Virgin Voyages First Time Tips
Ahoy! Have you ever wanted to cruise on Virgin Voyages or just wanted to know what all the fuss is about? Join me as I prepare to set sail for my first Virgin Voyages cruise on Scarlet Lady for a five-night Mayan Rivera cruise out of Miami. I’ll be doing several blog posts and corresponding YouTube videos to help you decide if Virgin is the right cruise line for you and tell you about my experiences as a solo cruiser.
In this post, I’ll be talking about how I ended up booking a Virgin Voyages cruise in the first place and how you can take advantage of the programs Virgin Voyages offers to first time passengers.
Match and Sea Program
If you already have status on on another cruise line or some airlines, you need to take advantage of the Match and Sea More Program that Virgin offers. To check if you are eligible, take a look at the page on Virgin Voyage’s Website Eligible Loyalty Programs. For Princess, that means Platinum or Elite status. If you qualify you will be able to take advantage of the Deep Blue Extras that Virgin Voyages is currently offering. These include an upgrade to premium WiFi, early boarding, a limited free laundry service and $10 a day to use for a premium coffee. They plan to revisit these and change them up based on cruiser comments so check with them on the current offering. The early boarding alone is a fantastic perk.
Casino Match Program
National Problem Gambling Helpline
Gambling is a form of amusement, but not suitable for everyone. If you don't enjoy it, don't gamble solely for a complimentary cruise. Some people find it goes against their values and for others it may lead to significant health problems. Don't risk your well-being or values to save money.
On my last two Princess cruises I decided to branch out and try my luck at the casino. I was fascinated by the idea of cruising for free and I had heard of people being offered free cruises as a reward for playing in the casino. As a solo traveler, anything I can do to lower the cost of the cruise and still maintain the value is high on my list. My initial reaction to this was, they must have to lose a lot of money before they get a free cruise. But I wanted to get the details, so I started my research, like always, by searching on YouTube.
The first video I came across was one by Gary Bembridge on 5 SURPRISING Things About Cruise Ship Casinos. In that video Gary laid out the essential information on how casinos work on a cruise ship and how cruise ship casino regular, Jen Juenke, uses the perks from the casino as a way to maximize her cruising value. It helped me to see the reality of what is really being offered and how the cruise lines use the casino as a way to grow their business. Cruise lines are very motivated to grow the onboard spend passengers make and the casino has proven to be excellent way to do that for them.
In further research, I came across Mark’s YouTube channel who has excellent tips on the “behind the scenes” of how cruise ships decide who gets comps and at what level. Mark recommends a fairly large bankroll that I could not afford, but as I found out, you can still get benefits at a much lower level of play.
So, that leads me to a Video from Sani Felicia on How to Get a Free Cruise on Virgin Voyages in 2023. And it was this video that really started this whole thing. In Sani’s video, she gave detailed information on how to get a free cruise on Virgin Voyages, even if you have never sailed on Virgin. All that is required is that you have some kind of status with a casino, either land or sea based. I followed her advice, and voilà, I had a free cruise offer.
Here are the steps I took to get the free cruise offer from Virgin Voyages.
Send an email to vvcasino@virginvoyages.com
In the email, explain that you are interested in participating in the casino match program
They will send a link to their “Direct Casino Sailor Form” which is a Google Form
On the form they will ask you for your email, which ship you are interested in sailing on, the dates, if you have sailed with Virgin Voyages before, name and contact information, what type of games you play in the casino, what casinos you play at (land or sea), your highest casino status, and attach a file showing a current offer from a casino.
I submitted all of that and seven days later I received an email with an offer for a Sea View cabin (Virgin Voyages term for an ocean view cabin) on either Scarlet Lady or Valiant Lady. All I had to do was to pick a cruise and let them know. After first talking with my wife about it, I raced over to the website, picked a cruise and sent the information off to them. The same day I got a confirmation from them and all I had to do is pay the taxes and port fees and I was booked on my first Virgin Voyages Cruise. So, it’s not 100% free but paying taxes and port fees is a standard practice for casino comp offers. And it is certainly much less than the standard solo rate. By the way, Virgin Voyages does offer solo interior cabins at a very good price point.
One additional note. According to the Virgin Voyages website, you will not receive Deep Blue Extras if you have only been on a non-commisionable sailing, which would include a casino comp cruise. But you will get Deep Blue Extras if you qualify for the Match and Sea program.
So that is how I started my Virgin Voyages journey. I’ll be posting more blogs to tell you more about what to expect on Virgin Voyages especially as a solo cruiser (or sailor as they say).
