Virgin Dining

[cantgetin]

1 hour ago, RollWave said:

We are just off Scarlet Lady this morning and said this very thing on the drive home.

We are avid cruisers with Celebrity as our line of choice. We were intrigued by the Adult Only aspect of VV. We toyed with the idea of purchasing the future cruise offer while on board and decided not to. We may give VV another try but did not want to be boxed in with having to go again. 

There is no perfect line.....there is a right line for each person or family at a particular time in their life.  VV is still a work in progress.  There were huge changes made in the entertainment between our first and second bookings.  The food on Celebrity was good as was the entertainment, but there were some things that weren't great.  The food on Virgin was the overall best I've had on any line.  THe entertainment was not my favorite, but I could have guessed that before booking.  On the other hand, the daytime activities were good, etc.  Bottom line, overall, we were delighted with VV and got off our first cruise with 3 more booked.  We love the "almost all included" and the bar tab concept....and the NO KIDS and, frankly, no senile old ladies cruising solo and latching on to me!  That sounds horrible, but it did contribute to our issues with Celebrity.

There is also a huge difference between a 3 night cruise and a 14 night cruise....and everything in between...

[cantgetin]

1 hour ago, RollWave said:

We are just off Scarlet Lady this morning and said this very thing on the drive home.

We are avid cruisers with Celebrity as our line of choice. We were intrigued by the Adult Only aspect of VV. We toyed with the idea of purchasing the future cruise offer while on board and decided not to. We may give VV another try but did not want to be boxed in with having to go again. 

There is no perfect line.....there is a right line for each person or family at a particular time in their life.  VV is still a work in progress.  There were huge changes made in the entertainment between our first and second bookings.  The food on Celebrity was good as was the entertainment, but there were some things that weren't great.  The food on Virgin was the overall best I've had on any line.  THe entertainment was not my favorite, but I could have guessed that before booking.  On the other hand, the daytime activities were good, etc.  Bottom line, overall, we were delighted with VV and got off our first cruise with 3 more booked.  We love the "almost all included" and the bar tab concept....and the NO KIDS and, frankly, no senile old ladies cruising solo and latching on to me!  That sounds horrible, but it did contribute to our issues with Celebrity.

There is also a huge difference between a 3 night cruise and a 14 night cruise....and everything in between...

[DaCruiseBug]

Having sailed on most other cruise lines and having recently sailed on the Scarlet Lady i'm going to have to disagree with the assessment that the food is great on Virgin.

 

First off, I was excited to try the Italian restaurant as it had great reviews. I was born and raised in Italy so I can speak to good Italian food and what was served in Extra Virgin was anything BUT good Italian food. The highlight of our meal was the meats and cheeses they brought out. We then had the Bucatini Carbonara which was very bland and was probably one of the worst carbonara i've ever seen...looked and tasted more like bucatini alfredo with a few pieces of bacon. Also had the gnocchi which were incredibly overcooked and tasted like balls of mashed potatoes.

 

We also sailed on the Celebrity Apex last year in Aqua class and both service and food quality put Virgin to shame.

 

Seems like Virgin is more interested in hiring staff that fit their "hip look" rather than hiring individuals good at what they do. Our room steward wasn't good. Room was quite dirty when we first embarked the ship. Asked the room steward to give us 3 big towels each day instead of just 2 and each day we had to request the additional towel anyways.

 

The staff on Virgin did actually look like they were happy and enjoying themselves much more than staff on other cruise lines but as far as service...lots of room for improvement.

 

Another thing I noticed is that there's a lot more staff running around on their time off in the ship areas with guests. We regularly saw ship staff in all the dining rooms and entertainment venues. While this is nice for staff...it's annoying to have a staff member scream in your ear the entire time during one of the nightly shows and waiting in line at the pizza shop at night and watch an employee come in and grab 5 pizzas at the busiest time of the night. It's like there's no etiquette or respect for guests so that crew members could enjoy themselves more.

 

The beach club in Bimini was great other than the food options there...maybe someone should tell Virgin that people don't want curry chicken and other weird food while at a beach club. Having burgers, fries, pizza, and other simple foods would have been much better.

 

Also, the Scarlet party was perhaps one of the coolest parties on a ship i've seen. Kudos to that as well.

 

Lastly...my BIGGEST complaint is the size of the bathroom and the shower. *****??? We had a standard balcony cabin and that was the smallest bathroom and shower i've ever seen on any cruise ship. I'd compare that to the bathroom and shower in the studios on NCL. Absolutely terrible.

[jon81uk]

54 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

The beach club in Bimini was great other than the food options there...maybe someone should tell Virgin that people don't want curry chicken and other weird food while at a beach club. Having burgers, fries, pizza, and other simple foods would have been much better.

Why is it weird to get Caribbean style curry on a Caribbean island?

[DaCruiseBug]

2 hours ago, jon81uk said:

Why is it weird to get Caribbean style curry on a Caribbean island?

 

Because when you're at a pool party most people aren't looking for curry chicken. Most people want finger food.

[Travel-and-See]

7 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Seems like Virgin is more interested in hiring staff that fit their "hip look" rather than hiring individuals good at what they do.

I very much agree with this assessment. 

 

7 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

We also sailed on the Celebrity Apex last year in Aqua class and both service and food quality put Virgin to shame.

While I agree that Service on Celebrity is more consistent - it's not really fair to compare Celebrity Aqua Class.... I can assure you that Virgin food is better than Celebrity MDR.  (at least in my experience and taste). 

7 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Another thing I noticed is that there's a lot more staff running around on their time off in the ship areas with guests.

I agree that this is an issue that VV needs to address. I went to Brunch at Razzle Dazzle and a group of employees in front of me were seated and I was told that they didn't have room for walkups. (I was solo, there were plenty of tables available).  The amount of staff hanging out is definitely noticeable and yes the "cheering" section at shows is very noticeable although this didn't bother me too much. 

 

7 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

The beach club in Bimini was great other than the food options there...

Agreed... On my second sailing I made sure to hang out on the ship until AFTER I had lunch haha. 

 

[cantgetin]

13 hours ago, RollWave said:

 

I agree that crew being able to eat in passenger areas or attend shows while passengers are being told there are no seats is an issue.  It seems that when ships were sailing at 800 passengers, allowing crew to eat in passenger areas any time they had "off" hours was not a problem. However, as the ships are now sailing at nearly full, it is an issue.  From what crew has told me, they now have limited hours when they are allowed to eat in guest areas, usually late in the evening.  They do have a very nice crew mess (according to them, much better than on other lines), but they like the ability to "party" in guest areas.  I suspect VV may be stopping this totally as it really is becoming a significant problem.

[jon81uk]

8 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

Because when you're at a pool party most people aren't looking for curry chicken. Most people want finger food.

Everyone’s tastes are different but I was happy with the options at the beach club, it felt similar to going to the Galley when on the ship for lunch

There was a range of dishes at Bimini including a roast pork sandwich, a fish dish and the curry which was great.

I’m not sure why finger food would be better though, but everyone’s preferences are different.

 

I would have liked some snacks as well in case you wanted to eat again at 3/4pm and it would have been nice to have ice cream, but I was happy with lunch. 

[mfs2k]

11 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

Because when you're at a pool party most people aren't looking for curry chicken. Most people want finger food.

You make good points but you lose me when you over generalize what "most people" want. There are "some" people like yourself who want burgers and fries but there are others who want something different.I think the intent is to serve foods they can prep and cook on the ship and still serve warm at the beach club. Burgers and fries require cooking on shore which have logistical issues. 

Personally, I wasnt crazy about the food choices at Bimini, and I think they could do better.  Speaking only for myself, Im not sure burgers and fries would have been better. 

[RollWave]

17 hours ago, cantgetin said:

There is no perfect line.....there is a right line for each person or family at a particular time in their life.  

Thus the reason for a place such as Cruise Critic where cruisers can share their opinions!

 

17 hours ago, cantgetin said:

 Bottom line, overall, we were delighted with VV and got off our first cruise with 3 more booked.  We love the "almost all included" and the bar tab concept....and the NO KIDS and, frankly, no senile old ladies cruising solo and latching on to me!  That sounds horrible, but it did contribute to our issues with Celebrity.

The Celebrity cruises we have been on have not been filled with senile old ladies cruising solo and we sail with Celebrity a lot. The last few Celebrity cruises we experienced many families with children running wild thus the reason for giving VV a try!

 

It comes down to preferences. What makes for a nice vacation for some may not work for others. VV was not for us but I am glad it is wonderful for others. 

[DaCruiseBug]

37 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

You make good points but you lose me when you over generalize what "most people" want. There are "some" people like yourself who want burgers and fries but there are others who want something different.I think the intent is to serve foods they can prep and cook on the ship and still serve warm at the beach club. Burgers and fries require cooking on shore which have logistical issues. 

Personally, I wasnt crazy about the food choices at Bimini, and I think they could do better.  Speaking only for myself, Im not sure burgers and fries would have been better. 

 

I based my "most people" on the fact that nearly everyone was complaining about the food options at the beach club while waiting in line, while sitting at one of the tables, and even people around us by the pool.

 

If you want to keep serving your fancy food that's fine...but to not have a single option of either burgers, hot dogs, pizza, chicken wings, chicken tenders or whatever else you generally eat at a pool party is a mistake.

[cantgetin]

I typed a long explanation of the senile old lady and then realized no one cared.  I did not mean to imply that this was the clientele on all Celebrity cruises, but we did have an issue with one who should not have been cruising alone.

[mfs2k]

33 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

but to not have a single option of either burgers, hot dogs, pizza, chicken wings, chicken tenders or whatever else you generally eat at a pool party is a mistake.

 

You're traveling the world.  You're not in Kansas anymore.

[Roel94]

I do not eat eat burgers or hot dogs.would love the curry or fish.

[DaCruiseBug]

43 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

 

You're traveling the world.  You're not in Kansas anymore.

I have flown over 5 million miles (most outside of the US). This has nothing to do with geographical location but rather knowing what your clients want and what food to serve for a specific occasion. If you want to serve chicken curry and fish filet at a pool party you're ignoring the wants of a large chunk of your customers.

[CruisinShips]

45 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

 

You're traveling the world.  You're not in Kansas anymore.

People like what they like, regardless of where they are.  It's why they have McDonalds in Tokyo.  I see nothing wrong with any venue having a couple of basic choices for the simple eats types.

[mfs2k]

1 hour ago, CruisinShips said:

People like what they like, regardless of where they are.  It's why they have McDonalds in Tokyo.  I see nothing wrong with any venue having a couple of basic choices for the simple eats types.

 

I, also, don't see anything wrong with trying to offer selections for "simple eats types."   I do react to generalizations such as "maybe someone should tell Virgin that people don't want curry chicken and other weird food while at a beach club."  

 

If this person wrote: "I, personally, don't want curry chicken and other weird food" I wouldn't have commented. 

[_tacocat_]

17 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Because when you're at a pool party most people aren't looking for curry chicken. Most people want finger food.

if i wanted crappy american BBQ food, i'd either take carnival or stay at home haha

[_tacocat_]

11 hours ago, cantgetin said:

From what crew has told me, they now have limited hours when they are allowed to eat in guest areas, usually late in the evening. 

this is correct - i did the behind the scenes tour when valiant had 2,300 guests onboard, and they had big signs everywhere backstage dictating when crew wasn't to be in the dining areas or fitness center.  during that voyage, it seemed like they had a very small window to use guest facilities, and i believe it was only on port days once most guests were expected to have gotten off the ship.

[annmarz]

Re: the Food on Bimini

 

Can anyone list to the best of their memory all the food options available?

 

[cantgetin]

This is a little old, don't know if it has changed at all....

[DaCruiseBug]

7 minutes ago, cantgetin said:

This is a little old, don't know if it has changed at all....

 

These are still the food options offered.

[DaCruiseBug]

9 hours ago, _tacocat_ said:

if i wanted crappy american BBQ food, i'd either take carnival or stay at home haha

Every cruise line offers this kind of food on their private island. Including RCL, NCL, and Disney.

 

It's not a Carnival thing. It's common sense.

[TYCruise]

1 hour ago, cantgetin said:

This is a little old, don't know if it has changed at all....

Awe that brings me back! Such a great day with delicious food😃

[Back to school]

1 hour ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

These are still the food options offered.

Lechon Asado so good.  I’m tired of cruise “private island” eating shitty hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken tenders, again, and again.  I want experience more healthy and more interesting food.  That’s common sense!