Below the Salt on Magnifica after Essie and Essiesmom crash the party on Valiant Lady

[Essiesmom]

Yep, I’m  Below the Salt again.  Inside cabin on Magnifica July 19-22.  But prior to Magnifica I am sailing Virgin Voyages for the first time on Valiant Lady.  Booking the cruises B2B made it viable to fly to Miami.  On Valiant Lady July 14-19 I have an inside solo cabin.  Per popular request, Essies is coming along but regrets she does have an outfit for White Night.  I have started a thread on the Virgin board but will duplicate here if there is any interest.  
  Bags are packed and waiting by the door to the garage.  I will be on the road early to JAX for a flight to MIA, and an overnight in an airport hotel.

 

[MonsterJoe]

I'd like to read the Virgin cruise if you'd be kind enough to link it.  

 

DW and I have a serious hankering for the scarlet lady but with such young children,that is not in the cards for us for some time. 

Edited July 13 by MonsterJoe

[Essiesmom]

Sorry, I haven’t mastered linking without a mouse. Only iPhone and iPad mini4 are cruising. 
  Got a 0600 start, took my usual backroads route until I joined I95 at Darien. Made an unplanned pit stop there, so that’s done for the day. Light traffic. Parked in the daily garage, level 5, aisle C. Took the elevator to level 3 and walked across to the terminal. I had decided to check my bag, could have done it outside but too cheap to pay $3, as I get a free bag inside. 
 They have a new to me security screening system. That takes longer to scan bags. But no problem. Now sitting opppsote Starbucks smelling pastries. 

[Até]

Here's their Virgn forum thread. 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

12 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

Essies is coming along but regrets she does have an outfit for White Night.  

 

 What she has on seems appropraite for White Night.  

 We hope you both enjoy you Side-2-Side.   Agree with you, if flying for a cruise it only makes sense to have a longer trip.  

 

 

[DaKahuna]

3 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

DW and I have a serious hankering for the scarlet lady but with such young children,that is not in the cards for us for some time. 

 

 Two words -- grand parents.   🤣 

 

[NCTribeFan]

I took my first 2 VV sailings recently - TA on Scarlet Lady Miami to Barcelona.  Had a regular inside cabin as a solo.  Spent 3 nights in Barcelona, flew to Athens for the night, boarded Resilient Lady the next day for 10 nights Adriatic and Aegean Seas.  I was in a solo inside cabin on that one.  I may have actually liked the tiny solo cabin a little more, just because it was so cozy!  Both were great, quiet locations.  Absolutely LOVED Virgin.  Am booked on Resilient TA next April in a verandah (TA got a great deal).  The thing I don't love about them is getting no perks when booking inside cabins.  I had status-matched and had Deep Blue Extras, which was nice, but $0 Sailor Loot while my cruise friends $600-$800.

 

Anyway, I'm on the verge of booking Seaside next April, 3 days after disembarking Resilient.  That will be RT from Barca.

[Essiesmom]

Made it to Miami.  Flight was okay, a little rough as we were gaining altitude and again when descending right before landing.  There were a number of children onboard, and a baby across the aisle and three rows back took exception to the descent so the end was a bit noisy.

  It seemed to me that we used to debark at the far end of a concourse and take the escalator to the sky train to baggage claim.  This time we stayed on the same level and walked forever.  
  Got my bag and sat down to bring up the number for the hotel shuttle.  Discovered you now have to wait for them upstairs at departures.  More walking.  My back is out of shape for my weighty backpack.  I got to door 5, called three times and it rang 30 times and cut off.  I was on hold for reservations when I saw the vehicle drive up.  I hastened out and yelled at the driver who was about to close the back.  A family was inside that had been waiting 40 minutes and saw the van pass by once without stopping.  
  The ride to the hotel is not far, I can see the runway from my windows.  But like every place in Miami, you can’t get there from here without going somewhere else.  I have a one bedroom suite with king bed.  More than I need but it was the least expensive option in the Hilton family of hotels.  The bed is the best I’ve had in years including the one at home.  I took an hour nap, and now it’s time for dinner.  Which may be delivery.  Maybe pizza. Haven’t had it in ages.  Too bad I don’t have anyone other than Essie to share with.  
 

[Essiesmom]

I went down to the front desk to ask about pizza delivery and reported the wet carpet.  A short time later a maintenance man came with a shop vac to suck up what I didn’t get.  He left and came back with one of those big orange fans.  Now that two hours have passed, I unplugged it and dragged it into the hall.

  I tried calling in a pizza order but their threshold for delivery was $25 and I only had $19.  So I added a salad and suddenly it was $45.  No way, Jose.  I ended up with food from the little hotel shop.  I’m really ready for some sleep.  

[Essiesmom]

After devouring my gourmet microwave dinner I watched TV and went to bed early, for me, 1045.  Unfortunately, that means I was awake by 0500.  I went down to breakfast shortly after 0700.  It was not real busy but by the time I finished my eggs and cantelope it was slammed.  There was not as much variety as I expected, and a bit different.  No sausage or bacon, but shredded chicken.  Only apple juice.  
  I got a late checkout, but still only noon.  I may camp out in the lobby and watch the hordes board the port shuttles.  There won’t be one for me.  Virgin doesn’t start checkin until 1:30 and that’s only priority and the highest suites.  My assigned time is 3:30 but I plan to show up about 2:30.  
 

[DaKahuna]

18 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

 I got to door 5, called three times and it rang 30 times and cut off.  I was on hold for reservations when I saw the vehicle drive up.  I hastened out and yelled at the driver who was about to close the back.  A family was inside that had been waiting 40 minutes and saw the van pass by once without stopping.  

 

 This is one of the reaons that I stopped looking exclusively at hotels near the airport with a shuttle for our pre-cruise hotel.  I would just as soon contant Lyft / Uber, arrange for a car, wait in the designated area, and ride in comfort to the hotel.   

 

The hotel breakfast looks disappointing.  I travled quite a bit and have gotten to the point where I would eat just about anything other than what they server for scrambled eggs.  My go to was often a slice of bread with four to six slices of bacon.  The fact that they did not have a protien was very disappointing.  

 

 We will be experiencing the Miami airport for the first time since before the COVID shutdown. I have already accepted the fact that the walk from the gate to baggage claim to the shared ride pickup point will be quite the adventure. 

 

 Bon Voyage. 

 

[Essiesmom]

The lobby has cleared out.  Half were waiting for time to go to the port, half post cruise waiting for rooms to be ready.  I had my leftover chips and a cup of hot tea for lunch. 
  The table next to me has a family of four that just got off a Carnival cruise.  The dad is on the phone with the cell provider because supposedly one of the daughters had her data off but they see a big bill.
   A family who presumably is staying awhile in the hotel has two roasts in a grill on the patio.  And a table wi5 fixings, etc.

   Almost time to call a cab to the port.  EM

 

[Essiesmom]

Made it successfully to Valiant Lady. I got a cab about 2:15, nice Cuban driver, was at the ship by 2:40. A little bit of confusion as to cabin number for luggage tag. There are multiple cabins with the same number but there is a letter identifier after it. So far there are A, M, and Z. I am M. 
  You go inside and turn right and up the escalator. At the top are two lanes. The green lane is for those who got it all sorted in the app and the pink one for those with something missing. There were many checkin people and the line moved fast. They look at your passport, put a bracelet on you and off you go to security. Hardly a line there, then it was to the ship. 
  On the ship I found my cabin and unpacked my backpack and purse. It is a solo inside, very compact but efficient. The bed seems very comfortable, not like the reviews of them being hard. It isn’t a single, but not a double either. It’s about 45” wide, more like what they used to call a 3/4 bed. Bathroom reminds me of the airlines but with a shower. It has a rain shower head as well as a wand. 
  I watched the wacky muster drill video, then went down to deck 6 to sign in. Then I went up to deck 15 to find the galley.  I got a charcuterie box because I needed to eat something. I didn’t have my drink bottle along or I would have filled it with iced tea. 
  Then it was up another deck to the solo sailor welcome. The champagne flowed. I got a glass of ice water. Not enough to eat today to risk alcohol. Now I am back in my cabin, my duffle has arrived, and I met my cabin steward, Pretty. She is assisted by Beauty.  
Now to post some pics before I put this on the charger

 

[Essiesmom]

You are supposed to make restaurant reservations, for dinner, but I wasn’t able to and not enthralled with the menus.  But the welcome letter said there would be a dinner for solos at 6:45pm in Razzle Dazzle. That would take care of the first night.  Apparently there is a solo meeting every morning and they decide where to eat that night.  So, I’ll go and maybe we’ll eat somewhere else tomorrow night.

  The menu for Razzle Dazzle isn’t large.  I had the green goddess salad and the fried green tomatoes with okra.  The dip was certainly different from any dip I’ve had for tomatoes before.  I don’t eat okra so that was a miss.  More okra than tomatoes.  For main I had the lamb shank and it was too much.  I also have a pic of the beat pierogi.  I passed on dessert and went hunting for the ice cream place…Lick Me Till ice Cream.  Cone in hand I wandered a bit, listened to some music at the roundabout.  Browsed the shops.  
  Came back to the cabin for my bottle and went up to 15 to the Galley to fill with iced tea.  Now I am back in the cabin looking for some Motrin.  My back has had a workout the last two days.

 

[DaKahuna]

14 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

But the welcome letter said there would be a dinner for solos at 6:45pm in Razzle Dazzle.

 

 How well attended are the solo cruiser events?  Do you have any idea how many solo cruisers there are onboard? 

 

 

14 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

fried green tomatoes with okra.  The dip was certainly different from any dip I’ve had for tomatoes before.  I don’t eat okra so that was a miss.

 

 I never really cared for fried green tomato's but I love okra in any form.  I love a okra and tomato combination or at home we just take boiled okra, sprinkle some dashi over it, and then add just a touch of low salt soy sauce.  Delicious as a starter. 

 

 The lamb looked wonderful. 

 

 

[Essiesmom]

I’m at the Pizza Place waiting for a vegetarian pizza.  Not sure what will be on it.  Hawaiian pizza was not an option.  
  Pizza took less than the 10-15 min quoted.   Very thin crust, which I prefer.  Tomato sauce, cheese, to,ato, onion, arugula.  It was good.  
  I slept really well last night.  I left the cabin somewhat after 8… had to charge my watch first.  Went to Galley for breakfast.  Not real crowded…this is a sea day, not everyone has to eat early.  Plus I think they serve breakfast somewhere all day.  Anyway, I had a croissant, small quiche, and an egg muffin.  Somewhat of a disappointment.  The egg was on the bottom, and was only egg white.  The tomato, sausage and cheese kept sliding off.  I finally ditched the egg.  Tomorrow I think I’ll head to the taco place where they have some Benedict looking eggs.  Orange juice.  I walked all over looking for a bathroom or sink to wash my hands, but the only hand washing sink I found was just inside Gunbae.  There are lots of hand sanitizer stations, though.

  I walked around until time for the Solo Social, and met again some of the people from my table last night.  We chatted a lot, and then some more with the staff member (Lydia) who was hosting.  This is her second cruise job.  Her first was last year on MSC Opera.  She prefers Virgin.  From the UK.

  Then I walked around taking pictures and dodging trivia’s.  They seem to be popular, well attended.  I walked deck 7 aft to The Wake restaurant, down the stairs and through it, back up the stairs.  There was a scooter parked at the top…I wondered if the user was able to walk down the stairs….  I walked forward on the outside deck, coming inside at the most forward door, right by the Red Room.  You can walk all the way around out on deck 7, although at the bow it’s inside.  There is a shuffleboard court on deck 7, and young people were playing.  Presumably someone knows the rules.  
   Tonight is fancy night…no one told me there would be a fancy night, so I won’t be changing from my Guatemala T-shirt and striped pants.  
   I came back to the cabin as my phone needed a charge, then went out for the pizza.  So far the Wi-Fi has been good…better on the phone, but it is several years newer than this iPad mini4.  I think it’s time for a little nap.  Paicture dump coming.  They are already on the thread on the VV board if you are impatient.

 

[Até]

Do you know the hours of the Asian Night Market?  

 

Since I see prices on that one coffee drink menu I assume those are not included with the basic fare.  But it's nice they include sodas.  What's your opinion of the free coffee, tea and fruit drinks?

[DaKahuna]

I am really enjoying your review.  Please keep the narrative and pictures coming. 

 

Edited July 15 by DaKahuna

[awatt]

I am enjoying too. Thank you! Is there a mix of agesand demographics?

[Nunagoras]

I'm also enjoying this different perspective on what is in fact a very different cruise line. Wonderful to see a detailed and very well documented product analysis despite personal preferences. Congrats to the wonderful job @Essiesmom! Keep this wonderful review coming. Just a question: Can you to describe their entertainment plans at a glimpse please? Is it "too adult" in most places? Is it too loud in most places? Is there such a more classical alternative even if quietly place at a secondary location? My best bet is that by the most part Virgin has been softening their entertainment programs so that they attract sort of a larger audience.

 

Have a wonderful day!...

[Essiesmom]

Trying to answer your questions.  
The Asian Night Market hours are the Galley hours, 5:30-10pm.  I walked through tonight but didn’t stop for pictures.  Lots of people eating there.  They put out a paper of the daily program.  I’ll photo parts of it so you can see what is offered as well as bar and restaurant hours.  It’s available on the app but that takes so many screen shots and seems disjointed to me.

  I haven’t had any coffee, tea or fruit drinks.  I don’t drink coffee, drink mostly iced tea when on a ship, and try to stay away from fruity drinks because after 50 years of artificial sweeteners sugary drinks give me an unpleasant aftertaste .  
  As far as the demographic, I think it may be pretty well distributed from 60 down.  Of course, no children.  There are times it is very loud, by design.  There are uniforms but the crew are not required to wear them.  The officers do not wear traditional uniforms, stripes, etc.  I understand you may see the captain walking around in a black polo shirt but you won’t know it’s him unless you are close enough to read his name tag.

  I have heard some music as I walk around, but I haven’t attended any programs.  The ones last night did t interest me.  
  I took a brief nap this afternoon, then went to the solo social meeting where we divided up for supper.  There might have been 15 of us and the only place we could have all eaten together was back in Razzle Dazzle.  I ended up in Gunbae with five others.  
   There are three pages to the food menu.  Small bites is first and I think we all ordered the crispy chicken.  The second one was basically what kind of rice you want.  The third part was the grill, middle of the table.  First was shrimp, then pork belly, and then beef.  I had brown rice, and the beef.  I left the shrimp and pork belly for the others.  There was am amuse bouchée, and a tray of five small marinated items.  There were dips for the other items.  For dessert there was soft serve with optional toppings.  Mango or green tea flavor.  I had mango.  
  After dinner I went down to Social Circle on 7 to see if there was any possibility of watching the Home Run Derby, as there are two big screens there.  But there was a well attended trivia winding up, and the seats there are not oriented for a good view of the screen.  So I am back in my cabin.  The ship does not have many channels on offer but ESPN and ESPN2 are both available.  The others are news.  Once this is over I might go out looking for some music.

  This is fancy night but it looked like light participation.  Overall the guests are not sloppy dressers.  

Edited July 16 by Essiesmom

[Essiesmom]

Essie has made a new friend. Ink is a mascot of Virgin

 

[Essiesmom]

I had another pretty good night of sleep.  We didn’t dock at Costa Maya until 1000 so the Galley wasn’t busy when I went up.  But by the time I was done it was…but still you could find seating.  
 I went to the taco place and has the eggs Benedict with ham.  You could also get it with spinach, maybe both.  I think a slice of tomato would have been good.  It was okay, the inner half of the yolk was still runny but the outer was solidifying.  Probably from being cooked and then kept warm.  I give it a 7.5  It was fixed to order, you were given a pager.  After that I had French toast which was good, but too much.  
  I wandered a bit and ended up at the gym…after going inside and taking pics of the activity, I was so exhausted I had to come back and take a nap!

  VV ships have a tablet that basically operates your cabin.  You can control the lighting, temp, TV, call the steward, etc.  I think they may have something similar on Celebrity Edge class ships.
Can’t remember if I mentioned this VV does not change the clock for Mexico time zone.

[Nunagoras]

Wonderful, thanks! Seems that they have such a quite solid to not say soft product with anything for everyone. Design wise not for me, but great to read and watch! Congrats and keep the wonderful review coming!...

[Essiesmom]

Well, the ship may not change time, but my watch and phone did.  But not the iPad.  I had a little snooze and left the ship after noon.  That was the easy part.  I exited the ship and looked to the left, and here was coming Harmony of the Seas.  Exactly like three weeks ago when I was here on Seashore.  
   I continued walking down the pier, taking a few pictures.  Urged right, going toward Costa Maya, pausing to take more pictures.  The sun was out, it was hot.  I only went about halfway to Costa Maya before turning back…the point of getting off was to take port pics of the ship.   It then things got sticky.  Harmony was coming in to dock, and they closed off the pier while she was docking.  Had to wait 20” or so until all the lines were tied.  Then there was a line to get back on.  While they had had two gangways to get off, they were currently only using the nearest to reboard, so some would board, and then we had to wait while a few got off.  It wasn’t that they only had one person to clock in and out.  They had one each side.  But they only had one lane.  
   I wenT straight up to deck 15 to the Galley to fill my bottle with iced tea.  Sat for awhile, then got some fries but only ate a few.  Then wandered around taking pics.  Went down to deck five and moved up from there.  Once I had exhausted that, I came back to the cabin.  I’ll do the outside areas tomorrow or Thursday.  For a port day, there were a lot of people at the pools.  Lots of pics to come, but they’re not all in the cloud yet.