Trying to decide between Celebrity and Virgin for Med next summer

[Georgia_Peaches]

4 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Is the final payment refundable for some period of time?  Or is it lost if you cancel anytime within that year?

Yes, you can get a refund up to 120 before departure minus a $100 pp "restocking" fee.  Still, our particular cruise was going to be upwards of $10k for 9 nights and they wanted it like yesterday!

Edited March 26, 2023 by Georgia_Peaches

[TeeRick]

Just now, Georgia_Peaches said:

Yes, you can get a refund up to 120 before departure minus a $100 pp "restocking" fee.  Still, our particular cruise was going to be upwards of $10k for 9 nights and they wanted it like yesterday!

It seems like a huge detractor for many customers.  But I guess a lot of people are willing.

[Winterstale]

Thanks for all of the input, everyone. We are looking at the new X ship, Beyond for a 10-night next summer. I think we will end up splurging on Aqua Class and going for it. I like the look of the Rockstar Suites on VV but that spa on X is very appealing with the thermal suite...

 

Thanks for weighing in, everyone. Been a long time since I've hung out on the CC boards! Always so helpful! Keep the comments coming if you've got any more insight!

[Winterstale]

10 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

I think that fewer kids on Celebrity has more to do with the length of the cruise.  For longer cruises, 10 days or more you will not see many kids.  And going over the pond why would anyone book anything shorter?  There were not many kids on my Eastern or Western Med cruise.

 

I have not sailed Virgin so no comment on that line.

Yes, this is part of the decision for us as well -- VV only offers ONE 10-day for the Med that I can see and it's in May. We want June or July so that may seal it for us too.

[scubagal44]

I sailed VV in the Med last fall and unlike what posters who have never sailed VV are postulating, the atmosphere is NOT one nonstop party. There are parties available and you are at liberty to decide whether or not you want to attend/participate. The party events are usually in designated areas that will appear on the daily schedule and if you don't want to go, no problem, there's literally the entire rest of the ship available to you. 

 

Personally, I attended ZERO parties on my Med sailing and they had ZERO impact on my overall experience. 

 

If it matters, I'm late 30s and have sailed both X and VV. My next cruise is booked on VV. 

[FlyingCruiser2]

1 hour ago, scubagal44 said:

I sailed VV in the Med last fall and unlike what posters who have never sailed VV are postulating, the atmosphere is NOT one nonstop party. There are parties available and you are at liberty to decide whether or not you want to attend/participate. The party events are usually in designated areas that will appear on the daily schedule and if you don't want to go, no problem, there's literally the entire rest of the ship available to you. 

 

Personally, I attended ZERO parties on my Med sailing and they had ZERO impact on my overall experience. 

 

If it matters, I'm late 30s and have sailed both X and VV. My next cruise is booked on VV. 

Have to agree with this.  We did 8 night Caribbean on Valiant Lady in the Massive Suite.  The room and balcony were amazing, but what they’re asking for it now you pretty much have to rub shoulders with Richard Branson to afford.  Service was great, but from what I could tell, there’s a HUGE difference if you’re a Rock or Mega Rockstar or not.  Other con is how “crowded” it feels.  There were only 1000 passengers on our trip, with a 2700 person capacity, but pool and most public areas seemed crowded.   Can’t imagine what 2500 plus would be like.  

[scubagal44]

13 minutes ago, FlyingCruiser2 said:

Have to agree with this.  We did 8 night Caribbean on Valiant Lady in the Massive Suite.  The room and balcony were amazing, but what they’re asking for it now you pretty much have to rub shoulders with Richard Branson to afford.  Service was great, but from what I could tell, there’s a HUGE difference if you’re a Rock or Mega Rockstar or not.  Other con is how “crowded” it feels.  There were only 1000 passengers on our trip, with a 2700 person capacity, but pool and most public areas seemed crowded.   Can’t imagine what 2500 plus would be like.  

 

Interesting! I was also on Valiant, in a regular Sea Terrace, and we had 2200 on our sailing and I didn't think the public or outdoor spaces felt crowded. We were always able to find a spot in the sun outside, the shade if we wanted that instead, seating at The Galley, or wherever. But perhaps that's more of a difference in Med vs Caribbean sailings? We had great weather, but also many long port days including a couple of overnights so perhaps the ship spaces weren't as utilized as they would be in the Caribbean? 

 

Guess I'll find that out firsthand as my next VV sailing will be Brilliant in the Caribbean.

Edited March 26, 2023 by scubagal44

[Georgia_Peaches]

5 hours ago, scubagal44 said:

nd unlike what posters who have never sailed VV are postulating, the atmosphere is NOT one nonstop party.

No postulating on my part.  Was/am going by the videos that give the impression of a party atmosphere.  Good to know that the videos are actually the ones doing the postulating of a certain image.

[OysterD]

As I said, I've not sailed Virgin and was basing my opinion solely on marketing, review videos and the 5 or 6 part documentary following one of their ships.

 

Yes there's a good chance that people who have sailed Virgin have different experiences but I'm just not sure it's something I'd want to try. 

 

Regards that documentary, I don't know how much input Virgin had into the final cut but I'm sure they would have been happy with how they were portrayed. Don't get me wrong, many aspects of the ship look great and maybe if I was 10yrs younger I might have been interested!

 

Personally tho I'm not going to gravitate towards a ship which (as shown in the show) has an onboard tattoo parlour, offers IV drips to pump you full of vitamins and minerals if you've been drinking and partying too much and feel under the weather (the documentary was following several couples on their voyage and a few days in one of them decided they wanted to do the IV treatment after a few very late nights!) and when someone complained about not being able to sleep because the pool parties were going on until 3/4am the response from crew was basically well what do you expect lol. 

 

Again, I understand my opinion is mainly based on watching that TV show and reality might be slightly different, but if that's the image they want to portray and they want to style themselves as more of a party cruise line then I don't think it's for me. Give me 10 days of serenity on a Celebrity ship any day! 

[scubagal44]

I get it, no worries. I was just trying to correct the misconception, as someone who has actually been on the line. Personally, I was also worried about the party vibe/scene before I went, and prior to going I was assuming it was going to be exactly like what everyone here has mentioned as the reasons behind "I'll never sail VV."  I was pleasantly surprised that it was actually nothing like any of that, and my point here is to lend a voice as someone who has actually sailed both lines and assuage fears that it's just one big nonstop party, if that's the main concern.

[hawkesbaynz]

I have only heard good things about Virgin Voyages. Admit that the TV series was off putting but.... Shame they have limited cruise itineraries.

 

Last year VV offered 7 night balcony cruises for ?120,000 virgin points for a couple in the Med. We have 150,000 virgin points and cannot anticipate using them for the airline as planned. VA mainly flies to the USA and we have done a few holidays/cruise there in the last several years and no plans to return.

 

If VV offer the same deal this year I have allocated a week in September/October. Effectively it will be a free cruise.🤞

 

We are early 60s and mainly sail X but last two on Oceania (snooze).