Review of New Years Magica Sailing

[Cruzin4aBruzin]

I am very happy to report that Costa is now one of my top choices of cruise line next to Celebrity. This cruise on Magica was my 20th cruise and the family and I have sailed on Carnival, Royal C, Celebrity, and Norwegian. I went in thinking the worst, mainly because of what I read here. But, all week all I could think was "what are people talking about?" I could only discover that things were better than they are on the other cruises I took. The crew was efficient and I never met a nasty employee. You will also notice little touches that make the cruise special--for instance on formal nights they wrap the menu up in a scroll and the waiter presents it to you. The food--about as good as celebrity--it puts carnival to shame. (I will provide the Menus from the two formal evenings at the end, as it seems very hard to come across Costa menus via the internet). Now for a more in depth review:

 

Embarkation: we arrived at Port Everglades at about 2pm. The bus from the airport was very efficient getting us to the pier. The line was fairly long once we got there to check in, but it moved rather quick as there are a multitude of people checking in the guests. I would say we were on the ship in 20 minutes.

 

Ship: it is absolutely beautiful. It was easy to navigate since we had just come off the Carnival Glory in August. But what a difference a Costa application to a Carnival Destiny class ship is. Everything is very classy and subdued. Whereas on carnival the atrium is light up in a very gawdy manner, this is not so on Costa. The atrium is trimmed in gold and light up with soft incondescent lighting. Also, throughout the ship their are pictures of italy (even on the elevators). Our room was also very nice--an outside room with a window. Again, someone mentioned that the beds are uncomfortable? Not what I had experienced. The towels they provide are very nice and plush and very one has the Costa logo embossed into it--classy. One of the facilites that I frequently used was the gym. Very similar to glory's except the equipment was far nicer. Everything is computerized--the tredmills allow one to watch tv while they run and the weight machines have a screen that counts of number of repititions. All of the show lounges are again done up in a classy manner--with soft tones. The casino was especially nice with all of the handmade dolls. The dining rooms were also very nice. We had the Smeralda dining room. I also recall someone complaining that the chairs look like something from a yard sale?! This I could not figure out either. Onto the pool: very nice with an italian flair. There are large statues and fountains.

 

Service: We couldnt have been happier with the service. I will admit that on the first night of dinner, they were a little slow. But all of the other nights, they were quick--courses came out soon after ordering them. Another thoughful touch was how they have olive oil and Balsamic on every table for the bread. Our waiter, Ed, was very nice and courteous. In fact, one night my son had a very bad headache and I asked him if we could get his meal to go. He said that was fine and asked for our room number. Soon after we leave the dining room and go back to our room, Ed shows up himself with my son's dinner. I expected some room service employee to bring it up, and was impressed that our waiter brought it himself and in a timely manner. Also, silverware was always replaced and our glasses were always kept full. This was not the case this summer on the Glory--were only one knife and fork were supplied and never replaced. Our water was put into whatever random glass our waiter could find too. Also, your room steward always kept the room spotless and the bathroom always had the towels nicely folded. The room was made up three times a day. And yes, they do not give out towel animals--but I am more impressed with good service than with some folded towel--sorry. As for chocolates on the pillows, we did get them on the second formal night. They were belgian chocolates. Also, another impressive touch occurred on New Years Eve. They supply each guest with a small italian cake that is individually wrapped in a square box.

 

Entertainment: I thought that the cruise director was a nice guy, but we could have had a little more personality. I will tell you this though, there are three shows you do not want to miss. First is the one called "magical moments." I think this may have been the best show I have ever seen on a ship. The singers and dancers really put a lot of time into it. Basically it showcases moments from fairy tale like stories such as Harry Potter and Cinderella. It was excellent. The second, called "cinemagique" was also very good and it showcased moments from cinema and tv--such as top gun. The last show, called the Roman Show, is just plain old fun. Basically its the guest talent show, but it is done in an uncommon way. The guests finish their acts and Caesar (cruise director) asks the audience whether or not they will go to the lions or to the midnight buffet--it was very fun. Also for new years the party in the atrium had to be the best of all the choices they offered. At midnight they served champagne and dropped a plethora of snow-like confetti down the 9 stories--it truly was a sight.

 

Ports: First we went to San Juan. We arrived there at night time. I thought this port was fairly worthless because there is not much to do there at night besides gamble and drink. Next we went to Saint Thomas. This was very enjoyable was we went to Magans Bay beach. After this we arrived at my favorite port--Catalina Island. It is Costa's own private island and it is a paradise. All of the chairs are free as are the umbrellas. The water is crystal clear and the ship serves a BBQ buffer from 12 to 2 pm. That night we arrived in La Romana in the Dominican Rebuplic. We didnt even get off here as it looks scary. After this we arrived in Nassau were we went to Atlantis in Paradise Island

 

Food: I honestly thought that Costa had very good food. The steaks were always prepared as I ordered (med. rare) and were very tasty. Also, I recommend getting a pasta every night. Their pastas (esp the ones w/ red sauce) are amazing. In the Bellagio (the buffet) the food was also very good. They seem to always have something different for the adventurous diner as well as normal food. For instance, one day they had stewed octopus (which actually wasnt bad). Furthermore, they always have fresh group parmasean cheese from italy (i forget the brand, but they do promote it). Also remember to try the side buffets near the hallways. They usually have a different type of ethnic food every day. The mexican buffet there on the Nassau day was out of this world. And yes, they do have real eggs. They have a station the makes omelettes.

 

Now Ill post the Menus from both Formal nights for those of you interested:

 

WELCOME GALA DINNER

 

Beef Carpaccio with Black Olives and Parmesan

 

Escargots a la Bourguingonne

 

Caribbean Fresh Fruit Cocktail

 

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Cream of forest Mushrooms with scented truffles

 

French Onion Soup (which does indeed have a cheese crouton contrary to what someone else said)

 

Gazpacho

 

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Risotto with mussels and artichoke

 

Penne with Tomato and Chilis

 

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Atlantic Shrimps w/ garlic onion and pepper

 

Crispy Roast Duckling with Orange Sauce

 

Flattened Pork Cutlet braised with Soy, sugar, ginger, and lemon

 

Center cut Beef Tenderloin Wellinton

 

Assorted Vegetables in a Green Curry

 

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Mixed Salad with spinach, bacon, egg, and crouton

 

NEW YEARS EVE DINNER

 

Symphony of shrimps and crab

 

Duck Foie Gras (best I ever had might I add)

 

Honey glazed ham and vegetable turnover

 

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Rustic Tomato Soup

 

Duck and Butternut Squash Soup

 

Chilled Apricot and honey

 

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Risotto with Champange

 

Tagliolini with Bolognese Sauce and Porcinis

 

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Broiled Halibut w/ Crayfish and Lemon Garlic

 

Roasted Quails w/ savory country filling in wine sauce

 

Broiled Lobster Tail with Shallot Butter

 

Prime Rib of Beef with Horseradish

 

Eggplant with Parmesan Cheese and Pomodoro (and very good!)

 

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Crunchy lettuse with radicchio cherry tomatoes and caesar

 

Bouquet of leaves with Strawberries, pear, and pine nuts

 

 

Any questions, feel free to ask...

[Cruzin4aBruzin]

I just realized I forgot to add that disembarkation was also very easy. I should note though that we had the first tag color called, but we were off the ship in a matter of minutes.

[ajcruise]

Thanks for posting the menus. I've been looking for something like that.

We'll be on the Mediterranea in just a couple days!

[Snowblind]

Cruzin4aBruzin,

 

Thanks for the review, it sounds very similiar to our cruise on the Atlantica last year. Did you try the speciality restaurant on the Magica?

 

Happy Cruising:)

[Cruzin4aBruzin]

No, unfortuitely we did not try the alternative dining restaurant. Being our first time on Costa, we wanted to experience the regular menus every night and being that we were enjoying all the we experienced in the dining room we felt we would be on Costa again to try it. I did happen to go up there and look at the menu though--it did look good. Next time though. Everyone enjoy their cruises...

[Host Star]

No, unfortuitely we did not try the alternative dining restaurant. Being our first time on Costa, we wanted to experience the regular menus every night and being that we were enjoying all the we experienced in the dining room we felt we would be on Costa again to try it. I did happen to go up there and look at the menu though--it did look good. Next time though. Everyone enjoy their cruises...

 

personally you made a BIG mistake not getting off in Romano (Dominican Republic) for the nite excursion to casa de campo..its the right decision if it were raining .. but the show under the stars at nite in the amazing amphitheater is just incredible.. it is something you won't quickly forget.. also during the day the electric bicycle tour and the horseback riding tours are both worth taking and then they drop you off at Catalilna for beach time.. we found all the employees of the mediterannea (different ship, same itinerary) to be very friendly, including those working on the tenders, who had island music playing and were dancing with the pax on the way to and back from catalina and the excursions..

[naysmitj]

Thanks for the review we really appreciate the insight, it sounds like you had a great trip.

We are off on the January 8th Magica sailing.

By the difference in descriptions it is hard to believe that you were on the same ship as another couple that have frequented this board.

[New2cruzng]

Thanks for the great detailed review.

I will definitely catch those shows you mentioned!

We leave Sunday at 6am to catch the 01/08/06 Magica, so this came in just in time :)

 

Glad you had a great trip, I am sure we will have a blast.

[skolega]

Did you ever go to the Capri Lounge? What sort of entertainment do they have there? We are in a Cat 8A aft balcony directly above the Capri Lounge and I am wondering how late and how loud it is going to be. I don't want to give up the larger balcony...I guess I will bring some ear plugs. Thanks for any advice and it is so nice to hear positive things about the Magica. We have sailed the Atlantica and are taking the kids in March on the Magica.

[nonna5]

Thanks for the review. We fly to Ft. Lauderdale tomorrow for a day of rest and the King Tut exhibit and are off on the Magica Sunday. Thanks again for your review.

[bchbum641]

Thanks for the great review. It was very informative. We sail out on the Magica on the 15th- Can't seem to find others leaving on that date.

 

Shauna

[Marc&Tara]

The day after the thread with my negative review of the same cruise appeared. Very very weird.... and what are you talking about La Romana being scary??? That was the best port, and the Kandala show was the BEST show the whole week outside. It wasn't raining that night at all.... We had a GREAT time at that stop and picked up some great paintings for our new house as well.

 

Still disagree that the food was good, found it to be very tasteless and the meat all the same, despite the variety. Desserts were lackluster at best. Entertainment was so-so (Hot dancers though!)

 

I do agree with you the Roman Toga night was a lot of fun! Definately one of the HIGHlights of the ship and the week for us for sure. Glad you had good time though, I still think had it not been so busy and had a better room with A/C we would have had a better time!

 

Give it up AAAAAAA!

 

Ciao

[hadleys9538]

personally you made a BIG mistake not getting off in Romano (Dominican Republic) for the nite excursion to casa de campo..its the right decision if it were raining .. but the show under the stars at nite in the amazing amphitheater is just incredible.. it is something you won't quickly forget.. also during the day the electric bicycle tour and the horseback riding tours are both worth taking and then they drop you off at Catalilna for beach time.. we found all the employees of the mediterannea (different ship, same itinerary) to be very friendly, including those working on the tenders, who had island music playing and were dancing with the pax on the way to and back from catalina and the excursions..

 

If I go on this excursion to see this show, what am I missing on board that night? Is the show after dinner? (We're first seating) Thanks.

[ohyou812]

I am planning my first cruise ever in November on the Magica. I was getting worried reading the negative reviews but after reading yours, I am so looking forward to it. Thanks so much :D

[Cruzin4aBruzin]

The only reason we didnt get off at La Romana was a culmination of various reasons. First off, we had just enjoyed a long day in the sun at Catalina Island so we were tired. In addition, by the time we ate on the ship it was already 7:30pm. Furthermore, we were scared off by what was around the docks--which was basically nothing but a brick wall and what appeared to be a little league game in the distance. And since we didnt enjoy getting off at night in Puerto Rico, we ultimately decided against going off there. I guess we made the wrong decision. I will keep this in mind if we are to ever return there.

 

As for the Capri Lounge and its entertainment. I believe they had some band there every night, but I'm not certain what type of music they preformed. The only two events I attended there were karoke one night and holy mass another night. It didnt seem too loud though when walking by the place.

 

Also I believe the night we were in La Romana that the entertainment was some sort of tenor singer. We dont enjoy this type of thing so we didnt attend.

 

As for this review appearing after some other "bad" review? I wanted to post my review ASAP since we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. But, we had unpacking and the like to do as soon as we returned so I posted when all the shuffle around here settled down. I'm sorry that my review coincided with some other reviews of the same ship, but I believe that this board is dedicated to sharing of these reviews. So I posted my review of the magica shortly after I came off of the cruise--as only makes sense to me. Apparently the only difference is that we had a blast on Costa. Yes I thought the food was magnificent and I saw nothing wrong with the desserts now that this was mentioned. They had tiramisu once, baked alaska (which was esp. good since it was made with butter pecan), and various chocolate goods to keep my family and I pleased. I understand that not everyone will enjoy the same thing though.

 

So to all of you booked on Magica, I think you have everything to look forward to--happy cruising.

[cuppy]

Thank you for your review. We have booked this cruise for the week of Christmas.

 

Does anyone have pictues posted from their sailings on this ship?

[JeanG]

Thanks for the great review. It was very informative. We sail out on the Magica on the 15th- Can't seem to find others leaving on that date.

 

Shauna

 

We just booked and will be sailing with you on the 15th.

 

Jean

[LavenderRs]

I'm actually asking this for a friend of mine who is on the 1/22 sailing. Her docs say that $8.50 per day per person is charged to their ship card for "dining services and room service." Any information on this? Thanks.

 

Lav

[burners]

yes your costa card will be atomatically charged 8.50 per day per person ($4.25 per child). This is divided up amongst your waiter,assitant waiter , maiter'di, and steward however you can cancell them easily by going to guest services and tipping them what you think they deserved.I over tipped my wait staff as they were excellent. We had a conversation with them every night for about 15 minutes.It was nice to learn about their country of origin and life on the ship.They work 14 hour days,7 days a week.Our steward was excellent also.She cleaned our room 3 times a day and when I asked for an extra pillow one was immediately brought to our room.

[Host Star]

If I go on this excursion to see this show, what am I missing on board that night? Is the show after dinner? (We're first seating) Thanks.

first seating will have no problem with the dining room for dinnerprior to the buses leaving for casa de campo.. secondseating would go to the buffet (which has the same selections as the dining room menu) on our ship the entertainment that nite was by the ship's crew and is televised on the ship's tv so you really don't miss the ship's entertainment that nite. they will not have any major shows for entertainment that nite . also in st. thomas the ship is very accommodating by making the first seating a little later

[hadleys9538]

Thank you, HostStar. It sounds like this show is something we shouldn't miss, so I think I'm going to go ahead and book it.

 

One more question for you -- In San Juan. If we go on the bio tour, do you know if we'll have time for dinner that night before the tour leaves? Thanks. Cheryl

[jones721]

We are looking at the 23 December cruise on the Magica (like someone else above is) and have a question to ask about one of the ports.

On the Costa website, they stae that the port of call is Casa De Campo, 8 to 5. Do you think this involves Catalina Island? I don't understand the difference between Catalina Island, La Romana and Casa De Camp. Are they all separate places? Or can you travel from one to the other. What we would really like, is the private island for a beach day - do you think we will be able to do that?

 

When I click on port details for Casa de Campo, it comes up with La Romana. La Romana seems to be a port with Catalina Island a distance away. There is no night stop scheduled and clciking on shore excursions does not work.

 

The UK website only goes up to November and the brochure gives sketchy details as it has not been released for sale yet in the UK - yet is says Catalina Island and La Romana in that!

 

HELP!! I want to book in in the next couple of days!

 

Also, I was on the Glory last February and I have read that it is similar to the Glory. I enjoyed the Glory.

 

Thanks

 

Tracey