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Sneak a Peek Sailing March 29-April1

aimee0715

By aimee0715,
in Virgin Voyages

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aimee0715

aimee0715

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I have just had a call from VV about Sneak a Peek sailing they are offering from March 29-April 1.  The ship leaves Miami on March 29 and sails to Bimini, a sea day on the 31st and back to Miami on the 1st.  Since I am on the "inaugural" cruise (how inaugural is it at this point?), I can book this at 40% off of what they will charge non-inaugural cruisers.  For this 3 night cruise in our central sea terrace, it will cost $1560 for the two of us.  For the general public, it would be $2400.  I'm probably going to book this but it does not sit right with me.  I think the special experience of being on the inaugural cruise is totally wiped out by the fact that the inaugural cruise is now actually March 29.  I know that others will be sailing on the transatlantic cruise but that was not open to the public, so I'm not counting that.  This 3 night cruise will be offered to the public.  

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Biker19

Biker19

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11 hours ago, aimee0715 said:

I think the special experience of being on the inaugural cruise is totally wiped out by the fact that the inaugural cruise is now actually March 29.

Don't worry, even if you book the 3/29 sailing, it won't be the first, there's another Sneak-a-Peak sailing on 3/26. The 4/1 sailing is still called a "maiden" voyage.

 

Today, as Scarlet Lady was due to head out for its first sea trials, Virgin Voyages announced two sneak-a-peek sailings before the ship’s April 1 maiden cruise.

March 26 and March 29

Bookings opened today for the sneak-a-peek sailings that will run from March 26 to March 29 and March 29 to April 1.

Passengers on these cruises will get a ‘selected highlights version’ of the full Virgin Voyages experience including a day at the Beach Club at Bimini, a Scarlet Night Party, access to all restaurants and complete versions of entertainment offered on board.

Celebrity-packed maiden voyage

As well, Virgin promised the April 1 voyage will be ‘packed full of celebrity-guest appearances, special events, exclusive surprises and an overall enhanced Virgin Voyages experience for sailors to revel in.’

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wwcruisers

wwcruisers

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18 hours ago, aimee0715 said:

 I'm probably going to book this but it does not sit right with me.  I think the special experience of being on the inaugural cruise is totally wiped out by the fact that the inaugural cruise is now actually March 29.  I know that others will be sailing on the transatlantic cruise but that was not open to the public, so I'm not counting that.  This 3 night cruise will be offered to the public.  

Sorry to hear that. Can you imagine the disappointment of those of us who sat in that 'pre-booking queue' for over a year, in hopes of booking the Transatlantic take-out cruise? Only to learn that VV never had any intention of opening that particular booking to the public?😧 But, I'm sure that your 'inaugural cruise' will be special, no matter what. Scarlet Lady will still have that 'new ship smell', I'm certain! 😉

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aimee0715

aimee0715

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5 hours ago, wwcruisers said:

Sorry to hear that. Can you imagine the disappointment of those of us who sat in that 'pre-booking queue' for over a year, in hopes of booking the Transatlantic take-out cruise? Only to learn that VV never had any intention of opening that particular booking to the public?😧 But, I'm sure that your 'inaugural cruise' will be special, no matter what. Scarlet Lady will still have that 'new ship smell', I'm certain! 😉

Actually, I am one of those people. I got over the disappointment of no transatlantic crossing when they announced Havana. I love Cuba and was excited to return there. Trump ruined that. Now, the “maiden” voyage that I’m paying top dollar for—and did not mind paying extra for the experience—is now sloppy thirds.  

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aimee0715

aimee0715

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12 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Don't worry, even if you book the 3/29 sailing, it won't be the first, there's another Sneak-a-Peak sailing on 3/26. The 4/1 sailing is still called a "maiden" voyage.

 

 

I learned about the March 26 cruise after a bit of Googling last night. I called and cancelled my cabin that was on hold for March 29 once I realized that. What a joke! 

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aimee0715

aimee0715

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On 11/17/2019 at 12:16 AM, mnocket said:

What's so special about the maiden voyage?

 

On 11/17/2019 at 8:40 AM, Biker19 said:

Nothing, other than how great the marketeers make it sound. There might be some SWAG given away and perhaps bragging rights on CC.

According to the email I received this weekend, on the 'maiden' voyage there will be celebrity performances, an appearance by Richard Branson,  a commemorative gift, and a VV special edition bottle of Moet & Chandon Imperial champagne.   

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Biker19

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9 minutes ago, aimee0715 said:

 

According to the email I received this weekend, on the 'maiden' voyage there will be celebrity performances, an appearance by Richard Branson,  a commemorative gift, and a VV special edition bottle of Moet & Chandon Imperial champagne.   

I guess for the first ship on a brand new cruise line, they will do a bit more than the usual maiden. Wouldn't expect that on their second ship, the than the SAWG.

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mnocket

mnocket

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On 11/18/2019 at 3:43 PM, aimee0715 said:

 

According to the email I received this weekend, on the 'maiden' voyage there will be celebrity performances, an appearance by Richard Branson,  a commemorative gift, and a VV special edition bottle of Moet & Chandon Imperial champagne.   

OK, and people will still get that on the "maiden" voyage, so why are they upset?

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twodjs

twodjs

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These pre "maiden" voyages are actually pretty common in the cruise industry. Early completion prompted pre cruises for both S and E class Celebrity ships. I'm sure other lines do the same. You should thank those before you willing to pay to be the guinea pigs working out the kinks. Sounds like Sir Richard has plenty of surprises planned for the first real cruise. Should be amazing!

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Biker19

Biker19

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5 hours ago, twodjs said:

You should thank those before you willing to pay to be the guinea pigs working out the kinks.

To be fair, it will probably take several sailings on a brand new cruise line on a brand new ship to work out the kinks.

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twodjs

twodjs

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We've cruised before on other lines on April the first - the crew can have a lot of surprises up their sleeves. Just be prepared for anything and enjoy it! Seriously, a B2B shouldn't be a problem - since every other line has done it for years. Probably will go smoother once they have their new terminal.

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perditax

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Booked the b2b sneak peeks. It took a while on the phone, but I had a new rep. Able to get the same room for both. I've never done a B2B before, and obviously the crew won't have either, so this will be interesting. I also settled for a room over a public space, which I would typically never do, but I have a phenomenal travel-sized white noise machine and earplugs, so not too worried about that.


There is no hint yet on any of the documentation about what time we should be at the terminal ... or even what terminal. The total uncertainty about what these sailings will be like is actually part of the draw for me for some weird reason. 

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rbt001

rbt001

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Be thankful for the "soft openings" that you don't hear about which occur before the "grand opening."  That's common practice in the service industry-- especially for restaurants.

 

These are the practice runs that make the Grand Opening or Maiden Voyage better.

 

I'm booked on the first Sneak Peek set for March 26.  I'm not expecting everything to be "smooth sailing," to borrow the metaphor.  I'm sure the service will be polite and gracious, but probably very slow.  And there's bound to be a few hiccups.  I'm confident if there's any major shortcoming -- loss of power/water for an extended time, running out of food, etc. -- that VV would make an offer to bring us back in the future.

 

Reading this thread made me realize that I never gave thought to the transatlantic cruise.  For all we know, they could still be laying carpet, hanging artwork and placing furniture.

 

When I booked my 3/26 cruise, I only thought enough to hope the ship would be in Miami a week prior, offering FamTrips to TA's and wholesalers.

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