For a relative newcomer to the cruise scene, Virgin Voyages continues to make waves. The brand just celebrated the official opening of its Terminal V at PortMiami — home to Scarlet Lady — and the launch of its second ship, Valiant Lady, is scheduled for March 18.
Virgin's Four Ships
Valiant Lady will debut in Portsmouth in the U.K., before homeporting for the summer in Barcelona, Spain. Beginning May 15, the ship will depart on three different weeklong Mediterranean itineraries, sailing through October. Next, Valiant Lady will head to Miami to join her sister ship on six- and eight-night voyages from Florida.
A third ship, Resilient Lady, will be introduced in Athens, Greece, on Aug. 14, before heading to the Caribbean to sail two seven-night routes from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Virgin will also feature a trio of recently announced repositioning cruises on its third ship starting in October 2023, going from Athens to Dubai, then Dubai to Singapore, followed by Singapore to Sydney.
Accommodations are sophisticated, yet playful.
Credit: 2022 Virgin Voyages
The three ships — plus an unnamed fourth sister — will be mostly identical to each other, with matching size and capacity but variations in hull art and onboard artwork. Each will maintain Virgin’s adults-only guest policy.
“Really, what’s going to make the difference is the experience and the destinations we go to,” said John Diorio, vice president of North American sales at Virgin Voyages. “The ships were built to be adult by design. The sailors love that. It’s a different type of experience when it’s adults-only. It’s probably one of the top reasons our sailors and our ‘first mate’ travel partners are booking us.”
According to Diorio, the existing cabins on Scarlet Lady and the upcoming guestrooms on Valiant Lady are already being enhanced to highlight warmer tones and wall art for a more sophisticated, yet playful and contemporary, look and feel.
Selling Virgin
To that end, Diorio explained that the type of clients best for Virgin fit into the following psychographic groups: foodies, couples, multigenerational adult groups and those celebrating milestone occasions. He also describes Virgin travelers as “young at heart” and “open to trying new things.” In particular, he’s been seeing a lot of customer crossover from the all-inclusive market.
Currently, agents are incentivized to sell Virgin thanks to a 22% commission, available through March 31. Plus, advisors who book groups — which Virgin calls “circles” — by the end of that time period can earn an extra 2% commission.
Advisors should pitch Virgin to food-loving clients.
Credit: 2022 Virgin VoyagesCOVID-19 Policies
Virgin no longer requires masking onboard, following Scarlet Lady’s entry into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships. However, the line does not expect it will make changes to its vaccination and testing protocols at this time.
“Our Voyage Well policies have proven to be very successful in keeping our sailors and our crew safe,” Diorio said.
The Details
Virgin Voyages
