cantgetin

We can't rely on any dates they announce (everything seems to get changed), so I won't even try to guess what they might have in mind for unannounced things. My deep blue is not showing up yet, but my TA recommends chilling out for a few days. If it isn't added by then, she will see that it happens. She said it should be automatic, but....who knows?

THe earliest you will be allowed into the terminal is 1pm. Boarding starts a few minutes after 1:30. On our last cruise, we were in our cabin before 1:45. If you show up before 1, you can take a shuttle to Bayside or you can sit outside and read, play on your phone, or whatever. Between terminal arrival, you will check in and then have a comfortable place to sit while you wait for boarding to start.

Roll calls on CC are not very popular. They are much more active on other social media platforms

We can't rely on any dates they announce (everything seems to get changed), so I won't even try to guess what they might have in mind for unannounced things.

I'm surprised to see VV categorized as "large ships." Most sources consider them as medium. They have a good product. and I guess most CC readers/voters agree.

The nightly happy hour applies only to people in suites and is complimentary champagne in Richard's Rooftop. There are a few other deals around the ship. Or, if you are referring to the healthy options happy hour, that ends on 3/31. Test Kitchen is not a bad option on the first night. The serving are very small. You will leave the restaurant feeling like you've had dinner, but a couple hours later you'll be heading out for pizza (or at least we were). The party on the first night doesn't start till 11, so you'll have time for test kitchen if you choose that. Eating a late lunch means you'll be less hungry at dinner....again, the servings are small. The decor in The Wake is more formal than other restaurants on board, but what you wear is irrelevant. You can eat there in shorts and a t-shirt or full formal attire. The scarlet night party request is that you wear something red. Some people wear a red head band, others a red tux or cocktail dress. No rules. I don't think it makes any difference which restaurant you choose for scarlet night; just time it early enough to be out by the time the festivities start.

Currently the perks are scheduled to end April 30, 2023....but as with everything VV, no one knows what will happen between now and then. They were supposed to end 12/312022! There is no word on what might be available in 2024. If you booked thru an agent, he or she should be able to manage everything for you. If you booked on your own, keep your eyes on the web site and various chat groups for any news. You would find any perks you have by going to "my account" then clicking on your cruise, manage my account, add ons, and it should open a box showing any perks. It seems to be functioning better now, but in the past it was often not accurate until after boarding.

There are all sorts of specials available. For instance, my TA recently sailed on VV and purchased the max of 8 future bookings that any individual is permitted. So, for as long as those last, she can sell them to people making new bookings. In addition, she recently hosted an on line event with a VV staff member, so anyone who books with her in a given time period can get $50-$100 in loot due to her hosting the event. This is on top of any specials VV is offering, which until Mar. 31 is $300/$600 free bar tab depending on the length of the cruise. No, the purchase $300 bar tab, get $50 bonus is a different thing....right now, for cruises booked by 3/31 and sailed in 2023, you get a totally free bar tab. Again, there are additional benefits to booking thru a TA or booking on board. You also get 10% off the cruise fare for paying off the cruise in full more than 6 months in advance, and an additional 10% off cruise fare if you are a FL resident. A good TA will make sure you don't miss any discounts!

It is meat--secret steak, chicken, etc. There is a "naughty menu" on the menu but there are additional items available. Hence "secret." Just ask your server.

On our last cruise, we had Deep Blue priority boarding but were not in a suite...meaning we boarded after the rockstars. We were in our cabin at 1:45, having boarded just a few minutes after 1:30.

Agree, I can get these done at home for less than half the cost, so unless you have loot to burn, I'd do it at home.

way to go! Mine hadn't posted as of 15 minutes ago.

You can reserve restaurants 45 days in advance, shows not till you are on board. Scarlet Night really doesn't start till about 9pm, so you'll be finishing/finished dinner by then. PJ party is about 11. I was on a longer cruise, so can't tell you about times on your cruise....but I'd suggest making 7:30 dinner reservations if that is what you want and then changing them after boarding if they don't fit with the show schedule. You DO want to see Dual Reality, a Cirque du Soleil type show based on Romeo and Juliet. Ship Show depends on the entertainers on board--some are always excellent, but the audience participation stuff was just dumb. As to where to dine, remember that you can do brunch at The Wake and Razzle Dazzle, but can't book brunch in advance. Thus, you can eat al each of the restaurants. Some of the places i really thought I'd like were "ok but not great" and places I thought would be "meh" ended up being our favorites. We'd had Korean BBQ in Tokyo, so sort of knew what to expect. It was excellent. The marinated beef was excellent. We ordered the Waygu as a treat; I wouldn't spend the money on it again. It was OK, but the regular beef was better. The first time we went, we played the "bring us the favorites" game. After that, we knew that was way too much food, so we ordered what we knew we would like. The chicken is good and they will serve it with sauce on the side. There will be plenty for you to eat without shellfish or pork....but that's your choice. If I had to skip one, it would be The Wake. First, I can do brunch there and have their filet for brunch if I wish. Secondly, I can go to a good steakhouse in any major city. I'd try the more "different" options on the ship. Test Kitchen has at least 3 menus, and I've been told 4 (2 different vege menus). You can substitute the vegan/vegetarian for any course on the main menu that you can't/don't eat. Again, as a foodie, you might want to try both the A and B menu; if you can only do one, we strongly prefer A. The vegetarian chocolate/coconut dessert on A night is AMAZING. I had just one bite of our tablemate's and that was plenty. Very rich and unbelievable. We surprisingly liked Razzle Dazzle and it has plenty on the naughty menu and secret menu for those of us who like meat. Extra Virgin was great and Pink Agave was a surprise--we really liked it. IF you do brunch at RD, the buttermilk waffles are very good. Just my thoughts...everyone has different tastes, You can view most of the menus by googling "virgin voyages menus." My preferred site is the one by eatsleepcruise.

Not exactly sure what you mean by "profile elevated," but if you are talking about Deep Blue Extras, when you go to "my account," click on your specific cruise (if you have more than one), click on manage voyage, then add ons, then view details. It should open up a box that shows any onboard credit, bar tab, etc. and right at the top should list Deep Blue Extras. On my last cruise, it showed up under my daughter's name but not mine--not a big deal since all the rewards are per cabin. not per person.

We were told to allow a week for status match. Mine took about a week, my daughter's too 2 days. Get it in as soon as possible if you haven't already.

See you there! And I'm delighted with the extension.

I got off my first VV cruise with 3 more booked. That says it all.

They lost my business on one cruise due to their nonsense. I intentionally waited to book until I had enjoyed my first cruise, but I already had a cruise selected and had purchased air on SW, knowing that I could move it. The day I got home, they removed a promotion and the price doubled. I wasn't willing to pay the higher price, so canceled my air. A week later, they re-instituted the promotion/price, but by then the air had increased dramatically. Make up your minds, guys. On the other hand, I'm delighted to have Deep Blue on my upcoming cruise. And depending on what they ultimately do with their loyalty program, I might qualify for that when it comes out.

Per info from my TA, yes, the status match will apply. Her advice was that this program extension is not supposed to be released until tomorrow (3/28) and that it should be applied automatically to anyone who qualifies. She suggested patience and if it doesn't show up under "my account" within a few days, she'll follow up to be sure that it is added. Note....my TA is not the one who told me about this early, but she had all the info when I PM'd her.

Funny, we were seated with a couple where the husband had the same hobby as my daughter--they talked "shop" the entire evening....not rudely to the exclusion of others at the table, but they did have a great time. The rest of us talked about the ship, travel, etc. You can make a reservation and later add people to it if you meed others on the ship who you would like to invite to join you. Just use the edit function of the app in the reservation section.

If you mean the thermal suite when you say "spa," no. Those costs seem to vary--$39 on port days , $59 on sea days for a "session" of 3-4 hours. The longer times are the ones that cross into dinner hours. As to costs...in our experience it was identical to Princess, but Princess adds 18% automatic gratuity in addition to any tip you add, while on VV, the price posted is the price you pay, no additional gratuities accepted. A facial is $199 (and lasted longer than on Princess. minimum savings $36). A female haircut/stying was $99.\

Our last VV cruise was 5 months ago, and already at least 3 of the shows are different on our next scheduled cruise. Whether that means the originals were not well received, that they are a new line and trying things, or that this is their plan, I don't think anyone knows. They also seem to be scheduling different shows on different ships--potentially another plus. THe only consistency seems to be Dual Reality.

Each table we've had was intended for 6. You are seated with other parties to get to that number. There are a few larger tables intended for groups of greater than 6 who have made reservations together. We've had 2 groups that were great and one group (2 of us, 4 of them) where 3 of the 4 either didn't or wouldn't speak English; one man was translating to the server. That was a little awkward, but we just chatted with the translator for a few minutes and then acted as if it was a table for 2.

1. I thought the standard restaurants on VV were every bit as good as specialty restaurants on Princess (where I've had not so good food in a specialty restaurant), but not as good as Celebrity or Disney in their specialty restaurants, On the other hand, I wasn't paying extra. There are some special items in some restaurants that are an upcharge but are completely excellent. 2. We didn't have any problem. We were able to make all our reservations in advance, but we also changed several after boarding. We also did walk ups several times with a wait of under 10 minutes. If a sailor has trouble making reservations, the TA has access to a different portal and can often help. You can also call shoreside Sailor Services, but they can only see the same things as the app...thus, they can only help if the app is wonky. 3. The Celebrity buffet was the best we've experienced, but I like the safety of The Galley as well as the selections and not having to juggle a tray. And the food in THe Galley is much more fresh. I agree that more late night options would be nice. 7. We never waited an hour for room service....typically 20-30 minutes. Didn't do room service breakfast at all. 8. Pizza was good. That was our late night snack.

If you show up at the terminal prior to 1, you'll be waiting. As a Rockstar, you can enter the terminal about 12:30. Boarding on our last cruise started at 1:30 on the dot. As noted, you can drop your luggage with the porters and take a complimentary shuttle to Bayside (a shopping and eating area). In Barcelona, there are places to wait right by the terminal; in Miami, there really aren't unless you want to sit outside with a book or play on cell phone.