Brilliant Lady Is Coming to All Corners of the US

After a long delay, Virgin Voyages has announced that its fourth ship, Brilliant Lady, will start sailing in September 2025. Even more exciting is that this ship will visit all four corners of the US, offering new itineraries and destinations for sailors. 

Brilliant Lady changes allow new destinations

So far, all the Virgin Voyages ships have been nearly identical. The Brilliant Lady will be mostly similar to its sister ships, except it will have an adapted frame. That frame will allow it to pass through the Panama Canal and open a new variety of destinations. The layout and amenities on the ship will be similar to its sister ships, although Virgin Voyages said they’ll share more about the features of Brilliant Lady in the future. 

Brilliant Lady will sail from all corners of the US

Currently, the only way to sail Virgin Voyages is to sail out of Miami. They’re changing it up with Brilliant Lady, which will sail from 4 different US ports and visit some ports that no Virgin Voyages sailing has ever visited. 

New York (Sept ’25 – Oct ’25)

Brilliant Lady will first sail from New York City, allowing guests in the Northeast to try a Virgin Voyage. Its inaugural cruise, “the MerMaiden” voyage, will be on September 5, 2025. After that, Brilliant Lady will sail 5-13 night cruises to Bermuda and Canada, including the beautiful Quebec City. 

Miami (Oct ’25 – Mar ’26)

Once the weather gets colder, Brilliant Lady will reposition down to Miami, where it will spend the next six months cruising the deep Caribbean. It will visit destinations like Miami, Aruba, Columbia, and Jamaica. 

Panama Canal Crossing 

After the season in Miami, Brilliant Lady will sail through the Panama Canal on a 16-night voyage. Brilliant Lady will be the first Virgin ship to traverse this famous crossing, and the balcony hammocks will provide a fantastic viewpoint as the ship makes its way through the locks. 

Los Angeles (Apr ’26 – May ’26)

Brilliant Lady will arrive in April and will be the first Virgin Voyages ship to visit the West Coast. While here, the ship will offer 5-8 night sailings to the Mexican Riviera, Santa Barbara, and San Diego. 

Seattle (May ’26 – Sept ’26)

After Los Angeles, Brilliant Lady will head to Seattle, where it will run Virgin’s first-ever Alaskan cruises. This is an amazing opportunity for those who have always wanted to visit Alaska but didn’t want to be on a cruise that was either filled with much older guests or lots of children. 

Virgin Voyages expects the Alaskan sailings to sell out quickly, especially because the ship holds fewer passengers than some of the other mega-ships sailing in Alaska. Because of that, they’re introducing the “Alaska Front(ier) of the Line Pass.” It’ll go on sale May 8 and allow guests to lock in a cabin on an Alaskan sailing. Placeholders cost $500 for Sea Terraces, $1,000 for RockStar Quarters, and $2,500 for Mega RockStar Quaterers. Once the itineraries are released this summer, guests with this pass can pick their specific sailing. 

More Brilliant Lady details to come

In their cheeky video announcement, Virgin Voyages alluded to other changes this new ship might see. They said Brilliant Lady will have more live music, more comedy, more shows, and some first-to-fleet design elements not seen elsewhere. The ship will also have some new categories of sea terraces, some with two hammocks on each balcony.

You can learn more about the specific sailings on Virgin Voyages website

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