Virgin Voyages

Virgin Voyages wins on so many levels. Joe and I first went on a Virgin Voyage in March of 2024 on the Scarlet Lady and immediately loved the vibe. There is something so different about ADULT ONLY atmospheres. The comedy is better, the food is better and the atmosphere is less chaotic. I recently returned with our youngest daughter on the Valiant Lady and a girl's trip was perfect as well. The ships in the Virgin fleet are the same as far as the basics but the shows and decor can vary. I loved feeling immediately at home with the layout..ie, I knew how to immediately get to fantastic made to order pizza at embarkation then grab my first ice cream of the day. Followed by the sailaway party and of course the first night's PJ Party.

YES, I took a bite before we even got the photo, taste testing is required.

    A couple of difference I love with Virgin Voyages are the drink packages and lack of clothing expectations. First, unlike other cruise lines that offer "be wasted all week" drink packages that would leave me sick and require all adults in the same room to have the same outrageously expensive drink package, Virgin does drinks BETTER. First, their regular, free, drip coffee is good. Not so bad you feel the need to go buy coffee on board. Second, they include soda, tea, drip coffee. juices and water. Finally, you can purchase drinks for reasonable amounts ($6-$15) and you can prepay with a bar tab for the entire room to share, this comes with a bonus if booked in advance. For instance, prepay $200 and get $25 bonus added. This can be used for anyone in the room and for gourmet coffees, (really good, alternate milks, made correctly and only $4-6) pressed juices, smoothies, non-alcoholic and alcoholic cocktails. 

    Next up, dress code for dining onboard. In my real life, I am a teacher. I do not dress up for life and really loath packing to be "fancy". On Virgin Voyages you can wear whatever you like, every night to every venue. Sure, this is likely true of most cruise lines but on Virgin they mean it, at any dinner you will see cocktail gowns and suits next to shorts and a t-shirt with no one paying a bit of attention. They have a red night that you can be dressy red, funny red, matching red or not red at all. One night they have an event to "be fancy" but again that is up to interpretation and all are welcome.

Lots of amazing onboard activities if you like to stay busy. We joined in on Country Line Dancing, Latin Dance Party, Summer camp crafts, sunrise yoga, comedians and shows. There were trivia shows all over the ship, extensive board games collections, an open and free arcade, casino, multiple locations to lay out and soak in the sun, pools, spas, and don't forget BINGO with the Drag Queen!

When booking Virgin all of this+gratuities are included! 

The food is amazing because there is no need to cater to children and all ages. There is also NO BUFFET which makes me ridiculously happy. You go to multiple kiosks and order exactly what you want and it is served up fresh and untouched by other cruisegoers. The pizza parlor on board is great and we returned several times. The ice cream shop has consistent flavors then some changing daily, stop by as often as you'd like. The social club has wings, popcorn, hot pretzels, candy and treats. There are five "sit down" restaurants on board for dinner with several serving breakfast and brunch. You make reservations prior to your trip but they were all 9pm because we booked the trip so late. Once on board (after stopping to eat) we went to the Razzle Dazzle restaurant on the first day to meet with concierge to fit us in to the earlier times that are held back to meet the needs of those with less tech savviness or those of us that were late to booking. We got everything moved to workable times with no issues at all. None of the restaurants are a surcharge.

When you are ready to book your ADULT only cruise to the Caribbean, Europe and Greece let us know and we will take care of all the details! Dillontravels@gmail.com

Pre-Cruise Hotel Stay:  What's the Logic?

Most cruises we book sail from and return to a US port in Florida.  The easiest way to reach these cruise ports is catch a quick flight into the port city.  Others, who either want to save a little cash or are "flight-adverse", opt to drive.  Either way, if we booked the cruise for you, there is a high likelihood that I mentioned at some point getting a pre-cruise hotel.   

Why are we trying to get you to spend more on "another night"?

It's easy to see why you might tsk at the suggestion you spend another $200 or $300 on your trip just so you can stay the night near the port before your cruise but there is good reason for this. 

While you may have always flown at the exact time your airline printed on your boarding pass, we've taken enough trips to know that a 6:15 am departure might result in you getting to your destination at noon the following day.  This typically isn't a huge issue unless after you land, your plan is to grab your bags, catch your transfer and scurry to the port with adequate time to check-in and board the ship.  

(fake boarding pass but the airline was NOT CHOSEN AT RANDOM!)

Oh, you're going to drive, cool.  Mechanical issues, foul weather, accidents and more might stymie the best laid plans.  Either way, hoping to roll up to the port on the day of the cruise might not be the best choice.  

They ain't waiting!

Typically, a cruise line will depart the port between 4:00 - 6:00 pm.  And, they will leave with OR without you.  So, what does that mean for you if you're not in your cabin, or more likely, somewhere gorging yourself on shrimp cocktail and cookies when the ship steams outbound?  It means you have paid for a really cool vacation that you might not be taking.

What does it look like when that happens?

You pace back and forth, trying to figure out if you're going to cry or throw up or both.  Seizing all your strength, you (or your travel advisor) scramble to make plans to get you to the next port of call and "catch up" with the ship.  No problem, right?  You just need to arrange, at the last minute, one-way flights to where ever the ship is headed.  Hopefully you have packed your credit card and passport because while you can sail to the Caribbean without a passport, you can't fly there without one.  No passport?  Well, this is the end of your Caribbean cruise. 

But luckily, everyone has a passport.  Let's hope that the ship hasn't altered the course and substituted the port where you'll soon be catching your flight to with alternative port.  This does happen due to weather or scheduling conflicts.  Now, you'll need a place to stay for the night until you can get on the plane.  Don't forget to complete the proper immigration forms online in order to arrive by air.  Oh, one way flights into a foreign country can be a real bear because if you're not leaving (or at least don't have any proof), you might need a visa.  Before you catch up, you've got two or three more meals for the family.  Finally, once you've landed at the destination, you'll need to get to the cruise port.  Get that credit card out again! 

I have had two sets of clients miss their ships departure.  Both had flight delays leaving LAX for a Hawaiian cruise.  Lucky for them, no passports are needed to fly from Honolulu to Maui!  I was able to help with the flights, hotel, and transfers.  But, the clients were out the cost of those expenses and missed the first night of their cruise as well as the full day in that first port of call.  And this is all only possible if we can find those last minute flights and overnight hotel.  Side note: both families had travel insurance and after some work on the part of the client, they were able to get reimbursed.   

Is that hotel sounding more appealing now?

You're right, this is sort of a scare tactic.  I guess it's so scary that I've scared myself into this same practice of arriving the night before for my own cruises.  I understand not wanting to spend extra money.  But, most hotels can be had for a couple hundred bucks.  If you'd like our help (it's free to use our agency), we'll look for someplace with a free airport shuttle and maybe even a free breakfast, too.  Plus, many hotels that are located near the cruise ports have cheap transfers ($10-15/passenger) that can be arranged the day you arrive.  If you're shipping out from Port Canaveral, FL, we work with GoPort who bundles a hotel and all of the transfers into one easy package.  

If you don't mind flying out late, there is a good chance you can find a good deal on those red-eye flights basically making the cost of pre-cruise hotel a moot point.  Either way, I'd say a few hundred bucks is cheap insurance to almost unequivocally avoid missing that sail-away food fest while sparing you any anxiety of not being there on time.

~Joe

Let us know how we can help you with your next trip by emailing dillontravels@gmail.com.  You can also visit our Facebook page or website.