Some of you may be skeptical about virgin voyages and their, dare I say, lack of experience in the cruise industry. But this sultry, seductive ship may have you thinking about stepping out on your old lady of the seas.

So the question is- does this beautiful younger product live up to the hype?

While Max and I are not brand new to cruises, we were brand new to Virgin Voyages when we embarked on our trip in early October. Between the two of us, we’ve covered several bases across Royal Caribbean and similar cruise lines but I’m here to tell you, for better or worse, Virgin Voyages is not your traditional cruise line. Here’s what you can expect if you’re looking to book Virgin Voyages for your next vacation.

The Ship & Cabins

We were aboard Virgin’s first ship, The Scarlet Lady. Built in 2020, Scarlet Lady can hold 2,770 passengers and the best part? It’s adults only! With a focus on experimental cuisine and adults playtime, the amenities and facilities reflect a fun and different take on cruising, with a few caveats.

86% of the cabins have balconies and 93% feature ocean views, giving you endless rooms to choose from for your adventure without sacrificing the best part of cruising- waking up to the ocean.

The majority of the cabins are Sea Terrace rooms and they look a little different than you might be used to from a traditional cruise ship. Virgin is the first cruise line to create what they’re calling “transformational” rooms where cruisers can have a seating area by day and bed by night. While reviews of the comfort of the beds are mixed, it’s an interesting concept that gives you a place to hang out that’s not your bed. I can tell you from personal experience that if you are a sensitive sleeper or at least sensitive to the type of mattress you sleep on, this may not be for you. They don’t have thick mattress covers so you essentially sleep on a sofa cushion.

The bathroom is small, standard on most cruise lines, but well finished with great lighting and a small storage area. Keep in mind, they don’t offer amenities like body lotion and toiletries so be prepared to bring your own.

Given the small size of the rooms, the closet is an open space at the entrance separated with a curtain from the rest of the room. There is a mini fridge, water and two glasses. One of the perks of Virgin is the ability to bring two bottles of wine per person and you can slot them in right in the mini fridge.

My personal favorite part of the room is the balcony. There’s nothing quite like lounging out in a hammock on the ocean. This is the first cruise ship we have seen that has a hammock. While we did argue over who would get to lounge in the hammock versus the uncomfortable metal chair, it is a nice addition to the small space.

When it comes to suites, most of the rockstar suites are situated on the back aft, which, surprise, also looks a bit different. Rather than having the rooms tier down from the top, the aft tiers up so the suites have an overhanging awning on every patio. This may or may not be what you’re looking for in your suite as it makes the area quite dark, but the views are stunning. I will note that the suites do have standard beds so may be ideal for those sensitive sleepers who want to skip the sofa. Suites also have access to “Richard’s Rooftop”, a private area on the top deck for sunbathing and lounging.

Dining & Bar Tabs

One thing Virgin really tipped on its head is the restaurant experience. There is no buffet restaurant and no formal dining night on this ship. The ship features 5 “true” restaurants plus additional quick bite eateries like a pizzeria and hot dog spot as well as a food court style area that has replaced the traditional buffet. While it’s not technically a buffet because you cannot serve yourself, you do walk up to a counter and order from pre-prepared food that can not be amended (for example, you cannot ask for the cheese and ham sandwich without the ham).

There are a number of bars on the ship and keep in mind that the ship does not offer an all inclusive beverage option. Instead, they “include” some basic beverages like water and drip coffee and you can purchase bar tabs in advance to buy alcoholic beverages, juices and mocktails onboard. You scan your handy bracelet every time you order which is amazing because you don’t have to sign any bills, but do check your bill at the end of the day, because we did have some issues with charges for drinks we never received. Also note that you cannot access the café on board as part of your inclusions, only the restaurants and the Galley serve coffee that’s included.

If you’re not into food courts, they do have the 5 signature restaurants open for dinner. One downside to the dining on virgin is you can only pre-book each restaurant one time in advance. So if you want to eat at the same place every night, you can only do that by walking in, which is a bit of a bummer if you’re a creature of habit. We found the best food to be at The Wake and Extra Virgin, primarily due to the speed of service. While I can appreciate this may be a personal preference feeling, we prefer to savor our food and space out the meals but found that at most of the outlets, if you didn’t eat fast enough, your next course would show up anyway on your table within minutes of receiving the first dish. It was very rushed and disappointing. The Wake and Extra Virgin tended to have slightly slower service, which was just fine for us.

Guests can also go to Razzle Dazzle and The Wake for brunch. We much preferred The Wake thanks to the beautiful location and good options for breakfast. Razzle Dazzle is primarily vegetarian and we found the meat options to be not particularly good and typically came out cold.

Booking the restaurants

Entertainment & Booking Shows

As one would hope, an area Virgin Voyages excels in is having a lot of entertainment at all times. The ship does offer the traditional style shows in the evenings, but we found ourselves seeking out the small performances in the bar area in the center of the ship as they were incredible. The best part of the small shows is you did not need to sign up in advance, you could simply grab a cocktail and enjoy a small performance.

If big performances are your thing, they do have several shows that you can pre-book. We were able to get into one of the shows, Duel Reality, and it was interesting. While I wouldn’t call it Las Vegas quality entertainment, it was fun to experience. Some of the shows are harder to get into so I would recommend trying to book these as soon as you get on the ship. Pre-booking starts the day of departure.

Virgin also does have several parties that they promote heavily such as Scarlet Night and the PJ party. On both nights, people were dressed to impress in their outfits and people seemed to have an amazing time.

Fitness & Wellness

Fitness and wellness are a big focus for Virgin Voyages. There is a beautiful fitness area that circles the smaller of the pools on the top decks. There is a cardio room with up-to-date technogym equipment as well as a weights room on the other side with a good assortment of equipment. The space isn’t very big, but I was always able to find a treadmill. They do also offer a variety of fitness classes but you must pre-book them and I wasn’t able to get into a single one. It was pretty clear that unless you booked a suite, you are not going to any fitness classes so I would not count on that being an option if you book a standard room. It was disappointing as it was one of the things I was looking forward to. They do also have some outdoor fitness areas such as a boxing bags (but no gloves so BYOG), a basketball area and an outdoor track.

You can only book fitness classes starting the departure day so if you are able to book any, let us know your secret in the comments below :).

They do have a spa as well, but like the fitness classes, we weren’t even able to get in to take a photo because it was always full. If you’re looking to book a spa treatment, make sure to book EARLY and if it were up to me, do it on a port day to minimize how many people are in the wet areas with you.

Pools & Hangouts

The top deck is the main “hang out” area of the ship and is made up of 2 pools with seating on the pool deck and top deck. Before noon, the pool deck is generally quiet and relaxing with music playing from the DJ booth. There is ample seating on sea days thanks to the large top deck. After noon, the music turns way up and so do the cruisers. It becomes a real party so if you’re looking for the party vibes, this is where to spend your afternoon. If you are looking for a more quiet area, head to the aft where there are some loungers and a net over the aft.

Ports of Call & Excursions

We did a 5 night Riviera Maya cruise and stopped in two ports: Cozumel and Bimini. Virgin Voyages arrives to the ports around 8am and depart later than most cruise ships, around 7-8pm. The ship does not make any announcements throughout the week which is both fantastic and challenging. They do not announce arrivals or departures and they do not announce the time of arrival. They only post the information in the elevators so be sure to check in the morning of arrival into port to see what time you can get off, but it’s typically around 8:30am. We usually take the stairs and didn’t realize they wouldn’t announce the arrival so we ended up leaving the ship around 10am on the Cozumel day. We did not need a passport or ID to depart according to the Sailor Services person I asked, but I would recommend bringing at least one form of ID with you, even if it’s not necessary.

Late stays are incredible because while most cruisers are heading back to their ships at 2pm, we were able to stay at the beach club in Cozumel until 6pm. It was almost unnerving being the only people left at the beach club and of course the service plummeted immediately, but we spent most of the afternoon sitting in the warm water enjoying the silence. Keep in mind most of the shops in Cozumel close around 2pm when most of the cruise ships leave so if you plan to do any shopping, do it early. For more information on Cozumel, check out our guide!

The second stop in Bimini primarily focuses on the beach club run by Virgin Voyages. On arrival to Bimini, you board shuttles to Resorts World and have free access to the beach club. You can pre-book cabanas and VIP areas, but similar to the restaurant bookings, those are gone very quickly in the app. There are ample sun chairs on the beach and surrounding the pools and the water is beautiful. Your bar tab does work at the beach club so you don’t need to take cash with you. They serve lunch at the beach club and it’s essentially an elevated barbecue lunch.

Virgin does offer a number of excursions at their ports of call for a range in prices. We chose to venture off and explore on our own, but we saw many take part in the excursions. One thing we did hear from multiple people was to not do the pontoon excursion in Bimini because it takes place on the lagoon side which has somewhat murky water and was not very impressive. Whether you choose to book through Virgin or on your own, there are tons of taxis and shuttles at every port so it’s easy to do your own thing.

Is the shiny new thing worth it?

Overall, cruises are a great way to experience multiple destinations in one go and Virgin Voyages definitely disrupted the traditional cruise program. If you’re into formal dinner nights, traditional buffets and all inclusive beverage packages, this may not be the cruise for you. The right cruiser for this ship is someone who’s social, likes to be around a party atmosphere and is here for a good time.

It’s easy to see why many people have come to virgin and become lifetime sailors. With a unique approach to cruising, Virgin offers travelers a fresh, new experience that does away with the pomp and circumstance of other cruise lines.

If you’re looking for guidance or help booking your next trip be sure to reach out to us – we get some incredible deals on cruises and hotels around the world.