Finally bit the bullet and booked on Celebrity.

[bcwife76]

Anyone considering Virgin Cruises? Tom McAlpine who launched DCL left to start up Virgin Voyages. Only 18 and older on that line. I'm intrigued.

Absolutely!! Friends of ours are currently on a b2b2b on Scarlet Lady after doing a b2b on Valiant Lady in December and they are HOOKED. They are avid Disney cruisers but I don't see them going back now (their youngest is now 19). DH and I are dying to try Virgin but have no one to watch our kids (who are early teens) so we will have to wait a couple more years before we don't need them to stay with someone so we can try Virgin alone

 

[tidefan]

Absolutely!! Friends of ours are currently on a b2b2b on Scarlet Lady after doing a b2b on Valiant Lady in December and they are HOOKED. They are avid Disney cruisers but I don't see them going back now (their youngest is now 19). DH and I are dying to try Virgin but have no one to watch our kids (who are early teens) so we will have to wait a couple more years before we don't need them to stay with someone so we can try Virgin alone

Just off of Valiant Lady today. Had an amazing cruise. Food was excellent to amazing with one exception (Test Kitchen is not our thing). It’s a different vibe, but lots of fun.

But they had me at the ice cream…

 

[Docwheeze]

We had children later in life than most. We sailed other lines many years ago and liked them, but we switched to DCL when we had kids. It turned out that we really loved it as well, so it was a win/win. That being said, we are starting to really tire of several things on DCL and thinking about branching out. We're doing RC in a month, but we didn't love that before kids and not sure we will now. We are looking hard at giving Princess another shot (first time with kids) and Celebrity our first shot. My concern is how many kids will be on those lines and if the kids will enjoy them. When we sailed Princess 15 years ago everyone was very old and didn't seem to like the kids aboard, and I would prefer to avoid that tension if possible. Does anyone have any views/opinions on this? All this Celebrity talk has me itching to give them a shot.

We are similar to you as we had our son late in life who is now 5 yo, We previously sailed Celebrity and Oceania primarily as higher standard of food than RCL, Princess, NCL (purely an opinion). We have taken 2 cruises with RCL and one with HAL (grandparents' choice). Food on RCL was mediocre on the first cruise so purchased unlimited specialty dining on RCL which was ideal as to have the range of activities for the little guy and the food for us. He loved the kids clubs on RCL which has a lot of crafts based activities. We felt guilty about "abandoning" him the kids clubs but when we went to pick him up before the end of the session, he would yell from the back area to "go away and come back later" in a nice way. Because of this experience, we booked a Disney cruise this Spring knowing he will enjoy the Kids clubs. I think either Celebrity, RCL, or Princess will be fine but may need to upgrade your restaurants at least on RCL. There are always some kids on these lines as both RCL and Princess are oriented to families. We had about 30 kids on our mid October cruise. The tension is more likely to occur on an upscale cruise line like Celebrity so you have to choose what works best for you. Hope you and your family have a great time!!

 

[Dug720]

Anyone considering Virgin Cruises? Tom McAlpine who launched DCL left to start up Virgin Voyages. Only 18 and older on that line. I'm intrigued.

I keep looking at it, but it seems a little party/riqsue for my tastes.

 

[auntlynne]

 

[Dug720]

Same here. This is my main reason for sailing Disney.

I do like Celebrity - especially the single staterooms with Infinite Veranda on Edge Class. Those cabins are AWESOME!

 

[bunnm09]

We just cruised Celebrity. Our first cruise. As much as I’d love to cruise DCL, the cost is so much more! We loved everything about our cruise (concierge class was fabulous) have fun!

Yeah, I haven’t read this entire thread yet but the reality is DCL is really approaching not being worth what they charge. It’s gotten incredibly expensive if you’re traveling with more than just 2 adults.

Everyone complains about the WDW price increases but to me DCL is where it’s gotten way out of control

 

[beckicnm]

I do like Celebrity - especially the single staterooms with Infinite Veranda on Edge Class. Those cabins are AWESOME!

I am sailing in one of those in November! Glad to hear it.

 

[tidefan]

I keep looking at it, but it seems a little party/riqsue for my tastes.

It can be, but a lot of those things are easy to stay away from if you don't want to go. Actually, on our Valiant Lady sailing this past week, we saw both Duel Reality (which, IMHO, is the best show at sea) which is not risqué, so to speak, and the Miss Behave show, which is, but I have to say, that it may have been one of the most entertaining hours I've ever spent at sea.

I am not going to sugar coat it. Virgin is VERY different from other cruise lines. However, on our sailing, the average age was 47 according to the staff and it is quite a diverse group. You will not feel out of place at all (or at least we didn't). Having no kids on board does make a big difference, but it's not just in the ways you think, as yes, they can push the envelope a bit more on shows, etc. It shows in the overall vibe of the ship, hard to explain, but it creates a very relaxed environment. Here are a few things I'd consider after 3 VV sailings (2 Scarlet Lady, 1 Valiant Lady):

• Food is by far the best of any cruise line we have been on. That includes Royal, Carnival, Princess, HAL, or Disney. There is no main dining room. Everything is a set restaurant that is cooked fresh to order.
• The Ice Cream is all gelato-style and is amazing
• Entertainment on this past Valiant Lady cruise has definitely improved over our prior 2 Scarlet Lady cruises. I think that they are still finding their way, but there were many more activities on this cruise than I remember as well as more live music than was on our past cruises. Duel Reality is amazing, and as I stated earlier, the "Miss Behave" show was about as crazy an hour that I've seen...
• I prefer the Beach Club at Bimini over both Castaway Cay and Coco Cay.
• There is a diverse group of people on Virgin. We rather enjoyed it.
• The hammock on the balcony. Why cruise lines don't do this is beyond me. I just wish there were 2 of them out there...
• Everything sans alcohol/specialty coffee is included (including fitness classes). This is especially noticeable with Gratuities. Not only are gratuities included in the fare (Virgin pays on a better wage scale, which makes employees happier), but you don't see them added to things like drink charges. So if I buy a $6 Heineken, it's $6, not $7.08 after 18% gratuity...
• Having said that, there is a $7 delivery fee for room service, which is waived if you order alcohol in your order(found that out after our friends ordered a bucket of beer to the room). You can include cans of cola in that. They will literally bring you enough to fill your fridge. (also, there are freestyle type machines in the Galley and you can get Cokes/Diet Cokes at the bars).
• Sushi rolls (spicy tuna, salmon, prawn, combo, and cucumber avocado) are always available in the Galley (sort of the buffet area) and in the "Social Club" area, there are not only always hot, soft pretzels with green chile cheese dip, it is unlimited gummy bears, twizzlers, and taffy...
• At least as of now, they are matching status with other lines. With our "Deep Blue Extras" that we got from matching our DCL status, we got priority boarding, a $100 "Bar Tab", $10 per day per cabin to spend on specialty coffees, free laundry, a cocktail party, and unlimited premium wifi (basic Wifi is included already).
• If you are a casino person, I will say that the casino seems a bit of an afterthought...

 

[MEC004]

CLIA Alaska has all the ships/port stops out for 2024 already and the Disney Wonder is sailing to Alaska in 2024. Makes sense as she's already on the west coast after coming back from Austrailia.

Thanks! He said he is fine with Disney now because it would be sad to hear the horn and not be on the ship

I priced it out for the 10 Night with Verandah with excursions and airfare for three it’s 22K Comparable is Princess and it’s 8K cheaper in a mini-suite.

 

[Dug720]

I am sailing in one of those in November! Glad to hear it.

Here is my video tour of it.

 

[allaboutthemouse]

Anyone considering Virgin Cruises? Tom McAlpine who launched DCL left to start up Virgin Voyages. Only 18 and older on that line. I'm intrigued.

This is why we tried VV…figured it must be a good product since he used to be with DCL

I keep looking at it, but it seems a little party/riqsue for my tastes.

Just don’t partake in what you don’t want to partake in, no one cares what you do…in other words, there is no one cruise director telling you to go to this show after dinner or before dinner, now go here and don’t forget to see this! No announcements…just wander, it really is relaxing…there’s no kids running all over the place, so it’s generally quiet everywhere. Also, the no kids thing is great when you just want to use adult language or have adult conversations and not worry about kids hearing you (we don’t use bad language in front of our kids, so we are aware of what we say in front of others’ kids). Don’t have to worry about that…it‘s just a different vibe. And no, people are not running around shouting expletives.
Actually, the only time I have seen an out of control drunk person shouting expletives on a cruise was on a Disney Cruise lol

I am not going to sugar coat it. Virgin is VERY different from other cruise lines. However, on our sailing, the average age was 47 according to the staff and it is quite a diverse group. You will not feel out of place at all (or at least we didn't). Having no kids on board does make a big difference, but it's not just in the ways you think, as yes, they can push the envelope a bit more on shows, etc. It shows in the overall vibe of the ship, hard to explain, but it creates a very relaxed environment. Here are a few things I'd consider after 3 VV sailings (2 Scarlet Lady, 1 Valiant Lady):

• Food is by far the best of any cruise line we have been on. That includes Royal, Carnival, Princess, HAL, or Disney. There is no main dining room. Everything is a set restaurant that is cooked fresh to order.
• The Ice Cream is all gelato-style and is amazing
• Entertainment on this past Valiant Lady cruise has definitely improved over our prior 2 Scarlet Lady cruises. I think that they are still finding their way, but there were many more activities on this cruise than I remember as well as more live music than was on our past cruises. Duel Reality is amazing, and as I stated earlier, the "Miss Behave" show was about as crazy an hour that I've seen...
• I prefer the Beach Club at Bimini over both Castaway Cay and Coco Cay.
• There is a diverse group of people on Virgin. We rather enjoyed it.
• The hammock on the balcony. Why cruise lines don't do this is beyond me. I just wish there were 2 of them out there...
• Everything sans alcohol/specialty coffee is included (including fitness classes). This is especially noticeable with Gratuities. Not only are gratuities included in the fare (Virgin pays on a better wage scale, which makes employees happier), but you don't see them added to things like drink charges. So if I buy a $6 Heineken, it's $6, not $7.08 after 18% gratuity...
• Having said that, there is a $7 delivery fee for room service, which is waived if you order alcohol in your order(found that out after our friends ordered a bucket of beer to the room). You can include cans of cola in that. They will literally bring you enough to fill your fridge. (also, there are freestyle type machines in the Galley and you can get Cokes/Diet Cokes at the bars).
• Sushi rolls (spicy tuna, salmon, prawn, combo, and cucumber avocado) are always available in the Galley (sort of the buffet area) and in the "Social Club" area, there are not only always hot, soft pretzels with green chile cheese dip, it is unlimited gummy bears, twizzlers, and taffy...
• At least as of now, they are matching status with other lines. With our "Deep Blue Extras" that we got from matching our DCL status, we got priority boarding, a $100 "Bar Tab", $10 per day per cabin to spend on specialty coffees, free laundry, a cocktail party, and unlimited premium wifi (basic Wifi is included already).
• If you are a casino person, I will say that the casino seems a bit of an afterthought...

Highlighted everything I agree with in this post, spot-on.

We have been twice on Scarlett, and have another booked in November taking my 70-year-old parents. Now, if they were still showing NSA when we go with my parents, I would not take them to that lol But nobody is going to look at you funny if you don’t go to these things, or get up and leave if you don’t like it.

I am an introvert, I love VV.

I love how when I order a drink and they scan my band, i don’t get a receipt to then feel like i have to put an extra tip like on disney. They just give me my drink.

I loved the Grog Walk, (bar crawl) even though i am an introvert and it was out of my comfort zone, gave it a shot, and so fun! Costs extra, like $45, but included drinks.

I love all the seating areas around the ship, all different.

Food, of course.

Hammocks! Bought one to put on our back deck, we fight over it lol

I love the size of the ships, not too big. Wonder/Magic size.

Dual Reality is just so awesome.

I love the happy crew.

There is a YouTuber that I started watching before we went, it’s Cruising as Crew, her name is Lucy, she is a crew member and does really neat videos mainly focused on people who want to get a job on a cruise ship with what to expect, etc. She does a bunch of interviews with different crew members and how they do their jobs, it’s interesting.

 

[Wadekind]

I can tell you that on Royal Caribbean (4 ships now we’ve been on) I have not smelled smoke from the Casino unless we walked through it.
They do have one area on the pool deck that is smoking but once we discovered where it was, it was non-issue.
I am very sensitive to smoke and this did not bother me. Rarely went into the Casino.

Just got off the RCCL Wonder of the Seas 2 weeks ago. Very strong smoke smell from the casino outside the MDR and the aft elevator lobby on deck 3.

 

[ldo]

RCCL-no smoke issues on Anthem, Navigator, or Vision (or their sister ships, I'd assume). I am very sensitive and asthmatic.

 

[tigerchic89]

Anyone considering Virgin Cruises? Tom McAlpine who launched DCL left to start up Virgin Voyages. Only 18 and older on that line. I'm intrigued.

We've sailed Virgin 3 times, have our whole family booked for our 4th, and are sailing them in Europe for our 5th. We were interested because of Tom and Clayton (anyone remember him ad CD from DCL?). VV die hards will never admit it, but tons of stuff on VV screams DCL to hubby and me... it's like some of the DCL creative types were allowed to do grown up things with red tape removed. Some of the ship details, the blankets on the beds, the trams at the beach club, even some of the specific dishes are oddly similar to DCL (but many times included on VV and upcharge on DCL) I love that they do not sell "all you can drink packages" just like DCL, but drinks are priced fair and made with quality brands. We've met lots of VV crew who used to work for DCL.

My mom still prefers Disney, because she thinks her platinum lanyard is cool. (barf) but for the rest of us, we love Virgin!

 

[DCLMP]

RCCL-no smoke issues on Anthem, Navigator, or Vision (or their sister ships, I'd assume). I am very sensitive and asthmatic.

Have you tried players or any of the other speciality restaurants?

 

[tidefan]

We've sailed Virgin 3 times, have our whole family booked for our 4th, and are sailing them in Europe for our 5th. We were interested because of Tom and Clayton (anyone remember him ad CD from DCL?). VV die hards will never admit it, but tons of stuff on VV screams DCL to hubby and me... it's like some of the DCL creative types were allowed to do grown up things with red tape removed. Some of the ship details, the blankets on the beds, the trams at the beach club, even some of the specific dishes are oddly similar to DCL (but many times included on VV and upcharge on DCL) I love that they do not sell "all you can drink packages" just like DCL, but drinks are priced fair and made with quality brands. We've met lots of VV crew who used to work for DCL.

My mom still prefers Disney, because she thinks her platinum lanyard is cool. (barf) but for the rest of us, we love Virgin!

We've sailed Virgin 3 times (well, DW 4 times) and will going to Europe next year as well. Really like Virgin. The food is great...

Other than that (and, of course, DCL) we tend to like Princess...

 

[goofy4prez]

I have settled into sailing with only two cruise lines. I love Disney when I want the Disney vibe, the shows, and Remy. When I want to relax and be pampered with all inclusive including everything from excellent cuisine, excursions, champagne, wine, drinks, shows, unbelievable ports, and much smaller ships, My choice is Regent Seven Seas. But I'll admit, at 59 years old, I'm one of the "youngins on the ship.