conandrob240

Great info. Thanks!

Menus?

6 hours ago, eroller said:

Hmmm so the cocktail experience for deep blue was NOT at sail away?

10 hours ago, cantgetin said:

Virgin instructions are not to arrive more than 30 minutes before your scheduled terminal arrival time (which is what your 1:30 is)  Yes, the lot will be open.  In Barcelona, if you arrived before 1:00, you were directed to a park a short walk away, a coffee shop across the plaza, or to just sit in the plaza and wait.  No one was allowed to enter the terminal before 1pm, but you could drop luggage before that time.  At 1, we were allowed to go thru security and check in.  We then had to wait in the lower part of the terminal before being allowed to go upstairs to board the ship.  At 1:30, the crew member "guarding the area" excused herself to check with a supervisor, saying that she usually was notified to send people up right at 1:30, but hadn't gotten that message yet.  She came back with the ok, and we were in our cabin by 1:45.  By the time we dropped our carry ons and took a minute to look around, our luggage had arrived.

Okay going to leave hotel at 12:15pm, drop luggage at 12:30-12:45pm, park and plan to wait at terminal doors or wherever they all right at 1pm. Thanks!

7 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

 

Because our hotel checkout was 11am, we arrived at Terminal V  at 11:15am, dropped off our bags with the porter and parked the car. Then we took the Virgin shuttle over to the Bayside Marketplace to kill a few hours while we waited for the terminal to open. It's free and it runs in a loop between the marketplace and Terminal V. I preferred to get to the terminal early before any traffic started up, the parking is fantastic, right across the street from the terminal.

 

We got back to the terminal a little after 2pm and walked right onto the ship. 

Nah, I’m a terminal waiter! 😂 I love the excitement of sitting there waiting. 

Hi!

we have a 1:30pm check

in time tomorrow. I’m thinking of parking around 12:30pm. Will the lot be open at that time? Will they allow me into the terminal around 12:45pm or so? If not, how much before the 1:30 check in time?

Does anyone know if the special sail away  Deep Blue perk is actually the Richard’s Rooftop party? Or something different?

Ugh.

Can you tell me more about communal dining at Test Kitchen? Im

not a fan of this! No tables for two people?

Ours opened up a few hours before midnight at the 45 day mark. For the first hour or so, it was just viewable. Then around 9pm, I was able to book all nights for dining. A few days after hat, some entertainment loaded but not bookable. Not all nights are listed. I’m guessing that’s because ours is a NYE cruise as entertainment might be very different.

11 hours ago, misguy said:

They kept billing me for the coffee and I had a $10.00 per day allowance.  The process is supposed to be automatic where the credit is applied, but at the end of the cruise they were all showing on my account.

Okay, I’ll make sure to watch for it! Thanks

This has been a bit of a disappointment! 😂 I guess you’ve been busy?!?

16 hours ago, misguy said:

The Galley is still inconsistent in the food ordering process.  Sometimes you would walk in and sit down and a server would show up immediately, and sometimes no one showed up.  Once they showed up, then things were pretty good.

 

There was one occasion where my wife ordered an omelet and got it, then two or three more servers tried to give her another one.   

 

We had the Deep Blue Extra perks, and found that process required going to customer service the last night to have them take off charges for things that should have been complementary.  

 

It is interesting that for us, on a shorter cruise we found the food variety very good, but by the end of day 8, we had tried all of the dishes that we wanted and some of the meals a couple of times.  So more variety would be helpful.  

 

Two shows that stood our to us weas the the acapella group The Magnets, and the The Ship show were stand outs. They both book up so make your reservations early.

What from Deep Blue had to be adjusted?

I’d say this person likely got very lucky it happened when it did and not way out at sea.

Looking forward to more!

On 8/16/2022 at 3:37 PM, _tacocat_ said:

On Scarlet at least 11346 A&Z apparently do not have hammocks.  Try calling to switch!  Sailor services can confirm which rooms do/do not have hammocks & glass balconies.

 

The rooms with no hammocks are in the forward part of the ship- not sure which cabins have metal vs. glass balconies, but if you're in the "pointy"/tapered part of the forward, you'll likely have metal.  You can kind of guesstimate by looking at the deck plans + photos of the ship and counting decks and balconies.  I think it's kind of ridiculous that they market these as standard sea terraces, when they're... not!

 

At least on Scarlet, these are the no-hammock cabins- Valiant is her twin, so I'd guess it's the same:

DECK 9:
9366 A AND Z
9370 A AND Z
9374 A AND Z

 

DECK 10:
10354 A AND Z
10358 A AND Z
10362 A AND Z
10366 A AND Z
10370 A AND Z

 

DECK 11:
11286 Z
11346 A AND Z
11350 A AND Z
11354 A AND Z
11358 A AND Z
11362 A AND Z
11366 A AND Z
11368 A AND Z

 

DECK 12:
12338 A AND Z
12342 A AND Z
12346 A AND Z
12350 A AND Z
12354 A AND Z

 

Re: your other question, I've seen some reports here that you are allowed to book multiple times for longer voyages - maybe even 3x per restaurant?

Is there a list like this for valiant lady?

11 hours ago, cantgetin said:

Rough seas has nothing to do with the cruise line--we've had isolated rough days on many different lines/ships/locations.  Most recently, we had one rough day while on Valiant Lady while going thru the Strait of Gibraltar.  It was one fairly rough day on one not quite smooth next day....so 12 out of our 14 days were smooth.  This was my 7th (I think) TransAtlantic crossing, and the only one where we had any roughness.  Yes, they do cancel Dual Reality (gymnastics show) if the seas are too rough to do it safely.

I don’t think anyone is suggesting it’s Virgin’s fault, just asking how the ship handles rough seas, how the cruise line approaches cancelled things, etc

Thanks. I think NOT including the thermal suite/spa facilities access is more of the trend these days.

16 hours ago, cantgetin said:

You nailed it--a trek thru many of the sources of alcohol on the ship with a bit of something at each stop.  It is a nice way to meet some fellow sailors at the beginning of the cruise.

Not all that interested but was just using as an example of some the things  that I didn’t see any info about. Wondering why no details of all the shows/ actitivies like this 

11 hours ago, cantgetin said:

That works best if you are seated with people who speak English.  2 of us were seated with a group of 4....one guy spoke English and was translating for the waiter.  We did a lot of smiling and head nodding. It wasn't bad, just kind of weird.   Second time in gunbae was better for meeting people as we could understand each other!

Thanks not really looking to meet people just enjoy a few days with my husband checking out the ship, celebrating new years and his birthday

Does a massage appointment allow you access to all spa facilities for the day?

we are on a 5 night Valiant Lady

This helps! Thanks!

6 hours ago, jon81uk said:

Duel Reality is the stand out show, a circus take on Romeo and Juliet.

untitleddancepartyshowthing is fun, the first 10 minutes is a bit weird but stick with it, it gets better with some good gags, then fun dances, then emotional dances and finally a singing finale. 
it’s a ship show (Valiant Lady only) depends on the variety acts onboard but is a fun show. The food is not good though, steak tartare is a weird choice. 
Ships in the Night (Scarlet Lady only) is skippable. A weird show about modern life. 
 

Heartbeat is a very fun club night with dancers on stage and in the crowd. 
 

scarlet night can be a bit odd if you just miss all the pop up shows. But the pool party is fantastic.

 

PJ and pool party are same thing?

Thanks. New Year’s Eve cruise and nothing is populated except 1 show. And mostly all it says is the name.  I’m trying to figure out what to try for first upon boarding. 

Maybe tomorrow? Thanks for what you’ve posted so far.