Moms Gone Wild on a Virgin Voyages Caribbean Cruise

Image 1: VHS Workout at The Manor by Day ; Image 2: Coconut Panna Cotta at The Wake Restaurant

Pre and post-cruise stays:

Coming from the West Coast, our group flew in the day before and overnighted in Miami. I was delighted to work with several area establishments who accommodated our large group beautifully:

Crazy About You - Waterfront eclectic restaurant with tasty group dining options. Located in The Mark hotel, across the street from our hotel, the Hyatt Centric Brickell. Their sister restaurant Dolores But You Can Call Me Lolita is also located nearby in a converted firehouse.

R House Wynwood — Get the party started early with a drag queen brunch! Upgrade to the bottle service package to guarantee premium seating indoors next to the stage (and out of the hot Miami sun–essential for pre-menopausal women and those who prefer air-conditioned comfort).

Palace Bar & Restaurant — While drag queen brunches are also on offer, we came here for nighttime impromptu drinks and dancing. A welcoming, fun spot in Miami Beach!

The Villa Casa Casuarina (former Versace mansion) - An icon of Miami Beach, you can stay or dine here. We just stopped by to look at the beautiful space.

Essentials to bring:

Theme night outfits: A big selling point for us on Virgin Voyages are their theme night dance parties. Be sure to bring outfits for the PJ party, Scarlet Night and We Fancy (whatever means glamor to you). Extra points for wearing 80s-inspired headbands and leg warmers during the VHS Workout.

Each stateroom can carry-on two 750 ml bottles of wine (no hard liquor). If opening at a restaurant, corkage is $25/bottle.

The ship:

The ship layout is straightforward and so as directionally-challenged as I am, I found it pretty easy to navigate each deck.

Each dining venue has its own unique design vibe and the menus are overall more creative than usual cruise dining — I’ve never seen a Korean BBQ restaurant on a ship before! Virgin Voyages has replaced the standard buffet with a food hall concept in The Galley — it still feels like a buffet in terms of volume of guests served, but food is mostly assembled to order, which I appreciated for customization options, cleanliness, and that the food feels fresher and less wasteful. Our favorite restaurant was Extra Virgin, which serves excellent Italian starters, pastas and mains.

Tip: In all the restaurants, you can order family style— with such a large group, we sampled everything on the menu each night!

Whether you’re exercise-curious or a total fitness addict, Virgin Voyages has got you! I have never seen a cruise ship with so much space dedicated to working out: The B-Complex gym (port and starboard sections), the outdoor Aquatic Club and Athletic Club, a sports arena (with Pickleball court) and a topside running track. Group classes take place not only in their Training Camp room, but also utilize their entertainment venues (The Manor, The Red Room) for larger dance classes like VHS Workout and Zumba.

For those who prefer less-active pursuits, The Social Club has large booths perfect for playing a game from their board game library or seat a team during a trivia or speed puzzle event. There’s also a casino, an arcade straight out of the 80s, a small-room karaoke parlor and a spa to provide other options for filling your days and nights.

With Virgin’s roots in music, it is unsurprising that the musical acts and shows onboard are fantastic and don’t at all feel like the stereotypical cruise ship broadway homages. The Red Room is a uniquely flexible venue whose seats can be reconfigured or even fully removed. Our favorite show there was Dual Reality, which is based on Romeo & Juliet and combines acrobatics, parkour and dance.

All Caribbean itineraries will make a stop at beautiful Bimini Island. Virgin hosts their Bimini Beach Club (a short tram ride away from port) exclusively for their guests, and all food is included as though it were an extension of the ship. The food is excellent here and if there are any splurge funds available, I highly recommend booking a beach cabana for its excellent wait-staff service and shaded comfort. The beach itself is beautiful but walk a little to find an entry spot with less rocks and shells to traverse, as you need to push past some surf to get to the calm, sandy part of the water. Before we wised up to this approach, the ocean played a lot of “Toss The Mom.”

Virgin Voyages is adults only (18+), and the ship’s vibe is playful and cool. Instead of one cruise director, there is a multi-talented team called the Happenings Cast (with designations like “The Foodie,” “The Charmer,” “The Glow”) who run all the activities (from trivia contests to group fitness to dance parties) on the ship. Brimming with charisma, they are adept at making guests feel special and seen. It’s worth getting to know them as they may open up secret experiences or special gifts to a few lucky. Example: when our group gleefully took pictures upon embarkation with our matching outfits and bags, The Charmer invited us to a private magic show that took place at a behind-the-scenes “speakeasy” (i.e., the crew bar).

Upon check-in, each sailor receives a wearable technology wristband called “The Band” which opens your cabin door and facilitates onboard contactless payments to your linked credit card. It’s a minimalist accessory and makes things very convenient.

There are no all-you-can drink packages—to me this is great as I think those encourage people to over-indulge. Drinks are reasonably priced (most wine/beer under $10 and most cocktails around $15) and you can pre-purchase a bar tab that gives you $25 extra for $200 and $50 extra for $300. Rockstar suites come with bottomless in-room bars and a daily bar tab allowance.

Downloading the Virgin Voyages app is essential: this is the primary method for ship communications, as there are not many audio announcements during the cruise. You will also need to download the app before sailing to make (highly recommended) advance reservations for dining, excursions (called Shore Things) and the spa. The app is still a bit glitchy, so be patient or have your travel advisor lend you a hand.

This trip report is part of our ongoing series on cruise travel. In need of further inspiration? Check out Kelsey Parry’s guide, What to Know about the Adults-only Virgin Voyages Beach Club at Bimini.