CountessP

I want to thank you all for your words of wisdom, taking the time to respond. I messed up. It did not occur to me until AFTER I got the e-visa that I was technically leaving India, and that the e-visa would be a problem.

I'm sending away for my tourist visa today. I only pray that I have enough time, which I am sure I do.

But what a tedious project. Much more complicated than e-visa. I just don't get it. It took me 4 hours of filling out online forms and gathering the documentation for 2 people.

It's exhausting! But thanks again to you all.

Thanks for your prompt reply, Freddie.

You write: It states that the e-visa may not be used for entry into India at sea ports; only the listed airports qualify. Perhaps if your cruise both begins and ends in India, it may work, although the limited "entry" may be an issue.

I am entering India initially via Mumbai airport, and the cruise ship does both begin and end in Mumbai, This is why I assumed the evisa was a good option for us. But I have read the horror stories you describe and it does make me nervous. I contacted the embassy, via email. This is what I asked and what they wrote:

On 14/02/17 07:06 AM, countessp wrote:

We just got our evisa. We are arriving via Mumbai international airport. We will be cruising to several cities, then to Maldives and Sri Lanka, coming back to India via Mangalore. We are then flying to Delhi and then returning to the USA. I did put on the application that we would be on the Costa cruise ship. Is this visa good?

Response:

Thats okay, but your arrival should be through the designated e-visa airports.

Regards

E-Visa Team

It seems to me I'm good! I wrote back again to clarify. Let's hope they say yes again!

Does anyone know if an E visa is an issue in conjunction with a cruise. I don't really have the time to send passport away for regular visa. I'm not sure is single entry rule is an issue when cruising when we have a rountrip airline ticket in/out in lndia. Appreciate any info.

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We are due to be in Cochin for an afternoon and the following whole day in February 2018. There is an overnight houseboat trip being offered by our cruise company (Voyages of Discovery) and it is low availability, so it is suggested we book early of we want to go. We have been on a houseboat overnight in Goa when on a land holiday and enjoyed it, but Aleppey may have more to be seen from the boat.

 

Has anyone anyone done the overnight cruise and was it worthwhile? We are also wondering if we would miss much in Cochin as we may not have time to go into the city as well as do the cruise.

You mention Voyages of Discovery. We had a cruise booked with them in March to Africa. They called us to advise company went bankrupt and the cruise was cancelled. Did you not get a similar call? Is your cruise still o?. I am really curious since we are having trouble convincing the credit card company that they cancelled on us, not us on them.

You did not state where in Jamaica you are going, but it really makes no difference. We dove it once, think it was Ocho Rios, and it wasn't very good.

We tried arranging in Falmouth. it would have been a lengthy drive to the dive shop/boat, and it doesn't get good reviews so we decided against it.

Can't really recommend diving in Jamaica. There are a lot of other better things to do there, zip lining, walking falls, rafting, hiking. It seems that Jamaica is better enjoyed topside!

Thank you! So yes for juice and coffee in the dining room for breakfast! Yea - DH will be very pleased.

DH may not be pleased with the breakfast itself! It was a buffet and the offerings were actually less varied that what was upstairs on the Lido Deck. Asked for eggs easy over and was told it would be 20 minutes, so I went for the scrambled.

Besides the fact that it was sit down, so you didn't have to go back for more coffee, it was a disappointment. We only did it once, and that was enough.

The rude European behavior on Costa was unexpected and often funny at times.

For the record, we did not experience the same on our cruise. I've heard that a lot, and this was our 4th Italian line cruise, 2 with MSC and 2 with Costa. With the exception of 1 German in an elevator (and the others in the same elevator apologized for his behavior) I have never experienced the rude behavior I hear about so often. We always have a grand time meeting people from all over the world.

I just don't get the negative comments I hear. I mean, people are people, and you have rude people in every language, in every country, state, and city. Yeah, we have them here in the U.S., too!!

So if you choose to have breakfast in the dining room there is no beverage available of ANY kind (for free)? Just want absolute clarity so we know what to expect. This is about our 50th cruise over almost all the lines, so just trying to wrap my mind around the true realities for this 23 day sailing.

For those who are still not sure of response, we did the dining room breakfast once, which ended up being the same buffet as the one on the Lido deck. Actually, it wasn't as well stocked, so it wasn't as good. Very surprising to us. I asked if I could have eggs easy over, and he said yes, but it would be a 20 minute wait, so I just had the scrambled.

So, if you are expecting to get a better breakfast in the dining room, it won't happen. However, yes, you do get coffee, however much you want. And they will give you water if you ask for it. I think the juices were available at the buffet table.

This was all on a Caribbean sailing. Perhaps it's different for a trans-Atlantic.

Yes, we were on a cruise. One day the buses were running, the next day they weren't. Don't remember the cost of the cab, but the dive shop will tell you, and I don't recall it being expensive. Definitely worth it to dive Bermuda both days. We were very lucky to have perfect weather and terrific dives.

Glad you posted this info re Curacao. I've also had a dive master take us shore diving there, and it was great. I'll be sure to ctc Hans the next time we get there.

Agreed that you don't need a buddy for cruise diving, but I would have no hesitance on booking apart from the cruise line, on your own. Just make sure to tell them you are a lone diver. They will probably buddy you up with the dive master.

Agreed with Dive St Kitts. They are great. In fact, we took a lone diver with us on that dive, and as I just stated, the dive master was by her side the enitre time.

In St Maarten, we use Scuba Fun, and they do a great job. They are very close to the cruise terminal. If you don't have dive gear, you can walk it. Otherwise, a $5 pp taxi ride,

We have been diving on all 3 islands, and they were all fine.

But I would recommend St Kitts for diving. Dive St Kitts is a great operator. They pick you up and give you a rum punch afterwards before taking you back to the ship.

I did not notice St Kitts and totally agree. Dive St Kitts picks you up, gives you a complementary rum punch after the dive, and has a great crew.

As for Aldora. Yes, they are good and have a good reputation, but I have to say they are the only dive operator I've used with which I was concerned about time. We ended up making it back to the ship with only about 30 minutes to spare. Their surface interval was far too long. I still don't know how we ran out of time, as we had the whole day in Cozumel with plenty of time to dive, but we did. Because of that, I don't think I would use them again.

I've dove Cozumel multiple times, almost always with a different dive operator. They are all pretty good. In all honestly, a lot of your dive exprerience depends on the other divers on the boat. I specifically recall with Aldora, we had a diver that had a very hard time clearing her ears. I am not exaggerating when I say divers waited at the bottom, at about 90', for about 10 minutes before she eventually got down. Not the fault of the dive master, but it's just an example that you never know, even with experienced divers, how your dive is going to be effected by others on your dive boat.

Still, Cozumel is great diving, not matter who you use!

Dce,

We experienced the same as you. I don't know why we got the upgrade. When I called Costa directly to request late seating, they told me that while we got the upgraded room, we would not get the upgraded services.

Apparently, the onboard crew is not made aware of who is upgraded and we were treated wonderfully by both the butler and cabin steward. I was very surprised to see that bottle of champagne, as well as the daily fruit basket. Periodic treats awaited us when we got back to the room at the end of the day. And yes, apparently there is an upgraded breakfast menu including hot dishes for premium balconies. We used it several times. We also received a complimentary dinner in the specialty restaurant and were at the cocktail party.

So far, Costa has upgraded us on both cruises we've taken with them. It makes cruising with Costa a yearly tradition when they come to the Caribbean in the winter months. Their unique itineraries and great prices make it hard to pass them up, despite some of their shortcomings. Bottomline, if you know what to expect, you shouldn't be as disappointed, and you should have a great cruising experience.

Forgot to mention, if you really want to make it a good dive trip, go a few days early and dive PR as well, into the Rincon area and La Parguera west & southwest).

Tough call! They all offer good scuba potential, providing you are in port long enough to arrange the diving.

I would say option 1 out of San Juan simply because you have 7 potential scuba ports, and they all offer pretty descent diving. You've got 6 out of New Orleans and 5 out of Galveston. Forget Martinique. I had no luck trying to arrange scuba on that island.

Also depends on whether you are diving with the ship or arranging our own diving. I would chose the PR departure. Except for St Croix, we have dove all those islands. They all offer good diving.

Agree re Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Both great places to dive.

But so is St Maarten. Scuba Fun is a good option. It's a $5 ride to get there, very close to the cruise terminal.

We dove Sept 2014, used Blue Water and were very happy with their services. Great dives! You can take the local bus or a taxi to the shop.

I agree with West Side Scuba in Barbados. They pick you up and do a good job.

In Antigua we used Indigo Divers. Had to take a taxi, but it was good diving.

St Lucia we used Dive Fair Helen but I'm not sure I can recommend them. Still, someone used another dive operator that was worse. DFH does treat their divers to a great, home made lunch. And we did see a seahorse!! But the shop is very far from port, so it took a while to get there. Still, it's a great tour of the island!

As for which is best, can't really say as sometimes, it just depends on the day. As an example, St Lucia was very mediocre until we saw the seahorse. That made it the best dive of the trip!

Dive as much as you can. That's what we do!

Lambs, I'm sure you've read my Mediterranea post, seperate thread. Go ahead and book the cruise. It's a lovely ship, and we had a great time. No, it wasn't perfect, and I did voice some of my concerns, but all in all, it's a good cruising experience. It's a beautiful ship, good entertainment, good crew, good food, good activities. If you have smooth seas, and meet interesting, friendly people, you'll be glad you cruised with Costa.

dce, glad you mentioned the ship itself, as I forgot to. Very clean, always cleaning. Beautiful ship with lots of places to sit, chat and listen to music. Decor was over the top Italian, but what else would one expect! As I previously mentioned, we were upgraded, and our room, as well as room stewart, were terrific. We got everything we asked for and good service.

With reference to eating, one more frustration: if you have earlier dinner seating, you had no access to food late. If you had late seating, you only had access to lots of bready treats, sandwiches with little in them. This led to people hording food, taking food at lunch and snack time to their rooms for later enjoyment. I've recommended to Costa that they do have a late night buffet service. Not a lot of variety, not all stations open, but a little something. But again, this is minor as compared to all else enjoyed on the ship.

And yes, it was odd that they did not have more variety of ice cream. I also think the ice cream was not that great. Not to your usual "gelato" standards. Just kept me away from desserts, which for me, is a good thing.

OK, I know all are entitled to their opinions, but reports of a disasterous Costa cruise are greatly exaggerated. Admittedly, we got a terrific upgrade, so this helped make this cruise quite nice.

Still, it was lots of fun. Love their Animation Team. What a wonderful group of young adults! Very friendly, they go out of their way to assure you are having a good time. Always offering lots of activities throughout the day and evening. I mean, yes, they were a bit different that activities offered on other cruise ships, but for the most part, lots of fun. My only complaint in that regard is that I thought they should have done more on the top, Lido Deck, under the stars, rather than the 1st floor lounge. The musicians throughout the ship, as well as the dancing, was great.

As we all know, this ship has a great itinerary. It arrived at all ports early, and we usually got off the ship earlier. Tender stops took a bit longer, but that's expected.

Now, of course, food is of the utmost importance. I must emphatically disagree with the the previous thread regarding this ship. My experience was so different that I wonder if we were on the same ship. Breakfast was fine. Omelet stations as well as typical American food, cereals and pastries. Yes,I've had better, but it wasn't awful. Lunch on the Lido Deck was just fine and sometimes terrific. They had pasta stations, pizza, salads, and always hot food choices. Always a good variety of seafood, which I loved. My view is that Costa offers a better variety of seafood than most other cruiselines. Different themes on different days, Indian, Asian, Mexican, German, and yes, burgers and hot dogs. Desserts were good, not great. Dinner was 2 seatings, with no buffet, and just fine. It wasn;t great, and the servings were small, but that just meant you ordered a bit of everything, and sometimes two entrees, which was never a problem.

My main complaint with Costa was the beverage stations. They were not well organized, and it was hard to get your drink without bumping into people. And yes, often stations were shut down, and closed down early in the evening. No coffee with dinner unless it was a specialty coffee you paid for. That did add a bit of frustration to the dining experience. And it was hard finding seating during peak periods.

And the shows were good. I've seen better, but they were good. All in all, we met lots of terrific people, and had fun. I look forward to doing a Costa cruise in the Carribbean again some time next year.

Couldn't find it on Costa website: Does anyone know if we are allowed to bring a bottle of wine per person on carry on, as many other cruise lines are now allowing?

All inclusive not a good option for us as hubby doesn't drink.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone. Happy New Year!

How about getting in on a Monday, (Feb.9) at 12:30, having to be back on the ship by 6PM. I did check the ferry's and it looks like we can get about 3 hours at the Baths, if we take the last ferry coming back to Tortola. Is this a smart idea? If something happens to delay the ferry, or it has a break down, we have no back up. This is my only temptation to do the ships tour, which considerably adds to the cost of doing it by yourself.

So I guess my question, for those of you who seem to know, is it a good idea to do it all on your own if you want to see the Baths and are only in port for 5-6 hours.

As an alternative, are their tours available on the pier, last minute. I know the possiblity of missing the ship still exist if there is a problem with the ferries, but they know where to go, what to do, most likely at a more reasonable cost, and I wonder if that is a feasible option.

Appreciate any insight!

Hello and Happy New Year!

Does anyone know if you can get Euros on the cruise ships with Carribean sailings?

Thanks!