Cruising The Virgin Way

If great destinations, wonderful freshly prepared food, a modern cruise ship and an adult only holiday appeal to you then Virgin Voyages may be just what you are looking for. It was a mix of the fantastic itinerary and all the speciality restaurants included in the cruise that stood out for me. The cruise was The Valiant Lady’s maiden voyage out of Barcelona on The Irresistible Med cruise; and it did not disappoint. Starting in Barcelona, which is a great city to visit, we chose to have a pre-night stay so we could take in the sights and not miss the opportunity. Sitting out on the Saturday evening on Les Rambles eating Paella with a sangria and taking in all it has to offer was a wonderful start to our holiday. The cruise took in Toulon in the South of France, Marina di Carrara in Italy, where we visited Pisa and then on to Ajaccio in Corsica. From here we went to Cagliari in Sardinia followed by Ibiza in which we also had an overnight stop as well, and then back to Barcelona; all within seven nights. The promise of speciality restaurants and all freshly prepared food also drew me to this cruise. The restaurants are out of this world and the service is impeccable, with twenty plus places to eat you can never get bored of the same things and not a buffet in sight. The Wake (Seafood and Steak), Gumbae (Korean BBQ) and The Pink Algarve (Mexican) were my favourite speciality restaurants. The pizza place, the dock house (serving tapas style food) and not forgetting the ice cream parlour were ideal places for lunch, not forgetting The Galley which I ate breakfast every day as the choice was endless, they also do great lunches and dinners too. The Taste Kitchen offers experimental ways to have dinner and a wonderful way to spend the evening. I loved that Virgin Voyage have really thought about the design of all the areas on the ship; there were so many places to sit and have a drink which were small, intermate and chilled. Virgin Voyages cruises are all adult by design so not a kids club in sight. The swimming pools on board are smaller for you to relax in and there are also hot tubs scattered about. If you are into your fitness then it will not disappoint, with a full running track, state of the art gym, basketball court and fitness classes to work off all the delicious food. The cabins onboard are stunning. We had a Sea Terrace cabin (balcony) with I thoroughly recommend, waking up watching a flock of Flamingos fly past as we were coming into Sardinia was a true highlight. The cabins have everything you need, from a powerful shower, a fridge with replenished water each day, a wardrobe with enough space for all your clothes and movies on the television to watch at your leisure. As it was a Sea Terrace you also got outdoor furniture and a hammock which is very relaxing and will quite easily rock you to sleep. Evenings on board were very relaxed, we spent them enjoying wonderful food and wine and a couple of the nights we watched one of the shows. Dual Reality is one show not to be missed; a modern take on the classic Romeo and Juliet and, also the solo acts in the bars on an evening were a lovely way to sit and have a drink listening to live music. When people think of a Virgin voyage cruise, they think it is for the younger audience. However, this is far from what I experienced. If you enjoy great food and nice speciality restaurants with outstanding service, nice wine and a ship that is purely for adults then you will love it. My experience was that it was for those that want to see a bit of the world, experience life and like the finer things in life without paying a fortune for it. Would I sail the virgin way again? Absolutely, I loved it.