What would you change on Brilliant Lady?

[BodaciousB]

This question is for those of you who have sailed the other Lady Ships. I see they're all pretty much identical, but that there are some spots on the ships that are underutilized (all from research and watching YouTube, I've not yet sailed Virgin but have two booked). I just watched @cruisingwalter 's first VV review on YouTube and thought his comments on what they could change to make the ships better were interesting. Given that Brilliant Lady has been so delayed, and appears like she's just going to be hanging in Cyprus or elsewhere for another 18 months, I'm curious what things would folks like to see different on Brilliant Lady compared to the other ships? Or for that matter what changes they'd like to see as each of the first three roll through dry dock in the next few years. 

 

Also curious if it will still be possible to circumnavigate the exterior of the ship on Deck 7 on BL with the tighter life boat placement that they have acknowledged due to the Panama Canal dimensions. Anyone know? 

[CastleCritic]

Talking to my mother about maybe bringing her along with me to Alaska, Making the bed split properly into two completely separate beds rather than the L shaped version they have on the other ships.

[trippingpara]

48 minutes ago, BodaciousB said:

Also curious if it will still be possible to circumnavigate the exterior of the ship on Deck 7 on BL with the tighter life boat placement that they have acknowledged due to the Panama Canal dimensions. Anyone know? 

From the few photos I've seen, it appears that Decks 7 and 8 are inset more than the other lady ships (which matches the new sea terrace cabin type on Deck 8 with the shallower balcony).  So , it appears that one would still be able to circumnavigate the exterior on Deck 7.

[Jamesv281117]

1 hour ago, BodaciousB said:

This question is for those of you who have sailed the other Lady Ships. I see they're all pretty much identical, but that there are some spots on the ships that are underutilized (all from research and watching YouTube, I've not yet sailed Virgin but have two booked). I just watched @cruisingwalter 's first VV review on YouTube and thought his comments on what they could change to make the ships better were interesting. Given that Brilliant Lady has been so delayed, and appears like she's just going to be hanging in Cyprus or elsewhere for another 18 months, I'm curious what things would folks like to see different on Brilliant Lady compared to the other ships? Or for that matter what changes they'd like to see as each of the first three roll through dry dock in the next few years. 

 

Also curious if it will still be possible to circumnavigate the exterior of the ship on Deck 7 on BL with the tighter life boat placement that they have acknowledged due to the Panama Canal dimensions. Anyone know? 

I wish it was possible to go he whole way to the front of the ship on deck 7, it's quite an interesting design on the current ships..

 

They won't do this but they could make improvements still to the pool area I think.

[jon81uk]

Change one of the restaurants so it’s different to the other ships, maybe switch out Gunbae for something new.

 

Improve Richards Rooftop so it’s not so windy.

 

Get rid of the bed to sofa concept and just have a proper bed and separate sofa or seats.

 

Add more suites.

 

Find a way to make cabaret shows work better in the Manor so it can seat more. Maybe move the bar into the back corner that isn’t used for seating really. Or create another venue for live music and cabaret somehow so there are more options to go to all at once. The dancefloor space in the Manor is almost perfect though.
 

Fix the music zoning and sound levels. If there is hosted karaoke in the social club it doesn’t need to be heard at full volume in the whole venue. Same for On the Rocks which is frequently too loud.

 

Give each ship at least one unique show and more unique food menus.

[Tyler414]

The POOL

[Cloud9 Bob]

The PRICE

[bdever]

Get rid of the net, replace it with an aft pool and get rid of all of those wrap around loungers on deck 16 aft and open up 16 aft to wake views like The Dock. 

[trippingpara]

1 minute ago, bdever said:

Get rid of the net, replace it with an aft pool and get rid of all of those wrap around loungers on deck 16 aft and open up 16 aft to wake views like The Dock. 

I agree 100% with these ideas although I'm not sure if replacing the net with an aft pool would be feasible.  I'm not a structural engineer but I would imagine that a pool with several hundred to a thousand plus gallons of water would need to be supported from below which would then impede on the aft views of the Deck 15 Rockstar suites.  But then again if they could be in an all-acrylic tank with views of the wake below would be pretty friggin' awesome!

[TYCruise]

59 minutes ago, bdever said:

Get rid of the net, replace it with an aft pool and get rid of all of those wrap around loungers on deck 16 aft and open up 16 aft to wake views like The Dock. 

 

Yes! The loungers are always covered in soot anyways.  Probably why they switched them from white/red to solid red. The only time I see people using them is when they are standing on them to look out. 

[TheDarkestBlue]

Not a fan of the low wooden seating at The Dock, which is one of my favorite spots 🙂 

[CruisingWalter]

Number one get rid of the Ikea sofas and install real twin beds that form queens like all the other cruise lines. Those split sofa beds are the worst of any cruise line we sail. We still go because we love the cruise line, but they really need to improve those beds when you're pushing $5k for a 7 night cruise. 

 

Get rid of the net and reconfigure it like The Haven pool on the Prima class ships. That would require a complete re-engineering of the aft of the ship though, but what a wasted space in prime territory. Could have a beautiful pool with that big bar and a stage / bandstand for evening performances under the stars. 

 

The restaurants are too small for 2700+ guests and they close too many stations at night in The Galley.  Ramen closed at night? Seriously? That's a late night staple. That has never made sense to me, nor closing the Taco station at night. 

 

It's probably going to get an indoor Rockstar lounge of some sort to ease the complaints of so many who come from other cruise lines and wonder where their private lounge and restaurant are. Richard's Rooftop needs some serious reconfiguration to cut the wind like every other cruise line. They forgot to the put the high angled glass or they just didn't care. Far too windy to use when the ship is under way. 

 

I'm really curious to see just how small those new 'smaller' balconies are on those sea terraces net to the lifeboats. They've not shown us any real pictures of them even though the ship is sitting there ready to go. 

 

 

[Cloud9 Bob]

4 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

They've not shown us any real pictures of them even though the ship is sitting there ready to go. 

 

Walter, I'm thinking that should tell us all we need to know 🤣

[jon81uk]

4 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

I'm really curious to see just how small those new 'smaller' balconies are on those sea terraces net to the lifeboats. They've not shown us any real pictures of them even though the ship is sitting there ready to go

I expect it’s because they’ve not got the hammocks on them yet and there would be no point photographing them without the hammocks.

 

They show as only one square foot smaller than a regular sea terrace though but I would have thought the difference is more than that. 

[Wildcatllamas]

10 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

Number one get rid of the Ikea sofas and install real twin beds that form queens like all the other cruise lines. Those split sofa beds are the worst of any cruise line we sail. We still go because we love the cruise line, but they really need to improve those beds when you're pushing $5k for a 7 night cruise. 

 

Ramen closed at night? Seriously? That's a late night staple. That has never made sense to me, nor closing the Taco station at night. 

 

It's probably going to get an indoor Rockstar lounge of some sort to ease the complaints of so many who come from other cruise lines and wonder where their private lounge and restaurant are.

@CruisingWalter I so agree with you on the beds. They are horrible. They remind me of a dorm room or Microtel hotel room.

 

They really do need to keep more of the stations open in the Galley at night. I would do tacos at times. Anything to avoid dinner in Razzle Dazzle.

 

When my late husband and I began sailing we always sailed in suites. And for a time after he passed, I continued to do so. There were no dedicated lounges or restaurants at that time and we got along just fine, But the service back then was impeccable for suite passengers. Many times we would order from a restaurant of choice for in suite dining. Our butler would set it up and then staff would come to set the table and provide the service. I can see that would create a logistical nightmare these days with limited staffing and more suites on the ships, so I guess their own restaurants is the best solution.

[jon81uk]

50 minutes ago, Wildcatllamas said:

But the service back then was impeccable for suite passengers. Many times we would order from a restaurant of choice for in suite dining. Our butler would set it up and then staff would come to set the table and provide the service.

You can pretty much get that service now too, but on Virgin it’s only for mega rockstars who get the full butler style service from their agent, regular rockstar agents are more like a concierge.

[Tralfaz1138]

On 5/15/2024 at 10:15 AM, trippingpara said:

I agree 100% with these ideas although I'm not sure if replacing the net with an aft pool would be feasible.  I'm not a structural engineer but I would imagine that a pool with several hundred to a thousand plus gallons of water would need to be supported from below which would then impede on the aft views of the Deck 15 Rockstar suites.  But then again if they could be in an all-acrylic tank with views of the wake below would be pretty friggin' awesome!

I believe the aft part of deck 15 is actually the outdoor sitting behind The Galley and the aft Rockstar suites stop at deck 14.  So, in theory, there's room there to do something under that net.

 

I also agree with what someone said about the seating on the Dock.  Our muster station was there and we hung out in the area for a bit with some people we met, but never really went back during our cruise since it just wasn't a "comfortable" place to hang out.  The wood chairs were low and uncomfortable, and the "beds" were not great if you wanted to have food or a drink there.

[CruisingWalter]

On 5/16/2024 at 2:05 AM, Cloud9 Bob said:

 

Walter, I'm thinking that should tell us all we need to know 🤣

If I had any more knowledge or photos I would share. VV is staying very tight lipped on Brilliant at the moment. Some meetings are planned in the near future between TAs and execs so hopefully some information will be released at that time. 

[neverendingcruising]

Back in the day (Oct 2021), the ramen place was open late night, like you I wish they would bring it back. I think the burger bar is now the late night option. 

On 5/15/2024 at 9:57 PM, CruisingWalter said:

The restaurants are too small for 2700+ guests and they close too many stations at night in The Galley.  Ramen closed at night? Seriously? That's a late night staple. That has never made sense to me, nor closing the Taco station at night. 

[jon81uk]

7 hours ago, neverendingcruising said:

Back in the day (Oct 2021), the ramen place was open late night, like you I wish they would bring it back. I think the burger bar is now the late night option. 

For some reason now they had ramen closed at 3pm so it didn’t do dinner at all. But yes on my recent cruise burgers were now to midnight instead of 10pm, they also now had cookies and limited desserts to midnight.

[TYCruise]

This is the best footage I've seen of the Brilliant Lady so far.  The only noticeable changes I can see are ones we already know about.  The removal of the overhanging decks mid ship and near the aft. Of course the lifeboats are closer to the ship.  I actually think these changes make the ship look more sleek.  Everything else looks the same.  The pool looks to be the enlarged version that is on the Resilient Lady, and the artwork on top of the outdoor stairs on deck 16 look like animal sculptures or something. Maybe eagle eyed viewers will spot something else?

 

As for what's on the inside, who knows.  I imagine it will be mostly unchanged, but fingers crossed for a Rockstar lounge where the Den is on the other ships.🙂

 

 

[CruisingWalter]

3 hours ago, TYCruise said:

This is the best footage I've seen of the Brilliant Lady so far.

 

It's remarkable to me that it's 'good business sense' to let a fully completed ship sit there for well over a year vs. putting her into service sooner. It costs money, a lot of money, to maintain a ship even when she's sitting still. Yes it costs more money to send her out with a full crew but holding that ship back all the way through September 2025 when she's clearly ready to sail is kind of nutty to me. 

 

I will miss those 'porches' mid-ship as those are my favorite places to hang out but we all knew they had to go for the Panama Canal. 

[periodic itinerant]

6 hours ago, TYCruise said:

This is the best footage I've seen of the Brilliant Lady so far...

 

 

Gah, he zooms in a bit on some of the balconies, but not to the "slightly smaller" ones. I'm just really curious about what those will be like. I sail solo, and it will probably be fine for me, but I'm hesitant to book quite yet.

[CastleCritic]

2 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

It's remarkable to me that it's 'good business sense' to let a fully completed ship sit there for well over a year vs. putting her into service sooner. It costs money, a lot of money, to maintain a ship even when she's sitting still. Yes it costs more money to send her out with a full crew but holding that ship back all the way through September 2025 when she's clearly ready to sail is kind of nutty to me. 

 

I will miss those 'porches' mid-ship as those are my favorite places to hang out but we all knew they had to go for the Panama Canal. 

Hardly an expert in this space but I imagine its one of two things.

 

I have a feeling it was financial, maybe they felt it would cannibalize passengers for the other ships when they weren't getting the load factor they needed to be profitable on those ships already.  I assume they have enough cash on hand to finish out the fitting/hiring process for the ship so it shouldn't be that.

 

Or they couldn't get the port slots they wanted for the itineraries they had in mind consistently.

[-The-True-North-]

Wasn't the problem that it actually wasn't finished? There was significant delays on multiple aspects. If I am not mistaken, it was only finished 100 earlier this year.