In between the restart news from the United States and the UK, there is a lot more happening in the cruise world. Virgin Voyages celebrated two extraordinary occasions July 1 and 2, as one ship was delivered, and another floated out for the first time.
Valiant Lady, the cruise line’s second vessel, was delivered at Fincantieri’s Sestri Ponente shipyard in Genoa, Italy. One day later, the shipyard floated out Valiant Lady’s newest sister, Resilient Lady, for the first time.
Virgin Voyages is a relative newcomer in the cruise industry. It released the first of four vessels last year, Scarlet Lady, and is a brand part of Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group.
Two Ready, Two To Come
The delivery of Valiant Lady, and floating out of Resilient Lady, at the Sestri Ponente shipyard means Virgin Voyages now has two vessels ready for guests, while one more will be ready soon. Like her sister ship Scarlet Lady, which was delivered last year, Valiant Lady weighs about 110,000 tons, is 278 meters long, and 38 meters wide. The ships have space for 2,770 guests in 1400 guest cabins.
Virgin Voyages has invested a lot of time and effort in making sure guests experience the best of what Virgin has to offer. This includes making sure guests are as comfortable as possible. The ships are certified by the “Comfort Class” certification, which makes sure that minimal levels of noise and vibrations are adhered to.
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Also, guests will be able to enjoy extensive automation inside the rooms and around the ship. This means guests can control and operate the air conditioning, lighting, opening and closing of blinds, music, and television from one app.
The vessels have also received a fair share of environmental measures that significantly reduce the number of sulfur dioxides and nitrogen oxides expelled through the ship’s funnels.
Why is Virgin Voyages Such a Big Deal?
Many people wonder why anyone would want to start a cruise line when there is already a wide variety available. And, they would be right. Except that Virgin is not targeting those that cruise already. Instead, the company focuses on the generations that would not automatically think about a cruise. Virgin Voyages is doing things differently. Very different.
The brand’s purpose: “an epic sea change for all.” This means the line wants to elevate the ship experience the counter those found at high-end resorts shore side.
To that effect, the company has a tattoo shop, a fashion designer has developed the crew’s uniforms, there are an incredible 20 restaurants onboard the ship instead of the main dining room, and a vegetarian/vegan restaurant is not something special, but something entirely normal.
To top it off, drinks are included in the ticket price, as are Wi-Fi and fitness classes. So no worries about drinks packages and whether you have enough data left to send that email.
The entire design process for Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady, Resilient Lady, and the soon-to-be sister has been done by people who have never designed for the cruise industry before. Making the ships a completely fresh look at what a ship can be.
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Scarlet Lady will be sailing on the first set of taster cruises this summer from the UK. The cruises have been scheduled as the original itineraries for the vessel had to be canceled due to COVID. The cruises in the UK will give guests a taste of what they can expect from the Virgin experience.
Valiant Lady will sail this November on a Caribbean Cruise departing November 12, which will sail from Miami to Roatán, Costa Maya, the Beach Club at Bimini before returning to Miami.
