Lustate

3 hours ago, conandrob240 said:

Can I tip Suite Concierge and my room attendant? If so, what amount? The room attendant is especially fantastic! 

It can be done, but in all honesty a "thank you" and a nice card is easier for the crew. They are all paid on a higher fixed salary so they financially are fine, and if you give them cash they have to complete a load of paperwork re taxes, and hand the cash in in the crew area. 

A good box of choc and a meaningful card would go a long way though I'm sure, and mention them by name in the end of voyage survey as that also helps them with future contracts. 

Best wishes

16 minutes ago, CrazyTrain2 said:

Here is a simple request from the website - I would like to see my invoice.  No can do - call sailor services.

 

I cannot tell if the new price is better than the old price.

Simple…

open your booking you had emailed to you, and run a search on the website for the same voyage. You can see both prices side by side. 

Agents can also add extras for you to sweeten the deal. They get 16% commission on the cost of the voyage so they can give a little back with items such as a free bottle on board, or a few dollars of loot added to your account. 
 

The agents do need to complete training and there are several levels of “first mates” so the higher the level the more bookings and training they have done, plus the more loop holes they know to get you the best deal and secure your booking. 

General sailing club question…

have people been completing survey for the benefits?

What have people been saying  would be a good perk?

And when do you think the scheme will go live, now that they have extended “deep blue extras” to 31st if march 2023?

very curious to see how the scheme pans out. 

4 hours ago, onlyslightlymad said:

We have booked a Cheeky Corner Suite on Resilient lady in December.  There is an adjoining Sea Terrace room available that I am considering booking for my adult daughter.  My question is - if this room is part of the same group booking, then will my daughter be included in any suite privileges?  For example, will she be allowed to accompany us to Richard's Rooftop if we go there?  We have tried contacting Virgin via the online portal and have received no response other than the generic bounceback.  Their customer service is woeful.

There could be another grey area to explore. Does your suite sleep three? You could see if you could add your daughter as a third band in your suite, which would be charged to you, as well as her own red back for her cabin. That way she sleeps next door but is registered to your suite and would have your perks?

just an idea that’s a bit out of the box. 
 

best wishes

rob 

10 hours ago, coevan said:

Thanks for clearing that up, will bring some empty plastic water bottles. We like bottled water next to the bed, not glass. 

Just buy a nice Chilli branded water bottle or a VV branded one on the ship in the shop in deck 6. That way you can also use it at home saving even more pointless plastics being made. A water filter at home (jug or fitted as a tap) is also a cheap investment longer term to help the planet.
 

Reusing plastic bottle that are not designed to be reused is not good for people, as the bottles leak micro-plastics which you drink, plus other chemicals. 
 

problem solved. 
 

Best wishes 

Rob

1 hour ago, _tacocat_ said:

 

the first thing i heard a few months ago was potentially nordics.  that'd be pretty neat and a culinarily low-risk way to see the sights without having to eat salted fish for a week (i used to work for a swedish company and all the americans dreaded being called over to HQ due to the food and the fact that it'd always either be the time of year when the sun was up 24 hours/day or it was 24 hours of darkness!)

 

Not the only one then to have heard this rumour. Basically, it would be to high risk to the brand to do no public voyages, and then go straight for a Christmas 23 sailing. Given Two ships in Europe already potential to do Portsmouth to Northern Europe for Oct to Dec could tap the Christmas markets, and wear the ship in nicely before the Atlantic crossing where they could fix teething issues. 
 

in terms of its ‘home” I could not really make a guess but the west coast could be an option. 

Just a note.

Menu B is not as nice as menu A. The cocktail pairing are really good but a little boozy so if your a slow drinking you may want to ask for a pause between courses. 

On 11/27/2022 at 2:36 PM, cantgetin said:

Great explanation, Walter.  In addition, many lines do training cruises for the crew with family and friends posing as guests before heading to the home port.

I would not sweat it with VV. We were on the mermaiden of Valiant in 2022 and had no issues. Really, the mermaiden is the “first public voyage”, rather than the first voyage for the ship. They will have done many a sailor before you step foot on board so enjoy it.

2 minutes ago, Glitchlo said:

Thank you Rob. Will try that. On other cruises was able to do from website without permission so this threw me

 

The app is basically your access and first point of information. Off the ship it is a bit sketchy at times, but second your on the ship it’s 100x better. DM me if you need any help as we don’t a few voyages and the app can be temperamental. 

Is it just me… but the package virgin offering for status etc, is much better than other lines? 
 

I mean you seem to get actual useful things, not just % off something your forced to buy anyway?

On 12/27/2022 at 11:25 PM, Cloud9 Bob said:

Apologies if I wasn't totally clear in my original question. I was just looking for passengers personal accounts of rough weather that happened to occur on Virgin ships.

in short it’s no worse than any other ship. We did the trans Atlantic in October and had one day 24 hour period. What virgin have beaten a few other ships on is little things like having ginger ale and apples out and about the ship, so if you do feel unwell you have natural options just there waiting. 
 

entertainment will be 50/50 so you can expect bands etc to carry on, but shows like the circus based ones or with big set pieces that move, may be cancelled at short notice. 
 

Rob 

Hi, 

First off you need to complete your profile before you can book anything so complete that in the app, complete with your id photo etc and then the full options open up. 
 

In the app on the homepage is “share & add your mates”. Click on this and send the link to the people who you want to also be able to book for. You can send via WhatsApp etc. they need to approve you by opening the link. The people will appear in your contacts, and when you want to book a table or show, you can select each of them. 
 

hope that helps

Rob

Hi, 

VV have a whole beer bar called “Draught Haus”. It has generally between 5 and 10 guest beers and on tap options. VV do have cans on board and glass bottles as well of beers. They include lager, blondes and a couple of dark ales. So yep, your going to be fine and able to find a few new fav beers.

Rob
 

Hi All,

we have booked the Miami to Med 21st of April to 5th of May 2024. Our referral code is https://virg.in/Js7d

let’s share the love (and get chatting). If you need any tips of VV feel free to DM me as been on four so far in three different cabin types. 
 

Best wishes

Rob

There is also another no so good XL cabin to be aware of next to the bridge. This is the smallest XL with known issues on board. This is due to the position of the bed being so close to the desk it’s tucked under it. It’s cabin 14334Z for info. It’s also eye shot from bed to the side controls for the ship on the bridge so you can wave to them from bed if that’s your thing lol 

2 hours ago, raphael360 said:

Has anyone booked future cruises ‘on board’ and if so did you get better deals than the specials offered online?

if your enjoying the voyage, and you want to go again on another, we found that the buy on board offers worked out great. That said, as others have commented, if your a late buyer or spur of the moment type for a booking, then it may not work out better than the last minute offers they add. 
 

You can combine offers generally with virgin as well. For example, the buy on board discount, the 10% when you buy more than 180 days out, and another 10% off if you pay in full at time of booking. 
 

every penny helps. 

Ship: Scarlet Lady

Cabin#: 10358Z

Deck #: 10

Cabin Category: XL Sea Terrace

Sleeps: 2

Cabin Location: (Port,  Starboard, Forward, Aft) - Starboard forward

Terrace/Window/Obstruction: part metal balance side, part glass.  

Noise Issues?: none

Wind Issues?: some wind while in motion as in the V at the front of the ship

Connecting Cabin? Where Does it Connect?: none

Hammock: Yes

Metal/Glass Terrace: mixed metal and glass, only able to see a small patch of sea while seated

Advantages/Problems - terrace a little smaller than over XL cabins as one of the most forward. metal side also makes the view from the cabin a little dark. You are also looked down onto from the bridge so feels less private

Would You Book Again?: not by choice

Comments: Lots of confusion when you book to if this is a hammock cabin or not, VV on land do not know for sure. as there is only a small "ceiling" over the terrace sun lovers may be able to enjoy the outside space more than shade lovers. 

Well, VV do tell you you do not have a cabin with a hammock a few days before departure and generally offer you a very small amount of on board spend credit to compensate. 

Sadly I got this email again yesterday, so having been in a no hammock cabin, called virgin to move in august, was told the new one did have a hammock, i am now waiting to see if this is the case or not. 

I think it might be time for a VV to step up and just do a walk around between sailings and inform what is 100% accurate. It helps sailors, sales and the poor people on the customer lines to know the score. 

 

On 9/24/2022 at 12:03 AM, cantgetin said:

Hope it is there!  Yes, I'm anticipating that I might have to have a "chat" with them on board, 

I would HIGHLY recommend getting it confirmed in writing or on the app and screen cap before you board / join the ship wifi. We were told out bar tab was going to be fine, then at terminal they said they cannot see it / add it to the account, and to see a named person they said on the ship. We board and head straight to guest services and they said they can do ZERO and shoreside terminal staff were just trying to move us through the terminal knowing onboard they could / would do nothing. 

So GET IT SORTED before you get to the terminal!

I am just thinking something through...

So the Deep Blue bonus for 2022 states the $10 for coffee per day is per cabin... but what about the Moet and the laundry? Can two members who both have the same status sharing a cabin each claim a bag of washing and the bubbles?

On 9/14/2022 at 4:16 PM, Alegeeter said:

But would they switch whose band an access which room? I am booked in Room A but want to sleep in Room B, can my band access Room B?

If you swap bands they will be come up a not valid as they use the bands for payments, and a photos is attached to the band on the back of house systems. Just get new bands on board and they can move over the contents 🙂 

At the moment (or at least ti was two weeks ago), you can get a double the onboard credit offer. 

When you put down $300 deposit (or hold) on your next voyage, they will give you $600 in on board credit, and a $300 discount on the cover price of your next voyage (including any offers) as long as you book in sea terrace or above. You can buy multiple of these and transfer them to other people.

15 hours ago, Sarcastic Mama said:

My question is, are there connecting staterooms? 

There are several rooms which do connect in the ships. On the deck plans you can check them out, but to book them you will need to call up VV sailor services and this could be a challenge as they are not the best at sorting matters out yet. 

Having voyaged on a standard sea view, a XL sea view and a corner suite, I would say the XL and corner suite had the same size shower space, sink and WC areas, just paid out different. The standard sea view is small. No hiding that fact. Think of it as an airline loo for the sink and WC, and double that to include the shower as well. 

I would always recommend the XL to people. It's the right mix of size against cost. The money you save against a suite you can off set against shore things, bar tab and other onboard spend. While the suite has more floor space, you can ask to convert the bed to a soda in any sea view and that creates a much larger space to enjoy in the day time, comparable to a smaller suite.