Cruise from Barcelona or Venice
Jan 22nd, 2010, 06:34 PM
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Cruise from Barcelona or Venice
Hello. We are planning a cruise and are having a hard time deciding between a cruise from Barcelona or Venice. From Barcelona the cruise ship is Costa. It is 7 days and goes to some cool ports. I was wondering if anyone had good/bad experiences on Costa. I have never cruised with them. The cost of this cruise is $1,100. Oh and this one has no days at sea. The other is from Venice on Royal Caribean. It goes to several Greek Islands and Croatia, also 7 days and the cost is $1,600. There is one day at sea. We are 34 and very active. Any suggestions anyone?
Jan 22nd, 2010, 08:33 PM
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It all boils down to what you want to get out of the cruise and where you want to go. Both are decent cruise lines, but you don't mention the specific ship. I think that's crucial. You also don't say what time of the year you are traveling ... another crucial question.
The Costa ship is likely to have predominately Europeans aboard, so if that's an issue (either good or bad) for you, it should be part of your consideration.
It generally costs more to get to Venice than Barcelona, so that's another consideration. And hotels in Venice are generally more expensive than those in Barcelona if you need to spend the night before or after the cruise.
Those are just a few of the considerations.
Myself, I'd probably prefer the Eastern Med cruise because I like Croatia and Greece.
The Costa ship is likely to have predominately Europeans aboard, so if that's an issue (either good or bad) for you, it should be part of your consideration.
It generally costs more to get to Venice than Barcelona, so that's another consideration. And hotels in Venice are generally more expensive than those in Barcelona if you need to spend the night before or after the cruise.
Those are just a few of the considerations.
Myself, I'd probably prefer the Eastern Med cruise because I like Croatia and Greece.
Jan 23rd, 2010, 05:52 AM
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JUST yesterday at my optomotrists s office we had a conversation with a woman who had been on COSTA... She is the second person we have personally met who HATED Costa and our friend (the first person) is an experienced cruiser...said NEVER, EVER AGAIN.....Personally I would go for Royal Caribbean.. Although I love Barcelona.. I've never been to Venice, but Costa is not a cruise ship for Americans..If I wrote what my friend said about the passengers on Costa or the crew you wouldn't believe me. The poor lady I spoke to yesterday received after documenting her problems a huge discount on a Costa ship.. She will use it only because it'ls in the Caribbean and most likely won't even get off the ship....having been to those ports before. We have never been to the Greek islands, but are scheduled to visit Corfu in October but I too would love to visit Croatia..
Jan 23rd, 2010, 11:49 AM
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We will be using sky miles so the flight price won;t really matter. We are going the week of July 4th. Both places sound like so much fun. I think I like the variety of destinations better on Costa. However I have not heard great things about Costa. That is why we are leaning towards the Greek Isles cruise out of Venice. I just thought I would get some imput from the forum.
Feb 14th, 2010, 10:36 AM
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I can't help Hello Kitty as we are scheduled on a Costa cruise that is a "business award" so we had no choice...looking forward to answers and wondering if there might be a way to minimize/manage whatever folks are finding to be so negative about Costa cruises.
Feb 23rd, 2010, 12:47 AM
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Costa don't care about you once they've got your cash. We did a Greek Islands cruise with them from Venice on the Costa Fortuna (and it did!)and whilst the waiters and cabin attendants did a great job, their Customer Service dept and its attitude stinks.
We had a problem that they wouldn't address, they fobbed us off until the cruise ended. I pursued the matter once home and found their CS quite rude knowing that you'd paid!
I would never, ever use them again.
We had a problem that they wouldn't address, they fobbed us off until the cruise ended. I pursued the matter once home and found their CS quite rude knowing that you'd paid!
I would never, ever use them again.
Apr 1st, 2010, 10:59 AM
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Royal Carribbean is a great cruise line. Our first cruise was with RCCL. We have cruised out of Barcelona (will cruise out a total of 3 times) and love it. We will cruise out of Venice next year (all with NCL, which we also like). You will love Barcelona, I am sure you (and I!) will love Venice. My main consideration would be itenerary - where is the ship going? You may want to review ports, ships, etc. at one of the cruise review websites to help with your decision. But I can't imagine that either port is a mistake. You may also decide based on itenerary to take another cruise line - do a lot of research and keep an open mind.
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