It's a lovely ship and service, cleanliness and food are just alright. You shouldn't complain. You may not like the food, but it is well cooked and in copious quantities. Unfortunately, we were hit several times by toxic paint fumes in our cabin, which were so powerful that we couldn't be there. Our steward Adi was just quite real and service minded. Our butler could learn a lot from him. Unfortunately, we didn't see much of the butler and the appointments we made with him. Ok he was there or not didn't matter. The level of information was initially high, but when it became necessary to change the route due to the corona virus, it decreased considerably. Especially since most of the new route also had to be cancelled. We went ashore in Perth to return home to Denmark before all borders closed and at that time the captain indicated that he did not know where to go. Read Less

Staff was very helpfull, food was fantastic. Overall I give it a 8.5 out of 10. English was no problem for any of the staff. We are family of 6 and I will definately use Costa Deliziosa again. Great enternainment, very good safety procedures, overall proffesional outfit. We only did the 7 night mediteranean, beautiful weather and ports visited exceed expectations. The balconies just give you something special. If you font have a drink package you may expect to pay a lot on any cruise ship. We enjoyed the shows, the singers and dancers were very proffesional. Facilities on board were very clean, the swimming pools were well maintained. All you have to watch is your weight and the crew will take care of the rest. Ports of Dubrovski, Athens, Venice, Bari, Kotor and Corfu is beautifull. Plan upfront and you'll gave enough time for good visit. Well done Costa!!!!!! Read Less

It is my 3th cruise... and Costa Deliziosa is the worst ever. We sail from Venice to Grecia and Montenegro... The logistic was terrible. They should choose more waisley the times in the ports. The time they give us was in each port SUCKS. Everthing on board costs a lot of money it's OVERRATED....the entertaiment in specific the shows was like seeing beginners in a performace, ZERO professionalism. We are from Monterrey, Mexico and our experices have been with Carnival, Royal, pullmatour... Costa is nothing compared with them. It 's very obvious that they exploit their staff because you can see them everywhere, everytime. Additionally they perform lots of maintenance during after hours, they shut off the water supply 3 days in a row... and in the bathroom there were no soap bar, extra tissues and you had to keep asking for these things. The channels in the tv also are very poor... Read Less

You don’t have to read all of this and you don’t have to trust my review. Just do yourself a favor and “JUST DON’T DO IT” Unfortunately due to high tides this cruise docked in Trieste instead of Venice. This was supposed to be my dream vacation to Venice, turned nightmare. Not because of uncontrollable natural elements. Costa had no control over. It was the service on this ship. This was the first cruise ship I’ve been on that food was only served at the buffet or one (1) main dining room at your appointed time chosen. You must stick by these scheduled time windows for meal service or you will not have anything to eat. 7-8:30a-breakfast, 12-1:30-lunch, 6:30pm or 8:30pm dinner seating. Buffet 6:30-8pm for dinner and if you miss it, pizza with a dessert starts 10:30pm-1am for a service charge of almost 9 euros. Basically your window for eating every day was one and a half hours (1+1/2 hr) So forget about being on vacation and getting up a little late with your love one or at your leisure. If you decide not to go on an excursion, you better charge a spa package to your room and pray everything is in working order. Not likely! Let talk about the accommodations. Mini Suite the way to go, so I thought only if you want to swim in toilet water. Costa Ship has serious plumbing issues. Every other night after midnight 0030, the water is shut off until 0500 in the morning, Unacceptable. In the main dining area, the food was amazing. However, their food temperature would not have pass the FDA minimum requirements. These few staff members in the dining room and a hand full of other crew members made our experience salvageable. Thank you Leonardo, Damir, Ida Bagus, Phuong, and Danae. Read Less

Cruise number 53 Costa Cruises – Costa Deliziosa 3rd November - 10th November 2019 Cabin number: 8337 - midship , Deck 8 - Premier Balcony Cabin Total pax : 2011 , Crew : 1100 : Decks : 16 Cruise for 7 nights - see map Venice, Bari, Corfu, Athens, At sea, Kotor, Dubrovnik, Venice It has been over 9yrs since she was launched and I first cruised on this particular ship. So was interesting to see how it has been refurbed and rebranded to adapt to the new style cruise packages that Costa now have implemented. The check in process in Venice is frenetic, the local authorities have not invested into the infrastructure so be prepared for long waiting periods and a lot of triple and quad checks. Saying that it does move along. In total from time we were dropped off to completing lunch and having cabin ready was a good 4 hours. Not bad given the security situation. Cabin was ready and the wonderful Dennis from Mumbai was at hand to welcome us with a complimentary bottle of Ferrari Champagne and strawberries thank you Costa. Set sail on time from Venice for Bari, this is where the new package structure is interesting as you can join the itinerary in 3 ports, on other ships the same or only 2 ports to join the cruise. Thus meaning there is constant bags in the hallway or a ship not really full at all times. Has its pros and cons. The “specialist” restaurants we tried where not really worth the extra £100 spent for Dinner when the meals provided by Michelin chefs in the main restaurant was of a very high standard. The one issue I do have is the Italian Pizzeria Pummid’oro does not even have its own venue it’s a cordoned off area amongst the general passengers eating buffet meals whilst waiters are chasing away patrons who take the chairs. Not really a specialist restaurant In any books. The Samsara restaurant again in the region of £95 for 2 does offer its own environment and Pacific / Med cuisine. The productions in the theatre are the best I have seen on the 6 Costa ships I have cruised on, not only as I personally know the choreographer but in structure, decor, space and performance it is dynamic and was a full house twice a night for 7 nights with different productions each night. Not to be missed. The entertainment team mainly made up of Brazilians tells you its going to be fun, and they worked there socks off, cannot fault it at all. I am aware of many complaints about the excursions offered as they all require a minimum quantity in specific languages to ensure the excursion occurs. As it is a Italian liner it is understandable that 80% would be in Italian. This making English, French, German etc reliant on multi lingual guides. With a lot being lost in translation. Do research and there is many independent guides who will meet you at the pier side and deliver fantastic excursions tailored to your interests. In general, the ship is in good condition and is going into dry dock for 3 months from late December. New décor and cabin refurbs will help. Word has it from good sources that Costa Deliziosa will be heading for a world cruise from end next summer . Happy cruising 2019 star grading - 3+ Read Less

This was the ONLY cruise ship available for the one week we could sail and go to the ports we wanted to visit. The food was sub-par. The crew was miserable and literally opened up about how poorly they're treated and paid by Costa. Ever since Carnival Cruise Lines purchased Costa, everything's gone downhill. The entertainment was extremely poor. The dancers acted as if they were practicing just going through the motions, and not really performing. It was an embarrassment for them. The activities director NEVER spoke one word in English. Most of the cruisers were Italian and she catered to them 100%. This was the overall theme the entire week! Even the nightly DJ'S spoke and exclusively played italian. It was as if they were purposely trying to exclude ALL NON-ITALIANS!! Many of our excursions were canceled because "there weren't enough English-speaking cruisers on board," so we were told. Never again will we sail on Costa Cruise Lines!!! They couldn't pay us to cruise with them again. Read Less

Before going on the cruise I read these reviews and thought to myself how can a big cruise company have a ship that bad? But the ship was great, everything was nice, food wasn’t bad and overall I had a very nice time. The room my family and I took had a balcony which was really nice and big. The cabins weren’t that small and 2 people could and will comfortably live in them. The restaurant on the 2nd and 3rd floor was really good, and so was the pizza restaurant on the 9th floor, but the buffet on the 9th floor was good but not the best. The negatives of the ship were that everything is expensive on the ship and the WiFi was really, really expensive. But literally everything else on the ship was really nice, would recommend for everyone to go on it. If you go with a positive attitude then you will be guaranteed a great time. Read Less

Summary - if your only language is English, it is best to avoid, it is heavily weighted towards Italian, including language, entertainment, food, majority of guests. You Que for almost everything, a lot of items were extra cost and it is not a budget cruise. Quick tips – Avoid Costa if you can only speak English. Carefully select your drinks package to suit, select your evening meal timings to suit (early is 6.45 seated, late is 9.30). Service charge is automatically 10 Euros per person, per night. If you port at Dubrovnik it is KN not Euro in most shops. Do not let your internet package run out, as you can not top it up then, it has to be re-purchased (up to 100 Euros per device) Non of the staff were helpful when it came to being charged or overcharged with anything. Full Review - We booked this cruise as a bit of a last minute choice, we had the itinerary in mind and only had 2 options, Costa or Norwegian Star, I should have read reviews but instead went off photographs, which made the cabins look dated on the Norwegian, so went with Costa. The ship itself is nice, our cabin was ok, although I am not used to cruises, so it felt a bit caravan like, I am unsure if this is across all cruise ships. We upgraded to an unrestricted balcony view room, as we liked the idea of seeing where we were going on a first cruise, this was worth it, as it was great to see it leave and arrive at Ports, or gave us something to look at. Food - Evening set meal times in main restaurant are not ideal, 1st seating is a 6.45 which for some days is too early and 9.30 which by the time you eat, is late. You do not get to switch between meal times, so decide and request before you go. If your going as a couple, have to sit with strangers at this meal, if like me then that is not for you, the choices are buffet or pay for one of the other restaurants. Buffet was very repetitive, you had to que much of the time, but there was a large selection and nice food, it is all self served, including drinks, so there is no service as such. There are set meal times, anything outside of this is charged like mini bar, room service, any other restaurants, including the burger and pizza, which are served from the buffet area and in the same seating area which is a bit of a cop out. Drinks - You can choose a drinks package, be careful which one, as its very labelled on what you can or can’t have, anything above your drinks package is charged. Ours for example was the brandino, which included branded drinks but not bottled water or cocktails/champagne, which apart from the water did not bother us, but as they ask you to not fill water bottles from the vending machines, you have to keep refilling small glasses or pay for the bottles (3 euro). Vending machines only had juice at breakfast time, all other set meals were water, or tea/coffee, alternative drinks are all a visit to the bar for a drink, in which case you have to que up, most of the time. Service - Majority of the staff were friendly, there were a few that because of the language barrier, just didnt want to know. There is no drinks service by the pool, so it’s all ques at the bars. There is no pool side service, although at the main bars inside there is table service. You are automatically charged 10 euros per person per night for a service charge too. Entertainment - Being a cruise ship, there is a fair few bits to do and a good schedule, however it is largely Italian based, including evening, with a large language barrier. Pools - Larger indoor pool, with a screen and more entertainment, does have a sliding roof but doens't seem to get a lot of sun, outside pool is small and full of children, not many sun loungers although this is one of the main areas for bathing, also saw staff taking away towels when people had only just gone in for dinner or drinks, I can understand if they are trying to reserve for hours but this caused arguments. Destinations - This was the best part, I felt you got a good amount of time at most locations, although some are early and some are leave just after mid day, I got to see some lovely locations in a short space of time, whilst resting between locations, this is what it was all about for us. Getting on and off the boat was very organised too. Although they had to change our Mykinos stop to Athens due to bad weather. Read Less

Ship is very beautiful and well laid out - enjoyed the central elevators. Service staff was exceptional - excluding the Excursion Desk (unless). Very disappointed in the food served - the Italian influence was missing - I have traveled in Europe and did not recognize this reported influence - a staff person reported that being a repositioning cruise the quality was diminished. This was Basic Transportation - pure and simple. During our 19 days we got sick on day 5 and remained sick for the next 4 weeks. Everyone on the ship had or have had this virus. Other than Purel stations placed in the buffet area little or precautionary measures were visible. I did email to Costa Customer Service about my experience - got a letter back that in summary said they would use the feedback for future travelers and 'To Bad - come back again sometime' - Never again Read Less

We were looking for an alternative to cross the Atlantic other than by plane to avoid the jetlag. As this sailing fit in our time schedule we booked a cruise on Costa Deliziosa leaving Ft. Lauderdale March 03. -To begin with the ship: Costa Deliziosa is an eldery lady in need of a thorough make-over. The entire interior decor and design was retro. - Our cabin, which was a so-called Samsara balcony cabin mid forward looked tired and worn with stains on the old carpet and a shower curtain not properly fastened. Worse, the bedding reeked, and the linens were worn and had holes in them. The blankets were flimsy and not warm enough. - The food at the restaurant was mostly overcooked or too salty and poorly presented. So after a week we simply changed to buffet style for more selection but still had issues with the quality of the food, During the entire cruise the fruit consisted of old and beyond shelf-life plums, nectarines and oranges or fruit salad with stale melons. - We had booked a shore excursion to the island of Gordo in the Dom.Rep. which turned out to be quite hazardous due to very slippery rocks and rickety steps inside and through the caves. In Costa's tour description these hazards were not mentioned. - A week into the cruise we and a large number of other passengers contracted a severe bronchitis which made treatment at the ship hospital necessary. Yet, the ship management undertook no extra measures to contain the spreading of the disease or making sure that every passenger used the disinfectant displayed in public areas and restaurants. We saw people grabbing food at the buffet with their fingers! - Disembarking procedures in Venice were chaotic. There was no proper information and people were kept in large groups in different locations for hours to wait. So we finally took things in our hands and left the ship so as not to miss our connecting train. In comparison to other cruises we did with other cruise lines like MeinSchiff, Holland America and Princess this was the worst experience ever. Needless to say we wrote a detailed letter of complaint to Costa Cruises. And also needless to say their answer was non-committal as expected. Read Less

I took notes so I would be more objective. Some of the online criticism I read wasn’t a problem for us. For example, the Jacuzzi’s size, food, and service were good. The crew spoke English with the usual assortment of accents. Costa was responsive to complaints. The pool music was obnoxious and very loud. I asked the desk, “What age are you targeting?” The next day, the volume was lower and the music pleasant. The aluminum chairs aboard create a sore butt and back. We had to put two towels on the seat. It was tiresome to have announcements in the theater translated into four languages when monitors could posted translations. We left after the performance rather that listen to the droning. There were very few activities of interest. The cultural lectures by Jean Christophe were outstanding. Most of the presentations aboard are infomercials. The 18’ x 12’ screen on the Lido deck was the biggest waste, playing only commercials for the entire 27-day cruise. I never observed a single person watching the screen. I timed nightly shows were between 31 and 40 minutes, about 36 minutes average. They overused talented dancers, who only had taped music (no band). It becameuse tedious. Many times, I had to cover my ears from the sound; we walked out three times because the sound reached the threshold of pain. The supervisor explained that he told the sound engineer to lower it, but “the younger generation loves volume.” Who’s in charge? The largest portion of the audience was elderly (I’m 68) and others I spoke to complained, but not to the personnel where it made a difference. I left a note to please lower it on the engineer’s equipment, but it was ignored. In room TV’s had little to offer English speakers. Costa gets an “F” for entertainment. We wanted our vacation to be devoid of badgering for money. Costa gets a “D” for that. We had a good time. Costa discounts are cheesy and feels like a cheat. For example, you have to go on six excursions to get a 30% discount on the cheapest one you bought. One “sale” had a 50% discount on wine, except at their restaurant where you drink it. It felt like, “We’ll give you a discount on everything except what you want.” Tokens for free drinks (excluding wine) can’t be used until after 8, which means you can’t use them for dinner. I wonder how long it will take cruise lines to lift the gouging alcohol restrictions on adults. This was my fourth cruise line. I can’t tell which is the best but I can say Costa is the worst, because their entertainment and variety are poor. Yet, our 27-day cruise to Italy was still good enough for a fabulous time. Read Less

Crusing Costa is a unique experience. Passengers speak many languages but the staff speak good English and are helpful in every way. The shows in the theater are all in English and ours were excellent. We took a 24 day transatlantic with great ports.The ship is slightly dated but very clean and comfortable. The service was excellent.Its great for ballroom dancers .Large dancefloor and good music. The lunch buffet offers a wide variety of food.Coffee and desserts were exceptional. The diningroom menu is very Italian. Some was very good but many meats and fish were overcooked. We learned how to order to fit our taste. Many shore excursions were reasonably priced although there is little information about the ports.We have taken several transatlantic cruises and this one had more activities,day and night, than any other . It is a FUN ship. We are looking forward to another Costa cruise in the future. Read Less

I was on other cruise where the cabin was so small we had to keep open luggage under the bed and use them as closets.Costa cabin is so nice and spacious.The cleaning of the cabin, is so amazingly good, in the minimum details. and any request was looked into! Amazing clean bathrooms all over at any time. And if there was an issue on the public spaces if you notified it, they were instantly taking care of it. Loved the food, a lot of healthy choices/ Beautiful dining restaurants, with wonderful service. You could ask to have special dishes cooked for dinner, such as more vegetables, and less carbos., Any request was looked into and make it work. A lot of activities on sailing days/. And a lot of evenings entertainments. After a while the nightly show was a bit repetitious, but could understand why after 34 days!! Shore excusions well organized, even if for my taste a bit pricey. Would love to do the World Cruise next! Read Less

Costa -Deliziosa Our 11-day cruise (February 21, 2019) generally was made most enjoyable by the crew. Very helpful, pleasant & happy to serve you. Everybody spoke English as well as two or three other languages as well, so there was always someone to help you as needed. This was a very International passenger list as the 11 days thru the Western Caribbean was the intro trip to the repositioning of the ship to Italy after we disembarked in Fort Lauderdale. Of the 2,800 passengers, 800 disembarked in Ft. Lauderdale with the other 2000 + passengers remaining on board continuing on to Italy via the Eastern Caribbean Islands. My constructive criticism first comes on the Costa website that is a disaster, probably built years ago for the Costa management but not the passenger. Costa is now owned under the Carnival Line ownership umbrella but you would never know it. Costa does not even acknowledge you as a previous passenger of Carnival, no points, rewards everything is about Costa. Again the website at first glance looks great, but all it wants you to do is book everything before you get on board. For example, there are three drink packages available yet you have nothing to compare their prices. They do not list or show the wine list, the liquor or beer list. Onboard almost every drink (cocktail & wine) by the glass averages $7.50 plus 15% service charge. Wines by the bottle start at $20.00+ and on this leg of the trip luckily, everything on the ship was priced in USA Dollars. Prices change to Euros as soon as they leave for Italy. There are no lists for Spa services nor beauty services yet they want you to book everything on line. My spouse wanted a haircut and nowhere could you find a price for any beauty services. I would highly recommend purchasing an all-inclusive liquor package along with your cruise ticket from your agent or travel advisor. Yes, it brings up your costs but you can negotiate this with them or some travel agents will work with you and even add onboard ship credits. Packages & Tours Do not buy online, wait until you get on board to see what you are buying and paying without leaving money on the table. Same with restaurant reservations, buying onboard restaurant packages is so much cheaper aboard ship as opposed to the website. Anything you book on the website you cannot change nor cancel. Buy tours on board, same prices but you have the flexibility to change or cancel your tours. Another huge faux pas by Costa. We boarded the ship in Ft. Lauderdale @ 2 pm and before dinner @ 6 pm every bar on board was out of Draft Beer. They only serve Heineken Draft. The bartenders were taking canned Miller beer and filling the draft beer glasses apologizing with every customer. Within two days they were out of Crown Royal, then Canadian Club and then any Canadian whiskey. This running out of product continued with liquors, Pernod, Richard, 451, & Sambucca. We had bought the $350 drink package each as both occupants fo the same cabin must do so. Crew management said they were waiting for a supply of beer, wine, liquor aboard a ship from Italy but it never showed up in Ft. Lauderdale. The second day we arrived in Miami and for sure the Costa Deliziosa should have had the Miami beer & wine Distributors replenish & load on board supplies they were out of and ones that were in short supply. Granted there were other bottled beers available, albeit every bar (over 10) did not have the luxury of this selection but definitely someone screwed up. Entertainment was excellent with a magician, juggler, and singers as it is so hard to address people of so many languages so no comedians nor comedy clubs. Finally, the Costa “APP” on your smartphone is just mediocre. It does not list nor monitor your expenses even after you have left the ship. Most of the listed links do not work with the exception of “Chat” that was good, where you can communicate with other passengers. Definite upgrading of this service and app is needed. Carefully look and monitor everything you do on the website as this Costa ship is behind in technology that you will be paying for if you are not awake nor aware. Internet on board is painfully slow almost like “dial up”. If someone else is paying for your cabin & passage you will have a great trip & experience, plus you will enjoy your cruise immensely with no worries with anything I have listed above. Read Less

I was really excited to get back and give Costa Deliziosa a proper review. I am not sure which cruise most folks that have had issues with this cruise sailed on though my experience was completely opposite. So yes I have been on about 10 cruises in The U S and one out of Rome. Also I used to work on a ship (Everyone a large vessel is not a boat. It is a ship) years ago. Pre registration was super easy and the port personnel shared that I was one of the first people he encountered that actually read and filled out all of the needed paperwork before reaching the port. Our ship didn’t leave port until 11 p.m. I showed up around 12:30 p.m. Check In was about 5 minutes. I sat down and waited for my group # to be called. It was called about a 1/2hr after I checked in. On this cruise (Keep in mind this may change) your actual stateroom key is not given to you at check in. It is on your bed in an envelope. I did a quick check of my room, said hello to my stateroom host and went exploring the ship. A tip. Walk around the ship if you arrive early and take pictures of the different decks, spaces and areas. Just about everyone else is at the buffet so you will get some amazing unobstructed pictures. After the pictures I went to the buffet. I was pretty surprised due to the bad reviews. The food was good. There is something for everyone. Obviously yes there was pasta though lots of proteins, salads, cheeses, breads, soups, etc. There is free pizza and hamburgers and fries for lunch each day at the buffet. Yes there is an additional charge if you wanted to partake in a special experience of them at night though it is a larger portion and presented in a meal function vs. self serve. My bags were delivered to my room about 2 hours after I boarded. I did receive a drink package with my room though choose to upgrade it to the highest tier. Honestly there was no need for me to do that because the drink I had for the 10 days was included in my initial package. Oh well Update as of February 2019 (This may have changed by time you are reading this). The Samsara regular cabins only get access to the spa area stairs/elevator, spa rooms (Not included are massages and services). You do not get access to The Samsara Resturant anymore and need to make a reservation like everyone else and pay the extra charge. Samsara Suites do get all of the above privileges along with a drink package minus the massages and services. First thing to do is join Costa Club. It takes seconds and is free. Your new club number may not show up online on your reservation if you get the number after you book the reservation though it will be noted and recognized on board. There are quite a bit of perks along with 50% of the specialty restaurants on board along with discounts on certain drinks, shops and spa. A couple I met are loyal members and receive major discounts on their cruises along with upgrades. Shared it was for sure worth it. The buffet was so good I ate lunch and dinner there everyday except for dinner in the dining room on my first night. I did meet a cool cruise mate the first night and build a friendship for the next few days. I travel by myself and it was nice to have company for a few days. He was on a work trip and left after 4 days. Out of the numerous crew members I encountered only one was a bit grumpy. Came to find out he had a newborn at home and had months left on his current contract. This didn’t give him the excuse not to be “on” though it sort of made sense. He did lighten up a bit as the cruise came to a close. So I had an absolute great time on my first 10 day Costa Cruise. I made friends with a few of the crew members. If you do eat at the buffet do read the hours in the daily guide. For some odd reason the hours changed on the 8th night and create some unhappy moments. I shared with the staff that was simply silly and moved on. I opted to take my bags off the ship in Ft Lauderdale. Lined up about 15 minutes before the published times. Was about 15th or so in line. Cleared Customs in 5 minutes. There was a van directly outside the exit hall that took about a dozen of us to the airport. I am getting ready to head out on another cruise on a different line in a few weeks though will have Costa on my mind for some time. Read Less

We just came back from a 37 day cruise (Western Caribbean and Transatlantic) with the Costa Deliziosa, starting on february 21. It was our 25th cruise and the 6th or 7th time with Costa and absolutely the very last one with Costa!! Positive points 1) The service in the bars. The waiters take your order electronically and we had our drinks always within 5 minutes. 2) The system of hosts for every important language. In general the hosts are performant but it is not clear which questions you have to ask on the hospitality desk and which questions you can ask to the hosts. 3) The excursions in Tenerife (jeep safari with Tamaran) and Cozumel (Submarine) were very good. On the whole most of the excursion we did were satisfactory. Only the excursion in Costa Maya Chacchoben was below expectation - with 55 persons (also some people of a Norwegian cruise ship????) and only one guide….. 4) The shows. The quality of the shows is mostly OK. Negative is that we had 2 and sometimes 3 times more or less the same show. 5) Internet package at reasonable prices for 250 MB, 500 MB, 1 GB or 3 GB. This system is honest, because even if it takes a long time to open the URL, you only pay for what your get. The Internet Connection itself was very slow or mostly not possible during day time (to much users)… Negative points 1) We paid extra for a premium balcony and we got a balcony with an obstructed view???? Cabin 7208 is just under the wing of the bridge. We only saw some iron bars under the wing and the feet of the captain while maneuvering. People of our group who booked an inside cabin got a upgrade to a classic balcony with a magnificient view??? How is it possible that cabin 7208 with that obstructed view is said to be a premium cabin???? And why do we get that cabin; we are Pearl level??? The 1st day we asked for a change at the hospitality desk but this was not possible because the ship was full. 2) The food. There are 3 choices of antipasta and 3 choices of Primi Plati. The presentation is nice but it is most of the time chicken or pasta. For the main dish, there is a choice between meat (or what it ought to be), fish, chicken and vegetarian. You can always have another main dish with fish, chicken or vegetarian, but there is no other meat dish. If you do not like it or if you do not want the sauce (nearly always tomato sauce or cooked in tomato sauce), the only alternative is to pay a supplement of 17 € for a steak or veal escalope. The meat we got was sometimes UNEATABLE since it was only fat (even my dog wouldn’t eat such meat of 3rd quality). 3) The service in the dining room was bad. We got never our dishes together. One day, I did not order a Primi Plati but only the expensive steak as main dish, I got this steak together with the primi plati of the others. Another time I did not get my primi plati with the others but exactly 8 minutes later!!. I asked for the dining room manager and she could only say there were so much people and they couldn’t manage. 4) The restaurant was sometimes a disco bar with incredible loud music. We had a speaker just above our table 258. At least 5 people run away from the tables in the back of the 3rd floor each time the disco started, because it was very dangerous for your ears. I estimate the volume at more or less 120 db (legally only 85 db is tolerated in the restaurants of most countries) 5) The hospitality desk. Most of the time, you had to cue more than 30 minutes and they couldn’t give you an answer on your questions most of the time 6) Excursion desk. Also always a cue of 30 minutes or more. The first day after the departure in Fort Lauderdale, there was only 1 employee at the excursion desk??? Although we had pre-ordered some excursions - our tickets were not delivered in our cabin and we had to queue to be informed that they would only be delivered the next day morning so the day of the excursion itself!! 7) Excursion desk. When my wife wanted to book an excursion in Napoli, they said it was full and the only possibility was to come to the meeting point the day of the excursion. No waiting list?? In the evening my wife tried to book it on one of their machines and it worked ????? 8) Shuttle bus services in some of the ports were very expensive – many times taxi was cheaper or same as tickets for 2 persons. Costa does not give any information on the ports of call (such as interesting sites, local transportation, weather forecast, currency) - only description of the excursions they offer. 9) Service in the cabin. Only one service a day. If you do some sports in the morning and you want to take a shower you do not have a dry towel if you already used it in the evening of the day before. 10) Animation is Italian style – shouting like fools. The questions for the trivia’s are given in 5 languages but their English or French is so bad, that you couldn’t understand. 11) There are very few nice activities. They wanted to organize a bridge tournament but they do not have the knowhow, neither the administrative tools???. There is no bridge room. You have to play in the Mirabilis, while the Italian animation team is shouting like fools. 12) There is only 1 big bar (the Mirabilis). Impossible to find a place there between 8 pm and 8.30 pm when the people of the first seating have finished there meal and the people of the 2nd seating are there after their show. 13) In Savona a group of 400 Russians came on the ship….. And they were so privileged. Announcements in Russian… The last day, they took every possible thing out of the buffet in their backpacks. 14) We had the Piu Giusto package for drinks. Cocktails, whisky and most drinks up to 8 € are included but not the fresh orange juice???. Irish coffee is also not included. You can make it yourself….. as whisky and coffee are included. 15) Smoking. It is a paradise for smokers. You can smoke on the balcony’s, on most places on the promenade, on the higher decks and on the starboard side outside on the swimming pool. In the evening there are 12 tables for smokers (starboard side), 9 tables for non smokers (in the middle) and 9 tables for dining under the stars (which is sometines dining under the smoke) on the port side 16) In the beginning of the cruise, we went to the pizza restaurant (8,5 Euro p/p). On the menu there was a Pizza Salami picante, but they said they didn’t have it anymore. We asked then for a normal Pizza salami, but they refused to make it, although there was always salami in the buffet. Supplement pineapple on the pizza not possible, although it was always in the buffet. Flexibility?????? 17) We had dinner in the pizza restaurant, which is part of the buffet, the last evening. All doors were open. Temperature was nog higher than 17 C°????? 18) Fitness room. No towels, no water refreshment, very unhygienic since no spray to sanitize the equipment after use. 19) In total we had sometimes more then 2200 people on this ship. Holland America Line has mostly only 1800 people on this type of ships (Panamax type)….. 20) Our cabin steward had to do 25 cabins on his own (one service a day). Holland America Line has 2 stewards for 20 cabins (two services a day). How can this poor man do this???? 21) Transfer to airport in Venice. We pre-booked a transfer but 1 day before arrival we received a note that our transfer was scheduled at 14.30 hrs which was much to late to catch our flight at 16.15 hrs. After discussion at the Excursion desk (it was our fault? since we had to let them know before that our flight was at 16.15 hrs) they changed the transfer to 12.45 hrs. Surprise, surprise, there was no bus at 12.45 hrs at the meeting point… The bus company said we were on their list for pick up at 13 hrs and also mentioned we had the wrong tag on our suitcases (should have been white C and we had white D). They also said that they had no scheduled bus/shuttle at 12.45 hrs. 22) When you registered your credit card for your payments (to do yourself on the automated machines), costa charges your expenses every 2 or 3 days on your credit card. Their confidence in their customers is apparently not big!!! 23) Communication is as always a catastrophe on costa ships and also this time. Let me give a few examples a) Indication Exit ship was forward deck A, which we follow. When we came there, we were told that is was midship on deck 2. When we came there, they said it was midship deck A etc. b) In the diary di bordo, we saw that it was 2 days after another the same show. When we asked if this was correct, they told us that it was wrong the day before. So we mist that show… c) By the disembarkment presentations in Venice, the English host said we could stay until 11 am in our cabins; the other hosts said we had to leave the cabins at 8 am. The 4 presentations of the hosts were different; why not using the same presentation. d) We didn’t get any maps or hand out in any port of call. In Venice it was absolutely not clear, where we had to take our shuttle. Why not give a plan?? Read Less

Extremely poor customer service. purchased the upgraded drink package and told several times we did not have drinks covered. drinks were horrible. ran out of beer on the second day of the cruise and no one knew when they would replenish the supply. rooms were dated and hallways smelled of sewage. clearly a problem as they were replacing the carpet on our floor mid cruise. food was horrible in the main dining room and buffets. main dining room service matched the food. buffets closed at 9:00 pm and nothing available afterwards. very few of the staff spoke english and didn't seem to interested in trying to understand anyone. casino consisted of several out of service machines and not staffed when opened. no pool side drink service. excursions were not worth the money. gathering for an excursion minimum of one hour prior to leaving resulted in tenders full of employees going ashore and no room for guests to sit. Do not choose this line under any circumstance. we only used because of a groupon - you get what you pay for! Read Less

Booked this cruise because we were already in Florida and we thought it would be great to get away. This sailing was convenient for us. Well where do I begin, the staff was not very knowledgeable about disembarking when we got to the islands, some said level one , some level two that day ended up being level three. My husband and I purchased the beverage package, I was disappointed to find out that bottled water was not included, we got all we wanted by the glass, I needed it for my room so I can take my medications. When I asked for a bottled water it cost me $4.50. Next another issue with the dinner seating I was not happy with the people they sat us with so we asked for a table for 2 they told us to come to the dining area and we had to wait to be seated until 8:55 to see which tables were empty we did that and we were given a table. The following evening we went to that table and another couple was there we asked the maitre 'd and he said we had to wait again, meanwhile we are getting frustrated because there were lots of empty tables. So we were finally assigned a table. The server we had was awesome and so was the cabin Stewart. My husband plays in the casino a bit heavily so he asked the pit boss if we can get comped a dinner at club Costa restaurant on the 10th deck, after talking to the manager they gave us the dinner. Well I want to say the menus is almost the same as the restaurant. We ordered dinner, my husband got the fillet and a lobster and I got just the lobster . The waiter came back to the table and informed us that we had to pay and I paid for my lobster so I had it charged to my room. Dinner proceeded well until we got to the main course. The fillet my husband ordered was not a fillet, you couldn't even cut into it very tough cut of meat and both lobsters were black inside. We informed our server , and we took a video and pictures. The maitre 'd came and asked what happened. He contacted the manager and they had a meeting in the kitchen. The manager came to our table and said I'm sorry about this the chef didn't notice it was like that, the claws were cracked and I noticed it right away how could he have not noticed. We got up to leave and she said I'll be in contact with you. Someone called the following morning and asked my husband what happened? My husband said exactly how he felt and she said I'll make a note of it. The amount they charged me was never deducted from my onboarding account. I have been trying to contact customer service to talk to someone and I haven't been able to get through. I did sent an email and I'm waiting for someone to get back too me. I traveled with Costa 14 years ago there was a bunch of us celebrating and everything was great. I'm very disappointed with this cruise and this line. I also want to add that the buffet food was always the sa.e and very salty. The cabin smelled like urine all the time. I couldn't wait to get off this ship. We have gone on many cruises and we enjoyed them all this was a nightmare. I have to say the casino staff was great and very friendly. Read Less

We chose it because of the port of call and the price "seemed" right? The service was poor and the customer service desk was not much better, staffed by people who had very little experience with travelers and were misleading and uninformed. Promises made were not kept resulting in our wasted time. Time is money$$$ ! Little or no efforts were made to fix issues. We read about problems in Italy, political and organization wise and this ship encompasses all that is wrong with Italy in one spot! Food in the restaurant was often cold and orders delivered to our table were mixed up. Simple things like ice were not available. The printed menu did not cover the actual dishes served so that a number of allergies were only discovered at the last minute. There were no substitutions so you basically went without food if you could not eat the food the waiter brought you. You could always fall back on the buffet on the 9th deck and that was the only "safe" place to eat. The wifi package did not work...but no refunds and the service desk did not understand how it worked. Read Less

Full disclosure: I won this cruise, so my only choice was itinerary, and after reading many negative reviews, I was quite worried. My worries were unfounded and we had an amazing time...as Americans, the Italian flavor added to the experience...rather than detracted, in our opinion. The last night, the dining room was rocking as waiters danced with passengers, the Italians started a conga line and everyone...Italians, Americans, Germans, French, etc....sang Italian songs. There are some things that will seem inefficient to Americans, but just chill out and enjoy a little bit of the European experience. It was particularly fun to watch the Super Bowl on the big screen by the pool with the other American passengers and stand for the national anthem...the grill was also open late that night, so we could indulge in burgers, hot dogs and fries. I will never forget the look on some of the crew's faces when Big Boi performed in that giant fur coat for the halftime show! As far as entertainment, we liked all the shows, but especially Davide, the tenor and "The Voice at Sea"...where passengers competed in a sing-off. All competitiors got encouragement from the audience and we had a little nationalistic pride when an American won. Bingo was done a little differently with push-in cards and the caller reading off the numbers in 5 or 6 languages...again, FUN! I didn't buy a drink in a bar, but my son and his fiance did and they said prices were even a bit lower than those in Vegas, where they live. We only took one tour with Costa...in Jamaica...and it was well-run with awesome guides. They only spoke English, so I'm not sure if the Europeans enjoyed it as much as we did, but most of the activities did not really require a narration. We loved the dance lessons and shout out to the Latin Dance team who would dance with passengers in one of the bars at night. The musicians at all of the venues were excellent....if you like to dance, you will LOVE this ship! Cabins were okay...maybe a little dated, but comfortable. Many complain about lack of turndown service...I think most of us are capable of doing that ourselves. My room was always made up when I returned from breakfast, gym and spa. We had second dinner seating, which started out tough for us, being American, but we adapted by eating a salad or dessert at the buffet and then going down and having a delicious dinner in the dining room. I have seen complaints re charges for pizza and burgers...you can eat those for free at lunch...no need to pay at all. As our itinerary progressed, we were actually glad for late seating, as we got back late at some of the ports and would have rushed to get to the first seating. I used the spa and gym daily...part of the reason I only gained 1 lb, despite indulging in dessert 2x/day. Both are excellent and the spa package was a great value...especially during sea days. Be sure to register your credit card at one of the kiosks when you get on the ship (this was one of my only complaints...why can't you register it upon check-in at thea port?) or you will need to settle your bill in person at the Hospitality Desk, which had a very long line as our trip concluded. My only other complaint has nothing to do with the ship or cruise, but just that the Costa customer service department in the US had an incredibly long wait time on the phone before I was even connected with an agent...and that they would not return phone calls or emails. All in all, a fantastic cruise...one of the best I've been on...and it had little to do with the ship, but mostly because of the atmosphere. I lived in Germany for 3 years when I was much younger and loved it...I always found that if you travel to other countries and want things the same way as they are at home...maybe you should just stay home. Read Less

You get what you pay for. Do yourself a favor and book a real cruise, not one that works you over at every step of the way. Save a little more money and do it right. Way to many cons vs. pros to mention. Only good thing was our cabin and room steward. These people work like dogs all for the almighty corporate profit. No costumer service. So many different languages, very little is included. You pay extra for just about everything. They rush you through dinner and kick you out before you're done if your server is slow. With all the fancy words on the menu you don't know what you're eating and half the menu you have to pay extra for, including water. Who ever heard of such a thing. Sometimes they would make the crew do a show while you are dining and it's so loud you have to hold you ears. Entertainment was loud and boring like from the 1970's. Pool is tiny and so crowded you can't enjoy yourself. No towels. I mean I could go on and on. For us, never again. I've been on Princess, Holland American, Regent and Seaborn. Don't make the same mistake we did. Read Less

Regardless of poor reviews that we read, we embarked on the Costa Deliziosa due to provided price discounts (~70%) for 2 x 10 consecutive days. And, the following is our personal opinion: 1. Food and its variety was very good in taste and the quality terms. Except: a) there was very poor choice of tropical & exotic fruits like Papaya (popular in Central America), Dragon, Pepino,.....etc. Kiwi were to hard and not well matured. b) often we encountered a shortage of water melons. c) often there was an annoying line-up for the food at pick hours d) service over the supper lasted too long (~ 2 hrs). e) free coffee was of poor quality 2.There was too many outdoor cigarette smoking places. The smoke from outside was entering main corridors through the door openings into the Buffet area making difficult to find a smoke-free place. Smoke was even evaporating on walking / jogging path on the top deck. Also, the walking path was blocked by people laying on chairs. Cigarette's smoke from the balcony was penetrating over the day and some night hrs inside of our balcony, hence we were very limited to have the benefits of balcony. Read Less

No matter what nationality you are, when you travel with Costa Cruise you will become Italian and live in an atmosphere full of love and human warmth. Italians are different from everyone, they are unique in the way they live their lives with others. The secret is in human contact, in the way they make you feel comfortable and important at same time , they know that everyone has a weakness for good food, pizza, pasta. wine, sweets and the beautiful Italian and Neapolitan melodic songs, I have had experiences with other Cruise Companies as: Carnival, Princess and Royal Caribbean but with Costa I reserve indelible memories, I do not exaggerate but the cleanliness that I have always found on Costa Cruise ships I have not found them from any others Cruises Ship For this and more if you decide to take a cruise I recommend Costa Cruise My next cruise will be with Costa Cruise again Read Less

Cruising for me is a wonderful experience no matter what. I have traveled by cruise ship 30+ Times. This shop was by far the worst in terms of food quality and options. I would gladly pay more for better quality food. The drink package is deceptive. We upgraded 2 times and still had to pay for a bottle of water to take in shore. Their menu in the dining room was not what I expected. Very limited and mostly lie cost meals prepared poorly. When I complained about this I was given a complimentary dinner at one of the specialty restaurants. It was the worst lobster I have ever had! How in the world do you mess up a lobster?? Never got ice with my drunks even though I asked multiple times. I will never cruise with costa again. The excuse that they cater to a European crowd as unacceptable. I have had some amazing food at restaurants in the untied states. Read Less

Bought the cruise as an alternate Christmas gift. Looking forward to seeing the islands and just getting away. What a disappointment! Most of the staff had trouble with English. The cabins had daily changes of towels but the bedding was not changed for the whole 11 days. The tour office gave incorrect information and if you wanted to cancel a tour you were out of luck. That required a doctors note. Tours were not as advertised, well some were, some not. I was sick 5 out of 11 days due to the food...and not the only one. Table selection was not available and after waiting an hour to have seating changed were advised what we wanted Was not possible. We paid for the specialty restaurants, not so special. The menu on the specialty restaurants were similar to regular dining rooms on other cruise lines. The entertainment was marginal. A lot was from the crew...no headliners. Read Less