Just booked our first Virgin Voyage and can't wait!

[CineGraphic]

We are two Princess loyalists who have decided to see what else is out there, and VV recently caught our attention again.

I remember wanting to put down a deposit when the Scarlet Lady was still just just on paper, but they wanted $500 with no idea of how long sailings would be, where they'd sail to, or price-points....too many unknowns at the time for me to comfortable forking over hard-earned cash.

 

We just booked a B2B on the Scarlet Lady October 19-28, 2022. The phone agent was very helpful and made sure that "ship happens", and indeed it did.

I didn't see a roll-call for either cruise, and it seems most VV roll-calls aren't very active compared to the older/traditional lines.....not a problem, we're approaching this with open eyes and will welcome the many differences and changes from our usual cruise experience.

 

We've watched several Youtube video reviews of the ship but would love/appreciate any tips and insights from anyone inclined to do so.

I don't want to go into this completely clueless.

 

 

 

[sid_9169]

I've sailed the Scarlet Lady three times now, and I'm hooked on Virgin Voyages product... Great food and drinks, as well as a great crew and ship. Here's a link to my recent review with lots of pictures...

 

 

 

[CineGraphic]

2 hours ago, sid_9169 said:

I've sailed the Scarlet Lady three times now, and I'm hooked on Virgin Voyages product... Great food and drinks, as well as a great crew and ship. Here's a link to my recent review with lots of pictures...

 

 

 

Thanks from a few miles north of you. (Duluth)

[The_Force]

My wife and I are Princess loyalists (Elite) as well, and we sailed VV on Scarlet Lady for the first time over New Years. We loved VV and have our next cruise booked for Oct 10-14, again on Scarlet Lady!

 

Can’t say enough great things about the food, drinks, crew and atmosphere everywhere on the ship (feels like a trendy boutique hotel). Regarding the dining experience, each one is like being in an upscale, but comfortable, restaurant back home. No main dining rooms where everyone on the ship lines up for dinner. Instead, reservations at intimate restaurants, each with their own unique vibe and theme.

 

I’m not one for detailing every minute of our cruise, but if you have questions, I’m happy to share our experience.

[CineGraphic]

2 minutes ago, The_Force said:

Can’t say enough great things about the food, drinks, crew and atmosphere everywhere on the ship (feels like a trendy boutique hotel)

 

After watching the most recent batch of Youtube reviews, we are really looking forward to experiencing everything first-hand. We recently became Elite with Princess, but the current product is sub-par.

We have one more Princess sailing booked for 2023.

If there is any incentive for booking future cruises while on-board, we will.

[cantgetin]

You'll find roll call groups on various social media sites.  The one here for my sailing isn't very active, but another one elsewhere is.  I just booked my second VV.  Yes, there are incentives for rebooking on board.  Per my TA, there have been 5 different "deals" since October 2021.  The current one is $300 off + $300 OBC (Sailor's Loot) on the new booking, and this can be combined with any current offers.  They had a better one that just ended a few days ago, supposedly for "Richard's birthday," but now it is back to the standard one.

[kwokpot]

Experienced cruiser here (97 cruises and counting) currently on the Scarlet Lady for the first time. Here are some thoughts. 

 

The ship's design and programming is targeted for the 21-40 age group or the young at heart. I'm a very young almost 61 and enjoy the atmosphere. For comparison Celebrity's Edge Class ships are our favorite cruiseship experience. We are enjoying our time in the Scarlet Lady but Celebrity Edge Class still remains our favorite cruiseships. 

 

 

RESIST the urge to when you first get on the ship to continually comment either to yourself or traveling companion about how different it is to all other cruiseships. 

 

Cabins are too basic. The decor is reminiscent of a collage dorm room. No excuse not to have real closet doors; there's plenty of room for them and the sheer curtain doesn't make it any easier to access the interior. Bathroom in our XL terrace is the best thing about the cabin. 

 

The food is outstanding. Period. Literally every food venue the plating, preparation, and food quality has been outstanding and I might put it ahead of Celebrity's Edge Class ships. 

 

The Wake, both inside and out, is the best part of the ship, IMO.

 

If you enjoy going to raves, music festivals, dance clubs etc, you'll enjoy the music programming in many of the venues. 

 

The Scarlet Night pool party is the best deck party of any cruiseline. 

 

Bimini Beach Club was a very nice place. 

 

 

 

 

[cantgetin]

I just read some interesting stats from VV.  The average of cruisers is 47 (with a very wide range), over 50% are married, and only 25% identified themselves as "first time cruisers."  And from my travel agent, 90% of his clients who have cruised VV have already booked a second cruise with them.  

No, you don't have to be young to enjoy VV.  You do need to be willing to "go with the fun," and you'll get more out of the cruise if you do a little research in advance so you have an idea of what to expect.  There are areas that I would place them at the top of any of the lines I've cruises....and some that need improvement.  Just don't expect it to be like other lines--it isn't.

[kwokpot]

3 hours ago, cantgetin said:

I just read some interesting stats from VV.  The average of cruisers is 47 (with a very wide range), over 50% are married, and only 25% identified themselves as "first time cruisers."  And from my travel agent, 90% of his clients who have cruised VV have already booked a second cruise with them.  

No, you don't have to be young to enjoy VV.  You do need to be willing to "go with the fun," and you'll get more out of the cruise if you do a little research in advance so you have an idea of what to expect.  There are areas that I would place them at the top of any of the lines I've cruises....and some that need improvement.  Just don't expect it to be like other lines--it isn't.

While are agree with some of what you said, especially about doing research, the cruise most certainly was designed with a certain demographic and/or a consumer looking for specific type of vacation experience. If you read about how the cruiseline came about it was specifically targeted for a younger demographic that never previously would have considered taking a cruise vacation. In fact the name of the Cruiseline, Virgin Voyages, was changed from it's original name Virgin Cruises so as not to be identified with a traditional cruiseline company.

I'm attaching an article about something entirely different, Marriott Hotel's Moxy brand, but it speaks to exactly what Virgin Voyages is trying to achieve with it's business model.

 

 

https://globetrender.com/2018/02/09/moxy-hotels-fun-hunters/

 

 

[cantgetin]

I won't argue with who the line was aimed at.  I looked at the early ads and didn't even consider VV.  It wasn't until friends came back with rave reviews that I booked it.  Bottom line was that VV didn't get the "Sailors" who were their original target; they attracted a somewhat older median age.  Yes, you'll see the 20 somethings, but you'll see a lot of gray hair as well.  Whatever the original target, they are happy to book adults of any age who want to go with the flow and have fun.

[CruisingWalter]

On 7/5/2022 at 3:52 PM, CineGraphic said:

We've watched several Youtube video reviews of the ship but would love/appreciate any tips and insights from anyone inclined to do so.

I don't want to go into this completely clueless.

 

We're big fans of Celebrity and Princess as well, and we've now sailed 8 cruise lines. I have a playlist from our Scarlet Lady cruise in July including a full food tour and cabin tour on our Where's Walter TV YouTube channel that might be helpful. Food tour linked below.

 

We had a cluster with the Bayside Market provided shuttle that we took after dropping off our bags at 11:30 at Terminal V. We were at the appointed pickup location at 1:40pm and after waiting 45 minutes, the shuttle never came back. We ended up booking a Lyft for ourselves and another couple that was stranded at the market. Virgin reps said the shuttle should have still been running and ended up comping our friends for the Lyft through onboard credit.

 

One big thing we would change for our next Virgin Voyage is to book the embarkation night dinner much later. We typically book dinner between 6:30 and 7:00 and that works out fine when we're boarding at 11 or 11:30 and grabbing lunch. With the late 2:00pm boarding, we were snacking and noshing out on the Dock at 2:30 and then snacking on some other stuff as well. When we went to our 6:30 dinner at Gunbae, we honestly were not all that hungry. So I would book our first night dinner more like 8 to 8:30 instead. 

 

If you enjoy the pool for a dip, the best times are before 10:30am or staying on ship during a port day. We stayed onboard during our Puerto Plata stop and had the pool basically to ourselves until 2 and even then, there were only a few other couples joining us. The main pool area actually is lovely when it's not wall to wall bodies as it will be on sail away day and sea days. 

 

The Test Kitchen was a 2 1/2 hour meal for us and most of the meals were in the 90 minute to 2 hour range except Pink Agave. That food came out very fast. So be aware that you do get a full, relaxed dining experience at most of the restaurants that is absolutely lovely. That can be important if you're trying to time the meal before a show. We ended up having to rush our Extra Virgin meal to 70 minutes because we were coming from a Secret Show and had to make Duel Reality. It's typically a four course meal but they combined the pasta and entree course for us so we could make it. The Dock is absolutely fantastic, do not miss their tapas. The Galley works fine when it's not busy but the service fell apart the morning of the Puerto Plata stop when it seemed everyone on the ship was there. They insist that you sit at a table and order restaurant style. That is if you can flag down a server which took a while for us. When it's not busy you can walk up to any of the food stall in typical food hall style. The quality of the food in there is a step above typical buffet food because for the most part it's made fresh to order, not sitting on warming trays. DO NOT MISS THE SCARLET LADY DESSERT in The Sweet Side if you like dark chocolate. Gloss red on the outside and deep rich chocolate on the inside. Pizza was quite good and the ice cream was tasty. Coffee quality was excellent at both coffee shops, though they close early. If you want coffee after the Grounds Clubs close, go to Sips Champagne lounge where they have hand pulled shot expresso machines. Delicious. Social Club has hot dogs, popcorn, candy and more. The Rueben hot dog was not bad and my wife really enjoyed the veggie dog.

 

Bars were impressive throughout the ship, even the pool bar. I had awesome Old Fashioneds and other cocktails throughout the week. My wife went with Mocktails and noted they were among the best mocktails she's had at sea. The Bloody Mary in The Wake was a standout for her.

 

Duel Reality for us in the one Red Room 'must-see.' Their take on Romeo and Juliet with a heavy West Side Story influence. Ships In The Night was canceled during our cruise and that's the other show we wanted to see in there. Untitled Dance Party Thing was weird but interesting, we stayed about 10 minutes. The live music performers throughout the ship are awesome. If Slam Adams (I think that's his last name) is performing at On The Rocks, definitely check out his amazing blues set. The Diva show in The Manor was hilarious and an absolutely funny moment happened as we were all leaving the theater. They were playing the Love Boat theme instrumental and the entire crowd starting singing along as we were making our way out. We all know the words. 🙂 The NSA show was not at all what I expected, it was cabaret style show with a live band that just didn't work for me, she was trying too hard to be 'provocative.' We left after 10 minutes, other people loved the show. I recommend ear plugs for the pool deck portion of Scarlet Night, it is amazeballs and unlike anything you've seen on another ship, but LOUD. 

 

There is an absolutely lovely 'extended patio' on either side of Deck 7 midship with a variety of seating that was underutilized because I don't think a lot of people realized it was out there. They were either aft at the Dock or up on the pool decks. If you want shade, go to the patio on the opposite of the ship from the sun, the ship itself will provide the shade.

 

The Social Club has arts and crafts most days, they open up a game cabinet with favorites from our childhood right up to today's games like Cards Against Humanity and Exploding Kittens. We never did get to any of the trivia but heard through others it was fun. 

 

If you're a fan of Princess there is a lot to like about Virgin. I'm jealous you're on a B2B, 5 nights was not nearly long enough for us. I'm hopeful to book an 8 night sailing on Valiant while she's in Miami. Have fun!

 

 

Edited August 12, 2022 by WheresWalter

[_tacocat_]

5 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

The Galley works fine when it's not busy but the service fell apart the morning of the Puerto Plata stop when it seemed everyone on the ship was there.

pro tip - order room service breakfast the night before port days!  we always do that before bimini and are really quick off the ship after that

[CruisingWalter]

35 minutes ago, _tacocat_ said:

pro tip - order room service breakfast the night before port days!  we always do that before bimini and are really quick off the ship after that

 

We would have except the menu is so limiting, wasn't much there we wanted. We did order danishes and coffee through Room Service but went up to The Galley to get breakfast eggs. I'm glad we went to The Galley cause I ended up with the French Toast Burger from the Burger Bar. INSANE. 🙂 

[CineGraphic]

6 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

One big thing we would change for our next Virgin Voyage is to book the embarkation night dinner much later.

 

 

6 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

There is an absolutely lovely 'extended patio' on either side of Deck 7 midship with a variety of seating that was underutilized because I don't think a lot of people realized it was out there. They were either aft at the Dock or up on the pool decks. If you want shade, go to the patio on the opposite of the ship from the sun, the ship itself will provide the shade.

 

 

Thanks for the tips.

When cruising, we usually reserve something for 7:45 each night.

 

Everyone seems to love the patio, and that's probably where you'll find us most of the time.

On the older Princess ships, we normally book the very last aft inside cabin. The Wakeview Pool & Bar are both just steps away, and become our balcony.

 

Last April was a bit chilly as we sailed to Vancouver.

 

[CineGraphic]

11 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

I have a playlist from our Scarlet Lady cruise in July including a full food tour and cabin tour on our Where's Walter TV YouTube channel that might be helpful. Food tour linked below.

 

My wife and I watched everything, and like your take on things.

We're going to go with your attitude, try anything.

Thanks again!

[CruisingWalter]

14 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

 

My wife and I watched everything, and like your take on things.

We're going to go with your attitude, try anything.

Thanks again!

Awesome, thanks so much for the kind words. Hoping to get a full review up this week depending on my workload. You will have a FANTASTIC time! 🙂 

[CruisingWalter]

20 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

On the older Princess ships, we normally book the very last aft inside cabin. The Wakeview Pool & Bar are both just steps away, and become our balcony.

 

That's a fantastic tip, never thought about booking an interior close to an exterior patio area. Nice! 

[CineGraphic]

16 minutes ago, WheresWalter said:

 

That's a fantastic tip, never thought about booking an interior close to an exterior patio area. Nice! 

 

R745 or 744 are our go-to cabins on anything older than Royal Class ships.

I don't know what we'll do when they phase the older ships out, but our last 2 Princess sailings is what caused us to look elsewhere, so this all be "moot" once we try VV.