What happened to Brilliant Lady

[librarylady19]

3 hours ago, Jumping Cruiser said:

Check this out! A new offer seems to point at a ship being based in Portsmouth, UK. I’m guessing this will be Brilliant Lady.

Hope so!! The official Portsmouth port website only has the cruise schedule through end of 2023, but they do have Virgin listed as a cruise operator there!!

https://portsmouth-port.co.uk/cruise/cruise-operators/

[Wildcatllamas]

6 minutes ago, librarylady19 said:

Hope so!! The official Portsmouth port website only has the cruise schedule through end of 2023, but they do have Virgin listed as a cruise operator there!!

https://portsmouth-port.co.uk/cruise/cruise-operators/

Now that would be something I would definitely be interested in. 

[librarylady19]

On 8/27/2023 at 5:42 PM, CineGraphic said:

 

You're certainly entitled to the 10% discount, I'd call your TA or VV if you booked direct.

Thanks again for the tip. Got on chat with VV today and they credited me the 10% discount. Now, fingers crossed the TA is on!!

[DrSch]

10 hours ago, librarylady19 said:

Thanks again for the tip. Got on chat with VV today and they credited me the 10% discount. Now, fingers crossed the TA is on!!

Keep an eye on it.  I Had a client I did the same thing for, but they didn't refund it, they just put it as an FCC.  So if you don't see it show up on your credit card in 3 or 4 business days, call them again and make sure they actually refunded it.

[Chrish2]

Kinda disappointed with Portsmouth. There is enough south of England cruise departures already. Liverpool would capture a significant market from and was important enough to be one of the first points of call for the press preview of Scarlet Lady. Obviously has to be balanced with fuel considerations too.

[Jumping Cruiser]

4 hours ago, Chrish2 said:

Kinda disappointed with Portsmouth. There is enough south of England cruise departures already. Liverpool would capture a significant market from and was important enough to be one of the first points of call for the press preview of Scarlet Lady. Obviously has to be balanced with fuel considerations too.

 

The only problem with Liverpool is its location within the UK. The fact that it is on the west-coast of the country means that every itinerary heading towards mainland Europe, such as Amsterdam in the Netherlands, would require 2 additional sea days (One-day to English Channel and One-day from English Channel) compared to if the ship left from the South coast. I would imagine that the only cruises that would actually be sustainable from Liverpool would be Iceland, as this would remove 2 days due to the port’s closer proximity to Iceland.

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Jumping Cruiser

[Chrish2]

 

20 minutes ago, Jumping Cruiser said:

 

[...] The fact that it is on the west-coast of the country means that every itinerary heading towards mainland Europe, such as Amsterdam in the Netherlands, would require 2 additional sea days [...]

 

 

Logistically I can see Amsterdam been an inconvenience but the image in @DrSch's post hinted Mediterranean islands from Portsmouth. Just reviewing some of the present options. Sea day count if you are pushing to get into the Mediterranean appear equal when looking at Liverpool and the South Coast. E.g. cases with La Coruna, Lisbon or Malaga as either initial or final calling points.

 

La Coruna <-> 1 sea day <-> Liverpool (Fred Olsen)

La Coruna <-> 1 sea day <-> Southampton (P&O, Celebrity)

 

Lisbon <-> 2 sea days <-> Liverpool (Fred Olsen)

Lisbon <-> 2 sea days <-> Southampton (P&O, MSC)

 

Malaga <-> 2 sea days <-> Liverpool (Fred Olsen)

Malaga <-> 2 sea days <-> Southampton (Celebrity)

 

Obviously I have no idea what this does to the financial viability when you factor fuel costs along with other operational concerns. I know Virgin Voyages Caribbean itineraries go slow / don't really go anywhere for some time during their schedule.

 

[Jumping Cruiser]

28 minutes ago, Chrish2 said:

Logistically I can see Amsterdam been an inconvenience but the image in @DrSch's post hinted Mediterranean islands from Portsmouth. Just reviewing some of the present options. Sea day count if you are pushing to get into the Mediterranean appear equal when looking at Liverpool and the South Coast. E.g. cases with La Coruna, Lisbon or Malaga as either initial or final calling points.

 

It would definitely be more convenient with Southern Europe and Mediterranean, but port bookings indicate that there will be a large presence in Northern Europe, specifically with short sailings between 3 and 5-nights. Whenever VV have home-ported in the UK, the majority of sailings have been shorter. These short sailings seem to be where they make the most revenue and as you say also keep fuel costs lower, which would make them greater profit overall. 

 

I actually seen this advertisement and posted it in another thread, but I read it differently. I understood it as the offer included Mediterranean sailings, but not specifically from Portsmouth.

“From deep dives into history to island hops across the Med- this is your chance to get 30% off all European voyages and secure next year's summer plans. With $600 in free drinks across our ship and brand-new itineraries out of your backyard in Portsmouth.”

 

In my opinion, if VV come to the UK, there’s no point in them sailing to the Med as they already have a ship based there which would be suitable for fly-cruises. The whole idea of them sailing from the UK is so that they can visit destinations not currently visited, including Iceland, Norway, The Netherlands, Scotland and the occasional visit to the Canary Islands and Madeira. 

 

As much as I would love a ship to homeport in Liverpool (closer to me! ☺️), I just don’t think it’s suitable for Virgin over the long-term. The port is also currently not well-equipped for handling full turnarounds of large ships. Liverpool are currently looking at building a new large cruise terminal, which would be capable of handling turnarounds of much bigger ships than those currently based there, but the last I heard was that they wanted a commitment from a line that they would regularly home-port in the city. Until this happens at least, I think chances are very slim.

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Jumping Cruiser

[DrSch]

1 hour ago, Jumping Cruiser said:

 

It would definitely be more convenient with Southern Europe and Mediterranean, but port bookings indicate that there will be a large presence in Northern Europe, specifically with short sailings between 3 and 5-nights. Whenever VV have home-ported in the UK, the majority of sailings have been shorter. These short sailings seem to be where they make the most revenue and as you say also keep fuel costs lower, which would make them greater profit overall. 

 

I actually seen this advertisement and posted it in another thread, but I read it differently. I understood it as the offer included Mediterranean sailings, but not specifically from Portsmouth.

“From deep dives into history to island hops across the Med- this is your chance to get 30% off all European voyages and secure next year's summer plans. With $600 in free drinks across our ship and brand-new itineraries out of your backyard in Portsmouth.”

 

In my opinion, if VV come to the UK, there’s no point in them sailing to the Med as they already have a ship based there which would be suitable for fly-cruises. The whole idea of them sailing from the UK is so that they can visit destinations not currently visited, including Iceland, Norway, The Netherlands, Scotland and the occasional visit to the Canary Islands and Madeira. 

 

As much as I would love a ship to homeport in Liverpool (closer to me! ☺️), I just don’t think it’s suitable for Virgin over the long-term. The port is also currently not well-equipped for handling full turnarounds of large ships. Liverpool are currently looking at building a new large cruise terminal, which would be capable of handling turnarounds of much bigger ships than those currently based there, but the last I heard was that they wanted a commitment from a line that they would regularly home-port in the city. Until this happens at least, I think chances are very slim.

 

From what I've seen, I believe the ship will be hitting Brussels, Amsterdam, and then probably Denmark Sweden Norway sampler, and then an alternate route that goes from Portsmith to down to Portugal.     I think they will have this ship doing two alternating routes rather than just one.    My sales rep told me she believes they are going to announce everything end of this week, beginning of next, but they've told me this before too.

[jon81uk]

1 hour ago, DrSch said:

From what I've seen, I believe the ship will be hitting Brussels, Amsterdam, and then probably Denmark Sweden Norway sampler, and then an alternate route that goes from Portsmith to down to Portugal.     I think they will have this ship doing two alternating routes rather than just one.    My sales rep told me she believes they are going to announce everything end of this week, beginning of next, but they've told me this before too.

That’s pretty much what Valiant Lady did when in Portsmouth last time before the bachelor charter. Three night cruises to zeebrugge followed by 11 night trips to the carnary islands. 

[notme2012]

Has anyone noticed that the Brilliant Lady cruises are not on the VV website beyond the 2 Mermaiden voyages? That really makes me nervous....

[librarylady19]

1 minute ago, notme2012 said:

Has anyone noticed that the Brilliant Lady cruises are not on the VV website beyond the 2 Mermaiden voyages? That really makes me nervous....

It’s been like that for months. Read back through this thread! 

[aviators99]

2 minutes ago, notme2012 said:

Has anyone noticed that the Brilliant Lady cruises are not on the VV website beyond the 2 Mermaiden voyages? That really makes me nervous....

That's what this thread is about.

[Ranger1227]

Yes.  If I go into my account the cruise reservation is there, and the itinerary.  However, Cruise Mapper port schedule does not have a departure time for the boat leaving San Juan on 4/20/24 nor does it have an arrival in Lisbon or departure time from Lisbon.  I am still uncertain about this and we have a back up cruise reserved.  We will have to decide by 12/20 in order to get a refund of most of our money back, or take a chance on the cruise getting cancelled and getting a credit.

[Golfergirl1]

The Caribbean sailings are still showing up on my Virgin Voyages website in Canada. Just got a price for the January 27th sailing. I’m also still booked on the mysterious April 20th transatlantic. 

[LadyLion_AP]

The January sailings are still showing on the US site as well as the initial Memaiden Voyage (which I am booked on but losing hope)! The San Juan Mermaiden was missing on the site (at least on my end) earlier today but is back up now!

Edited August 30, 2023 by LadyLion_AP

[diva.diva56]

The lack of communication from Virgin is getting old. 

[DrSch]

2 hours ago, LadyLion_AP said:

The January sailings are still showing on the US site as well as the initial Memaiden Voyage (which I am booked on but losing hope)! The San Juan Mermaiden was missing on the site (at least on my end) earlier today but is back up now!

 

does anyone know how long it was before they canceled the cruises on the Resilient?

 

[notme2012]

2 hours ago, aviators99 said:

That's what this thread is about.

@aviators99 @Libarary Lady----Hello, in the US, the VV website is not showing any Brilliant Lady cruises with the exception of the Dec 24, 2023 sailing. I have been on this thread since it started back in April. I generally check at least once, to multiple times a week. There have always been Caribbean sailings of the Brilliant Lady for sale, but now there is just one sailing. I am also booked on the trans-Atlantic. But now this really worries me.

[Alegeeter]

2 minutes ago, notme2012 said:

@aviators99 @Libarary Lady----Hello, in the US, the VV website is not showing any Brilliant Lady cruises with the exception of the Dec 24, 2023 sailing. I have been on this thread since it started back in April. I generally check at least once, to multiple times a week. There have always been Caribbean sailings of the Brilliant Lady for sale, but now there is just one sailing. I am also booked on the trans-Atlantic. But now this really worries me.

I'm in the US and am able to see and mock-book BL sailings Jan-Apr. 

 

I still think those rumors in the 2024-2025 thread are true and the TA will be cancelled and the winter season will be replaced with VL- but for now at least I can still see every BL sailing available.

[DrSch]

2 minutes ago, Alegeeter said:

I'm in the US and am able to see and mock-book BL sailings Jan-Apr. 

 

I still think those rumors in the 2024-2025 thread are true and the TA will be cancelled and the winter season will be replaced with VL- but for now at least I can still see every BL sailing available.

I am able to see them as well

[notme2012]

5 minutes ago, DrSch said:

 

does anyone know how long it was before they canceled the cruises on the Resilient?

 

Those sailings were being offered for at least 6 months.

[librarylady19]

2 minutes ago, DrSch said:

I am able to see them as well

Same here - In both Safari and Chrome. Did a search for Jan-April 2024 amd filtered results to “Brilliant Lady” only. 

[DrSch]

I thought maybe Richard would announce what was going on while on board this week, but maybe not.  Sales rep told me they are hoping to announce next week.... but i think she told me that back in July as well.

[notme2012]

6 minutes ago, Alegeeter said:

I'm in the US and am able to see and mock-book BL sailings Jan-Apr. 

 

I am able to see them on and off for the last 30 minutes. There is obviously something going on.