Virgin Voyages Introduces 'The Sailing Club' Perks Program

(1:22 p.m. EDT) -- Virgin Voyages will be rolling out its first full-blown past passenger loyalty program in 2023. And while the formal debut of the program is still a way off, the cruise line is rolling out a temporary perks program for the remainder of 2022, known as "The Sailing Club".

For the remainder of the year, two sets of perks are offered for Sailors, as the cruise line calls its passengers, who have sailed with Virgin in 2021 and 2022.

The first perk, dubbed Deep Blue Extras, offers a collection of extras, including one free Shake for Champagne (a bottle of Champagne delivered to your stateroom), anytime boarding and premium Wi-Fi, laundry services and exclusive cocktail parties. Deep Blue Extras are available for qualifying passengers that sail aboard Virgin Voyages from September through December 2022.

The second perk is called Red Hot Booking Bonus Months and applies to bookings made between August 30th and November 15th, 2022, though bookings made with Future Cruise Credits aren't eligible. This benefit gives passengers special on-board spending perks and chances to win experiences across the Virgin family. Additionally, passengers who book during this time period will also get $200 in onboard credit.

In order to qualify for these special Sailing Club perks, passengers must fall into one of three categories: Sea-Blazers, Sea-Rovers and Match & Sea More Sailors.

Anyone who sailed with Virgin Voyages in 2021 will be considered a Sea-Blazer, and passengers in this category are also entitled to a $125 Bar Tab Bonus for life. Sea-Rovers are passengers who sailed twice on Virgin in 2022 and will also earn a $100 Bar Tab Bonus for two years. Finally, passengers enrolled in other cruise and select airline travel rewards programs are eligible for the Match & Sea More Sailor status, meaning Virgin Voyages will match their rewards status. Passengers in this category will be granted Sea-Rover status, including the $100 Bar Tab Bonus for two years.

Virgin Voyages is also introducing a token system to track all qualifying spend and apply it to future status levels. All of the money spent with the cruise line since inception will be counted and tallied as Tokens and every dollar spent during the Red Hot Booking Bonus Months -- up to four Tokens per dollar for Sea-Blazers, and three Tokens per dollar for Sea-Rovers – will contribute to an individual's future status. These Tokens will fast-track passengers to higher tier once the permanent rewards program is unveiled.

"This brand was built on innovation, so we’re taking a truly unique approach and developing a program that will give Sailors a taste of what’s to come while rewarding those who’ve supported the brand all along,” said Nirmal Saverimuttu, president and chief experience officer with Virgin Voyages..

Additionally, Members of the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club and Virgin Red in the US can redeem their Virgin Points on sailings from Miami and Barcelona on both Scarlet Lady and Valiant Lady.

Virgin Voyages' full rewards program is is scheduled to debut in 2023. Virgin Voyages' Scarlet Lady was selected as Cruise Critic's Ship of the Year for 2021.