RMS Olympic Posted July 13 #1 Share Posted July 13 I’m sailing on my first Virgin cruise on Valiant lady this September…..if the onboard experience is anything like the pre cruise customer service I have gotten, I’ll be in cruise heaven. As for dinning, how do they seat solo sailors? Gunbae appears to be a group experience…im hoping I will get seated with others. Can I request to share tables in the other dinning rooms? Eating alone ain’t my cup of tea😉 Any other guidance or lessons learned concerning the evening meal would be greatly appreciated. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare 1025cruise Posted July 13 #2 Share Posted July 13 Unless you happen to find someone you wish to sit with, expect that you will be sitting alone at the other restaurants. The only time I saw people sharing a table was when they had a large group of walk ups and offered a large table to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janthere Posted July 13 #3 Share Posted July 13 You can always sit at the bar to eat in Extra Virgin - not sure if that’s a thing at Pink Agave or not - maybe someone else can confirm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon81uk Posted July 13 #4 Share Posted July 13 On the first night there is a solo meetup about 5.30 before the sailaway and then that evening there is a solo dinner in Razzle Dazzle. Other than that it’s only Gunbae that is shard tables. If you want dinners with others then make friends at the solo meet ups. But at most restaurants tables are close so you can end up chatting to couples at other two-top tables nearby. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_fh_mets Posted July 13 #5 Share Posted July 13 Other than Gunbae, the seating really isn't communal, but tables are spaced pretty close together, similar to restaurants in large cities, however, unlike restaurants in large cities, it's not uncommon to strike up a conversation with the people at the tables next to you. In fact, I don't think I had a single dinner at a restaurant on the ship where we didn't exchange at least a few words with the table next to us. In terms of communal eating, your best bet may be bar seating. Test Kitchen has lots of bar seating facing the open kitchen where they prepare some of the courses and you can request that when you go in for your reservation. As a solo, they may actually prefer to put you there because most of the tables can accommodate 4, and may even place you next to another solo if you have a similar reservation time. Pink Agave definitely also has bar seating, but it's for walk-ins, first come first served and there's not much of it. If you arrive a little early, you can hang out in the bar area and see if you can grab a stool. I think the some of the other restaurants also have bar seating (someone mentioned Extra Virgin), but I've never specifically tried to seek it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon81uk Posted July 13 #6 Share Posted July 13 24 minutes ago, the_fh_mets said: Test Kitchen has lots of bar seating facing the open kitchen where they prepare some of the courses and you can request that when you go in for your reservation. As a solo, they may actually prefer to put you there because most of the tables can accommodate 4, and may even place you next to another solo if you have a similar reservation time. I would add that although Test Kitchen has a lot of diner style seating, it is no more likely than any other restaurant that people at that seating will want to talk to strangers, so don’t assume people are going to want to be any more social than they would at a table for two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cantgetin Posted July 13 #7 Share Posted July 13 Gunbae is group seating. There is a solo cruiser meet and greet on the first day right before sail away. There is also a solo cruiser dinner at 6:30 the first night in Razzle Dazzle hosted by members of the Happenings Cast. These are great times to get to meet other solo cruisers. Other "singles or cruising solo" activities depend on length of cruise. As to seating, if you go in as a solo, you will be seated alone. However, the tables are close enough to chat with your "neighbors" if they are so inclined. I/we have had great chats with people seated next to us as well as those don't talk at all situations. You will not be placed at a table with others, so no need to feel like you must talk. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel-and-See Posted July 13 #8 Share Posted July 13 I've sailed solo twice on Virgin. When I did Test Kitchen, they sat me at the counter (the restaurant has a few counters, think old school diner counters where they plate some of the dishes) and I was seated in between 2 couples and the waiter addressed us all as one party and all of the dishes came out together. I'm not sure if that's typical or not - but I really enjoyed it. One of the couples got the wines, and I got the zero-proof drinks so the waiter explained the details of both - was lots of fun. In other restaurants, it was not overly common for other guests to talk to me - I'll be honest the guests on Virgin are, in my anecdotal experiences, much less social than the other cruise lines. I think it's because Virgin attracts guests who haven't cruises before, so they just aren't used to it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cantgetin Posted July 13 #9 Share Posted July 13 In The Galley one noon I saw someone from a previous solo activity sitting alone so asked if you wanted company or preferred to not be disturbed; she said I should sit down. We ended up talking for 2 hours! Restaurants have varied....in some places, people would start conversations, in other situations not. Of course, you can always start a conversation too....."oh, that looks good. What is it? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Cloud9 Bob Posted July 13 #10 Share Posted July 13 1 hour ago, Travel-and-See said: I'll be honest the guests on Virgin are, in my anecdotal experiences, much less social than the other cruise lines. I think it's because Virgin attracts guests who haven't cruises before, so they just aren't used to it. You certainly are entitled to your opinion as you experienced it, but I disagree. I don't think it has anything to do with first time cruisers. I've met many first time cruisers the 3 times I've sailed Virgin and they seemed extremely warm and friendly. I think Virgin is great for solo cruising too. All my cruises are as a solo and I will let you in on a personal secret. When I cruise, I love being friendly, except when I'm eating dinner. I love to experience my dinner without talking because I get distracted trying to be engaging to others and, as a result, I don't enjoy my food as much. As soon as dessert is done, I go back to being a chatty social butterfly, LOL.. I love Virgin because nobody cares, they let me be me. 🙂 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel-and-See Posted July 14 #11 Share Posted July 14 3 hours ago, Cloud9 Bob said: You certainly are entitled to your opinion as you experienced it, but I disagree. Yeah - just the feeling I got. I enjoy Virgin but for me it's a totally different vibe from fellow passengers compared to Celebrity where everyone is super friendly. But like I said, in Test Kitchen the way we were seated and the way the server greeted us together - it made a big difference and really opened up some conversation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare cantgetin Posted July 14 #12 Share Posted July 14 We've always had good conversation at Test Kitchen regardless of whether seated at the counters or the tables...maybe it was that we paid attention to what others had chosen as far as pairings or veg vs. regular menu and so heard about all of it... I generally found VV passengers more interesting than Celebrity, but that is a broad generalization as I can remember one fascinating person on Celebrity as well. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Wildcatllamas Posted July 14 #13 Share Posted July 14 I have cruised solo on Princess, NCL, Celebrity and Virgin. On NCL and Virgin I have never had a problem interacting and meeting people. Celebrity wasn't bad, but the folks that I was seated with for traditional dinner were very standoffish with lots of questions as to why I was traveling solo. Princess was the hardest to really meet folks and have a conversation. With Virgin you are really sitting very close together in the areas where the 2 tops are. I would have folks asking me what I was eating and I would ask others. Once the ice was broken then things would go from there. At the Test Kitchen I was seated next to a couple who were on their first cruise. So we got to talking about all our stops and what was good. The husband ordered the mixed drink pairing and they were serving him full size drinks. His wife and I got the wine pairing. He was getting a little toasty by the end of dinner but he said all the cocktails were good and paired well with each course. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMS Olympic Posted July 14 Author #14 Share Posted July 14 Thank you all for the great responses. As long as Gunbae is communal, I can handle all other situations. Im really curious about Virgin, with so much of the cruise industry becoming so homogenized, this should be a great change for me. Thanks! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel-and-See Posted July 15 #15 Share Posted July 15 Something I just remembered to warn you about - the servers on Virgin sometimes do not understand the concept of solo travelers. At almost every seating they ask something along the lines of "it's just you?" - I don't experience this on other lines. Have others experienced this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon81uk Posted July 15 #16 Share Posted July 15 2 hours ago, Travel-and-See said: Something I just remembered to warn you about - the servers on Virgin sometimes do not understand the concept of solo travelers. At almost every seating they ask something along the lines of "it's just you?" - I don't experience this on other lines. Have others experienced this? Does seem a sensible question to check if anyone is joining you before ordering, they could be in the bathroom or delayed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Wildcatllamas Posted July 15 #17 Share Posted July 15 6 hours ago, Travel-and-See said: Something I just remembered to warn you about - the servers on Virgin sometimes do not understand the concept of solo travelers. At almost every seating they ask something along the lines of "it's just you?" - I don't experience this on other lines. Have others experienced this? I have had that happen on every cruise that I have done solo. It is just a courtesy. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel-and-See Posted July 15 #18 Share Posted July 15 3 hours ago, Wildcatllamas said: I have had that happen on every cruise that I have done solo. It is just a courtesy. I guess I've just been spoiled on Celebrity then... they never mention it since it's noted in the reservation details. There is a professional way to do it that Virgin lacks in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare CruisingWalter Posted July 16 #19 Share Posted July 16 With Gunbae as others have mentioned, it'll be communal. In some of the restaurants like Extra Virgin you can sit up at the bar for a 'group experience.' Or just get chatty with some of your fellow Sailors and join them for dinner. The daily activities are a great place to meet folks. You should have a really fun time on VV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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