One thing that Virgin Voyages relies on for the onboard experience and even before boarding is technology. Most specifically for cruisers is the use of the Virgin Voyages app. Before boarding, sailors are required to download the app and set up an account. You will need the app to complete the check in process for your cruise that involves scanning your passports, taking a security photo, entering a credit card for your onboard account charges, confirming your health status, and picking an arrival time. Some cruise line apps allow you to take care of all of these steps from one device in case you're traveling with someone who isn't as technically inclined. In our case of having two separate booking numbers and separate cabins, I had to set up my account on my app on my phone and then repeat the process on Dad's app on his phone.
It is also highly suggested that you book dining reservations and excursion reservations via the app before boarding. I find it interesting that while all of this is encouraged to be booked beforehand, booking any shows or onboard classes cannot be done until you get onboard. The app is still required then as well so its better to save those few moments and have your app already set up because those fill up fast. Plus you're wasting extra time trying to get the app to load on potentially slow ship internet. A word to the wise - unlike some cruise lines that have wised up to letting you use onboard credit to book items like shore excursions in advance, if you book an excursion before boarding via the app, you will be charged to your credit card. Book once you're on the ship and connected to ship's wi-fi and it will pull from the OBC or Sailor Loot.
One plus for the app we found really useful was having to make dinner reservations pre-cruise for people in two different cabins. Thanks to the helpful previous cruisers on the Valiant Lady Facebook group, we learned that you can add the other person as a contact by scanning their app's QR code. Once we connected our apps, we were prompted to sign up for one or both of us regardless of whose app we were using to book. It just meant the extra step of having to select the other person as well versus the default only you option each time. Much easier than having to make my reservations and hope that Dad still showed those times as available when we switched to his app. In one evening of sitting at the kitchen table we spent more time debating how often to visit each restaurant than it took to book us at 6PM each evening. I discovered later that there's the added benefit of your contact getting a notification that you've included them on a reservation. A word of caution is that once linked as contacts, if the other person cancels a reservation made for both of you, it cancels you out as well. Definitely book before the cruise as soon as your app opens up for dining. We found that we wanted to switch around after loving a place we'd only booked once and there wasn't any availability showing to change our reservations on the remaining nights.
We did have a brief issue trying to do a walk up reservation for brunch around noon at The Wake when the app showed no available slots. The common refrain for everything from restaurants to classes was to show up and ask because someone likely was a no show. The hostess gave us two options - go on a wait list with slim chances or have her make us a reservation for the next day instead. She insisted that no tables were available even though we could see a nearly empty restaurant. Our time in line and this brief exchange took around 10 minutes. The "line" was the couple in front of us who chose the option of making a reservation to come back the next day. We elected to seek out other places to eat and stepped momentarily around the corner to look at the options on the app. In that time it took us to step aside and bring up the app's page for dining, an option for the 12:15PM reservation slot showed up as available to book for The Wake. We rounded the corner and spoke to a different crew member who was now manning the podium and she had some trouble finding our reservation we had literally just booked. The main hostess returned while she was still looking and quickly found it on their system. She then proceeded to seat us in a far off corner that was routinely forgotten about by the waiters.
One minor annoyance I discovered through my own attempts to save a couple steps in the check in process is that if you're using a joint credit card for your onboard accounts, make sure to change the name on the card to yours when filling out your own app information. For the entire voyage, the system treated my onboard account as if my fellow sailor contact (Dad) had agreed to pay for everything on his credit card. Normally you can view your onboard account and review charges on the app but I could only see a message that says "Your folio has been set up so your purchases are being paid for (and tracked) by your co-Sailor who has you on their tab." I would have to either ask Dad to show me his account summary or visit Sailor Services to get a printout. I was a little surprised when I did go to Sailor Services the first time and simply had to give my last name to be handed a printout. I wondered what would happen if you have a common last name or at least thought they would have asked me for a cabin number as well. I learned later how the crew uses your security photo to confirm for things like that.
When Virgin Voyages says that they include free internet for all, the caveat is that it's Basic level of internet. When you first connect your device to ship wi-fi (you receive a card with instructions at check in), it will prompt you to choose Basic (which is free) or Premium Voyage internet at an extra cost. Basic is described as simple internet browsing, checking email, and posting/checking social media. Premium Voyage is billed as for streaming music and movies and faster internet. Honestly, I was quite impressed with how well the internet was onboard. I had no issues whether in port or at sea connecting to everything including streaming YouTube videos on Basic internet. I even discovered unsent tweets that never made it onto my social accounts from the last cruise while on this cruise!
One trick that I didn't learn until onboard that could have saved me having to uninstall/reinstall the app three times before boarding, is that the app is not a fan of having anything else in your phone's recent activity memory. I would open my app in the days leading up to the cruise to complete another step or check what we booked and get "the white screen of death." The trick (at least on our iPhones) was to press down on the misbehaving app and slide up toward the middle of your screen. Most likely you will find many apps now showing as open in a carousel of screen shots. Swipe up on all of them, including Virgin Voyages' app, until there is nothing in the list anymore. Then go back to your Virgin app and it will load perfectly. While slightly tedious, it worked every time. I did find a few moments where the app had no problem working while other apps were open but if the problem came back, the trick to fix it worked each time. One slight hiccup is that the how to connect card they gave us at check-in says to go to The Chart Room on Deck 7 for assistance. We went there and they insisted that Sailor Services on Deck 5 was the place we should have gone. Sailor Services (or guest services on other lines) is not the most pleasant place to be on embarkation or the night before debarkation day.
On day one, we sat down at the Roundabout (fancy name for a circular staircase that opened up multiple decks; more commonly referred to on other lines as either the Atrium, the Centrum, or the Piazza) couches ready to book shows. The loud music and the hustle of people boarding the ship made the fact that my app kept insisting that I couldn't book anything because I had to wait until I was on the ship all the more frustrating. I had already connected to the ship's wi-fi network that wouldn't work in the terminal like it has in the past. I was able to get so far as to choose Basic internet and got a message confirming I was connected. But alas, the app would not let me do anything toward booking shows or fitness classes. I wanted to hold up my phone and pan around yelling "Can't you see that I AM ON THE SHIP?!" I'm pretty sure at one point I'd resorted to pacing the space hoping that one corner over the other would magically trigger the app to recognize that I was on ship wi-fi. As a last resort, we decided to head off in search of sustenance to give the app a chance to figure itself out. By the time I thought to check it again hours later, it had conceded that I was truly on board but of course most everything was booked up.
I liked the fact that the app also showed drink and food menus for each of the restaurants onboard. Helpful for someone like me who likes to get a head start on what they would like to order. Also a good resource when you're trying a new dish and want to go back and read what's in it. Especially when you order a new drink to try and it comes with more than you expected in the glass.
Another plus with the app is the feature where it sends a notification to your phone when an activity you signed up to attend is starting soon. It's easy to lose track of time when you're cruising and those notifications saved me a time or two. I've only seen this feature included on one other cruise line's app and that was pre-wearable days.
A completely unique feature we experienced on the app was the multiple survey requests that were sent as messages throughout the cruise. Some evenings it would ask us to answer questions about a restaurant we tried, other times it would ask about the show/activity we attended. I appreciated the small change I noticed about halfway through the cruise. The first surveys about activities would only list theater/lounge performances and force you to choose one from the list to proceed with the survey. On a day when I hadn't attended any performance, I randomly chose an answer and included the flaw in their list when prompted for additional comments. Later surveys had a much longer list to choose from that now included other events like trivia games.
One major positive that really impressed me is a praise for Naomi, the Wellness Manager onboard. Midway through the cruise, the survey question was to ask our opinion on how the cruise was going so far. It read more like a mini version of a post cruise survey that all lines send out. I took the opportunity to share about my first day's hinderances with the app and how all of the fitness classes were now sold out. If you don't share when there's a problem, and do so please with politeness and decorum, then the crew have no opportunity to fix it. I didn't expect a response but I felt compelled to share my disappointment. I also shared in the survey how classes need to be limited like dinner reservations where you're only allowed to book so many of the same option per cruise. I feel that this would give more people a chance to at least try one class if sailors were limited to only booking one session of each type of class. And then let them who have already participated previously this cruise be the ones walking up at class time hoping there is no shows.
Within a day or two of filling out that survey on my app, I was killing time in my cabin when the cabin phone rang. Once I picked myself up off the floor after nearly falling out of bed, I made it to the phone and was surprised to learn that it was Naomi. She explained that she was calling in reference to my survey answers and wanted to apologize for the disappointment. Most of the time, the response from management would have ended there. However, Naomi took it further by asking me for more feedback and trying to see if there were any upcoming classes she could fit me in. When I used the bungee class as an example, she offered to hold a private session for me. I was shocked at the generous offer and didn't feel right accepting such an option. By the end of the conversation, Naomi had suggested that I at least accept a free visit to the thermal spa to which I agreed. Dad and I stopped by the next day and got to meet Naomi in person who was kind enough to extend the spa pass to Dad as well.
You can also use the app to request items for your cabin or to have your cabin serviced. The app also has a feature for ordering Ship Eats (their name for room service). There is a charge for using Ship Eats but if you order anything that normally costs like a coffee or alcoholic drink, it negates the delivery charge. A great little tip especially if you have a Bar Tab amount to cover that drink cost.
The crew largely relied on technology as well. In the shops, they used their devices to scan barcodes to get prices as well as scan the items we bought, scan our wearables, and have us sign on their screen to approve the charges. The Happenings cast would use their devices to record when they used their accounts to gift us the free drinks we won at activities. When we had issues, we could use the apps to report problems and ask questions of Sailor Services saving us more time standing in line at the desk.
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