continental buffet entirely satisfactory, lots of choice.

[skip.brandy]

HI Dancer Bob. Welcome back, 35 more days and we go cruising. Was the buffet open for dinner in the evening? Did you get to do much dancing?

Got to fill out the docs yesterday, then on the 19th, will do our 2nd cruise docs.

Carol

[Dancer Bob]

Still in France, Diadema six days from Marseille Dec 11, then home. My next cruise was originally Deliziosa with Stardust end of January but I just got a very cheap TA on Queen Elizabeth for Jan 07, I'm giving Cunard a chance to redeem themselves. I think anything north of Highway 9 is the Great Frozen North, I don't hang around TO in winter.

Buffet open 7-9 PM, which is early for me, I usually have lunch just before they close.

Unless I'm with a group, I don't expect any dancing if I'm on an American cruise line, even Cunard has been disappointing of late. The Latin Dance teams on Costa are unique, two professional calibre, International style partners, even if they're not officially dance hostesses and part-time.

[skip.brandy]

Hi Bob, thanks for the buffet info. We had a few snow flurries yesterday, didn't stay, Haven't looked out side this am, yet, only 6am, thinking about my coffee. Had a beautiful sun rise yesterday, we went Christmas shopping, started to rain, then the snow, on the way home. Guess it's giving us a bit of what's to come. It had better be good today, we're going to the other side of Bowmanville, two hours from here. Bye Carol

[Dancer Bob]

Should also mention dancing goes late too. Floor is usually still packed at 11PM, often still 50 people at 1AM. If you're real early birds, this might be a problem for you.

[skip.brandy]

No problem for us, even though I'm up walking at 6am, on the cruises can still stay up until around 11pm, more to do on the ship than at home watching TV, which makes one tired. Can always catch a nap on deck too. Nice to know there is some dancing going on, although may not be our kind of ballroom music, if it is maybe can do plain basics, and small steps. Latin don't have a problem with, just stay close, and nothing fancy. C

[skip.brandy]

Enjoy where ever you are Bob, we woke up to 4 inches of snow yesterday, although I don't think Toronto got that much. Carol

[Dancer Bob]

Sitting in Civitavecchia right now, 15°C.

Buffet on Diadema is 19.30 to 21.45, two open seating restaurants similar timings. You can get cookies in the afternoon up to 5 PM, then not much til dinner.

Edited December 14, 2016 by Dancer Bob

[skip.brandy]

HI Bob, Where ever you're going next, stay until spring, Barrie is -15 at this time, 06.15am, high of -9, not too sure about Toronto, haven't put the news on yet, and we're to get 15 - 20cm of snow, on top of the 4inches we got a few days ago, and more to come, School buses, east west and north, up to Parry Sound have been closed for a few days. Other than that, it does look pretty when the sun is out.

Take care

Carol

[raven82]

Hello, I'm new here but really enjoyed reading every comment. We just got back from a great RCL Cruise in Asia (Ovation of The Seas China Korea Japan) and just booked our first Costa cruise out of Barcelona in 2 months. From what I read here I think we will enjoy our Costa cruise, my wife is Chinese I am American and we feel at home when in Europe. I speak fluent French and working on Italian for this Cruise. We took 2 Carnival Cruises out of Florida and It was ok but I now travel to see new Countries and Cultures I liked being the only American among 3000 Chinese on my last Cruise much better. Really looking forward to this Costa Cruise. Thank You Everyone.

Ren

 

 

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[tnt10]

You sound like me!

I just booked a bargain deal with Costa leaving in 2 weeks time. The reviews are decidedly mixed. But reading between the lines it seems like Costa is just fine if you remember you are going to live in Italy for the duration. Food tends towards the basic/rustic style but well cooked with fresh ingredients. Queueing is a concept rather than a practice. People get excited easily. etc At least that's what I'm hoping! But to be honest, for the money I'm paying, anything better than a youth hostel will be OK! :-)

PS. Given the date of the OP, did you eventually go? What was it like?

 

Wow, with such low standards.... Is a crappy cruise at a "bargain price" really a bargain? Is saying it's "like living in Italy" really a true comparison? Are all people in Italy rude to foreigners, non-service oriented and cheap? "You get what you pay for" is as true as it ever was especially in this case. Have fun....

[skip.brandy]

Good morning everyone, hope you had a great Chriistmas. More snow, been a horrible few days with accidents, roads icy. Bob you'll know 410, 40 car pile up, ++ injured, but thankfully no one killed.

We're packed for the start of our trip, leave Saturday, for Marseille to catch the ship on the 4th. Could do with a bigger case, but only taking carry-on.

Everyone have a Happy New Year.

Carol. 🛳🛳 🍾🍾

[Big Chik]

Hello, I'm new here but really enjoyed reading every comment. ...just booked our first Costa cruise out of Barcelona in 2 months.

 

We are just back from our cruise out of Barcelona and I've posted a full review which should be available soon. The highlights relevant for this thread are:

PROs:

- Great cabin - upgraded from inside to balcony.

- MDR serves good food, but all Italian. The different regions each night are all italian. If you don't like Italian (or sea-food) you may struggle. MDR is alsio the only place we could get a hot breakfast - the buffet had some but we couldn't find it!

- Entertainment in the theatre and bars was generally good (and mostly in English, surprisingly).

- Ports were generally quieter than during the summer (except shops which were mobbed for xmas), but most tourist things were still open.

CONs:

- The buffet is chaos, badly laid out and food often cold, tables not cleared quickly enough.

- Service after Savona (when extra guests joined) deteriorated badly. Even the MDR staff started making mistakes in the orders. One couple tried to leave early and were shoo'd back to the table by the waiter with a scolding: "This is not the buffet but a restaurant!"

- Customer service desk - polite, efficient but definitely not warm and friendly! No smiles, reminding me of the guys on the security desk at the airport!

- Everything was "extra" - I reckon to compare prices with US lines you need to add £100 onto the Costa price to cover the normally included items(water. tea, coffee etc)

 

But for the bargain price package we had I really can't complain and I would consider using Costa again.

[raven82]

Thanks for The Review Big Chik, this is about what we are expecting. Our last cruise was RCL out of China and there was some chaos and a little pushing and shoving but we spend a lot of time in China and it is the norm. Looking forward to it.

 

 

 

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[Big Chik]

One big tip I haven't seen mentioned on these boards is to buy the carafe of red/white wine in the MDR. It costs the same as 2 glasses (~E11) but gives you a good 4 glasses worth. It's only the house wine but is perfectly drinkable. A lot cheaper than a bottle!

[skip.brandy]

One big tip I haven't seen mentioned on these boards is to buy the carafe of red/white wine in the MDR. It costs the same as 2 glasses (~E11) but gives you a good 4 glasses worth. It's only the house wine but is perfectly drinkable. A lot cheaper than a bottle!

 

Big Chik

Thank you for the tip. We're in Nice, arr yesterday, at 4pm, left Canada at 4pm, changed in LGW, one long day. Will be making our way to Marseille at lunch time. Embarking on the 4th.

 

Bob, more snow ++

 

Happy New Year. Carol. 🍾🍾

[tenpin]

Hi Big Chik,

 

How was boarding at Barcelona, did you have to queue in line to hand over your suitcases rather than them just taking them from you? Then another line for hand luggage security before even booking in and filling in health forms.

 

Really bad last time out of Barcelona & going there again shortly wonder if they have got their act together.

[Dancer Bob]

If you haven't boarded in Marseille before, the terminal is in the middle of nowhere. The Special bus from Joliette is cheap but not convenient. For two people with luggage it's worth considering a taxi. There's usually only a couple of hundred people boarding, it doesn't get very crowded, but the coffee shop may or may not be open.

Make sure the EU entry stamp is legible. They will check.

[skip.brandy]

HI Bob, We're in Marseille right now, board tomorrow. Thanks for the taxi tip, just might do that, tired of lugging luggage around, even if it is carry-on. Don't have a "happy" back at the moment, 😨😨. Tylenol here I come.!!! Good luck with the rest of your trip. Hugs Carol. 🛳🛳

[Big Chik]

Hi Big Chik,

How was boarding at Barcelona, did you have to queue in line to hand over your suitcases rather than them just taking them from you? Then another line for hand luggage security before even booking in and filling in health forms.

 

It was great, but that may have been because we checked in really early - around

10am but the ship didn't even dock until 3pm. But no queues, we just dropped

our luggage out front where the guys checked labels then up to the desk to

have passport checked and boarding card issued. Asked us to come back at 4pm.

 

We had a day in Barcelona and caught the shuttle bus back to the port around

3:30pm, again no queues and we were in our cabin by 4:15pm.

 

Without doubt the easiest embarkation (and disembarkation) we've ever had.

We did see a few short check-in queues when we eventually boarded but

they were like 4-6 people, nothing major.

 

Then again I don't know how many people got on in total, I don't think it was

huge - less than 20 English speakers going by boat drill attendance.

 

hth