Virgin Voyages

Athens (Piraeus)

Lisbon

Europe - All

Mediterranean

Europe - Eastern Mediterranean

Turkey

Croatia

Europe - Western Mediterranean

Europe - British Isles & Western

Spain

Europe River

Portugal

Douro River

Excellent

Very Good

Terrible

Average

Poor

Scarlet Lady

Valiant Lady

Resilient Lady

Unforgettable luxury experience. Dispels any myths about cruising

Tortola

Embarkment day was so so simple out of Athens.  I sailed on Scarlet out of Miami in 2022 and knew I HAD to travel on Virgin.  Once on board and settled in a bit I noticed a few crew engaging with the passengers in a playful, inviting, lively manner.  Just as it was on Scarlet.  Within hours the crew dispersed and never to be seen again.  No pool side partying, no presence in lobby's, no excitement for the remaining trip.  I missed their vibe.  THEY were MIA.  This cruse needed a bit of life blown into it.  Sure a performer was in a corner here or there BUT I expected crew to be more engaging.

Mix it up.....Thumbs down.  The mixologists deserved more attention than mere cheerleaders with bad mics.  We were there to learn HOW to create these cocktails, not taste pre-made watered down versions while sitting in the sun and unable to hear anything the mixologists shared.  Pattern after Scarlet and the mixology class in The Test Kitchen.  OUTSTANDING. The wine and tequila courses were superb.  Food, OMG did not disappoint.  Shows were mediocre at best.  Tape face good, Mind Manger good but the Persephone and Another Rose shows didn't highlight the acrobatics as much as sorry story lines and too much garbled acoustics reading script.  

Plenty of options for excursions.  Rooms are beautifully designed and very clean.  I WILL book another Virgin.  9.5 out of 10 isn't bad.

Subdued compared to Scarlet

Choice this cruise to experience something special for our 25th wedding anniversary. Looked forward to all the “special treatments” that were promised and “sold/advertised.”

Sadly, from the moment we arrived into port fir check-in…the unorganized issues and poor customer service began.

We paid extra for priority boarding and a special pre-boarding party …. Was rushed away and ignored when tried to explain our package …. Missed the pre-party and after having to wait over an hour to even be allowed to board, was pushed into ling regular boarding line until we finally found someone passing by to stop and listen and then finally past through to priority area. (Not a huge deal, but when you pay extra for something, you do expect to receive it!)

Once onboard, the customer service began to unravel day after day, experience after experience. Including not receiving the balcony booked (1 1/2 years in advance). 

Was hurt on first excursion. Tried to see medical simply to get an ace bandage to help support jammed weaken knee (so as to not fall while walking around on board ship). Found medical closed, and then once begged staff to help get in touch with them, was told by nurse that it wasn’t truly an emergency (I wasn’t bleeding or dying) therefore if they came up on their downtime, we’d have to pay for all services render including the $1.18 fee for the ace bandage! (Just uncaring and unprofessional. 

Specialty restaurants that are advertised “all-inclusive” are not. Food very good, but not “far above” other companies. Again, incentives that you expect to receive from the price of cruise - not given. 

Entertainment: TACKY and not enough choice for all on board. If you feel you have to be drunk to enjoy the selection and maybe get entertained….that is not top notch entertainment. 

These are just a few of the issues we encountered while cruising with Virgin.

Very let down by Virgin….

Sad Experience - Do Not Recommend 

We course Virgin as it was adult only 

A cruise was never something we wanted to do as we did not like the idea of buffet meals and the formality of cruising.

Virgin does things differently, and like a well oiled machine.

The staff to sailer ratio is great.  There were approximately 2300 sailors, 1150 staff when we sailed.

The age of the staff is young, which was wonderful as we are in our 60’s and not as app savvy as we probably should be.

There were a few glitches with the app that the staff were extremely helpful and happy to help us with.

The restaurants available were above average for taste and variety.  The only difficulty was trying to get a reservation for them at a time that worked for us.  Eating at 10 pm was really not a great option for us. Book a reservation as soon as they are available on the app, otherwise you are left with whatever might be left. The Pink Angave is the most difficult to get a reservation for.  It is a wonderful restaurant and I totally understand why it books up quickly.

The galley was a nice feature if you wanted to eat most anytime of the day or eve.

Lots of great entertainment at various venues

If you wanted a more quiet area the Sip bar was the place to go.  Jaime was a fabulous bartender.

The parties were many and inclusive for everyone   Most ended at 11 pm and moved aft to continue 

If you wanted to party all night you could, but we were located forward, right over The Red Room.  Lots of music and good times.  Loud until exactly 11pm when it stopped and moved aft also.

If I have any criticism it would be that there was not a coffee station for the forward cabins.  We were on deck 8, forward.  If you wanted a coffee you needed to get to the galley on deck 15 aft.  Not a big deal, but I choose to have to pay for my morning brew on deck 7 forward instead of getting free coffee on deck 15 aft.

When we spoke with the staff they were very happy working for Virgin.  One staff member actually said that Virgin treats them like “humans”. Very powerful!  Virgin is not perfect, but nothing is, but they seem to be doing something right to have happy staff that don’t feel a need to search for another employer.

We did pay for the Behind the Scenes tour.  Well worth every penny.  We learned so much about how a massive vessel operates and the coordination required to function smoothly.

The cabin we booked was an upgrade. The sea view with a large balcony with a hammock. Fabulous!

Your suitcase will fit under the bed. Nice touch 

Lots of storage and room with a queen sized bed

The fob system Virgin uses is very efficient.

Sometimes it was next to impossible to book a tender to go ashore.  Either difficulties with the app itself or they were completely booked instantly. The staff, again, were extremely helpful with this and we didn’t really wait too long to go ashore.  Just a bit frustrating to try and book a tender and nothing would be available until noon.  We would just go to the tender station set up and go ashore on a standby method which did work.

My only other nit picking I would mention is the dispensers in the shower. They were an old pump style bottle. Only an annoyance, but a very small thing that Virgin could approve upon.

Overall, as never having even thought of a cruise before, Virgin has spoiled us and we would definitely sail with them again.

1st time on a cruise

This was my first cruise. The food can’t get any better, it was exceptional. The service was top notch.  The cabin was plenty roomy and comfortable, and the sea terrace balcony was lovely. I enjoyed all of the ports, the weather was beautiful. My favorite Shore Thing was Ephesus.  The shows were not my cup of tea. Rife with Sexual jokes, pointless games, and topics about ancient gods they were both strange and boring. I’d prefer some more traditional show options. We’ve got our next voyage booked but will likely skip the shows! The live music was okay, some better than others. The dance parties were not really for me either. 

The shore things were great. We did a walking tour in Santorini but learned so much culture and history from our guide. We toured Lindos, Ephesus, and did a walking tour in Mykonos. Aside from the nightly entertainment the voyage was incredible.

Fantastic Voyage and ports

Very positive

- Impeccable room cleaning service

- Waiters service at the various food points (e.g. The Galley deck 15)

- Food level and quality (for example in all stations on bridge 15, or pizza and ice cream on bridge 6 and in all restaurants). A big variety for breakfast, lunch and dinner and snacks.

- Kindness and availability of all staff (in restaurants, cleaning service, service, gym)

- Sports activities (the 3 trainers are very good and planned many activities)

- Gyms (Top Gym for weights, cardio and crossfit, Deck 17 for outdoor yoga, running track)

- Truly engaging shows and entertainment.

To be improve:

- The App is sometimes unstable. Sometimes it crashes. If you don't use wifi most of the functions don't work. It is designed to only receive the passport, so it does not work with the identity card, even if the customer is European and the cruise is in Europe.

- Organization of balcony cleaning: With a message on the bed we were informed that the cleaning would be done the next day, but without further notice it was postponed by a day. Different day and hours.

- All food were very good but just to further improve the sushi station offers only Norimaki (different types) but for instance I would increase the variety including all kind of sushi, sashimi, tempura etc..

Wonderful experience we already booked a deal for the next cruise.

+ Food is slightly above average from other cruise lines

+ Bars and live music mostly good

+ 4-month old ship so everything is in good condition

+ Greek islands itinerary is amazing except for Mykonos 

- Below average service, when we used the app to ask for a wine stopper for our champagne bottle, they advised us to "stick a spoon in it"

- Sterile corporate decor, some common areas feel like a hospital or office building

- Very view places to see ocean

- Poorly designed ship, difficult to navigate with lack of directional signage 

- App works only 50% of the time but is 100% necessary to have an enjoyable experience

- Lack of variety in entertainment, most shows include homoerotic dancing to top 40s pop music and/or a drag queen

- Limited things to do on Sea Days that don't involve exercise classes, trivia, or listening to a DJ

- The $50 per person up-charge event for a "craft cocktail competition" was not worth 6 half sized pre-mixed syrupy "sex-on-the-beach" style cocktails

- We were physically abused by entertainment performers on multiple occasions. You are standing for most of the performances and there are no employees, floor markings, or signs directing you where to stand. As a result if you happen to be in a performer's way they will physically shove you. This resulted in my wife almost being knocked to the floor. I witnessed this happen to others throughout multiple shows in two different venues. When I brought this up to the head of security, they reviewed the footage and told me there was nothing they could do because it didn't show "malicious intent". Maybe they will seriously injure and elderly person soon and be sued into oblivion. 

I've been on Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Holland, and Disney cruises. Overall I'd have to rate this cruise line a -5/10.

Physically Abused by Entertainment Performers

Being a single, gay traveler over 45 I put a high value on an adults only cruise and the destinations were great (croatia to greece).  However, having been on multiple cruises including Celebrity, Royal Caribbean (all Atlantis charters) and also being an owner of an upper scale restaurant in Chicago and global traveler I believe my view is not bias and will be honest.  My goal with this cruise was to see new places, have fun and be on a new ship.  I purchased an XL balcony room.  When I arrived to my room, they put me in a handicap room.  The ship was only 60% full, and it was like an act of god to get them to put me in a room of the same category.  I was on the 13th floor they moved me to the 8th.   That night I return to my room and it was hot and a loud howling wind noise.  I had to first call sailor services, who then sent house keeping to verify I wasn't lying who then called maintenance who tried to fix the broken balcony door.  Once again I was moved to another room, only after them offering to "allow me to sleep in another room".   I told them I was not returning to that room   and sleeping in another.  CRAZY!  their customer service training is terrible. The ship may be newer, but it does have that 70's rocknroll theme which is tacky and very plain.   It made me feel like I was in a kids room.  The ET on the ship was not good except for their show persephane which was only done on the last night. The activities on the ship were the same every day!  And when at sea they offered a behind the scenes tour of the ship for $200.  That is crazy.  You own the ship, it doesn't cost a 3rd party tour operator.  I can understand charging something.  But $200!  I had an unused bar tab credit of $139.00 and they charged me for it against my total bill!  So my advice is use up the credit. The excursions were also boring and the same at every port.   An atv tour, walking tour, etc. I just hired a driver at the ports and did my own thing.  The flexibility of food options were good, but the service and quality of food in the restaurants was just average.  Their ship App also did not work well.  I reserved a seat for a show and when I checked in, the woman said who are you and showed me her tablet that had five different people assigned to my room, of which none we me.  I was not impressed at all.  I wish other cruise lines would offer adults only cruises and they would get a new customer with me.

Good - No Kids & Itinerary, Bad - a lot other things

We chose this cruise because we had been on a shorter VV cruise last year and liked the look of the ports of call.

I would say though 2 weeks was too long and the ship became very small.

The pool area too small and not enough sunbeds on sea days.  The gazebos took up a whole side of the ship and unused so a waste of space.  Also the weird fixed quirky things like a see saw and nets, a waste of space too.

Only 2 pools and 4 hot tubs available on the main deck area so when full and a sea day, feels very small and overcrowded.

Music playing the whole time, there was not one place on the ship that had no music playing which was just too much!

Entertainment seems they are trying too hard to be 'Diverse'.........  very  'in your face'  We didn't enjoy at all

Galley restaurant becomes same same and sadly because each station runs differently you do not always end up with your whole order at the same time, for example your bacon comes separate to your poached eggs etc.......  The salad bar was our favourite.

I can recommend The Wake, and we enjoyed Extra Virgin too.  Another Rose the food was Ok, the show a bit weird and we found they poured you with booze to enhance the experience.  We only did that once as well as Gumbae and Razzle Dazzle.  Pizza made a nice change

Considering its Virgin, we expected more choice of fitness classes.  All they offered was Hiit, Spin, Bunjee and Yoga.  All get booked up quickly.

VV is a different way of cruising and certainly not for everyone.

2 weeks was enough

Friends asked me to join them and I'm so happy I did! The ship was practically new and magnificent! The food was outstanding, the crew was over and above, and the excursions to all ports of call were stunning. The shopping on board and in the ports was perfect. We thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment. The spa was clean and friendly. The pool was gorgeous, although always busy so we did not actually use it. Our friends did enjoy the hot tub. They had a Rock Star Suite which we all enjoyed for its vast terrace space and views. Quite simply, there was not enough time in the day to do as much as we would have liked. Let's just say it left us wanting more so we will have to come back! I would do this tour again in a heartbeat... I only wish it had been a 10-day cruise! (The only downside was that by the last couple of days, we all had money available on our bar tab that we could not spend as the wine and champagne was all extremely low in supply. I wish we had been offered a refund.)

Absolutely Epic! 

My honest critique of my first cruise and also my first cruise with Virgin Voyages can really be summed up in 3 areas; itinerary, financial, and on board experience.

Firstly, the itinerary included Greece, Croatia, and Montenegro. I loved every second of it. The cities were historic and beautiful, but also very compact and walkable, which was great for the limited shore times. All of our ports were easy to navigate and ground transportation was well facilitated and organized. I never felt like I had to wait too long or that I was in a hurry to make it back or risk being left behind. There were two full sea days built in as well, which gave me plenty of time to explore all the ship had to offer, which was a lot. If I had to offer a critique, it would be that more late evening or even overnight ports could be included to enjoy the nightlife, but many other itineraries do.

Secondly, the financial experience was more of a mixed bag. I really appreciated the different options for discounts and rates that Virgin Voyages offered for this cruise. I was able to secure a better rate by allowing the cruise line to pick my cabin location, although I chose the type of cabin, they offered a 50% second sailor discount as well as $600 bar tab, so that was well appreciated. I added an additional $300 bar tab which resulted in another $50 free, so for the cost of $300 I had $950 to spend on board. That's about where the convenience ended. My cabin mate and I each had credit cards on file and each paid for an excursion. I was somehow charged for the excursion she had originally paid for and the excursion I paid for was later cancelled. We ended up cancelling the errantly charged excursion and when both refunds were issued, they were split in half between us rather than going solely to me since my credit card had been charged for both. It got resolved with sailor services, but it was annoying to have to deal with mid-cruise. 

Similarly, we were under the impression that our bar tab was going to be for the cabin, but for some reason all the charges my cabin mate was making on board were being charged to her credit card, which resulted in another discussion with sailor services to move those charges to my account. They suggested merging the accounts so that my cabin mate's on board wristband would basically just be a clone of mine, which we agreed to, then they promptly failed to merge the accounts, which resulted in more charges needing to be moved to my account a few days later, as well as an actual merge of the accounts. I asked if this has been an issue before with having two cards on file per room and they said that it has been an issue, which makes me wonder why it hasn't been addressed before now. Overall, the issues were resolved, but it seems like it would be a fairly straight forward thing to set up before people board the ship. Also, there were several issues with the app glitching, but I hear those are pretty common and my app worked fine most of the time.

Lastly, the on board experience was great. Having all the specialty dining options included as well as tons of options in The Galley all day and into the late night were awesome. We really wanted to maximize our time on land so our dinner reservations were always fairly late, but we never felt rushed or that we were the last to leave. The staff were all very helpful and thoughtful. Our room was clean and comfortable. All of the fun spaces on the ship were different and all offered something unique.

The entertainment on board was also awesome, but I didn't like that there were several themed parties that weren't included in the pre-boarding information, so I missed the opportunity to dress up and feel properly included. Other passengers that did know, found out either from sailing on the ship before or from Facebook groups, but I really think Virgin Voyages should let first time cruise passengers know, in case they want to participate.

If I had to rate them all out of ten, I'd give itinerary a 9/10, financial a 6/10, and on board experience an 8/10. I'd rate my overall experience a 7.5/10. I did put forth a deposit on a future cruise because I want to see if I will have a different experience knowing what potential pitfalls may await. I really did have a wonderful time and met some great people. Nearly everyone I spoke to that had sailed with Virgin Voyages before had sailed more than twice with them, so clearly there's something worth coming back for. I know the cruise line is very new and I hope they get the background financial issues and app issues worked out to make the experience better for customers.

Filters

1-10 of 188