5 Hits and Misses on Virgin Voyages Valiant Lady

When it comes to redefining the cruise experience, Valiant Lady stands out as Virgin Voyages’ bold take on adult-only cruising. The Virgin ships were designed with a fresh perspective, resulting in ships that break away from the traditional mold by prioritizing creativity and individuality over following industry norms. The result? A ship that feels distinctively Virgin while still embracing the familiarity of a modern cruise.

As the second ship in Virgin’s Lady Class fleet, Valiant Lady offers a near-identical experience to her sister ships, combining innovation and style. After spending five days onboard, here are my thoughts on the highlights of the ship and the areas where it falls short.

Hit: The Dock and the Promenade

Personally, I hate being on a cruise ship and not feeling like you’re on the ocean. Ships like Royal Caribbean’s Oasis Class seem to hide the ocean from you, facing inwards. On Valiant Lady, you feel much more in touch with the sea.

The best example of this concept is The Dock, the area at the back of Deck 7. This area overlooks the ship’s wake and provides panoramic views all around the ship. The Dock has a variety of daybeds, chairs, loungers, tables, and bar seating to enjoy a relaxing day at sea. While there are no pools or hot tubs here, it’s a place many people seem to go on a sea day to get away from the more club-like pool vibe in the main pool area.

The Dock has a bar outside and also offers light Mediterranean bites during the day and afternoon. While not typically billed as a restaurant onboard, the tapas-style food is delicious and offers a nice snack.

Following the deck around, you’ll also find seating in the mid-ship area of Deck 7. The areas have couches and loungers that look off the side of the ship. One area also has dedicated seating for the casual Pizza Place restaurant. It’s another great place to read a book or just take in the scenery.

Unfortunately, it feels much more industrial in between the two areas. Unlike Norwegian, which made this area an amazing seating area called Ocean Boulevard on its Prima Class ships by putting lifeboats under the promenade, Virgin put the lifeboats above, limiting the usefulness of the space.

Miss: Form Over Function

Throughout our 5-day cruise, one thing I kept running into was “form over function” on Valiant Lady, especially when it came to seating. There has to be at least 100 different types of seating options on the ship, but most of them seem to be built solely for how they look.

For example, The Dock offers fantastic views off the ship’s aft but the seating at the back of this area is surprisingly uncomfortable. These solid wood chairs lack cushioning and are so low to the ground that getting in and out of them is a pain.

Another example is by the Athletic Club on Deck 16. These massive benches look cozy, but the metal is unforgiving and can heat up in the sun. I hurt my back just trying to sit down in one.

By the main pool, these red quasi-cabana chairs that are have a nearly 90-degree angle, making them uncomfortable to sit in for longer than a couple minutes.

I had a similar experience when in the Redemption Spa on board. A whole wall of the spa has beautiful heated marble tile to lay on. It looks beautiful but it’s so uncomfortable because you’re just laying on a floor. Spas on other cruise ships have heated stone loungers with a much more ergonomic setup.

Hit: Included Food Options

Over the years, cruise lines have been cutting back on what food is included in the cruise fare—or at least adding new options that cost extra. So once you pay several thousand dollars for your vacation, then you have to pay extra onboard if you want something special. You will not find that on Valiant Lady at all.

Every restaurant is included in the cruise fare on Valiant Lady and all other Virgin Voyages ships. That means you don’t have to feel like a second-class citizen for not paying $75 for a steakhouse dinner.

There’s no main dining room on Valiant Lady; instead, you have several restaurants to choose from. Most of these restaurants would be comparable to “specialty dining” on any other cruise line, with options like Italian, Korean BBQ, Mexican, and a steakhouse.

According to Virgin’s marketing, they don’t have a buffet but, in reality, The Galley, is Virgin’s equivalent of a buffet. The Galley is a food hall-style restaurant where you can order quick bites from several different stands. It didn’t feel drastically different from a buffet, especially during breakfast, where things like pancakes, eggs, and bacon were precooked and just scooped out onto your dish when you order. Yes, it’s not a self-serve buffet, but I think the bragging that “Virgin has no buffet” is overplayed. (See The Galley‘s menu here)

That being said, the food in The Galley was quite tasty. You’d find elevated dishes here you wouldn’t find on other ships, like sushi, fresh ramen, duck burgers, and more. With the separate food stalls, it made it easier not to get bored of seeing the same food over and over again.

Valiant Lady also has a ton of casual dining options throughout the day. You can grab snacks at their coffee shop, The Grounds Club, or at The Social Club most of the day as well. They even have gourmet ice cream—also included.

Throughout my five days onboard, I kept finding myself surprised at just how much was included and how I didn’t have to worry about upcharges that seem to be plaguing virtually every other cruise line.

Miss: Standard Cabins

For a ship that’s full of champagne and sparkle, the cabins are surprisingly lackluster. While other cruise lines over the years have learned how to optimize the space and make their cabins more homey and functional, the Valiant Lady’s cabins are sparse, with seemingly little thought behind the design.

The cabins themselves are on the smaller side, but they didn’t feel overly cramped. A standard Sea Terrance (balcony) cabin on the ship is on par with Royal Caribbean’s Oasis Class ships, 8% smaller than the latest ships from Carnival, Princess, and Celebrity, and 25% smaller than Norwegian’s Prima Class.

	Average Balcony Cabin Size
Royal Caribbean Oasis Class	180 sq ft
Virgin Voyages Lady Class	185 sq ft
Carnival Excel Class	200 sq ft
Princess Sphere Class	200 sq ft
Celebrity Edge Class	200 sq ft
Norwegian Prima Class	231 sq ft

The bathroom looks a bit more high-end, with nice finishes and an amazing waterfall showerhead with a separate shower wand, but it’s small. Maneuvering in the bathroom can be challenging, especially when the shower door is open (other cruise lines use a floating hinge to recess the shower when opening/closing).

In the cabin, the furniture is very sparse with no real dressers or nightstands. Most of the furniture feels like it’s out of an IKEA showroom. There are no closets in the standard Interior, Oceanview, and Balcony cabins. Instead, you get a row of shelves and a rod to hang your clothes, which can be covered with a purple curtain. It feels like something you’d see in a college dorm room, not a premium cruise ship.

The cabin doesn’t have a couch, and that’s because, technically, the bed can become a couch. Virgin had the thought that each day, the room attendant would come in and switch the bed to an L-shaped sofa, but they quickly realized it was a lot of work and most guests didn’t want it. As a result, they no longer switch it over unless requested, and now there’s a huge wooden platform that’s not used and taking up space in the room (unless you want two twin beds, which will have an awkward L-shaped layout). Also, the bed is very low to the ground; it’s so low that my suitcase wouldn’t fit under the bed, the first time that’s ever happened to me on a cruise.

They did make some nice decisions, though. When you enter, the curtains automatically open, and the lights gently fade up, welcoming you. The lighting is dynamic and can be a variety of colors. The whole room can be controlled with a tablet, and the TV has a large catalog of included movies and TV shows.  

Overall, the cabins are completely serviceable. It was quiet and comfortable and served its purpose. The problem is the mismatch from the rest of the experience on Virgin; it’s not as high-end or premium as the rest of the ship, and the cost of the cruise, suggests.

If you want a bit more of a high-end experience, Valiant Lady does have a variety of suites, some with private bars, huge balcony areas, and peekaboo showers. It seems Virgin focused a lot om these cabins as they had many of the nice touches you’d expect in all the cabins.

Hit: Balcony and Hammock

While I wasn’t overly impressed with the cabin itself, I enjoyed the balcony on Valiant Lady. The balcony is a good size, coming in at 40 sq ft, on par with other cruise lines. They’re battleship gray and feel a bit industrial, but they also feel quite private thanks to the large, solid panels between the cabins. Also, unlike Carnival Corporation’s Excel Class ships, the balconies aren’t tiered here, so you don’t have to worry about people looking down into your balcony or seeing you from the side. It feels like it’s just you and the ocean.

On many of the balconies, you’ll find a red rope hammock. When Virgin Voyages‘ first ship, Scarlet Lady, was announced, the first thing that seemed to catch everyone’s attention was the signature red hammocks on the balcony. I was skeptical about how comfortable it would be, but I loved it as soon as I sat down. They’re made by Yellow Leaf Hammocks, a company featured on Shark Tank, who hand-weaves each one with super-soft yarn making them much more comfortable than a typical rope hammock. (If you love these hammocks, they’re sometimes in stock in the Virgin Store onboard or you can buy them on Amazon).

The hammock makes much better use of the balcony space than the typical chairs that most cruise lines put on standard balconies. Typically, the chairs are hard metal or plastic, and have little, if any, recline to the seat. The Virgin Voyages’ hammock, on the other hand, can be used to sit down in a chair-style, or you can stretch out and lie down completely. It felt so relaxing to lay in it and read a book as the ship’s gentle sway rocked the hammock.

Right now, the hammock is a differentiator for Virgin Voyages. I can’t imagine other cruise lines adopting these because they allow children on board who might abuse the hammock and put themselves in danger. It’s a shame because of this hammock, I spent more time on my balcony on Valiant Lady than any other cruise ship I’ve been on.

Miss: The Pools and Hot Tubs

If you read any review of any Virgin Voyages ship, one of the first complaints you’ll hear is about the pool deck design. To put it plainly, the pool area is just too small for a ship of this size.

Valiant Lady has two pools: the main pool in the Aquatic Club and a smaller, round pool called the Well-being Pool.

The Aquatic Club is the main pool and is surrounded by vibrant purple day beds. In pictures, the pool looks small, but in person, it’s even smaller. Only one-third of the pool is actually deep, the rest is just a wading area with just a couple inches of water.

The Well-Being Pool is actually larger than it looks in pictures. You could easily mistake the pool for a spa or hot tub, but on this sailing, the water was the same temperature as the other pool (mid-70s), and there were no bubbles. This pool is shallower but has a lot of seating, so it’s good for socializing.

The hot tubs are painfully small as well. Just four hot tubs are available to the general public on Valiant Lady, each holding 6-8 people at a time. None of them had any bubbles when I was onboard, so it was just sitting in a warm bath with random people.

If you’re a pool or hot tub fan, you’re really going to struggle on Valiant Lady. Most sea days, the pools and hot tubs are completely full. It helps that there aren’t kids splashing or doing cannonballs, so you can fit more adults comfortably, but still, Virgin really did some poor planning this this specific aspect of the ship.

For all other, non-pool, seating though, there wasn’t a problem. All over the ship, I was able to find loungers, couches, or chairs on a sea day. It’s was completely different them my experience on the Norwegian Viva this summer were I couldn’t find two chairs together on any part of the ship at 1 PM on a sea day.

Hit: Lots of Socialization Spots

Throughout Valiant Lady, you’ll find great places to lounge or socialize. You’ll find a lot of intimate areas where you can relax with friends or your partner while onboard. It’s a great ship if you’re on a group trip or a friend’s trip.

The Dock House, the inside portion of The Dock, has couches and chairs to relax on and has a dedicated bar. It also has the same light Mediterranean bites as The Dock.

The Social Club and The Loose Cannon next door have large tables set up throughout the space, where you can relax with friends or play one of the many board games they have available.

The Sip Lounge and On the Rocks Bar seemed to be popular nearly every night with people who didn’t want to attend the other entertainment onboard.

Miss: The Roundabout / Atrium Setup

The Roundabout, or the central atrium of Valiant Lady, is the heart of the ship. It has a massive spiral staircase down the center, connecting the two primary interior levels of the ship. But I’m not sure what they were going for here.

Some evenings, they would have events or musicians in The Roundabout or the small circle in the center of the staircase. The sound would be great here, allowing the music to fill Decks 7 and 8, but because of the massive, solid stairway, most of the nearby On the Rocks bar couldn’t see the performer. It’s not much better from the upper level, Deck 8, where only a handful of seats have a view.

During Scarlet Night, the massive ship-wide celebration of all things red, they host kickoff events in the area, with dancers on the stairs, but the space isn’t made for entertaining. No one can really see anything—or at least everything. You might get a glimpse of a dancer here or there.

While the space is fine for getting around the ship, it’s not suited for entertainment or functions. If they wanted that, they should have gone with a more open atrium design, like those used on many other ships. On our sailing, we had rainy weather, so our Sail Away Party was held in The Roundabout and it really ruined any party vibe. Instead, it felt just like a hotel lobby with people sitting around.

Hit: The Fitness

For some people, working out on a cruise is the last thing on their mind, but Virgin Voyages makes the prospect of it quite a bit more appealing.

Rather than a dark room tucked away deep inside the ship, on Valiant Lady, the gym is on the main pool level, with large windows looking out at both the sea and the pool.

The ship actually has two gyms. B-Complex Burn + Bike is dedicated to cardio equipment with dark finishes, giving it an atmosphere similar to SoulCycle. Next door is B-Complex Built + Balance, with strength training equipment and a bright, white finish.

In addition to the two indoor gyms, Valiant Lady also has outdoor workout equipment. You’ll find monkey bars by the Well-being Pool, and on Deck 16, there are push-up bars and even an outdoor boxing ring.

Virgin Voyages also includes all their fitness classes in the cruise fare and they give guests some interesting options. Try a spin class or sign up for a morning yoga class that takes place on the top deck at The Perch, offering serene ocean views. You can try new things like a bungee workout class called “On-the-Upswing” or a “HIIT (Don’t Quit)” class. Another popular option is the “VHS 80’s Workout“, which is an amped-up version of the 80’s aerobic video workouts, complete with shake weights.

That being said, you don’t HAVE to do any of that. It’s not a fitness cruise, and you won’t feel left out if you don’t. It’s just nice to have the option. I was surprised by how many people actually tried these activities. I talked to several people who wouldn’t do these kind of activities on a regular basis at home, but tried it onboard because it was something new (and included).

Miss: Athletic Club/Perch Setup

The Athletic Club takes up a large portion of the rear of Deck 16 on Valiant Lady. It’s a sizable space with a large bar, two hot tubs, and lots of seating, but the space is barely used (the Pajama Party of the first night was held here). When I visited the area on sea days, it was barely one-third full.

The biggest problem with the space is that it’s all set up to look inward. The area could look off the back of the ship, offering amazing sea views; in fact, this area is where Norwegian puts their premium The Haven area on their Prima Class ships. Instead, Virgin chose to line the whole area with daybeds facing inward. It makes the space feel very tight during the day; you can’t even see the ocean unless you stand up on one of the beds (which I caught people doing repeatedly).

The space also lacks shade, making it less appealing for those who don’t want to bake in the sun all day. A part of this deck is taken up by “The Net,” a red cargo net that lets guests be suspended 100 feet over the water. I don’t know who at Virgin thought this was a good idea. They must have tried out the net before they built it into a ship; I don’t know how they thought it wasn’t painful. Many guests who see this wish they’d replace it with a pool. Honestly, it would have been a perfect place for one, and on the Norwegian Prima and Viva, this is where they put their exclusive Haven infinity pool, but pools bring a lot of weight, and I doubt it’s practical to retrofit any additional water features without some serious redesigning unfortunately.

It’s a shame because the area could be premium space. The Athletic Club has a huge bar, TVs showing live sports, and two (small) hot tubs. It should be one of the busiest places on the ship on a sea day, but overall, it was underutilized on our sailing.

Verdict: An Adult-oriented Resort At Sea

For the second ship ever to launch under the brand, Valiant Lady is a surprisingly strong offering with a lot of great features. It manages to do things a bit differently than competitors while not being so different that established cruisers wouldn’t feel comfortable on the line. Unfortunately, some areas could use refinement, but oddly, Virgin didn’t address many of them as it launched the successor ships.

You might like Valiant Lady if….

• You hate paying more for food
  • Every restaurant is included on Valiant Lady, so you won’t feel second-class if you don’t pay extra for specialty dining.
• You want a break from kids
  • Every guest must be 18+ to sail on Virgin. It’s a huge difference compared to sailing on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, or Norwegian, especially during summers, although it’s not as much of a difference from Celebrity and Princess Cruises who have much fewer children onboard.
• You like smaller ships
  • Valiant Lady isn’t necessarily small, but it’s one of the smallest new cruise ships built in the last 5 years (not including luxury cruise lines). As other cruise ships keep getting bigger and bigger, the relatively compact footprint makes Valiant Lady easy to get around. It’s similar in size to Norwegian’s Jewel Class, Carnival’s Sunshine Class, Celebrity Millennium Class, or Royal Caribbean’s Radiance Class.
• You’re Taking a Friends Trip
  • Between all the socialization spaces and the smaller footprint of the ship, Valiant Lady is great for a friend’s trip. It makes it easy to schedule meet ups, or just bump into each other throughout the day.

You might not like Valiant Lady if….

• You want a traditional cruise experience 
  • If you want to play bingo, then go to the main dining room to have the same waiter each night, and then to a big production show, Virgin Voyages isn’t for you. It’s not a huge departure from other cruise lines, but it is different if you like old-style cruising.
• You have a cold weather itinerary
  • Valiant Lady has a lot of great outdoor space, but on a cold or rainy day, that means everyone is inside the ship, and it can get a bit cramped.
• You’re a picky eater
  • Virgin Voyages had a lot of different options for food onboard, but it might be a challenge for picky eaters. You won’t find chicken tenders, and the room service menu has dishes like Salmon rather than Buffalo Wings. All the menus are just a bit more contemporary and progressive which can turn off some. Still, with buffalo wings and hot dogs available almost all day, you’ll have something to eat, but possibly less than another cruise line (you can see all the menus here).
• You want top-deck attractions
  • You won’t find any water slides, climbing walls, bumper cars, or surf simulators on Valiant Lady. They wanted to attract a more adult audience so none of these are on Valiant Lady (although Rock Climbing would have fit perfectly with their “fitness” focus).
• You’re closed-minded
  • Virgin Voyages got a bad rap for being a swinger or raunchy cruise line when it first launched (possibly from bad marketing). In reality, the experience isn’t that much different than other cruise lines, just no kids. That being said, it is much more progressive, with a very inclusive and accepting atmosphere. If you would walk out of an R-rated comedy show on other cruise lines or if you’re offended by a Drag Queen having a show, then Virgin Voyages isn’t for you.

Follow Along on Our Caribbean Adventure on Valiant Lady

Valiant Lady – Cruise Blog - Day 1 – Miami

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Valiant Lady – Cruise Blog - Day 4 – Sea Day

Valiant Lady – Cruise Blog - Day 5 – Bimini

5 Hits and Misses on Virgin Voyages Valiant Lady

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