As a third time cruiser on other lines many years ago- but a friend was taking me I was trying to save them money. What a horrible mistake choosing this old tugboat. From beginning to end there were so many things wrong. We got an inside cabin - actually not a problem in itself. The cabin crew were wonderful and attentive. The cabin was fine. The staff at the Hospitality desk were overwhelmed and it showed in their ability to serve in a friendly way. Almost everything was extra. We originally ordered the non alcoholic drinks package as neither drink. It was 96 Euro's for 40 drinks for the week for 2 people.we got a glass of mineral water at dinner in the restaurant..The package included; water, iced tea, non alcoholic cocktails, sodas and juices. Neither of us drink Pepsi products, nor peach iced tea or lemon ice tea, or juices or sweet non alcoholic drinks (non of this was spelled out in the drink package) or we would not have ordered it. We cancelled it and were refunded our money but made to feel guilty. The staff were completely disorganized in most matters. For shore excursions we all met in the theater and had to show our tickets to get a bag lunch. The crowds were huge and pushy and the staff had no idea how to crowd control. The same with the Buffet lines. People just pushed in front of you and grabbed meat off the platter and piled it on their plate and left and left you waiting patiently for a new batch of grilled meats. It was a free for all! Now for the food: It was terrible and unrecognizable. There were terrines of a ground vegetable dish that was reincarnated days later in another fashion as an appetizer. There were virtually NO fresh vegetables except for sliced cooked carrots at breakfast??? There was a small salad choice at dinner. Most of the food was unpalatable. No matter how many courses it was still not enough or good enough. The the came around the table and showed you a menu of additionally priced choices; lobster (which was so small 4 people I spoke with made the Maitre 'D take it off their bill. My friend is handicapped and was disappointed at the short amount of time on the excursion - time in the city - compared to the hours of getting there. 2.5 hours to Florence and 2.5 hours back and about 3 hours in the city. Same in Rome. Even able bodied people complained of the pace and it was on your own. We were dropped off quite a distance from main venues and with so many tourists it was difficult to see what you wanted -even the highlights. We tried to cancel our Marseille tour due to his not being able to tolerate the pace we were told in a very snippy and not compassionate way that in no terms were we able to cancel our excursion. However one of the staff told me it would be no problem to cancel. In fact several other passengers tour were accidentally cancelled and they were upset. We were told he needed to see the ship Doctor and pay 62 Euros to get a medical certificate to cancel and that would NOT include my ticket! Ridiculous. The "Doctor" looked like a washed up degenerate alcoholic. We left very upset. The entertainment was pitiful. This was a disaster from beginning to end. All the Americans we spoke with felt exactly the same way and will be filing complaints as well. Read Less

Staff is from the Philippines and they could not care less about the customers. They are paid very little money so obviously job is not made properly. We had a baby with us and one time we were asked to leave the dining room since there was no place for us and the baby. Food was great on a few occasions but twice we had to go sleep hungry since the food was inedible. I asked the refund for the service charge but they said it was impossible. The bar is a nightmare! You go for a drink and it may take up to half an hour for a stupid drink which most of the time would be undrinkable. The barman stays playing around behind the bar waiting for time to go by. Hot water for the baby was a fight with them. They said hot water only in the morning. For god's sake I JUST WANTED WATER. We paid the piu gusto.... but you can't have a bottle of water! If you want the bottle its an extra 2.50eur. We paid over 200 each to have unlimited drinks. I can't call it a holiday. Staying home would have been a better option. First and last time with Costa. WELL DONE!! Read Less

We chose this 23 day cruise from Genoa to Stockholm only to find out 2 weeks before we left that it was in fact 3 separate cruises. This meant we had to change cabins 3 times ! Food was always cold no matter what time you ate. Even if you were there at opening time. Nearly all announcements were in Italian or Spanish. Also entertainment. No such thing as queuing for anything, it is just push and shove wherever you go, especially when going ashore. Several Shore Excursions cancelled because they don't have English speaking guides. Very quick to take your money though. Fight to get it back. Not enough drink waiters at busy times. Cabin crew do the best they can in the time given them but don't expect clean glasses every day because you only get them on the first day, after that you wash them yourselves. Never again!! Read Less

Our friend selected this cruise for his first cruise and first trip to Europe. We are faithful Celebrity cruisers so I use that cruise line as my baseline. The price of this cruise included the cruise cost, airfare, and hotels on arrival day and day of disembarkation. The Diadema is a fairly new ship that accommodates about 5000 people. People are able to embark and disembark at any of the ports, I believe. For Europeans with families this probably makes it a fairly cost effective cruise. That being said, there were way more people on this ship than on Celebrity. And there were way too many kids. The atmosphere just seemed chaotic. Kids on the dance floor at 11 pm is not my idea of a good time, for example. There are no adult only activities on this ship. The ship is very nice and clean. Cabins are only cleaned once a day. The food was mediocre at best and the choices at the buffet were rather limited compared to other ships. The staff did their jobs competently, but were not the friendliest. We are used to the “welcome back” and smiles that the Celebrity crew provides at all times. Our waiter in the dining room was great, however. A bit of advice if you are booking on the Diadema: beware of the 9th deck. The buffet and pool are over some of the cabins and the noise from these areas is unbearable at times. Chairs were scraping the deck above at all hours. Better to book on a lower deck unless you enjoy being awake half the night. The thing that I liked the best about the cruise was the itinerary. I’ll be sticking to American cruise lines and smaller ships in the future. Read Less

Booked this western Mediterranean cruise to visit most ports that I had not been to. I also had never been on Costa or any other Italian flag ship. I had cruised Carnival, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, and Princess on a total of 8 cruises. The advertised cost seemed reasonable, but then came added things, like water package, drink package, and specialty restaurants like the ice cream bar and the Pizza restaurant. Other high end restaurants are also available. The pizza at the pizza restaurant was the best food that I had on the ship. The Pia Gusto drink package was a reasonable buy which covers most drinks and coffees. The Illy coffee is probably the only thing that would get me on Costa again. Dining room food was the poorest I have ever had on a cruise line. Our waiter seemed burned out, but maybe he was near the end of his contract time.The fact that they board and disembark passengers at each port means less waiting at disembarkation, but annoying safety drill announcements in six languages at every port. The pay for pizza was nice because the pizza was excellent, reasonably priced and because it cost a little extra there was no waiting, which I’ve seen on other ships with passengers that can eat them as fast as they are produced. A small cost for exceptional coffee is much better than other cruise lines “swill coffee”. The passengers are probably 80% European, which means limited chatting with your fellow cruisers which to me is a disadvantage, interacting with fellow cruisers is usually part of the fun of cruising. Would I do Costa again? Probably not. Read Less

We cruised with Costa for the first time in 2018, on the Diadema. It was excellent, so we booked again on the Fortuna. All in all, it was a good cruise, but I felt not as good an experience as the Diadema. The ship is smaller for a start, and I missed the numerous bars and extra expanse of the Diadema. The staff were in the large part nice and friendly with a few exceptions. Those who run the buffet cannot get it cleared quick enough at 'closing time'. Apart from he fact that breakfast has to be taken by 9.30am, and the food will be whipped away at exactly 9.30am, lunch and dinner are a similar experience. Food in the buffet was decent enough, but repetitive. However the biggest issue was that everything was luke warm to downright cold. Even seconds after replenishing, cuts of meat, potatoes etc all luke warm. Costa also still persist with this ridiculous policy of having a manned drinks area. Stingily opening cans of coke etc and pouring them into glasses. God forbid you should want a WHOLE can of coke! This is glaringly different to my last cruise on the MSC Seaside in the Caribbean, where drinks of all kinds are dispensed, water freely available, and even Wine is help yourself at dinner time. Food in the restaurants is excellent, every night was superb. I just felt overall, the Diadema was a better experience. We enjoyed the Fortuna, it tries, is very clean and pleasant, but we would probably not book it again. Read Less

I chose this cruise because of the ports being visited and the low cost. The internet service was horrible, and when I complained and asked for a refund, I was told that it wouldn't be possible. They canceled two of our pre-booked shore excursions - one because it was on disembarkation day (hello - why was it even offered, and why did they let us book it?), and the other because there were not enough English speaking passengers. The next day; however, we were on a shore excursion with 47 English speaking passengers and 4 German passengers, so we had to listen to the whole thing in both languages. Why couldn't they have done that for us on the previous day? The entire cruise catered to the Italians, and it was tiresome to have to hear everything in 6 languages, not to mention that it was clear that they were joking and laughing with the Italian passengers and not translating what was happening to everyone else. They were very chintzy when it came to game prizes (one prize for the whole team, and it was always a thin little tote bag), and the only activities were one or two video quizzes and dance lessons. Bingo was expensive, only played twice, and only one game each time. The food was awful - obviously frozen and thawed, not cooked fresh, and the same old items every day in the buffet, and only 3 choices in the dining room. Water, anywhere but the dining room or buffet, was not free, and in the dining room it was only free for the Americans. Staff was often rude for the most part and didn't offer any accommodation for any complaints or problems. Because every port was an embarkation/debarkation port, the elevators near our room were closed down all afternoon, and then we had to listen to the muster drill more than once. Your credit card is billed in daily increments that never match the daily charges, though the total did appear to be correct. Read Less

The Ship was amazing, we were well impressed with the Shows, the food was lovely and a good choice but it was never more than lukewarm which was a shame, the staff work so hard and are so friendly. We bought one of the middle drinks packages it and proved to be a godsend as the drinks were expensive. We did find it hard work getting back on the Ship after a trip. I also slipped up on deck 10 near the Lido Buffet and had to see the hospital doctor who's bill was €352.00 of which €100 was for a BANDAGE which is a bit extreme by any standards, really thought I would at least be able to use my EHIC as it was an accident onboard , this then spoilt my holiday as I had badly damaged my knee so was in a wheelchair for the 4 days out of 7 and unable to take the wheelchair on shore. Read Less

We were offered a package with airfare and cruise. Seemed like a good deal. We had previously discussed visiting some of the cities on the itinerary, First glimpse of Costa infrastructure technology was when we tried to log in to the MyCosta website It asks for your first name, surname and your "BOOKING REFERENCE" Login always fails unless you omit the first name.. We asked for where it boards. "Barcelona" Which dock ( there are 3 or 4) crickets.. Got on board, and went to check on our pre-reserved packages for beverages, excursions, etc. Most could not be found by the staff. I went outside, where I could get internet on my phone. Logged in to the MyCosta website, and saw that all my bookings were still there. Never did completely sort this out, so every time we ordered a drink the staff would have to double check for our drinks packages as they did not show in our ship cards. First night we went to dinner. We had booked for the "Main dinner from 21 O'Clock" They had us down at "Early Dinner form 17 O'Clock We had booked the Fiorentino restaurant on Deck 3 They had us in the Adularia restaurant We did not care much which restaurant, but did not want to eat at 7. They changed this for us. Second day was to be at sea, and I had booked for my wife to have a Swedish massage - 50 minutes, in the spa. Cost of 99 Euros Of course they "lost" the booking. I checked on My Costa the next day in port, and it was still there. This did not help me that day, so I had the spa rebook it. My wife was booked at 4 p.m., so she went and had the massage. They gave her the "Elemis Asian hot stone massage - 50 minutes" and charged us 154 Euros. They told my wife at the end of the massage that her skin looked quite dry, and sold her a package of 3 different skin lotions to help that. She signed the slip, and did not look closely. When she got back to our cabin she mentioned, so I asked for the slip. They had charged us 595 Euros for the lotions! We went back to the spa and wanted to return these ( unused and unopened, same day, within an hour) They tried to refused. I asked for a manager, and was told that she was not available. I complained to the cruise service desk and asked to speak with a manager. They spoke with me and an appointment with the spa manager was booked for 7 p.m. the next day. We met, she acted all surprised, and accepted our request for a refund. She accepted that, but that the refund had to be done in 2 days later, at Savona, at 10 am. The next day ( and a day before the credit was supposed to happen) they processed the charges against my card for $1,015 CAD The next day ( as arranged) and time I went back to the spa, and ( of course) the manager was not available, and the staff could not do anything. Went back to the cruise ship service, asked for a manager again, and was asked to wait for 20 minutes. Apparently some decision was made in the background, as, when I returned 20 minutes later they offered us the credit, which we accepted, and was processed on the last day of our cruise.. On that day I told them that unless I could log in to my card website and see the credit there I was not going to leave the ship. Drink packages: We booked 2 drink packages: "WATER, COFFEE & BEER PACKAGE" for 69 Euros, to include: " package of 7 water bottles (1lt), 7 draft beers (40cl) and 14 coffees (normal or decaf)." This actually meant: 7 water bottles, 7 Heinecken drafts, and 14 espressos. If one ordered a coffee with milk, they made us cafe latte, and charged our card for 3 Euros. We finally learned that if we ordered an "Americano with milk" we could get this, actually made identical to a cafe latte, and put it against our prepaid coffees. They would not credit us for the 5 previous coffees we had, at a cost of 15 Euros. Cabins: We selected an inside cabin, midships. It was clean, comfortable, and very quiet. Only complaints: TV remote did not work ( they replaced) Only 1 AC power outlet in the whole suite. Bar fridge did not refrigerate. In general, the staff service was quite good. The sit down meals were Italian food and very good with excellent service The buffet meals were chaotic. Running out of many items very fast. They acted like they were preparing to feed 500 people and 1500 had shown up. They charge an automatic 15% gratuity on all purchases, food and beverages. This is not included with the prepaid drink packages, and is charged extra. They charge an extra 10 Euros per day, per person, service charge. Basically the practice is to "nickle and dime" one to death on everything. Most of the ports were as expected. One, Savona, in northern italy is a former industrial town with a population of 61,000. As Wikipaedia describes it: "Savona used to be one of the chief seats of the Italian iron industry, having iron-works and foundries, shipbuilding, railway workshops, engineering shops, and a brass foundry." There is little to see or do there, and apparently it is chosen as it is fairly close to both Genoa ( 56km) away and Monaco ( 132 km away. Pardon my saying and apologies to the citizens of Savona, but it is a bit of a :"shithole" In either case an excursion is a trip by bus for about half the days travelling by roads. I think that Genoa would have been a much better destination, See: https://www.cruisecritic.com/ports/newport.cfm?ID=181 I just looked on Google Maps and saw 2 Costa ships tied there as of the day they took the satellite pictures. In summary: Nice ship, good food, cheap and disorganized cruise company. Will not be back on their ships. Read Less

Briefly; SAMSARA SUITE #11005 - the second largest cabin size on the ship (I believe) - ONE plug socket for guest use (oh and one behind the wall mounted TV) - Massive balcony with tub but horrible blue fluorescent lighting (stops junkies I guess) - Poorly designed bath screen needed a dressing robe cord to stop it banging all night - WiFi signal practically non-existent - Very noisy cabin stewards outside door from 7am - Very noisy "vacuum flushing" system every 10-15 mins from 7am (not toilet) INTENDITORE Drinks Package - massive choice of two wines available at bars (majority of which are closed until 7pm/8pm) - Heineken the only draft beer available (or their own draft from one bar open from 7pm) - No cordials such as lime, blackcurrant etc (maybe too expensive at 30p a litre wholesale) SERVICE LEVELS - bar/lounge service ranged from OK to extremely slow - I go out of my way to be polite to staff but it made little difference on this cruise BUFFET RESTAURANT - went once - not to be repeated - cold food, limited choice and no method in its layout (treasure hunt to make a meal) THE CLUB RESTAURANT - staff training = zero - maitre'd was their for his benefit not to ensure the guests had a great experience - rushed courses despite asking several times for it to be slowed down - plates removed while my wife was still eating - new cutlery put in place even while my wife was still eating - extremely (EXTREMELY) limited choice but what we did have was nice - please, no more mozzarella or pasta dishes (Italians cannot eat only this surely) - vegetables twice in 7 days (5 runner beans one day and a carrot on another) - screaming children running around restaurant (its supposed to be a dining experience) SHOWS / Venues - Italian and in Italian (90% of the time) - but I expected it so was ready I guess - very little variety of music around the bars and minimal seating in most - theatre layout really poor - estimate 20% of audience could actually see the whole stage ENTERTAINMENT (quizzes etc) - italian and in italian BILLING - overcharged 114E so queried at reception only to be told I had to go to the Spa to get it corrected. I had never set foot in there so why do they expect their guest to do all the chasing - overcharged again by the Spa - this time for 210E. I went there this time as I was closer to them than reception. The Manager simply told me "you really shouldn't worry about these things, they will get sorted" - perhaps if they didnt happen TWICE for somewhere I had never set foot in, I would have been a little more understanding. DEPARTURE - carry your own luggage as this helps you to get off the ship faster (you will thank me) SUMMARY We have now taken 41 cruises, 6 of which were on another Italian line MSC. Costa is by far the WORST cruising experience we have EVER had. The noisy, rude groups of Italians weren't the issue as they're on MSC too. Just about everything about Costa was the problem - poorly designed ship - minimal staff training and therefore mostly poor service - limited bar times and extremely bad choice of drinks in each - poor but expensive wifi - limited food choices in The Club Restaurant - billing issues TWICE Yes, Costa are a cheaper alternative - but they don't even seem to want their guests there. Read Less

This was our 3rd with Costa (and 26th overall) and we had always had great experiences previously with Costa so did not expect anything different on this cruise. We were very disappointed overall. The ship overall was very nice. It was well maintained and decorated nicely for Christmas. Whilst the layout of the ship is not the greatest (you have to go up or down to get where you want to go sometimes) and the public toilets are not well signed, it is functional. Getting on/off the ship in ports was possibly the easiest ever. Debark we were off the ship collected our luggage and on the bus within 5 min of our appointed time. Now for a quick review on each area - Cabin - Despite many complaints it never got below ~22/23c - the only person who cared was our cabin steward. Food - MDR - Very inconsistent in quality/taste/variety/service. The first night dinner took just under 3 hours and on average we were 2+ hours with the first dish coming to the table approx 1hr after sitting down. One night I ordered from the kids menu to find something I would be happy with (I am a picky eater, but can normally find something I can eat). Also Breakfast was always a Scrum, even though I thought they did a great Ham and Cheese Omelette, I could not handle the craziness. Buffet - Very inconsistent in quality/taste/variety/opening. It was a treasure hunt to put an actual meal together. Teppanyaki - By far the worst we have ever been to. It was tasteless with some poor quality meats and the show was not good either. Burger Place - Decent but nothing to write home about. PIzza Place - Yes you have to pay for the Pizza - This was by far our best meal on board. Staff - Except for 3/4 people I found most staff to be rude/unfriendly. Now I don't expect a lot but common courtesy goes a long way. Bars - Overall quite limited. We ended up in the Beer bar on deck 5. Even at €2.50 a beer with our package was worth it. Also the service was top notch! We did speak to the Hospitality Desk about some of our concerns and the International host called me back 2 days later to discuss them. Offered Pizza or Crepes as an apology, I suggested an OBC to cover part of the teppanyaki and she said she would see what they could do. Here I am at home and I am still waiting to hear. I want to be very clear, I was not expecting any credit when I complained, I really just wanted a colder room. I did however think the Panettone left in the cabin on Christmas Eve was a nice touch. I could continue, but overall we are just disappointed after great experiences previously. Read Less

We chose this cruise because the time and cost was right for us and the ports visited appealed to us. The time spent in each port seemed reasonable also. We are American and we did know the experience would be different for us on an Italian ship...previously all our cruises have been on Carnival. (The first day as soon as we got on the ship and went to the buffet, a couple sat down next to us at the table, but as soon as we said "hello" they got up and moved...obviously they didn't want to sit next to Americans!) The employee, Michaela, who "took care" of the English-speakers was very nice and helpful, having a separate meeting with us and offering her help when we needed it. If you are English-speaking be aware that announcements will be made on Costa ships in various languages, taking up a lot of time. The cabin was comparable to Carnival cabins, as the designer of the Carnival and Costa ships is the same. However, our cabin was showing wear with the front of a drawer falling off among other things. The cabin steward was efficient and nice. One thing I found disappointing is that Costa assigns you a cabin, no choice of your own! On Carnival we always choose the cabin we want. We ended up with a cabin at the aft of the ship. It wasn't a bad location except in rough waters, which we had only once. Food in the dining room was beautifully presented but not always tasty. Main entrees sometimes seemed odd, even though I am a fairly adventurous eater. One of our waiters was really screwy, laughing at who knows what...our American table-mates and us? Food at the buffet was always the same and plentiful, tasty for the most part. Costa offers drink packages and it seemed to us beforehand on the website that in order to have water at meals you'd need to order a water package, and we ordered one for me. I wish we hadn't as I could have had natural water at meals anyway. The package stated that you'd have this water to carry with you, however, the water is in liter bottles that I did not want to carry with me, especially on excursions. Plus, the waiters NEVER understood that I was to get this water (my choice of sparkling or natural) during the whole cruise, even though it was printed on the back of my Costa card and even after several phone calls in which the customer service person said they would speak to the waiters about it! They admitted the employees needed more training! My husband had the beer package and had the same trouble. His Costa card too had "water" printed on the back of it so it was a reoccurring problem as well. Fact is, you could get wine or beer anywhere without a package and the cost seemed to be the same. I would not recommend purchasing drink packages. The worst part of the cruise was the trouble we had with excursions. The one I was looking forward to the most was cancelled. This was the "Gourmet" excursion with wine-tasting and truffles out of Savona, Italy. First they said it was cancelled due to not enough English-speakers signing up for it, but when I inquired about going on a non-English-speaking excursion to that location they said they were not going there at all! We substituted an excursion to Genoa. As it turned out, I had obviously eaten something in the dining room the night before we reached Savona that didn't agree with me and I just could not risk being away from a bathroom on a bus for an hour to go to Genoa the next morning. I took medicine on my own and knew I'd get over it in time and didn't need a doctor. When we called to cancel that excursion they said we could not cancel it unless I went to the doctor, for a fee of 50 euros, and got a note saying I was not well enough to go on the excursion. We said, soooo you can cancel an excursion on us but we cannot cancel one on you! Right? They said right! If I'd spent the money for the doctor and he said I was okay, which he likely would have done since I had no fever, we would have spent the extra 50 euros and still paid for the excursion. As it was, we paid for an excursion we didn't take. Then, after our excursion in Pisa my husband started having back and hip pain and knew he was not going to be able to walk for the 2.5 hours on the excursion we'd booked for Rome the next day. We decided we'd be better off doing the "Rome on our own" tour and tried to change it the night before Rome but the excursion office was closed. We called early the next morning and they said we could change the excursion at the departure point but still had to pay for the original one. So, we did that out of necessity. Rome turned out to be cold and rainy. That was not Costa's fault of course, but almost all the people on our bus returned to the point we were to meet the bus early because we were all miserable due to the weather, and the bus did not pull up until the exact minute we were to leave. It does seem like the bus could have gotten there a little ahead of time as there was space to park the bus and the weather was so awful! Most of the tour guides were okay. The one in Pisa was excellent! The one in Palma de Mallorca spoke so fast that we couldn't understand her even if it was in English! All in all, the Costa excursions were disappointing for us, although Pisa was excellent and we had a wonderful time on our own in Aix-en-Provence, which was an excursion out of Marseilles. This cruise had people embarking and disembarking at each port, which was also different. This meant that there was a safety session each day for those just getting on the ship, and that there were extra announcements and "noise" each day. We did not take an excursion in Barcelona as we got on and off there. We spent 4 extra days in Barcelona at the end of the cruise and that was a very pleasant part of our trip. Glad we did that. Barcelona is an interesting and very friendly city! Actually, the very best part of our cruise was time spent with the English-speaking couples we met. With so few of us we developed a sort of camaraderie among us and that was fun! Thank goodness for them as I must say that some of the other people on the cruise (not all by any means) were actually rude and pushy, not something we were used to on a cruise. In conclusion, we will not take a cruise on an Italian ship again, and don't recommend it for Americans. My total rating of 3 stars is generous. My husband would rate it a 2. Read Less

So a group of 7 girls decided to go on a cruise for one of our friends 40th birthday, only 2/7 people has done a cruise before so it’s an amazing idea on something different to do. We boarded at Barcelona, everything went very smooth, the check in staff were helpful and informative, so sat at the bar waiting to be called. After looking at the info the check in desks give we head into our room, collect the cards and walk out. We then go to reception get a drink, go for an explore, then head to the top deck. That’s when it goes slightly downhill, no one knows what to do next, we didn’t know about the entertainment information or the timetable as we were so excited to go exploring we seemed to miss the little pigeonhole right next to the door, I finally understood on the last night. Not Costas fault but it’s not explained very well once onboard the ship. Also being a group on girls on a birthday weekend I think there was a few more drinks flowing than normal. At 6.30 there was a safety demonstration which lasted about 20 odd minutes, then off to dinner for 9.15pm, that was a definite eye opener so very busy, the waiter we had wasn’t at all friendly (although we later found out they can work up to 8 months and that’s without a day off), even I don’t think I could plaster a smile on my face everyday. While dining in the main buffet Michael Jackson started blaring on the loud speaker, then up out of no where all the waiters start jumping about dancing. That was amazing as it comes out of nowhere!! Food was good, although the menu can get confusing as the waiter never did explain that you can order anything and everything if you choose. We all dance the night away and that was a great first night. Next morning with a slight hangovers and an early morning wake up call as someone managed to get locked out of their room and went off with another friend in another cabin, we all shower and up we get for a buffet breakfast. I can see from the choice of breakfast that they do try to cater for different nationalities but the breakfast isn’t great to be honest. I try some pancakes and bacon and that’s it. The coffee also isn’t great as unlike the bars where they have a machine and a milk frother they don’t have in the buffet, so water or orange juice is the way forward, also they don’t have a toaster, and the bread is rock solid. You could kill a bird with it. Off we go to marseille, hmmm next time I won’t bother as there’s not overly a lot to do there, walked around, saw some buildings, forced an alcoholic drink down our neck and back on the boat. lunch at the buffer, again it wasn’t too great, rock hard bread again, some warm focaccia, pasta, and a big lump of beef with potatoes, not great if you’re a vegetarian (I’m not, but 2 of our friends are). Go to dinner at 9.15pm, this time the waiters dance to some latin songs, ver well done again. Then another repeat of the night before, more drinks and dance the night away). The 3rd morning head off to the buffet again, this time no pacncakes, I don’t eat eggs so not a lot to choose from, I grabbed 2 pieces of French bread with cinnamon and some pineapple, that will do. We get off at Savona, 1 MASSIVE tip, other than supermarkets everything else shuts at 1.30 and opens back up at 4.30, unfortunately we have to be back on the ship by 4.30 so we spent an hour walking in a group of 7, with different people trying to find a restaurant just so we can get a pizza, it didn’t go down too well but got there in the end. Back on the ship, more drinks, a lot more passengers so the bar on deck 9 was a complete nightmare, then off we go again. Down to shower, off to the 9.15pm dinner, waited until 10pm to ask the waiter what time will the dancing be on tonight, he tells us there won’t be any, shame, so we all thanked him, 3 went off to bed, 4 of us decided to pop off to the casino. Within half hour our 50€ was spent and off to the bar we go. A few more drinks down our necks an the conversation turned to the bar staff. When we took 5 minutes out of our busy lives to see the amount they work, the stuff they have to put up with, and the hours they work on a daily basis, I’m so grateful for my life. The amount of time they’re away from home, they don’t see their families for months and months at a time. While we go on holiday they’re there at our beck and call when we want a drink or service. So thank you Henry and Danny for that night. So last morning just before we go to Barcelona, we set our alarms to make the restaurant breakfast. I do wish I’d gone there before but to be there by 9 is a bit of a deal breaker, unfortunately again we had a not so friendly waiter and had to be called about 3 times before he would come over to serve, at least it was nice. Back to the room to get our stuff as we had to be out by 10. We decided to go back to deck 9, as we started off from there a few more Prosecco to finish up the holiday, and off we go to the shops, pay our bill at the desk and get ready to leave. As they bleep mine and my roommates cats and unfamiliar buzz goes off, we’re not allowed to leave but everyone else disembarked, so back off to the desk to sort the cards out. Cards done and out we go. The 2 of us are last to pick up our luggage go through everything and my friend realizes she’s had some money stolen from her case. Do not leave any money in your case. There’s signs around saying the same so I don’t know what was going through her mind at that time when she left the case outside the door the night before. You HAVE to leave your cases outside of the room the night before for them to collect it. They advise to leave the cases the night before by 12 midnight and no later than 1am, but I witnessed them not coming until 3.30 am. Do not leave anything valuable at all. There’s always people workers and non workers wandering the hallways so could have been anyone. I also had stuff taken but luckily not money. Anyway other than the little hiccup at the end it all went well. I also missed the last day lunch as I was too busy booking my next cruise onboard. This time as a family, so hopefully the next one will be a little less partying and a little less hangovers. On the last note, be aware that if you suffer from rocking on land, It’s been 48 hours and I still don’t feel great and I’m still rocking and swaying. Maybe I was a little hasty in booking the next one but I’m sure I’ll be over it then. Read Less

We chose the cruise for the destinations which we had not been to previously. The embarkation in Valencia was a fiasco and no assistance when entering the ship from Costa staff. Beautiful ship, we had a classic inside cabin which was fine. We did notice that the carpet wasn’t too clean but other than that okay. Went to buffet to get a bite to eat and drink!!! No way, it is only open for short periods of time. Luggage did not arrive in time for us to change for dinner so forced to go back to buffet when it had opened. Wish we had not as food was very unappetising and was the same repeated every day for the whole cruise. Breakfast was a case of a free for all... never any clean bowls or cutlery not to mention a clean table. We gave up some days and went ashore to eat. Dining room okay but not a lot of choice and very rude waiter. Had to pay extra if you wanted a pizza or burger, the two most inexpensive foods!!! Entertainment was just okay and the general service on the ship is poor. All the destinations were good, we did not use ships excursions as they are too expensive. Was very surprised to find that Costa have now made the service charge (tips) 10 euros each per day mandatory. When I questioned this at Reception I was told by a very officious man that I had signed for terms and conditions and so must pay them. I would not mind if the service was good, but it is not so 200 euros for bad service!!! This just cannot be right. We have cruised now for 15 years sometimes twice a year and never have had such a negative feeling about a cruise. Apart from the destinations and the ship is beautiful there was nothing else to praise. It is said that it is relatively easy to get new business but very hard to keep it. Costa don’t seem to realise this, they certainly lost us. Read Less

restaurants was of poor quality and service was poor. The crew were rude and not very helpful. You ask a question and the crew person would turn away and walk away. We were 12 people from the USA and all 12 of us felt like costa did not want our business. The crew just made you feel unwelcome The room did not have towels or wash cloth After a meal if you want coffee or another drink you had to buy them. You had to ask for ice. In the restaurants you had to ask for butter and ice with the meal The pasta was the worst I have ever tasted. Breakfast on the buffet was poor at best. you the to go to three different place to find eggs and meat and after breakfast the only drink was water with not ice so the water was room temp. I have already started telling my friends not to use costa lines Read Less

We choose this sailing because of the itinerary. We are experienced cruisers and have been on over 30 cruises. We had never tried Costa Lines but virtually have sailed with all other cruiselines including Norwegian, Holland America, Carnival, Royal, Princess etc.. We had thought how bad could Costa be? Firstly. when we boarded, our Passports were immediately confiscated When we questioned why we were told that this is common practice for cruiselines for non-Europeans guests. When we advised that it definitely was not common practice for our passports being taken away (as we had been on many other European cruises) Costa advised us that it was mandatory. They insisted on holding our passports in their safe until the end of the cruise. We went on a shore excursion from Savona to Monaco booked through Costa that required our passports. When we asked for them we were told that Costa was having trouble 'finding them,' The tour bus had to wait until they were finally found. There were less than 80 English speaking passengers out of 3,800 passengers on board. Very few of the staff spoke English. As a result almost all of our excursions that were booked with Costa were either cancelled the night before (by way of a note left in our cabin stating that there were not enough English speaking people) or we were forced to go on an excursion where the tour guide spoke either Italian, Spanish or German. We understood very little of the few words in broken English that were said so these excursions were a waste of money since we could not understand a word. When I complained politely to one tour guide her name was Fernanda, that I was sorry but I could not understand (I asked her if it was a Church where we were stopping) she told me in very broken English and in front on the whole group that I had a bad attitude. I honestly felt humiliated so kept quiet for the duration. Most shows were all in Italian or Spanish so the entertainment on board was impossible to enjoy or even understand. The food was not anything that we had ever experienced to on ANY cruiseline. You could not get a slice of Pizza unless you were willing to pay an extra 4.25 Euro per person. (Please see photo) Quite surprising on an Italian cruiseline. There was no coffee available anywhere on the ship from 11am until 4pm unless again you were willing to pay extra. (see photo). There were signs on every coffee machine saying 'Washing Mode' everyday from 11am-4pm. No coffee after dinner in the tdining room either. No ice cream the entire time without paying extra again. My husband ordered the Chicken Parmesan in the Main Formal Dining Room. (Please see picture.) no sauce was on it, the processed cheese was not melted. When we asked for some sauce he was told that was not available. Finally he asked for Ketchup as it was extremely dry and was served packaged Ketchup like one would get at McDonald's. Many of the staff including waiters were very rude and seemed frustrated that we only spoke English and they did not. We will never go on Costa again.. Read Less

The good points are cabin excellent and kept clean. Boarding was efficient and the terminal very clean. Most staff were hard working although if you're English speaking some didn't seem to understand unless basic requests at the table. Entertainment was good, especially the Tenor singer. Wasn't keen on the night the staff provided the entertainment, some were good others pretty mediocre, bit like BGT. The on board dance team were great, providing lessons as well. That we did enjoy. The bad points are: tips being compulsory and not being told upfront, probably in the small print which no-one reads, and not told on booking. Bottled water not included in the drink package, but tap water is ok. The food in the restaurant was poor. Some meals were just ok but mostly it was cold or tepid at best and I even suspect some was leftovers from the buffet, re invented. One particularly unappetising dish was the meat skewers. One piece of lamb or beef (couldn't tell), piece of a sausage and a piece of chicken, in bread crumbs and fried, served with a scoop of mash potato that was grey and lumpy. There was no sauce, so was very dry. We waited nearly half an hour for our starter one night also. Uninspiring desserts also, often something frozen. Better deserts in the buffet area. No gelato ice cream or pizza available unless you pay for it. I expected this at least on the menu as it's an Italian ship. They pick up and drop off at every port, meaning the muster drill is carried out every time and takes place in places where passengers are trying to enjoy themselves, like the Orlav Bar. We had to sit through it or move on. Lots of tannoy speeches in lots of languages, which one time interrupted the dancers who had to jog on the spot until it finished and then try to carry on. The quizzes were Italian based, e.g Italian cities and types of pasta, so unless you were Italian not much chance of winning. I know it's only fun but you like a chance at least. I used the spa and was given a dressing gown which I had to carry from there to my cabin each time, and if I didn't hand it in at the end of the cruise there would be a charge of 79 euros. Also for the pool towels left in our cabin. My husband used the gym, but one day loads of unsupervised children entered and just basically ran about and played on the gym equipment even though a sign said no-one under 16 allowed in there. There was potential for injury. The poor staff were continually pushing a lobster dish for a price, which became a bit tedious. We didn't do any of the shore excursions. So overall I would not choose Costa again. I have cruised with other lines so I do have something to compare it with. This was my 2nd Mediterranean cruise, the previous being with NCL which was a far superior experience. I could go on with more disappointment but I think enough said, I don't want it to become a novel. Read Less

This has been my absolute worst trip ever (I have travelled to over 60 countries) and never experienced such a lousy service and environment in all my previous trips! -Paid over 1500 Euro for a inside cabin per person with unlimited drinks for this trip for me and my girlfriend. -I was lied to about price of drink from bartender and later, I AM NOT trusted by the receptionist. (Johnie Walker Gold label. Was told I was going to be charged the difference of what my drink package included vs listed price. but got charged full 15 Euro drink price) -The jacuzzi was too warm to enjoy. We only visited ONCE and never used it again. -The pool was impossible to use. Only children occupying it! -Children everywhere. Absolutely everywhere. It is not acceptable for example to see kids and teens in the nightclub at 1AM occupying the whole dance floor. There was no space on the entire boat other than inside our room, where I could enjoy quality time with my girlfriend in peace without kids shouting or bumping into us!!!! -We paid 30 euros each for a "luxury" dining experience at Teppanyaki. We got sat right next to 3 little children who could not sit still and made lots of noises. We were met by apologies from the Chief of Restaurant, but no discount or any other compensation was offered. I expect some level of service and environment when I pay 60 Euros on top of my all inclusive!!! -Childish servers and staff on the boat. I invite you to see this for yourself by going undercover. For example: Talking with them-self, laughing and when they look at me: Their face turns very serious like they are having a joke! I saw this in two different places on the boat by different staff. Maybe its humor from their side, very stupid one if that is ture, but that is not acceptable if you want to deliver good international customer service. They should meet clients with a smile at least! -Restaurant service: -Waiting 30 min. after sitdown for first drink even before ordering food. This happened on several occasions!! -Mix up of food and tables. For example, in one instance we waited for champagne 20 minutes. After waiting so long, I see our champange delivered to next table. I inmediately let know the waiter that it is probably mine. He said nothing and went away without aplogizing. We had to wait another 20 minutes for the champagne we ordered while waiting for our food and no other drinks at our table! I sent a email to higher mgmt. at Costa and Carnival cruises to ask for their opinion about my feedback, no response yet. (4 days ago). Read Less

The check in process was very tedious but once we arrived at our suite I was surprised to see it was much smaller than expected. Balcony was cramped also. Barely enough room for 2 seats. Staff were a mixed bag of emotions to be honest. Some very happy, others seemed like they had enough. Food was good. Breakfast buffet was average but the ala carte was much better. Facilities seemed rather simple. Empty bar lounges. Tiny casino with 2 tables and heaps of pokies. Pool area was packed with kids as expected and was less than inviting. English is not the preferred language onboard and it's hard to communicate to most people you meet also. Shore excursions were simple and seemed rushed. Given the short duration of the port visit, travelling 2-3hrs by bus to see something quickly wasn't worth over 100 euros each. Overall it was an average experience and I would not recommend it if you only speak english Read Less

My friend and I had often looked at cruises but were both very wary about seasickness. Whenever shopping we would always pick out outfits that would be 'good for our cruise'. In comment this June, I said 'We have loads of cruise outfits but no cruise", so we decided to bite the bullet. As I was travelling from the Canary Islands and my friend from the UK, we decided to choose Barcelona as our start and finish port and after a lot of investigation, booked with Costa and the Costa Diadema. We wanted a balcony cabin and with this we also booked the Piu Gusto drink package (well worth the money) and also took the opportunity of the Special offer of 99€ for 5 excursions (the price on board at the Welcome meeting was 149€). So with, cruise outfits packed, off we set. We travelled to Barcelona the day before and stayed at the Avenida Palace hotel which was ideally situated for a quick day tour of the sites in Barcelona. The following morning, we caught a taxi to the airport which was about 10 mins away and were dropped off outside the terminal. There was a queue to drop off cases, which moved very quickly. We were then directed upstairs where our photos were taken for our Costa Cards - and then proceeded to board. The whole operation was 'super slick' and far easier than passing through Passport control at Stansted airport!!!! Our luggage and Costa Cards had been delivered to our rooms - so we grabbed the courtesy beach towells provided and went straight out to relax and take the sun on deck. We wanted to stay on deck as we set sail from Barcelona at 1900 but there was a delay so we decided to go back to the cabin and unpack and prepare for dinner. We had brought with us packets of seasick tablets, every ginger product going and pressure bracelets. We unpacked, showered, got ready for the evening and only then did we realise we were actually at sea. So for any 'nervous first timers' like us, it is true!! You really do not feel the ship move!!! There was a Welcome meeting during the afternoon along with the safety drill. The Costa Cards can be activated at the totems throughout the ship by either depositing cash or linking them to your credit card. All purchases made on board, photos/extras/excursions etc are all added to your card. (On the last day, any remaining cash is returned to you in cash by the same machines - very well organised). See separate cabin review. We had requested second sitting in the Adularia Restaurant (21.15) - which is the smaller restaurant and seemed to have more tables for 2 passengers. The other restaurant is the Fiorentino (used for Breakfast too) and is on two floors. The food and service here were excellent - our waiter Sachin was very attentive and pleasant. The dinner service consists of 4 courses, anti pasta, soup/pasta, main dish of fish/chicken/meat etc and dessert. As well as the main menu, there is also always an added menu which includes, soup, salad, pasta, chicken & fish dishes. The menu is predominantly italian. The restaurant was busy but you didn't feel that it was crowded. One evening consisted of quite a few of the staff doing a dance and singing routine which was fun! There didn't seem to be a strict dress code - most people were dressed smart casual - the gala night did see some long evening dresses and suits for the men, but not everybody did this. When Sachin found out we drank white wine, there was always a bottle ready on our table before we had even sat down and more available, should we have wished. One evening we ate in the Teppenaki restaurant which incurred a surcharge of 30€ but was well worth it. Fantastic evening with excellent food and showcase cooking! I would have done this a second evening too if we had had time! A waiter service lunch was available in the Fiorentino restaurant -(regardless of where your evening restaurant was) or you could eat at the buffet Corono Blu. The buffet was on par with a good 4/5* hotel, salads, soups, grilled meats/fish, pasta, ice-cream, fresh fruit & pastries. Breakfast was also offered in the Corono Blu restaurant, continental style buffet - no hot food. The Fiorentino restaurant had bacon, scrambled eggs, beans, hash browns, boiled eggs, sausages as well as the normal continental menu. There was also another separate menu offering Breakfast specialities such as 'The Full Monty' - typical full english, USA breakfast of Pancakes, bacon and maple syrup, - Eggs Benedict, Mexican breakfast, omelettes which were all cooked to order and served at your table. Upon arriving at the restaurant you are allocated a restaurant - usually with other diners as there do not seem to be many tables for 2 available. We also used the room service and had Breakfast in our room from the Room Service menu, this had an additional charge of 5.00€ per person but was delivered on time and hot - worth it if you are rushing out for an early morning excursion! The evening entertainment in the bars on board was superb and catered for all ages and all tastes in music. It was really nice to watch people dancing to tangos, salsa, waltzes and never waited longer than a minute for a drink! There were lots of things going on during the day, wine tasting, dance lessons etc, etc which we did not take part in as we were out and about - but it all looked great fun! The Piu Gusto drink package was well worth it and covered the majority of cocktails, gin, vodka, whiskey, barcardi etc. There was a supplement for the more expensive makes of whisky/brandy & Champagnes. However, if you do not chose the drink package, they were still reasonable priced. A mojito was around 6.50€ which is actually less than I have paid in a 5* hotel in Gran Canaria. There is also a soft drink and water package - so apart from having a bottle of water on the table at dinner/lunch etc, water in the bars will be charged for. At lunch in the Corono Blu restaurant there is a water station where you can fill up a water bottle to take out on the deck with you or back to your cabin. Our day at sea between Mallorca and Sardinia we spent sunbathing. There are plenty of sunbeds around - it seemed to get busy mid-morning so few spare but then at lunch time lots became available again. We booked the 99€ excursion package (offered at 149€ at the Welcome Party). This offered a good range of excursions, but if there was another one you wanted to do, you could pay a supplement. IF YOU ARE ENGLISH - BOOK EARLY!! This was our only disappointment of the whole holiday and our fault entirely. We were unable to join the english speaking coach for our Rome excursion as it was full, so had to join the spanish speaking bus. This was fine for me as I speak spanish, but my friend does not - so I had to translate for her. MALLORCA We took the coach tour to the beach in Peguera and spent the day on the beach. I think the bus return about 1400 - 1500 hours - so it wasnt really a full day! Two Sunbeds and an umbrella cost approx 12€ and there are bars and restaurants where you can get drinks and lunch. As the ship does not leave until 0100 the following morning, we stayed at the beach and a taxi back to the Port was approx. 20€ SARDINIA Again we opted for the Poetto beach tour. Two sunbeds and an umbrella cost 13.50€. There was a small bar/cafe at the back of the beach where you could get a drink and a snack - wasn't all that! Beach was nice. ROME Early start!! I think we had to be on the bus by 0815! We chose the tour 'Ancient & Modern Rome', which gave you a good all round trip seeing the most famous sites. Rome is HOT in July, so make sure you have a hat and water. We started off at St. Peter's Square and the Vatican and had free time to wander around - there was no time to go inside as the queues are too long. We then joined the coach again and had a drive around passing the Coleseum and many other famous sites. We then stopped near to the Trevi Fountain (which was our meeting point) and had time to explore. It is a good idea to wander off up to the Spanish Steps (about a 10 Minute walk) and then back to the Trevi Fountain and then look for somewhere for lunch. (The picnics supplied by the ship are not that appetising - tuna and tomato sandwich, water, crisps, forcacia, juice, an orange and a chocolate wafer - apart from that there is nowhere to sit and eat - so we decided to eat in the restaurant recommended by the guide - La Taberna, just a minute from the Trevi fountain. The pizzas looked quite good but we chose a Caesar Salad which was the strangest one I have ever eaten. Lettuce, some kind of meat fried in breadcrumbs (it didnt look like chicken), slices of some type of processed cheese - definitely not parmesan and dressing!! Wasn't very good -but it was lovely and cool in there!! In all we really enjoyed the trip to Rome - it was very interesting and somewhere to return to explore more. The transfer journey is about 1.30 hours but all motorway and coaches are air conditioned. SAVONA We chose to to the Monaco trip which we had to pay a supplement for (about 50€). We had a fantastic guide (this time in English) Monique who was very interesting and entertaining. Again Monaco is HOT, you first visit the old part where the palace and gardens are and you can see the changing of the guard at 11.55. You are then taken to Monte Carlo and the Casino area - there should have been more free time here, but we had got slightly held up, so it was a quick brief visit -but it was good to see. MARSEILLE We chose the Easy Tour which was a short ride into Marseille and then a walking tour of about 1 hour. The guide as very informative and it was very interesting - although out of everywhere we had been - probably the dirtiest! Lots of graffiti and rubbish in the old part. It was a great way to get a quick taste of Marseille and as soon as the tour had finished, we decided to return to the ship to relax on our last day, however there was free time until 15.45 which was the last shuttle. We thoroughly enjoyed all of the trips and they were good value for money with the special pack for 99€. Remember to book early if you want an english speaking guide - it seemed to me that once the coach was full - they would not put on more. IMPORTANT: We specifically asked at the Costa Tour desk if we needed to take our passports ashore and were told rather rudely - 'Are you from Argentina? You are European, you do not need passports'. HOWEVER, remember all other European Nationalities have ID cards, UK Nationals do not. Luckily, the guide to Monaco asked if everybody had their passports with them... and there were quite a few who did not!! Apparently, the coach can be stopped at any time by the police and ID asked for -so remember to take it with you. During the afternoon on our last day, we had a Goodbye meeting, where the disembarkation was explained. Basically, you settle your bill at the totems where any outstanding money will be returned to you - or if you linked your credit card to the Costa Card your will will be Zero and will have been settled. Unfortunately, we were about to hit Barcelona in the middle of the taxi strike, but Costa had arranged for coach transport to the Airport (22€) and station (15€) which was money well spent when we saw people wandering around Barcelona with all their luggage. Well done Costa!! Cases have to be left out side your cabin by 0100 hours - luggage labels are left in your cabin for you to attach, the cases are then taken and left in the terminal for your collection upon disembarkation. You have to leave your cabin by 0800 - so we were up early, went to breakfast and were then really ready to go. Depending on the colour of your label - dictates the time you should disembark - but it didnt seem to really make much difference - we went off at 0900 instead of 0930 and were told we may have to wait for our luggage, but it was there, easily found by the colur coding. All in all, we had a fabulous first cruise! We have lots of unopened packets of seasick tablets and ginger products - you really cannot feel the ship move!! We would definitely cruise again and definitely with COSTA - the whole operation was so well organised and problem free. The atmosphere on board was friendly and fun and there really is something for all age groups, families, young couples, friends, and older couples. FANTASTIC 10/10 Read Less

We wanted to enjoy some of the sites along the mediterranean. Very disappointed with customer service. They were non attentive and did not respond to our concerns. Wait staff were indifferent and sometimes hostile and arrogant. Disembarkment and dispensal of passports at the end of the cruise was at best chaotic and disorganized. Recommendation save your money and go on an American cruise line. There you are treated like a king. There were no smoking signs everywhere, all of them were ignored and smoking was everywhere. Cabins were OK. Clean and modern. Entertainment was a joke. All shows were in Italian. No attempt was made to have english speaking shows. Over all the cruise was adequate, if you dont mind putting up with shoddy service, arrogant and inattentive food service people and waiters. The gym had 10 treadmills for 4000 travellers. The pool was more like a kiddy pool. See the world in a different cruise line Read Less

This was my first cruise, so I have nothing to compare it to, but based on my experience on the Favolosa it will be my last. Initially boarding was a nightmare - only 2 people to book in dozens of passengers that all seemed to arrive at the same time. I have no complaints about the (inner) cabin, it was spacious with lots of storage. Suitcases went under the bed. The crew were excellent - very accommodating and friendly. So what was wrong, you ask? First of all the ship is way too big and after 10 days aboard, I still couldn't find my way around. Its also too crowded and noisy. Passengers were mostly Italian and some of the kids were annoying, running everywhere, pressing all the buttons on the elevator etc. The food was pretty bad. Buffet breakfast and lunch was virtually the same meal and it was repeated every day. Due to the crowds, it was also very difficult to find an empty table. We had the late dinner at 9.15 pm and although the menu read well, the food itself was mediocre at best and extremely salty. Some dishes were inedible. We had one of the drinks packages (Brindisi) which wasn't cheap, but only certain drinks were included and as one other reviewer mentioned, bottled water was an extra charge. Costa provided a shuttle bus from the various docks into the cities, BUT it was an extra charge, so we didn't use them. In some cities, time ashore was very limited and we didn't get a real feel for these places. We could have taken their tours, but again, not cheap. We had 2 sea days and they were a nightmare. The crowds of people and noise were only emphasized on these days and one was faced with a wall of people by the elevator doors, so you couldn't even exit the elevator. Entertainment was 'so so'. There were a couple of good acts in the theatre, but the rest were pretty ordinary e.g. karaoke contest, interpretive dancers. I can't believe this ship is only 7 years old. The decor harks back to the 1970's - orange, brown, dark green - not very appealing. Overall I couldn't wait to get off the ship vowing never to do it again! Read Less

This cruise seemed good value but it’s basically the easyjet the seas, seems cheap but will charge for everything! We sailed from Barcelona for a week around Italy etc... I have sailed previously with other liners but this was definitely the worst. Here is why; Check in was disorganised with no visual information of where to go next. This lead to a confused check in which didn’t help out stress levels with a young baby and 5 year old in tow. Staff told us different things. One saying don’t que go straight to the front of the line, when arriving we were told to join the que. The costa port had no luggage trollers and with lots of bags, a pram and a travel cot plus the kids it made the port very difficult. Pre arrival I contacted costa and asked about a cot for my son told that all had been allocated and I couldn’t have one. I forwent my car seat and brought my travel cot adding greatly to the struggle with luggage. I was told after arrival that they had travel cots available. Our travel got damaged in transport and we didn’t even need it in the end, very annoying! No information in the room for pre booked packages. Ie princess for the day, spa etc.... also had no daily itinerary and had to quit for 16-20 mins to get one. Get used to waiting in the guest services que if you are English speaking. No information was given and it wasn’t made clear as to what is included in the premium package and the drinks packages until I questioned it after queuing at guest services. I had an idea but wanted the detail as it was so confusing. The English information is minimal and disorganised at best. My daughter was looking forward to kids club and was accepted into squark club. They say they give rust bands for safety in an emergency, mine was not given the rist band, that details the muster point etc. until I asked on the second admission. Was not told where to pick them up in an emergency. Basic safety not followed!! Come on, not great given their history! No children’s programme until we asked on the second day. Noted that others had them delivered to the cabin. Spa package was reserved. When we came to find out how the week package worked, cards were taken for payment and wrist bands given. We were offered upgrades for an extra fee. We declined a number of times and had decline assertively before they stopped the big sell. We then had to asked whether we got robes towels etc... and they were given to us only after asking. We then waited while the person serving us went onto serve someone else. We were not shown around and thought we had to work it out on our own. We asked different staff and guests about what to do ie where towel are kept, what area is what, how the tea area worked etc... when I complained the receptionist was helpful offering a tour tomorrow but did not understand our issue with poor customer care. Just kept reiterating about the reason we signed the robe out and had to sign it back. Most food is frozen or tinned I think and tastes like it. Not at all as good as any other cruise I have been on. We cook far better at home. Booked princess package for our daughter, despite ordering online, we had to que one again in guest services for the receipt so we could fill a form in to allow her to do it! Even guest services were confused why they wouldn’t Accept the email! No communication, so much so I worry about how they would communicate in an emergency. Kids can only dance at 10pm until midnight in the disco! I suppose ok for European timetable but for brits they were alienated. NEVER AGAIN!!!!! Read Less

Having paid so little it should have been a clue not to expect the best of service or standards, but if it were possible to rate zero I would. Most of the staff had an attitude that passengers were an inconvenience and the only time they were prompt was when it was time to close services, sometimes a tiny bit early, e.g. on a day at sea waited 15 minutes for a waitress to finally come and take my order, when I pointed out the delay she aggressively said she was on her own (one would have thought as all passengers were aboard they might have known it would be busy) The food was at best average and the decor was more cheap and tacky than luxury. However all of these things might have been tolerated if the ship was not full of unconrolled, screaming children, from babies to young teemagers, who treated the whole ship including the casino, the theatre and adults only salons as unsupervised kindergarten. It is well known that the Italian culture is very family friendly but on this ship it was to the detriment of adults. Read Less

Having cruised with Costa previously, this was a very disappointing experience to the point we have now chosen not to book this line ever again. Ship needs refurbishment, cabin was very small and service was non existent. At the start of the cruise we were asked to select when we would like the cabin to be cleaned! The suggestion was it woul only happen once a day. Rembrandt, you have to pay the gratuities with this line. Forget breakfast unless you like cake, bread buns and fruit. Entertainment was ok but catering for Italian customers. Dining experience was very slow and they now charge fro the water! My wife has made the suggestion that we only use Costa to get from A to B. In other words, use Costa as a ferry service e.g. Barcelona to Savona. Real cruisers willl be let down by booking Costa Cruise so be warned. Read Less