Photo review of Resilient Lady- Sydney to Burnie, Tasmania

[OzKiwiJJ]

12 hours ago, arxcards said:

Not so much. You can't have a meal of I Scream, so I don't know why they count that in their numbers. 

As far as restaurants go, is it 7 or 8, all in demand and mostly booked out prior to boarding. A week or two back, a friend spent three nights out of four dining in the buffet/pantry/food court/Galley. She would rather have dined in one of the restaurants but wasn't quick enough. Sure, nobody will starve on a cruise, but you are paying for all of these inclusive "free specialty" restaurants and it is a shame if they are all sold-out already.

Did your friend actually go to any of the restaurants to see if they had walk-in space or if she could make a booking for another night? That worked for us. We got into The Wake at around 6pm on the first night, and by visiting a couple of the restaurants later that night we were able to make a 6pm booking for Test Kitchen the next night.

[OzKiwiJJ]

Although the cabin was very comfortable, as was the bed, the design which theoretically allowed the bed to be converted into a sofa was actually annoying.

 

One of my pet peeves is cruise ships and hotels that don't have bedside units (often called night stands) with drawers and sometimes a shelf. I like a drawer to put my medications, lip balm, hand lotion etc in, somewhere to put my nightwear during the day, and somewhere to puty warer bottle, tissue box and Kindle.

 

Princess have excellent bedside units.

 

Celebrity Solstice had ones that were only shelves so at our first port stop on our first NZ cruise I had to buy some baskets to keep all our stuff in one place in case of high seas. Those baskets came in useful on this cruise.

 

On the side of the bed I slept on there was a huge low unit which extended alongside the bed further than any normal bedside unit would. When I first saw it I envisaged a few bruises from accidentally hitting the edge of it getting in or out of bed but I managed to avoid that. It did have a tray on it so I used that to keep my stuff in one place.

 

On the other side there was a weird high thing - maybe an armrest for the sofa? Rolf needed one of our baskets for his stuff. 

[Blackduck59]

On 2/18/2024 at 1:18 PM, aussielozzie18 said:

Boarding time 2.15pm.  Chosen when bookings were available on the Virgin App.  Able to start boarding at 2pm.  The Virgin band that you wear on your wrist  instead of a lanyard, was put on very loosely. Kind staff member of OPT adjusted it properly for a few of us.  Boarding took all of 10mins.  Cabins immediately available.

Sea Terrace Deck 10 AFT.  Very happy with cabin & location and LOVED the red hammock on the balcony.  So comfy. Other cruisers did not realise you could fully stretch out laying the hammock.  
 

 

 

My wife is jealous of the hammock. One of the things she wants todo when we are in the tropics next year. Hopefully we can find a shady hammock with bar service so she can relax with a book and sip a fruity drink.

[ceeceeDee]

1 hour ago, Blackduck59 said:

My wife is jealous of the hammock. One of the things she wants todo when we are in the tropics next year. Hopefully we can find a shady hammock with bar service so she can relax with a book and sip a fruity drink.

I'm with you OzKiwi, I'm not enamoured of that bed design at all. That low unit looks like a trip hazard to me, especially if you are getting out of bed for a bathroom visit. And it doesn't look as if it would be absolutely seamless getting out of the other side either. And I definitely prefer the traditional night stand with drawers and a bedside lamp. I also wonder how long that low unit is going to last as I can see that people will probably stand on it to get into bed (however inadvisable that is).

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, ceeceeDee said:

I'm with you OzKiwi, I'm not enamoured of that bed design at all. That low unit looks like a trip hazard to me, especially if you are getting out of bed for a bathroom visit. And it doesn't look as if it would be absolutely seamless getting out of the other side either. And I definitely prefer the traditional night stand with drawers and a bedside lamp. I also wonder how long that low unit is going to last as I can see that people will probably stand on it to get into bed (however inadvisable that is).

The low unit definitely was annoying but I coped with it better than expected. Putting a pillow down against it at night saved my legs from bruises. I don't think anyone would step on it to get into bed, that would be much more awkward than just sitting on the bed and wiggling up a bit.

 

There were bedlamps above the bed but they were annoyingly high so we never used them. We both have Kindles with built-in lights.

[MMDown Under]

3 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I never even got around to ice cream. 😪

That is a shame as the ice cream was delicious.  I only discovered it with help near the end.  

[SinbadThePorter]

That side unit on the bed is for turning the double bed into two singles in a L shape.

 

It's a ridiculous concept and Virgin lost a lot of brownie points with me over it.

Edited February 20 by SinbadThePorter

[MMDown Under]

3 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

My wife is jealous of the hammock. One of the things she wants todo when we are in the tropics next year. Hopefully we can find a shady hammock with bar service so she can relax with a book and sip a fruity drink.

When we go camping at festivals, we take a hammock to hang between two trees.  It is relaxing to return to the campsite in the middle of the day with a good book and a cold drink.  I hope your wife finds one on your travels down under.  

[MMDown Under]

4 minutes ago, SinbadThePorter said:

That side unit on the bed is for turning the double bed into two singles in a L shape.

 

It's a ridiculous concept and Virgin lost a lot of brownie points with me over it.

I did read two singles would be in a L shape, but I couldn't work out how the side unit on the bed worked.  I put the big wooden tray on it!

[arxcards]

7 hours ago, SinbadThePorter said:

 

They aren't single use plastics, they are reused just like the crockery.

Thanks. Good to hear.

[arxcards]

4 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Did your friend actually go to any of the restaurants to see if they had walk-in space or if she could make a booking for another night? That worked for us. We got into The Wake at around 6pm on the first night, and by visiting a couple of the restaurants later that night we were able to make a 6pm booking for Test Kitchen the next night.

Yes, attempts were made for each night. Was able to be seated once. On night 1 she could have scored a late booking, but it was going to be after her embarkation day travels bedtime. I do get that what works on other lines might not work the same and it takes a bit of adjustment to get exactly what you want, but she was disappointed by the lack of availability. 

 

Specialty restaurants on most of the other cruise lines are also near on impossible for short cruises too, so there are comparable issues there - except that Virgin has them included in your fare. Specialty restaurants on the other lines started with token charges to temper demand and their MDR's also have enough capacity to cater for everyone.

Edited February 20 by arxcards

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, arxcards said:

Yes, attempts were made for each night. Was able to be seated once. On night 1 she could have scored a late booking, but it was going to be after her embarkation day travels bedtime. I do get that what works on other lines might not work the same and it takes a bit of adjustment to get exactly what you want, but she was disappointed by the lack of availability. 

 

Specialty restaurants on most of the other cruise lines are also near on impossible for short cruises too, so there are comparable issues there - except that Virgin has them included in your fare. Specialty restaurants on the other lines started with token charges to temper demand and their MDR's also have enough capacity to cater for everyone.

 

In that case we were very lucky to get into The Wake and Test Kitchen. They must have taken pity on us cos we're oldies! But I don't recall any of the restaurant except perhaps Test Kitchen being chocka while we were there. There seemed to be a few empty tables, and some turnover was very quick. In two cases a table next to us came in after us, ate quickly, and left while we were still having our main. However I guess it's hard to plan for those situations. 

 

Yes, short cruises seem to be a problem, especially where you've prepaid for restaurants either as part of your fare or as part of a promo. Virgin was the only cruise line where it was an issue for us, on any other lines we just don't bother, we just go to the MDR.

[aussielozzie18]

19 hours ago, beatleman said:

Had 2 Ice creams a day double scoops, outstanding😋

My plan was to have an ice-cream a day. Didn’t happen but  so goood  for free ice-cream.  I liked that you had a choice of cones or a cup.  First day was one scoop.  Second day was two scoops.  Chocolate was my favourite although I haven’t tried all flavours.

 

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

19 hours ago, arxcards said:

For all the talk of not having bottled water aboard, due to making a stand on single-use plastics, please tell me those aren't pre-packaged meals being served in single-use plastics.

No, I would think they are re-usable.  Very sturdy plastic containers.

 

Water is  available in your cabin in courtesy of 2 large glass carafes that are topped up by your room steward.  I thought I had online somewhere that there was a choice of still or sparking water, but the two carafes contained still water at room temperature.

The mini bar fridge in the room was excellent for keeping items cold.

 

btw, the gold plated item in the photo is a bottle opener you can purchase and the blue octopus was a little squeezy decoration you could buy, if you so desired.  I didn’t.

 

[aussielozzie18]

6 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

My wife is jealous of the hammock. One of the things she wants todo when we are in the tropics next year. Hopefully we can find a shady hammock with bar service so she can relax with a book and sip a fruity drink.

Your wife has the perfect plan there.  Hope she makes it happen 🌴🍹📖

[aussielozzie18]

2 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

I did read two singles would be in a L shape, but I couldn't work out how the side unit on the bed worked.  I put the big wooden tray on it!

This is not my photo but I saved because I wanted to show my daughter the bed configuration if she cruised on Virgin with one of her girlfriends. Set up for 2 single beds.

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

 

In that case we were very lucky to get into The Wake and Test Kitchen. They must have taken pity on us cos we're oldies! But I don't recall any of the restaurant except perhaps Test Kitchen being chocka while we were there. There seemed to be a few empty tables, and some turnover was very quick. In two cases a table next to us came in after us, ate quickly, and left while we were still having our main. However I guess it's hard to plan for those situations. 

 

Yes, short cruises seem to be a problem, especially where you've prepaid for restaurants either as part of your fare or as part of a promo. Virgin was the only cruise line where it was an issue for us, on any other lines we just don't bother, we just go to the MDR.

I don’t know the capacity that was cruising on our ship.  It never felt crowded but I did notice that Pink Agave in particular had no spare tables/seats and there were lines to get into The Wake and the Italian restaurant.

[aussielozzie18]

All activities etc listed on the Virgin App.  Apart from the boarding day glitch of not being able to book anything for a 1 1/2hrs and missing booking shows as a result, the App was user friendly.  Paper copies of the daily program were still available though.  
Boarding Day:

 

 

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

Ship map from brochure supplied in cabin.

 

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

So plan for lunch on boarding day was to eat at The Dock.  Had heard this recommended in the lead up to the cruise.  The Dock is a “view drenched mezze lounge designed to channel seaside vibes”.  Managed to get an outside table looking at the Sydney Harbour Bridge but service was slow so gave up.  Grabbed some grab & go eats and took them back to cabin for a late lunch (hadnt discovered The Galley at this point).  Never made it back to The Dock (so much to see, not enough time) so no photos.

Edited February 20 by aussielozzie18

[OzKiwiJJ]

33 minutes ago, aussielozzie18 said:

No, I would think they are re-usable.  Very sturdy plastic containers.

 

Water is  available in your cabin in courtesy of 2 large glass carafes that are topped up by your room steward.  I thought I had online somewhere that there was a choice of still or sparking water, but the two carafes contained still water at room temperature.

The mini bar fridge in the room was excellent for keeping items cold.

 

btw, the gold plated item in the photo is a bottle opener you can purchase and the blue octopus was a little squeezy decoration you could buy, if you so desired.  I didn’t.

 

You could request sparkling water. They certainly had it in the restaurants. The lids were a different colour.

[SinbadThePorter]

15 minutes ago, aussielozzie18 said:

I wanted to show my daughter the bed configuration if she cruised on Virgin with one of her girlfriends. Set up for 2 single beds.

 

It is an absolutely ridiculous setup. In that picture the bed vertical to the wall has the head next to the feet of the person in the bed parallel to the wall. If that person has their feet out from under the covers, it's a bit confronting to turn over in the middle of the night to have someone's toes in your face.

 

The original singles configuration was for the heads to be next to each other, but that puts heads even closer together than the double bed setup, so what's the point?

 

The best option I think is to have the feet end of both beds next to each other. The downside of that is that there is no headrest on either bed to stop your pillows from falling to the floor in the middle of the night.

 

It's a fine example of Virgin doing boneheaded stupid things because they desperately want to be seen as outre. When it comes to beds, give me function over form any day of the week.

[aussielozzie18]

1 minute ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

You could request sparkling water. They certainly had it in the restaurants. The lids were a different colour.

Yes, I had it every night in the restaurants.  Just wasn’t in the carafes in the cabin. Of course, I could have asked if it was important but the still water was fine.

Edited February 20 by aussielozzie18

[OzKiwiJJ]

24 minutes ago, aussielozzie18 said:

I don’t know the capacity that was cruising on our ship.  It never felt crowded but I did notice that Pink Agave in particular had no spare tables/seats and there were lines to get into The Wake and the Italian restaurant.

It did seem a bit crowded at times on our cruise. I think the width of the interior of the ship is narrower than most. The lifeboats are on deck 7, with some lovely wide deck space between the two lifeboat clusters, but instead of the decks going up partly over the lifeboat infrastructure, they were set back. And, of course, the interior of deck 7 was narrower as well so there were traffic jams at times moving forward or aft through deck 7. 

 

This is looking forward from our aft cabin on deck 10. You can just see the cluster of deck furniture in the middle after the white oblongs. 

 

[aussielozzie18]

2 minutes ago, SinbadThePorter said:

 

It is an absolutely ridiculous setup. In that picture the bed vertical to the wall has the head next to the feet of the person in the bed parallel to the wall. If that person has their feet out from under the covers, it's a bit confronting to turn over in the middle of the night to have someone's toes in your face.

 

The original singles configuration was for the heads to be next to each other, but that puts heads even closer together than the double bed setup, so what's the point?

 

The best option I think is to have the feet end of both beds next to each other. The downside of that is that there is no headrest on either bed to stop your pillows from falling to the floor in the middle of the night.

 

It's a fine example of Virgin doing boneheaded stupid things because they desperately want to be seen as outre. When it comes to beds, give me function over form any day of the week.

I haven’t given it much thought because I haven’t needed to but I also notice that one single bed has been staged with the pillows leaning up against the single chair in the cabin so you would have to set the chair just so to get the pillows to look like that and it would only last for a minute or two anyways…

 

I believe the original idea was for the single beds to be converted into a comfy sofa for daytime use but it ended up not being possible for the room stewards to do this,  so that option is no longer offered.