New VV cruiser!

[KarimaJ]

Hi all,

 

I’m interested in trying Virgin since it is adults only, we do have an 18 year old daughter. We have been on NCL (the most), RC, Carnival, Celebrity, Crystal, most recently MSC. 
Can you help give some comparisons between the lines in regards to food, handling crowds, daily activities, fun factor? We aren’t big drinkers but do enjoy a couple drinks per day. How are the drink packages?

thanks!

[1025cruise]

Virgin is different. If you look down this board, you'll see a couple of recent reviews.

Some highlights:

1. No MDR. Only specialty restaurants, but no additional charge. Reservations required.

2. No buffet, but there is the galley.

3. No drink packages. Most non-alcoholic drinks are included, including soda. You can buy a bar tab ahead of time. If you buy $300, you get an extra $50.

4. Most of the cruiser games (trivia etc) give a round of drinks as the prize.

 

I don't recall there being that many crowds. 

[cantgetin]

My suggestion is to watch You Tube videos, especially those by Walter Travels (something similar to that).  He is very fair, accurate, and balanced.

 

I disagree with some of the answers above.  There are no MDRs, and technically no specialty restaurants,  There are 6 sit down restaurants where reservations are RECOMMENDED but they do take walk ups.

The Galley is a food court set up.  There are some "walk up" stations, but for most you sit down and you'll be served.
Bar tab; is good on any paid beverages, alcoholic or not.  This includes smoothies (with or without alcohol), cold press juices, specialty coffee/tea, and any bar beverages, with or without alcohol.  The current bonus for purchase of each $300 bar tab is $50, but I've seen specials where it has been love the bar tab concept. You can share your tab with anyone you want, and no one is trying to max out a drink package.  You can share one tab with your whole cabin, share 2 tabs among the 3 of you, or whatever you think you'll drink.  It is "use it or lose it."

Some of the entertainment is a bit risque, but most is not bad. Some could be on DCL.

Use a TA who has at least gold status with VV.  THey often have specials that can get you extra "loot" (onboard credit).  Many buy future cruise certificates which they can then sell to clients at cost.  This will give you $300 off the cruise fare + $600 loot in a Sea Terrace cabin or above.  Not good on gty bookings.

[CruisingWalter]

On 7/31/2023 at 6:44 PM, KarimaJ said:

Can you help give some comparisons between the lines in regards to food, handling crowds, daily activities, fun factor? We aren’t big drinkers but do enjoy a couple drinks per day. How are the drink packages?

 

On the food and the experience I do have a full playlist on YouTube. Here's my food tour of Scarlet Lady and you can also find a VV Review along with a Cheeky Corner Suite tour and some other fun. We have found The Wake to be the weakest of the primary restaurants so that's a brunch date for us now. Razzle Dazzle has become our favorite along with Pink Agave. And the pizza is awesome, try the truffle oil with egg. Amazing!

 

No MDR but The Galley is a great food hall. Instead of lining up at a buffet, take a stroll around The Galley to see what interests you, then sit at a table and if a server doesn't come to your table immediately, flip the red flag up on the table card.  On our first Scarlet Lady cruise The Galley was a slow experience, but they have greatly improved the experience now. Also notice that there are Grab N Go boxes both in The Galley and as you walk out onto the The Dock on deck 7. Some great items in there with my favorite being the cheese and meat box. So good with a cocktail out on The Dock. 

 

By the way our go-to start to a VV cruise is to drop off our bags and head directly to The Dock aft on Deck 7. They serve tapas and great cocktails out there. Perfect way to start any VV cruise. 

 

Drink Package is The Bar Tab and we love this concept more than any other cruise line. You pre-purchase it before the cruise, and this is a MUST, they do not sell the Bar Tab onboard the ship. You purchase in $300 increments and VV tops it off with either $50 or $100 more depending on the current promotion. The Bar Tab is good for the cabin and you can purchase coffees, fresh pressed juices, mocktails and alcohol on the ship at at the Bimini Beach club. The best part is that you can buy drinks for anyone on the ship, you don't go to 'drink package jail' if you buy a drink for someone else. When the Bar Tab drains down you just pay per drink for the rest of the cruise. At the moment if you sail by April 2024, VV is giving away $300 and $600 Bar Tabs depending on the length of the cruise. 

 

Interestingly the coffee bars shut down at 8:00pm so if you're looking for a late night espresso or cappuccino go to Sips Champagne lounge. They have a gorgeous hand pulled espresso machine. It's the strongest coffee on the entire ship. 🙂

 

For daily activities the one big difference with VV is that there is very little to do on the ship during port days. They fully expect you to leave the ship. So while most cruise lines still have a full day of activities planned for port days, VV does not. Maybe a few activities during the day. On sea days you'll find some fun things like the usual Trivia, scavenger hunts, we've done speed puzzle challenges and of course the Social Club is loaded with both classic games from our childhood to current games like Exploding Kittens. My recommendation for 'do not miss' is Bingo with the Diva. We NEVER play bingo on a ship, but that was some of the most fun we've had on a cruise ship.

 

As for crowds, much like any cruise ship, the pools will be jammed on sea days and even moreso on the ladyships because the pools themselves are very small as is the deck area around them. Plenty of room on Deck 16 above the pool, but not a whole lot of room around the pools themselves. A great respite on sea days are the side decks on either side of the Roundabout on Deck 7. Lots of comfortable seating right above the waterline and you can choose to sit in the sun or shade depending on which side of the ship you sit out on. 

 

If you like casinos, we love that VV's are both non-smoking and they have huge porthole windows looking outside. 

 

The beds in the standard staterooms are not the most comfortable, they're a bit thin and firm. You may want to get an egg crate foam topper requests, we're not sure if they have them to be honest. The beds in the suites are lovely because they're actual beds, not two twins pushed together. 

 

VV's vibe is most similar to Celebrity, but it is its own unique animal. You should have an amazing time. My only complaint right now is that after you go on a few from Miami, the itineraries are not that interesting. I really like 7 to 10 night sailings at minimum so I've been eyeing the new Brilliant Lady itineraries from San Juan. Those two itineraries an the 8-Night Eastern Caribbean itinerary when 2 ships are in Miami are the best Caribbean itineraries right now. We're all waiting for VV to drop their new itineraries to see if anything changes. 

[CruisingWalter]

On 7/31/2023 at 10:52 PM, cantgetin said:

This will give you $300 off the cruise fare + $600 loot in a Sea Terrace cabin or above.  Not good on gty bookings.

 

Those certificates are only good on The Sea Terrace and above. The Limited View Sea Terrace and all categories below that are not included in the MNVV certificate. And I just realized you said that. I need another cup of coffee..... 😅

Edited August 5, 2023 by CruisingWalter

[Wildcatllamas]

40 minutes ago, CruisingWalter said:

The beds in the standard staterooms are not the most comfortable, they're a bit thin and firm. You may want to get an egg crate foam topper requests, we're not sure if they have them to be honest.

I agree on the beds in the standard staterooms not being comfortable. They didn't have any kind of topper when I was on the last time so my steward took a couple of the comforters and folded them up and put them on. They helped but still wasn't really comfy. But then I sleep on memory foam at home so I am biased.

[Fogcityca13]

4 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

The beds in the standard staterooms are not the most comfortable, they're a bit thin and firm. You may want to get an egg crate foam topper requests, we're not sure if they have them to be honest. The beds in the suites are lovely because they're actual beds, not two twins pushed together.  

Agree on the beds. Felt they were a tad more comfortable than the beds on Explorer of The Seas, but still pretty hard on my back. I debated on asking for an additional mattress topper and will do so the next time. Bad back from falling off a telephone pole, so I’m a bit more picky. The beds in the suites are very nice, better than most hotels.

[KarimaJ]

Thank you to all who posted, some great info! I am liking that food concept of going to different restaurants. I assume they all have different menus? And the Galley as well. I also like that prepaid drink tab, perfect for us. 

[jon81uk]

2 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

Thank you to all who posted, some great info! I am liking that food concept of going to different restaurants. I assume they all have different menus? And the Galley as well. I also like that prepaid drink tab, perfect for us. 

Each restaurant serves a unique cuisine so have their own menu, American at Razzle Dazzle, Mexican at Pink Agave, Italian at Extra Virgin, steak and seafood at The Wake, Korean at Gunbae and modern tasting menu at Test Kitchen. 
 

then the Galley has around ten different food court style offerings. Taco, ramen, sandwiches, salad, pastries/bread, dessert, sushi, popsicles, all-day breakfast and burgers. 

[KarimaJ]

My daughter would love that food court. I wonder if the Dec 30 sailing would be packed? We typically don’t travel during holiday times but it works out well for us this year.

[CruisingWalter]

2 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

I assume they all have different menus?

You can find sample menus on VV's website: https://www.virginvoyages.com/cruise-dining

[KarimaJ]

Thanks! One more question, for a third person do they have pull down beds or sofa?

[jon81uk]

19 minutes ago, KarimaJ said:

Thanks! One more question, for a third person do they have pull down beds or sofa?

It’s either a pull down or an ottoman that folds out to a single bed (or a few rooms might have both) need to check the room on a deck plan or ask when you book to know which. No rooms have sofa beds on VV.