Costa Diadema Review

4.0 / 5.0
146 reviews

Diadema: a disappointment

Review for the Mediterranean Cruise on Costa Diadema
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alcruise76
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Dec 2014

Compared with other multiple Costa cruises done on other ships, the Diadema has been a disappointment. The ship (5000 passengers) has the same surface area of public space (swimming pool, dance floor, theater, reception) as other smaller ships (3000 passengers), thus causing overcrowding and long waiting in line for lunch or reception. It seems that the number of staff has not been increased in proportion. The staff looks exhausted and sometimes lost with no time to communicate with passengers.

In this new concept of ship, forget about eggs in the morning, sorbet at the end of dinner, pizza for lunch, coffee dispensing machine for lunch: these are now options to be paid extra. The daily service fee has also been increased to 8.5 euros per person. It seems that everything is done to save or gain money. The decoration is fine, more simple than older ships, and looks more like an American shopping mall. A sign of this commercial spirit is the publicity placard for an Italian travel agency that hangs from the balcony over the swimming pool.

The food at the Fiorentino restaurant is of the standard Costa good quality with good prompt service (except for desserts which are poor, without now the usual possibility of having an ice-cream or a sorbet) but the cafeteria is a disappointment (long lines, poor choice, difficulty to find a table). Scanty tea time (short of green tea, offering only a choice of either dry cake or biscuit), no more midnight snack, no more pizza. We went to the special Costa club restaurant: service was poor and super slow, frozen food was cooked, dishes arrived cold, white wine was not chilled, you had to beg for bread). The Italian spirit of Costa is going downhill: the atmosphere is becoming international, bland and money-making.

Cabin Review

The cabins are as usual, comfortable and clean with good room service.

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