costa-victoriadr011198

Name: David Rusell
Email: drussell@server.islc.net
Age: 23
Occupation: Engineer
NumberOfCruises: 1
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Costa-Victoria
SailingDate: January 11, 1998
Itinerary: Western Carribean
FoodDiningRoom: 94
CruiseDirector: 90
CabinComfort: 96
FoodRoomService: 85
CruiseStaff: 90
CabinAmenities: 90
FoodLidoDeck: 90
DiningRoomService: 97
CabinQuietness: 95
FoodMidnightBuffets: 87
CabinSteward: 95
ShoreExcVariety: 92
FoodVariety: 98
DeckService: 89
ShoreExcValue: 85
GoodForHoneymoon: 95
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 90
LoungeService: 90
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors: 92
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 93
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 85
EntertShowLounge: 92
OverallPortsofCall: 96
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 90
CruiseActivities: 86
Casino: 92
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 98
EmbarkDisembark: 85
DiscoNightclubs: 87
DeckSpace: 91
Stabilization: 95
ShopsOnBoard: 89
SpaceRatio: 95
OverallCruiseValue: 94
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 19 Apr 1998
Time: 16:01:32
Remote Name: 208.224.174.105
Remote User:

Comments

Our cruise aboard the Costa Victoria was our first cruise and we were very impressed with the crew and the ship. The food was really great and the wide
variety of choices, especially at the sit-down dinners was good. The service was great in verey aspect of the trip. The staff was very helpful in every
manner. The room service menu was quite limited and the onboard activities were very limited though there was usually something that could be found to
do when nothing else was going on. The entertainment was pretty good for the most part, especially the shows. We should have avoided the comedian
and the 'amatuer hour' talent show on the final night. The itenerary was good, however on our booking the ship did not get to port in Grand Cayman
because of high winds. Port lectures were given on each port and were very informative. The rooms were very spacious and there was very little noise.
The entire ship was really quite spacious. If you are looking for a good price, the andiamo rates are a great value. We would definitely choose this ship in
the future.

Name: Deborah Michalski
Email: rmichal@tin.it
Age: 40
Occupation: housewife
NumberOfCruises: 2
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Costa-Victoria
SailingDate: June 19
Itinerary: Mediterranian
Cabin: 11112
FoodDiningRoom: 79
CruiseDirector: 70
CabinComfort: 97
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 80
CabinAmenities: 90
FoodLidoDeck: 85
DiningRoomService: 90
CabinQuietness: 99
FoodMidnightBuffets: 89
CabinSteward: 89
ShoreExcVariety: 93
FoodVariety: 97
DeckService: 82
ShoreExcValue: 97
GoodForHoneymoon: 99
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 97
LoungeService: 98
TenderService: 99
GoodForSeniors: 99
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 98
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities:
EntertShowLounge: 76
OverallPortsofCall: 89
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 78
CruiseActivities: 69
Casino: 80
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 99
EmbarkDisembark: 99
DiscoNightclubs: 97
DeckSpace: 95
Stabilization: 90
ShopsOnBoard: 90
SpaceRatio: 90
OverallCruiseValue: 97
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 26 Jun 2000
Time: 11:15:34
Remote Name: a-pe5-38.tin.it
Remote User:

Comments

I just returned from a 7 night Mediterranian cruise with my family of 4. We had a Jr suite, I was very happy
with the view and the size of the room.

The ship was very clean and neat. The personnel were quite nice but did not go out of their way to be
personal (except for the waiter).like other all excursions I have taken.

The childs care / activities for children up to 12 was well planned and very exciting for my son to attend.
They did all kinds of activities and when there was a nice show they took them to see the show but watched
them as a group on the upper balcony far away from myself.

I was not very pleased with the teenage program. The week I chose there were only a handful of teenagers
but no one seemed to go out of their way to find them. On the 1st night myself and my new dining friend
took our teenagers to the teen room. We were very disappointed we saw 3 or 4 teenagers sitting distant
from each other. Not talking, no music, no one there from the cruiseline to start a conversation or activity. I
was not sure if it was only my child and a few others since the director might of thought we didnt speak a
European language. My children both speak fluent Italian because we now live in Italy but how would he
know that.

Most people that work on the ship speak 3-6 languages. They do a good job to make you feel comfortable if
you do not know other languages. I do understand Italian to a degree however I am much more comfortable
with English. I went on excursions and the cruiseline put all English speakers on the same bus so we would
have a tour guide that only had to speak 1 language while we were on tour. This took a lot of extra work on
their part.

The food was good but not excellent. The waiter service was excellent.

The activity department needed some improvement. I felt there was not enough choices to make. They
usually did not have activities between 11-3. I know many people are at port but there were people that
either decided to stay aboard or went on their own and returned before the excursions. After that if there
was an activity such as aerobics that was the only activity for that 1/2 hour.

The activities after entertainment seemed to be ok you usually had 4 different things happening at different
time such as a 1/2 hour of piano followed by 1 hour of games followed by dancing etc.

I felt the excursions were not over priced. The cruise line arranged for free transportation if the dock was no
where near the center.

Name: David and Barbara Butler
Email: dlbutler5@home.com
Age: 48 and 46
Occupation: Network Administrator and homemaker
NumberOfCruises: 4
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Costa-Victoria
SailingDate: December 16-23, 2000
Itinerary: Modified Eastern Caribbean
Cabin: 70102
FoodDiningRoom: 80
CruiseDirector: 85
CabinComfort: 100
FoodRoomService: 80
CruiseStaff: 100
CabinAmenities: 85
FoodLidoDeck: 90
DiningRoomService: 100
CabinQuietness: 100
FoodMidnightBuffets: 85
CabinSteward: 100
ShoreExcVariety: 75
FoodVariety: 82
DeckService:
ShoreExcValue: 78
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff: 90
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 95
LoungeService: 95
TenderService:
GoodForSeniors: 100
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 90
WheelchairAccess: 65
ExerciseFacilities: 85
EntertShowLounge: 95
OverallPortsofCall: 92
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside:
CruiseActivities:
Casino: 85
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 100
EmbarkDisembark: 100
DiscoNightclubs:
DeckSpace: 100
Stabilization: 78
ShopsOnBoard: 75
SpaceRatio: 92
OverallCruiseValue: 89
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 01 Jan 2001
Time: 15:25:24
Remote Name: cp298826-a.mtgmry1.md.home.com
Remote User:

Comments

Our cruise on the Costa Victoria December 16 – 23

Summary A nice ship that is always clean and well maintained. Rooms are small but well organized. Staff is
extremely friendly and efficient. Shops contained expensive designer type items. The officers were seen
frequently throughout the ship. Drinks were weak but free champagne was offered frequently. The food was
ok but nothing 5 star. The shows were very good, family oriented and well attended. Very large casino but the
children’s video game area was too close. We had a very nice time all in all. If you go thinking that you are
going to get a $2000 cruise for $500 you will be very disappointed but if you consider what you get for the
price you pay I think it is well worth it and we are planning to cruise with Costa again next Christmas. For more
details read on.

Let us start with Day one. Embarkation: went very smoothly. As you entered the pier the porters were right
there to immediately take your luggage. They do not work for the cruise line so they do expect a tip. As you
entered the building each person was handed a number and asked to be seated. Several cruise personnel
were going around to check and make sure that all you paper work was completed properly and help those
that needed help. As the building filled up you were called into lines according to the number you held so
those that got there first went onboard first. This made the procedure very efficient.

As you entered the ship some one was there to greet you and direct you to your room taking any carry on
luggage that you might have with you. We were immediately impressed with the cleanliness of the ship. Our
room was very nice, a little smaller than most of the other lines, but arranged for efficiency. There was plenty
of closet and drawer space. We had an outside room and it had a very large round window, which really
brightened, up the entire room. As the steward showed us around the room he also told us about a welcome
aboard buffet. They had this at the usual buffet location and were well stocked with the usual buffet foods.
They were also serving hamburgers and hotdogs out on the deck. We found this as a pleasant surprise as
the Carnival ships that we had sailed on previously had not offered food until dinnertime. We didn’t leave port
until 7pm so we had plenty of time to unpack, relax, and get oriented to the ship. First seating was having their
dinner as we were leaving. This ship is one that rocks quite a bit with the weather so if you have problems
walking or with seasickness you will want to be aware of this. Also rooms do not accommodate the large
scooter type of wheel chairs. They do have a pizza shop on board but it does not open until 3pm and we
found it not to our liking. The shops onboard catered mostly to those who like designer items. I found the
prices on most items too high. The Internet café was a nice touch for those of us who could not leave their
e-mail for an entire week. It is also good for staying in touch with the family.

We had decided to get the honeymoon/anniversary package, me for the romance and the robes for my
husband. It was very nice and consisted of a large basket of flowers that would have cost at least $50 at your
local florist, a bottle of champagne with two glasses, 2 cotton robes that even fit fuller figures like ours, a silver
8x10 picture frame with a free 8x10 photograph, a rose on my pillow the first night, and an invitation to a
special cocktail party with the captain. We thought that this was a very good addition to our cruise and
especially for $99.

The food….we had heard some bad reviews about the food aboard this ship so we didn’t really know what to
expect. Truly my husband and I are not gourmets and like just about anything. We almost always enjoyed
what we ordered. The food was always served to us hot and displayed nicely on the plate. We did find a lot of
foods that we had never eaten before and tried a few and enjoyed them. On the nights that we wanted
something simpler and more American we ordered from their always-available section, consisting of sirloin
steak, chicken breast, or fish. We noticed that they had special menus for those that wanted a vegetarian
meal. Those with more of a gourmet taste for 5 star restaurants may not have found it to their tastes but for
my husband and myself, we were well suited. We did however find that the menus description sometimes did
not match the American thoughts. Like taco salad to an American is usually lettuce, meat, cheese, etc. Their
actual taco salad was a to be built taco. When we did get this they were more than happy to get something
else for us.

The staff….We found the staff extremely friendly and ready to assist you with anything that you might need.
Our cabin steward knew us by name before we sailed the first day and anticipated our needs before we
realized we needed it. The waiters were friendly, efficient, and entertaining. They had several nights that the
waiters entertained before desert was served one night they even danced with each lady at the table.
Everyone from the Captain, who was often seen about the ship, to the man or woman sweeping up always
greeted you with a smile and offered assistance.

Tours…In Key West we took the Conch Train Tour which was really a trolley. It gave a little information about
the city but I would not recommend it. We were not in this port long enough to really see it. In San Juan we
took the city tour, which showed us around the city in an a/c bus. We also stopped to see the old fort but
didn’t really have time to really explore it. Also the cost of the fort was not included in the tour price. Town was
crowed with 10 cruise ships in port!!! City was pretty and decorated for Christmas. We did our own thing in St
Thomas having been there before. We went to Coki Beach a great place to snorkel. My husband scuba dived
for the first time too. Then we hit the shops! In Nassau it was chilly and rainy but they didn’t cancel the tour to
the Blue Lagoon. I would not recommend this tour for anyone who has problems walking a long distance. After
the boat let us off it was about ¾ mile to the place to swim. The water was only to the knees and nowhere
insight to snorkel. They did snorkel with the stingrays or dolphins but you had to pay extra for that! It ended
up being a $30 each boat ride. Very disappointing. We left within the hour. Then it rained hard most of the
day. We stayed on board the ship.

We had no children on board so we can’t tell first hand what their programs were like. I did however see that
the younger ones were well attended and appeared to be having fun. The teens seemed to enjoy themselves
too. All in all kids were less rowdy than on Carnival cruses.

Debarkation…Went smoothly. We were placed in rooms according to the color of tags on luggage and
dismissed by color to avoid bunching. Luggage was easy to find because it too was placed according to color
of tag on the luggage. Leaving Port Everglades was a total traffic jam.

Name: Douglas Riley
Email: Rileychicago@msn.com
Age: 49
Occupation: Controller
NumberOfCruises: 2
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Costa-Victoria
SailingDate: January 28, 2001
Itinerary: Eastern Carribean
Cabin: 80321
FoodDiningRoom: 95
CruiseDirector: 90
CabinComfort: 92
FoodRoomService: 89
CruiseStaff: 93
CabinAmenities: 92
FoodLidoDeck: 85
DiningRoomService: 95
CabinQuietness: 90
FoodMidnightBuffets: 85
CabinSteward: 89
ShoreExcVariety: 85
FoodVariety: 91
DeckService: 82
ShoreExcValue: 93
GoodForHoneymoon: 79
CasinoStaff: 82
PrivateIsland: 98
GoodForFamilies: 79
LoungeService: 80
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors: 91
BeautySalonStaff: 90
EntertainmentLounges: 75
WheelchairAccess: 92
ExerciseFacilities: 90
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 82
BeautySalon: 92
EntertainmentPoolside: 92
CruiseActivities: 90
Casino: 82
AirSeaProgram: 90
MedicalFacilities: 90
ShipCleanliness: 90
EmbarkDisembark: 80
DiscoNightclubs: 80
DeckSpace: 90
Stabilization: 83
ShopsOnBoard: 80
SpaceRatio: 90
OverallCruiseValue: 85
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 07 Feb 2001
Time: 11:18:34
Remote Name: 1cust33.tnt2.naperville.il.da.uu.net
Remote User:

Comments

Overall, an extremely good cruise for the dollar value to the Eastern Carribean. If got off to a very rocky start
with slow embarkation process. We arrived at the pier exactly at 12:30 PM, which was the supposed to be the
start of the process, only to be given a plastic card indicating that we were part of group number 15. Ten
groups had already boarded ahead of us. Further, tour groups were immediately boarded as soon as they
arrived, leaving every one else who had been there for an extended period of time waiting. Entire process
took well over an hour, communication was very poor,and was not organized well at all. The ship itself is
actually very beautiful. We had an outside cabin in the middle of the ship and found it to be well decorated,
extremely clean, and well maintained. Our cabin steward, Francis, was very pleasant and worked around the
times we were out of the cabin. Very positive remarks regarding the dinner food and service. Overall, the
quantity and quality of food was outstanding, with a great selection of traditional foods and chef specialities.

Our servers, Miguel and Wally, were the best! Truely, outstanding service by both of these gentlemen.
Desserts were fantastic! Every need was immediately taken care of and this was one of the high points of the
the trip. The buffet at breakfast and lunch were somewhat disappointing. Breakfast on deck 11 buffet was
standard fare, and the quality was not up to par. Bacon was under done, cold cuts & cheese for breakfast,
etc. was not what I had expected. Lunch was not much better. If I were to have a recommendation to a future
passenger, I would have lunch at the pool. Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, and Chicken Breasts, with Fries. Good
quality and enough to tide you over to dinner. Good news was that the drinks were very reasonable and
quality was good. The only concern I had was that the pool servers were not around during Happy Hour each
day (11:00 - noon), when the drink prices were reduced to $3.25. When Happy Hour was over, and the prices
went to regular amounts, then they were all over the place wanting to get you a drink. But, I would still say the
pool bar was a B.

The evening shows were also a solid hit. Outstanding and well performed. The cruise
director and the performers were superior to our other cruise. Another hint. Go to the port lectures by Rick.
Good guy with a lot of valuable information that can save you money and time. The passengers were clearly
an older crowd, with a mix from Germany, France, England, and the states. Lots of smokers, so if this bothers
you this is not the cruise for you. Also, you have to be tolerant of foreign language announcements and a
limited number of TV shows in English. We did the snorkling at St. Thomas. Great value and a lot of fun. Do it
if you have the time. Shopping in St. Thomas was outstanding and I wish that we had more time. God to
Herve's for lunch. Great food and view of the harbor. San Juan and Bermuda were less exciting and the
values were not as good, but worth going in and taking a look. Lastly, the private island was the best part of
the trip. Clean, beautiful, great food, relaxing day. I wish I could do it again and again. Make sure you take
your sun screen, sun glasses and hat, as you will get burned. In summation, I would say that the cruise was a
B or B+. Dinners, service, shows, St. Thomas, and the private island were oustanding. Breakfast, lunch, San
Juan, Bermuda, and crowd mix not up to par. I think that I would try another line next time (Carnival Paradise
to Western Carribean last time / rated by Patti and I an A or A-). Costa was very good and had lots of great
features, but too many shortfalls that would stop me from considering them again. Happy cruise.

Name: Debra Whitmore
Email: debra_whitmore@dellnet.com
Age: 44
Occupation: High School Teacher
NumberOfCruises: 5
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Costa-Victoria
SailingDate: April 8, 2001
Itinerary: Eastern Caribbean
Cabin: 50209 - Boheme deck
FoodDiningRoom: 85
CruiseDirector:
CabinComfort: 90
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 90
CabinAmenities: 85
FoodLidoDeck: 90
DiningRoomService: 80
CabinQuietness: 85
FoodMidnightBuffets: 95
CabinSteward: 95
ShoreExcVariety: 95
FoodVariety: 95
DeckService: 95
ShoreExcValue: 90
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland: 95
GoodForFamilies: 95
LoungeService: 100
TenderService: 100
GoodForSeniors:
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 95
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities:
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 95
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 90
CruiseActivities: 90
Casino:
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 95
EmbarkDisembark: 80
DiscoNightclubs: 95
DeckSpace: 90
Stabilization: 85
ShopsOnBoard: 85
SpaceRatio: 85
OverallCruiseValue: 95
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 17 Apr 2001
Time: 15:13:00
Remote Name: 198.234.229.89
Remote User:

Comments

Our family of four, my husband, myself, and our two sons ages 8 and 12 sailed the Eastern Caribbean on
the Costa Victoria. We have also taken our children on Royal Caribbean and Princess cruise lines. Some
positives of this cruise are: 1. The times of the childrens center were much more accomodating than the
other two - 9:00am - 12 noon, 3:00 - 6:00 pm ( even on days in port ), and 9:00pm - 11:30 pm ( the other
lines had paid sitters after 10:00 pm ). Also, two nights were parents night out with the centers being open
from 6:00pm until 11:30pm, and taking the kids to a special buffet. This was great for my 8 year old. 2.
There were 400 children on board and the center at times seemed chaotic, but my kids still really enjoyed
themselves. The center is very small so many of the kids activities take them to other parts of the ship. The
kids always seemed well supervised when they were out on the ship. 3. This cruise line is MUCH more
lively. Lots of activity in the nighclubs, atrium, and lounges in the evening after our second seating dinner.
Being a night owl I enjoyed the evenings. 4. Although we didn't usually eat, the midnight buffets were
enjoyable to see. They were in a different part of the ship and had a different them every night. 5. The
tropical late night party on the pool deck was lots of fun. 6. The pasta dishes were great. 7. There was a
good deal of variety at the buffets. 8. The tender service in Catalina Island was very quick and organized
and Catalina island was just beautiful. Similar to Labadee if you have been on RCCL. Beautiful beach and
shops too. 9. We took the Champagne Catamarran in St. Thomas to St. John. It was a ship tour. Although it
was $65.00 per adult and $58.00 per child it was worth every penny. It is the best ship excursion we have
ever taken. It was a fun and wild trolley ride to the marina, where we boarded the Allura catamarran built by
three brothers who were also the owner/operators of the boat. The young men take a great deal of pride in
their boat, and rightfully so - it was beautiful. We took a relaxing sail to St. John, had plenty of time to
snorkel, were served champagne and snacks, and had a wonderful sail back. It was a GREAT day. Do not
pass up this trip. 10. Make sure you get to know Leslie, a lovely young lady from the Philippines that is a
bar server in the Planetarium lounge on deck 5. She was a wonderful young lady and so sweet to our boys.
11. Our cabin location was very convenient to everything. It was however under the running track on deck
six, and sometimes we would hear that in the morning, but I was usually up anyway. We had a quad, it was
small but we really had no problem with four people and a lot of stuff. 12. The staff at the info desk was
very helpful and always pleasant. 13. I enjoy second seating, the day is much less rushed. 14. The buffets
offered a lot of variety. We usually had to wait in line a few minutes, but it wasn't too bad. The pizza was
very good. 15. The wine list was very good, with many nice wines between $17.00 - $28.00 per bottle.

Some negatives of this cruise: 1. Listening to all of the announcements in 4 - 5 langauages at times was
kind of annoying, but understandable because it was an international group of passengers. 2. The food in
the dining room was good, but not outstanding. Our waiter didn't get our orders right most nights and we
aren't terribly demanding people, the bus boy however was very good. 3. The excursion to the Blue Lagoon
in Nassau is a total rip-off. It was $120.00 for our family of four to ride and overcrowded boat to a so-so
island where everything cost a fortune. Don't waste your time. When we go back to Nassau I think I will just
take a ferry or a taxi $6.00 to Paradise Beach for the day. 4. Embarkation was a little slow. We were given a
number when we arrived at the port and had to wait about 1 hour to get on the ship.

After reading some of the other cruise comments I was a little apprehensive about this cruise. I expect good
service, but I don't flip out if little things aren't exactly perfect. We had sailed on the Costa Carla C in 1987
and had a good experience. I think this cruise was a good value and I would travel with Costa again, as I
feel the positives far outweigh the negatives.

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