Our 2-week voyage through the Suez Canal from Greece to the UAE aboard the 1,408-cabin Resilient Lady restored our faith in cruises. As someone who views cruises with the enthusiasm I usually reserve for dentist appointments, I was pleased to discover this wasn’t just another floating buffet.

Resilient Lady, the third cruise ship in the Virgin Voyages fleet, is an energetic, upscale, adults-only ship designed to entertain at every turn. With its lipstick-red accents—nothing says "adventure" like the color of a cherried-out vintage Corvette—it’s less like a ship and more like if a nightclub and a boutique hotel had a baby and then put it on water. Don't worry, though—there are loads of spots to relax all over the ship, too.

A huge contributor to the ship's atmosphere is its unorthodox deck plan. It is a masterclass in contemporary, savvy design, creating cozy nooks and crannies evocative of a busy neighborhood rather than a floating leviathan. You won't find massive theaters or casinos stretching the ship's length—instead, you find yourself weaving through human-sized spaces like The Manor, The Red Room, and The Dock. It feels almost intimate. And by that, I don’t mean cramped. It's about fostering encounters, whether striking up a conversation with a fellow passenger or a friendly chat with the ever-smiling staff. And, in a stroke of architectural genius, the more rambunctious venues are cleverly distanced from the sanctity of the cabins, sparing sailors the late-night echoes of party revelers.

Speaking of cabins, ours—a Sea Terrace, they called it—was a cozy, Instagram-worthy pad that was a model of clever space utilization. The hammock on the balcony became my refuge, a perfect spot for contemplating the ocean's vastness or, more realistically, what to eat next. Rick used it to its full, nap-worthy potential.

Bathrooms seem standard-sized for a cruise ship, but this one stocked upmarket Malin + Goetz toiletries, and the showers had actual rainfall showerheads—a small but greatly appreciated detail.

The comfortably firm king-size bed could be split apart every morning and rearranged as an L-shaped couch. We left that to the cabin steward. And with only 6% of the cabins being interior rooms, most everyone is guaranteed a mesmerizing sea view, ensuring the ocean's calming presence is but a glance away.

Now, if you’re quite a bit richer than we are, you might pony up for one of the 78 suites, which are divided into Rockstar and Mega Rockstar Quarters. These rooms come with a full bar, turntable and Virgin records (duh), swankier marble bathrooms, and much larger balconies. The top-end suites also have access to a private sun area at the front of the ship and the VIP Richard’s Rooftop lounge. But they still have to use the same pools, gyms, and common areas as us poors.

Wifi on board is free, though you can upgrade to higher bandwidth. That’s completely worth it. I mean, let’s face facts, you’re often in the middle of the ocean, so it’s not going to be like at home. But it is good enough to keep you connected—and to stream a nice library of movies. Hey, we watched Barbie one night!

Ultimately, this ship doesn't just defy the typical cruise blueprint; it rips it up and throws it overboard.

Hit and miss excursions

Shore excursions are typically conducted in partnership with smaller tour operators than other cruises, so they can be a real highlight. Virgin ships also tend to stay late or even spend the night in port—ideally both, so passengers can spend more time ashore. That said, there seemed to be some issues with the excursions on the first couple weeks of this 6-week repositioning cruise. Likely that was a factor of this being an entirely new route for the Resilient Lady through parts of the world with pretty slim pickings in top-tier tourist sites.

In our two weeks, there were excursions on two Greek islands (Santorini and Rhodes) and in two places in Egypt, Cairo and Safaga. The Egyptian excursions generated the most grumbling from passengers, who invested nearly three and a half hours getting to a site and three and a half back. Combine that with poor Egyptian time management and a lack of food for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and most people got back to their cabins well past the departure deadline and crabby.

The wild card

The onboard entertainment was a delightful surprise. “The Miss Behave Show” turned out to be a riotous blend of comedy and chaos—a chaos-powered “game show” that defies description. “Another Rose” is an acrobatic love-triangle-becomes-a-throuple story performed as dinner theater that refuses to bow to the constraints of conventional narrative. The plot is as hard to distinguish as your shadow on a moonless night. It’s so weird I assumed it had to be a sort of poetry. I’m not sure what I saw, but I had a good time.

But there’s really entertainment all over the ship. I mean, it is a Virgin property. Think of it like an adult playground on steroids. A great night might start at The Social Club with some popcorn and a boozy milkshake. That's where people gather to play board games, visit the arcade, take part in trivia contests, or sing karaoke. But there are also outdoor pools and hot tubs, onboard shops, a casino, a pickleball court that can also be a basketball court, a game room, a video arcade, a spa, and a full gym. And for those looking for more permanent souvenirs, there's a tattoo parlor.

Did I mention the tour of the ship? Which at first I thought would be a colossal waste of time? But that you end up on the bridge visiting with the captain? Yeah. That was good, too.

A culinary odyssey

You only need to look at me once to divine that I. Love. To. Eat. And dining aboard the Resilient Lady was an adventure in itself. Virgin has reimagined traditional cruise dining, completely eliminating the buffet concept and replacing it with the Galley, a sort of food court with different international offerings, and several curated sit-down, restaurant-style dining experiences. There are plenty of simple grab-and-go items, too, along with sushi and salads.

Razzle Dazzle, a vivacious and vegetarian-friendly hotspot with a truly horrible name, offers a menu that cleverly plays with plant-based ingredients. The Test Kitchen is culinary theater offering an experimental and interactive dining experience created through innovative techniques, unexpected flavor combinations, and theatrical presentation.

For a taste of Italy, Extra Virgin serves up really excellently interpreted pasta and seafood dishes. The Wake is a must-visit for meat lovers, where dishes like buttery roasted bone marrow and tender New Zealand lamb chops reign supreme.

Gunbae offers tasty Korean barbecue but demands a high level of forced group fun. They seat in parties of 6 to 8—so you are likely to be seated with strangers—and the waiters encourage lots of shots, drinking games, and shouting “Gunbae!” (“Cheers” in Korean). Ugh. Hated it. Pink Agave’s Mexican offerings left us underwhelmed.

But dining aboard Resilient Lady is more than just the food; it's about the ambiance. There are no stuffy cruise dining rooms here. Instead, the ship offers a relaxed, come-as-you-are atmosphere with more than 20 different dining options at any given moment.

Also, not to be overlooked, gummi bears on demand. And delivered to your cabin, should needs be.

Unpolished logistics

I’d like to say that embarking in Athens felt like being in a Where’s Waldo? Scene—chaotic, colorful, and slightly overwhelming. Or that it was like a scene from a sitcom—confused passengers, overwhelmed staff, and a sense of impending doom. But in reality, it was just a shit show. Most people stood in various lines in the hot Greek sun based on directions from staff that were either conflicting or non-existent. Which is better? It took hours, most of which was spent anxiously hoping that you were in the right spot at the right time—that they wouldn’t just turn you back to the start of some other snaking line once you got to the front.

And then there was the Virgin Voyages App. The entire cruise experience had to be managed through the app, the results of which were, well, inconsistent. It promised convenience for making reservations, ordering room service, and setting spa appointments without visiting each venue or standing in line. But as they say in the advertising biz, your mileage may vary. Based on the endless lines at the technical service desk, many people were frustrated by technical glitches, slow response times, and difficulties syncing the app with real-time availability. I know we missed out on some prime excursion opportunities because the app seemed half-baked. It’s a great idea, but it’s clearly a work in progress.

As for disembarking, we were prepared for trouble. We never did get any direction from staff beyond, “You need to be off the ship by 11.” Seriously. We even stood in line the evening before but were told we’d get information in the daily bulletin that was slipped under our door each evening. Um, nope. So we gave up, slept in, ate a nice breakfast at The Wake, had a final latte, and wandered off the ship all before 11 a.m. Which worked great. Sometimes, laziness pays off.

So who's it for?

The Resilient Lady isn’t your grandma’s cruise. It's a haven for adults seeking refuge from the world of kids' clubs and early bird specials. The LGBTQ+ inclusivity added a vibrant hue to the already colorful tapestry of passengers. Solo adventurers and social butterflies will find themselves at home here. If you're more of a wallflower, this might push you out of your comfort zone—in the best possible way.

Would we cruise with Virgin Voyages again? Oh, hell yes. The Resilient Lady, with its unconventional approach, has somewhat softened my hardened heart. Rick, ever optimistic, is already looking at brochures for our next adventure. As for me, I’m just glad to have survived with my sense of humor and a newfound appreciation for the art of cruising.

And a huge shoutout to the crew—from the tireless servers to the endlessly entertaining performers, you're the real MVPs of the high seas.

Virgin Voyages will soon add a fourth ship to their fleet for cruises in the Caribbean and Europe in summer, and Australia & the South Pacific in winter. Find out more at virginvoyages.com.

posted February 2024