Virgin Voyage's Scarlet Lady Review 2/13/2022 Costa Maya Sailing from Miami

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Rod and I decided that trying Virgin Voyages out was a must do.  So, we chose to sail on the Scarlet Lady on her Valentine's Day sailing for 2022, which coincided with the opening of the brand-new terminal that Virgin is calling Terminal V, but the actual designation is H should you need it for directions. As you know, Rod and I have been sailing for many years on a variety of different cruise lines. We felt it important to discuss the pros and cons of this line, the home runs and the missed opportunities. Virgin has been listening to feedback and that is what will help them grow their brand above all else.  

Testing and Embarkation - Our experience.

At this point (FEB 2022), Virgin Voyages was testing each passenger for COVID at the terminal. We arrived at terminal G and based upon our status (suite guests) we bypassed the long line of folks standing in line to be tested and were escorted indoors. We filled out a brief electronic testing form that registered us. Then, got an email with our test registration. Next, we patiently waited to be swabbed, and then after we had been tested, we were escorted to a check in area. At this point we completed check in and enjoyed the lounge for suite guests which had water and snacks. Once we got our negative results, we simply showed them and walked onto the ship. Both of us had results within 30 minutes. Rod's came in first at about 15-20 minutes and mine about 10 minutes later. We don't think it was quite as easy for the non-suite guests, as the wait to be tested would have been longer. 

All Aboard the Scarlet Lady!

Everyone was greeted with cheers and a warm welcome, and as suite guests were the only ones boarding when we went aboard, we were steered to The Manor where we were provided with an abundance of complimentary champagne and assisted with reservations for shows, dining and the like.  Rod and I were ready to go find our Sweet Aft Suite and settle in, drop our things and grab a bite at that point. Our cabin was ready for us without any further waiting.

Our Sweet Aft Suite - 8009A!

We were on deck eight, aft. Walking down the hall we smelled cigarettes, and that smell stayed in the hall all...week...long. We overheard another passenger mentioning that they moved due to it.  There were little tables outside of the cabin doors in the corridor. We asked twice and got the same answer; the quarters were for new crew coming aboard. Odd. 

Our sweet aft suite was lovely, from the programmed mood lighting with multiple settings that you controlled via tablet, to the record turntable and LP's with BOSE sound. The mini bar of course, well, it was wonderful. The first round was on them, and the bar was stocked with beer (4), wine (3), and liquor (4 half sized bottles). There were a few mixers, like bitters and red bull. We asked for fruit juice, coke, sprite and iced tea which they happily provided because they were no cost items. Fresh water and ice were delivered daily as well.

The TV aboard the Scarlet Lady contained a very nice selection of complementary movies, and also four news stations and two ESPN sports stations. The HVAC was also controlled via the tablet. You could also open and close the curtains via the tablet, which was very nice. The bathroom was marble and long in shape and the shower was very comfortably big enough for two, but we doubt that is the case in a standard balcony cabin. There was a port hole peek-a-boo window in there, but it was really not an issue.  It was a shower with a very nice view. The overhead rain shower head and the body wand were very nice, and the body wand had better flow than we expected. Bath towels were perhaps hung a tad far away, closer to the toilet. There was a towel rack IN the shower with a cloth bathmat and a cloth bathmat outside the shower. There was a counter, but not really any storage in the bathroom.  The glass shower door and the bathroom sliding glass door both had an iridescent film that cast colors into the bathroom when you were in there with the lights on. This effect was used in many places on the ship.

The bedding was wonderful, and we didn't have to worry about a backache in the morning. we both have bad backs and were relieved by this.  We slept well! We have sailed many other cruise lines, and this was extremely nice compared to so many that are rock hard. Well done Virgin Voyages! The makeup area was weird. There was a small red stool with no back to sit on. The mirror was offset to the right of the lights, so it wasn't really the best for getting ready to go out. There was one chair in the room, it was round with a high back and it was metal and not comfortable. This was very disappointing, since all the other ships we have sailed, in cabins that were not even suites, there were sofas and coffee tables.  Let's talk about the storage. We are not fans. There was a small closet, which contained the safe, two drawers on the bottom left and right sides, a clothing rack and hangers, and an upper shelf which had your life vests on it. We removed the vests and stowed them under the bed with our luggage once we unpacked. We packed lightly for this trip and used all of the space. This was a 5-night sailing. had this been 7 or 10 nights, we would not have had enough space. Now given that this was a suite, well, it just makes it even more of a fail. Sorry Virgin, but your storage was not well planned. We have seen photos of standard balcony cabins that had more storage space than our suite did.

DOORBELLS! All the cabins on the ship have doorbells. So, there we were in the cabin getting settled in. We had just met Lucy, our cabin attendant and heard this electronic chime, ring twice. I asked Rod, do we have a....doorbell?  Sure enough, we did have a doorbell. We answered the door and met our Suite Advocate who checked in regularly to see if we needed anything at all. And while we are on the subject, you have wrist bands and an app that keep your schedule. Virgin knows where you are. They know WHEN you return to your cabin. We learned very quickly that if you put the do not disturb light on the door, then the doorbell did not ring but the phone did. We were even tracked down once at dinner. Full disclosure, it was a little too much. While other lines do not give you quite that much attention if you are in a suite, we felt like the do not disturb light being on should have translated to don't call too. It didn't. On the inside of the door, you have a button to push to indicate clean the room, and a button for do not disturb. Outside the cabin a light comes on as a colored indicator. Red is do not disturb, blue is clean the room, and white means no selection has been made. It was our experience that no attention was paid to do not disturb mode.

Our balcony was wonderful. There is of course a red hammock which all balconies have and the table with two chairs. But our suite also had two loungers on it which we used a couple of times. The hammock was comfortable, and the loungers were too, but the aluminum table and chairs, not so much. Please note that in my opinion 8009A is partially obstructed. Deck 7 is The Dock and it was below us. They planted a tree. Part of said tree blocked the aft view. So, full disclosure, it is there. You also see some of the awning cover that is the shade for The Dock on deck 7. Still a great view but to be free of the tree you need to be on deck 9 or higher in an Aft Suite. Also, all balcony lights are controlled by the Captain on the bridge. Some evenings he had them on and they gave off a nice red glow. Most of the time they were off which meant that if you want out onto the balcony you had no light to see where there may be a hazard due to furniture. 

Food and Entertainment

Okay, before we get into the amenities of the ship and the entertainment, let's go over the food. Virgin Voyages set out to be different from other cruise lines, by offering all of what would normally be considered your premium dining that you have to pay for on other lines, in the base fare with your voyage. With few exceptions all of the meals are included in your fare. However, while they have put together some absolutely wonderful menus with some delicious options, the menu offerings are fewer.  Additionally, they do not have a buffet, they have what they call the Galley which is more like a food court at your local mall, with different stalls to get food. Again, the selections are very limited at the little micro eateries in the Galley. That was disappointing. Now I want to go over the restaurants and little eateries. 

The Wake is Virgin's version of a fine steak house. This restaurant and the service in it were our single biggest disappointment. As I mentioned we have sailed many other lines and ships and all I will say is that Virgin's steak house is at the bottom. My filet was overcooked and a tad dry.  Rod had a New York Strip that was chewy. These cuts were not as good as you pay extra to get on other lines.  We wanted to sample the side dishes, and our waitress got snippy and denied us the opportunity. Likewise, I wanted to sample the four different sauces on my filet (they come in a ramekin that holds maybe 2 tablespoons) and was told I could only pick one. Just WOW.  Needless to say, this was not the experience we expected at all from a premium steakhouse at sea. This was our dinner experience. We also tried The Wake on a sea day for brunch, and while the service was better, the food was about the same. Just didn't quite hit the mark.

Pink Agave is Virgin's version of a Mexican restaurant. As previously mentioned, we have sailed many ships and lines. Pink Agave is in our opinion the new BEST MEXICAN AT SEA.  The ribeye in Pink Agave was better than the filet in The Wake, the flavors in all the dishes were spectacular, and the warm nuts....OMG. Everything was seasoned really well and had a great flavor. So many other restaurants on other lines are afraid to put a little heat into the cooking, and they miss the mark on spice. Virgin brought the flavor, and we loved this venue. It was not overly hot but it did have well balanced flavor which we appreciated a great deal. I will also say the service was outstanding, not at all like the service in The Wake. Isac went above and beyond and far exceeded expectations. 

Extra Virgin is Virgin Voyage's Italian restaurant. It was very good and is in good standing among the other popular Italian restaurants on cruise ships.  Now I am particular about my Italian food, having grown up in a home where fresh homemade Italian was a staple, and as a child I would come indoors from being outside to find a pot of homemade sauce on the stove and handmade pasta draped over the back of kitchen chairs. I know what a truffle is, and what it lends to a dish when it really IS an ingredient. By the way you can add truffle to your dish for an upcharge. The sauce for the Bolognese at Extra Virgin was superior to the sauce on other lines, and the tomatoes seemed and tasted fresher to me.  I was excited by the Carbonara, the egg sauce was really good, however in my opinion Virgin missed the mark, because there were literally only about four tiny shards of pancetta on the dish, and no red pepper flake or offering of it.  I had the pork cheek which was tender and amazing. Rod began with meatballs which he compared with those at De Pasqual's (of Diners Drive Ins and Dives fame) in Baltimore MD. I had the fried artichoke heart with aioli, which started quite a conversation with my lady friends online when I posted a photo of this phallic delight.  But yes, it was very tasty. We also enjoyed the charcuterie plank, which was very good but lacked when compared to the one served in Jamie's Italian on RCI ships. 

Gunbae was alot of fun and is Virgin's Korean BBQ restaurant. It is participative in style, and you play a counting game that results in a drink as you go around the table. You pick your dishes, and your protein is cooked on a griddle in front of you. This is Virgin's response to participative Asian cooking. Some other lines have teppanyaki grills that are Japanese.  Virgin's slightly different take is both tasty and fun and a must do while you are sailing. We loved this dinner. 

The Test Kitchen, we didn't make it into the test kitchen, although we heard from others that it was okay, but you need to eat afterwards. 

Razzle Dazzle was our last dinner aboard the Scarlet Lady. This menu focuses heavily on vegetarian and vegan dishes but does have a few meat options in the "naughty" section. The food was really very good. We both began with cobb salads and shared a bowl of gazpacho.  I have to say that is the BEST gazpacho I have had at sea. It had slight notes of Asian cooking come through in the toppings they used. For me it may well have been the best thing in that restaurant.  Rod ordered the bow tie pasta which was a visually interesting dish with lots of flavor. We ordered both chicken dishes, and between the two we seemed to enjoy the fried chicken the best. Cookies and milk were dessert. 

About desserts, there are not as many options in the restaurants as you will find on other cruise lines. However, they are really good and are unusual and leave you wanting them again, or at least they did us. We'll leave you to be surprised by them.

The Dock House is a wonderful place to sit, have a drink, listen to pop up music, and have some Mediterranean tapas. We loved The Dock house and The Dock, which was the outside area of The Dock House. 

Other notable food areas include Lick Me Till Ice Cream, The Pizza Place, The Social Club Diner, and Grounds Club on deck 7. The Social Diner recently added TV's so sports games can be viewed, when before they had no TV's in social or club areas. 

Last but not least we have The Galley, which is Virgin's version of a reimagined buffet. It's not a buffet, it's a food court with individual food stalls. You can sit down and be served from one particular menu or go off menu and visit any of the stations yourself. Items changed in some cases from breakfast to lunch, for example, in the morning one station was exclusively bagels and toppings and at lunch it was the salad bar. Most things remained the same with just some menu adjustments. The different little eateries included: The Sweet Side, Burger Bar, Diner and Dash, The Daily Mix, Bento Baby, Well Bread, Hot of the Press, Noodle Around, Let's Taco Bout It, Pop Star, Sun Club Cafe, and Grounds Club Too. We didn't order anything from room service. 

Overall verdict: Foodie paradise, we love the food! It really shined in spots. 

Now I want to talk about the entertainment on the Scarlet Lady. We attended most of the shows and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. However, we can see how this may not be for everyone. Because this is an 18 and over only cruise line, things are a bit more open and risqué, with lots of adult humor. This line is LGBTQ friendly, and it is heavily reflected in the entertainment. If this is highly offensive to you, then this may not be your thing. However, if you would enjoy seeing shows led by drag queens then it just may be for you. The Diva was wonderful, and the show called Never Sleep Alone was lots of fun. While it seemingly encourages exploration, it's really more about show participation and for all the bravado it's harmless adult fun. Don't be put off by the condoms on the tables.  Other shows held in the Red Room were Duel Reality, a high energy acrobatics show, and Ships in the Night which was singing with modern dance. Both were worth watching. Don't miss Scarlet Night. Virgin Voyages doesn't have any sort of formal night however, on Scarlet Night many folks wore red attire from casual to formal and enjoyed dinner and the transformation of deck 7 on the ship. You won't want to miss it. 

Richard's Rooftop was the area for suite only guests, and of course we took the opportunity to explore. It was very sparce and modern. It didn't have the same feel that other adult only areas do on other ships. Personally, I think they could have done more, and The Dock was a more inviting space. There were other outdoor spaces, a very small pool, a very large hot tub, and some very odd square boxes for sitting on the level above the pool. There was a basketball court, a boxing ring, and some other outdoor workout areas, and of course a track. Inside by the pool they had weight rooms. This means no sea view from the pool. So, we were not really thrilled by that design because we like the view. 

No review would be complete without a review of the spa. Now first off, we should tell you that we are spa goers. Some folks avoid the spa, others love the spa. We have used spa services on many ships and lines and while we didn't get massages, we did purchase a pass and use the amenities. Like on other lines there were of course changing rooms and lockers, and showers. You picked up a small cup (about 2 TBS) of exfoliating mud if you wanted to use the mud and steam room. We did, and we will circle back to that in a bit. The other amenities included heated flat marble slabs to lay upon, a Himalayan salt room, a steam room, and a sauna. there are two cold plunge tubs by the sauna, and one hot tub with no jets that seats two. There is a oval shaped soaking pool that is luke warm and went from clear to murky by day two, we suspect due to the mud residue not properly washed off by patrons. The mud room was really nice, and we used it. There is a shower wand to wash off with before you leave the mud room, and it has decent force. It is right next to the soaking pool. The day we went the little hot tub broke down flooding the spa area, which was disappointing. This happened about halfway through our time, which was a three-hour deal at $39.00 per person. We spoke to them and requested a credit for the remainder of our time, since that hot tub was one of the primary reasons we chose to visit and were credited 15% per person back. We casually mentioned it to our Suite Ambassador later on and a bottle of rose wine showed up with a note of apology in our cabin on ice. A very nice gesture indeed, and above and beyond in our opinion.  Now then, if you caught the note above that said there are flat warm slabs of marble to lie on, well, there are. There are NO contoured warm beds with sea views in this spa. The seating they have is odd and tips forward when you go to stand up. There are very few seats. We both felt this spa was probably our least favorite of all the spas we have tried. Take a tour before you make a reservation. We did and booked anyway so we could try it.

We also enjoyed exploring the gift shops, and noticed they had a tattoo parlor and men's grooming shop for beards and haircuts next to the lady's hair salon. There is also a smoke free casino aboard.

Bimini Beach Club - we enjoyed the beach club on the island of Bimini, Bahamas. We were driven over to the club via tram, and since we were suite guests, we didn't have to wait for a slew of guests to come ashore and fill the tram. We were transported on a much smaller tram (for 4) and whisked directly to the club. Because we were suite guests, we had access to Richards Retreat. This smaller section was very nice. Bar service came to you, and at lunch you gathered under the open-air cabana and ordered and were served lunch. The lunch was the same for suite and non-suite guests but those guests not in suites had to get their own lunch, there was no table service. The views were breathtaking and spectacular.  There was very LOUD music coming from the main area by the two pools and it overwhelmed the softer music playing in the suite area. We hope this gets addressed.

The APP, the Service and Disembarkation. The Virgin Voyages app is okay, but there is alot of room for improvement. You receive a paper map in your cabin when you embark, but the opportunity missed here is that there is no ships map on the app at all. With the wrist bands on guests, it would not be too hard to add the ship's map with a little GPS dot showing where you are. We submitted this idea and hopefully they will implement it, so guests can learn and navigate better. Perhaps a little pop-up information about each venue would be nice too. 

The service on the Scarlet Lady was OUTSTANDING, OUTSTANDING, OUTSTANDING, save for perhaps two mediocre encounters. We always like to talk to the staff, and what we learned explained alot. All of the staff we spoke to had been on other cruise lines, sometime two or three lines, and the average number of years in service we heard was 6 to 7 years of experience. One of our favorite waitresses, Angel, told us that her old boss who was recruited from another very popular line cherry picked staff he wanted and recruited them to come with him. This seems to have happened from several lines, and we did see at least one familiar face from another line we sail. 

Disembarkation is never something you look forward to, but it is something you expect you have to do. Having said that, we are used to seeing information several days prior to disembarking. We were at the day before and had nothing delivered or communicated to us, which was very odd. It made us think not just about seasoned cruise clients of ours but about those clients who may be cruising for the first time and who would have no idea about what to do or when to do it, which is really important on a travel day so that you do things like say, make your plane. Rod did a search in the app and after some digging found the area (it was not easy to locate) where you reserved your disembarking time. Again, I go back to not enough notice for those who may need a specific disembarkation time.  We scheduled our time and let our Suite advocate know we were done and planned to walk off our luggage at 7:45am. We braced ourselves because we did this in December on another line and it was truly a major SNAFU. We were both impressed and relieved with the ease of disembarkation. The Scarlet Lady had events going on until 2AM so we suspect many guests were still asleep. 

One last note, we used Safe Cruise Parking Inc, (not affiliated with Virgin Voyages, just reviewing them) which included covered parking and shuttle service to and from the port. We have used them once before, no issues. Going to the port was easy, coming back from the port to the car was a bit of a circus, as two van drivers had an argument, the upshot of which was everyone in one van had to transfer to the other, and all the luggage got switched. They literally exchanged passengers and luggage with each other. Next, we drove around and around until the driver decided we had enough passengers to return to our cars. We could have stayed on the ship another 30 minutes. What was frustrating for us and some of the other passengers we spoke to was that we wanted to get an early start on driving and by the time all was done we probably lost close to an hour. 

We sincerely hope you find this review of our trip to be helpful. We'll be posting a ship tour video on our YouTube channel soon and will update this page to include it. We give Virgin Voyages two thumbs up and would love to talk to you about planning your next vacation. 

Yours in travel,

Beth Borrego & Rod Rodriguez