Just back from Costa Magica!!

[twojays]

HI,

 

Well we got back home last night, and I just wanted to say how much we thoroughly enjoyed the whole cruise experience.

 

Admittedly, this was our first ever cruise, so we have nothing to compare it with, but it has been a truly wonderful holiday.

 

The Magica is a beautiful ship, with a lot of attention to detail.

Some of the corridors are amazing.

We had a balcony cabin, which was quite spacious, with plenty of wardrobe and drawer space, a settee area, a mini fridge, and a lovely ensuite with a good shower.

It was all spotlessly clean, and was kept that way.

Towels were changed every time we used one - maybe three times a day. There was an Ice bucket which always had fresh ice in, and any glasses we used, were replaced with clean ones. The rubbish bins in the cabin and bathroom were also emptied at least twice a day.

 

We felt that the organisation of just about everything on board was excellent e.g.distribution of information,activities, excoursions, shows, meal times, embarking and disembarking. ( although the embarking did take a long time).

 

We enjoyed the food - which we had been a bit worried about after reading all the negative posts on the various boards here. There was certainly plenty of it, and the variety was adequate. Our restaurant was the Smeralda.

Our waiters were excellent, being extremely attentive, polite and pleasant.

We found that we liked to go the Bellagio Buffet Restaurant for breakfast and lunch - but that was just our personal choice.

We did order breakfast in our cabin one day - and that was lovely to eat it on the balcony. ( no extra charge)

 

We went to each of the shows, and we enjoyed them. Some were better than others, but all were watchable. The theatre is lovely.

 

We went to the Captian's Cocktail party, and we were also invited to the Honeymooners Party - as we were celebrating our 32nd Wedding Anniversary - and we were all invited to renew our wedding vows with the Captain, which we thought was a really nice touch.

 

We enjoyed wandering between the lounges/bars in the evenings. We were always able to find some that would be playing music of our liking, and if we didnt, then we would just move on to another.

 

There were certainly a lot of people who enjoyed lively evenings, with fun and games, and they were catered for also.

 

We were just on our own, but we noticed that children and teenagers also had things going on for them.

 

The ports of call were all lovely - we especially liked Malta and Barcelona.

 

So all in all, we have definitely enjoyed our first cruise. We liked Costa, and would recommend it.

 

If anyone wants any more information, please just ask.

[surfin'sue]

I am very excited to read your review of the Magica. I am in the mist of packing since we fly out on Sat afternoon to board on Sunday, the 17th. It is always so refreshing to read that someone had such a great time. I am happy for you. If you have any tips for us concerning excursions, etc., please share. We are thinking that we will take the ship's Portofino tour, do Barcelona on our own (but have not decided whether it's worth doing the turistic bus since we have little time there) and have a private tour booked in Malta...that's as far as we have planned!! Also, how was your embarkment? I have read nightmares on here as to the length of time that people have waited. Thanks in advance for your comments!

[Jo42]

I'm so glad you had a great time - I knew you would!

 

We are now getting very excited about our upcoming trip. How was Tunis? Did you go it alone, or do the ship's excursion? Still not sure what to do here as I didn't go ashore in Tunisia last time. We are taking our teenager this time so good to know they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

 

:)

[nonna5]

So glad you had a great time. We will be sailing the Magica in the Carribean in January in a balcony room. Can you tell me if you were in a suite. Sadly we are not but will have a balcony in Catagory 8. I was just wondering if all balcony rooms have a minifridge, as we will be traveling with an 8 month old. Also are there safes in the rooms. Thank you for all your help.

[Jo42]

OUr Cat 8 balcony room on the Magica had a fridge. Ask your cabin steward to remove all the costa items leaving you room to store your own drinks and baby food/milk etc. The room also had a safe, lockable with any card with a magnetic strip ie your room key or credit card. The safe was big enough to store all our documents, wallets, jewellry etc, but not a lap top.

[madx2]

I'm so glad you had a great time - I knew you would!

 

We are now getting very excited about our upcoming trip. How was Tunis? Did you go it alone, or do the ship's excursion? Still not sure what to do here as I didn't go ashore in Tunisia last time. We are taking our teenager this time so good to know they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

 

:)

 

Do NOT GO on the shopping excursion through the ship! I was on the Magica May 22 - 29 and we wanted to do something in Tunisia so we booked the shopping trip. It was the worst experience our party of 8 had. They drop you off in the middle of what I like to call a 'flea market' and everybody there is trying to sell you something. Even our tour guide tried to sell us something on the way back. We didn't feel 100% safe. Our tour guide left us in the middle of this 'flea market' and just disappered. The salesman are extremely pushy and don't seem to work in one store. They will actually follow you around and will not leave you alone! An ironic part was that our tour guide told us on the bus to deal with the people on prices and most did deal but one sales lady started screaming bloody murder saying that when they come to America they don't deal on prices but when we come there we expect to pay nothing for something. It actually started to get out of control as a few men started to agree with her. We just kind of walked out and didn't look back. You've been warned!

[nonna5]

Jo42 - Thanks for the info. We are really looking forward to cruising Costa again as it has been a number of years since we have been on a Costa ship. Thank you again for your help - Nonna5

[twojays]

Jo42 - We did the Historical & Cultural Tunisia Tour. Our tour guide was a mine of information, and was quite passionate about wanting to pass it all on to us. I think from what other people said about being taken to a carpet shop etc. that unless you particularly want to do shopping, then it is the best tour to take. You get to have a good walk through Carthage, whereas the other tours only seemed to pass by and point it out.

[twojays]

Surfin'sue, we embarked and dis-embarked in Savona, so we didnt get the chance to do the Portofino tour.

 

Embarkation took us about an hour and a half - which seemd like forever, as we were at the end of our journey, and just wanted to get on board and into our cabin.

We were given number 11 when we got there, and number 3 was just being embarked. It seemed to take approximately 15 mins for each number.

But once we got to our cabin we forgot all of that. We went quickly for something to eat - and then we were called to do the boat drill.

 

It was easy to walk ashore in Palma, La Valletta (which is so lovely as you come into the port) and Palermo. We took the shuttle bus in Barcelona - which doesnt take you very far, but it is a help, then you can walk to the Ramblas. There are always taxis, or horses and carriages if you want them. We did the Historical & Cultural tour in Tunis, which appeared to be the bsest option. Tunis is certainly very different to all the other ports.

You will have a fabulous holiday - enjoy every minute.

[twojays]

Jo42 - only 10 days to go. Have a great trip, and let us know how you get on.

[surfin'sue]

Thanks, Twojays, we are leaving late Sat. afternoon from the USA and will arrive the next morning at the Rome airport. I appreciate your help!

[twojays]

Surfin'sue - you will be on your way now as I write this - but let me know how your cruise went when you get back.

[ozzietraveller]

Thanks twojays

 

Your information has been extremly helpful.

My husband and I are going in September.

Can you tell me if you had to get a visa to get off in Tunisia?

Do you choose which sitting for dinner or do you go to any restaurant?

Which tours did you do for the other places?

Do you know which is the best way to get to Savona from Genoa?

I hope I haven't bombarded you with too many questions.

Thanks again

[vtsunshine]

Hi TwoJays,

Glad to hear you had a good trip on Magica. My husband and I are going to be traveling on the Magica 7/31 and are so excited. I have a few questions based on what you wrote, hope you don't mind!

You said you took a shuttle into Barcelona, was that provided by the ship, or port and was it free? Did the historical and cultural Tunisia tour give any time at all to shop at the markets? (my husband wants to do this tour and so do I but I would like a small oppertunity to shop, however don't want to do it for too long espically based on how pushy everyone says the vendors are). Also you did Palermo by yourselves, what was there to do and was it hard to get there from port? You boarded in Savorna, was it far from the port to the town, and was the town nice? And finally how "formal" were formal nights on the ship... I read different things and it seems to be based on the different ships exactly how formal the two nights are. Oh and one more thing, did you eat at the pay resturant at all?

Many Thanks again!!

Oh, sorry one more thing! Were deck chairs hard to come by?

[twojays]

Ozzietraveller, I will try to answer your questions:

 

 

Can you tell me if you had to get a visa to get off in Tunisia?

 

No, we didnt need a Visa - just our passports, and you need to take your Costa Card with you as well.

 

Do you choose which sitting for dinner or do you go to any restaurant?

 

We requested 1st sitting when we booked the cruise - and when we arrived in our cabin, there was a card telling us which restaurant we had been assigned to (it was the Smerelda) and what our table number was. This stayed the same for each of our evening meals.

We were glad that we had chosen 1st sitting, which is at 7.15 most nights - it was good timing if you want to go to the 1st Show which was at 9.45pm.

 

Which tours did you do for the other places?

 

We did everywhere else on our own, because we like walking.

 

Do you know which is the best way to get to Savona from Genoa?

 

Sorry, cant answer that question, as we came by coach from Milan.

 

I hope I haven't bombarded you with too many questions.

 

Not at all!!!!!! Any more?

[twojays]

vtsunshine - I will try to answer your questions now:

 

You said you took a shuttle into Barcelona, was that provided by the ship, or port and was it free?

We took the bus provided by the ship. It cost 5 euros per person for the return trip - which isnt very far, but it gets you closer to Las Ramblas. There was also a bus run by the Port, but I dont know how much that one was.

 

Did the historical and cultural Tunisia tour give any time at all to shop at the markets? (my husband wants to do this tour and so do I but I would like a small oppertunity to shop, however don't want to do it for too long espically based on how pushy everyone says the vendors are).

Each time the coach stopped (3 times) there were a few market type stalls that you could shop at, but there wasn't a lot of spare time.

 

Also you did Palermo by yourselves, what was there to do and was it hard to get there from port?

It wasn't hard to walk from the ship in Palermo. We just got a map (free from the ship) and walked to Orto Botanico - which was a large park, and then we walked to a shopping area. There is also the Cathedral. If you want more to do, you may want to take a tour.

 

You boarded in Savorna, was it far from the port to the town, and was the town nice?

Savona was nice, and it wasnt far to walk to the town.

 

 

And finally how "formal" were formal nights on the ship... I read different things and it seems to be based on the different ships exactly how formal the two nights are.

My husband took his Tux - and wore it both nights, but not many others had them on. The majority of women look nice and get dressed up, but most of the men just wear a suit - some with ties, and some without.

 

Oh and one more thing, did you eat at the pay resturant at all?

We didnt eat at the Pay restaurant, we were quite happy with our own.

 

Oh, sorry one more thing! Were deck chairs hard to come by?

No problem getting sun-beds - there are loads of them. If you want one right by one of the pools (deck 9), it might be more difficult as it can get quite busy in those areas, but there are sun-beds everywhere(decks 10,11,12 - all with clean towels on them, or if not, you can pick a towel up from one of the many stands around the decks.

 

 

Hope that helps to answer your questions - if you have any more, please dont hesitate to ask.

[ozzietraveller]

Is it because you are a UK citizen that you didn't need a visa, or is it they don't care.

 

I've been told I need a visa, I'm an Australian citizen:)

[theman1]

I am very excited to read your review of the Magica. I am in the mist of packing since we fly out on Sat afternoon to board on Sunday' date=' the 17th. It is always so refreshing to read that someone had such a great time. I am happy for you. If you have any tips for us concerning excursions, etc., please share. We are thinking that we will take the ship's Portofino tour, do Barcelona on our own (but have not decided whether it's worth doing the turistic bus since we have little time there) and have a private tour booked in Malta...that's as far as we have planned!! Also, how was your embarkment? I have read nightmares on here as to the length of time that people have waited. Thanks in advance for your comments![/quote']

 

Hi,

 

I just retuned from Magica 10-17.07.2005. Barcelona on your own is very good option. We did it and - it was perfect. In Barcelona it is easy to navigate. Near all important monuments, parks etc. you will find info how to get there. We did not even take the bus turistic. We have purchased one day metro and bus ticket, and went to Parc Guell first, then to Sagrada Famillia, then other Gaudi's building, and finally walk through Las Ramblas. It was really easy. Regarding Savona I cannot say anything since we met our friends from Italy and spent day with them.

Regarding embarkment - we were in the port quite early - around 12 p.m. We had number 4. We left lugguage and went to Savona (embarkation was supposed to start at 2 p.m.) When we arrived back (1.45 p.m.) they just called our number - so we were on Magica before 2 p.m. We went for lunch and had plenty of time for visiting the ship.

[twojays]

ozzietraveller.

 

I'm sorry but I cant answer your question about the visa then. We certainly didnt need one, and I didnt hear anyone else mention one - but you will need to check that out.:confused:

 

We did however need to take our actual passports with us, and they got stamped on disembarkation in Tunis. At the other ports, we only needed a photocopy.

[ozzietraveller]

Thank you, it's greatly appreciated.

 

I'll just have to wait and see whether I need a visa, if so I'll get one on arrival:)

[AndrewJ]

Hi Ozzie Traveller

 

I am also Australian and was in Tunisia on the Costa Mediterranea last year. I didn't need a visa - the ship arranged entry directly with the immigration officials. Ths could have been because we were on an excursion, but I think the same applies whatever you do. I will be back there on the Magica next month and plan to go ashore independently, so I hope I am right!

 

For anyone a bit concerned about Tunis, you can relax a bit. OK, it is a bit harder than some other ports, but it's also exotic and interesting. If you're on a tour there is nothing at all to be concerned about. We headed off to a restaurant during the free shopping part of the tour and this was really fun - we were well looked after by the host and had a great time. This time we are trying to arrange a private driver.

[ozzietraveller]

Thank you AndrewJ, I appreciate it.

 

Are you cruising out of Savona?

If so do you know how to get from Genoa to Savona?

 

I've read mixed reviews about Costa cruises. Your going again so it can't be too bad.

 

I'm very excited, I can't wait, I go in September.

 

So that means your not getting a visa this time either.

:) :p :D

[ozzietraveller]

P.S.

 

So that means your not getting a visa before you go?

[AndrewJ]

Yes, that's right. The ship organised it directly with the immigration authorites, so there was no need to arrange it in advance.

 

This will be our 6th Costa Cruise, so that speaks for itself. The passenegers are predominantly Italian, but we enjoy this aspect despite not speaking Italian. The people who find the experience challenging tend to be English speakers who want an English speaking ship.

[ozzietraveller]

Thanks again for the information.

 

I speak Italian, so at dinner would I be better off asking to sit at a table with Italians or English speaking people.:D