We are a family of 3, myself 42, DH 42 and DS 13. We are from the UK and this was our 8th cruise but our first time on Costa. We flew into Rome the day before the cruise and stayed overnight at the Hilton Rome Airport hotel. We landed around 10.30 am and used the walkway to the hotel. We were able to check in straight away and our room was ready. The room was nice,recently decorated in a modern style with an attractive bathroom. We caught the hotels free shuttle bus into Rome and spent the afternoon sightseeing on the hop on/hop off bus. We ate pizzas sitting at a pavement cafe and caught the 7pm bus back to the hotel, ready for an early night before the cruise.

The next morning we enjoyed a good buffet breakfast that was included in the room rate and then had time for a quick swim in the indoor pool before checking out at 12. We walked back over to the airport to catch our Costa transfer to the ship.

The Costa rep was easy to find and when all the passengers had arrived she walked us over to the waiting bus. Our luggage was loaded and we didn't see it again until we got it in the cabin. The transfer took nearly an hour. When we arrived we were off the bus and onto the ship within 5 minutes. Unlike other lines, on Costa you set up your onboard account during the cruise not at the beginning(which seems a bit daft as there are always big queues to do so). We went straight up to the cabin to collect our Costa cards. Embarkation 10 out of 10. Read more