Virgin Voyages Celebration Cruise - Worth It?

[Travelbug78]

Hi, everyone.  Has anyone been on one of the Celebration Voyages with Sir Richard Branson?  Surprisingly, as I have searched online I have not seen any reviews on those sailings from last year.  Not sure if that means they weren't really different from regular sailings...haha.  The ones this year will also have Boy George as a guest DJ, which seems cool (I grew up in the 80's).   I'm debating going on the Aug 30th sailing on Valiant Lady, but wondering if it is worth the premium price.  For example, I can go on the same ship two sailings before that one (Aug 21st) and pay a few hundred bucks less for a cabin one level up in category.  If the experience, events, etc are very different on Celebration Voyage, it could be worth it. If not, I might still to the less expensive option.  If anyone has any insight, could you please share?  Thank you!

[-The-True-North-]

We did the Greece island glow last year.

 

It was nothing special. Saw Sir Richard 3 times for scheduled appearances.

 

Every day there was a free happy hour with signature cocktails. That was nice.

 

Other than that, no different. They did closed certain restaurants for parties, so that was a bit annoying.

 

They also didn't sell out, so they offered DBS people an additional 10% off to try and fill the ship last month or so 

Edited May 3 by -The-True-North-

[cantgetin]

Basically the above.  Richard tends to hang out on Richard's Rooftop  or private spaces with his entourage other than scheduled appearances. Same for other top level people in the company.

Personally, I'd prefer double the cruise nights to a single cruise with a "name," but others have different opinions.

[-The-True-North-]

He was also gone after the second or 3 day.

 

Think it was Santorini, where he got on another yacht and was gone for food.

[Travelbug78]

Thanks for the responses!  Okay, I do like the itinerary better with Puerta Plata vs Key West, but at $1000 more in cost, it doesn't seem like there's enough special about the sailing to warrant the spend.  I think I'll stick with going on the sailing departing on the 21st then. I love Virgin so I know I'll have an awesome time either way. Appreciate the feedback.

[CruisingWalter]

For this year's three cruises it looks like he'll only be there for a day if that. The three Celebration Cruises overlap this year and he's scheduled to be on each ship for the first day.  I would say "no it's not worth the extra cost" for this year's Celebration cruises.  Last year had a lot more going on, this time it looks like just a photo op with Richard if you're lucky to spot him. I'd spend the money on a longer itinerary if you're looking at VV. The new Valiant Lady Winter 2025-2026 itineraries from San Juan are awesome.

 

[Travelbug78]

4 minutes ago, CruisingWalter said:

For this year's three cruises it looks like he'll only be there for a day if that. The three Celebration Cruises overlap this year and he's scheduled to be on each ship for the first day.  I would say "no it's not worth the extra cost" for this year's Celebration cruises.  Last year had a lot more going on, this time it looks like just a photo op with Richard if you're lucky to spot him. I'd spend the money on a longer itinerary if you're looking at VV. The new Valiant Lady Winter 2025-2026 itineraries from San Juan are awesome.

 

Oh yes, I agree.  I was wondering how he would be moving between the three ships. I'll do the Key West sailing two sailings before this one instead.  I'll be sailing from San Juan in December, but on a different ship.  I'm doing Resilient Lady New Year's Ahoy sailing.  Really looking forward to that one!  And looking forward to booking Brilliant Lady next week too.

[jon81uk]

3 hours ago, cantgetin said:

Richard tends to hang out on Richard's Rooftop  or private spaces with his entourage other than scheduled appearances.

I heard the opposite in a review, someone was angry that he spent ages meeting “regular” people by the pool but never came into the rooftop to see the rockstars!