I chose this cruise because the timing and itinerary worked best for me to relax on a cruise after a land tour. I have never cruised with Costa before. Though my agent said that it is so-so, I decided to give it a try. After 7 days on the Mediterranea, I think I most probably will not come back to Costa cruises again. Costa cruises may be for some people but not for me who can only understand English and looking for a relaxing ship.
The decor in the ship was nice and in general it is a beautiful ship. The cabin is similar to those of medium priced cruise lines. As for dining, I think the food is OK, generally not as good as the other similar priced cruises I was on (e.g. Princess, Celebrity). The Entertainment was typical and the performances were enjoyable.
I was told that there are be many languages spoken by the announcers (which is expected being in Europe). But I think it is difficult for me to understand some of the announcements when some announcers, after speaking many sentences in Italian and just summarize in a short sentence in English. In addition, some announcers spoke too fast and with a heavy accent that the clearest words to me were ‘Ladies and gentlemen,…, Thank You’ with much of the message being missed. Since we were at port every day, I did not attend any of the ship’s activities. So the language barrier only affected me in understanding the general announcements.