Virgin voyages cruise booked. Goodbye celebrity

[DarrenM]

Well I never thought this would happen but next years cruise is booked on Virgin.

 

A long story but celebrity seem to have reduced their sailings the med for summer 2025 with edge ships only doing 6 night cruises.

 

So it's goodbye celebrity and hello Virgin voyages.

 

Should I be worried?

[Gretchendz]

31 minutes ago, DarrenM said:

Well I never thought this would happen but next years cruise is booked on Virgin.

 

A long story but celebrity seem to have reduced their sailings the med for summer 2025 with edge ships only doing 6 night cruises.

 

So it's goodbye celebrity and hello Virgin voyages.

 

Should I be worried?

 

You should be happy 🙂

[CineGraphic]

We left Princess in 2022 and have not looked back, with six Virgin sailings in the bag, and 4 more on the books.

[zabs]

I think it depends on your age. We are in our 60s and long time Celebrity cruisers. Tried Virgin this past winter and didn’t care for it at all. The ship’s design is very contemporary which we did not find to be comfortable in terms of public seating as well as the furniture in our cabin. You must wear a wristband at all times and the software required to make reservations for shows and activities 

was not reliable. The food was wonderful but navigating the reservation system for the restaurants was frustrating. We found the evening entertainment to be repetitive over the course of 7 days. At the risk of turning some people off I have to be honest and say I wasn’t happy that (most) of the public restrooms were gender neutral. Just not our cup of tea. 

. 

[CineGraphic]

53 minutes ago, zabs said:

I have to be honest and say I wasn’t happy that (most) of the public restrooms were gender neutral.

 

Where were all of these gender neutral restrooms?

I know I've seen one or two of them across the ship,but for the majority that I saw were clearly marked Male or Female, especially near any of the main venues.

[DarrenM]

whats the issue with gender neutral toilets anyway?

 

 

[DarrenM]

9 hours ago, zabs said:

I think it depends on your age. We are in our 60s and long time Celebrity cruisers. Tried Virgin this past winter and didn’t care for it at all. The ship’s design is very contemporary which we did not find to be comfortable in terms of public seating as well as the furniture in our cabin. You must wear a wristband at all times and the software required to make reservations for shows and activities 

was not reliable. The food was wonderful but navigating the reservation system for the restaurants was frustrating. We found the evening entertainment to be repetitive over the course of 7 days. At the risk of turning some people off I have to be honest and say I wasn’t happy that (most) of the public restrooms were gender neutral. Just not our cup of tea. 

. 

Well I will be 59 come the time of the cruise, but I dont feel it, or act it, to be honest.

 

Having just come off celebrity constellation, which I enjoyed, but felt like it belonged to bygone age of ballroom dancing, and afternoon tea, even though the lounge used for the ballroom dancing, dull lounge music, was almost always empty. Seemed a huge waste of a large space, just to accommodate those that wanted to do ballroom dancing. Which most days was one couple.

 

And I found the ship overall quite boring.

 

Whereas the edge class ships where interesting, and had lots of areas to explore. Particularly eden.

 

I am hoping I find the Resilient Lady interesting to wander around for 11 days as the wife sunbathes.

 

 

[DarrenM]

also I have no issue wearing a wristband, as i lost my room card twice in the first 2 days on Constellation.

 

It had nothing to do with the alcohol, honest.

[DarrenM]

also I have no issue wearing a wristband, as i lost my room card twice in the first 2 days on Constellation.

 

It had nothing to do with the alcohol, honest.

[DarrenM]

whoops double post there.

 

I am not bothered about the entertainment either.

 

My musical interests will never be accommodated on a cruise ship, which always have to err on the side of bland.

 

I think I will like the quirkiness of the staff though, as I find suited staff to be too formal and very dull.

[DarrenM]

I have also bought three 300 dollar blocks of drinks tabs. and they have given me an extra 150 dollars for doing so.

 

After what we drank this last cruise, it might still not be enough........embarrassed to admit this. lol

[jon81uk]

1 hour ago, DarrenM said:

whoops double post there.

 

I am not bothered about the entertainment either.

 

My musical interests will never be accommodated on a cruise ship, which always have to err on the side of bland.

 

I think I will like the quirkiness of the staff though, as I find suited staff to be too formal and very dull.

Music on VV may not be bland, but depends on your tastes and which artists they have booked. There is always at least one band and one busker style performer. The band might play blues or funk, or could be rock covers or something else. The busker might do original songs on a solo guitar.

 

For club nights it varies between 90s/00s music at the PJ party, more funky pop/dance at Heartbeat and disco at Studio 72.

 

2 hours ago, DarrenM said:

I have also bought three 300 dollar blocks of drinks tabs. and they have given me an extra 150 dollars for doing so.

 

After what we drank this last cruise, it might still not be enough........embarrassed to admit this. lol

House/well spirits are $9 and there is no gratuity added, cocktails $13-17 and beer $7-10 if that gives an idea. 

[DarrenM]

1 hour ago, jon81uk said:

Music on VV may not be bland, but depends on your tastes and which artists they have booked. There is always at least one band and one busker style performer. The band might play blues or funk, or could be rock covers or something else. The busker might do original songs on a solo guitar.

 

For club nights it varies between 90s/00s music at the PJ party, more funky pop/dance at Heartbeat and disco at Studio 72.

 

House/well spirits are $9 and there is no gratuity added, cocktails $13-17 and beer $7-10 if that gives an idea. 

Great stuff on the music front.

 

Anyone playing their own stuff works for me. Can always respect that.

 

Tribute acts I can do without.

 

Looks like I might need to add another 300 dollars to the tab.

 

We easily downed more than 10 cocktails between us last week. so theres 130 dollars a day straight away. Thats without the coffees, and the beers and the whiskies at the end of the night.

[CruisingWalter]

15 hours ago, DarrenM said:

So it's goodbye celebrity and hello Virgin voyages.

 

Should I be worried?

 

Well first off I'll say we sail many cruise lines and enjoy each for what they offer. It'll be 11 cruise lines for us in June and hopefully at least 12 before the end of this year. All cruise lines bring different things to the table and no cruise line is perfect. They're all awesome at many things and they're all terrible at some things, I personally can't sail one cruise over and over because I get bored of the repetition. As awesome as VV is, it would get old pretty quickly for me if it was the only cruise line I sailed. There are way too many cruise ships and experiences out there for me to limit myself, but that's just me.

 

Celebrity Cruises has over 20 departures in Summer 2025 in the Med from 9-12 nights, including multiple Edge Class sailings, so they are definitely not limited themselves to 6 nights or less. Looks like at least four ships are doing the longer sailings including 2 new Edge Class ships.

 

As for VV, you should enjoy how they do things so differently. The biggest positive for me is the lack of photographers and lack of 'package barkers' trying to get you to purchase the wine package, drinks package, dining package, etc... when you board the ship.

 

The food can be among the best at sea for the mainstream cruise lines. What makes it so enjoyable is the fact that you're not paying anything extra for what would be specialty dining experiences on any other ship. The downside is the restaurants are too small for the amount of passengers so as their popularity has grown, it's become a bit of a challenge to book the restaurants you want on the day and time you want to go. That's where it's a huge advantage to work with a TA because they can go into the booking engine when the reservations open up and secure your reservations quickly. The VV app crashes and burns many Sailors due to the system getting jammed up when reservations open.  VV knows they need to address these issues and are working on some pop up dining ideas to help spread people out.  The 'structured dining' is one complaint we hear from sailors who have become accustomed to 'anytime dining'. On most sailings you can't simply walk up to a restaurant at any time like you would with a Main Dining Room on many cruise lines now. You pretty much have to have all of your dinners planned out for a VV cruise. Razzle Dazzle, Pink Agave and Extra Virgin are the standouts for me along with the Pizza Place, Sun Cafe and Opa Hour at The Dock.

 

The pools are incredibly weak if you're coming from Celebrity. The Solarium on any Celebrity ship is our jam for any cruise. It's our favorite pool experience so far of any cruise line we've sailed. VV has the tiny lounge pool that's more of a plunge pool with a very small sun deck around it. Plus the oversized 'hot tub pool' that looks like a massive hot tub, but it's cool water. We love nice big pools that we can actually have a swim in the morning, but you won't find that on VV. We give the pools a pass because the overall experience is fun on VV.

 

Some of the best entertainment on the ship for us is at On The Rocks. VV finds a great selection of artists to play there and many evenings may be spent enjoying the vibe there. Of the Red Room shows, Duel Reality is still my favorite. Anything with a Diva is usually fun. 

 

The beds in the standard cabins are not particularly comfortable, they are convertible sofas that are more like IKEA furniture than the super comfortable beds you may be used to on Celebrity. The Rockstar Suites have fabulous real beds, but the Sea Terraces on down have the "Ikea furniture."  Again, we give the beds a pass because we do enjoy the overall experience and of course, the hammock is amazing in the Sea Terraces.

 

For me the very best cabins on any Ladyship are the Cheeky Corner Suites. Those massive wraparound balconies are sublime. We had one for our very first Scarlet Lady sailing and it was amazing. 

 

What's really fun about VV is that it truly is a 'come as you are' vibe with no pressure, no rules (other than the dinner reservations) and because so much is included, you're not constantly paying for things. It's a great social atmosphere to meet others because there is so much seating everywhere on the ship, you naturally join conversations and meet new people. As one crew member said on our first sailing, "It's like Summer Camp for Adults." That pretty much sums up a VV experience. When you sail VV you should have an amazing time. 

 

 

[cantgetin]

There are a very lot of good things about VV, but some not so good.  Public seating in many areas is about looking good in photos and not comfort. The Dock is especially bad--there are relatively few bar stool seats; the rest are those bed things and wooden seats a very small distance off the floor.  When you hit my age, the rule is that you don't get on the floor unless you know how you are getting up again!  In many locations the seating is too deep--if you sit all the way back so you have back support, you can't bend your knees.  THey are just weird. There are a few places with comfortable seating, but that's not the overall ship.

 

I only saw one unisex bathroom on the ship, and it was a one seat deal (not a room with multiple stalls). Most were clearly marked as to which sex.  My complaint would be that they are often hard to find until you learn where to look.

Best feature--the hammock.

[jon81uk]

56 minutes ago, DarrenM said:

Looks like I might need to add another 300 dollars to the tab.

 

We easily downed more than 10 cocktails between us last week. so theres 130 dollars a day straight away. Thats without the coffees, and the beers and the whiskies at the end of the night.

Even on a port day? I find that if we go off the ship in the daytime, we might have wine or beer with dinner, a cocktail in the evening and then simple mixed drinks in the club. But then I guess that’s still 3-4 drinks each on a port day, and 5-6 on a sea day, but most of them are under $10 a drink.

 

59 minutes ago, DarrenM said:

Anyone playing their own stuff works for me. Can always respect that.

 

Tribute acts I can do without

Most of the bands will play covers, but not really a tribute, just a band playing someone else’s songs.

[wolfie11]

3 hours ago, DarrenM said:

Great stuff on the music front.

 

Anyone playing their own stuff works for me. Can always respect that.

 

Tribute acts I can do without.

 

Looks like I might need to add another 300 dollars to the tab.

 

We easily downed more than 10 cocktails between us last week. so theres 130 dollars a day straight away. Thats without the coffees, and the beers and the whiskies at the end of the night.

There were no tribute shows on my recent Virgin cruise.  I loved all the shows (I haven’t been to a show on a big box cruise line in years) and the music in the lounges was great!  

[wolfie11]

16 hours ago, zabs said:

I think it depends on your age. We are in our 60s and long time Celebrity cruisers. Tried Virgin this past winter and didn’t care for it at all. The ship’s design is very contemporary which we did not find to be comfortable in terms of public seating as well as the furniture in our cabin. You must wear a wristband at all times and the software required to make reservations for shows and activities 

was not reliable. The food was wonderful but navigating the reservation system for the restaurants was frustrating. We found the evening entertainment to be repetitive over the course of 7 days. At the risk of turning some people off I have to be honest and say I wasn’t happy that (most) of the public restrooms were gender neutral. Just not our cup of tea. 

. 

It has nothing to do with age.  It’s about attitude.  If you’re hung up on your elite status and your privileges or expect the staff to kowtow and call you sir or ma’am, this is not a cruise for you. If you want to let loose and have fun, don’t mind a little risqué, and are open minded, you’ll love it!

[DarrenM]

20 hours ago, wolfie11 said:

It has nothing to do with age.  It’s about attitude.  If you’re hung up on your elite status and your privileges or expect the staff to kowtow and call you sir or ma’am, this is not a cruise for you. If you want to let loose and have fun, don’t mind a little risqué, and are open minded, you’ll love it!

This appeals to me a lot. I hate being called sir. I am just a regular person, like the crew.

 

 

[DarrenM]

On 5/30/2024 at 1:18 PM, CruisingWalter said:

 

Well first off I'll say we sail many cruise lines and enjoy each for what they offer. It'll be 11 cruise lines for us in June and hopefully at least 12 before the end of this year. All cruise lines bring different things to the table and no cruise line is perfect. They're all awesome at many things and they're all terrible at some things, I personally can't sail one cruise over and over because I get bored of the repetition. As awesome as VV is, it would get old pretty quickly for me if it was the only cruise line I sailed. There are way too many cruise ships and experiences out there for me to limit myself, but that's just me.

 

Celebrity Cruises has over 20 departures in Summer 2025 in the Med from 9-12 nights, including multiple Edge Class sailings, so they are definitely not limited themselves to 6 nights or less. Looks like at least four ships are doing the longer sailings including 2 new Edge Class ships.

 

As for VV, you should enjoy how they do things so differently. The biggest positive for me is the lack of photographers and lack of 'package barkers' trying to get you to purchase the wine package, drinks package, dining package, etc... when you board the ship.

 

The food can be among the best at sea for the mainstream cruise lines. What makes it so enjoyable is the fact that you're not paying anything extra for what would be specialty dining experiences on any other ship. The downside is the restaurants are too small for the amount of passengers so as their popularity has grown, it's become a bit of a challenge to book the restaurants you want on the day and time you want to go. That's where it's a huge advantage to work with a TA because they can go into the booking engine when the reservations open up and secure your reservations quickly. The VV app crashes and burns many Sailors due to the system getting jammed up when reservations open.  VV knows they need to address these issues and are working on some pop up dining ideas to help spread people out.  The 'structured dining' is one complaint we hear from sailors who have become accustomed to 'anytime dining'. On most sailings you can't simply walk up to a restaurant at any time like you would with a Main Dining Room on many cruise lines now. You pretty much have to have all of your dinners planned out for a VV cruise. Razzle Dazzle, Pink Agave and Extra Virgin are the standouts for me along with the Pizza Place, Sun Cafe and Opa Hour at The Dock.

 

The pools are incredibly weak if you're coming from Celebrity. The Solarium on any Celebrity ship is our jam for any cruise. It's our favorite pool experience so far of any cruise line we've sailed. VV has the tiny lounge pool that's more of a plunge pool with a very small sun deck around it. Plus the oversized 'hot tub pool' that looks like a massive hot tub, but it's cool water. We love nice big pools that we can actually have a swim in the morning, but you won't find that on VV. We give the pools a pass because the overall experience is fun on VV.

 

Some of the best entertainment on the ship for us is at On The Rocks. VV finds a great selection of artists to play there and many evenings may be spent enjoying the vibe there. Of the Red Room shows, Duel Reality is still my favorite. Anything with a Diva is usually fun. 

 

The beds in the standard cabins are not particularly comfortable, they are convertible sofas that are more like IKEA furniture than the super comfortable beds you may be used to on Celebrity. The Rockstar Suites have fabulous real beds, but the Sea Terraces on down have the "Ikea furniture."  Again, we give the beds a pass because we do enjoy the overall experience and of course, the hammock is amazing in the Sea Terraces.

 

For me the very best cabins on any Ladyship are the Cheeky Corner Suites. Those massive wraparound balconies are sublime. We had one for our very first Scarlet Lady sailing and it was amazing. 

 

What's really fun about VV is that it truly is a 'come as you are' vibe with no pressure, no rules (other than the dinner reservations) and because so much is included, you're not constantly paying for things. It's a great social atmosphere to meet others because there is so much seating everywhere on the ship, you naturally join conversations and meet new people. As one crew member said on our first sailing, "It's like Summer Camp for Adults." That pretty much sums up a VV experience. When you sail VV you should have an amazing time. 

 

 

Thanks for this. Brilliant summary.

 

I would take slight issue with the cruises in the med for 2025. We can only go middle of June to Mid July. (Wife is a community nurse, so takes her hols when the schools are still in, as some of her colleagues need the time off when the kids are off)

 

I went to future cruises and got a number of quotes for this period.

 

Only Constellation is doing 11 night cruises, and its identical to what we have just come off this year.

 

Ascent is there until the first week in June only for 11 night cruises. After that its one week cruises only. There are some cruises up to Northern Europe but not in the med with other ships.

 

The only ship doing slightly longer cruises in the mid is Equinox. Which isnt an Edge class ship.

 

Last year Celebrity Beyond was doing 11 night cruises in the med.

 

If I could have booked an 11night cruise in the med on an edge class ship during my preferred period, i would have booked at future cruises.

 

There wasnt one to book.

[DarrenM]

23 hours ago, jon81uk said:

Even on a port day? I find that if we go off the ship in the daytime, we might have wine or beer with dinner, a cocktail in the evening and then simple mixed drinks in the club. But then I guess that’s still 3-4 drinks each on a port day, and 5-6 on a sea day, but most of them are under $10 a drink.

Yes even on a port day. On Celebrity constellation this year, as an example, we would be off the ship, say back on a 4pm.

 

Quick shower and shave, the shave was just me, and down in the bar for around 5:15pm for a couple of cocktails, then meal around 6:15pm. The couple usually became three. Then another 2 with the meal......I dont do wine, and being british, I cant stand gassy lager out of bottles.

 

so thats between 4-5. After the meal, its either a show (rarely) and back to a bar, usually the sunset bar on celebrity, or Eden on an Edge class ship.

 

At least 2 more cocktails each. Thats 6 each minimum. Cocktails are usually around 13 dollars. Thats 156 dollars a day. You can boost that up 50% on sea days. And then theres the night cap whiskies to take to the cabin. And the speciality coffees during the day.

 

Just to clarify something here. I dont actually drink when at home. lol

 

[Cloud9 Bob]

That's why they make vanilla and chocolate. Neither perfect, but both necessary.

[Essiesmom]

Vanilla is on,y good when paired wit some form of chocolate… brownies, syrup, chips, cookie  dough…. EM

[Wildcatllamas]

On 5/29/2024 at 4:53 PM, zabs said:

At the risk of turning some people off I have to be honest and say I wasn’t happy that (most) of the public restrooms were gender neutral. Just not our cup of tea. 

. 

Where did you find a gender neutral restroom? I have seen ones marked "either or" but they are a single room set up with a locking door. I was in true gender neutral bathrooms at the Seattle airport and they consisted of a large room with a whole wall of private rooms, with the toilet in them. Outside of those rooms was the area that had all the sinks and dryers. I sure didn't find it offensive. It was all very well lit and clean.

[neverendingcruising]

I know for sure there are 2 gender neutral restrooms that are not single stall - at the very back of the Galley on 15 and by Sun Club Cafe on 16. The vast majority are gendered except for the non-gendered accessible single seaters.