Was on the CM this last week and had an awesome time! We were due to embark in Venice and flew in the day before and stayed at the best western olimpia in P. Roma. Very beautiful hotel and I highly recommend it. Only one bridge to cross with luggage. The ship didn't dock in Venice the morning we were supposed to embark due to fog. We went early to the terminal to see what we were supposed to do and they put us on a bus to Trieste. Was a nice ride about an hour and a half. All very well managed and I actually really enjoyed the extra time in Trieste since I've never been before.
Once on the ship we found our cabin. We booked an interior but were upgraded to a balcony..nice. I'm so glad the reviews on here didn't put me off from going with Costa because it was a really great trip and awesome value. We have spend 3x as much at mediocre resorts so this was really a surprise. So you know where I'm coming from...I'm American and my husband is Italian, I have lived in Italy and France the last 10 years just to give you an idea of my background. I thought the food was great (I wasn't expecting Michelan star fare though) and even my husband who is the worlds biggest food critic (thanks to his mamma) loved it too. Sure it isn't 5 star but it's good. The breakfast buffet isn't your American brunch but I didn't have trouble finding something to eat at all (donuts, croissants, fruits...) if you do want American stuff get room service. I did it one morning just to try and got a huge amount of French toast, pancakes and eggs Benedict for just 5 euro.
The best lunch was when the chefs set us a pasta demonstration near the central pool. There was 5-6 different pastas and all were soooo good. I found you do have to look around the different buffets to find different things. I didn't eat breakfast or lunch in the mdr so I can't comment on them. The drink package is defintely worth it even if you don't drink tons of alcohol. I had no problems paying for a few bottles of water here and there for the room, but could easily get glasses of water free with my drink package from any bar or in the mdr. I did not have the USA water thing because I didn't book through the us site.
Balcony with a slight obstructed view due to lifeboats but still awesome. Was very spacious and clean.