Is Virgin Voyages a Potential "Threat" To Celebrity?

[bEwAbG]

41 minutes ago, AlyssaJames said:

Heh, okay.

 

I'm happy to be corrected.  What do you see in that thread that isn't standard fare elsewhere?  

[UnorigionalName]

52 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

 

Thanks for the link.  I'm not seeing anything that I haven't seen on other cruise ships.  It all looks ok but nothing novel.  Of course, food quality is more about how much of your fare they're devoting to it, so this is another one of those "wait and see" things.  If that is something people rave about, they can "dine out" on it for years.  Celebrity is still known for their food even though that reputation was earned from past glory.

 

Hmm, it looks pretty different to me?   Honestly was looking at celebrity because everyone said the food is better, but nothing really excites me (and hearing from people whose food senses I trust more, they didn't say it was anything special).  The VV looks actually like more modern food.  And authentic ethnic food.  None of this horrible american "pan-asian" cuisine.  Kimchi! banchan! bibimbap! aguachile! cochinta pibil!  babaganoush! and the aesthetic.  the conscious choice of dishes. the color. the plating. 

 

Edited February 26, 2020 by UnorigionalName

[UnorigionalName]

2 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

 

I'm happy to be corrected.  What do you see in that thread that isn't standard fare elsewhere?  

 

did you watch the video on the vegetarian forward place?  The very fact that there is a vegetarian forward place.  You can hide bad cooking with tons of meat, but veggie cooking needs good execution (and this is coming from a very carnivore).  The colors, the complexity of the dishes, the appropriate consideration of acidity.

 

like, modern metropolitan hipster food.  Not banquet food from the 90s.

Edited February 26, 2020 by UnorigionalName

[bEwAbG]

There are plenty of cruise lines not serving "banquet food from the 90s."  Sometimes you have to go to the specialty restaurants to get it and get out of the buffet.  Even the buffets often have cooked to order stuff, though.  The two lines I know best are HAL and Celebrity, and I've had many fine meals there, some of them even vegetarian.  Food is subjective, of course.  I'm not knocking what Virgin is offering; I'm just saying it doesn't look that unique.

 

 

[UnorigionalName]

8 minutes ago, bEwAbG said:

I'm just saying it doesn't look that unique.

 

 

I think we must have very different conception of cuisine.  Isn't DC in the beginning of like a foodie revolution?   mmm, I think it would be like the difference between blue duck tavern and rose's luxury.  

 

and then the inclusion of real ethnic food. The completely different flavor profiles.  No "pan-asian" crap.  Ramen that looks like it might actually be passable.  

 

I don't know how else to explain it to you.  It seems pretty different to me...

[bEwAbG]

36 minutes ago, UnorigionalName said:

I think we must have very different conception of cuisine.  Isn't DC in the beginning of like a foodie revolution?   mmm, I think it would be like the difference between blue duck tavern and rose's luxury.  

 

and then the inclusion of real ethnic food. The completely different flavor profiles.  No "pan-asian" crap.  Ramen that looks like it might actually be passable.  

 

I don't know how else to explain it to you.  It seems pretty different to me...

 

DC has had an explosion of restaurant growth, but it's been over the last 10-15 years.  It's been a great city to live (& eat) in as a result.  I don't understand the comparison between your two examples, though.  Both are "new American" fare and have their share of plaudits.  Menus change but the basic cuisine is the same.  The videos of the Virgin food do not appear to approach that level of quality to me.

 

I've also had "real" ethnic food on both HAL and Celebrity.  Not everything they serve is a retread of something you'd find at Panda Express or a mall food court. I'm gathering that this has not been your personal experience, but it's not true to say that it's not offered anywhere

[terrydtx]

I have been getting emails 2 or 3 times a day promoting VV, today I got one with 3 and 4th guests in a suite sail for free in April and May. This tells me they are not selling their first few cruises very well. They are doing marketing like the mass market cruise companies now. When a new ship like the Edge is launched by X giveaways like this do not happen the first few months or more.

[cruiserchuck]

27 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

I have been getting emails 2 or 3 times a day promoting VV, today I got one with 3 and 4th guests in a suite sail for free in April and May. This tells me they are not selling their first few cruises very well. They are doing marketing like the mass market cruise companies now. When a new ship like the Edge is launched by X giveaways like this do not happen the first few months or more.

 

The discounting is likely due to Coronavirus worries.  When Edge came out, there were no worldwide pandemic fears.  

[Suite Susie]

Having seen Emma Cruises review on YouTube, I don't think the Scarlet Lady is a threat to Celebrity.  I don't think anybody who has cruised before would be happy with the Cabins.  Sleeping on a sofa bed, is not my idea of comfort - no bedside cupboards, no drawers for storing make up etc by the mirror and a shower that only slim people can get in - all looks horrendous.  The ship is also littered with lovely looking furniture but most of it is too low or too small for most passengers.  I think if you are young, slim and have not cruised before, I think you would enjoy the restaurants etc. particularly if you've recently left University and are used to accommodation like that.  But boy she is ugly from the outside and the swimming pool is so tiny for 4,000 passengers.  Certainly not for us!

Edited February 28, 2020 by Suite Susie

[LMaxwell]

Reminds me of when Mercedes Benz said Lexus would never be a competitor

[PhillyTravelBug]

I just saw some videos of the ship from bloggers and first thing that came to mind was the Fyre festival documentary. I thought this was going to be something luxurious and out of this world and then I watch the video and it looks like I walked onto an IKEA showroom floor, which always disappointments me when I see the quality. To each their own. It just won’t be for me.

[NutsAboutGolf]

Two entirely different demographics.  VV is designed to be instagram friendly with its bold cosmopolitan styling.  We’re having a debate in VV forums which now seems solved, The Galley is not a buffet but rather place where you can get made to order food served to you quicker than their other restaurants.  The dictionary definition of a buffet is self served food that’s usually Pre-made.  Even with X allowing children, I would imagine VV’s average age would be at least a decade younger than X.  They’re two fairly different experiences and both are constantly evolving.

[NutsAboutGolf]

The videos/reviews coming in for VV, there are many datapoints:

1)  Many venues have not opened.

2)  It was the crews first few days (depending when the review was) dealing with "sailors".

3) When you take a crew job, you sign up knowing you will work long days seven days a week.  The crew has not experienced that yet, odds are the crew becomes less friendly over time.

4) What is the biggest difference between VV and the rest of the industry?  IMO, the IG friendly-bold cosmopolitan styling and exclusion of kids is designed to attract the millennial Vegas party crowd.

5) VV will constantly evolve; its inevitable the sofa beds will be gone in future ships.  I can't recall where I saw this but there was a comment where the person's theory was VV wanted "skinnier" cabins to squeeze in more oceanfront cabins.  When the sofa bed is in "bed mode", the cabins look cramped and "boring", so VV came up with the sofa bed concept.  If you get a higher category room, VV replaces the sofa bed concept with a real bed.  As good as a theory as any.

6) If X ever feels threatened, they could simply create some themed sailings that are 18+, add some millennial friendly food carts and throw up some bold IG friendly décor which can be removed after the themed sailing.

7) VV has issues, the chief oversight is mind-blowing.  You have a kidless, IG friendly ship and one of the smallest pools in the industry.

[SeaHunt]

On 2/27/2020 at 1:12 PM, cruiserchuck said:

 

The discounting is likely due to Coronavirus worries.  

 

They have cancelled all the New York events, maybe for the same worries?

 

Virgin Voyages has cancelled its March introduction events of the Scarlet Lady in New York and the ship will instead sail straight to Miami, its homeport.

 

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/22523-virgin-voyages-cancels-new-york-introduction.html

 

(BTW no female VV Captain now either:

 

We can confirm we said farewell to Captain Wendy Williams recently, who made the decision to leave our crew to take a different direction for the next stage of her career. We are full of admiration for her career achievements and her commitment to bringing a sea change to crew life. We thank her for her passion for our brand and the energy she has put into helping us prepare for going into service.  We wish her smooth sailing for whatever she decides to do next and she will always be a part of our family.

 

https://www.porthole.com/captain-wendy-williams-quietly-leaves-virgin-voyages/

[gkbiiii]

How are 4,000 young adults going to afford $500 a night, for 5 night cruises?  How is VV going to fill this/these current/future ships with 4,000 guests/sailors, once/twice a week?

[hcat]

If this  ship's experience fills a niche for some cruisers,  that is a plus.. Fewer  passengers will be  clamoring to change X  into their dream experience, 

 

  EDGE class is awesome and suits many of our needs for now!

Edited March 3, 2020 by hcat

[luckyinpa]

i think a lot of people wont be aware of the bed situation before they board. when i looked at the site i gotta admit i didnt figure it out at first.  once you start getting awareness of everyone on a sofa bed, you will have issues. 

 

i do like the idea of one price dining with no charges though

[NutsAboutGolf]

27 minutes ago, luckyinpa said:

i do like the idea of one price dining with no charges though

There can be up charges for some menu items called “treat yourself” yet there’s no restaurant cover charges; at least yet.  Considering VV is around $500/night, it’s all bittersweet at best.

[waterbug123]

I haven't read through all the comments so apologies if this is redundant but here's my input:

We recently found ourselves with the time/desire to schedule a short vacation in early April and in our minds we were thinking cruise.  We tend to stick to RC and X, with X probably edging out RC as our current fave.  We know some friends going on Virgin later in April so we decided to take a look and ended up booking a 4 nighter on the Scarlet Lady. 

Obviously we'll withhold final judgement until we've actually sailed but we liked the streamlined simplicity of it all...

1. Cabin selection: inside, window, balcony, or big suite.  That's pretty much it.  No multiple categories of balcony, no endless description of a bunch of different kinds of suites with prices all over the place, and is the lowest one really a suite as far as perks go (aka RC's junior suite), etc.  Simple and streamlined. 

2. All the dining venues are included:  no decisions to make as to early, late or anytime/my time dining, no worrying about specialty cover charges, and should we get a dining package to save on cover charges, or when is lobster night etc.  Simple and streamlined.

3. No beverage packages (that we could see) with more research needed to see which ones cover what kind of drinks, and how much is a typical drink, and are the tips included, and what if we want a wine by the glass that isn't included etc.  Just an offer to buy $300 in prepaid bar credit and get an extra $100 worth.  Pay for 300, get 400.   Simple and streamlined.

4.  Wifi included.  No need to look into different options, packages vs. pay by the day or by the minute, do we get any free with our status, is it included as a perk during a booking sale, etc.  Simple and streamlined.

5.  No kids.  Ok, doesn't really make the booking process/decision making simple and streamlined, but we like the concept!   🙂

So yeah, we'll see what it's like onboard, but as for the booking process making everything simple and streamlined?  We like it.  A lot!

[PTC DAWG]

6 minutes ago, waterbug123 said:

 

3. No beverage packages (that we could see) with more research needed to see which ones cover what kind of drinks, and how much is a typical drink, and are the tips included, and what if we want a wine by the glass that isn't included etc.  Just an offer to buy $300 in prepaid bar credit and get an extra $100 worth.  Pay for 300, get 400.   Simple and streamlined.

 

No beverage package is a solid no go for me.  I do not want to be concerned with my BAR bill when disembarking.  

 

It will be curious how VV evolves on this.  I predict some pretty quick changes in this regard...not to mention the cots for beds.  🙂

[Cruise a holic]

I do not think it is more of a threat then Oceania or Royal is to Celebrity.  Just more choices.  Also more people enjoy cruises today then years ago.  Room for every line.  I like the idea of no children, especially during peak periods as some kids aren't supervised and run wild on the ships and the staff is hesitant to intervene.

[waterbug123]

21 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

No beverage package is a solid no go for me.  I do not want to be concerned with my BAR bill when disembarking.  

 

It will be curious how VV evolves on this.  I predict some pretty quick changes in this regard...not to mention the cots for beds.  🙂

 

I would assume we can see our charges on the room TV at any time, in which case a quick glance here and there will quickly tell us if we're being charged for things we didn't order. 

[Esprit]

As a Sir Richard Branson fan, I really hope the Scarlet Lady has a great inaugural season. The timing of it couldn't have been worse. The crew must be gutted with the coronavirus threat hanging over them! 

[Cruise a holic]

2 hours ago, Esprit said:

As a Sir Richard Branson fan, I really hope the Scarlet Lady has a great inaugural season. The timing of it couldn't have been worse. The crew must be gutted with the coronavirus threat hanging over them! 

What about Princess??  they will take a big hit