Valiant Lady - French Daze & Ibiza Nights / Oct 9-16, 2022 / LIVE

[FFMilesJunkie]

Loving your reports.  We loved the meatballs in Extra Virgin.  In fact, we went back a couple days later when they had an event called Aperitivo with the Foodie (around 4:30pm).  We enjoyed a Aperol Spritz and another order of those delicious meatballs!  

 

I've been concerned about how VV will handle ships at full capacity.  Sounds like it's hit and miss right now. Hopefully they can find a better rhythm as they continue to ramp up their capacity numbers.  

 

Enjoy the rest of the cruise.  Even though you may not be getting a lot of feedback, I'm sure there are many silent readers here following on to your adventure.  Cheers! 

[ctulloch137]

I loved the Ship Show.  Hilarious.  Maybe it requires a few drinks first - although I'd probably say that about all these events lol.  Food was good and drink service was prompt - unlike many other places onboard (service isn't prompt in Europe in general I find, so I rate it par for the course).

 

Elevators are definitely a disaster.  I think one of them has been down for the entire trip - so operating at 5/6 capacity with 2200 onboard (seems like alot, I've mostly seen people report 1500-2000 on previous voyages) might explain it.

[desi112]

Hi Folks,

 

I just wanted to share an updated review.

 

The speciality restaurants that I have tried (Pink Agarve and Razzle Dazzle) are pretty good!

 

We found the non speciality restaurants poor, the galley in particular. Every morning breakfast is chaotic with staff telling half of the guests to get your own breakfast and the other half are told you need to order at the table. Orders continue to be made in correctly, I've witnessed servers and chef argue Infront of guests. Yesterday morning there was no green tea available and still no hash browns...

 

Staff also seem overworked and tables are often not cleared.

 

Yesterday we had to wait over 1 hour at the sunset cafe for a poke bowl...

 

The issues on this ship are due to the processes, only 1 chef making burgers , 1 making hot dogs , 1 making poke bowls...

 At 50% capacity ( last year UK only cruise) virgin are great! Anything more than this the staff can't cope and the food quality and services goes very down hill. 

 

This evening I had a burger from the galley and it was made incorrectly, missing cheese and was cold and dry... There is no pride from the chef's. A burger king burger is better than the food I was served today.

 

I've seen numerous people complain about the food, one couple wanted tacos today  and were told at 2:30pm the taco kitchen is closing at 3pm so no new orders are being taken...

 

Another issue is a lot of staff struggle with English...I fully appreciate English isn't there first language but it is often difficult to talk and order with staff as they simply can't understand English fully. Hopefully over time this will improve.

 

Personally I've found the entertainment quite poor...I've actually been very very very bored on this cruise...there really isn't much to do on board compared to other cruise lines...

 

As per previous post, virgin don't really have a clue when it comes to giving out information on the ports. Everyone was mega confused today at olbia...no ground staff to help...and a major issue is the daily planner is only given on the day! 

 

I wanted to get off the ship at Marseille but there were massive ques throughout the day to get the bus to the port...I witnessed wait times for 60mins + so I didn't get off the ship....

 

I personally have not enjoyed this cruise and would not recommend it...the concept of having 4 ships all the same serving the same food and same entertainment everyday isn't for me....

 

On the other hand I am lucky to be on this cruise...as I was given this cruise for free (plus taxes) as my original 2 night cruise was cancelled, honestly I've not enjoyed it.

 

The food / service / entertainment has let it down...the original cruise I did with virgin in 2021 around the UK was miles better!

 

I would say try it for your self but once you have sailed with them once there is really no point going with them again...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 13, 2022 by desi112

[scubagal44]

Pink Agave... I wanted to love it, but I didn't. Overall the food was just ok, and I don't think I've ever had guacamole as flavorless as this one. The corn starter was the best thing of the night. I had the Cochinita Pibil main, and it was awkward to eat and the tortillas that came with it were so greasy. We tried three desserts, of them the chocolate tamale and chocolate tacos were really just blah. The bread pudding was the best of the bunch but I wouldn't say that it was amazing in and of it itself, it was just better than the other two. 

Service was also slooooow as molasses, our server kept apologizing for the delays which I know were not her fault, but it was just so slow.  

 

Scarlet Night was weird lol. It was super fun seeing everyone dressed in their red, and the decor all around the ship was neat. At around 8:30pm there was a notification that the pool party was being cancelled due to weather and festivities would be in the Red Room instead. We hung out near the Roundabout for awhile to people watch, saw the Happenings cast perform some little ditties, went and saw the little Myth of Scarlet Night show, and called it a night. 

 

We're sailing most of the day until we reach Ibiza at 7pm for an overnight stop, so we went for a morning walk on deck 17 before heading to breakfast at The Wake. Loved the breakfast! We shared the citrus and fennel salad, French toast, steak & eggs, and the Wake Benedict. It was all really great, so much so that we booked breakfast there again tomorrow. 

 

We're going to enjoy a leisurely day and likely check out the afternoon tea, and later we have dinner at Test Kitchen again for the second menu. We haven't decided yet if we'll get off tonight in Ibiza, or if we'll just go tomorrow. We shall see!

[scubagal44]

On 10/13/2022 at 9:06 AM, FFMilesJunkie said:

Loving your reports.  We loved the meatballs in Extra Virgin.  In fact, we went back a couple days later when they had an event called Aperitivo with the Foodie (around 4:30pm).  We enjoyed a Aperol Spritz and another order of those delicious meatballs!  

 

I've been concerned about how VV will handle ships at full capacity.  Sounds like it's hit and miss right now. Hopefully they can find a better rhythm as they continue to ramp up their capacity numbers.  

 

Enjoy the rest of the cruise.  Even though you may not be getting a lot of feedback, I'm sure there are many silent readers here following on to your adventure.  Cheers! 

 

Thanks for following along! Yes, the meatballs are great, I want more! 😆

 

I, too, hope that VV will be able to work through these issues. They're certainly NOT ready for this many sailors, but I'm pretty go with the flow and this sailing was free for me so I'm not too bothered by it. Had I actually paid a bunch of money for this cruise or had any expectations whatsoever coming into it, it may have been a different story. 

[scubagal44]

23 hours ago, ctulloch137 said:

I loved the Ship Show.  Hilarious.  Maybe it requires a few drinks first - although I'd probably say that about all these events lol.  

 

Yes, maybe this is why I feel meh about a lot that is going on around here.  It feels to me like they're trying too hard to be different and edgy, and most of it falls flat IMO. Perhaps a buzz would change that perception. 🤣🤣🤣

[scubagal44]

Last night's dinner at Test Kitchen was ok, but not as good as the menu earlier in the week. If we had had this one first, I'm not sure we'd have been so excited to return. It was a bit surprising considering how good the first menu was! Based on conversations I've overhead, other sailors generally seem not to have enjoyed Test Kitchen and the common theme I've overheard is that it's coming across as pretentious. Maybe that means I myself am pretentious, because I don't get that vibe at all. But I also frequent fine dining restaurants on the regular at home, so maybe I'm just more used to this style of dining and presentation? Either way, even though the menu last night wasn't my favorite I still enjoyed the experience and creations.

 

After dinner we had fun in the arcade and playing air hockey, as the rest of the ship mostly emptied with people going ashore for the Ibiza clubbing experience. We gave that a pass and enjoyed the games and grabbed some ice cream on the way back to the cabin. 

This morning we grabbed breakfast in the Galley, which was really full but our orders came promptly with no issues. Still nothing in the Grab and Go areas. 

 

After breakfast we went ashore and had a wonderful time exploring around the Old Town and walking up the hill to the cathedral. It was a beautiful day and I loved it here! 

 

Back to the ship in early afternoon, and now we're lounging at the back of deck 16 enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. On the way here, though, I did make a detour to deck 7 and placed a deposit for a future sailing. My husband has FOMO and the deal was too good to pass up, so I guess I'll be seeing VV again soon. 😆 

 

Tonight's dinner is at Razzle Dazzle, as it's the only restaurant we have yet to try for dinner (if you recall we did have breakfast there a couple days ago). Then breakfast there again tomorrow before disembarking in Barcelona! 

[desi112]

Hi Folks,

 

A final review before I start heading home..

 

Virgin have definitely stepped their game up in terms of port information and accessibility , in Ibiza there was very good information and ground staff available to assist. Transfers were every 15 mins to old town. I was definitely impressed. Ibiza is definitely not all about clubbing, we went out at 8pm and had a nice walk around the shops and restaurants so I would highly recommend checking it out.

 

 

In terms of the bad, I can confirm all burgers in the gallery are precooked and are warmed up on the grill before serving. After eating a cold burger and seeing how they make the burgers I was very disappointed! Again I've seen many frustrated sailors who want a sandwich or Mexican food after 3pm and are told they can only order breakfast....

 

We went to the pizza restaurant yesterday it was very chaotic....pizzas were being rushed and burnt...staff also ran out of pizza boxes....35 mins wait for a pizza...

 

Service at the Poke Bowl has improved and food is slowly getting better....

 

Dinner again tonight at the Pink Agarve and all items we had were just "warm" which was disappointing....

 

Speaking to the staff they are fully aware of the issues on board and have said there are hundreds of new staff on boarding being trained, this is why the service is poor. When asked if I would return I told them no and they were not surprised....I think everyone is aware this cruise has been below par..

 

I think one of the biggest problems with Virgin is the lack of Info! No info at all about luggage tags and the de-embarkation process.... everything you need to ask for...

 

Another issue on board is the ventilation or lack of...some areas of the ship are mega cold others are very hot and humid...elevators feel very warm and uncomfortable...

 

My final thoughts...If you want to go on a cruise that has the same food, same entertainment everyday and not much to do then you will enjoy VV. If you want excitement and variety avoid VV...

 

 

 

[cantgetin]

Interesting, we boarded Valiant Lady today for the 14 night transatlantic.  Like reported above, the only beverages in The Galley were regular coke and Fanta.  BUT we asked for diet coke and ice tea, and were served both.  Hope they get the dispensers fixed soon.  Server was surprised that there was no tea in the dispenser.  So far, all else is fine.  Love our server, luggage here when we got back from lunch after 1:30 terminal arrival time.  We were on the ship by 1:45!

[cantgetin]

I just started a new topic for my review of current TA cruise....and after spending an hour doing the review, it didn't post.  I'm placing this comment here so it isn't deleted.  Sorry gang, but if my post doesn't re-appear (there might be some sort of review of new topics), I won't be going to that effort again.  

Many thanks to scubagal44 who made it work.

[scubagal44]

11 hours ago, cantgetin said:

I just started a new topic for my review of current TA cruise....and after spending an hour doing the review, it didn't post.  I'm placing this comment here so it isn't deleted.  Sorry gang, but if my post doesn't re-appear (there might be some sort of review of new topics), I won't be going to that effort again.  

Many thanks to scubagal44 who made it work.

 

Yeah, I learned that lesson the hard way after I had a whole post disappear. I would write up my post in a notes app, then copy/paste here into CC so that if it disappeared, I just had to copy/paste again. 

 

Enjoy your cruise!!!

 

I'm sitting at the airport now starting the long journey home. Will update this thread when I get back with our last night/morning and overall impressions. 

[scubagal44]

OK, back home and settled in!  I'm still getting over jet lag, but am hopeful that I'll be able to conquer it this weekend!

 

Our last night on board was dinner at Razzle Dazzle, and it was great!  It was actually one of my favorite dinners we had all week, the food was fantastic.  We got the two secret menu items, the butter chicken and the steak, as well as the cheesy tots and a small portion of the pork pasta on the side.  All of it was delicious!  

 

The morning of disembarkation we returned to Razzle Dazzle for breakfast and it couldn't have been more of a different experience.  The staff were so indifferent and seemed like they couldn't be bothered, and more like WE were bothering THEM by being there.  We were told "no" to a couple of requests that we had made, but those same requests had been fulfilled with a smile a few days prior.  When we pointed out that it wasn't a problem earlier in the week, our server huffed and reluctantly said she'd figure it out.  Weird.  Our reservation was at 8:30am so it wasn't even as if we were cutting it close to stop dead disembarkation time, but whatever I guess.  

 

There was a really long line for disembarkation at 10ish that snaked around the lounge areas, but it moved ok and took maybe about 15 minutes to get through.  Afterwards we waited in the taxi queue for another 10 minutes.

 

Overall impressions:

 

It definitely wasn't the best cruise I've ever been on in terms of ship experience.  The staff overall was helpful, but really, that's where it ended.  I don't really NEED more than that, but it just was a different vibe than I'm used to.  The previous couple of cruises I'd been on, the staff were exceptionally friendly, helpful, and truly seemed like they cared about making the experience the best ever.  It seemed to me that the VV staff were just doing the bare minimum needed to be helpful without going above and beyond.  Which, again, doesn't make it "bad," just different than I'm used to.

 

The food was excellent and I loved the no MDR concept.  It is mainly for this reason that I'm willing to give VV a second chance.  I very rarely saw Grab and Go options available, so I'd call that a miss.

 

The ship is beautiful, and I loved all of the outdoor spaces.  The hammock is the most comfortable hammock I've ever had the pleasure of lounging in, and in fact I ordered one when I got home and it was just delivered yesterday so I'm hopeful that I'll be reliving my terrace hammock days in my own backyard this weekend.  

 

I think most of the not so great issues we experienced were due to VV not being prepared for such a large group of sailors, even though it still wasn't at capacity.  It's disappointing that they didn't realize this in advance and have measures set up to deal with it, but it is what it is.  

 

I can see potential here if they're able to figure it out and work out the kinks, since this is the first time they're sailing with such large numbers.  I'm hopeful that by my next sailing, which I'm still trying to figure out where/when that will be, all will be running smoothly and it'll be the experience as advertised. 

 

Thanks for reading!  Until next time...

[_tacocat_]

it seems like there have been a bunch of provisioning issues on valiant, which really isn't excusable at this point when they're operating half the year out of the med!

 

re: crew, i think the OG scarlet crew bounced over to valiant to launch her, but their contracts have since been up.  also not excusable given how long they've been up and running now, but it seems like training is more of an issue with the valiant crew.

 

i've been on scarlet 4x and am going on a back to back starting this weekend - no major problems so far, and the crew has been awesome every time.  i do have one trip on valiant booked in december, so it'll be interesting to see if they'll get more of the kinks worked out while they're in such proximity to HQ.

[cantgetin]

On Valiant this week--the cruise immediately following OP's.  There is NO diet coke on board.  Even the bar supplies from the "guns" seem to have run out and we are getting coke zero almost everywhere.  They began telling us that they would be restocking at each port, but today was our last port.  We did get 2 cans of diet coke early on in the cruise, and initially could get it at most bars.  There has never been any in the machines in The Galley.

My biggest concern is the inconsistency.  I drink ice tea with lemon and splenda.  I've taken to carrying splenda in my pocket as some restaurants have none, some have only lime (ok, I can deal with that), and Test Kitchen supposedly doesn't serve tea.  Very strange.  

 

They've been doing 8 night Med cruises all summer, so I'm hoping that they have sufficient supplies to make it to Miami with all the "essentials."  The crew has been lovely and they have added a lot of sea day activities for us.  Passenger load is 1400.

 

Per spa manager, 300 new crew boarded in Barcelona--totally new to VV, not returning from vacation between contracts, and another 300 new will board in Miami for the first time.  She said she was trying to get people fully trained because Richard Branson will be on the next cruise and the passenger load is 2200.  Ouch! 

 

Crew member in Pizza Place late night shift told us that she'll be getting off in Miami, but likes VV much better than her previous cruise line because contracts are more reasonable, working conditions are better, and she can keep in touch with family when the wifi is working.

Edited October 21, 2022 by cantgetin