Cheap Cruise Holidays & Latest Cruises Deals
Thursday 24th May 2012
Sign up to our newsletter for all the latest cruise news, reviews, photos and answers...
Costa won us over.. |
10 of 10 people found this review informative
|
| |
|
Reviewed By: Phillips, Kilmarnock on 3rd Dec 2011
|
| Cruise Line: Costa Cruises |
Times cruised before: 10+ |
| Cruise Ship: Costa Pacifica |
Sailed:
November,
2011 |
| Destination:
Mediterranean
|
Age: 56-65 |
| Cabin: Outside |
|
My promised review. I had booked this cruise as a last minute break before the worst of the Scottish winter weather began, drawn by the lead in price and prepared to experience something 'different'. By the time a flight from Glasgow was added and an ocean view instead of inside room the price of the holiday was still very affordable. We had scheduled flights by KLM from Glasgow to Amsterdam and on to Milan to be transferred by coach to the port of Savona, all sounded fabulous and we were actually looking forward to the 2 hour coach trip through some lovely Italian scenery. However, our flight out from Glasgow was delayed due to fog at Amsterdam, which delayed or cancelled practically every flight in and out that day. So we couldn't fly to Milan to meet the ship at Savona. After contacting Costa they advised us to have our flights rebooked via Athens and we would pick up the ship at the next stop 2 days later at Katakolon. We did this with a couple of hiccups like delayed take off, missing luggage and a 4 hour transfer across Greece via the Corinthian Canal, but got safely to the port to meet the ship which was great. Staff were expecting us and we were on board and in our beautiful cabin within 30 minutes. This made it quite clear to me that if we had not purchased a package then we would have been very much left to our own devices and could not possibly have afforded to do what Costa did for us. Our cabin no 2421 was on Adaggio deck (2) had a lovely starboard view, a settee, 2 armchairs, coffee table, large king size bed, 3 wardrobes and a fair sized shower room. We were delighted with it. The ship is only 2 years old and the bed felt like new, in fact it was the most comfortable bed I have ever slept on, on board any ship.
However our delight was short lived. We were very tired after the stress of the previous 2 days and we decided to have an early night (in bed for 10.30). Then the noise started overhead. Sounded like great metal barrels being rolled across the floor above us, then loud banging noises. I fell asleep during a lull in the noise but my husband didn't and he only dozed most of the night. The noise went on till about 4.00am. In the morning all was quiet and we decided it was probably a one off and did not complain. The next night was the same, again I slept through it all, but not my husband. In the morning I went to the Guest Relations Desk and made a formal complaint. The officer said that if the noise recurred that night I should phone the desk and someone would attend our cabin immediately and establish the cause. He then said a lot of the aft cabins are affected by noise as the galley for the two dining rooms were overhead. Sure enough that night was the same, we telephoned the desk, an officer attended said they would have the noise stopped, and it was definitely the galley. It didn't stop. Another 2 calls to the desk and the officer said they would move us the next day, which they did. This time our room was a balcony cabin on deck 8 with a view over the stern. Quiet and peaceful at last. The balcony cabin was a few inches smaller in length but made up for by the private space on the balcony.
We had requested a table for 2 at the first sitting in the dining room which we were taken to after some delay regarding which of the two dining rooms they had space to put us, it was fairly near the door but actually was quite a private space once the rest of the diners were in. The menu was extensive, 7 possible courses, choice of 3 appetisers, soup, a pasta course (choice of 2), main course (choice of 4) salad course with choice of dressings or just the oil and balsamic vinegar which was always on the table, cheese course, and dessert, again a choice of 4, always including the most delicious ice cream. Also there was iced water poured, you did not have to purchase bottled water, and not pressure to order wine either. The reason for this detail is that the food has been criticised by previous reviewers and whilst I have experienced perhaps slightly better quality on certain items on other cruise lines by no means was it poor. (There was also grilled or poached salmon, pasta with choice of sauce, and either veal or pork on their always available section in addition to the main menu). To me the only item missing was coffee after the meal. We had one meal in their 'speciality' restaurant Blue Moon which was 20 euros each surcharge, however we had a lovely 4 course dinner with a main of Chateaubriand and outstanding desserts which made it worth the extra cost.
We thought the entertainment provided in the Stardust Theatre was lacking somewhat in both content and variety, several of the acts in the theatre were already providing musical entertainment in the themed bars throughout the ship. The mime artist was very funny, and there was a male singer, Roberto, who was clearly a favourite of the Italian contingent, who had a very powerful and quite good voice but no other acts of note. All the bars had different musicians playing different styles of music, most of which was really enjoyable, and there was no problem finding a seat in the bar that you enjoyed best. Also several venues to dance in styles from ballroom in the main Grand Rhapsody lounge to soft rock and disco. We enjoyed Rick's Bar the most, great bar staff and bar manager (Jasper) who mixed great cocktails, although the singer/pianist sang with a very strange accent, and I think I heard someone say he was from China, but that may be incorrect. The drinks were expensive, e6.50 for a spirit plus a mixer, the cocktails were e6.80 and a Drambuie (or other liqueur) strangely was only e4.70. Wine started at about e20 a bottle, but we don't drink a lot of soft or fizzy pop so did not use the drink packages. Self serve coffee was available all the time in the buffets, and cold water and ice on tap too. Also 2 pool grills serving burgers, hot dogs chips and salad. There was a big movie screen on Deck 9 at the pool area, but we did not see anything being shown on it other than continuous adverts for the Costa Cruise line.
Both boarding and leaving the ship there were anti bacterial hand gel dispensers, entering and leaving the buffets, entering and leaving the theatre, and several other spots around the ship where staff did their best to ensure that everyone used the hand cleanser, but of course there are always those who don't think they have to. I believe there may have been a problem with Norovirus on board as we were aware of several people who were very unwell with some type of gastro-enteritis, but as we all know, it is a well known hazard on board many ships who do their best to minimise the risks of cross contamination. The ship was extremely well kept and clean, a couple of the velvet covered chairs in the main lobby were showing signs of wear but possibly because of the fabric and heavy use in the lobby area. Generally we thought the ship was quite beautiful, if perhaps a little garish in places, but decor being so much of a matter of personal taste and opinion some would love it others no doubt will not. It was bright with all the public areas having port or starboard views. It was a real shame that the only area on board where you could see the view ahead was to stand on the top deck (12) behind the wind deflectors. I so much love to be up on deck to see the port we are sailing into but that really is picking fault where there isn't any!
After a couple of days going for breakfast and lunch in the open seating dining room, we decided it was not for us as we were seated beside groups of people who generally speaking ignored us once it was established we were of a different nationality, and we breakfasted and lunched in the buffet. There was always a massive choice of dishes, hot and cold, an omelette station, plenty of fresh fruit, juices, breads and pastries, all actually put on your plate by serving staff, there was none of the usual looking buffet where the average passenger has dug in with the biggest serving spoon and messed it all up. It was very well presented and managed extremely well by the catering managers and chefs.
Many of the other passengers were extremely rude and pushed and jostled in front of you while trying to make a coffee for example, also they did not like waiting in queues for anything, including the excursion desk, the Guest Relations Desk etc so clearly a case of man mind thyself, never mind the others.
The staff on board were friendly, helpful, and spoke English fairly well. Obviously the main nationality of the passengers on board was Italian, but also many French, German, Brazilian, several Americans and some other British people. The dreaded multi-lingual announcements were extremely few, and only urgent messages were actually broadcast in the cabin, which is the same approach as Princess. Smoking was not the issue we were expecting, thankfully. Smokers did not encroach on areas where they were not allowed, although strangely the Sports Bar had a much larger smoking area than non-smoking and the smokers had the most big TV screens to view. The only area that non-smokers (like ourselves) could not avoid was the Casino which straddled the whole width of deck 5, where all the entertainment was, and to go from one end of the ship to the other on that deck you were forced to walk through it. It was not possible to walk the length of the ship on any other internal deck unless you went through the long corridors of the cabin decks, which of course you don't want to do.
We went on 2 excursions from the ship, one to Athens @ e59 each, and one to Rome, which was really just a return coach transfer @ e29 each, and we then had over 6 hours to take an open topped bus City Tour and wander round and really see what we wanted to, including a very having a reasonably priced lunch (e26) with wine within sight of the Angels Bridge near the Vatican City (don't think we could have eaten so cheaply anywhere in a tourist area in Britain).
There was lots of open deck space over the 4 outside decks and plenty of sunbeds. Also lots of towels for deck/pool use, which were regularly replenished by the deck staff. We were not aware of sunbeds being reserved or left with belongings on for long but due to the time of year it was frequently quite cool on deck so this may be different in the summer.
The disembarkation process was a bit disorganised but we have experienced the same if not worse with other cruise lines, so did not have an issue with it at all.
The return journey and flights were all on schedule and without incident.
To sum up, would I recommend Costa Cruises? I have to say yes. Would I cruise with Costa again? Yes. Is it our new favourite cruise line? no, it is not. For us the evening entertainment needs to be better, with a choice of shows or a movie to go to. However it is most definitely an affordable holiday on board a lovely appointed, clean ship, lovely cabins,with great staff and reasonable food.
|
| Quality of Food |  |
| | Entertainment |  |
| | Shore Excursions | |
| | Staff |  |
| | Children's Facilities | n/a |
| | Onboard Activities | |
| | Cabins | |
| | Overall Rating | |
|
Receive a FREE copy
of Fodor's
Complete
Guide to
European
Cruises
|
|
.jpg_thumb.jpg "Santorini sunset")
Previous Cruise Reviews
