Denise and I have just returned from a familiarisation trip aboard the Resilient Lady, Virgin Voyager's latest ship. Our cruise was 11 nights, sailing from Auckland to Melbourne with stops in Tauranga, Napier, Picton, Wellington and Sydney. It's hard to fit everything into a blog post, but here's our impressions of the ship and this new way to cruise. And at the end of the post, we'll share our overall thoughts on the ship and on Virgin's unique style of cruising, what we didn't quite vibe, and who we think would love being a Virgin Voyager sailor.
Virgin Voyages is a relatively new cruise line that has made several changes to the traditional cruising experience. One of the most significant differences is that Virgin Voyages is an adults-only cruise line, which means that the entertainment, food, and amenities are tailored to adult tastes. The entertainment on the ship is more mature, such as drag shows in the nightclub, and many events go on until later at night than on a normal cruise. The food offered is more adventurous and upscale, and the amenities offered around the ship are also different. Instead of waterslides and putt-putt, it’s yoga classes, tattoo parlours and fitness equipment.
Virgin Voyages has also taken a hard look at traditional things in cruising and made changes that will appeal to many. For instance, the cruise director, art auctions, and roving photographers are out. Instead of a buffet where everyone serves themselves, the cruise line offers a food hall with a number of spots to eat where food is either prepared as you order or plated for you if already made. There’s no main dining room or formal night. Instead, Virgin Voyages has several different sit-down restaurants that are all included with your fare. Gratuities are included in your fare as well, as is Wi-Fi service.
Virgin Voyages claims to offer a more all-inclusive feel on the ship, with more that aims to cater to adults that you simply wouldn’t find on other lines, and that's exactly what we experienced. This was more like sailing on a luxury yacht (albeit a huge one!) than on a traditional cruise ship with majestic staircases and multi-deck atriums.
The ship is full of discrete areas where you can chill out on your own or with friends. Even after 12 days on the ship, we were still finding areas that we'd not noticed before.
Virgin markets their cruises to the wellness community and their ships certainly cater for folks wanting to get/keep fit while on holiday. There are two well equipped Gyms and several fitness classes each day. I made regular use of the running track above Deck 16. It's only a 250m circuit, but being separate from the promenade deck meant that you didn't have to dodge all the strollers! Scattered around the ship are various sporting and fitness "spots" such as a boxing ring, gymnastics equipment, a basketball court etc. Plenty of opportunity to sweat off those delicious meals and drinks! Like most travellers, I went to the Gym on Day 1, and for the first time ever on a cruise, maintained my attendance until the end!
Being a new ship, the tech is great. For example, when you open your cabin door, the lights automatically turn on and the balcony curtains open up. There are electronic controls to set the mode lighting and for the Do Not Disturb and Make Up Room notices. Our cabin was compact, but adequate for what we required. The bathrooms are very small, however the shower is huge - we just loved the large waterfall shower head. There is plenty of storage space, including room under the bed to store your suitcases (as long as they're not the large hard-shell ones). Best of all though was the hammock on the balcony - it was so peaceful to lie there and watch the sunrise/sunset. We definitely recommend that where possible you consider a balcony cabin (called a Sea Terrace on VV), if only for this reason. There are a number of larger cabins available, called Rockstar and Mega Rockstar Suites, if you really want to splash out. These have a personal "butler", a stocked mini-bar and access to Richard's Rooftop, a plush lounge deck. As travel agents we had a behind-the-scenes tour of these areas, which was amazing. The pics below are of our standard Sea Terrace cabin.
Scoring a 10/10 from us was the exceptional service that we received from the friendliest crew that we've ever had. Virgin claims to recruit and pay their employees competitive wages and allows them to operate in a more relaxed work environment, and it shows. This includes allowing things like visible tattoos and informal chats with travellers, which we found normalised the crew/client relationship. While not discounting the service that we’ve had on other cruise lines, the staff there seemed more constrained and “robotic”. Our crew was very multicultural and diverse, but all were fluent in English. Unlike other lines, there's no Cruise Director in charge of entertainment. Rather, Virgin includes a Happenings Cast, a group of performers who intermingle with the Sailors and lead planned and impromptu events.
What can I say about the food! Virgin have really got this right, both in terms of the quality and in the way they deliver it. Most cruise lines have a large self-service buffet, a main dining room(s) and some speciality restaurants where you normally have to pay extra. We find that on longer cruises the buffet and dining room experience becomes repetitive, even if the menu does change. That's why we loved The Galley on Virgin, which included several (10+) eating options in a food court like atmosphere. We generally had our lunch there, and often grabbed one of the pre-made Bento Boxes of sushi, fruit, cereals, snacks etc to eat at the pool or in one of the many chill-spots around the ship. At night we would choose one of the speciality restaurants, free unless you order something really fancy. The Wake restaurant was our favourite, although we did enjoy all the others, including the Korean BBQ with its "3, 6, 9" drinking game! There's no dress code on Virgin ships, including in the restaurants. Some folk did dress up, but we generally stuck to shorts and casual wear (I'm a big fan).
The entertainment on Virgin is way different to that that we've experienced on more traditional cruise lines. It's definitely more up-tempo and immersive. Rather than the "one big show a night" theme on other ships, Virgin's shows are short and sharp and spread out over the night. You won't find a country singer in a British pub, or a crooner in a dark-panelled lounge on a Voyager cruise. Instead you get amazing dancers and acrobats performing amongst you in one of the club-type venues. The choreography was spot on, and the accompanying sounds and lighting effects were loud but still enjoyable. Each show probably only lasted an hour, then the crowd moved on to something else. There was usually a band or singer in the bar area around the main staircase, playing more sedate music.
In addition to the shows, the ship has a number of areas where you can make your own fun. The Social Club is probably the hub of this, full of fun games including a retro arcade, popcorn and hotdog stall and big screen TVs screening current sports events. We loved the outdoor playground, with see-saws and even a twister board!
It's impossible to recount our amazing experience with a few photos and some script, but I hope that I've done some justice to Virgin Voyager and the Resilient Lady. Here's a recap of what we loved:
- The crew and service is amazing!
- So too is the food and the eating venues.
- The ship is brand new and filled with tech (plus lots of USB and power points throughout the ship) and free wifi.
- The entertainment is so different, but so cool!
- And of course the hammock on our balcony!
Nothing is ever 100% to everyone, but I really have to wrack my brain to list things that didn't quite hit the mark? Maybe:
- Some of the entertainment was very "below the belt". It didn't offend me, but I can see how it might others.
- Our trip including an overnight stay in Tauranga, with a view of the port warehouses and factories.
- Our ship was only 40% full, so I guess that the small pool area may become crowded.
All-in-all though I rate this as the best cruise that I've been on. That's a big call, but well deserved. Would this cruise suit everyone? No it won't. I would caution anyone who is uncomfortable with diversity (in all its forms) against choosing Virgin. There's a lot of adult inuendo, so be prepared for that too. Also, if you booked this because you wanted to experience what's heavily marketed as traditional cruising, then you're going to be disappointed. You'd be better off cruising with someone like Royal Caribbean, Princess, Norwegian, Carnival etc. One the other hand, I think that people who would love Virgin would likely include:
- Anyone who's young at heart and has an open mind ( I would guess the average age on our cruise was mid-fifties?)
- Honeymoon couples, or those celebrating romantic milestones.
- Groups looking for a fun getaway.
- People who can make their own fun, rather than relying on a strict ship routine.
- Foodies!
Virgin Voyager isn't a cheap cruise, but it can certainly be a wonderful experience. We loved it and can't wait for our clients to experience that Virgin magic too!