Costa neoRomantica Restyling

[dizzy1948]

Ta again - just gone over - will post

[mainelycruising]

We've never left. It's just that with all the Concordia interest there are hundreds of new CC members who are monopolizing the forum. After things cool off it will be easier to post and get cruise advice again.

p.s. The youtube and cited articles are all fairly old info.

 

Until the last body is found and respectfully dealt with, and the ship is no longer an environmental hazard but an insurance claim...

 

....those of us who love reputable cruising WILL monopolize this board.

[sylmack]

Until the last body is found and respectfully dealt with, and the ship is no longer an environmental hazard but an insurance claim...

 

....those of us who love reputable cruising WILL monopolize this board.

 

Relax. There are 5 pages and thousands of comments regarding Concordia 'information' and conjecture. The majority of it repeated over and over again.

 

I am sure you can allow a single thread where someone discusses something Costa related that doesn't involve the unfortunate Concordia incident.

[G.M.T.]

Relax. There are 5 pages and thousands of comments regarding Concordia 'information' and conjecture. The majority of it repeated over and over again.

 

I am sure you can allow a single thread where someone discusses something Costa related that doesn't involve the unfortunate Concordia incident.

 

You hit the nail right on the head.

 

Ron

[marinearchit]

The NeoRomantica is a showcase of how to make an ugly boat out of a distinctive, elegant and exceptionally clean design. When I saw a rendering of this huge forehead being dropped onto the classic ship a few days ago I was thinking "what the hell..."! And then this block of balconies glued to the center hull! I thought this ugly modification inherited from some of Carnival´s Fantasy-class ships should not be repeated elsewhere. Sad.

 

The one modification that really got me was the atrium. I wish the updating would have allowed some of the original aesthetics of the atrium to remain, as I love the clean lines of the room, but the refurb seems to be taking the space in a much more traditional direction.

[Capricruiser]

I remember the atrium being just a central staircase used mainly from the Piazza Italia bar up to the deck above with the shops and pizzeria.

[bahrain_not_dubai!]

When I toured the Classica here in Bahrain, I loved the ship. She was so relaxed, so laid back and just the right size. She seemed like a great ship, both on the inside as well as the outside.

 

Overall a lovely package. Nonetheless, I guess today more than any other time what a cruise ship looks like on the outside means nothing. People care only on what lays on the interior, and that's it. If Costa was willing to have an ''elegant explorer'' type ship as is in the HAL set-up the Classica would be a good ship. However, if they want her to continue with main-stream cruising then I agree, for her to be able to have a chance to compete with the new tonnage out there, she will need extensive refits, as is being shown with the Romantica. A shame really, as they both are lovely ships, but then again they need to fit their purpose.

 

Cruising was never about pretty faces- note how NCL was able to transform France from one of the, if not the sleekest vessel on the seven seas to the strange looking ship that emerged after her 1991 refit, with the two extra decks.

 

The Norwegian Epic- enough said. Yet it is what lays on the inside that matters, and looking at the deck plans the Romantica looks attractive enough.

 

We can only really decide when we see proper photographs after work is completed though.

 

On another note, to those that think everything should be Concordia related- there is over 4,000 posts on one Concordia topic alone here- it may very well be a CruiseCritic record. This is the Costa forum afterall, where people can discuss anything Costa related.

[Blondie008]

We are booked on Magica to sail 31st of May, Have just been told that Magica is being replaced with Noe Romantica! So i will let you know how we get on.

 

Dotty? Can I ask you what you were booked on which category, and what they have given you now on Romantica? We were in a Grand Suite on Magica..theyve put us on a deck 4 oceanview with £225 obc:mad::mad::mad: we are livid beyond furious?? What changes did they make with your booking? Our daughter and husband too, were in a balcony, moved way down now to a deck 4 E category...they are going on TODAYS prices, not the price when we booked and saying have no suites or balconies for us... can you tell me please what changes did you get and any OBC??

Thanks!

[G.M.T.]

Dotty? Can I ask you what you were booked on which category, and what they have given you now on Romantica? We were in a Grand Suite on Magica..theyve put us on a deck 4 oceanview with £225 obc:mad::mad::mad: we are livid beyond furious?? What changes did they make with your booking? Our daughter and husband too, were in a balcony, moved way down now to a deck 4 E category...they are going on TODAYS prices, not the price when we booked and saying have no suites or balconies for us... can you tell me please what changes did you get and any OBC??

Thanks!

 

Blondie,

 

Don't forget that you can cancel your cruise with a full refund without giving any reason. This has to be done and confirmed by 7th. Feb.

 

Ron

[Boy Blue]

Liz

 

Hope you read this quick.

 

talk cruising (other way round) point com

 

Hope you understand my encryption?

 

Ron

 

PS. It's like a family reunion

 

How long does it take?

 

Never got an email :rolleyes:

[Blondie008]

Blondie,

 

Don't forget that you can cancel your cruise with a full refund without giving any reason. This has to be done and confirmed by 7th. Feb.

 

Ron

 

Yup I know Ron, but am so mad.. this is for a big birthday for me, and have family flying transatlantic.. dates are fixed, housesitters etc fixed, and to re book now to something else prices are way up. I am disgusted they did not re allocate like for like. We are all waiting on pics from the shipyard to decide if we can bear a porthole...

No one can even tell us the square footage of the cabins and the size of the portholes. I am a bad claustrophobic so it does matter to us. We have asked repeatedly today for FACTS on the cabins E1 and E2 s , to see if we can put up with them. To change from the top suite to a porthole... without even talking to us.. its appalling. I am just back today from 14 nights on a carnival cruise which was fabulous. I loved our suite, and was so looking forward to identical on magica..now...a blooming porthole. Their press conference rants on about customer service... and I know and feel for all of those in these recent events so not going along that road. I would have thought though yes, they do need to re allocate..but the way theya re doing it is appalling. yes I can have my money back..but this is a ONE OFF birthday event..with family flying transatlantic..and we all have to make decisions now but dont have any pictures or artists impressions of the cabins we are in, no idea o size of window...no idea of cabin space, wardrobe space etc... its just a mess and their reservations manager refused even to talk to me on the phone... we may well still do the cruise as its the family event which is more important, but basic FACTS would be a start :rolleyes: They even calculated out the idfference in price on TODAYS prices, not the early saver rates we got nine months ago... so our refund is short, and our OBC is a joke... AND we have no balcony, from a butler suite to a porthole.... looking at trading standards tomorrow...

[tjandluke]

How long does it take?

 

Never got an email :rolleyes:

 

Email was sent- check spam/ junk

[Boy Blue]

Email was sent- check spam/ junk

 

Have done its not there :rolleyes:

Can it be sent again:cool:

[tjandluke]

Have done its not there :rolleyes:

Can it be sent again:cool:

 

Stay tuned- will find out and come back to you

[Boy Blue]

Stay tuned- will find out and come back to you

 

 

Seen it thanks tjandluke :) (thats its being re sent)

[tjandluke]

Have done its not there :rolleyes:

Can it be sent again:cool:

 

In process of sorting out- will be resent but may take a little while. Will post here once done. Unless I see you first there

[tjandluke]

B Blue- should be good now. Done manually so no email required.

[dotty about cruising]

Dotty? Can I ask you what you were booked on which category, and what they have given you now on Romantica? We were in a Grand Suite on Magica..theyve put us on a deck 4 oceanview with £225 obc:mad::mad::mad: we are livid beyond furious?? What changes did they make with your booking? Our daughter and husband too, were in a balcony, moved way down now to a deck 4 E category...they are going on TODAYS prices, not the price when we booked and saying have no suites or balconies for us... can you tell me please what changes did you get and any OBC??

Thanks!

Hi this will take a time! i have been on the phone so many times that they don,t ask my name now! We were given an ocean view on deck 7 insteed of a balcony cabin with £300 OBC, that is for 2 people, we already had £150 OBC when we booked, Now yesterday i sent an E-Mail [so i get the aswer in writting]asking what exactly we can spend OBC on, this was my answer: The onboard credit can be used against the Gift Shop, bar bill and excursions(if booked on the ship).We had already paid for drinks package! i don't want 20 Tea shirts with Costa written on them and with everyone on board having OBC the chances of getting an excursion we want are slim! With my TA fighting for me i managed to get £200 off the cruise and £75 OBC each. I hope this is of help.

[Blondie008]

Hi this will take a time! i have been on the phone so many times that they don,t ask my name now! We were given an ocean view on deck 7 insteed of a balcony cabin with £300 OBC, that is for 2 people, we already had £150 OBC when we booked, Now yesterday i sent an E-Mail [so i get the aswer in writting]asking what exactly we can spend OBC on, this was my answer: The onboard credit can be used against the Gift Shop, bar bill and excursions(if booked on the ship).We had already paid for drinks package! i don't want 20 Tea shirts with Costa written on them and with everyone on board having OBC the chances of getting an excursion we want are slim! With my TA fighting for me i managed to get £200 off the cruise and £75 OBC each. I hope this is of help.

 

Thanks Dotty, its a total shambles huh, no disrespect, but they allocated me a deck 4 oceanview from a GS.. and our daughter the same from a balcony, they have discounted our cruise (well obviously), but what on earth is their admin dept playin at huh... Im gonna push more today, do you know the ship is portholes not square windows??? are you aware of that? Im freakin out here but dont want to cancel our family re-union. They cant even give us square footage or size of this porthole... As for the OBC, well its right back i their pockets huh..think we are using ours to all inclusive packages my son in law says he will drink enough beer to make them pay :D Will let you know how we get on - we are supposed to be getting artists pics from the shipyards of the new makeover porthole cabins...thanks!

[dotty about cruising]

Thanks Dotty, its a total shambles huh, no disrespect, but they allocated me a deck 4 oceanview from a GS.. and our daughter the same from a balcony, they have discounted our cruise (well obviously), but what on earth is their admin dept playin at huh... Im gonna push more today, do you know the ship is portholes not square windows??? are you aware of that? Im freakin out here but dont want to cancel our family re-union. They cant even give us square footage or size of this porthole... As for the OBC, well its right back i their pockets huh..think we are using ours to all inclusive packages my son in law says he will drink enough beer to make them pay :D Will let you know how we get on - we are supposed to be getting artists pics from the shipyards of the new makeover porthole cabins...thanks!

 

Hi, I have an old brochure of Costa and the cabins that we have got say 16 sq metre, they don't have a sofa and look very small! the walls are just dark brown but they may have changed this, but how can they make them bigger, there are the same amount of cabins on the new deck plan for that deck! Good idea about drinks package if they let you do that. I am now worring that they will go bust before our cruise! Can you let me know about the cabin plan when you get it please. Like you we don't want to cancel as the dates are right and we only live 40 mins from Dover.

[Blondie008]

Hi, I have an old brochure of Costa and the cabins that we have got say 16 sq metre, they don't have a sofa and look very small! the walls are just dark brown but they may have changed this, but how can they make them bigger, there are the same amount of cabins on the new deck plan for that deck! Good idea about drinks package if they let you do that. I am now worring that they will go bust before our cruise! Can you let me know about the cabin plan when you get it please. Like you we don't want to cancel as the dates are right and we only live 40 mins from Dover.

 

 

HI Dotty,

Okay, first of all, ALL cabins are being re-furbed, from our research, oceanview and balconies are around the usual 180 - 200 sq ft.

We have taken an option today to board in Amsterdam. It means we have to fly out, but for us, its probably just as easy as driving to Dover. As the majority of cabins for sale are from Amsterdam, we were able to recover our suite and balconies. Its kind of crazy they wont sell us the same cabins from Dover - I knew from the beginning that there were only a limited amount of cabins allocated for sale from UK departure. Our family were looking to board Amsterdam, so this is how I knew its a round trip cruise. I think there may even be people who board in La Havre. :confused:

The ship does look beautiful, we have gone from "cancel, porthole, cancel, porthole, cancel, then option, board Amsterdam back and forth back and forth. Finally, we have opted to go for the Amsterdam boarding which had a suite and a balcony left... so you will be on board one day ahead of Amsterdam boarders.. did you realise it was that kind of round trip cruise? I think, am not sure, there may even as I say be people boarding in La Havre. Your ship wont be empty though as there will be people who are on their last night on your first night if that makes sense?

Like our last night, there will be people boarding on Dover as you get off... its a round trip cruise. So with a bit of footering around today, we have managed to get our "original" booking back as such, albeit on a different ship.

I think the ship is going to be gorgeous huh?? Ive just come off two weeks on a big Carnival ship which was fantastic, but, its nice to be looking forward to something totally different!

See you on board!!!

[G.M.T.]

Blondie,

 

Don't forget to write a review or at least put your thoughts to paper.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

Ron

[Blondie008]

Blondie,

 

Don't forget to write a review or at least put your thoughts to paper.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

Ron

 

 

Will do! I am just off 14 nights on Carnival, havent even got over the jet lag yet, nothing better than having an another cruise organised to cure post cruise depression :D Although I love the big ship party time, I am really looking forward to this one. Totally different ports from the kind we are used to, and a smaller ship. Celebrating my birthday (21 again;)) with those I love, cant really get better than that huh. I am excited for our daughter who lives in the Caribbean, majored in German at University and speaks it fluently, but has never been to Germany.. be fun for her to let loose in Hamberg. So happy now we got everything ironed out. Cheers Ron!

[G.M.T.]

nothing better than having an another cruise organised to cure post cruise depression :D

 

So you suffer from PCD (Post Cruise Depression), this can also affect men too. Luckily for us men, we are spared the other great depression. :)

 

Ron

[dotty about cruising]

HI Dotty,

Okay, first of all, ALL cabins are being re-furbed, from our research, oceanview and balconies are around the usual 180 - 200 sq ft.

We have taken an option today to board in Amsterdam. It means we have to fly out, but for us, its probably just as easy as driving to Dover. As the majority of cabins for sale are from Amsterdam, we were able to recover our suite and balconies. Its kind of crazy they wont sell us the same cabins from Dover - I knew from the beginning that there were only a limited amount of cabins allocated for sale from UK departure. Our family were looking to board Amsterdam, so this is how I knew its a round trip cruise. I think there may even be people who board in La Havre. :confused:

The ship does look beautiful, we have gone from "cancel, porthole, cancel, porthole, cancel, then option, board Amsterdam back and forth back and forth. Finally, we have opted to go for the Amsterdam boarding which had a suite and a balcony left... so you will be on board one day ahead of Amsterdam boarders.. did you realise it was that kind of round trip cruise? I think, am not sure, there may even as I say be people boarding in La Havre. Your ship wont be empty though as there will be people who are on their last night on your first night if that makes sense?

Like our last night, there will be people boarding on Dover as you get off... its a round trip cruise. So with a bit of footering around today, we have managed to get our "original" booking back as such, albeit on a different ship.

I think the ship is going to be gorgeous huh?? Ive just come off two weeks on a big Carnival ship which was fantastic, but, its nice to be looking forward to something totally different!

See you on board!!!

 

Hi Blondie so glad you got it sorted out, yes i did know that it is like a bus picking up people at each stop. What a mess its all been! We are going with friends and have said we are going to put it all behind us and realy enjoy the cruise. Costa's web site is showing the trips again now, the evening one we wanted is no longer there, so will go ashore and have a meal and look round. Might see you in a bar while using my drinks package. LOL. Dotty.