Cruise Line: Costa Cruises
Cruise Ship: Costa Atlantica
Cruise Destination: Western Caribbean
Guest Contributor: MJ
We were slightly hopeful when we read a few reviews about the Atlantica on this site. However, we should of followed that old saying do not believe what you have read. If it were not for the fact that we had outstanding dinner companions our trip, for all nine of us would have been characterized as a disaster.
It took three days to get the correct dinner seating. No one would help us with our problem everyone insisting that the maitre'd as "resting" and could not be disturbed to help us. This went on for three days. Finally after I had created somewhat of a fuss and threatened to go to the captain at the captain's cocktail party did we get a firm dinner seating.
Of course this caused a problem for all those at our table because they bore the brunt of retailitory acts by our waiter.
Each night we were the last to be served even though we were in the middle of the dining section. The waiter deliberately ignored us, and without exception we were getting our entrees at 11:15p.m. or later each evening. One evening several of us had order the same meal, mine came last, everyone had a small potato cut partially thru, my potato came with a special carving so that it unmistakenly resembled the head of a penis. All of us at the table felt the food was very inferior and all of us being Italian felt that it was a poor representation of Italian cuisine.
The veal was touch and each dish seemed to be steeped in salt. It was a mess.[
The side trips proved no better. We paid for a catamaran trip that was so bad it became hilarious. It was an old broken down vessel that did not have the room for all those they had booked. When we got to the area where we were to snorkel and hit the beach in Jamaica it was found to be infested with mosquitos and, as our guide put it several "big animals" The changing and shower room was completed flooded and filled with every insect imaginable. Our Costa tour guide decided we should get away from the area as he was taking a great deal of grief, happily I say, from the Italians, not the Americans on board. The travel guide was on the cell phone with the company who wanted to charge us $10 more to go to another beach area to snorkel. Finally they decided to take us to just a place where we had to get off the boat by using a household aluminium ladder if we wanted to go swimming. On the way to the new spot the "captain" and I use that term lightly, ran over a small coral reef and damaged the propellars. At this point he said everybody who is going swimming get off now. This was so that they could call a fellow in a rowboat with a motor on it could temporarily fix the vessel. Finally the guide said just take us back to the ship. Before getting off the crew had the nerve to ask us for a tip. Costa never, never issued an apology or a refund. To say that Jamaica is a worthless stop is to put it mildly. Two of our tablemates were left stranded at Dunn's River Falls by the bus driver and guide who took a miscount. Luckily a bus from another cruise lines was willing to give them a ride back to the pier.
It took five days for one of our tablemates to get a settlement on being charged for two bottles of wine instead of one.
We did not see our section assistant maitre'd until the night before we were to leave them tips. Then he came around. Because we were on board for Christmas we had thought that some extra special things would be done. Nothing. The nightly buffets were a joke. The same "cold cuts" from the lunch buffets. The breakfast was unedible one morning, and we waited in line for an hour and ten mins. for an omelette. They had one cook making them. People were disgusted.
> > More on Costa Atlantica Cruise > > Page 2
Cruise Ship: Costa Atlantica
Cruise Destination: Western Caribbean
Guest Contributor: MJ
We were slightly hopeful when we read a few reviews about the Atlantica on this site. However, we should of followed that old saying do not believe what you have read. If it were not for the fact that we had outstanding dinner companions our trip, for all nine of us would have been characterized as a disaster.
It took three days to get the correct dinner seating. No one would help us with our problem everyone insisting that the maitre'd as "resting" and could not be disturbed to help us. This went on for three days. Finally after I had created somewhat of a fuss and threatened to go to the captain at the captain's cocktail party did we get a firm dinner seating.
Of course this caused a problem for all those at our table because they bore the brunt of retailitory acts by our waiter.
Each night we were the last to be served even though we were in the middle of the dining section. The waiter deliberately ignored us, and without exception we were getting our entrees at 11:15p.m. or later each evening. One evening several of us had order the same meal, mine came last, everyone had a small potato cut partially thru, my potato came with a special carving so that it unmistakenly resembled the head of a penis. All of us at the table felt the food was very inferior and all of us being Italian felt that it was a poor representation of Italian cuisine.
The veal was touch and each dish seemed to be steeped in salt. It was a mess.[
The side trips proved no better. We paid for a catamaran trip that was so bad it became hilarious. It was an old broken down vessel that did not have the room for all those they had booked. When we got to the area where we were to snorkel and hit the beach in Jamaica it was found to be infested with mosquitos and, as our guide put it several "big animals" The changing and shower room was completed flooded and filled with every insect imaginable. Our Costa tour guide decided we should get away from the area as he was taking a great deal of grief, happily I say, from the Italians, not the Americans on board. The travel guide was on the cell phone with the company who wanted to charge us $10 more to go to another beach area to snorkel. Finally they decided to take us to just a place where we had to get off the boat by using a household aluminium ladder if we wanted to go swimming. On the way to the new spot the "captain" and I use that term lightly, ran over a small coral reef and damaged the propellars. At this point he said everybody who is going swimming get off now. This was so that they could call a fellow in a rowboat with a motor on it could temporarily fix the vessel. Finally the guide said just take us back to the ship. Before getting off the crew had the nerve to ask us for a tip. Costa never, never issued an apology or a refund. To say that Jamaica is a worthless stop is to put it mildly. Two of our tablemates were left stranded at Dunn's River Falls by the bus driver and guide who took a miscount. Luckily a bus from another cruise lines was willing to give them a ride back to the pier.
It took five days for one of our tablemates to get a settlement on being charged for two bottles of wine instead of one.
We did not see our section assistant maitre'd until the night before we were to leave them tips. Then he came around. Because we were on board for Christmas we had thought that some extra special things would be done. Nothing. The nightly buffets were a joke. The same "cold cuts" from the lunch buffets. The breakfast was unedible one morning, and we waited in line for an hour and ten mins. for an omelette. They had one cook making them. People were disgusted.
> > More on Costa Atlantica Cruise > > Page 2