My family had wanted to take a Mediterranean cruise for years, and after completing six domestic cruises in the U.S., we decided to finally take a giant leap over the pond for a European cruise. Simply put, when booking with Costa, shame on me for not doing research; I was unaware I was booking with the European version of Celebrity Cruises! Upon onboard it, our first impression was that the Costa Mediterranea ship was beautifully ornate and visually impressive. Making our way to our state room began the awful experience. As written in previous reviews, there’s an extra charge for everything. The deck hallways leading to staterooms smell like stale arm pit, the carpet look water damaged as though previously flooded, and you choose whether you want to see your service person in the morning or evening. There is no in between service should a need arise. The buffet has limited up offerings, and even more limited hours of availability. The food was terrible and low quality. The formal dining menu basically offers up the same foods rotated or moved to different portions of the menu. By day two, I had an extreme case of food poisoning. The infirmary was closed more than half the day, and then it was over €100 just to walk in the door. Passengers are on boarding and off boarding at every stop, so there is a constant passenger rotation and confusion. The staff do not warm up to you, are unfriendly, and not customer service minded, but who could blame them when they are constantly dealing new faces every day. We had the opportunity of befriending a member of the staff, I will not mention where they worked, who shared the very low morale and dissatisfaction of many employees. Most cannot wait for their contracts to end. Two of our three excursions were canceled, the paid wine tasting activity we signed up for was canceled, the Internet service is extremely poor, and while we were away physically off board on our one excursion all of our remaining megabytes had somehow been used up! It took elevating to management to get resolution. I could go on, but in the essence of time, please seriously consider other cruise options. Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the indoor pool. Pool was closed for planned maintenance for the full week! Noone informed us it would be closed. Majority of the English speaking excursions were cancelled and there were very few things for English speakers on board. Again Noone informed us there would be a chance of the excursions being cancelled. Be warned you have to pay for EVERYTHING on this ship. Food is only served at specific timings. You have to pay for water. Also, staff is not so friendly. The overall attitude of the staff is down like they do not want to be there. We were reprimanded for using a different glass for our milk in the morning and we were also told we could not have a second entree. After arguing he only agreed. Maybe this is how all European cruises are but I do not think so. If you have a choice steer clear of Costa Cruises and opt for any other cruiseline. Read Less

I choose that cruise, because it was the only one for my date and location. The ship is pretty old, the cabin especially the bed and the shower were very good, but your hear everything from outside ... you have to pay for everything. The worst is the WiFi ...3 GB for 150€... The staff of the ship are very poor - they have to represent a high standard, but themselves have a horrible life on board (also the guest act not very friendly) On the ship we felt like sheep ... there is nobody familiar with you .. you have to stand quiet, as you get told where and when to go... if you want to do your own excursion, they block you, whenever they can... they are trained to sell you and gain extra money the ship is so old, water was dripping from the ceiling during the meals, at the sauna the roof is hanging down...... And on the ship you feel like in prison.............For us never again! Read Less

We travel in a party of 11 which every one is experienced cruise traveller. The only reason that our family chose this cruise is the period time of the cruise. I am so disappointed with almost every thing including poor boarding, bad dinner, stinct lobster, worst breakfast, too limited choices of lunch, wrong, ineffective and annoying announcement, poor quality announcer, too limited tender boats causing too long line, bad organizing, etc. It took us more than an hour for boarding with limited assistance of staff. The only meat I found at breakfast was corned beef, no sausage, bacon nor ham. Pork bun was terrible. At dinner, the lobster we ordered and was supposed to pay extra was stinct. It was probably frozen for years thus the meat was unfresh and yucky. Supervisor seemed to avoid responsibility once first informed. At an island where anchored, only 3 tender boats with a capacity of 110 pax per boat were prepared. Only passengers who bought excursions can disembark at 8 a.m. Queing of the rest passengers lasted from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Every one has to come back to boat before 4.30 p.m.!!! What an absurd organizing. I encountered the problems with cabin facilities including hair dryer, hot water and blinking light. The latter was not able to solve even the technician came. Announcement was made with wrong information and ineffectively. It was made in the early morning to room thus annoying sleeping guests. Oh...there is a lot more to share. That should be enough to refrain all potential travelers from the ship. What a horrible cruise. The worst ever indeed. Read Less

After doing over 11 crusise it is the worst service got to cabin astray on balcony fully of buts no tissue in cabin took 3 days to clean and supply of tissue very bad seevoce asked for extra bacon and told no that’s the serve coffee machine closes most of the time only at bar poor food quality oven the pasta wasn’t to scratch Will never cruse with costa again one more stop can’t waite to gat off Beautiful ship what a shame that it’s not run as good as some of other companies And above all the stops of the ship were not at appropriate Too far from every thing a lot of walking and not good transportation not happy missed out on seeing a lot of places Eiven the Italians that love pasta which there was a lot ov it weren’t impressed with the quality The worst was the first few days after few complaints it improved a little fi you love pasta every meal may be ok Read Less

We chose this cruise, because we wanted to visit a bit warmer places before winter. It was really a great decision. Food was delicious and our service (waiter) was really, really kind. It is always a lot of food to eat and everyone can fine something for himself. We liked activities for children and other things on the ship. We enjoyed every single minute on the cruise. Ports and excursions were well organized. We had no bad experience with disembarkation and embarkation. The ship is beautiful and has everything for a comfortable holiday.The cabin was beautiful and always clean when we come back, so the employees did their job as they should. Everyone was very kind. The children also really enjoyed the holiday. Our daughter, that can speak English, met a lot of friends from different countries, and for her it was also a great experience. we would like to go again to visit other destinations as well- Read Less

This was a group trip that I decided to go on. There weren’t many staff members who spoke English well enough and getting answers to many questions was challenging. Many of the European guests were very rude, often pushy and cutting lines during meal times at the buffet, ignoring dress codes and walking in with wet swimsuits and towels or robes to the buffet. There was not much of a variety of meals. Most of the meals consisted of an enormous amount of bread and pastries. Perhaps that is the European way but, we Americans definitely were not accustomed to the food preparations. Several of my companions and I (27 in total) had been on numerous cruises before so this was highly unusual that there wasn’t a larger variety of international food. Also the buffet closed at 830pm nightly so if you were hungry after hours be prepared to pay. It was my birthday week so I was hoping for a great time. Our waiter George in the dining room was often rude, once complaining to us that he wasn’t feeling well and was working longer than he should have been (8 months) and should have been allowed to go home. Really??!! Several times our food was being served so slowly and at lukewarm temperatures might I add, that it was interfering with the next seating and we were asked to leave before the meal was completed. This put a damper on our trip as we had great expectations based on previous cruises. I’m not saying that other cruise lines are without fault but I felt a little put off by the lack of hospitality. I felt a little racial bias when it came to bar service. We were passed over while we arrived at the bar waiting our turn while someone not like me was helped immediately upon arriving at the bar. We had to tell them that we were waiting first.. I will say that we did meet several very nice and interesting people on the cruise. But there is so much more to complain about but why bother. Needless to say I won’t be traveling on Costa cruise line again. 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

WE chose this trip because of the itinerary despite reading a lot of negative reviews. BIG MISTAKE. The food in the main restaurant was DISGUSTING. The staff was arrogant and unhelpful. The port calls were either too brief to do any real sightseeing or were at ports that really had nothing to do with tourism (Bari. It, Corfu, Gr). All of our excursions were booked through the ship. They were, to be generous, lame. There was widespread coughing onboard and both my wife and I returned with serious infections. Nobody used the hand sanitizers. The entertainment was all in italian (one night was supposed to be pop songs and featured three renditions of Volare while another night's entertainment was opera) and cheap beyond belief. Smoking is permitted in all of the outdoor areas of the ship and on the balconies. They charged for soda at lunch and for water at dinner. Almost everything came at an additional cost. I wish I had listened to all of the reviewers and hope that this will help you to avoid what we suffered. AVOID COSTA LIKE THE PLAGUE. Read Less