Mediterreanean cruise review: Costa Mediterranea

About.com has a new review of a November 2004 eastern Mediterranean cruise aboard the Costa Mediterranea.

Costa Mediterranea offers a spotless ship, reasonably sized cabins, and lots to do -- in any of five languages, English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. For true pampering, choose another line like Princess or Celebrity. But for getting around inexpensively and comfortably to exotic places, Costa is best. As the largest cruise line in Europe, their ships go to unusual locations like Turkey, Malta, Egypt, Cyprus, and Tunisia.

November, the end of the cruise season, is the best time to go. You'll risk rain but you avoid summer highs of over 120F in Turkey. There are no crowds (except in Istanbul, where there are always crowds) and fares are low. This cruise had only 1700 aboard out of a possible 2200: 86 people from the US and 250 English-speaking overall. Service is attentive, friendly, and responsive. The Captain is a gracious host, and unlike other ships which have dropped this maritime tradition, you can have your picture taken with him.