scubagal44

Haha definitely agree. I have never done it on VV and have no intention of ever doing it. If I wanted to sit with strangers and be forced to talk to them, I'd go for a traditional cruise line with set MDR seating thing. No thank you.

I've cruised the Med twice in October, and both times it was fantastic. Perfect weather, not as crowded, truly my favorite time to be there.

Great review, thanks for posting!

They do sell them on the ship, I was on the sailing right before yours and there were still some in the shop. But I suspected I could find the same exact thing online at a fraction of the cost, so I took a pic of the tag/company info and voila, I did find it for less than half of VV's price. Winning!

The hammock. Before I went on my first VV cruise, I admit that I would roll my eyes so hard whenever I saw someone here or on other social media gushing about the hammock. My thought was, big deal, have these people never been in a hammock before?! Then after laying in that hammock for the first time...I got it. 😆 As soon as I got home, I bought one online and now enjoy it regularly in my back yard.

I think you just have to decide what type of experience you want to have. I've done countless land based trips to Europe and a few Med cruises, and they're very different things. If your goal is to visit as many places as possible in a short amount of time, go for the cruise. If you want to really EXPERIENCE Europe, I would recommend land based. I know this is a cruising forum, but there is absolutely no way to really experience a place in the limited hours you have on a port day. Sure you can do the excursions and tours and whatnot, but it's not the same as immersing yourself for a few days or more in a single city or region.

Yes, they're actually checking. If you show up at 2pm, no, you won't be able to board then.

Sure! I'm a foodie and for me "better" in this discussion means more refined, higher quality, better ingredients, tastier recipes. Yes, I found the MDR on Celebrity to be "perfectly adequate," but there was nothing that made me think "wow, this is truly excellent and I'd love to have it again." On VV, the vast majority of things I ate made me think WOW and I couldn't wait to have them again. Melt in your mouth, explosions of flavors, clever ingredient pairings, all cooked to perfection. IDK, I think of it like a steak from the OVC or MDR might be "perfectly adequate," but it's always going to be better at Murano. And on VV, the Murano equivalent steakhouse is included to all passengers at no extra cost. For the record, I had no prime rib or lobster. 😆

The included food on VV is much better than the included food on X. VV's included restaurants are as good as, and maybe slightly better than, the specialty restaurants on S-class. I haven't been on any E-class ships so I can't comment on those. Also haven't been on Oceania. On my last X sailing we got a specialty restaurant package and only ate in the MDR once on a 10 nighter, so I think I got a good tour of X's specialty offerings and can accurately make this comparison. Service, both in the restaurants and in general, was better on X.

Yes, I did mean physically full lol. On my sailing, dinners were "fully booked" literally - no open tables, and the tables were so close together that I was basically bumping elbows with the tables on either side of me. The Wake is the only restaurant we didn't feel packed into like sardines, with a bit of breathing room.

On my Valiant sailing in the Med with 2200 sailors, yes, the restaurants were full. Everyone trying to get in via walk-in was turned away at each restaurant I was at every night, and lines to check in with a reservation were long.

As evidenced by this thread, everyone's tastes and must-do's are so different! I'd encourage you to check out menus and decide from there which look best to you! I'm a bigtime foodie myself, and plan on giving Test Kitchen a skip on my next sailing. The concept is great, but the food itself is quite hit and miss. I really loved the food from the first menu, and equally disliked the food from the second menu. For me the two experiences, literally just days apart, cancelled each other out and left me feeling meh. Pink Agave was my next least favorite, but I'll go again and order something different to give it another shot. Extra Virgin was my favorite. Razzle Dazzle was a surprise, I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. The Wake is a steakhouse, not better or worse than other nice steakhouses on land, though I did really love the lemon cheesecake dessert. Also, the steak and eggs on the brunch menu are fab. Pizza was excellent. Not interested in Gunbae, so didn't go there.

I have an Android and don't remember this being an issue when I sailed on Valiant. I can't recall how it worked, but I'm pretty sure I'd remember being as annoyed as you if I had to click that much.

Thanks for sharing! I do agree that VV needs to provide more late night options. I find it ironic that they tout these fun, late night events and then there are extremely limited food options when you're inevitably feeling snacky after a long night. Personally that never had an impact on me because I did a Med sailing with super long/intensive port days so I was wiped out and in bed by 10:30 every night, but I could see that this would be an issue on a more chill itinerary. Aside from dining, how did the rest of your trip go?

I get it, no worries. I was just trying to correct the misconception, as someone who has actually been on the line. Personally, I was also worried about the party vibe/scene before I went, and prior to going I was assuming it was going to be exactly like what everyone here has mentioned as the reasons behind "I'll never sail VV." I was pleasantly surprised that it was actually nothing like any of that, and my point here is to lend a voice as someone who has actually sailed both lines and assuage fears that it's just one big nonstop party, if that's the main concern.

Interesting! I was also on Valiant, in a regular Sea Terrace, and we had 2200 on our sailing and I didn't think the public or outdoor spaces felt crowded. We were always able to find a spot in the sun outside, the shade if we wanted that instead, seating at The Galley, or wherever. But perhaps that's more of a difference in Med vs Caribbean sailings? We had great weather, but also many long port days including a couple of overnights so perhaps the ship spaces weren't as utilized as they would be in the Caribbean? Guess I'll find that out firsthand as my next VV sailing will be Brilliant in the Caribbean.

I sailed VV in the Med last fall and unlike what posters who have never sailed VV are postulating, the atmosphere is NOT one nonstop party. There are parties available and you are at liberty to decide whether or not you want to attend/participate. The party events are usually in designated areas that will appear on the daily schedule and if you don't want to go, no problem, there's literally the entire rest of the ship available to you. Personally, I attended ZERO parties on my Med sailing and they had ZERO impact on my overall experience. If it matters, I'm late 30s and have sailed both X and VV. My next cruise is booked on VV.

Thanks for confirming this! We've already booked the Sheraton OSJ for a couple nights before our Brilliant sailing next Feb, but were thinking of changing it if Brilliant was going to use the Pan American terminal as a home port.

I think it likely has more to do with your normal wake/sleep patterns, or at least in our case it did lol. The PJ party didn't start until 11pm, which on a normal day is way past my bedtime. I can't say it had much to do with jet lag or time difference adjustments, just that we were exhausted by then after a couple days and that full morning of exploring Barcelona, then the adrenaline/excitement of boarding the ship, learning the ship, sailaway party, then some amazing meals and full bellies....well, bedtime was calling after all of that. 😅

Nope, not able to stay awake for it. Had every intention to, but couldn't do it. (Sailed from Barcelona, flew in from CA a couple days prior. Still no joy.)

I cruised Alaska in May (on Princess) a few years ago, and it was great. We had one day of rainy weather, otherwise not a drop. The smaller crowds and fewer ships in port were much appreciated.

I had the same problem figured out actual times in port on my first VV sailing, so not a stupid question at all! For my Brilliant sailing in Feb 2024, I can find the port arrival and departure times only if I navigate the website as if I'm making a new booking, finding my particular sailing, and then clicking "View Details." The times do NOT appear when you go to the Manage Booking section for your particular sailing, or at least in my case they do not. So I've just taken a screenshot of the View Details page as if I'm making a new booking so I don't have to do that each time I forget or am wondering. This is one of my criticisms, it shouldn't take that much effort to find the port times for an existing booking. But, like you, maybe I'm missing something else? 🤷‍♀️😆

No, no idea, sorry! I check weekly with bated breath lol, but still no luck. If I had to guess, I'd say sometime in summer. The first Brilliant sailing isn't until over Christmas, so I think it'll still be awhile.

Correct, it's because Brilliant isn't yet finished and her sailings aren't yet loaded into the app. I have a Brilliant sailing in Feb 2024 and can't use the app yet for that sailing.

Lol do share! I'm always open to wine recs. 🍷 Our faves are Adelaida, Calcareous, and Niner (and have memberships at all three). Previously also had memberships at ONX and Mitchella but dropped them recently due to diminishing wine quality. Have been to Opolo, love their patio and pizzas! Enjoyed Sculpterra, Daou (had to do it once..won't pay their tasting fee again but really do like their wines). Eberle is fun, as is Ecluse, but enjoyed the Ecluse ambience more than the actual wine so won't go back. Hoping to visit Le Cuvier in the near future.