Thomson Nightmare?

Guess what? Costa has offloaded the Europa to Thomson who propose to rename it 'Thomson Dream'. I sincerely hope that no money changed hands for that tub, given the total re-build that it'll need, starting with its knackered engine.

And indeed it does seem that Thomson recognise the reconstruction task they've taken on, as the 'Dream' won't enter service for a full year.

There have been a number of developments since the last posting, but I'm still away from home at the moment and will catch up when I get back. However, my wife and I have just taken a cruise in Costa's home waters on the 'Azamara Quest' and now know precisely what excellence in cruise ships looks like. Azamara - part of Celebrity - makes Costa look amateurish. More on this later too.

I've always had a soft spot for Thomson since my first cruise with them, on the 'Destiny'. They could teach Costa many, many lessons on customer service alone. Let's hope that, in the dreadful 'Costa Europa' they haven't taken on a white elephant that will turn their 'Dream' into a nightmare.