Cruise Ship Reviews : Costa Cruise Lines Reviews
palmeyra saw things this way:
Quite a good medium-class cruise, September 9, 2010
Reviewer: palmeyra
Pros: The overall quality of the food
Cons: With a cabin in the stern, we had to walk miles every day to the restaurant
Date of cruise: November 1, 2009
Departure port: Venice
Region visited: Mediterranean
Cabin category: Inside
Good for children: Yes
Good for teenagers: Yes
Embarkation was slow and by the time we arrived the complimentary drinks had all disappeared. It was hot, noisy and uncomfortable for about three hours until we were able to board. Costa Serena is a large ship, but considering her size she does not have a great deal to offer apart from the usual bars and casino. The emphasis does rather seem to be on parting the cruiser from his money, and drinks and excursions are expensive. This is probably not a good ship to cruise on if there are many days spent at sea. The decor is brash and colorful, reminiscent of Las Vegas rather than the beautiful European cities she visits. The food is good, not excellent. Water is available free but it has a strong taste of chlorine and is not really an acceptable alternative to the expensive bottled variety. Staff are excellent, as is usual on cruise ships. If the price and the itinerary are right, this is a good choice for a pleasant cruise.
karoggra saw things this way:
Costa's okay but in Europe the Italian passengers can be pests, May 13, 2010
Reviewer: karoggra
Pros: Lovely food!
Cons: You have to walk through smoking areas to get from A to B
Date of cruise: October 1, 2008
Departure port: Venice
Region visited: Mediterranean
Cabin category: Balcony
Cabin number: 8452
The boarding in Venice was a nightmare as there were no good signs for dropping off luggage resulting in a lot of walking to and from before we found the right place to drop it off. Then we had to draw a ticket for checking in. We waited for about 3-1/2 before realizing that people that arrived after us boarded before us. We complained and were promply put in the front of the line..... The stateroom was fine. We love the rooms at the very aft of the ship where we can see the wake. However, on the Costa ships you must be aware that there is a lot of soot from the funnel and because of the structure of the funnel (we assume) the soot lands on the aft verandahs. So to be able to sit outside on the chairs without ruining our clothes we had to cover them with towels. The food onboard cannot be faulted, especially the dinners. The breakfasts were a pain, as Italians (which are the majority of passengers onboard the Venice cruises) have no idea how to stand in line for breakfast or lunch at the buffets and they just butt in wherever there's an open space. The same goes for queuing when going off or on the ship. The speciality restaurant left alot to be desired. We were six people in our party and four of us were not happy with what we got. When you have to pay a cover charge of $ 20 per person the food better be good which it wasn't - far from it! The common areas were beautiful. However, it was poorly designed as the only way you could get from the main restaurant to the theater was through the smoking-area casino and through an extremely narrow shopping area. Otherwise you had to go down one deck and up another. Shows were rather poor. Costa is aware that the passengers come from all over Europe and the USA and speak manydifferent languages. This makes it difficult to have comedy shows or shows in English. The final evening in the main restaurant was great. The waiters gave us a great show and it was a really enjoyable evening. The Italians are party-loving people. The ship arranged theme evenings every night, but it was mainly Italians that joined in as the first language on the ship was Italian. But by all means - if you are in the partying mood, then I'm sure you'd be having a great time! We have decided that once is enough with Costa, but we do have friends that just booked their third Costa cruise so I suppose it's a matter of taste...
Costa Serena reviews
Average customer rating:
3.06 / 5
3.06 / 5Average Rating based on 2 Reviews:
Value For Money
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Fitness Center
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Spa
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Fitness Center
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Spa
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
3.00
3.00
2.50
3.00
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
3.00
3.00
2.50
3.00
4.00
3.50
3.00
2.50
3.00
palmeyra saw things this way:
Value For Money
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
4
4
3
4
5
4
5
4
3
4
5
4
5
Quite a good medium-class cruise, September 9, 2010
Reviewer: palmeyra
Pros: The overall quality of the food
Cons: With a cabin in the stern, we had to walk miles every day to the restaurant
Date of cruise: November 1, 2009
Departure port: Venice
Region visited: Mediterranean
Cabin category: Inside
Good for children: Yes
Good for teenagers: Yes
Embarkation was slow and by the time we arrived the complimentary drinks had all disappeared. It was hot, noisy and uncomfortable for about three hours until we were able to board. Costa Serena is a large ship, but considering her size she does not have a great deal to offer apart from the usual bars and casino. The emphasis does rather seem to be on parting the cruiser from his money, and drinks and excursions are expensive. This is probably not a good ship to cruise on if there are many days spent at sea. The decor is brash and colorful, reminiscent of Las Vegas rather than the beautiful European cities she visits. The food is good, not excellent. Water is available free but it has a strong taste of chlorine and is not really an acceptable alternative to the expensive bottled variety. Staff are excellent, as is usual on cruise ships. If the price and the itinerary are right, this is a good choice for a pleasant cruise.
karoggra saw things this way:
Value For Money
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Fitness Center
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Spa
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
Cabin Design
Entertainment
Fitness Center
Food Quality
Ship Maintenance
Spa
Specialty Restaurant
Staff and Service
2
2
2
3
4
2
3
1
1
2
2
3
4
2
3
1
1
Costa's okay but in Europe the Italian passengers can be pests, May 13, 2010
Reviewer: karoggra
Pros: Lovely food!
Cons: You have to walk through smoking areas to get from A to B
Date of cruise: October 1, 2008
Departure port: Venice
Region visited: Mediterranean
Cabin category: Balcony
Cabin number: 8452
The boarding in Venice was a nightmare as there were no good signs for dropping off luggage resulting in a lot of walking to and from before we found the right place to drop it off. Then we had to draw a ticket for checking in. We waited for about 3-1/2 before realizing that people that arrived after us boarded before us. We complained and were promply put in the front of the line..... The stateroom was fine. We love the rooms at the very aft of the ship where we can see the wake. However, on the Costa ships you must be aware that there is a lot of soot from the funnel and because of the structure of the funnel (we assume) the soot lands on the aft verandahs. So to be able to sit outside on the chairs without ruining our clothes we had to cover them with towels. The food onboard cannot be faulted, especially the dinners. The breakfasts were a pain, as Italians (which are the majority of passengers onboard the Venice cruises) have no idea how to stand in line for breakfast or lunch at the buffets and they just butt in wherever there's an open space. The same goes for queuing when going off or on the ship. The speciality restaurant left alot to be desired. We were six people in our party and four of us were not happy with what we got. When you have to pay a cover charge of $ 20 per person the food better be good which it wasn't - far from it! The common areas were beautiful. However, it was poorly designed as the only way you could get from the main restaurant to the theater was through the smoking-area casino and through an extremely narrow shopping area. Otherwise you had to go down one deck and up another. Shows were rather poor. Costa is aware that the passengers come from all over Europe and the USA and speak manydifferent languages. This makes it difficult to have comedy shows or shows in English. The final evening in the main restaurant was great. The waiters gave us a great show and it was a really enjoyable evening. The Italians are party-loving people. The ship arranged theme evenings every night, but it was mainly Italians that joined in as the first language on the ship was Italian. But by all means - if you are in the partying mood, then I'm sure you'd be having a great time! We have decided that once is enough with Costa, but we do have friends that just booked their third Costa cruise so I suppose it's a matter of taste...
