We just returned from an epic 7 day voyage onboard the Scarlet Lady with Virgin Voyages. We can confidently say, Virgin Voyages cruises are worth the hype. Our voyage took us from Barcelona through the French Riviera, down the coast of Italy and then back to Ibiza.
If you are heading on a cruise with Virgin Voyages, or have been considering setting sail with them, then you will want to read this! In this blog post we are sharing all of the information that you need to know before you sail.
Let’s get into it!
Our Itinerary with Virgin Voyages
Our voyage was a 7 day itinerary that stopped in the French Riviera, down the coast of Italy and then back for an overnight stop in Ibiza. One thing we really loved about our cruise was that the stops were long so we truly got to enjoy the most of the day on land and in some of the best spots in these regions.
REad About our Experience onboard the scarlet Lady here!
Things to Know Before You Sail
There are a few helpful things that we wish that we knew prior to our voyage!
The Sailor App
After your voyage is booked, make sure you download the Sailor App via the App Store and sign in using your booking information. Once you are in the App you will need to complete your pre-voyage check list which includes a selfie, information about your arrival and departure travel plans as well as information about the ship and voyage. About a month before you set sail, the dining reservations will open to book and we highly recommend booking as soon as possible to get the ideal times and restaurants you are hoping to visit.
The Sailor App will be the main point of contact for on ship announcements (like when the gangway is open to disembark). The App is also where you can book your Shore Things excursions prior to boarding (there is a discount when you book ahead!). You will also find the opening times of all of the restaurants, bars and facilities throughout the ship, the daily activities list, as well as your personal agenda.
Your personal agenda is where you will find the Shore Things you booked, your dining reservations and if you added any of the onboard activities to ensure you did not miss them. (Most activities onboard require no reservations and adding them to your agenda doesn’t guarantee a spot, it’s more of a reminder!) You will also need the app to order Ship Eats (like Uber Eats straight to your Cabin) and Shake for Champagne (one of our favourite features on the App!).
Fly in the day before the voyage begins (At least)
If you want to save yourself the stress, we highly recommend flying into the departure city at least one day before. Flights can be delayed, cancelled and re-routed and unfortunately if you miss the timeframe to embark, then you will need to fly to the next port city and get on the ship there. Flying in at least one day early also allows you to adjust to the time change and freshen up prior to getting on the ship. It also gives you a chance to explore the city before you head off on your voyage!
If you do have to fly in on embarkation day (again we do NOT recommend this), make sure your flight arrives no later than 2 pm and does not require long transfers to the port.
Pre-check your luggage with virgin voyages
In most of the port terminals, you can begin to drop your luggage off at 9:00AM. You can either print the luggage tags sent to your email 72 hours prior to departure, or you can wait and get your luggage tagged when you arrive at the terminal. We highly recommend dropping your luggage off as early as possibly to avoid having to wait in the line before you board the ship. This also allows you to explore the city without carrying around your luggage.
It is still important to keep a small carry on bag with you (like a backpack). We recommend packing a swimsuit, sunscreen, and any essentials that you may need in it, as your luggage may not be outside of your door when you get on the ship. We received our luggage a few hours our arrival time slot, so we were so happy to have had our carry on with us to be able to freshen up and change once we arrived.
The embarkation team in Barcelona did not allow us to pre-check small bags like backpacks and totes. We were told they must be carried on with us, so keep that in mind when planning your day! Trust us, you don’t want to jam your backpack full and then be stuck carrying it around all day until you board.
bring wine onboard
You can bring a total of 2, 750ml bottles of wine onboard at the beginning of the voyage per cabin. You cannot bring liquor, coolers, beer or any other type of alcohol.
Buy an ESIm Before you Leave home
Something a lot of people don’t think about is roaming fees that come with cruises. Our itinerary was 3 different countries, which means 3 separate sets of roaming fees. If you want to save some money, we highly recommend purchasing an eSIM prior to leaving home so you can stay connected. We use Airalo when we travel. They have a European plan that covers up to 42 countries so you can use your phone in every port city you arrive in without incurring hefty roaming fees. You can use our code “REID3” for $3 off (doesn’t seem like much but plans start at $7!!). Linking Airalo here for you!
virgin voyages is adults only
Virgin Voyages is an adults only cruise line (they make it clear there are no exceptions). This has a huge draw for adults looking for fine dining options, cocktails in the pool and entertainment that caters to adults! You must be at least 18 years to cruise with Virgin Voyages.
All dining is included – no main dining room!
The Scarlet Lady has over 20 restaurants and eateries onboard and NO main dining room, and NO buffet. No sitting at the same table, at the same time every night with the same people. Instead you will find specialty restaurants all over the ship like Korean BBQ, a steakhouse, the newly launched Lucky Lotus which is an asian fusion restaurant (in place of Razzle Dazzle) and even a Mexican restaurant.
Instead of a buffet you will find the Galley. This is a food court style space with different stalls offering 24 hour breakfast, burgers, ramen, sushi and SO much more.
Feeling like a snack? Head to the wood fire pizza restaurant, grab hot dogs and popcorn at the social club or Greek inspired dishes at The Dock. Or even grab ice cream, which is also included!
Fitness Classes are included
If you are an avid cruiser, you would know that specialty fitness classes are often an additional charge, but not on Virgin Voyages. Take a spin class, yoga class or even their incredibly unique Bungee Class, all included with your voyage. They even have an 80’s style aerobics class!
pack ahead for theme nights
Scarlet Night is the most iconic night onboard any Virgin Voyages cruise. For this night you will want to pack something red. This night starts out on deck 15 with The Happenings Cast (the entertainment crew on board) getting the party started by dancing in the pool. Then a DJ spends the next few hours entertaining you with hit after hit before the party moves to The Manor aka the nightclub onboard.
Other themed nights we had onboard our voyage was a Pajama Party, a “We Fancy” themed party at The Manor (although another guest told us about this one, we did not know), and even a Y2K party.
A Breakdown of all the Different Cabins on the Scarlet Lady
There are a number of different cabin styles onboard the Scarlet Lady. This is a breakdown of what each one includes and the main differences.
The Insider Cabin
This is what Virgin Voyages calls an interior cabin. There is no window, but with creative lighting and a spacious set up, it definitely does not feel cramped or dark. This cabin can sleep up from 1 to 4 people (with this configuration set up as all single beds, bunk bed style), has a bathroom with a relatively roomy rain shower, as well as a TV, small fridge and a storage closet. The daytime configuration is a seating area, and then in the evening the staff will make the beds.
On the website this cabin you may also be called “Solo Insider”, “Social Insider” and “The Insider”.
The Sea View Cabin
The Sea View Cabin is another budget friendly option onboard, and offers a large window to bring natural light into the room. This cabin can sleep up from 1 to 3 people and is a great option for this that want natural light but don’t necessarily want to pay for a terrace. This room includes a small fridge, a bathroom with a roomy rain shower, and a closet for storage. Just like The Insider, this room has a couch during the day that the staff convert to a bed at night. We also love that there is a window seat just under the window!
NOTE: The window does not open.
The Sea Terrace
There are a few different Sea Terrace Cabin options. The limited view Sea Terrace has a partially obstructed view and is typically partially obstructed by the lifeboats or other equipment. The Sea Terrace will be located towards the front or the rear of the ship. The Central Sea Terrace is no different than the regular Sea Terrace Cabin, it just sits in a more centralized location on the ship. The XL Sea Terrace Cabin has 30% more living space than the regular Sea Terrace Cabins.
Rockstar Quarters
Rockstar Quarters are the suites onboard Virgin Voyages. With a booking in a suite you earn “Rockstar Status”. This means priority and VIP boarding area, access to Richard’s Rooftop, early access for booking dining, events and Shore Things, an in room bar with curated drinks, and a dedicated Rockstar Agent to assist you during your stay.
Richard’s Rooftop is an exclusive area on deck 16 that offers an area with sun lounges, an exclusive food menu, and a happy hour that runs between 5-6pm offering a select menu of drinks on the house, like Moet champagne!
Mega Rockstar Quarters
This is the top tier suites onboard Virgin Voyages with the largest being just over 2100 sq ft. Booking these suites gets you access to Richard’s Rooftop, a VIP area with priority boarding, and complimentary drinks and bottles of wine around the ship with an included bar tab. You also get complimentary daily access to the Thermal Suite in the Redemption Spa (with mud, salt, and steam rooms, sauna, hot/cold plunge pools, and marble hammam benches). You get the best wifi on the ship included, transfers to and from the ship (if the port you depart from has that option), a dedicated mega rockstar agent to help you during your stay and a bottomless in-room bar.
Embarkation Process
The embarkation process in Barcelona was pretty seamless for us. In this section, we will be sharing our top tips for a quick and easy embarkation process.
Reserve your arrival time slot on the App
When you fill out your pre-voyage check list on the App, one of the final steps will be to choose an embarkation time slot. If you are not staying in a Rockstar Suite, not a VIP and do not have priority boarding, then the embarkation times begin at 2:15pm local time and will continue in timed increments all the way to 4 or 4:30pm. You must arrive during your reserved time slot to expedite the boarding process for all your fellow sailors. We highly recommend choosing the earliest time slot available and showing up a little early.
I’ve Arrived at the terminal, Now what?
When you arrive at the cruise terminal, you will see embarkation times on large signs just above each line and you will need to head to the line that matches your booked arrival time slot. From there, you will head through a security check point where they will scan your bags and check for any prohibited items. Prohibited items are things such as steamers, extension cords, string lights and candles. You can read the full list of prohibited items here!
After the security check point, you will head to the check in desks where you will receive your wrist band. This acts as the key card to your cabin, as well as a method of payment for drinks and other items around the ship. You will need to preload a method of payment on the Sailor App prior to boarding, or visit Sailor Services onboard for a cash deposit once you get on the ship.
From the check in desk you will walk along the gangway to enter the ship. You will scan your wrist band to register with the team that you have boarded and then you are free to explore the ship!
What To Do After You Board the Scarlet Lady
There are few things we highly recommend doing immediately after boarding the ship.
Connect to the Wifi
You will need to connect to the Wifi onboard to use the Sailor App. Wifi is included for everyone on board. There are with options to upgrade for faster service if you plan on streaming or working during the voyage. From there you can book onboard activities and services, like the spa. You can also message with the Sailor Services team.
TIP: The Wifi onboard also works best if you put your phone on airplane mode!
Book Dining Reservations
If you did not get the chance to book dining reservations ahead of time, do not Worry! You can head to Lucky Lotus also known as Razzle Dazzle where a team will be waiting to help. We were able to make reservations this way for a few restaurants that were not available on the app prior to boarding!
Book A Shore Thing Excursions
When you get onboard, there will be a few crew members at the Shore Things desk waiting to help you book some amazing adventures during your voyage. We had one Shore Things excursion in mind, but it sold out on the App prior to our voyage. We headed to the desk as soon as we boarded. And we were able to get into the excursion we wanted with our whole group!
TIP: Your entire group needs to have boarded in order for the team to book a Shore Things Excursion. Half of our group did not board until later so we were not able to make the booking until they had gotten on the ship!
Head to your muster station
Once you get onboard, head to your room to watch the mandatory safety video. From there, the Virgin Voyages team asks that you make your way to your designated muster station (that information will be on your App and in your safety video) to sign off that you have completed this mandatory safety step. Every sailor needs to do this prior to the ship setting sail.
Final Thoughts
We hope that you found this article helpful for the pre-planning and embarkation day of your Virgin Voyages Cruise. Let us know if you have any questions at all in the comments as we are always happy to help!
See ya in the next one 🙂
Kaylee and Jake
