Virgin Voyages Reviews

[phatmanandy86]

I've been a cruiser with several other lines but with a lot of things changing on other lines I've grown interested in Virgin Voyages. A lot of things are included such as tips, fitness classes, etc., that I would have to pay extra for on the other lines. I'm genuinely curious about reviews of Virgin Voyages. How is the entertainment shows, comedians, etc.,? Movies at sea? Game shows? The food quality and selection? Is there same time/wait staff dining or is it all any time? 

I have status with another line which I would match to Virgin which is great so I'm tempted to try them out. My wife and I are 37 and 33 respectively, we don't drink but still love to have fun with all the activities and such. Any feedback is much appreciated. Thanks!

[jon81uk]

Dining on VV is like being on land, you make reservations, check in with the host and then waiting staff take the order. You aren’t stuck to certain times and the servers stick to the same restaurant.

 

Movies are only on the TV in your cabin (except for a few voyages like transatlantic when they may show them in the theatre), there is no big screen above the pool.

 

Food quality is good and there are six main restaurants (steak, upscale Mexican, Italian, Korean BBQ, experimental tasting menu and American). There isn’t a buffet but more of a food court, plus four other quick service places. 
 

Entertainment is great and different, more small-scale circus and similar, no broadway style shows. There are fun gameshows and trivia (but the prize is a round of drinks for the team) and there is drag queen hosted bingo. 

[cantgetin]

I would suggest you watch several YouTube videos about VV.  In my opinion, the best are by Walter, who goes by "Where's Walter Travel" on YouTube.  Go to the search bar and enter that name with Virgin Voyages.  He has excellent reviews on food, entertainment, etc. which I find to be accurate without a lot of hype or "LOOK AT ME" stuff.

I could spend hours typing about VV.  Suffice it to say that it is our "new favorite" cruise line after 49 cruises on 6 other line.

[phatmanandy86]

46 minutes ago, cantgetin said:

I would suggest you watch several YouTube videos about VV.  In my opinion, the best are by Walter, who goes by "Where's Walter Travel" on YouTube.  Go to the search bar and enter that name with Virgin Voyages.  He has excellent reviews on food, entertainment, etc. which I find to be accurate without a lot of hype or "LOOK AT ME" stuff.

I could spend hours typing about VV.  Suffice it to say that it is our "new favorite" cruise line after 49 cruises on 6 other line.

Very good to know, I appreciate the feedback. I'll check the youtube video you suggested. 

[CineGraphic]

Unlike other cruise lines that serve wedding banquet fodder that's been held in a warmer for several hours, all food in the dining rooms is cooked, "ala minute". Each chef is only allowed to cook three dishes at a time. The quality is superb. You will always be asked about dietary needs and allergies.

 

Virgin removed many cruise norms for a much more relaxing cruise experience.

No announcements, no photographers, no art auctions, no cruise director, no lines, no jewelry extravaganzas, and no flea markets in the main dining room.

[cantgetin]

OK, very rare announcements, and if they happen, they ARE important.

 

[phatmanandy86]

2 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

Unlike other cruise lines that serve wedding banquet fodder that's been held in a warmer for several hours, all food in the dining rooms is cooked, "ala minute". Each chef is only allowed to cook three dishes at a time. The quality is superb. You will always be asked about dietary needs and allergies.

 

Virgin removed many cruise norms for a much more relaxing cruise experience.

No announcements, no photographers, no art auctions, no cruise director, no lines, no jewelry extravaganzas, and no flea markets in the main dining room.

Very interesting about the following you mentioned "No announcements, no photographers, no art auctions, no cruise director, no lines, no jewelry extravaganzas, and no flea markets in the main dining room." The only thing I would question would be the lack of a cruise director to manage all the fun. However the rest of it can get lost into oblivion. haha.

[cantgetin]

21 minutes ago, phatmanandy86 said:

Very interesting about the following you mentioned "No announcements, no photographers, no art auctions, no cruise director, no lines, no jewelry extravaganzas, and no flea markets in the main dining room." The only thing I would question would be the lack of a cruise director to manage all the fun. However the rest of it can get lost into oblivion. haha.

They don't have a single "cruise director."  They have a "Happenings Cast" where each of this group has specific responsibilities and hosts specific events.  For instance, "The Foodie" hosts a pre-dinner cocktail and munchies party at the Pink Agave bar prior to dinner on some evenings.  "The Diva" hosts "Bingo with THe Diva" as well as other entertainment.  So instead of 1 CD, you have a team of 8 or so responsible for the entertainment.  You'll be introduced to them at the Sailaway Party.

Edited August 22, 2023 by cantgetin

[neverendingcruising]

I think Happenings people are closer to a dozen! So many of them, lol

[cantgetin]

58 minutes ago, neverendingcruising said:

I think Happenings people are closer to a dozen! So many of them, lol

There are definitely more of them...but only 8 were introduced by "name" at our Sail Away.

 

[jon81uk]

There are 12 Happenings cast but some manage more events than others, some of the cast do dance events or assist at others only. 
There is, the Hostess, the Diva, the Gamer, the Foodie, the Artist, the Balancer, the Charmer as the major cast, they generally run most of the activities or star in shows. Then the Hype, the Flare, the Spark, the Glow and the Bounce, they run dance classes and assist with other activities as well as performing dance at parties.

[CruisingWalter]

First off, thanks so much for the kind words above about our reviews, we really try to present what it's really like on the ships. Here's the full playlist from our first Scarlet Lady cruise including the food tour, ship overview and the Cheeky Corner Suite tour. 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8wFV2tZMxXq3Lbmd6VbXJdMNQEzc8SqH

 

As for VV vs the other 9 cruise lines we've sailed? There are going to be things you're going to absolutely love about VV. All meals, WiFi, Gratuities, Soft Drinks and Exercise classes rolled into the price. It makes VV's pricing higher than others, but we have taken 2 cruises on Scarlet so far and have paid $0 onboard other than the premium bevvies. 

 

My favorite thing about VV vs. the others is no photographers. They've become pretty aggressive on some of the other cruise lines of late, so it's a really nice reprieve. 

 

The pools are terrible on VV, no way around that if you are a pool person. Way too small, the deck space around the pools is too small and cramped. We absolutely love the pools on Celebrity, Princess and were really impressed with the MSC pools on the Seaside. That's the biggest knock for us on VV and one reason why we don't sail on them as often as we might. 

 

While all the food is included and much of it is amazing, that doesn't mean it's all better than every other cruise line out there. I think it's on-par with Disney in terms of quality. The Wake has become a 'skip' for dinner for us because it just was not that great and service was very slow on our second Scarlet sailing. The Crown Grill on Sky Princess blows The Wake out of the water if you pardon my pun. 🙂 Razzle Dazzle and Pink Agave are the standouts right now on VV for dinner and Extra Virgin is also quite good. Test Kitchen is an excellent light early meal and then you can grab a pizza or something from The Galley later. The Sun Cafe up on Deck 16 is a nice poke bowl treat when it's open, it has irregular hours. Gunbae has become a dividing point among VV sailors as to whether they like it or not. It's not the best Korean BBQ, not even close, but it is a fun evening. Honestly they could do away with the drinking game, but if you really don't want to participate in it, just ask the water to pour you a shot of water instead of the soju. 

 

In some ways The Galley is good because they prepare items to order, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's superior to a really good, well maintained buffet. The buffet we had on Sky Princess had much more variety and the quality of the food was consistently better than what we might get in The Galley. Celebrity and Holland America also run outstanding buffets with a lot of variety. In The Galley The Sweet Spot, the salad station, the Burger Bar and the Bento Boxes are the standouts for me. The tacos can be pretty good, the panini sandwiches are so-so. It's like any food hall, you have hits and misses. 

 

If you really like to cruise, you should give VV a try. It's a really really fun cruise line. We've done a lot of games and met a lot of really fun people on the ship. Don't miss Bingo with the Diva, it's a hilarious show and I think the Diva is always my favorite cast member other than the Foodie. 🙂

 

Edited August 23, 2023 by CruisingWalter

[phatmanandy86]

2 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

First off, thanks so much for the kind words above about our reviews, we really try to present what it's really like on the ships. Here's the full playlist from our first Scarlet Lady cruise including the food tour, ship overview and the Cheeky Corner Suite tour. 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8wFV2tZMxXq3Lbmd6VbXJdMNQEzc8SqH

 

As for VV vs the other 9 cruise lines we've sailed? There are going to be things you're going to absolutely love about VV. All meals, WiFi, Gratuities, Soft Drinks and Exercise classes rolled into the price. It makes VV's pricing higher than others, but we have taken 2 cruises on Scarlet so far and have paid $0 onboard other than the premium bevvies. 

 

My favorite thing about VV vs. the others is no photographers. They've become pretty aggressive on some of the other cruise lines of late, so it's a really nice reprieve. 

 

The pools are terrible on VV, no way around that if you are a pool person. Way too small, the deck space around the pools is too small and cramped. We absolutely love the pools on Celebrity, Princess and were really impressed with the MSC pools on the Seaside. That's the biggest knock for us on VV and one reason why we don't sail on them as often as we might. 

 

While all the food is included and much of it is amazing, that doesn't mean it's all better than every other cruise line out there. I think it's on-par with Disney in terms of quality. The Wake has become a 'skip' for dinner for us because it just was not that great and service was very slow on our second Scarlet sailing. The Crown Grill on Sky Princess blows The Wake out of the water if you pardon my pun. 🙂 Razzle Dazzle and Pink Agave are the standouts right now on VV for dinner and Extra Virgin is also quite good. Test Kitchen is an excellent light early meal and then you can grab a pizza or something from The Galley later. The Sun Cafe up on Deck 16 is a nice poke bowl treat when it's open, it has irregular hours. Gunbae has become a dividing point among VV sailors as to whether they like it or not. It's not the best Korean BBQ, not even close, but it is a fun evening. Honestly they could do away with the drinking game, but if you really don't want to participate in it, just ask the water to pour you a shot of water instead of the soju. 

 

In some ways The Galley is good because they prepare items to order, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's superior to a really good, well maintained buffet. The buffet we had on Sky Princess had much more variety and the quality of the food was consistently better than what we might get in The Galley. Celebrity and Holland America also run outstanding buffets with a lot of variety. In The Galley The Sweet Spot, the salad station, the Burger Bar and the Bento Boxes are the standouts for me. The tacos can be pretty good, the panini sandwiches are so-so. It's like any food hall, you have hits and misses. 

 

If you really like to cruise, you should give VV a try. It's a really really fun cruise line. We've done a lot of games and met a lot of really fun people on the ship. Don't miss Bingo with the Diva, it's a hilarious show and I think the Diva is always my favorite cast member other than the Foodie. 🙂

 

I watched your review on the Scarlet Lady last night and I loved how thorough you explained everything, great work.
I've been on Princess seven times, Carnival twice and Disney once. I really loved Disney and just the overall ambiance, food quality, entertainment, etc., However I have sailed the most with Princess so I have platinum status now and noticed that VV matches status so that is a draw. The added amenities in the base price seem a lot better than what you get anywhere else. On my most recent cruise with Princess I felt nickeled and dimed about every little thing, plus with their new changes to plus and premier packages I still don't feel the value in adding those. Also as you mentioned the photographers are getting more aggressive and I'm sorry I don't care about the artwork auctions and guess the value of this sculpture pitches.

Anyways I really appreciate the feedback, video, suggestions. Thank you so much.

[cantgetin]

As usual, Walter nailed it.  Our largest "end of cruise" credit card bill was $8, and that was because we decided to "max out" our onboard credit.  That feels a lot better than hundreds on other lines.  We've seen the food quality on DCL go up and down over 25 years; I was just a little worried as the food quality on our most recent VV did not seem as good as previously.  I don't know if it was different chefs or ???  In general, the longer the cruise, the  more we have liked it.  The crew is amazing, possibly because they have more generous perks than on other lines and are paid well (according to them) rather than being dependent on tips.  

The prices for VV "extras" have increased slightly, but are very much in line with other cruises.  I'm talking about spa and drink prices.  And remember that on VV, you tip is included.  

I totally agree with Walter on the restaurants.  DO NOT pre-judge them.  We didn't expect to like Razzle Dazzle (all that plant stuff) and it ended up as our favorite.  I thought The Wake would be my fav--no way. The food is "just ok" and the service is SLOW.  The view is lovely if you have the good tables.

Essentially, they have eliminated a lot of the thing we didn't like on other ships and have done a decent job with the new creativity.  

[CrazyTrain2]

Unfortunately the major cruise lines are in a debt hole.  It is going to take 5-7 years of over charging customers to get back to where it kind of was.  Currently, the accountants are running the show to keep them out of bankruptcy (maybe).  They will have about 18 more months of post pandemic fervor and after that people will be evaluating whether cruising is the value the industry is purporting.  Eventually, the Product managers will be back in charge and things may improve.

 

But there is a breath of fresh air - Virgin Voyages.  Truly a cruise line that will do things differently and also knows how to fail relatively fast.  Just knowing little Sally is not dropping a deuce in the pool is worth a significant uplift in the cruise pricing.  And let's not even get started with the hygiene habits of those who's heads don't make it to the sneeze guard.  

 

Adults acting like Adults - who could ask for more?

 

I'll be sheparding the VL from Barcelona to Miami in a few weeks and I cannot wait.

 

[CineGraphic]

5 hours ago, phatmanandy86 said:

On my most recent cruise with Princess I felt nickeled and dimed about every little thing, plus with their new changes to plus and premier packages I still don't feel the value in adding those. Also as you mentioned the photographers are getting more aggressive and I'm sorry I don't care about the artwork auctions and guess the value of this sculpture pitches.

 

 

We were "elite" with Princess, and sailed with them 4 times post-Covid.

3 of the 4 cruises were mediocre at best.

We saw the writing on the wall, and started looking for something new last summer.

Virgin's status match program made the choice obvious.

We ended up calling our TA from the beach club @ Bimini, asking her to cancel all of our Princess bookings, and cash-out any leftover future cruise deposits.

[cantgetin]

6 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

 

 

We were "elite" with Princess, and sailed with them 4 times post-Covid.

3 of the 4 cruises were mediocre at best.

We saw the writing on the wall, and started looking for something new last summer.

Virgin's status match program made the choice obvious.

We ended up calling our TA from the beach club @ Bimini, asking her to cancel all of our Princess bookings, and cash-out any leftover future cruise deposits.

Ditto in terms of Princess status.  Yeah, my travel partner commented that "Alaska was great, but Princess was just blah" after our last cruise with them.  We took a bit of time off from cruising while dealing with a medical issue, then decided to "take a chance" on VV when we started hearing that it was not the way the early ads made it look; that it was much more OK for middle age people.  And, on our first sailing, we booked 3 more.  Everything else was canceled....but no, we didn't do it from Bimini.

 

[CruisingWalter]

11 hours ago, phatmanandy86 said:

Also as you mentioned the photographers are getting more aggressive and I'm sorry I don't care about the artwork auctions and guess the value of this sculpture pitches.

Anyways I really appreciate the feedback, video, suggestions. Thank you so much.

 

Whaaaaaa?!?!?  You don't appreciate quality Olive Artwork?!?!?  It's SUCH a great value on a ship! 🤣 

 

Glad the tips were helpful.

[KPookey]

Sailed a few weeks ago on Scarlet Lady and The Wake was fantastic.  We had dinner and brunch there.

I will say that because they don’t generally get tipped, the restaurant staff are not as attentive as say Royal. Not bad service, just not the same feel. I didn’t mind because sometimes on other lines I feel much of what they do and say in in anticipation of a tip. The drinks weren’t pushed, many onboard likely had bar tabs and there were no tips at play. I appreciated that. I loved the free WI-FI, soda, cabin, water available everywhere, even the glass of champagne at sail away.  Watch the videos on You Tube, they are very accurate.  Just don’t expect the same cruise, no belly flop contest or sexy man competition.  I sail Royal often and I like it. Royal is like Virgins grandma. Virgin is modern.  

[cantgetin]

Other than The Wake, we had great service everywhere.  The Wake was VERY slow...perhaps in part because there were 3 managers standing around never doing anything while in RD, the managers were clearing tables and doing whatever else was needed to keep things efficient,

[Cloud9 Bob]

My experience on two VV cruises were very different. The first one was in June of 2021. I did the Dominican Daze itinerary. There were only about 1200 pax sailing. The experience was excellent. Sure the pool was too small and the entertainment sort of one sided, but I went into it knowing all that and had a fantastic time. The basic internet was more than adequate and the Wake was not as "slow" as they say it is now. The energy from the crew was new and bright and you could feel it.

 

Second cruise was in June of 2022. Pax load was near max at 2450 and I feel it made a difference. Itinerary was also shorter by a day (Key West) which may have played a part. Food was good, but not "as good'. Same with the service. Wake was much slower and the waitstaff made a lot of small mistakes. Not dealbreakers, but just not the same experience. I noticed the Scarlet night pool party was rowdier and noticed a lot more drunks. Security was there, but never controlled any of the out of hand types that push the envelope. I saw one fellow fall flat on his face on the hard section surrounding the pool and security just watched. His friends tended to him. I also noticed my cabin was a bit "shopworn" with stains on the rug and a faulty shower door.

 

I don't mean to paint a terrible picture, I still had a nice time...it just wasn't the same. I wrote about all this in my questionnaire, but never heard a thing from VV about it.

 

 

 

 

[lisabucsfan1]

@Cloud9 Bob are your dates accurate? I sailed in July of 2022 on a 50% capacity SL (they were not yet maxing anything out) and again in December of 2022, and it was not at all shop worn. I sailed in April and May of this year, and there were a few signs of wear on SL and it was closer to 100% capacity and would generally agree with your comments.

[Cloud9 Bob]

2 hours ago, lisabucsfan1 said:

 

@Cloud9 Bob are your dates accurate? I sailed in July of 2022 on a 50% capacity SL (they were not yet maxing anything out) and again in December of 2022, and it was not at all shop worn. I sailed in April and May of this year, and there were a few signs of wear on SL and it was closer to 100% capacity and would generally agree with your comments.

 

Sorry. You are correct. I sailed June of 2022 and again in June 2023. 😔

[Travel-and-See]

If you are in your 30's I think you will LOVE Virgin (I am as well, and also really like sailing on Celebrity).  I wanted to mention the entertainment.  The entertainment on Virgin is MUCH higher quality than other cruise ships. The Duel Reality Circus Show is the best thing I've ever seen on a cruise ship and I would absolutely pay to see it if it came to my town as a touring show. The musicians seem to rotate quite a bit on Virgin, but each sailing I've seen some really phenomenal talent vs. the "average" musicians on other lines. The Ship Show Dinner show is an excellent variety show as well. 

 

The guest entertainers are also quite good in my experience, it's more stand-up comedy type entertainment but that makes it feel more like going to a comedy bar and less like a cruise ship.

 

Also... having no teens and tweens running around the ship REALLY changes the atmosphere - trust me! haha. 

 

The whole vibe is very relaxed and chill.  

[chefchick]

On 8/23/2023 at 6:57 PM, CruisingWalter said:

 

Whaaaaaa?!?!?  You don't appreciate quality Olive Artwork?!?!?  It's SUCH a great value on a ship! 🤣 

 

Glad the tips were helpful.

The olive paintings look like something from the great masters compared to the ones that I can only describe as floating dog heads mixed with crashing waves on the shoreline….WHO is the hell buys these ugly things and hangs them in their homes?  (I apologize in advance if you are a fan of Thomas Kincaid or anything one can purchase from Park West)…I don’t claim to be an art collector, but I do know there isn’t enough “free champagne” on the entire ship to get me to attend one of those shows.