fndecker

Funny, I had this same conversation on a FB post this week. I am also used to the bed by the closet, but we are bringing my daughter next time and have adjoining rooms, so we may try the room that has the bed by the balcony. I'm questioning the wisdom of having our room adjoin my 19y/o daughter and her BF. I like my privacy. I am debating on opening the divider between the rooms or leaving it locked. Guess we will figure it out then.

Or... They may be able to weed out the people whose preference is junk food since the point of Virgin is to be different. Like Disney and Carnival, there are different cruises for different people. It is good to have reviews an opinions so that cruisers on the other lines might find that VV is not for them, which works for me. They could have at least one more choice, and they do needs snacks for later in the day and even in the morning. They open up the bar too late also.

All of the interaction is nice, and I do appreciate their athletic ability, but I've see it all before. Also, they are acrobats, not actors. When they open the show with the surprise, I could not understand a word the two actors said since they had very heavy accents and have to yell to project. I didn't really follow a plot although it is supposed to be romeo and juliet / West Side Story (red and blue "teams"). I wonder if they wash the bands they have you put on your wrist that you have to return? Anyway, it was nice to see jugglers and teeter board and silk aerialists, and the hula hoop artist, etc. and I might see it again, but I actually enjoyed the multi-media show "ships in the night" more (though my wife did not and liked DR). Around the world in 80 minutes with the Diva was also pretty great.

The other issue is that only the master account if you have linked accounts gets the price detail on their phone. We had issues with that, especially since my phone died on the cruise and we had a time switching everything over to my wife's account.

Experiences are individual and subjective. For example, I was so hyped up for Duel Reality but then wanted to walk out and get something to eat. Decent enough show for a 3 ring circus, but the stage looked "dirty", and the show seemed like a high school version of a Cirque show. Could it just have been my mood that night? Was is that I've seen several Cirque brand shows in stadiums and in Vegas so it is unfair to compare? Who knows. But what I do know, is that many of the complaints are exactly the thing I love about Virgin! So to each their own. I appreciate the Vegas style shows of other lines, but not interested in them on a cruise. It is refreshing to get in and out in an hour and do other things. I like to relax, walk the ship, eat, dance with my wife, talk to the Happenings Cast, find popup performances, sit in the hot tub, talk to people at the pool and buy each other drinks, and everything about Scarlet Night. It's like arguing over which is better, steak or chicken? People like what they like.

Keep in mind these are half bottles of spirits, 375ml, not 750. So you are paying 3 or 4 times the price for that bottle as you would at home. We bring one or two bottles of wine with us by transferring it from our checked back to our carry ons. Then with the bar credit, there hasn't been a need to buy liquor on the ship. I imagine if you have "freebies" like more sailor loot or a $600 bar tab, splurging on a bottle wouldn't be a crazy idea. But a $65 bottle of Avion Tequila works out to about 6 mixed drinks or shots at the bars where shots can be a inexpensive as $7 and drinks $10.

You both get the daily schedule, your accounts can be linked and one person can be responsible for the other (their credit card pays for any extras), and anything you booked like dinner, shows, classes, etc. will show up for both of you. Just remember to have it set for 2 people in your party and then click on both your picture and your travel partner's picture to tell them app you are both going. Otherwise, you can book some things separately, like if one of you wants to be up for 7am exercise and the other doesn't 😉

Our routine: Book meals 45 days out Know what shows we want to see in advance and check the app day of embarkation for all the changes As soon as we are on the ship, connect to the internet and start booking the shows and classes (like the 80s exercise class) while walking a few feet and waiting at the red stand up tables near the record store where people help you with bookings. Often, you have things booked and don't need their help by the time it is your turn, but best be prepared. Go to the room and drop off our bags and watch the muster drill video. Can also go wander and watch the video on your phone wherever you wind up. Go to Sip and have some free champagne Go to the Dock for a 2 or 3pm lunch (or one of the other restaurants that are open) Have a fancy drink. Walk around and try to meet any of the Happenings Cast we find. If this is your first time on the ship, go to deck 17, then 16, then 15 to explore. Then go to 7,6, and 5 to see the restaurants and venues there. Go see the spa if you are a spa person and sign up for your sessions. See if the Happenings Cast is doing anything in the Roundabout. Around 4 (they make an announcement) go to the muster station that is printed on your cabin door and watch them show you how to put on a life vest. Takes 5 minutes. Hang out by the pool or rest on your balcony. Meet your Steward. 5:30 if leaving from Miami and that is the time, get free champagne on the pool deck or above looking down. Be sure to catch the show there before leaving the area 6:45 go back to the room and change Go to our pre-made dinner reservations for 7 or 7:15 (have 10 or 15 minute grace period here, but if dining in a group, like at Gunbae, might not want to be late and hold up them filling a table). Or you can get food when you want at The Galley or one of the other non-reservation restaurants. If the cruise is not busy, you can try standby at one of the "fancy" restaurants. 8:30-9pm We do a show next which we booked as soon as we got on board. People who like bar crawls can do that instead. But you have to pay extra and you should book that in advance. 10:30pm We go back and change into our PJs. and go to the the outdoor (or indoor location if it is closed) at 10:45 and dance and wait for the show portion where we "wake up" The Hostess. Great party and one of many chances to interact with The Happenings cast. Go to bed by midnight because we are tired but didn't overdo it yet. If you have the energy, go to the Manor for whatever dance party they have there until 1 or 2am. Casino lovers can also squeeze that in during the evening and into the wee morning hours. Keep checking the App for the daily schedule, or go to Sailor Services and get a printed version so you don't miss anything interesting during the day. In the app, you can mark favorites and they will show up in your personalized list. And be on the lookout for popup things happening wherever the Happenings cast may be wandering or setting up to do something.

People keep saying "Dual Reality", it is "DUEL" Reality as a play on words since it is a conflict between the red team and the blue team. I enjoyed NSA, my wife not so much. But she loved Duel Reality and me not so much.

We DID drag our bags (2 bags on our shoulders and one wheeled bag) a mile from the bridge, then over the bridge, then backtracking to the terminal. It was the nightmare day when they ran the marathon and there was no way to get to the terminal. I do wonder, and should have asked, how did everyone who made the cruise get there? I know some missed the ship. Perhaps people got their very early and then shopped at Bayside, or they stayed in Miami walking distance from the terminal? I know if you were trying to get from South Beach, any wheeled transportation was stuck. We tried Lyft and a city bus, and almost got there until the tunnel was blocked and police blocked off the bus exit. The driver started driving all over the place and people finally started yelling at her to just let them off stop or no stop. We got 2 blocks closer and were the last off the bus. It's not the tip money, though every little bit counts, it is feeling forced to do something by convention, not necessity. We had one bag that could be considered a "checked bag", that we did NOT want to have tagged and delivered to our room later. We wanted all 3 bags with us. When we thought we would be in a Lyft, we didn't want to have the driver pop the trunk and the highly paid union workers beat us to get the bag to make us feel guilty we weren't giving them the bag or a tip. Had we needed their services, we would have given them the bag. Still, for my wife and I, the US tip culture is a big pet peeve and out of control. Everyone has their hand out. Now you go to a fast food place and they turn the tablet to you and you have to click "no tip". It is manipulative and trying to guilt people into tipping.

Maybe, what else does Bounce do? I am trying to remember the board where they play a game at the roundabout and have everyone try to match the cast's names with their title. I don't remember Bounce. Patrick was the Balancer, and you are right a bout Spark and Hype on VHS. There was also a "Flair" there.

Well drinks and things like Bailey's, Frangelica, Amaretto, etc. were just $7. Some things were $9. Hard to spend $300, let alone $400 if that is all you drink. The fancy drinks of $10-17 might get you there. We had a drink each before sailaway and then there was so much champagne, we couldn't drink anything else that night. Last night of the cruise, we bought a bottle of liquor to spend our $400 and finished with 2 drinks for brunch the day we left the ship

Perhaps our experience was because we had such low expectations from other reviews. We had planned to go back to the ship for lunch, but tried the food and really enjoyed it. It wouldn't have been our first choice, but it was all good. We do like curry, so that was good, the barbecue was more like the Easter NC barbecue I love, so that was a win. We had 2 rum cakes 😉

A normal checked-bag type bag will fit in the scanners. They did ask us to check a bag, but I think that was just as a courtesy, we said no thank you and carried our back up the escalator and then through the gangway. Easy with the ones with 4 wheels that can be lugged on all 4 or just 2.

I agree with all the duplicate posts 😉 I would just add that compared to most other cruise lines, there is a lot more included. I had no need or desire for anything at all that added an upcharge. Who can eat a "Tomahawk" steak? Besides, filet mignon is free at the Wake, and there are steaks at every other restaurant. The shrimp small plate at the dock is the best shrimp dish I've ever had and I couldn't even begin to touch all the food choices at the restaurants, bars, or grab and go's. I might have been interested in Bingo, but you buy bingo cards at any other place you want to play bingo. And the prizes are significant if you win. If you don't drink, or want specialty coffees or teas, everything from juice to soda is included. Liquor is $7 to $9 for well drinks and things like Bailey's and Francelico, etc., Fancy drinks are $10-$15. There is free champagne at sailaway and other events, or drinks/champagne you can win just for participating in something like shaking your butt on Scarlett Night. Best cruise ever!