Virgin Voyages Dining: The Booking Mistake Costing You Your Dream Table

Name: Virgin Voyages Dining: The Booking Mistake Costing You Your Dream Table | Open Video
Uploaded: 2025-12-09T23:56:40+00:00
Duration: 19 min 8 s

0:00
So, the truth is booking dining on
0:02
Virgin Voyages has changed quite a lot
0:04
in the last few months. So, whether
0:06
you're planning your very first sailing
0:08
or if you've sailed a lot on the lady
0:10
ships, you'll still want to know the
0:11
best way to book restaurants in 2025 and
0:15
moving on into 26 as well. Because the
0:17
truth is, on Virgin Voyages, unless you
0:20
understand the system, you run the risk
0:22
of missing out on your favorite
0:23
restaurants when you get on board. I'm
0:25
David from VV Insider and today we're
0:28
going to look at all the tips and guides
0:30
from across vinsider.com to make sure
0:33
you don't miss dining at your very
0:35
favorite restaurant. So today we're
0:37
going to take a look at when
0:38
reservations open, how many restaurants
0:40
you can book, some insider tips on how
0:43
to decide when you actually should book
0:45
your dining, and also a guide on what to
0:47
do if all hope is lost and you don't
0:49
have the dining reservation that you
0:51
really, really wanted. So whether you're
0:53
sailing on Scarlet, Valiant, Resilient,
0:55
or the brand new Brilliant Lady ship, in
0:57
this guide, we're going to take a look
0:58
at how to eat smarter when you're on
1:00
board. So let's dive right in. V Insider
1:04
is the number one resource for the
1:05
latest Virgin Voyages info, guides, and
1:08
news. From picking the perfect cabin to
1:10
booking dining, or simply just making
1:11
the most of your voyage and saving money
1:13
while you do it, vincider.com has helped
1:16
thousands of sailors around the world
1:18
sail smarter. Support our work by
1:20
hitting subscribe and stick around to
1:22
hear how you can get exclusive perks by
1:24
booking directly with us.
1:28
So, the first thing you need to know
1:29
about dining on Virgin Voyages is that
1:31
things are a little bit different on
1:33
board the lady ships than they would be
1:35
on a traditional cruise line. So, for
1:38
many decades now, the experience that
1:40
you get on traditional cruise lines is
1:42
that you will be invited to dine at the
1:44
main dining room every single night. The
1:46
only real choice that you might be given
1:48
is whether you wanted early or late
1:50
dining. And the only change to this rule
1:52
is that if you wanted to go to one of
1:54
the specialtity restaurants, then you
1:56
would be asked to pay a fairly expensive
1:58
cover charge to go to one of these
2:00
specialtity restaurants instead. And
2:01
that's the only real choice that you
2:03
were given. Well, on Virgin Voyages,
2:05
it's very different. Instead, you're
2:07
given the choice to dine at any of the
2:08
restaurants you please. And you can
2:10
choose a time slot of when to arrive
2:12
between the restaurant's opening and
2:14
closing times. Now, that of course
2:16
presents a problem. What if everyone
2:18
wants to dine at the most popular
2:20
restaurant at say 7 every night? In that
2:23
case, you would end up with cues out of
2:25
the door and people waiting a huge
2:27
amount of time before they even get sat.
2:29
Well, Virgin Voyagers have a fairly
2:31
sophisticated dining booking system both
2:34
on their app and on the website. And
2:36
we're going to take a quick look on how
2:38
to use that system in just a moment. But
2:40
for now, you need to understand when you
2:42
can actually make these reservations.
2:44
So, you're able to book your reservation
2:47
as soon as your dining reservation
2:49
window opens. And this depends on the
2:52
type of fair and the type of cabin that
2:54
you're sailing in. So, first of all,
2:56
let's break this down of whether you're
2:58
a sailor or a rockstar. So, let's get
3:00
the rock stars out of the way. If you
3:03
book a Rockstar or a Mega Rockstar
3:05
suite, your dining reservation window
3:07
will be the same and that will be 120
3:10
days before your sailing date. So, that
3:14
is a huge amount of time before your
3:16
sailing where you can log into the app
3:17
or log into the website and make your
3:20
dining reservations. It's one of the
3:22
really good perks of the sweet level
3:24
class. And of course, you're paying for
3:26
that privilege, but it does mean you're
3:28
very unlikely to have any problems
3:30
securing the booking time that you want,
3:33
even if you have a larger party. But
3:35
let's talk about the experience that
3:37
most sailor will have. So, if you're a
3:39
sailor that hasn't opted for a Rockstar
3:41
suite, you'll be given a choice of
3:43
different fair choices when you're
3:45
booking your voyage. And each of these
3:47
fair choices are priced differently.
3:49
They're called voyage fair choices in
3:51
the Virgin Voyages system. come with
3:53
different levels of perks and options.
3:55
And one of these perks is having a
3:58
longer dining window if you choose one
4:00
of the higher fairs. So what this means
4:03
in practice is that you have three
4:05
levels of fair. One being the base fair
4:07
which is the cheapest option. In the
4:09
middle you have essential and then at
4:11
the top end you have the premium fair
4:13
where you're paying extra for
4:15
flexibility with your voyage and a few
4:17
other perks. But right now let's
4:18
concentrate on the dining window. So on
4:21
the premium end, you get 60 days before
4:24
your sailing to book your dining in. So
4:27
by this time, the Rockstar sailor will
4:29
have already had 60 days to book their
4:31
dining, but there are only a few
4:33
Rockstar suites on the ship. So by the
4:36
time 60 days comes along, you should
4:37
still have a very good option of dining
4:40
available to you. Sliding down the scale
4:42
into the essential fair type, which is
4:44
where most sailor will sit, you will get
4:47
45 days before your sailing to book your
4:50
dining. So by this time the rock stars
4:52
and the premium fair sailor will have
4:54
all booked their dining. So your choice
4:55
might be a little bit more limited. But
4:57
because this is where most sailor will
4:59
be, there still will be a fair amount of
5:02
options available to you. And then
5:03
finally, you have your base fair, which
5:05
is the cheapest option. And with that
5:08
comes only a 15-day dining window. So 15
5:11
days before you're sailing, you'll be
5:13
able to log on and pick up any
5:15
reservation slots that haven't already
5:17
been taken. So, if you're going on
5:19
Virgin Voyages and you want to
5:21
experience all the restaurants, have a
5:23
think about which fair type you're
5:24
choosing, if you really want to visit
5:27
each of these restaurants. So, now you
5:28
know your dining reservation window.
5:31
What do you do with that information?
5:33
Well, this is where you can get really
5:35
smart in booking the dining before
5:37
everyone else in your dining reservation
5:39
window. So, the thing you need to know
5:41
is that dining will become available
5:43
around midnight Miami time on the app
5:47
and on the website. So, you want to
5:49
check depending on where you're based in
5:51
the world, what midnight Miami time
5:53
looks like in your time zone because the
5:55
dining reservations won't open until
5:58
then. And of course, this time frame is
6:00
for everyone sailing on your voyage in
6:03
your fair class. So, make sure you head
6:05
on to the app or the website to book
6:07
your dining immediately as the dining
6:09
window opens. And this will ensure that
6:12
you'll have the biggest choice available
6:14
for the time slots that you might want.
6:16
We have heard a rumor or two about the
6:19
dining window opening slightly earlier,
6:21
so it might be worth just refreshing and
6:23
checking if you're really keen on making
6:25
sure you get your dining reservations
6:27
sorted. One of the reasons why this is
6:29
so competitive and you'll see a lot of
6:31
people in the Facebook group talking
6:32
about when it's opening, which slots
6:35
they've managed to book, etc. is because
6:37
only a portion of the real dining
6:40
availability is made available on the
6:42
app and on the website. Some of the
6:44
availability is ring fenced for those
6:47
that want to book when they get on board
6:49
the ship rather than pre-booking. From
6:51
what we understand, we believe around
6:53
2/3 of all dining availability is
6:56
actually reserved for when you get on
6:58
board the ship. So, if you've not
6:59
managed to book the exact time that you
7:01
wanted before you sail, don't worry too
7:04
much cuz there might still be an option
7:07
when you get on board. We've seen many
7:09
people be very, very despondent and say,
7:11
"I don't even know if it's worth sailing
7:13
anymore." Don't worry too much. There
7:16
will always be options when you get on
7:17
board. So, what do you do when your
7:19
booking window opens? Well, if you open
7:22
up your Virgin Voyages app, the first
7:24
thing you want to do is make sure that
7:26
you're connected with the people that
7:28
you're sailing with. So, connected to
7:30
your account will be anyone that's in
7:31
the same cabin as you, of course. But if
7:34
you're sailing with a group of friends
7:36
or family that happen to be in different
7:38
cabins, you'll need to make sure that
7:40
you go on the Virgin Voyages app and add
7:42
them as contacts before the dining
7:45
reservation window opens. You can do
7:47
this by going to the messages tab that's
7:50
down at the bottom. And when you click
7:52
on that, you'll see a screen that has a
7:54
button which says contact. If you tap on
7:57
that contacts button, you'll then get a
7:59
screen which will show a QR code. So, if
8:02
you're with a friend in person, you can
8:04
show them your phone. They can use their
8:05
camera app to scan that QR code. And as
8:08
long as they have the Virgin Voyages app
8:10
installed and they're logged in, they'll
8:12
be able to connect you as a contact on
8:14
the app. And once you've done this with
8:16
all of the people that you're sailing
8:17
with, when you go in to book your
8:20
dining, you will be able to choose your
8:22
entire party so you can book all of your
8:24
dining together. Now, it's worth noting
8:26
depending on the size of your party, you
8:29
might not be able to use the app to make
8:31
your dining reservations. So, the app
8:33
and the website max out around 8 to 12
8:36
sailors per booking. So, if you have a
8:39
large party that is above 8 or 12, then
8:41
you might need to take an alternative
8:43
route where you'll need to email sailor
8:45
services to make your dining bookings
8:47
instead. So, that's a really important
8:49
thing to be aware of. But, do make sure
8:51
you do your connection on the app to
8:53
make sure you're all grouped together.
8:55
That will make things a little bit
8:57
easier for sailor services. Besides,
8:59
it's always well worthwhile just noting
9:01
down the cabin numbers of everyone that
9:03
you're sailing with so that if you are
9:05
approaching sailor services for any
9:07
request whatsoever, you can just copy
9:09
and paste that into your email. So,
9:11
here's a quick walkthrough of how you
9:13
actually make a booking once the booking
9:16
window becomes available. So, if you go
9:18
to the discover section on the app and
9:20
then head over to eeries, you'll see a
9:23
list of the restaurants available. This
9:25
will show the first night of your
9:27
sailing. If you want to choose dining
9:29
for a different day, simply scroll along
9:32
the date on the top and choose the date
9:34
you'd like to configure. Once you see
9:36
the restaurant and time slot that you'd
9:38
like, simply tap on it and then you'll
9:40
be invited to choose the people that
9:42
you'll be dining with. In this example,
9:44
we just have a party of two, so they're
9:46
pre-selected. But if you're sailing with
9:48
others and you've connected them on the
9:50
app, you'll be able to select their
9:51
names and join them into your party on
9:54
your booking. One thing that's worth
9:56
pointing out here, and this is something
9:58
that a lot of people miss when they
9:59
first see this screen, is if you want to
10:01
book brunch, the option is actually
10:04
right in front of you. It's just not
10:06
very obvious. At the top of the screen,
10:08
you'll see a red button that says dinner
10:10
and the party size of the cabin that
10:12
you're traveling with. Looks can be
10:14
deceiving. You can actually tap on this.
10:16
This is a button, and it will take you
10:18
to a screen where you can change your
10:20
preferences. And you can actually choose
10:22
brunch if you like. and you can select
10:24
the people that you want to dine with
10:26
there as well. This will change the
10:28
availability that you see when you
10:30
return back to the screen with the time
10:32
slots. Now, you'll want to know what to
10:34
book. So, you'll have all the options to
10:37
choose any of the restaurants that are
10:38
available on the Virgin Voyages ships.
10:41
This is generally mostly the same for
10:42
every single one of the ships. So
10:44
everyone will have the option to choose
10:46
the wake which is the steakhouse on
10:48
board or extra virgin which is the
10:50
Italian test kitchen which is the
10:53
experimental tasting menu style
10:55
restaurant. Pink agave which is the
10:57
upscale Mexican option. Gunbe the Korean
11:01
barbecue restaurant or Razle Dazzle
11:03
which has a varied menu which includes
11:06
things like American comfort food. And
11:08
this is where it diverges a little bit
11:09
depending on the ship that you're
11:11
sailing on. So on Scarlet Lady,
11:13
Razledazzle is called Lucky Lotus by
11:16
Razledazzle, which is an Asian
11:18
restaurant. And on Brilliant Lady,
11:20
Razledazzle is called Rojo by
11:22
Razledazzle, which is a Spanish
11:24
restaurant. One thing you want to be
11:26
aware of with the different types of
11:28
restaurants is that both Gun Bay and
11:30
Pink Agave are slightly smaller than the
11:33
other restaurants. So if you want to
11:35
make any reservations, I would
11:37
prioritize those ones cuz those are the
11:39
ones that will go first. A little
11:41
insider tip here is that if you're
11:43
choosing a restaurant for the first
11:45
night and you're looking to meet new
11:47
people, Gun Bay is a really good option
11:49
because there's a drinking game involved
11:51
in the Korean barbecue experience. And
11:54
because you're sat family style with
11:56
other couples if you're in a small
11:57
group, it's likely that you'll bump into
12:00
new friends that you can talk to on the
12:01
rest of the voyage. It's also a really
12:04
good way to get ready for PJ party or
12:06
grog walk, depending of what you want to
12:08
do on the first night. A little note on
12:10
what you can actually book when you're
12:12
on board because there is a limit to how
12:14
many of these restaurants you can
12:16
select. So let's say that your favorite
12:19
is the wake and you want to eat filet
12:20
min every single night. Who could blame
12:23
you? But there is a limit how many times
12:26
you can book each of the restaurants and
12:28
this depends on how long your sailing
12:30
is. So, if you're on a shorter sailing,
12:32
that's five nights or fewer, you will be
12:35
able to select one of each restaurant
12:37
for your entire trip. If you're on a
12:39
slightly longer sailing, which is from 6
12:41
to 8 nights, you'll be able to choose
12:44
two of each of these restaurants per
12:46
sailing. And finally, if you're on one
12:47
of the longest sailings, so for example,
12:49
if you're on a repositioning voyage,
12:51
like a transatlantic, and that's nine
12:53
nights or more, then you'll be able to
12:56
choose three of each of these
12:58
restaurants. Remember, this is only for
13:00
pre-booking. So, if you did want to try
13:03
your favorite restaurant, simply try a
13:05
walk-in and that won't count towards
13:08
your limit. So, if you can get walk-in
13:10
availability, go for it. You can eat
13:12
there as many times as you like. A
13:14
little note on walk-ins. It is possible,
13:17
but you may need to wait a little bit
13:19
longer to get set. On busier sailings or
13:21
larger parties, they may have no walk-in
13:24
availability at all. So, it is worth
13:26
making sure that you do have something
13:28
booked at least when you're selecting
13:30
your times for dining. Just be aware
13:32
that you might want to book around
13:34
certain activities that you might
13:36
already have planned. So, try to take
13:39
into account, do you have any port days
13:41
where you're doing longer excursions and
13:43
you might not be back on the ship in
13:45
time for your dining slot. Make sure you
13:47
book a later dining slot if that's the
13:49
case. Also, consider that there is
13:51
headline entertainment on board these
13:53
ships as well. Generally, there will be
13:54
two showings of a headline show, either
13:57
at 7 or 8:00 and then another one at
14:00
10:00. So, make sure you don't choose a
14:02
dining slot that's going to cover both
14:04
of those showings if you're keen on
14:06
seeing the headline entertainment. The
14:08
amount of time that you'll be spending
14:09
dining will depend on how many people
14:11
you're dining with. If you're in a
14:13
larger party, it tends to take a little
14:15
bit longer, but if you roughly allow
14:17
about an hour and a half for your
14:19
dining, then you'll not feel too rushed.
14:21
Now, let's talk about brunch. Luckily,
14:24
brunch does not count towards your limit
14:27
to how many times you can book into a
14:29
particular restaurant. So, brunch is
14:32
available at both the wake or
14:34
razledazzle, and that includes Lucky
14:36
Lotus and Rojo as well. And brunch is
14:38
available between 8:00 a.m. and 100 p.m.
14:41
As I say, it doesn't count towards your
14:43
limit of how many times you can book
14:45
dinner. So, if you are a fan of the wake
14:48
and you want to visit more, you can go
14:50
for brunch as well. As I mentioned
14:51
earlier, you book brunch just like you
14:53
would dinner on the app or generally
14:56
walk up availability is pretty good for
14:58
brunch. So, just head up there and ask
14:59
the restaurant manager. If you're
15:01
looking to do bottomless brunch, which
15:03
are the bottomless alcoholic drinks with
15:05
your brunch, you don't need to book that
15:07
separately in the app. Just show up for
15:09
brunch and simply choose it from the
15:11
menu just like you were ordering any
15:13
other drink. Now, what if the worst was
15:15
to happen and you couldn't book what you
15:17
wanted to book or heaven forbid there
15:19
was absolutely nothing. available at
15:21
all. Let's say you booked your voyage
15:23
last minute, for example. Well, don't
15:25
worry too much. There is always going to
15:27
be something to eat. So, you can always
15:30
eat at the galley or the pizza place or
15:32
any of the other eeries that are open
15:34
during dinner time. These don't require
15:36
a reservation and you simply go up and
15:39
order what you'd like. But if you are
15:40
really keen on dining in one of the
15:42
restaurants, who could blame you? There
15:44
are a few things that you can do to try
15:46
and get a reservation last minute. So,
15:49
as soon as you get on the ship, when
15:51
you're connected to the ship Wi-Fi,
15:53
check the dining reservation statuses
15:55
again because it's likely more of those
15:58
reservation time slots have become
15:59
available on the app during sailing day.
16:02
If you're still struggling or if you're
16:04
not able to use the app, then head down
16:06
to Razledazzle on deck 5 between 1 and 4
16:11
on Sailaway Day and ask if they can help
16:14
you with your dining reservations.
16:16
There'll be a dining manager there
16:18
who'll be able to do that for you on
16:19
their computer. If you like or prefer
16:21
this in-person dining reservation
16:24
service, then you can head down to
16:26
Sailor Services on any other day between
16:28
9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. and there will
16:30
be a dining manager there who can help
16:32
you with your dining reservations as
16:34
well. And again, Sailor Services is
16:36
located on deck 5 near Pink Agave. Now,
16:40
all of the onboard times that we've just
16:41
mentioned are subject to change. So,
16:44
always make sure that you check your
16:45
event lineup either on the app or the
16:47
paper version that's available in venues
16:49
around the ship. And remember, if all
16:51
else has failed and you really want to
16:53
try those restaurants, simply walk up to
16:55
the restaurant of choice and ask the
16:57
restaurant manager if there is any walk
16:59
up availability. You might even want to
17:02
tell them that you're happy sitting at
17:03
the bar or in the tapas area, depending
17:05
on the restaurant you're in. They will
17:07
generally try their best to get you
17:09
seated, but if there's nothing
17:10
available, they may tell you to come
17:12
back later or maybe try on a different
17:14
evening. One thing you should know is
17:16
that you're not going to go hungry on
17:17
Virgin Voyages. If you're not able to
17:20
get into the restaurant that you really
17:21
want on the evening, there are many,
17:23
many different places to eat on board
17:25
the ship. And if you head over to
17:27
vbinsider.com,
17:28
we have an entire list of all of the
17:30
restaurants and all of the venues that
17:32
you're able to eat at. So, do not get
17:34
despondent. And if it's really important
17:37
to you to snag those dining
17:38
reservations, maybe make sure to choose
17:41
a premium voyage fair choice or upgrade
17:44
to one of the Rockstar suites where you
17:46
get those larger dining reservation
17:48
windows. Hopefully that gives you a
17:50
great idea on what to expect when you
17:52
come to book your dining on Virgin
17:54
Voyages. If you found this guide useful
17:56
at all, this channel is full of guides
17:58
just like this, as well as Virgin
18:00
Voyages insider updates to tell you all
18:03
the news and all the changes that are
18:04
happening on board across the Virgin
18:07
Voyages fleet. So, if you found this
18:09
useful, make sure that you subscribe to
18:11
our channel. And we have tons of
18:13
information as well over on our website
18:15
at vbvinsider.com.
18:17
So, if you'd like to subscribe to our
18:19
newsletter there, you'll get exclusive
18:21
emails every single week telling you
18:23
about all the changes and all the action
18:25
that's happening at Virgin Voyages. And
18:27
if you're looking for somebody who's
18:29
clued up and all of this Virgin Voyages
18:31
stuff to help plan your next voyage,
18:34
then we can do that at
18:35
vbvinsider.com/book
18:38
and we can act as your first mate and
18:40
help you book the perfect voyage. That's
18:43
everything for this week. I'll be back
18:45
next week with a Virgin Voyages insider
18:47
update as we start preparations to head
18:50
into 2026. So, make sure you follow
18:53
along for that. Thank you so much for
18:55
tuning in and until next time, happy
18:58
sailing.
19:00
[Music]

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