The Costa Victoria, Beauty in the High Seas

My decision to undertake a cruise review on-board the Costa Victoria, raised many an eyebrow. For one, I am not known to be the seafaring sort, and second, I have no idea how to swim. Well, f**k that, this is 2017, so out the window goes that rubbish. Despite this, I am an adventurer at heart and an offer to experience an Italian Cruise at sea isn't something that comes your way all the time, so I took it.

My decision to undertake a cruise review on-board the Costa Victoria, raised many an eyebrow. For one, I am not known to be the seafaring sort, and second, I have no idea how to swim. Well, f**k that, this is 2017, so out the window goes that rubbish. Despite this, I am an adventurer at heart and an offer to experience an Italian Cruise at sea isn't something that comes your way all the time, so I took it.

Hwajing Travel & Tours
Block N-26, 2nd Floor, Warisan Cityview,
Jalan 3/93A, Batu 2 1/2, Jalan Cheras
Kuala Lumpur.
@hwajingtravel
Call 03-9200 2929 (HQ Kuala Lumpur), 04-2296566 (Penang Branch)
info@hwajing.com.my
http://www.hwajing.com.my

The Costa Victoria is a Victoria-class cruise ship. It is owned by Costa Crociere, the largest European cruise operator in the world. The ship was commissioned and launched in 1995, and debuted as the Costa Victoria in 1996. Now I know what you're thinking, this ship is now over two decades old, but she has been refurbished quite a number of times, with a rebuild taking place in 2004 and a refit in 2013.

When I first stepped on-board, I was immediately pleased by the lush interior, replete with authentic Italian artworks and filegree. It was staffed by the most professional and experienced people from many countries I talked to ALL of them, ok ok, I TRIED, and I later learned that it can accommodate up to approximately 2,400 passengers, excluding staff. My impression of all this; extremely re-assuring.

The Costa Victoria Deckplan : It pays to know where you are going

When you board and check-in the Costa Victoria, you will be given a room card. Now this card is a cool feature of cruises, it is both your room key and also your on-board charge card. There are terminals in the center of the ship where you can link your charge card to your credit card, making purchases and settling on-board expenses a painless process. Indeed, I found out how effective it was when upon checking out, I was informed that all my expenses during the trip were already defrayed by my bank. Well, at least I had fun spending my money. 😂

The Costa Victoria has many types of cabins, ranging from Inside Cabins, Oceanviews Cabins, Balcony Rooms and Suites. There are also cabins with features disabled access. All the rooms are fitted to a standard; they have mini-bars, safes, hair dryers and Television. I don't watch television though, so I can't tell you more about the TV-programmes on-board. Why would you wanna spend your time inside your cabin when there is a whole ship full of other amenities for you to enjoy? For me, it was more of a whole ship full of people to meet and date interact with and all that Wine and Food to eat, drink and enjoy.

Fun Fact: You can order Breakfast as part of your Room Service, and it is free complimentary. I did not try this however, as the gentleman part of me insists on eating at a table with fork, spoon and knife whenever possible.

Peekaboo

Right, back to talking about the cruise itself.  If you are wondering I was a bit clueless what there is to do on-board the ship, do not worry. You get a daily newsletter delivered to your doorstep early every morning aptly named TODAY, Your Daily Program. In it, you will find an accurate schedule and a table of all the fun activities, dances, events, performances, promotions and even meal-times happening on-board the ship. You will not be able to do them all, so make your fun choices wisely. And by the way, if you are on-board the Costa Victoria with family and or friends, you might want to check out their free on-board WiFi enabled app called My Costa Mobile. If you want to learn more about it, check out my write-up of it here.

For dress code, everybody on-board dresses smart and comfortably. It was all decent, and the crew was smartly attired in their freshly pressed and pristine uniforms. But you will want to look your very best on the Gala Night, where the highlight of the cruise takes place. Don't know what I am talking about? That makes me sad! It is the Carnival of Venice, and you can read more about it here.

Costa Victoria has two restaurants on Deck 5, which is Sinfonia aft at the back of the ship and Fantasia, which is in the middle of the ship. Both are open for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinners, you will have to check your complimentary ship program to figure out the meal times and any interesting promotions they might have. The ambience of these two restaurants was an interesting mix of casual and fine dining. On the one hand, everybody was dressed casually and mingled freely, and yet the professionalism of the staff intent on observing and satisfying your every need lent an oddly contrasting atmosphere to the place.

Now, on a ship with this many people, it might be difficult to secure seats at Fantasia or Sinfonia. Or maybe like me, you have already eaten there and would like to try something else. You can try the Bolero Buffet Restaurant on Deck 11, which has options for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.

There is also the Pool Grill and Terrazza Grill on the same deck. The Pool Grill is literally overlooking the swimming pools and jacuzzi, you can't miss it. The Terrazza Grill is aft at the back of the ship where the terrace overlooking the back of the ship is.

There is also the Pizzaria which serves pizza on the Butterfly Deck, or Deck 12. The Il Magnifico Club is also here, where you can make table reservations and experience some exclusive dining ala carte. The La Tavernetta bar is also here, but I did not have the time nor means to explore this, maybe next time.

Oh my god, I ate this nearly everyday during mealtimes, it was so much pleasure~

The Rigoletto Deck. The Pool Deck. Deck 11. Whichever way you wanna call it, this is the place to be. It has so much open space in it, that you can practically spend the whole time of your cruise experience here and never miss your cabin. If you ever feel claustrophobic, head on up here and take a walk or a swim. Grab a drink and some food and just lounge in one of the many poolside beds or sit at one of the terrace table and chairs. Gaze out and take in the panaromic view of the sea, this is living! Be warned though, this place is never dull and there is always something going on here everynight.

If you are feeling a little tired from active life and want to enjoy a more sedentary lifestyle, then why not head on below deck to the Festival Theatre? There is something going on every night, check your program and most of it includes singing and dancing. There is also a live band performance in the Oepheus Bar. There is also the Capriccio Lounge and the Concorde Plaza to check out. An Indoor Pool, a Spa and a Fitness Center on deck 6 rounds up the ensemble for your needs. Kids are also not left out, where they have an arcade and kids clubs for children of various age groups of 3 to 6, 7 to 12, and 13 to 17. But as I have no kids, I couldn't access these areas as only adults who have children are permitted to go to these places. Yes, they have staff to take care of your kids whilst in these daycare center clubs and they take their jobs very seriously.

Hwajing Travel and Tours now have a special offer, where you can experience your first cruise of 2018 starting at RM 1,212. It is a 5 day 4 night trip, with the following route of Singapore - High Sea - Phuket - Penang - Singapore. If you want to find out more, call them up at 03-92002929 (HQ) or 04-2996566 (Penang). Alternatively, you can also email them at info@hwajing.com.my or infopen@hwajing.com.my.

If you would like to see more as in hundreds pictures of my cruise trip, head over and have a gander at my FB album here. Thank you for following and reading this post, if you like it please share it with your friends and help spread the good word. Until the next time, it's addio! ~ Marv.7

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