costa or HAL

[lolmerry]

Have put this question on the HAL forum ,also,thought I would ask costa forum for their input, Looking at far east cruise in jan 2012 HALand Costa both do one but which ship would i prefer,Have been on ocean village 3 times and liked the lay out of the ship,also been on thompsons but thought their ships were a bit basic,Can anyone give me some insight of the costa line Classica, Also can you amend the graturities and tip individuals on the costa,as i think you can on hal,and do costa do onboard credit or cabin upgrades sorry lots of questions

many thanks lolmerry

[RoadTripFanatic]

I've not been on the Classica but I have cruised once with each line. Costa will not give you upgrades based on your cruising with HAL even though they are owned by the same company. (I think that was your ?)

 

As for which line to chose I would pick HAL. I found my experience on HAL was better overall than on Costa. I just liked HAL better. The food is the BEST food I have ever had on a cruise ship. (I've had my share.)

Overall our experience on HAL was great.

My cabin steward on Costa was amazing! The staff on the ship (Pacifica) was great. In all honesty the service on Costa was just as good as on HAL. I like having more information. I like having more food options. I loved our vacation with Costa and our trip but I just like HAL more than I do Costa.

[bodget]

have sailed with both lines twice.costa was always on a cost basis but enjoyed both the atlantica and serena.Food was far superior on hal,(not saying costa was poor) average age was higher on hal and formal nights were observed (and policed) more vigorously.

[Dancer Bob]

I find HAL and Costa are about as opposite as you can get, in terms of your fellow passengers. I will not go back on HAL until I'm at least in my 90's, using a walker.

Yes, the food is "better" on HAL, if you're looking for things like a steak that's larger than the dinner plate. For Costa's prices, I've always been quite happy, and I find the service at least as good. However, expect a more "European" experience on Costa, which may not be to your taste. English will not be the first language of most passengers.

For dancing and nightlife, there is simply no comparison. Costa starts at a time when HAL passengers have long gone to bed.

[bodget]

The average age on our trip on Hal was about 50 on the westerdam and Lower at Xmas. A lot of extended families seem to do Hal for holidays.shows were better on Hal,costa entertainment was more restrained in the carribean than in the med

[woan]

I was on Far East cruise on the Costa Classica last year and Alaska on HAL as well. I had a great time on both.

 

The Classica is a pretty old ship and my cruise was majority non-English speakers. Meats were really awful as they use steam for cooking. Staff, especially, the entertainment team were great and amazingly knew my name within a couple days (OK I won the first two foosball tournaments with an Italian traveller by the name of Marco). I really wish they served more local dishes being in the Orient, but I was told by staff the Italian travelers are picky.

 

I think in general US travelers that expect western comfort might prefer HAL though if you want a more diverse experience Costa might be better.

 

Some observations from my cruise and time in HK:

 

http://www.woan.org/plog/index.php?op=Default&Date=201003&blogId=1

 

Cruise and ship pictures:

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rwoan/collections/72157623567007131/