What would you like to see on Virgin Voyages

[Don Kehote]

My only request from Virgin Voyages is to enhance the child-free experience by ensuring a gkbiiii-free experience. Which really, is just about the same thing, so please just carry on being awesome.

[cantgetin]

16 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

NCL's Prima or Carnival's Mardi Gras are much better ships than Scarlet Lady!

It depends on what you are looking for.  We don't like the giant ships--much prefer the medium size, so VV scores on that, no kids, food quality, etc.  If you want water slides, race track, and like to pay extra for The Haven and specialty dining as well as the most expensive alcohol package at sea, go on Prima.  If you want ropes courses and roller coasters, go on Mardi Gras.  While we have favorite and less favorite lines, in general I don't feel that one is better than the other--it is really a matter of what each individual is looking for.

[gkbiiii]

8 hours ago, cantgetin said:

It depends on what you are looking for.  We don't like the giant ships--much prefer the medium size, so VV scores on that, no kids, food quality, etc.  If you want water slides, race track, and like to pay extra for The Haven and specialty dining as well as the most expensive alcohol package at sea, go on Prima.  If you want ropes courses and roller coasters, go on Mardi Gras.  While we have favorite and less favorite lines, in general I don't feel that one is better than the other--it is really a matter of what each individual is looking for.

I agree that NCL will bilk you to death, with endless fees, & Mardi Gras will have the Carnie crowd; but I think all three ships are the same size, so really the Virgin ship really offers so much less.  Other than the impressive included items of Virgin, the ship does not offer great public rooms and interesting things to do.  The pool is pathetic, for the Caribbean market, as are the spas too.  Yes Virgin's dining is outstanding, but the ships themselves of other lines, beat Virgin hands down.  The cabins too are behind their competitors, in most respects. 

[crusinthrough]

On 9/12/2022 at 4:49 PM, Shocker said:

Have cruises 7 days or longer it is not worth flying to Miami for 5 days......

 

I totally agree. Maybe when more ship are built the itineraries will be longer.  

 

[neverendingcruising]

Valiant will be doing 6 and 8 night voyages when she arrives later this month. 

[cantgetin]

3 hours ago, crusinthrough said:

I totally agree. Maybe when more ship are built the itineraries will be longer.  

 

When Valiant Lady comes to Miami at the end of October, cruises will be 6 and 8 nights.

[cantgetin]

3 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

I agree that NCL will bilk you to death, with endless fees, & Mardi Gras will have the Carnie crowd; but I think all three ships are the same size, so really the Virgin ship really offers so much less.  Other than the impressive included items of Virgin, the ship does not offer great public rooms and interesting things to do.  The pool is pathetic, for the Caribbean market, as are the spas too.  Yes Virgin's dining is outstanding, but the ships themselves of other lines, beat Virgin hands down.  The cabins too are behind their competitors, in most respects. 

Totally agree that the pool is pathetic, and somehow people seem to think that the "spa" is the thermal suite and forget about the rest.  I like the concept of adults getting to do "kid things" like the arcade games, playground equipment, etc. which I can do, while many of the big attractions on other ships are physically beyond me.  I like the idea that I can be "me" on VV with no one telling me when to do what or standing in lines for ages.  I'm with Walter--remove The Net (I can't figure out what that is supposed to be/do anyhow) and put a decent pool in that area.  It might not work due to weight and balance issues, but it sure would improve the guest experience.  I love The Galley rather than a buffet--other people aren't messing with my food!   I think that there are so many things I dislike on NCL and Carnival that VV is a breath of fresh air.  But again....the reason many lines are available is that we all have different likes and dislikes.

[Fogcityca13]

On 9/12/2022 at 1:49 PM, Shocker said:

Have cruises 7 days or longer it is not worth flying to Miami for 5 days......

 

Definitely agree. I might consider doing a B2B since Valiant Lady is only in Caribbean in the winter.

[Accessor]

We have done one cruise on Virgin and another one coming up in a few days, plus over 60 on just about every cruise line. some oddities that I would change

 

1. Food hall layout:  the pizza place, ice cream shop, and poke bowl joint should be found in the dining hall concept for simplicity.  I dislike the disconnect, as these are fast casual places that are disjointed from the rest of the concept

2.  Signage in general could be improved. Ship is very choppy, and mediocre signage doesn't help things. Take RCL's ship on stick outside the halls of the elevators.

3. Fix the outdoor furniture. Make whoever designed this stuff sit in it for an hour. Then ask them why it's so uncomfortable. Great for the Insta, but some of it is useless beyond this...

4. Ship doesn't have a heart, a great place to congregate to see and be seen.  This one isn't an easy fix. But I miss having a larger open venue that has some center vibe to it like Champagne bar on Celebrity Edge class.

5. No connection to sea from inside of ship with exception of the wake at the aft of the ship.

6. Shows. Look up The Mayfair after dark at Bellagio...or Zumanity. Sexy, flirty, and sinful. After all, it's an adult only ship and needs an adult only show.  Take dual reality and add some sinfulness to it!

7. Make a section for topless sunbathing that has some privacy. Easy fix. tons of wasted deck space.

 

[c-boy]

On 9/19/2022 at 2:32 PM, Shocker said:

I would like Virgin to increase the sailing to 7 to 9 days. It is not worth flying to Miami for 5 day cruise. In addition I am not ready to get off a ship after 5 days.

I'd consider being on board for 9 - 12 day sailings.

[yarramar]

10 hours ago, c-boy said:

I'd consider being on board for 9 - 12 day sailings.

....well I've committed to being on board for 29 days. I am doing the Athens  to Sydney repositioning cruise in 2023 but will be bailing at Singapore as I didn't think I would last for a further 15 days. Am looking forward to it, though.

[c-boy]

3 hours ago, yarramar said:

....well I've committed to being on board for 29 days. I am doing the Athens  to Sydney repositioning cruise in 2023 but will be bailing at Singapore as I didn't think I would last for a further 15 days. Am looking forward to it, though.

I reckon I'll be standin shore side  with my sheila, wearin sunnies, holdin a stubby  watchin ya sail by 🛳️

[JCruise85]

Either from the app or from a tablet at the tables in the Galley the ability to order food.

Even on lighter sailings, we've had trouble getting service (and most of the stations will not just give you food).

[PTC DAWG]

I would have booked IF they offered a drink package…mid 50’s here, I like to know my spend going in..Celebrity is my go to when sailing with the Wife..3 cruises since the restart with them, always premium package, no surprises..

[cantgetin]

See my response on the "would I like VV" thread.  I actually LIKE the bar tab deal better.  It costs less and lets you share.

 

[_tacocat_]

55 minutes ago, cantgetin said:

See my response on the "would I like VV" thread.  I actually LIKE the bar tab deal better.  It costs less and lets you share.

 

same!  you don't really run into the sloppy drunks en masse like you might on a line with beverage packages where everyone's trying to max out their package.  i also like that tips are included, so you don't need to mentally add 20% to the prices you see (only taxes if you're in port).

 

we did mega rockstar for a back to back, so we had all our drinks included... the hangover was real on day 2 and we slowed down a bit.  Even by like night 6, we basically just wanted coffee but felt like we still had to drink to make it "worth it."

[cantgetin]

For light to medium drinkers like us, the bar tab works great.  Instead of spending $100 or more per person per day on an alcohol package (which we would never do!), we pay $300 on the cruise, get the $100 bonus, and have $400 to spend on alcohol, smoothies, premium tea, cold pressed juices, etc.  This is plenty for the two of us.  Or, if we decide that we wouldn't drink that much on a short cruise, we still benefit from the "tips included" when we use or "sailor's loot" or our credit card on file.

[Fogcityca13]

4 hours ago, _tacocat_ said:

we did mega rockstar for a back to back, so we had all our drinks included... the hangover was real on day 2 and we slowed down a bit.  Even by like night 6, we basically just wanted coffee but felt like we still had to drink to make it "worth it."

I think this is the only thing I’m concerned about. 
 

I get the want for the drink packages, it’s really nice having everything paid for up front. It really helps me budget multiple trips. I can mostly do that with the bar tab. We always were close to the break even cost on RCCL and Princess. 

[PTC DAWG]

6 hours ago, _tacocat_ said:

same!  you don't really run into the sloppy drunks en masse like you might on a line with beverage packages where everyone's trying to max out their package.  i also like that tips are included, so you don't need to mentally add 20% to the prices you see (only taxes if you're in port).

 

we did mega rockstar for a back to back, so we had all our drinks included... the hangover was real on day 2 and we slowed down a bit.  Even by like night 6, we basically just wanted coffee but felt like we still had to drink to make it "worth it."

I have had zero issues with “sloppy drunks” on Celebrity…right now  the VV cruises cost more per night for a balcony cabin without drinks than I have been paying on Celebrity with included classic drink package..YMMV. 

[cantgetin]

1 hour ago, PTC DAWG said:

I have had zero issues with “sloppy drunks” on Celebrity…right now  the VV cruises cost more per night for a balcony cabin without drinks than I have been paying on Celebrity with included classic drink package..YMMV. 

Pick your cruises and your sales carefully.  I've booked 3 VV cruises for under $100 pp per night in a balcony (Sea Terrace) cabin.  Most are double that or more!

[mmpgoodtogo]

What I would like is boarding before 2pm. It is a real pain to find something to do between hotel checkout and ship boarding. 

[cantgetin]

27 minutes ago, mmpgoodtogo said:

What I would like is boarding before 2pm. It is a real pain to find something to do between hotel checkout and ship boarding. 

I get it, but we have a 1:30 terminal arrival time, and VV asks that you not show up more than 30 minutes before your time.  IF you show up early in Miami, there is a nice waiting area--MUCH nicer than most other lines.  We usually ask for late check out, so we get 12 instead of 11.  That's not much time till we are on the ship.  

The flip side is that you don't have to be off the ship till 10:30 on the last day.  That means you can have a decent breakfast and relax a bit if you don't have an early flight.

[jon81uk]

On 10/8/2022 at 6:37 PM, mmpgoodtogo said:

What I would like is boarding before 2pm. It is a real pain to find something to do between hotel checkout and ship boarding. 

Leave the luggage with the bell services at the hotel and go explore Miami, collect the luggage and go board the ship. I didn’t find it a problem. We checked out early so we could go get breakfast and then explore.

 

I do like the late checkout on the ship though, as if you have a late flight finding luggage storage might be a pain. 

[gkbiiii]

On 10/1/2022 at 8:22 PM, Don Kehote said:

My only request from Virgin Voyages is to enhance the child-free experience by ensuring a gkbiiii-free experience. Which really, is just about the same thing, so please just carry on being awesome.

Well babes, your "grumpy old man's club" is better suited to Holland America!  Bye-Bye, happy sailing, you know the old saying: cruising, "newlywed or nearly dead."

[cantgetin]

On Valiant now.  What I'd like is consistency in many little things.  For example, I like ice tea with lemon and splenda.  Some of the sit down restaurants have tea with no "fixings," others have exactly what I want, Razzle Dazzle has tea with lemon but no sweetener, etc.  Some restaurants have salt on the tables, others do not. My friend loved the margarita in Pink Agave, so tried to order it at a regular bar.  THe response was that it was only available in that restaurant.  After the first week's book club, some sailors were allowed to pass on the book to other interested people with a promise that it would be returned to Sailor Services, while others were told that it had to be turned in on that day.

 

It is less that there is a right or wrong answer to any of these little things as much as it is that the response/availability seems to differ based on who or where you ask.