Costa Atlantica Review

4.0 / 5.0
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Cruising Italian Style: A Winner

Review for the Eastern Caribbean Cruise on Costa Atlantica
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GSRDPM
First Time Cruiser • Age 20s

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Additional details

Sail Date: Mar 2010
Cabin: Panoramic Suite with Balcony
Traveled with children

Background: This was the 5th cruise for my wife and I, the 4th for our kids - ages 14 and 11. We have cruised once on Norwegian almost 20 years ago, twice on RCCL and most recently on Carnival in late December 2009. My family enjoys an active vacation and looks forward to enjoying the shows on board a cruise ship, the company of fellow cruises and nice meals in the main dining room where we can eat a nice, relaxed meal - something we seldom experience in our normal, daily lives. We're not drinkers, gamblers or ones for cruise ship sponsored excursions, so we pay most attention to the no (additional) cost features of a cruise.

This was our first cruise on Costa and reading the mixed reviews on Cruise critic, I was a little nervous about what the experience might be. Most of the negative comments posted on this site relate to either the quality of the food, the perception of service or the behavior of fellow passengers. That said, we approached the cruise with an open mind. Since we are not really "foodies" and even our kids are open to trying new things we were cautiously optimistic with regards to the menu. I guess it helps that we are all pasta lovers and if all else failed, we could eat pasta with every meal! We also figured that we would approach the trip as more of a "cultural adventure" given the more diverse makeup of fellow passengers and crewmembers.

Booking experience/price. We decided on booking this cruise for one main reason - PRICE. Costa was promoting a kids cruise free special. We initially booked an E1 (obstructed ocean view) cabin but as priced dropped we upgraded to a B9 Balcony. Booking through an online travel agency I was able to get extra frequent flier airline miles, but calls to get additional information or request upgrades was a little more complicated than dealing directly with the cruise line. With less than a month until sailing another price drop took placed and I noted that Panorama Suites were now priced less than our B9 Balcony. A call to my agent resulted in an upgrade to the Panorama Suite, but no refund or onboard credit of the difference in price. Oh well - I was now in a suite for four on a seven day Spring Break cruise for less than I paid for an OV on a Carnival 5 day back in December between Christmas and New years! (I kept the upgrade a secret from my family - they were still expecting the E1.) Through the Costa website, I reserved two boys and girls drink cards ($22 + 15% gratuities each) as well as two additional meals in the specialty restaurant (for the kids) as the suite included dinner for 2.

Cabin Review

Panoramic Suite with Balcony

Cabin PS

Spacious with a great bathroom (Jacuzzi tub worked great!) and separate makeup area. Nice trim and light fixtures. Plenty of storage. It was nice to be able to adjust temperature easily. Nice spacious Balcony with a chair, lounge and small table. Lighting on balcony is bright enough to read by at night. Quick access to seven elevators/stairs but no elevator noise.

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