Just Back from Magica 1/8

[rps2004]

Just returned from the 1/8 sailing of the Magica. NYC suburbs are in the teens tonight, so nice "welcome home".

 

Will wait to post more detailed review, but had a great time and found the ship to be delightful, as did the two sets of friends we sailed with. Given the strong feelings good and bad that have surrounded the Magica on these boards, I can only assume that Costa is trying to work out the kinks, and/or that different folks will take away different viewpoints from any particular situation.

 

So, here are some quick tidbits:

 

Embarkation was under an hour (we got there shortly after 11 and were on board by right after 12). I did not hear of any horror stories for later arrivals.

 

Getting off of the ship was even quicker. I timed it and was shocked = 22 minutes flat. We were in the theater for an 8:15 call, punched our card and walked off the ship at 8:18 and were through immigration and customs and on the curb at 8:37. I was dumbfounded. We had scheduled a 10 AM van pickup for the 7 of us and had to call to get someone there earlier. The lines never backed up, found the luggage right away, porter was right there and we just moved out to daylight.

 

Buffet needs some work. Not very imaginative and not open as often as were those on the other cruises we took. And yes, there were powdered eggs - I am an expert at spotting them having lived on them all through college. But, there were several omelette stations with real eggs that would also cook them for you any way you wanted them. One of my buddies had thre eggs over easy every morning. On the whole the buffet was not terrible.

 

Dining room experience was fine. Food was good cruise food - service was top notch. More on this later.

 

Ship's public spaces were comfortable and plentiful. Lots of stuff going on all over the ship and no crowding, even though ship was sold out. My wife was able to hot tub and pool. We always found deck chairs - there were always places to sit and have a drink. Very pleasant.

 

My 15 year old granddaughter took part in many of the teen activities and was happy with them. She had a midnight curfew and that worked out fine. Perhaps because of the tragedy the week before and the public comment on the threads, there appeared to be more supervision. There were no drunk teens that I saw and the casino was kept clean of them as well. But, remember, school is back in and there were not an over abundance of children.

 

Age group was mixed and slanted towards the55+ year old set.

 

Ship is absolutely stunning and easy to get around on.

 

Ship and crew are Italian. Like taking a cruise in the Caribbean and a vacation in Italy at the same time. We loved it, but it may not appeal to all.

 

There were a signiificant number of Italians on the ship. Not a majority, but a significant number. Europeans and Americans do have some cultural differences and that can lead to issues - or make for a charming encounter. Different folks will have different takes on this. My wife and I were having breakfast on the second level buffet. Outside the window on the sun deck, a middle aged Italian gentlemen took off his pants and underpants and bent over to retrieve his bathing suit. He stayed in that position for a bit and then proceeded to put it on. There were people on either side of him, but he didn't seem to mind. Some of the younger Italian woman did go topless on the visit to Costa's private beach. Some of the Americans clucked and others - mostly us older guys - just admired the view. Not sure what the reaction of parents with kids would be.

 

The main theater is very large, with ample seating and cutting edge technology. The shows were at the high ends of cruise entertainment - but rember Simon Cowell's line on American Idol - " You aren't even good enough to sing on a cruise ship".

 

Catalina Island was excellent. Very nicely done. Compares favorably with Princess Cays, IMO.

 

For all of you hockey fans - Scotty Bowman was on board.

 

All in all, we all gave it an 8.5 out of 10. Had an absolutely fabulous time.

 

Glad to answer any questions you may have.

[hadleys9538]

Thanks, Maureen and Richard for already posting. The cruise sounds wonderful, and I can't wait to read more. Let us know what you did in all of the ports as well when you get a chance. Thanks. Cheryl

[venice2]

WOuld you prefer the Costa line or the Celebrity.

 

How was the smoking situation on the Costa.

 

We are very sensitive to smokers.:)