Wonderful location - everything else was OK too!	1 of 1 people found this review informative
Reviewed By: Fowler, Abertawe on 7th Oct 2010
Cruise Line: Costa Cruises	Times cruised before: 3-5
Cruise Ship: Costa Luminosa	Sailed: August, 2010
Destination: Arctic	Age: 65+
Cabin: Balcony	Occasion: Getting to a destination
This is the 4th time we've cruised with Costa (returning to this line after a pretty uninspiring experience with P&O) and overall we were very satisfied with this cruise. We chose it for the location, especially Greenland, as somewhere probably quite different to most places we'd been before, and we weren't disappointed in this. We were a bit blase about Iceland - seen geysers and waterfalls before, those these were spectacular - but the Faroes were interesting though unfortunately this was the wettest day of the whole trip. Costa Luminosa was OK, though I couldn't really understand why it was supposed to embody light - the atrium was if anything rather dark. The cabin was fine, very similar to other Costa ships we've been on, with plenty of wardrobe space, a serviceable, if small, bathroom and an OK sitting area. We were able to make use of the balcony quite a lot of the time, including at anchor off Illulisat in Greenland, when it was amazingly warm - global warming is clearly a reality which the people here are very aware of. We were expecting the usual mix of nationalities but were unprepared for the fact that first-language English speakers were a very tiny proportion of the passengers. According to the Captain in his welcome, there were over 30 nationalities amongst the passengers (he listed them all) but I am not sure that the safety drill needed to take place in virtually every language (except Welsh!) However, announcements were not always in the usual six or so languages but on occasion were only in Italian. Facilities on board were generally OK, apart from the library which was woefully inadequate. We bought a package for the spa so that we could use it throughout the cruise (there were a lot of sea days on this cruise) and that was excellent. Returning to the ship after a tiring day ashore and having an hour or so to revive in the jacuzzi, steam room, saunas etc. before dinner was very enjoyable. Food was very good and service generally helpful and friendly, though some areas of the ship weren't very well served for getting a drink, coffee etc. There were the usual Costa 'events' - drinks with the captain + Italian night, when the waiters danced with passengers before everyone set off on a conga around the restuarant. I must admit that the idea of this makes me cringe, but in reality it is very enjoyable - lighthearted and fun! There were some aspects which weren't great (shows in the theatre for example) but overall this was a good cruise to a very special destination.
Quality of Food
We had early dinner which wasn't ideal (not always much time after returning from excursions) but late on Costa is TOO late. For breakfast and lunch we sometimes ate in the restuarant & sometimes in buffet. Went to speciality restuarant once which was fine, though more from the point of view of having a 'restuarant experience' rather than the crowded main one.
Entertainment
It was all a bit pedestrian, acts were mainly people who performed elsewhere on the ship. Best was probably the crew show.
Shore Excursions
Favourite was Illulisat (Greenland) because it was so different.
Staff
Staff in spa - generally friendly, helpful...
Children's Facilities	n/a
Onboard Activities
not nearly enough. This is a bit of a problem given the range of nationalities / languages, but apart from some pretty boring craft workshops + dancing there wasn't much else, or not of interest to me.
Cabins
It was fine - no complaints.
Overall Rating

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