Recently, I had an amazing opportunity to have a VIP guide for a day at Walt Disney World.

 Full disclosure:  I earned this experience from a sales incentive with MEI-Travel that included the guide for 7 hours and 1 day park hopper tickets.  The gratuity for the guide was at my expense.

The guide group can accommodate up to 10 guests.  For my day, it was myself, my husband, my sister and a friend.   We discussed in advance what we would like to do with the guide, as the VIP services team speaks to you in advance to get a starting point and a tentative plan.  At first we talked about doing all 4 parks in one day, but then decided we didn’t want to be that ambitious so we decided to start in the Magic Kingdom for half a day and then move to Hollywood Studios for the other half of the day.

We also decided that we didn’t want to use time with the guide for a sit down meal.  We made a reservation for breakfast at Steakhouse 71 before our start time so we were ready to go and then dinner reservation for Roundup Rodeo BBQ for after our tour.   I made those reservations myself – they did not go through the VIP services department.  

After enjoying our breakfast, we walked over to meet our guide in the Magic Kingdom.  We were a few minutes early and waited outside the meeting location.  Charlie, our guide, came right over to us to introduce himself and get basic idea of what our plan was for the day – including “must do” attractions in each park.  
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He also had a gift of a VIP tour pin for each of us.  

After discussing our plan for the day, we were off to Tron.   As we walked, Charlie was great at asking questions to get a better sense of what we wanted to do in terms of food stops and attractions.  He said that Mickey would be treating for snacks along the way so to let him know any time we wanted something.

As luck would have it, just as we were walking up to Tron, it went down.  No worries, we were off to our next “must do” of Mine Train.   Charlie said he would monitor Tron and we would just work our way around the park and loop back when it was up and running.   

With a VIP guide, you use the Lightning Lane entrance.  Charlie would tap us in at the touch point and then go with us up to the loading area (in most cases, especially if there was a second touch point).   He would always ask us if we had a preference for a row we would like to sit in as well and he would make those requests to the cast members in the loading area.

After Mine Train, we started working our way around Fantasyland.   When we got to Haunted Mansion, Charlie said that with a guide is the only way you can go into the ride from the exit.  We had our choice between starting with the stretching room or going straight onto the ride.  We picked going directly to the ride, so in a back door we went and came our right at the loading area.

We rode everything that we wanted through Frontierland and Adventureland and then Charlie said Tron was up and running so we went back there. 
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As a side note – Charlie said that he does not usually ride with guests unless we want him to do so.  With a party of 4 we had the perfect number so it wasn’t necessary for him to keep anyone company and we were totally fine with that.

As we got to Tron, Charlie said he would hold any of our bags so that we didn’t have to use the locker system.  He grabbed our stuff and put us in the Lightning Lane and we were good to go.  

As we exited, Charlie was waiting for us and asked what else we wanted to do in Magic Kingdom as we seemed to be finishing up.   I always like a ride on the People Mover so that was my request.   As we walked over, we saw that the line was pretty long – a 45 min wait – and there is no Lightning Lane.  Charlie actually gave us a look like "Wow that is a long line."   I thought we may not be able to ride, but instead he walked us around to the front and the cast member stopped the line to let us on.  I will admit, I felt a little bad about that one! 😊

That was it for Magic Kingdom!  It was a pretty warm day so we decided to get some drinks before we moved over to Hollywood Studios.   Charlie said he was getting us a round of bottled water and a few of us got a soda.

​He also was our photographer for a quick castle picture.

We then walked with Charlie to a backstage area and hopped in private car to go over to Studios. It was a good opportunity to chat with him.  He has been with Disney since his college program and is coming up on doing his 2000th private tour.   He has been with the company for 19 years (including internships) and he loves it.   He said that he doesn’t really need to do rides anymore but he enjoys going to Epcot to walk around the festivals or going to Typhoon Lagoon to relax.

When we arrived backstage at Studios, there were VIP cast members waiting with a basket of snacks – chips, candy bars, granola bars and even Mickey .Rice Krispie treats.  We could help ourselves as we went into our next park.

As we walked into Studios, he said there was something else that only VIP guests can do – mobile order from Starbucks.   He took our order and a payment method (we gave him a credit card but you can use your Starbucks app) and then he put us in the Lightning Lane for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway.   We came off the ride and there was Charlie with our Starbucks!   It was a little thing – but fun – and our cups said “VIP” on them. 

We made a plan for our time at Studios.  We wanted to do everything in Galaxy’s Edge and Toy Story Land.  Hoping also to see Mandalorian and Grogu – Charlie knew the area they would normal be located.   We also did Tower of Terror.   We had some bad luck again with Rise of the Resistance being down once and a second time it went down when we were just past the Stormtrooper room – which actually gave us each a free Lightning Lane to use after the tour.     
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But we did get to see these guys!

We did Toy Story Mania and Charlie had some good playing tips that we didn’t know about.   We actually ended up riding it 3 times and it was fun to try new things each time.   We also had a popcorn snack on Mickey to hold us over to dinner.
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Charlie was great with planning out the day.  As someone who often is the person managing plans for each day, it was nice to be able to relax and let someone else be in charge. Around midday, he asked us if we were interested in seeing the Indiana Jones show.  Our tour was scheduled to end at 4 pm.  The show started at 4:30 pm.  He said he could put is in the VIP seats and end for the day there. As that time approached, he walked us over there and told the cast member for us to have the reserved seats.   We said our goodbye and then we were walked down to the very front row!   

​In the end – over 7 hours, we did 16 attractions, one show and walked a total of over 7 miles.   Charlie was great!   He was fun and great to talk with about Disney things but he was also happy to just lead us and let us talk amongst ourselves.   Any time we asked to do a ride or sit in a certain spot, he would say “done!”   

All 4 of us have been to Walt Disney World many times but experiencing it with a VIP guide was a totally different experience.   It was a great day!

​If you would like to add a VIP tour to your Walt Disney vacation, I would be happy to help!   The cost is $450 - $900 per hour (depending on the season) with a 7 hour minimum.  Park admission is required and not included.  While the cost is not inexpensive, the tour can accommodate up to 10 guests so getting friends / family together to share the cost is always an option.   

​I am always happy to answer questions or assist with reservations at Walt Disney World (even without a guide :) )  - christine.surh@mei-travel.com

And now on to the most important part of the cruise – the food!
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We started our cruise in Marceline Market which would be the “buffet” area of the ship.  I loved the theming throughout.   Instead of one big line, there are different stations to visit – such as seafood, deli, hot entrees, kids and desserts.   We had lunch here twice and breakfast each morning.   We especially liked the little charcuterie boards. I think it was pretty much what you would expect to find at a buffet and we were happy with it overall.  

​Around the top pool deck is Mickey’s Festival of Foods.   This was a definite step up from the walk up food choices on the other ships.  There were stations for pizza, Mexican, hamburgers and hotdogs, BBQ and ice cream.   My sister had the Mexican location for lunch and it was similar to Chipotle where you pick your ingredients for a bowl, tacos or burritos.   I tried the BBQ location and had brisket, mac and cheese and corn bread.   It was all really good.

​The three main dining room restaurants on the Wish are 1923, Marvel and Arendelle.    1923 was the one we were most excited about and it was our first dinner.   The restaurant is named for the year the Walt Disney company started in California.   Our table was towards the front of the restaurant so we really didn’t get to see too much of all the little details and there were a lot to look at.   I am not the best at food photos and eventually gave up but I do have some from this meal.    I had the burrata appetizer, a pasta dish for my entrée and the ice cream sundae for dessert.   We both enjoyed our meals and this ended up being our favorite of the three main dining rooms.

The second night for us was Marvel.  Each table has a device that interacts with the “show” throughout the night.   There are screens around the restaurant and a story with Ant Man and the Wasp takes place in little intervals throughout your meal.  When the show is not going on the screens show clips about various Marvel characters.   At the end of the story, Ant Man and the Wasp do a quick walk through of the restaurant.   
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   As for the food, we looked at the menu during the day and weren’t too excited by it but we ended up enjoying it.  We each had the bao bun and fried shrimp as an appetizer.  We asked to share the shrimp but our server said it was a small portion so we should just each get one.  Then I had the mushroom soup, chicken schnitzel for an entrée and the cheesecake for dessert.   The chicken was just ok but we were pleasantly surprised by the rest.  

Our last night was in Arendelle, the Frozen themed restaurant.  The concept is that Oaken is throwing an engagement party for Anna and Kristoff and we are the invited guests.  We had a chance to visit this restaurant when it was empty during the Art of the Ship tour.  So many details and it really is set up like a banquet.   There are paintings on the wall direct from the movie.

  The show here takes place on a stage in the center of the room.   We were on the edge so it was a little far from us but Anna, Kristoff, Elsa and Oaken walk around the perimeter of the room to greet their guests.  There was a trio that sang songs from the movie as well.   I enjoy Frozen the movie and the songs but the show here was too much for me.   In the Marvel restaurant, the show happened in brief time periods throughout the meal.  Here there was one brief break and then the show was always going.  It was a lot.  You couldn’t talk because it was loud.  I realize that I am not the target demographic for Frozen but I would have enjoyed it more in brief segments as opposed to constant throughout the night.
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  The food here was also my least favorite of the three restaurants.  I had cheese and ham tart, baby greens salad, then the beef rib eye and the apple cake for dessert.   We also shared the braised meatball entrée.  Nothing was bad here just not my favorite.  

​With only a 3 night sailing, we did not get to try any of the adult only restaurants this time.  I guess that means I will just have to sail again.

​For our three night sailing, the three nighttime shows were “Disney Seas the Adventure,” “The Little Mermaid,” and “Aladdin.”   The Disney Seas the Adventure show was short and had a lot of Disney friends and music which was fun.   The other two shows told those stories.   The Walt Disney theater on this ship now uses projection mapping to have images around the entire theater.    I thought Aladdin was the best of the three shows.  

​We also enjoyed live music around the ship.  There was a singer / piano player in one of the lounges one evening.  There was live music in the “The Bayou” lounge another night.  There was also a trio (and I cannot remember their name) that performed on the stage in the Grand Hall.  They did all of your Disney favorites in a jazz style.  I like hearing Disney songs in a different way so I thought they were great.

Now onto lounges.. We like to go to the early show and then go to a lounge for a drink before dinner.   We tried several this trip and there are still a few we didn’t get to.

The Star Wars Hyperspace lounge was something we definitely wanted to try.   Because of the popularity, you need reservations.   We made our reservations in the terminal before boarding as soon as we connected to the DCL wifi.   There are “family” times when children are allowed and then “adult” times in evening hours.   We found adult times hard to book so we went for a family time on our Nassau day, as we weren’t getting off the ship anyway.
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You check into your reservation and then you push a button for the door to slide open and make the cool “whosh” sound.   The lounge is small but fully themed.  Behind the bar is a big LED screen.  Every so often, there would be a sound and we would jump to lightspeed.  The screen would show that and then we would stop in a new location.   Drinks were listed on an Ipad and we each tried one.   Mine was nothing really special and we really only stayed long enough to enjoy our drinks.   It wouldn’t be a “must do” for me but it was fun.

​Our first night we tried Nightingale’s.   This is on the style of a champagne bar and it also had a piano music at times.   The theme comes from when Cinderella sings “Sing Sweet Nightingale” and the chandelier above the piano represents the soap bubbles from while she is cleaning and singing.   We enjoyed this spot and made a second trip on the last night when there was a woman singing at the piano.  My sister’s drink actually had sparkles in it.  My drink had a round ice cube and it came with a little hammer for you to break it.

​We had wanted to try out “The Rose” and we heard that it can get busy.  This lounge is between Palo and Enchante, the adult restaurants.   We went up there around 4:45 pm and grabbed a seat.  It opened at 5 pm and it was already pretty full by that time.   The signature drink of “The Rose” has a fun presentation!  I ordered “Mrs Tea” not realizing that it also came with a little presentation as well. 

​The last lounge we got to try was “The Bayou.”   This is one space that is not “tucked away” at all.  It is open on the sides and is right on the way to the theater.   The theming is for Princess and the Frog – complete with freshly made beignets.   I really liked the theming.  There is also a little stage and dance floor.  We saw live music happening in there quite often.

​If you look through the activities available on the Disney Wish, it will look pretty similar to other Disney cruises.  There is trivia, beverage tastings, character meet and greets and movies to name a few.

​While talking about movies, this ship as two movie theaters that show Disney movies throughout the day.   One is themed to Peter Pan and one is themed to Alice in Wonderland.   When we were exploring, the Alice in Wonderland theater had a movie playing so we couldn’t enter but we did explore inside the Peter Pan theater.   Again, the details in the theater are so well done.  From the Tinkerbell lights to the carving on the backs of the seats.   Both theaters are very small.   Not an issue on a beautiful day when most guests are outside but not sure how it work out on a rainy day.

As I mentioned in my previous blog, we did the Art of the Ship tour.  This is complimentary and you sign up in the app.  I know that it is offered on other ships but this was the first time I have done it.  It was about an hour and we walked around the 3 main decks inside.  It was a great way to hear about the details of design and see things that I probably would not have noticed on my own.

Speaking of the app, it is very important that you have your app downloaded and ready to use.  EVERYTHING is in the app.   There were no paper navigators each evening waiting for you in your stateroom.   What I liked was being able to see everything that was going to be available for the entire cruise at one time.   I could select “favorite” activities and then the app would push a notification of those activities to my phone and Apple watch 15 minutes before they were scheduled to start.
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One featured activity on the Disney Wish is the Aquamouse.   If you have been on the other ships, you may have experienced the Aquaduck or the Aquadunk.   The Aquamouse is a combination of a ride and a water slide.  Your raft starts out on a conveyor belt (not in water at all) and you move slowly up into a tunnel with a Mickey short playing on different panels as you ascend.  Once you get to the top, your water slide ride begins.  It was very fun!!   I would say my biggest concern was getting in and out of the raft… and it was not easy.  As I came around the corner at the end, I said to the cast member that I am going to need help getting out.  He said “That’s what I am here for” and he was a big help with getting out.  So don’t let that concern stop you!

I have been home from my 3 night sailing on the Disney Wish for about a week and I am finally getting a chance to put together some blog posts about my experience. 

First, let me start off by saying – I loved it!  Although I don’t think I have ever come home from a Disney cruise unhappy.   I spent the first hour just walking around going “oh look at that” and “oh wow look at that.”   Having sailed on all of the other Disney ships it was just fun to walk around something brand new.
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Now, if you are used to the layout of the other ships, you are going be to a little lost at first.   It took us a good day to figure out the different layout and how to find what we were looking for.   While not a completely different layout from the other ships, it is different enough to make you need signs and deck plans to see where you need to go.

​Let’s start with the Grand Hall.   This is the area where you enter the ship.  On the other 4 ships, it is referred to as the Atrium.   The centerpiece is the beautiful chandelier.   The overall theme of the ship is “enchantment” which mainly is geared towards the princesses.  Cinderella’s story is the focal point of the Grand Hall.  You will find her statue there with Lucifer as well trying to catch some of Cinderella’s little friends.     
   The chandelier represents Cinderella's dress upside down.  It can be lit in different colors, for example it was red for Pirate night.   The ceiling and side columns also light up and there are different times when special things happen.

​As is often the case with Disney, there are so many details in the Grand Hall and around the ship that contribute to the overall theme.   We did the “Art of the Ship” tour the next day to see even more details that we didn’t find on our own

​As you move around the ship, you will see the colors change and a new princess represented.  This is true in the staterooms as well.   Our stateroom was themed for Tiana.   We had a mural behind our bed and another painting above the couch.

As for the rest of the ship’s layout, I felt like venues were a bit “tucked away.”   And I don’t think that is a bad thing.   I felt this was especially true for the three main restaurants.   The entrance to 1923 is right in the Grand Hall but it could be easy to miss.   The Marvel restaurant and Arendelle (Frozen themed) restaurant are in the aft of the ship on different decks and out of the main area.   What I liked about that was it was more immersive when you were in those areas.     We even walked by the entrance to the Star Wars Hyperspace Lounge a few times before noticing where it was.

As for the pools, again I would advice guests to look around.  There are several small pools / wading pools and some are up a few steps.  At one point, I saw a fairly busy pool and then up a few steps was another one with one person in it.   It is worth it to poke around and explore.

I did feel like there were two “misses” when it came to layout.   The outside of deck 4 does not wrap around the ship.   There are stairs that go up to deck 5 on both sides.   I know that guests, including myself, often like to use deck 4 to walk / run for exercise.   I knew about this situation before I boarded and honestly thought “what were they thinking?” 
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The other miss I felt was the location of the adult area and Cove Café.   Both were located on deck 13 in the aft which could only be accessed by the stairs outside from the pool deck or literally two elevators in the aft set of elevators.  You had to look at the signs to see that only those two elevators, in a bank of 8, went up to deck 13.    We really liked the adult area (especially the cushioned rocking chairs) but it was not convenient.  It was especially not convenient to go to Cove Café for a specialty coffee which I usually like to do each morning.   There were a few other coffee bar type areas around the ship, but they didn’t seem to have the same options available. 

Today was our last day.   It was a full day at sea.  We had some activities planned and also more poolside time.

We went up to the Galley for breakfast again which we enjoyed.   Then we got some chairs poolside.  I only stayed for a bit as I had booked an exercise class that morning.
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There were a bunch of exercise classes available throughout the cruise.  You need to make reservations for them in the app and almost all of them did book up completely.  Most are pretty traditional – spin classes, yoga.   But the one I picked was something a little different.   It was called the VHS workout.  The theme was a throwback to the 80s work out videos.   There were even shake weights!   Three instructors alternated leading the workout.   All the music was from the 80s and, in Virgin Voyages style, there were some suggestive moves and comments.   Anyone could do it as there were modifications available through the entire workout. It was fun and a good workout.   

​I showered and changed and spent some time poolside before we headed to our afternoon activity which was afternoon tea.   This was one of the few activities that had an upcharge.  It was $35 per person.  Each person had a choice of their tea and received a glass of champagne.  Then we had a tray of savory and sweet items as well.   I love a good scone and these were sooo good.

After tea, I went to check out some other areas of the ship.   I went to the game area were there are air hockey tables and an area with old video games.  You can play all the games for free and it was fun to relive some classic games.
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I also went looking for a cocktail and wondered over to a bar area.  I looked at the menu and chose one without paying attention to the fact that they were all shots.   I picked “The Jellyfish” and it was actually pretty cool to watch the bartender make it.   The last step was using a dropper to put little drops of cream in that really did look like jellyfish.    I asked if it was a shot you sipped or just all at once.  She said all at once so.. down the hatch!   It was a little sweet and a little strong but went down pretty easy.

Sue and I spent some time in the casino and then went to the Dock to enjoy the sunset.  The Dock is a great location at the aft of the ship.  They have some small bites and drinks.   Great location to relax and especially to enjoy the sunset.

We then met up with friends for dinner.  Tonight we were at the Wake which is the steak / seafood restaurant.   This was my favorite meal on board.   I had a clam chowder for an appetizer.   For our entrees, we each ordered a steak and then our server brought out one of each side to share and a tray of all the steak sauces.   The steaks came with a whole head of roasted garlic.   My steak was cooked perfectly and I liked trying all the sauces.   The twice baked potato and the asparagus were stand out sides for me.   For dessert, I had the lemon cheesecake.   It actually looked like a real lemon… down to the little dimples of the lemon peel.   I am not a huge lemon fan but the flavor was not overwhelming and the cheesecake inside was really good.

   I slacked on photos for this meal.  So you can only see the chowder and the lemon cheesecake.

We wondered around after dinner.  Tried to get a karaoke room but they were full.   Then we walked by the theater and ended up heading into the show.   The show was called Ships in the Night.  The description was vague and I could tell when it started that I was probably not going to get the point of the show.   So I just enjoyed the music and dancing.  The main performer was a drag queen who had a great voice and must have burned 5000 calories throughout the show.   The dancing was very good as was the use of technology with the staging.   Wouldn’t be my top pick for a show but it was entertaining enough.
And that closed up our Virgin Voyage as we would be off the ship in the morning.
 


Overall impressions – Disney Cruise Line will always be my favorite cruise, but Virgin moved up to my second favorite.   Of course, there are pros and cons.
   
​  Cons

• Prior to the trip, the app was not great.   Sometimes it didn’t work at all.  It was hard to make changes, like restaurant reservations.  Thankfully, if you call Virgin or use their online chat feature the staff is very helpful and they fixed whatever I needed.
• Onboard communication.  They made a few announcements during the first day and then said there would not be any more.   Other cruise lines do the same but usually still make a daily announcement with logistics, weather, etc.    Virgin did not make any announcements.  All of the information was sent through push notifications, or it was in the app.   The difficulty was that it was inconsistent or sometimes didn’t happen at all.    If you were a first time cruiser, I think it would have been challenging to know what to do for disembarking.   There was a small section in the app the day before, but you really had to look for it.
• Messaging – Also with on board communication, I thought there would be a way to message other guests on board through the Virgin app but there was not.  You can send iMessages but we had a few members of our group without Apple devices.  We ended up using another app to text, but it would be nice to have that feature in the Virgin app.

 
Pros

• All inclusive nature.  I loved not having to worry about tips or beverage packages or upcharge restaurants.
• Wifi / app.  The app did work well on board.  The wifi was free and worked well the entire time.
• Sailor services.  Onboard you are a “sailor” and the sailor service area was the equivalent of guest services.   There was also an option to sent a message to them in the app.  Their response in the app was about a few hours but they were helpful and took care of whatever I needed.
• The food was so good – from the galley, to room service to the restaurants.  

 
The ship had a really fun, relaxed vibe.  There was a mix of ages.  You do need an open mind for some activities as they can be “adult” but if that isn’t your thing you just don’t do those activities.   We had great weather so being outside was always an option.  If that wasn’t the case, I think I would have possibly struggled with activities that I wanted to do but finding a quiet spot with a book is always an option and I would have been happy with that.
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I give Virgin two thumbs up and have already booked another one for next year.

Today was our day at Bimini Beach in the Bahamas.  Virgin has a private area just for its cruise guests on the island. 

We wanted to have as much time as possible on the island so we planned to have room service breakfast so we could be ready to get off the ship at 9 am.
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Room service was very easy to order.   We placed our order in the app the day before and selected a 30 minute time frame for delivery the next morning.   I received a notification that our food was on its way and it arrived right in the middle of our selected time.   It came in two insulated cooler bags.  One had our coffees and all the condiments.  The other had food containers with our breakfast.   We each had eggs, bacon and potatoes.  Then we shared some pastries and fruit.   Everything was great.  The only choice I wish we could have had was for iced coffee drinks.

Virgin’s area of the island requires taking a tram.  We were one of the first off the ship and a tram was waiting.   We hopped on and were over to the beach area quickly.

All six of us had rented a private cabana for the day. While you can book one cabana for six guests, we chose to each get our own.   I could maybe see the cabana working for 4 guests, but I think six would be tight, especially since there are two lounge chairs and a double size day bed. 
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 There are cabanas available by the beach, pool or the “grove” which sort of looks over the whole area.   We all had beach cabanas.

With your cabana, you receive $100 bar tab and a cabana attendant throughout the day.   We actually had two attendants as the shift changed in the afternoon.   Both of our attendants were great.  You have a button that you can push if you need something but our attendant also came around frequently to see if we needed anything.
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At noon, food service begins on the island.  Again, the food is included in your cruise fare.  Our attendant said we could order or he could bring us a sample of everything.   We chose the samples and he was right there with a big tray around 12:30 pm.   When our afternoon attendant came, he said different food items become available after 3 pm so he came back with another tray of samples then.  I liked that the food items were different and varied.  The ribs were the best and I also enjoyed the salad with fried tofu on top.

We had easy access to the beach and the pool area.  We went over to the pool after lunch.   It was a bit loud with a dj playing music and they also started to liven things up with pool floats as well.  It seems to get quieter in the late afternoon.
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Unlike some other cruise line private islands, you can stay on Bimini until around 7:30 pm.  This was a great opportunity to see the sunset from the island.   They also have three large globes that they light a fire in at night.  They had an acoustic musical group that sang at each one as it was lit.   

​We took the tram back and were able to  get some night time photos of the ship.

​We freshened up and met back up with our friends at the galley for dinner.   I tried some of the desserts this time and they didn’t disappoint.  The red item is call the Scarlet Lady and had chocolate mousse inside.  The other item is a vegan chocolate tart.  Our server recommended it and said not to be scared off because it was vegan.   I really enjoyed both.

On day two, the ship was docked in Nassau.  We had no desire to get off and planned to spend the day pool side.
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We went up to the Galley for breakfast.  I ordered avocado toast and a breakfast bento box which had fruit, granola and yogurt.  We both wanted iced mochas from the coffee bar which are not included in the cruise fare.  The server scanned our bands for payment and he was able to get those for us as well.

After breakfast, we grabbed lounge chairs by the pool and basically set up camp for the day.
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One feature of Virgin that I really loved was access to water.  I drink a lot of water so on most cruises I will order a package of water bottles because I do not like the taste of the tap water on the ship.   This is not an option on Virgin Voyages.  To be environmentally friendly, Virgin does not have one use plastic water bottles.  Instead they encourage you to bring your own refillable water bottle and said water would be available on board.   I was dubious about how this would work and even brought packets of add in flavors in case I didn’t like the taste of the water.    I was really pleasantly surprised with the whole situation.   There is a carafe of water in your stateroom you can use to fill your bottles and you can always request more.  Our room attendant must have noticed that we were using it all so she started leaving two of them each day.   You can also go to any bar and they will fill your water bottle for you.   And what was really great was that the water tasted fine.  I did not need my add in flavor packets at all.   So no expense for purchasing a water package and it was easy to get water throughout the day.

​After enjoying the beautiful weather all day by the pool, our evening activities started out with the show Duel Reality.  The story of the show is basically a Romeo / Juliet type story.  The story is told through different scenes that involve acrobats kind of like cirque du soleil.   The acrobatics are impressive for sure and it is an enjoyable show.

​For dinner tonight, Sue and I tried Razzle Dazzle which is considered “veggie forward.”  But don’t let that scare you.  There were non-vegetarian choices available as well.    I had a mushroom tartare as my appetizer which was interesting.  A lot of different kinds of mushrooms including some that were very small and had a sweet taste.   For my entrée, I had salmon and loaded tots.  The salmon was cooked well and was very good.  The tater tots were so crispy and the “cheese” was vegan.  I could tell it wasn’t real cheese but it was still good.   I was all about the dessert here.  I had cookies and milk.  There were flavored milks – I did biscoff cookie milk – and then three different cookies.   They were so good.

​Today was Scarlet Night.   Guests are encouraged to wear red and quite a lot of guests did.   As we walked around the ship, you could see the red squid was invading areas of the ship getting ready for the evening’s Scarlet Night party.   We didn’t make it up to the top deck for the party but it was fun to see all different areas of the ship getting ready.

​What we did do was check out The Groupie.   This area consists of 3 private karaoke rooms.   We walked in and found three clipboards with hour long slots listed and you could sign up for a time slots.   There were no crew members in the area and it seemed like the honor system.   While there were some names on the lists, there was no one in the area so Sue and I hopped in a room.   There is a big screen, two microphones and a tablet where you can pick your songs.   We had a lot of fun and sang all sorts of songs.  We went back on the last night and all of the rooms were full.   They need more rooms!

Virgin Voyages is a new cruise line for guests 18 and older.   I was excited to give it a try on a 4 night sailing from Miami.

     My sister and I traveled from NY to Miami the day before the cruise – which is always the best idea so you have a cushion in case of travel delays.   We had a 2 pm embarking time so after a relaxing morning at the hotel, we made our way to the port.   A rapid test was required at the port.  We had received an email the day before with a form to complete for the text.

    Virgin Voyages just opened their own terminal at the port of Miami.  It was so nice.  Plenty of space and very well organized.   There were plenty of crew members available to provide directions.  From start to finish, it took us about 20 minutes from arriving to the port to getting on board.
​
   On your Virgin Voyage you will use “the Band.”   You wear it all the time throughout your voyage.  It is your room key and you will use it for any purchases you make on board.   

​    We went right to our cabin and our room attendant came right over to introduce herself.   The room is set up as a queen bed but can be split into two single beds that meet at one end.  We asked if we could have the beds made up with our feet at the meeting point which was no problem at all.   Our attendant showed us two buttons in the room.  If you press the “do not disturb” button, a red bar lights up under your room number outside.  If you press “please service,” a blue bar lights up to indicate you would like your room made up.   Our attendant explained that she should be in once a day to make up the room but if you needed anything else, you can make a request in the app or on the tablet in the room and it will be dropped off to you.
 
   With the bed made up as two singles, there was plenty of space in the room.   Storage was a little lacking.  There are some shelves and a closet area.  Suitcases do not fit under the bed so you need to stand them in the closet area.   The bathroom was definitely my biggest negative to the room.  It was super small.   As my sister said, “You could sit on the toilet and put your feet in the shower.”   We made it work but it was tight.    The balcony had my favorite feature of the whole room – the hammock.  It was so comfy and easy to get in and out of.   

After dropping our carry on bags, we went up to the Galley to grab something to eat.   There is no buffet on board.  Instead, there is a food court type area.  Right now (due to COVID), you chose a table and a server will come and take an order for anything available in that area.  You can order from multiple areas at the same time.   We ordered a burger and fries.  They were made fresh and arrived nice and hot.
 
  Then we went exploring a bit and found a cabana type seating area on the top deck.   It was also time for a cocktail.   There are no beverage packages on Virgin.  You can pay per drink on board or you can add money to your “bar tab” prior to your cruise and Virgin will give you a bonus.  The amount of the bonus will vary based on the current promotion.   We added $300 and Virgin gave us a $100 bonus.   You can share it within the cabin – and we discovered it is basically an on board credit so you can use it for other items, such as spa treatments.    Tips are all included with drinks which made it so easy.   They just scan you band and you are good to go.  No little pieces of paper to sign or tips to add.

    Since cruises have restarted after COVID, the traditional muster station drill has been revamped.   For Virgin, there is a video that you need to watch either in the app or in your stateroom.   We grabbed a drink and a seat and put it on in the app.   Virgin made their safety video into a rock music video.   It was amusing and as is their theme, it was something different.    At 4:30 we needed to go to our muster location where they checked us off, gave a brief lifejacket demo, and we were done.  Easy and fast.
​
   After we finished that we went to our cabin to find our suitcases had arrived.  We unpacked and relaxed a bit – yes, I was in the hammock – until it was time for dinner.

​  Our dinner for tonight was at Extra Virgin, their Italian restaurant.   We were travelling with 4 other friends, and we had all decided to eat all together this night.   The food was excellent, with the exception of one dish of mine.   I had a braised meatball appetizer which was outstanding.  For my pasta dish, I had spaghetti with clams.  They make their pasta fresh.  The portion was huge though the clams were a little small.   For my main course, I had a brussel sprout dish over polenta.   This was a miss for me as it was very spicy.   For dessert, we all had the affogato which is made table side.  You can chose from three fresh made gelatos and then there are toppings and a shot of expresso poured over.  I had vanilla gelato with pine nuts.   

  After dinner, Sue and I hit the casino for a little bit.   It is smaller than other ship casinos, but it is smoke free which is a plus in my book. 

  Then we decided to have a little ice cream snack before bed.  The name of the ice cream shop is “Lick me ‘til…Ice cream”   Yes, you read that right.   Little innuendoes like that were common throughout the cruise so the easily offended may not want to sail.  To me, it’s all in good fun.   And the ice cream was yum.  Again, it is fresh and they have some interesting flavors although I went with a more typical butter pecan.
 
​And with that, we called it a night for day one.

Want to set sail on Virgin?   Until the end of March 2022, Virgin has a 20% off sale for all of their cruises (terms and conditions may apply).  Plus I will give you a $50 Amazon gift card with your final documents.   Contact me for a free, no - obligation quote.   christine.surh@mei-travel.com

Of course, I had to try out the new Genie and Genie+ option on my most recent trip.   I have heard other people's experiences and know that some guests have had some issues.   This is solely my experience and my opinion.

There are several aspects to the new offerings so I will take them one at a time.

This is the free planning tool that is now available.   I gave it a try on my Animal Kingdom day.    
You start your planning by selecting "My Genie Day" in your Disney app.   You can only start planning on the actual day you are using it.

From there, you will select "Get started" and then go through a few screens where you can make selections.   You can chose what attractions you would like to experience that day, where you may want to dine and if you have any height restrictions for anyone in your party.

When you are done you will get to the main screen where you have a choice at the top to look at "Tip Board" and "My Day."   This was the part that I think can get tricky or confusing.  You have to be sure you are looking at the right tab in order for it to make sense.

You can see from "My Day" that my first next recommended activity for this day was to see Kite Tails.

I completely followed what was suggested for my day at Animal Kingdom.    To be fair, I was not interested in the two Pandora attractions and Everest is currently down so wait times for those rides were not a factor.   I did want to ride the Safari and I waited to do so until the Genie suggested that it was a good time.    I ended up waiting only 20 minutes on what was a busy day at the park.
  Genie will make recommendations for mobile order of counter services meals and tell you when you should order based on current pick up window times.

I had a good experience with this Genie planned day.   I do wish you could indicate somehow that you had done an attraction so it would know that was completed on your plan for the day.  

This is the paid version of Genie.   The current cost is $15 plus tax, per person.   I used this a few times during my stay.

You can add Genie+ to your park ticket for the full length of your stay or you can add it one day at a time.  Because I was using an annual pass, I had to add it each day that I wanted to use it.   You can add it after midnight.  I just did it the morning I wanted to use it.

You start off the same by selecting "My Genie Day."   You will see an option to add Genie+ service.  You select your party, pay and then you are all set.  TIP: If you want to use Disney Gift Cards, make a note in your phone with the number and then copy and paste it into the pay screen.

With Genie+, you can make Lightning Lane reservations.   Lightning Lane is the new term for FastPass.   You make a reservation for a one hour window return time.   When you arrive to the attraction, you use the Lightning Lane entrance and have a short, if any, wait time.

If you are a Disney Resort guest, you can make your first selection at 7 am.   If you are not a Disney Resort guest, you can make your first selection at the official opening time of the park.

​If you do want some popular attractions, like Rise or Slinky Dog, you need to be on the app and ready to go by 7 am.  On my Studios day, Slinky Dog and Rise were both gone for the day by 7:01 am.

You can make your next selection either after you use your first selection OR two hours after you made a selection.   So if you make a selection at 9 am for a return time of 5 pm for Slinky Dog, you can make a second selection at 11 am for another attraction even though you haven't used your first selection yet.

The one tricky aspect for Resort guests is that your two hours start at park open, not at 7 am.  So if you book your first selection at 7 am and the park opens at 9 am.  You can only make your second selection at 11 am (or after you have used your first selection).

So how did it work for me?   Worked great!     There is definitely a learning curve.   You have to back and forth on the "Tip Board" and "My day" tabs to see what you have booked and what is available next.   

Crowd levels definitely make a difference as well.   It was fairly busy for most of the days that I was there.   I would average about 3-4 Lightning Lane selections each day.  There were usually more available but I either wasn't interested in the ride or the time was later in the day and I was heading out of the park to do something else.    But I had one day at the Magic Kingdom where it was a light crowd day.  I was able to do 3 LL attractions (Peter Pan, Haunted Mansion and Winnie the Pooh) all within 40 minutes.   As soon as I scanned my Magic Band at the attraction, I would hop on the app and book my next one.

You can have overlapping plans so you can work that to your advantage (and also mess yourself up if you have a dining reservation so be careful).    On my  Epcot day, I booked Soarin' at 7am.  Then when my two hour window had expired, I booked Living with the Land.  I was able to go right from one attraction to the next.   It was a rainy day so both attractions had a 40 minute stand by wait at the time so it worked out great to hop on both with no wait.

Another paid feature is the option to purchase individual Lightning lane reservations.  There are two attractions in each park that have either the option for a purchased individual Lightning Lane reservation or a stand by wait.    The price varies by attraction and by time of year (so it will cost more at busier times.)

This is going to be a personal decision for each guest.   On this trip, I purchased one for Mickey and Minnie's Railway because I love it and I wanted to be sure to ride.   The wait times were about 40-60 minutes throughout my stay and I ended up using stand by to ride it twice more.    My husband and I also purchased one for Remy because he had not experienced that attraction yet and the waits had been 90 minutes or more.
   We both love Rise of the Resistance but we have done it several times so we decided not to purchase a LL for that this trip.  The waits were also 90 min or more and we chose not to wait for it.   On another trip, we may decide differently but that was what we did this time.

There are a few bonus features available with the Genie+ part of the app - Audio Tales and Photo Lenses.   

The Audio Tales are little informational tidbits specific to the park that you are in.  They are less than 2 minutes long.  I listened to a few while I was waiting for one thing or another.  They are good for some fun facts.

I had a lot of fun with the photo lenses.  There are quite a few.  Some you have to be in a certain area of the park to access - like Galaxy's Edge or in Remy's area of Epcot.   Here are just a few of the ones I played with:

While there was definitely a learning curve, I thought adding Genie+ was worth it.  It was pretty busy on my trip and it helped me do more attractions than I would have been able to do without it.    I really don't purchase much for souvenirs anymore so I just considered the daily purchase what I wanted to do with my Disney gift cards.   I have an annual pass right now, but if I didn't I would just add it right from the start of the booking process and have it just became part of my total trip cost.  

I do wish you could select an attraction for a Lightning Lane more than once a day.  There were time slots available for attractions late in the day but I couldn't book them because I had already used a LL already that day for the attraction.   I think if they are available, you should be able to use them.

In my opinion, frustration from guests come from two sources - technology and unrealistic expectations.   I am fully aware that Disney's app and technology are not always magical.  I have never really had major problems myself but I know it happens.   There are Guest Relation cast members by blue umbrellas throughout the parks.  They are there to help with tech problems, if needed.
  As far as expectations, after using the system, to me it is very similar to Fastpass except that you do it the day of instead of 60 days in advance.  With the FastPass system you could select 3 attractions in advance and on my trips I would use those 3 and then MAYBE be able to get 1-2 more.  With Genie+, I was averaging 3-4 attractions with LL per day so that is about the same.   If you think that Genie+ will let you experience attractions back to back all day long with no waits, you are going to be disappointed and frustrated. 


I hope I gave a good overview of the process and my experience.  I am always happy to answer any questions.


I am always available to help you book your Walt Disney World vacation.  Email me at christine.surh@mei-travel.com