We organised the trip through Crooklab. No problems, but no fun either. I liked the bulk of the organisational work through my personal Kruklab office. Convenient and prompt. But personal communication somehow didn’t work out. Well, it’s subjective…
We flew there and back by Etihad – a state company of the Emirate of Abudabi, which is trying hard to keep up with Emirates. Everything was very decent: on-line registration, new aircraft, departure on time at 12.40, pleasant stewardesses,not bad food, quality flight and landing, baggage claim. Abudabi airport is new and also very decent. However, due to our poor knowledge of languages, we wandered around a bit, following a group of our mates who were going to the transit zone. The funny thing is that we went through all the control zones there, and when we realised our mistake – then back, and nobody even asked us in a stern voice: where from, where to, why…
We soon found out that there were girls in the shops at the airport, who led us to the right road to the taxi. There are two types of taxis there: more expensive ones in the form of English cabs and ordinary city taxis. The difference is 5-10 D. This we realised later, and so we had to go on this very 6-seater cab for 45 D strictly according to the meter. By 19 o’clock we arrived very comfortably to the hotel Al-Jazeera.
Hotel Al-Jazeera
We chose it ourselves, for one night, because loading on the ship only the next day, and to sit overnight in a/port – means to spoil the beginning of rest.
Conditions of choice: inexpensive, decent, in the centre of the city. We found this hotel on a promotion. We booked the hotel ourselves through bookings; all our expectations were met. We were welcomed with kindness, quickly checked in and escorted out. Large and comfortable room with a huge bed (good mattress and pillows!), TV, armchairs, table, tea facilities (we had tea in the evening). Large bathroom with the usual kit, even had slippers. The hotel itself is small but clean and well located. We, having settled in, immediately went for a walk. Which started in a shopping centre located 100 metres away and ended there late in the evening. My wife enjoyed it, but who counts with us in the conditions of Middle Eastern shopping? Looking ahead, we can say that shopping in Dubai is definitely cooler.
Next morning, we had breakfast in the hotel (very mediocre continental breakfast – 25D), walked an hour in the hotel area, took a suitcase, sat in a taxi near the shopping centre and went to the cruise seaport.15 minutes drive, 20D, new cruise terminal…
Further comparisons with MSC began. Baggage claim – also clueless. Checking in cruise cards – subjectively better and faster, maybe due to fewer passengers on the ship. But in any case, the information and organisation was better. Especially that the key-card was given at once and at the reception on the ship it was necessary to make only a deposit, 200E. The card was activated at the same time. We found our way quickly. We had cabin 8060, deck 8, with a balcony. We went in and checked it out. It corresponds to the company’s photos. The cabin layout is similar to our other ships: entrance, wardrobes for things (lots of hangers!) and safe, opposite shower and toilet (bigger and more comfortable than on MSC), bedside table with minibar and TV, large sliding bed with bedside tables and table lamps (mattress is also good, menu of pillows), sofa and table, trundle with cabinets and shelves. Overall, the cabin is a bit more basic. I read in the reviews that everything is old and shabby – that’s if you are picky.
The balcony is large, comfortable, always clean (unlike MSC!). But we used it, frankly speaking not often – there was no time for it. In general, I came to the conclusion that the balcony is more of a pampering and a symbol of prestige. With active life on the ship there is no time for it: 10-15 minutes in the morning and evening – that’s all…. But this is my subjective opinion.
Cruise liner Costta Mediateranea 4* . Typical cruise liner. 12 passenger decks. Feature: most of the cabins – with balconies, so they are cheaper than on other ships and there are more often promotions on them. Condition of the ship is very decent. Interior decoration – without modern glamour, as for example on Fantasia. But there is a quiet, classic charm. The list of facilities for passengers is standard: the main hall on 3-4 floors high, with reception on deck 5, theatre, main and paid restaurants, bars, shops, casino, library, medical centre on decks 5-6. On deck 11 – outdoor and indoor swimming pools, Jacuzzi, sauna. Special feature: huge jacuzzi areas of the indoor pool. Sunbathing is possible on decks 11 and 12. There were always enough sunbeds, unlike MSC. Towels and cleaning were also better. The boys cleaned all the time and even made the sunbeds themselves (!). We woke up early, so we went swimming at 7am. It was warm outside and the pool was slightly heated up to about 27 degrees centigrade. We swam a lot, nobody interfered. Then we went to the sauna, dried off a bit, changed clothes and went for breakfast. Here on deck 11 there was a buffet and a “beach” bar. The breakfast buffet was very good (extended standard). From 11 o’clock – decent pizza and tasty ice-cream. At lunch there were necessarily 2 soups (even “borch”). Meat was different all day and in dinner, when every day grill was made on the stern. By the way, the dinner menu was almost better than the main restaurant. The pastries were not very good, but the ice-cream made up for everything.
Entertainment was, to put it bluntly, not so good. In the theatre I remembered only retro-Beatles and a performance based on the musical. Disco and dancing schools etc. on the MSC were much better and bigger. Again captain’s evenings… But in general, who wants to rest and have fun, he rested and had fun. Bars were, on our purse, expensive, but people did not stop it.
Contingent on the ship was mainly early-retirement, a little youth. There were practically no children. By nationality – a little bit of everyone. Ours – 60-70 people, so on the 2nd or 3rd day they started to issue a newspaper. Very helpful to us!
