Cruising the Costa ‘Italian way’
Costa Diadema is an unabashedly European experience, write Bob and Nancy Dunn .
Bob and Nancy Dunn, part of our Ports and Bows team, headed to Europe this week to sail on the Costa Diadema, Costa Cruise Lines’ newest ship and their first since the Costa Concordia. Here is their review.
ON BOARDTHE COSTA DIADEMA you’ve never been on a Costa ship, cruising “the Italian way” is appealing, and the arrival of the three-month-old Costa Diadema has upped the ante for the chance to go all-in.
The new flagship of this 68-year-old cruise line offers more amenities to more passengers and consequently has more ambience than any of its predecessors. When full, the Diadema carries more than 5,000 passengers, making it — at 132,500 gross tonnes — by far the biggest Costa ship. For North Americans, it’s a chance to make that vacation to Europe complete by cruising like an Italian, or at least like a European.
Which is? It’s having “primi piatti” and “secondi piatti” main courses for dinner later than usual (the early time is 7 p.m., the late 9:30 p.m.) and expecting to have your palate primed by all the traditional Italian specialties — with no large portions and no heavy sauces — from pasta and pizza to cappuccino and vino.
It’s being entertained by musical productions even when you don’t understand the lyrics. It’s embracing the language, or languages, spoken by the 90 per cent of passengers who aren’t English. Announcements are made in English, Italian, French, German and Spanish. You don’t have to “capisce,” but it helps.
“It’s a full international experience with people from all over the world,” explains Scott Knutson, Costa’s vice-president of sales and marketing. “The ship is not an American (or Canadian) oasis to come back to at the end of each day, and if you appreciate that you’ll love it. If not, you’re better off on one of our sister (or another line’s) brands.”
Costa’s first new ship since 2012 has significant upgrades. The Samsara Spa — almost exclusively on deck 12 — is a busy place. It is connected to Samsara rooms and suites, and has its own restaurant with appropriate, heart-healthy menus (non-Samsarans choose from six other restaurants).
The first 4D cinema at sea charges a euro ($1.40) a minute to be bounced around in seats during wild rides lasting about 4 ½ minutes. And the cruise line partnered with companies that produce Italy’s finest pasta (Barilla), coffee (Illycaffe) and champagne (Ferrari) to enhance that Italian experience.
Two other Costa originals are included: Star Laser, a dodge-the-laser game that fans of Mission Impossible will appreciate, and a Grand Prix simulator.
The Diadema, incidentally, was not built to replace the Concordia. It was already under construction when 32 Concordia passengers died on the date Costa people simply call “2012.” On Jan. 13 that year, the Concordia capsized on the rocks of the Italian island Isola del Giglio and was finally removed last year. Bookings are now higher than before that $2-billion mistake.
Many Canadians are familiar with Costa, which had four ships in Caribbean waters this winter. Air Transat flies charters to the Dominican Republic, where the Magica is based, and Canadians account for 30 per cent of Costa’s North America bookings.
What they and fellow North Americans find attractive are competitive pricing, extended itineraries that cater to Europeans who fly to board Caribbean cruises, plus a chance to sample Italy without flying at least eight hours.
“I felt I was at an international destination, and only had to fly from Oklahoma to Miami,” said one passenger.
The company is a legitimate player. With 15 ships, Costa is No. 1 in Europe with 52 per cent of the market, and only Carnival and Royal Caribbean have more capacity worldwide. Yet it seemed many North Americans knew little or nothing about the cruise line until 2012 BC (Before Concordia). Those who did know Costa were already enjoying “la dolce vita.” Visit portsandbows.com, sponsored by Expedia CruiseShipCenters, 1-800-707-7327, www.cruiseshipcenters.com, for daily updates on the latest cruise news, best deals and behind-the-scenes stories from the industry. You can also sign up for an email newsletter on the site for even more cruise information. Phil Reimer may be contacted directly at portsandbows@gmail.com.