Costa Victoria

[katredd]

Hello! We've booked a cruise for May on Costa Victoria in an S Suite -- I don't see many posts on that ship. Does anyone have comments / hints / tips on the Victoria? We are traveling with kids (ages 8 & 10) so any kid comments would be welcome too! Thanks much!

[DrCrovatt]

My family enjoyed our trip on the Costa Victoria this past week. I feel I can share information that can help future cruisers maximize their enjoyment of this cruise. First of all the ship has a very nice decor and is exceptionally clean. I found the staff to be extremely pleasant and the service was excellent. The room was nicer than I expected. I loved all the ports of call with the exception of Bari. The entertainment was very good. Although the food was good, it did not meet my expectations which may have been unreasonably high. I felt an Italian cruise line would have a higher quality of food than I would find in the US and that is not the case. I prefer touring on my own and I feel the cruise line tried to make it more difficult for the independent excursioner than it should have. Basically they give very poor or no maps trying to encourage passengers to only use their tours. On the first port Bari we followed the map. Bari has very narrow "streets". Although very clean and unique looking, narrow streets from my part of the world can be considered alleys. We were lucky not to be mugged. The only reason we were not mugged was due to the high number of police. It is easy to wander into unsafe areas. On the Bari stop I do recommend either using the ship's tour or walking left when you reach the main road and going to the Basilica only. The next stop is Olympia. I advise walking off the ship and taking a taxi. The cost is 80 Euros. The ship cost for 2 would be about 100 Euros. The taxi will stop wherever you want and the driver will wait for you while you tour the ruins. If the driver does not speak english which was the case for us, he has a cell phone where you speak to someone to translate for you. Try to leave on the first group off the ship as the time is a little tight but you do have plenty of time. The next stop was magnificent. Santorini is very nice. I advise taking the cable car up the cliff. The cost is reasonable and the other choices are going up by donkey or walking. The smell of the donkeys is extremely objectionable and if you walk you are walking up the same path with the donkeys. You can decide on the top which option you wish to use to get down. The next stop is Mykonos. Pretty straight forward. Just take the shuttle in. I don't think there was even a ship excursion option on that one. The next stop "Rhodes" was my favorite. I was lucky enough to hire a taxi driver who spoke excellent english, is incredibly pleasant and knows the Greek history exceedingly well. He took the 3 of us for the day in his air condition mercedes to Lindos and the beaches with stops anywhere we wanted and at the places he suggested for 130 Euros. Had we taken the equivalent tour from the ship it would have cost 291 Euros. When we were returning from Lindos to Rhodes he called a restaurant for us for a wonderful lunch which was prepared by the time we got there. The food was wonderful and economical. The owner spoke no english so our driver translated and there is no doubt we were getting the authentic cuisine. If you go to the taxi stand our driver is known as "George the American". I would ask for him. You can reserve him in advance by calling him at home at 2241064056 or on his cell at 6945943408. If he is booked he will recommend another driver. I give him my highest recommendation. Dubrovnik was our last stop and it is wonderful. No need for taking a tour. Just take the shuttle bus and walk around the walled city. Catch lunch within the walled town. You really don't have enough time to tour the rest of the city. I did take some photos from our trip and if you are interested in seeing them go to http://community.webshots.com/script...65462669oQSHRl If you have any questions for me I will occasionally check this thread or you can email me at mcrovatt@tampabay.rr.com Enjoy your trip. Mike C

[katredd]

Thanks for the info!

[Danielkyle]

This will be my families first crusie. I have a 2 year old son and was wondering what the ship (Costa Victoria ) is like. I am concerned that the room may be too small to bring my son playpen to sleep in at night. (Nabucco DecK Outside room). I am also concerned about activities for us as a family since I read somewhere that they will not babysit childern unless they are over 3 hand out of diapers (neither case applies to my son). Also I have read reviews that the service is terrible and that the food is the same Italian fare everyday,,,, I LOVE PASTA but I do like to have variety too. What about paying for milk and juice for my son, he loves his juice and milk. Will he drink us out of our vacation budget??? Are the prices reasonable for toddlers' beverages? We will be leaving December 22 for a wonderful Christas at sea from Rio De Janeiro and I was just wondering if anyone had any insights or assurances to offer a worrisom mother who just wants her family to have the best Christmas ever.

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

Juices and milk are typically free...included in your cruise fare. Soft drinks and of course alcoholic drinks cost extra. If for some reason you need to buy a juice flavor that is not being offered for free, you're not talking about a huge amount of money. So quit sweating the small stuff.

 

BobK/Orlando