Will we like...

[CruiserByHeart]

We've enjoyed cruises on Royal Caribbean and loved cruises on Celebrity. Will we like Costa?

• How is the mix of passengers (age and nationality)? We are in our late 30's and early 40's and don't have children
  
• What is the entertainment like? We like the production shows and listening to solo artists performing in the lounges
  
• How good is the food? We're foodies and enjoy both good service and good food
  

Have you tried RCCL and X as well as Costa? We're eager to hear your thoughts :)

[AnonymousCruiser69]

I haven't been on RCI or celebrity, so I can't offer a comparison. I would suggest you read some reviews and go with an open mind. both of those cater more to American tastes, so expect a difference.

 

here is my 'live' thread from a recent cruise on mediterranea: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1741791

 

and a bunch of food photos from the same cruise: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1748219

Edited March 27, 2013 by AnonymousCruiser69

[Capricruiser]

The passenger nationality mix will depend on the cruise itinerary area and ages on the season (older in the winter, younger in the summer). Lots of children in the summer and school vacation periods. Entertainment is spectacular in the evening in the theatre while different groups/solos perform in the various lounges. Food is primarily Italian (Italy Italian) but with many international dishes also on the menu.

[UKBayern]

We are your age, and travelled on RCCL 2 and our last cruise was Costa.

Did you do RCCL in the Caribbean on in Europe? We found our RCCL-cruise in the Med very similar to Costa: losts of different nationalities, shows mainly of the non-speaking variety due to the language barrier, Med style cuisine.

Like every cruise with every company, the passenger mix depends on a lot of factors, such as season, itinerary,etc.

[Dancer Bob]

I've done Back 2 Back cruises on several lines, there's always been differences, sometimes the passenger mix was so different I wondered if I was on the same ship.

I've only done RCCL on the Caribbean. The food on average was somewhat better than Costa, but I still wouldn't recommend it to foodies. For someone who wants "good food and good service" Crystal might be a good choice. Many of their meals were excellent, and the areas they were weak might not be important to you.

[Blondie008]

For what its worth ....

I have sailed on M Class Celebrity, and Royal Caribbean Explorer of the seas.

I have two different experiences of Costa, one on Magica - the other on NeoRomantica. NeoRomantica I would put above Royal Caribbean and on a par with Celebrity, Magica would rate below both (and I am not a big RCI fan).

Just my tuppence worth :)

[cruisetrail]

We've enjoyed cruises on Royal Caribbean and loved cruises on Celebrity. Will we like Costa?

• How is the mix of passengers (age and nationality)? We are in our late 30's and early 40's and don't have children
  
• What is the entertainment like? We like the production shows and listening to solo artists performing in the lounges
  
• How good is the food? We're foodies and enjoy both good service and good food
  

Have you tried RCCL and X as well as Costa? We're eager to hear your thoughts :)

 

What RCCL ships?

They are so different.

Costa ships are different too.

Favolosa is not Fortuna. Fortuna is not Luminosa.

 

How is the mix of passengers (age and nationality)? We are in our late 30's and early 40's and don't have children

Mostly Italian.

Ages - depends on the itinerary and the time of the year.

 

What is the entertainment like? We like the production shows and listening to solo artists performing in the lounges

Main stage - bland. Don't expect live music.

Solo (trio, etc) artists performing in the lounges - yes, as on any large cruise ship.

 

How good is the food? We're foodies and enjoy both good service and good food

Overall - the worst at sea.

Buffet - relatively limited selection for breakfast, awful for lunch, no buffet for dinner.

No alternative dining venues included in the price - you'll be confined to MDR.

There is a specialty restaurant that is nothing to write home about in comparison with RCCL and Celebrity specialties.

General trend: drinking and smoking rather than eating.

Italian food?

No. This is Costa food. Some call it "Italian".

 

Have you tried RCCL and X as well as Costa? We're eager to hear your thoughts

Yes, of course.

 

What ships should we compare?

Design overall (from best to worst):

Oasis class, Freedom class, Deliziosa/Luminosa, Favolosa/Fascinosa, Celebrity S-class, Costa Spirit class, Celebrity M-class.

 

Public rooms decor: crazy eclectic. Not just glitz of RCCL or elegance of Celebrity S-class.

 

Service - same as on all major cruise lines.

Samsara spa package (on the newest ships) - overpriced but much better than what you can get on Celebrity.

 

Cabins - more spacious (Destiny class) than on RCCL and Celebrity.

Finding a good cabin location:

All good (Destiny class), as good as on RCCL. Much better than on Celebrity.

Vista class (Deliziosa/Luminosa) and Spirit class - some issues, but not as bad as on Celebrity.

 

Co-travelers: expect the least reserved behavior of all three.

 

What undermines the whole product - dining.

Edited April 5, 2013 by cruisetrail

[JosieS]

Guess then we won't feel bad about eating in port and missing our dinner on the ship :)

Going on the neoRomantica Aug 26 through Sept 28 2014--three cruises in a row. Anyone else out there on any of those cruses? email me jaasimon@comcast.net

[MSH from Norway]

How is the mix of passengers (age and nationality)? We are in our late 30's and early 40's and don't have children

• What is the entertainment like? We like the production shows and listening to solo artists performing in the lounges
  
• How good is the food? We're foodies and enjoy both good service and good food

-----------------------

 

 

Hallo to "skønne køben"......

 

I've been on several costa, x and rccl-ships and to give you the short version:

 

 

Breakfast is like breakfast in the cafe in Bilka. Basic and as a plus you get the omelet-station.

 

 

Dinner is like a biff from jensens bøfhus near tivoli. Good, but better on X.

 

 

Sitting in a lounge and looking at the people is like sitting in a chair in Strøget and looking at the life going by in the summer.

 

 

You will find more people dancing in one spot than you will find people in Nyhavn.......

 

 

Have you been to Noma in Strandgade?

You will find nothing like that onboard.......:D

 

 

Onboard you will find a lot of we in Norway says is "country-food", mat fra landet, and if you like that, fish and spagetti you will be fine......

 

 

And another good thing is that you can take 3 costacruise or 1 x-cruise...

For easter you can now stay in a balcony for 4700nkr for a week........:cool: