Summary:
First ever cruise and it was absolutely fantastic. The food in the a-la-carte restaurant was better than excellent and the choice was amazing everyday. My wife requires a Gluten Free Diet and they cater for that brilliantly. She received a great variety of meals at the same great quality as the non-allergy restricted passengers enjoyed. To compliment this were the staff. They are so passionate about making your experience a wonderful one, nothing is ever too much trouble and it is always done with happiness in their voice. I would struggle to decide which is best, the food or the staff. We were waitered on by 3 lovely gentlemen in the morning and at lunchtime and then by Melanie Marquez on an evening. The were all excellent! Our cabin steward was great too and was very creative with his towel sculptures. The ship itself is wonderful and huge. The spec is high and spread over 12 floors, there is so much to do. 'You can never stop' or 'just chill', the option is yours. If I had any criticisms, it would be the holidaymakers who stay in the jacuzzi's for literally hours or it seemed like that and some bad behaved kids in the outside pool area. This is not a criticism of Costa but just the lack of fairness and ignorance of some people out there. On the day at sea day, we did see two pool attendants and a security guard which sorted the pool problem but not the jacuzzi. Perhaps a time limit system would help to make sure everyone gets a fair turn of all of the facilities, if that was possible. The only other issue was the cost of the excursions, thankfully we didn't go on one as you can source cheaper when you get off the boat, but that's the same with every holiday company I've dealt with, so not a problem to us. Other than that, the cleanliness was first class, the room size in the Premium Balcony Cabin was more than adequate, the entertainment was very good and I genuinely can't see my wife and I getting a better experience in the future. Thanks Costa for a superb holiday! With regards to Iglu, everything was organised well, the information was emailed at the appropriate times and as long as the price is competitive, I would happily use your services again.