cantgetin

I am currently on Valiant. We have the option of going to the stations or taking a seat and flipping up the flag. Service with the flag is very prompt.

The ones last week were so "crispy" that they were crumbly. When touched with a fork, they crumbled to little pieces. The ones yesterday were moist inside, a little crispy outside.. But we each have our own likes and dislikes.....

got it...on the last day and several others.

The word is that we are making better time than previously informed and will be arriving at Malaga earlier than anticipated. The final work on the bacon in RD--ate there this morning. I asked if it was possible to have the bacon without pepper. She asked if I wanted crispy or "plain." I said I liked the sweet stuff crispy, but with little or no pepper.....and that was exactly what I got. And the waffles were back to normal, not the super crispy/crumbly of last time, leading me to believe that last time they were just over-cooked. Overall, MUCH better experience this morning.

That change was more than 6 months ago....shortly before our previous cruise. whatever....I think we are dropping most of our loot at the spa this time.

The shops on VV are....just peculiar. I'm on board now and they are even more odd than normal. They have about 3 styles of t-shirts and some hoodies along with a very limited selection of notepads, tote bags, etc. in the Logo shop. It is half the size it used to be and really didn't have anything. On my first sailings, they at least had some interesting t-shirts and gift items. Most of the other shops are quite expensive and just not interesting. There are 2 designer purse shops, a store with very limited ladies clothing and high end perfume and makeup, a store with men's clothing, and a little area with some swimwear and misc. And there is the "sundries" shop with drug store stuff, hammocks, some computer stuff, etc....but overall not stuff that I'd be buying.

Sorry my info is out of date then.

The transfer was uneventful. We will hit all the ports scheduled. but times will change. Funchal arrival about noon (rather than 8am), departure 8pm rather than 6. We will make up some time in transit and the next port arrival will be about 2 hours late.

They scan your bracelet. THen they don't charge for the first 2 (if only one in the cabin has DBE) or 4 if both of you have DBE. That's why it doesn't come off your bar tab. It will come off if you go over the limit any given day.

Captain just announced a course deviation toward the Azores in order to meet a helicopter for a medical evacuation which will occur early in the morning. He will advise later as to how or if this will alter our itinerary for the rest of the cruise.

If you have Deep Blue Extras (loyalty), you get 2 specialty coffees per person per day at no charge.

This video will give you a great deal of info and a good feeling for what VV is like. Average age on VV for the past year has been 43 with a range of 18-90s. Our current cruise is a little older with an average of 55....but it is a 14 night cruise. Biggest difference compared to other lines is no kids. Next, no unlimited drink packages, no tipping, wifi included. No main dining room--6 sit down restaurants that take reservations are included in your cruise fare, and THe Galley is like a food court rather than a buffet. Watch the video, then ask questions.

Maybe, but this bacon has pepper you can see on the slices....and you can tell before you bite whether that bite is going to have a ton of pepper or not. Today was a time change night and we didn't make it to breakfast....sorry so no bacon report yet.

Currently on Scarlet. As of yesterday, hot beverages from room service were being served in the silver thermos flasks which does keep the liquid warm. No disposable anything related to hot drinks.

Definitely way more pepper than before. On previous cruise, it was peppery on Bimini day; we attributed that to the substitute crew in RD that day (the regular crew does the island). On this sailing the question is only will it be too peppery or way excessively peppery. IF we breakfast there again, I may try to order it without pepper and see if that is possible. Also, we were told that the B menu in Test Kitchen had changed....that was not our experience. It may be changing, but the one this week was the original B menu.

You must know a bit of what you are doing and where to shop. A friend bought wine for 4 euros per bottle in Barcelona and brought 4 bottles on board. Yes,. I know the rules, but she brought 2 and her husband brought 2 and no questions were asked. In contrast, on this trip I brought the smallest bottle of steak sauce I could get at the local grocery store, and VV had me open the bag at embarkation to prove it wasn't liquor. (their specific question)

This is the most full sailing I've been on. Between that and the "first come first serve" policy for shows, some large fitness classes. etc. there is definitely more standing in line than previously. Lines for dinner have not been bad, but for shows people are lining up 30 minutes in advance.

The weather has been lovely...warm and sunny. Not totally mirror smooth seas, but very gentle rocking. I'm sleeping great. No mention of anything other than required maintenance, but that doesn't mean that VV doesn't have plans. There is plenty to do--they always bring on extra entertainers and such on the long cruises.

I think it might depend on who the chef on duty is. We had it once where it was inedible due to the amount of pepper and once that it was great.....and I am not a big pepper person. The breakfast/brunch menu is the same, and that is basically good. The scones would be better slightly warmed and with a pat of butter or some clotted cream, but that never was. The rest of that menu is unchanged. Dinner at Extra Virgin tonight was good...no menu changes, we each liked our choices.

A few more updates... There is definitely a new B menu in Test Kitchen. The A menu remains the same. We are rotating every 3-4 days. Also, we witnessed a bit of a discussion between a crew member and a guest....bottom line, they have a vegetarian menu and a vegan menu and don't like people to insist that there are 2 vegetarian menus. The vegan and vegetarian rotate the same way as the A and B. RD still features the menu changes that were made more than 6 months ago (where they removed the "secret" items).

Thanks!

You basically have 2 options. You can buy it on board in another person's name (you'll need all their info, credit card number, etc.). Or you can buy it in your name and call VV to do the transfer. In that case, the money issue is on you--you paid $300 for it. You can give it to the other person or collect that $300 from them. VV doesn't get in the middle of that.

This is our 4th TA on VV, first time on Scarlet. There are some things different than 6 months ago that might be worth mentioning. There were BIG signs up in the terminal stating that upgrades were available and to ask any check in agent. We weren't interested, so I didn't price them. 2350 sailors on board according to the terminal check in person and an on board crew member. It wasn't our worst embarkation experience...it was our second worse on VV. There seemed to be a lot of confusion at the terminal. There were also at least 2 groups that missed the cruise due to flight delays or lost passports! We've encountered at least 3 crew that we recognized from Valiant, so that was nice. Had a couple cabin issues on check in which have been repaired. In The Galley, they did not put up the signs indicating the lunch specials the way Valiant did; you had to get close enough to see the specials. However, the dinner specials are now coming thru as notifications on the app as well as being printed on the daily info sheet. Many activities have changed times or are available at multiple times throughout the cruise rather than always being at 10am or whatever. There are 3 book clubs...not sure how that is going to work..We had book pick up for the first one today. Most of the menus (The Galley, Pink Agave) are unchanged....there have been a few more grab and go options than we'd seen before. Location changes were common--help with reservations was at a desk on 7 at embarkation rather than in RD, and there are some daytime hours in Pink Agave today for dining reservation assistance. Spa had an area at the big red desk on 7, but then sent us to the spa to confirm. Nothing big...just different than previously, so if you read that something was in RD, it doesn't mean the poster was wrong....just that it changed. Muster drill we literally checked in and left. NO demo of any kind. No need to even sit down. That's it for now....

Do be aware that Blue Extras and Deep Blue Extras are different.

I'm on Scarlet now, and it appears that brunch on disembarkation day is blocked was blocked until on board. I tried from day 45.....was able to finally book today (first full day of cruise). It wasn't available right after embarkation.