raphael360

Virgin uses Intelligentsia Black Cat coffee beans for its drip/brewed coffee in the Galley. I found it so good that I now use the same beans to make my daily coffee at home. It's expensive at $17.50 per 10 oz bag, but worth it... I'm always awake between 4 and 5 AM on the cruise so I head directly up to the Galley for my first 3 cups of coffee. Here's a tip: there are 2 coffee stations in the galley so look for the one with the most recent brew (except at 4 AM when there is only one station open). Bring your water bottle too. There is no bottled water offered on board but there are many state-of-the-art water refill stations on the ship.

My first 2 cruises were on Valient and Scarlett in January 2023 which had 800 and 1100 passengers respectively. My last 4 cruises this year all had over 2000 passengers. I didn't notice any difference in the activities on board between the 800 and the 2000 numbers.

I did mine before I booked. But that was December 2022

Until now the only known spark website is just for the Scarlett Lady.

Totally agree. VV offers a unique experience and is the best cruise product available in this price category.

My first several cruises this year were $800 for a Solo Insider. My upcoming cruise in December is almost $1500 for the same cabin. I’ve taken 6 cruises so far this year and am glad to have helped VV in their slow times. 😃 One more cruise for ol times sake.

I'm seeing prices consistently 30 - 40% higher than late last year and earlier this year. Lower prices and fewer passengers go hand in hand, I guess, and it was fun while it lasted.

I can give you my experience booking 7 cruises directly via VV's website without a TA. (see my TA experience below) When booking directly on VV's website, VV presented me with available cabins in my category unless they were nearly 'sold out'. For example: I just booked another 2023 cruise and the earliest cruise I could bag a 'good' cabin option was mid-December. I tried putting a couple of reservations on a 24-hour hold and contacting VV Sailor Services directly (as mentioned here) but each time VV told me my desired category was FULL - gasp. Using a good TA is absolutely your BEST option. However, the TA I used to book my last 10 Seabourn cruises DOES NOT book with Virgin. I have begged other members here to tell me the name of their TA but, due to the rules of this website, any posts mentioning TAs are removed. So use a TA unless you're like me and can't find a good one. Hope this helps :)

I always carry my own salt for several reasons: Always have it, know what kind of salt I'm getting but mostly because I know who's hands have touched it. 🙂

As an FYI: this link is for events scheduled on Scarlett Lady as mentioned in OP's comments - in case that matters to anyone.

This is a fun website to 'dream about' one's upcoming cruise but, be careful when making plans, as it's often inaccurate more than a week or 2 out. The app is far more accurate but a pain to use.

Advice from someone who has lived in or around Miami for 30 years - do the 2 PM flight. Getting to MIA at 9 AM is 'possible' but everything has to go perfectly. If it's a Sunday, there will be 8-10 other ships in port at the same time. Consider having breakfast in the Wake, a final latte, and a leisurely stroll down the gangway. Hope this helps.

I'm 100% sure you will get this resolved at the port in Barcelona if not before. What a roller coaster ride for you - sadly.

You will know what night it is when all of the ship's lights go red sometimes during the day 🙂

I used my loot to do the 'Behind the Curtains' tour of the ship. It was pricy but was the best behind-the-scenes ship tour I ever did. Not sure if this is still offered.

On the firm side but not objectionable. I slept like a baby on my 6 cruises.

There is no way you can be happy about this situation. Keep us updated please.

I would be very concerned about this and also very unhappy. Definitely give them a call.

I can help you with this question. I have an onion allergy and I’m also on a no carb diet so eating is a challenge for me in any restaurant. I’ve taken six cruises on Virgin and can report that I’ve had good luck finding plain unseasoned food in several of the venues. It is a challenge as even the lamb chops, for example, are brined in an onion brine but the chef made a special order of unbrind lamb chops for me. I made friends with the chefs at several of the restaurants, and they went out of their way to take care of my dietary needs. Hope this helps.

DeclanDiamond - I'm very tech savvy and yet I still find the VV app a real challenge to navigate. Regarding your travel docs: it sounds like you may be 'good to go' but you still may want to call Sailor Services to confirm. It sounds like you have a very unique situation.

I was only referring to my experiences when logging in for the FIRST TIME after first embarking on the ship... It worked seamlessly for the rest of the cruise both on a off the ship. Just trying to help OP for their first-time VV adventure. 🙂

This is excellent advice. I wear AirPods Pro noise-canceling earbuds 100% of the time when in public areas and real earplugs in venues like the Mannor.

I've taken 6 cruises on Scarlett this year and found it very frustrating to get connected to the ship's wifi and logged to my account on each and every cruise. I always end up closing my app and restarting my iPhone before I could be connected. I was always onboard by 2 PM as a Sea Rover so it wasn't an issue caused by the rush of passengers logging in at the same time. Maybe others can post the double secret technique or procedure to easily log into ones account once on board.

I would book your shows as soon as you get on board. Also a little-known and seldom discussed dining option is brunch (which can be booked once on board via the app) and are usually wide open for the first few hours.

The porters in Miami use a ‘high tech’ Sharpie to write the names and cabin numbers on the tag. 🙂