Will I be dissapointed??

[CruiseGal28]

The last time I was on a cruise was 3 years ago on the Celebrity. We had a great time. We are again going with the same group but this time they are going with costa. I am a little nervous that I am being downgraded. Should I be nervous?

How does service? Entertainment? Food ? Compare?

[billie5]

It is hard to compare the food 3 years ago on any cruiseline with the food today. The effects of inflation and the cruiselines keeping the fares fairly level have resulted in degraded service and food. However, that being said, most people are content with the loss of quality versus what it might have cost to maintain the level. (For example, compare the fares on Oceania with Celebrity. Oceania prides itself on the level of the cuisine, but you certainly do pay for it. Personally, I am happy to be paying less.)

 

As to a present-day comparison of Celebrity and Costa, I believe the food on Celebrity is superior. However, most passengers will find the biggest difference in the milieu, not service or food. On Costa, as an American, and even as as English speaker, you will be a minority among a large number of Europeans speaking languages other than English. If you find this stimulating (as I do), you will love Costa. If you find this intimidating (and I certainly think no one should), you will not be entirely happy. Either way, this facet is IMO more important than any difference in food.

 

Bill

[Captain Canuck]

been on a few...its definately European...mostly Italian on the ones I was on...smoke everywhere....and the food while good is made for Italian taste....not bad just different.....if you go to have a good time you will probably not be disappointed

[G.M.T.]

CruiseGal28, will you be disappointed? Other cruisers can express their thoughts and relate their experiences but only you cab decide if you are / will be disappointed.

 

Costa is a global cruise line, not only in where it positions it's ships but also the passenger mix. Italians are NOT always in the majority, the mix depends on many factors, i.e. school holidays, which Costa company has promoted / pushed the particular cruise etc.

 

If you go with an open mind you will enjoy Costa, but if you go with preconcieved ideas, namely expecting an American cruise ship getting off the ship for some local customs and traditions then returning to an American Bubble -then Costa is not for you.:o

 

For me going on ANY cruise is not downgrading but being able to enjoy myself. With regards to entertainment, that can be different where most of the announcements are in 5 languages so you will not get to see a comedian, the same joke in 5 different langauges! As you will be in a group then you will have so much more fun.:rolleyes:

 

Service is one of Costa's major plus points, always found the staff to be most helpful and smiling. :) Two areas where the service for me is abysmal are the on board infromation desk (most behind the desk I find are snobs) and the customer care department (on land), if you send in a complaint then it is like a Black Hole, everything goes in and nothing comes out.:mad:

 

With regards to food, if I get to sit at a table and can order my meal from a menu and have it served to me and without having to pay a bill at the end or even have to wash the dishes - for me that is just great. If you do not like what is on the menu, there is also the standard meals available, chicken, salmon or spagetti. The cruisine has very good pasta, but it is certainly not for the Italian taste for much more for international tastes (mosts of the chefs are either German or Austrian).

 

You are paying XX amount to cruise, so go with an open mind and say hell to everything and "IT'S MY VACATION AND I'M GONG TO ENJOY IT".

 

Have a great cruise (don't forget the review)

Ron

[abitaturbodog]

Just thought I'd add my .02....Smoke is not a problem on Costa in the Caribbean. The poster who wrote this has not been on a Costa ship out of the US. We've gone on 2 in the past year, and loved every minute of our vacation.

 

We are a family of 4 with two pre-teen boys. Costa was our favorite cruise experience! The food, service, music, atmosphere, international passengers, was wonderful.

 

If Costa was sailing in November this year, we would've booked instead of Carnival.

[Captain Canuck]

was specifically referring to the med...people smoked everywhere including the non smoking areas

[Jamrenjer]

have always heard good things though! My 2 cents: We have been on four other lines-- and twice on Costa. We really enjoyed it-- it has a different flair.... we loved the Italian food, we also loved that there seemed to be less pushiness when it came to selling things-- from not pushing foo-foo drinks, bingo etc... maybe that was just our opinion.... the ships were great-- Majica and Mediterranea-- the service was great too.... we loved the European influence-- it was a nice change... we would definitely cruise with them again... BYW-- is there such a thing as a "bad" cruise?:)

[Hans]

just love the Costa way of cruising, let it come and enjoy.

 

Most people complaining here don't have a clue what holidays are about.

And most of it is just not true.

[genni]

Downgraded?...Interesting point of view...Why did the group of friends risk choosing it? Time/price? Go and enjoy the Med. Sea area with your friends, whatever pros or cons can be laughed away together. The 'Italian' food on board does not always please the Italians either, but no one starves (few delux items like lobster...I found the beef tough at dinner, but fine at lunch...).

Yes, it is an international line, announcements are made in various languages - hint, if you are in a noisy area - if they don't begin in English, and probably won't - move on to a quieter area and wait for them in English! The difficulty is that people hear it's not their language and continue to be noisy until it's theirs (even English speakers!) and their volume goes up immediately afterwards. Human nature, yes, unconsiderate - yes! You can always make it a game to see who understands what in a different language!

But Costa, for the Med. Sea or other European itineraries is a way to get alot of Europe in, and not worry about hotels, food...at each stop.

And always remember - many Europeans actually do manage quite a bit of English - nasty comments about Europe on the elevators/lifts are not exactly diplomatic, also, just trying to communicate with people around you who are from some other country may indeed enhance the trip, there are many enjoyable people out there, don't close yourselves off.

Smoking - there are some areas where it is permitted - the actual regulation for open decks might be a question. (Many European countries permit such in the open - hence open air cafès on land also... but often with the restriction that children or expecting mothers are not present). Personally, on the sister ship, the Concordia - in January, it got quite smokey in the main atrium (info desks/bar/elevators), due to poor ventilation, and on the pool/buffét level - it was odd - smoking section (limited) was on the right of people entering - most head automatically to the right when entering, not the best placement!

I'm an American (born in the USA but, quarter of a century ago, married an Italian and has lived here in Lucca since - I go back to the USA every year, but am a dual national ) - I agree with others who have found the 'Info Desk' a delusion ( I found the young ladies often hovered on nasty - they really ought to learn that a passport - in my case USA - does not mean that a person did not understand the Italian comments between themselves!!!!Most disappointing, absolutely not professional!)

Do note that you might have to give your passport to Costa - this is to thin problems on arrival to different ports, they obtain a 'blanket' vista for the ship - and everything is quicker...but, one has to trust the fact that they go to shore and do not have their passport. It went well for me, but might remain a question.

All in all, if you leave home with the feeling of being 'downgraded' - are you doing a dis-service to the rest of the group who chose Costa? It's all up to you, AND the homework you have all done to visit where ever on land.

Have a safe enjoyable trip

[Joren]

I'm just back from the Serena Nov 2-9th.

 

I'll be writing a review but wanted to mention that the cruise was MUCH better than I'd been expecting based on some of the comments I read here.

 

There were some basic billing problems that I think were unacceptable, but the restaurant and cabin staff were AMAZING. Food in the restaurant was great - only had one soup that I didn't care for.

 

Being one of a limited number of English speakers could be intimidating for some, but they tried to put us together for dinner and we had a great table of people and we all looked forward to dinner every night. Most other tables didn't have the revelry we did.

 

I think if you go with an open mind, be nice to the staff and remember you're on holiday, you'll have a great time!

[bklsmom]

I have to agree with the majority of past Costa cruisers...It was wonderful, both of them!!:D The ships are designed by the same Joe Farcus that decorates Carnival ships, and you can feel his presence in Cost ships as well. The service is top, the staff, friendly the food impecable!! Dinner in the dining room is quite nice, with 5 to 6 course meals. All meals also include a pasta course and they are always fantastic! If you like nothing on the menu steak, chicken, and spaghetti are always available as is cheese cake. Even the food on lido is wonderful and first rate!! Yes, the European flair is a bit different and all announcements are spoken in Italian, French, Spanish and English, but it never bothered us. The magica had the best cruise director we've ever had on any ship, Max is awesome!! The ending of the cruise on the last night is something really special...Roman/Toga night is so much fun...but be sure to dress for it and have a blast. I was on Carnival last month and my DH and I both really missed Toga night!:( I will definently take a Costa cruise again!!

[Captain Canuck]

I had an issue with the smoking but other than that it was a really nice ship and a great cruise

[ansjefitnes]

Did a Costa Cruise this summer on the Atlantica and I was pleasantly surprised with the ship,food and staff. It was great even the beef and fillet steaks were cooked to perfection and ver tender. The ship was beautifull and very clean. Smoking was only permitted in designated areas and the ventilation was good. As I said after reading awfull things about Costa I was a worried to go but had a wonderfull time. There were no rude people (although most of them were Europeans like myself) and no pushing for drinks etc.by the staff.

 

Have a great trip

 

Maria

[above sea level cruiser]

I had an issue with the smoking but other than that it was a really nice ship and a great cruise

 

Got it, problem with the smoke X 3.:confused: Sheesh!

 

We love Costa. First cruise and in my opinion the best. Very personable, great food. Loved it. Have been on many other lines but still think that Costa is very good and possibly better than most other lines. Just My Humble Opinion.:)

[pujro]

Been with a mixture of lines lately, including Celebrity, and we think Costa stands up very well against anyone else so far. (also agree with bklsmom, Max on Costa Magica is quite a character)

Cheers

pujro

[monicajay]

Loved the X1 package on Costa. Wish all the cruise lines had it. Haven't been on Celebrity so I can't compare.

 

It will all be about attitude. Yours. If you go into it with a 'downgrade' attitude you will always be comparing.

 

So far we liked Costa best.

[NevadaHiRoller]

Cost is extremely, extremely different from Celebrity. Just know that.

[Denisern2]

I would take Costa over Celebrity any day. Celebrity is not the same as it was three years ago. Go on Costa with an open mind and you will love it.

[1stimecruiser]

ok, I have a different opinion ... I've been on 3 Celebrity cruises and 2 Costa and several other lines. I just returned from the Med, roundtrip out of Rome - Costa Concordia, Nov 30th - Dec. 11th -- I loved the ports, the ship was ok, out of 2800 passengers 328 were English speaking, this WAS a problem. I took a Med cruise on Celebrity and English was not an issue. If you can speak Italian you will do great, otherwise, reconsider it. We went because of the low price but won't do that again. We had fun, but missed out on a lot.

[cruisekitty7]

I have cruised with Costa 3 times in the past 3 years and love the line. It is very adult themed and adds new elements to cruising that you don't get on other lines. It is very European so don't expect lobster tail or steak on formal nights. The announcements are in multiple different languages and often other passengers don't speak English, but is is fun to see the other cultures. The toga night on the last night of the cruise is the best party on a ship ever. I guess any cruise is what you make of it.

[DavidO]

My family of 4 just got off the Fortuna Sunday.

 

I will start by saying we had a good time and a fun vacation. I will follow-up by saying it is different and we will not use Costa again for several reasons.

 

We have been on 15 cruises on many cruise lines so are comparing it to other mainstream cruise lines.

 

Some good and bad observations:

 

- Dining room food - good. Decent choices. Some a little different but also things we liked. Food was good.

 

- Buffets - poor - Very few choices on the buffet. Choice do not change much. Buffet lines get long many times.

 

- Entertainment - Day time activities on sea days are very limited. I think a big part of this is the different languages they need to accommodate. Shows were hit and miss. The production shows the ship's production company did were good. Trying to accommodate languages hampers what they can do I think (comedian was physical comedy without talking for example). Over all I would rate shows as fair with the activities being poor.

 

Tender back from Grand Cayman - The tender from Hell. Once we showed up at the port it took us 1 1/2 hours to tender back to the ship. It was so disorganized and people were trampling all over each other. The line was 20 feet wide and not organized (wide, not long). The tender boats were over filled past their capacity with people on the steps and standing.

 

Lots of small things - There were lots of small touches, offerings, or items that they did not do. Many are not huge but overall I think it is because Americans have higher expectations from our cruise lines than the Europeans. My wife did not like that they did not have hand sanitizers more.

 

Customer service - Awful. I had an awful experience with them cashing some travelers checks and gift checks. Then they were telling different stories and making all the passengers upset with the fuel surcharge refund. Their attitude was not helpful and they would not put anything in writing to have as proof of what happened. At the last days the lines were long and people were not happy with how they were handling the fuel refund.

 

Disorganize - Overall they were very disorganized. For example, we did self disembarkation and got off 7:15 am. We heard from others they disembarked after 11:00 am.

 

Passengers - Was about half European and half Americans. We quickly made friends with a British family and spent most of the cruise with them which was great and helped make the cruise enjoyable. A lot of the Europeans seemed to sneeze and cough more at the buffet which my wife did not like. They also would go the wrong way more at the buffet or just butt in line. They were friendly overall though and no problems with them besides those observations.

 

We went in with a good attitude and had a good time as I said. Costa is just not our cup of tea. We got a super price on it so are not upset for the price we paid. It just is not our choice for the future.

 

David