Pricing 25 and 26 absurd.

[steve thfc]

Have done 3 vv cruises now.  Resilant lady Portsmouth in rock star cabin. Greek isle and short Miami cruise in sea terrace xl..

 

Prices for 25 and 26 are absurd. Last cruise paid 3300 us for rockstar cabin with 900 obc. 4500 for Greece cruise, same 900 obc. 

 

Next year virgin wants 6800 for sea terrace from Portsmouth or ny for sea terrace normal. Over 8600 for seriously suite. Absurd pricing. It's not a luxury brand. 

 

Had 3 great cruises. Almost no complaints. The mattresses a bit hard in sea terrace cabins, having to make dinner reservations in advance a bit annoying. Menus boring after 3rd cruise..

 

At 8k plus I can get a suite in msc yacht club or ncl. With a butler. Dine without reservation. Drinks included..

 

I see this model not being sustainable for vv and I have booked other cruises for 25 and 26.

[cantgetin]

We got great prices 2022-2024.  The investors now want to see profits.  As long as ships are sailing full, which many are, they will keep trying to find their "price point."  
For the first time, when I got off the ship in 2024, I didn't have another one booked--combination of price and "been there, done that" in terms of menu, activities, etc.  Yes, they are making some changes in those areas, so time will tell.

[steve thfc]

Not going sail at high capacity at 6800 us for sea terrace with no drinks included in my opinion..I can book a suite in msc yacht club with butler and private everything and all drinks included for less than that. Luxury lines like seaborn, viking not much more..

[DCGuy64]

Like all players in a free market, Virgin knows that it can only increase prices to the point where people stop booking. I'm a capitalist, value is subjective so as long as VV keeps booking people in the cabins (and people are willing to pay), prices will fluctuate. If bookings fall due to prices being too high, then prices will fall, too. Fortunately, and this is also a function of the free market, cruisers have many options. We are also big fans of MSC. The Yacht Club is a great product and a very good value. I'd just say for reference's sake that we are very happy with the cruise we have booked on the Resilient Lady in 3 months' time. We are in a Sea Terrace and got $400 Bar Tab for about $3,000 (for two), 7-day cruise in the Southern Caribbean. I compared Royal, NCL, Princess and Celebrity and they were all more expensive than Virgin.

[basenji56]

Too many people are afraid to change. The only way to get a message to VV is by walking away when the prices are too high.  I agree that VV is not a luxury brand and those prices are much too high.

 

[steve thfc]

I paid 3200 for seriously rockstar cabin Sep Resiliant lady with. 600 drinks, 300 obc, plus 100 pp dbe included. No credit at all offered for 25 and 26..

[steve thfc]

Rcl is crap. I won't sail on rcl again even if it was a free cruise. 

[steve thfc]

39 minutes ago, basenji56 said:

Too many people are afraid to change. The only way to get a message to VV is by walking away when the prices are too high.  I agree that VV is not a luxury brand and those prices are much too high.

That's what I did. I told the future cruise this on board and wrote the same comments in a survey.

39 minutes ago, basenji56 said:

 

 

[DCGuy64]

48 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

I paid 3200 for seriously rockstar cabin Sep Resiliant lady with. 600 drinks, 300 obc, plus 100 pp dbe included. No credit at all offered for 25 and 26..

That sounds very much like a one-off, highly incentivized deal (nice that you got that!). I suspect that doesn't represent the normal offerings. Possibly the 25 and 26 itineraries are more reflective of normal prices. But you've already stated you won't sail them again, so I suppose that doesn't matter.

[steve thfc]

Sep 23. Greek isle cruise. Sea terrace xl. 4500. 600 drinks. 300 obc.. That is ok.  6,800 with no credit for sea terrace, 8200 for seriously suite is not gonna work. Can afford it. It's just not good value for money at those prices.

[DCGuy64]

30 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

Sep 23. Greek isle cruise. Sea terrace xl. 4500. 600 drinks. 300 obc.. That is ok.  6,800 with no credit for sea terrace, 8200 for seriously suite is not gonna work. Can afford it. It's just not good value for money at those prices.

$6800 for a Sea Terrace? Wow, that's definitely a lot. (I'm assuming this is for two people and a 7-day cruise?) Since it's still 2024, I'd be surprised if they didn't offer some incentives, though, given that the future cruises are 1-2 years away. We benefited from a $200 Bar Tab offer which was doubled to $400 because of a deal for Delta Skymiles members. Still, if it's not good value to you, there are definitely other options out there. BTW which cruise was it you were looking at?

Edited October 1 by DCGuy64

[steve thfc]

7 day Portsmouth, zebrugge, amsterdam, le verdon

7 day nyc Halifax, Boston etc. Brilliant lady .

 

Prices were identical. No drinks included, no obc. 500 discount if paid in full.

[DCGuy64]

2 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

7 day Portsmouth, zebrugge, amsterdam, le verdon

7 day nyc Halifax, Boston etc. Brilliant lady .

 

Prices were identical. No drinks included, no obc. 500 discount if paid in full.

Hmm, that's interesting. I see on VV's webpage they have the first itinerary for just under $4,000 (it's September 5-12, 2025, in a Sea Terrace, on the Scarlet Lady.) What dates were you looking for? There's also a NY > Halifax on the Brilliant Lady, September 15-23, 2025, for $4848 in a Sea Terrace.

I'm sort of interested in some of these possibilities for next year, so I was curious what they were charging. Maybe do some checking around and see what you can find. It seems like they have some good deals. Are your dates fixed?

 

[steve thfc]

43 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

Hmm, that's interesting. I see on VV's webpage they have the first itinerary for just under $4,000 (it's September 5-12, 2025, in a Sea Terrace, on the Scarlet Lady.) What dates were you looking for? There's also a NY > Halifax on the Brilliant Lady, September 15-23, 2025, for $4848 in a Sea Terrace.

I'm sort of interested in some of these possibilities for next year, so I was curious what they were charging. Maybe do some checking around and see what you can find. It seems like they have some good deals. Are your dates fixed?

 

Called travel agent also. Not much difference. Minimum cabin I'd want to be in is sea terrace xl.

[DCGuy64]

7 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

Minimum cabin I'd want to be in is sea terrace xl.

That's an important caveat. You can save a lot by getting just a regular Sea Terrace. Interestingly, though, the Sea Terrace XL is $5162 for the Portsmouth itinerary.

[steve thfc]

Still too much with no credit included. 

[steve thfc]

Regular sea terrace the bathroom is small.

[kaysha2004]

I priced one of the unique itineraries for 2026.  As a solo in a sea terrace, it was pricing at $19,000.  What a joke!  I could do a world cruise for a little more than that.  I just got off the Resilient a couple of weeks ago and did not book anything for the future.  I told the guy at the future cruise desk that until the prices come down, I'm not sailing with Virgin anymore.

[DCGuy64]

8 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

Still too much with no credit included. 

I think "too much" is relative. But I was surprised (pleasantly, I might add) that at least it wasn't the $6,800 figure you quoted earlier. Maybe that was something your travel agent found, but I couldn't replicate it using the Virgin website. I definitely agree that prices appear to have risen. Same is true on Norwegian, alas.

 

10 minutes ago, steve thfc said:

Regular sea terrace the bathroom is small.

Fortunately, my wife and I are small, too. (also relative) 😉 

It seems like your options are:

1. Pony up the extra $ for a VV Sea Terrace XL

2. Settle for a smaller cabin at a lower price

3. Sail on another line

 

[cantgetin]

VV seems to change their "deals" every month or two; is you don't like what you are seeing now, you can always check back to see if the next thing is better for you.  But I don't expect serious price drops as long as ships as sailing full or nearly so.

[Cloud9 Bob]

I understand the theory of supply and demand and "what the market will bear", but I also pay attention to how I feel about it. I have always felt that as a solo traveler that we are an afterthought...but that is okay. They can run their business as they see fit. I loved getting a great deal in 2021 for a 5 day Dominican Daze cruise (solo insider), but I realize as popularity rises, so does cost. I just think they have gone too far, too fast. My cruise with Virgin this month is my 4th and will be my last for awhile anyway. I don't feel comfortable with their pricing structure anymore. That's just my opinion, and your mileage may vary. I hope prices once again will eventually get a bit more reasonable due to the above theory. I'll be watching.

[jon81uk]

Did anyone see the initial pricing back in 2019/2020 before Covid cancelled everything. It was expensive compared to others, can’t recall exactly how much though. I think where they are moving towards now is where they saw the pricing at five years ago anyway plus of course the inflation of the last five years. Yes the product has changed quite a bit away from the party vibe planned back then.

 

To add, had a search and found an article from 2019 stating the launch prices were expensive https://skift.com/2019/02/14/virgin-voyages-wants-cruisers-to-pay-a-premium-and-like-it/

Edited October 1 by jon81uk

[Gretchendz]

I truly appreciate people feeling priced out, but this is happening on almost every cruise line, not just Virgin.

 

Did you see the recent  Carnival Corp report? They earned one billion dollars more year over year, and last year was their record. It was a 60% revenue increase.

 

Many lines are claiming more than 50% of their 2025 berths are already sold, and when I look at finding space for clients, I believe them. Especially Alaska.

 

I can't tell you how many people I have worked with who said "I'm going elsewhere" and then they price out similar sailings on other lines and they get more sticker shock. Then they say "OK I'm booking a land vacation" and then they say "Oops cruising is a better value."  Not too long ago I priced a very mediocre hotel in Frankfurt for 6 nights for a client--$2,000. No meals, no entertainment, no transportation.

 

It truly feels bad that the days of the really cheap cruise and piling up tons of OBC, but those days are gone...for now.  Some deals are still out there, but you got to really know where to look, and be willing to make compromises.

 

If enough people don't cruise, prices will come down.

[CruisingWalter]

22 hours ago, steve thfc said:

Prices for 25 and 26 are absurd. Last cruise paid 3300 us for rockstar cabin with 900 obc. 4500 for Greece cruise, same 900 obc. 

$3300 US for a Rockstar Suite is very old pricing. Nothing starts remotely close to that unless you're on a deeply discounted 4 night cruise anymore. 

 

When VV's latest investors came in, that's when you saw the rates spike. Even higher than they are now. The rates have actually backed down a little bit. But you are correct that the rates are too high for the product delivered. VV is now realizing having four identical ships with four identical experiences was not the right way to go. That's why Scarlet will have some tweaks made to her in drydock and the other four ships will most likely follow with changes to make each one slightly unique. 

 

At this time, we're finding better value on Celebrity, Princess and even the smaller luxury brands like Oceania and Azamara. Similar itineraries, same time frame, the pricing is almost always better. In the case of Celebrity there are fewer inclusions, but Princess, Azamara and Oceania have more inclusions than VV. Someone mentioned the MSC Yacht Club in this thread and that's a tremendous value over just about any cruise line. I personally think Princess with Plus and Premier are the best value in cruising right now outside the all inclusive luxury lines. 

 

We're hearing from many others who are moving on from VV due to the price point and the lack of perceived value. The 'Ikea beds,' the repeating itineraries, and the lack of fresh restaurant or menu ideas are the primary things pointed out.  And honestly that's a good thing to try out different cruise lines. There are many many ships out there to explore and unless you actually try them, you don't know what you don't know. When we sail Azamara Journey in December that will be our 12th cruise line in less than 20 years. 

 

We love VV and will be sailing Resilient Lady for the first time in November. But at the price point, it's not our 'go-to' cruise line. 

[steve thfc]

Virgin was coming to uk market in 2024 thus the low price and paid in full. 

Didn't expect that again. Would be ok at 4500 for sea terrace xl with credit. Not over 6k with no credit