Brilliant Lady, the fourth cruise ship for the groundbreaking cruise line Virgin Voyages, reached a significant milestone today as she was floated out at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy. Identical to her sisters, Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady, and Resilient Lady, the fourth ship will enter service towards the end of 2023.
The floating-out ceremony is an important step in the construction of any cruise ship and sets the stage for the final phases of the build, such as interior outfitting. Brilliant Lady will be homeporting in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Brilliant Lady Floats for the First Time
After a rocky start early in 2020, when the cruise line was forced to postpone the launch of its first cruise ship Scarlet Lady, Richard Branson’s Virgin Voyages has been at full speed ever since. Today marked a significant milestone for the cruise line as its fourth cruise ship floated out.
At the Sestri Ponente shipyard in Genoa, Italy, the vessel was floated out on November 25. The shipyard can begin on the crucial final phases of construction, such as interior outfitting of the ship and starting and testing technical instrumentation onboard.
Identical to her sisters, Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady, and Resilient Lady; Brilliant Lady weighs 110,000 gross tons, is 278 meters long, and 38 meters wide. The ship has space for 2,770 guests in 1400 cabins.
Like her sisters, Brilliant Lady will be fitted out with many technological innovations that minimize the number of vibrations and noise onboard.
The vessel makes extended use of home automation systems onboard, which enables guests to control a wide range of cabin functions such as air conditioning, lighting, opening and closing of blinds, and controlling entertainment systems from an app on their phone.
In the coming months, workers at the Fincantieri shipyard in Genoa will complete the interior, including 22 different dining options. All dining options are included in the cruise price and include a steakhouse, Korean BBQ, Burger joint, vegetarian restaurants, international food markets, and much more.
The ship does not feature the traditional main dining room or buffet restaurants found on other major cruise lines. Instead, Virgin Voyages opted for a boutique hotel feel onboard.
Sailing from Miami December 2023
From the end of 2023, Brilliant Lady will be setting sail on her maiden voyage from the Virgin Cruises cruise terminal in PortMiami. The cruise will set sail on December 24, a five-night Brilliant Caribbean Holidays cruise, visiting Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic; St Croix, US Virgin Islands; and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
From December 30, Brilliant Lady will be based out of San Juan, offering seven-night cruises to the Southern and Eastern Caribbean.
Itineraries from Puerto Rico include a seven-night Sunsets In The Lesser Antilles cruise, visiting Oranjestad, Aruba; Willemstad, Curacao; Fort de France, Martinique; and Basseterre, St. Kitts. Other cruises will visit Tortola in the British Virgin Islands; Pointe A Pitre in Guadeloupe; Bridgetown, Barbados; Castries, St Lucia; St Johns, Antigua, and more.
While Brilliant Lady is expected to be delivered on time, her sister, Resilient Lady, has been delayed due to the challenges facing the cruise and travel industry. The vessel won’t be making its debut until the second quarter of 2023, resulting in cruise cancellations for many guests. The ship was scheduled to debut out of Athens, Greece, on August 14, 2022.
