Virgin Voyages Resilient Lady, Melbourne to Hobart

Virgin Voyages arrived in Australian waters promising a cruise that does not behave like a cruise. No children, no buffet, no formal nights, and a fare that folds in the restaurants, soft drinks, basic Wi-Fi and the onboard entertainment. This review covers a five-night sailing on Resilient Lady out of Melbourne's Station Pier to Hobart and back, in a Sea Terrace balcony cabin booked with Velocity Points through an Access Key.

The short version: the hype holds up.

Embarkation and the app

Priority embarkation begins at 1:30pm for a defined group: guests in Rockstar and Mega Rockstar Quarters, those who have bought the Splash of Romance package, and holders of Deep Blue Extras benefits. Everyone else follows later, with around 2,500 sailors aboard on a near-full departure.

Boarding early matters more than it sounds, because a range of onboard activities can only be booked through the app once you are physically on the ship. Knowing in advance which shows and fitness classes you want makes the difference between securing a place and missing out. The bungee and spin classes, both free, were booked out well before the general boarding crowd got to them.

The reward for getting settled quickly is the sail-away itself, with sparkling wine circulating on the pool deck while the Happenings Cast — the ship's roaming performers and entertainers — introduce themselves and start the party.

One caveat on the technology: the app crashes often enough that the onboard cast works it into a joke during one of the shows.

Casual eating

Virgin Voyages has built its reputation on food, and the casual venues carry more weight than the word 'casual' implies.

The Dock on Deck 7 is the pick. The mezze cart produces grilled prawns and octopus skewers that stand up against anything in the full-service restaurants, and it is the natural place to spend the pre-sailing hours.

The Galley on Deck 15 is laid out like a food court and runs from healthy to indulgent. The Daily Mix tosses salads to order, Burger Bar grills to order, Let's Taco Bout It handles the fish tacos, and Noodle Around turns out a bowl of ramen that works surprisingly well as a fast breakfast. Beyond that there is The Pizza Place, open until 2am, an ice cream counter, and Ship Eats room service, which carries a nominal fee that is waived if you order something chargeable alongside it.

The signature restaurants

Six full-service restaurants are included in the fare. Most open only for dinner, though Razzle Dazzle and The Wake also serve brunch. Five nights is enough to visit all of them once.

Gunbae is the one that lingers. It is designed as a social experience, so expect to share a table if seats are free, and the host leads the table through a drinking game over a complimentary shot of soju. The cooking is done for you and the quality is high across both courses.

Extra Virgin is the most consistently good. The fried artichoke and beef carpaccio are worth a second serving, the pastas are strong, and the gnocchi is the dish the servers push hardest for good reason. A complimentary shot of limoncello closes the meal.

The Wake is the dressiest room on the ship. A lunch visit works well, but the dinner menu is wider and is the better booking if you only get one.

The Test Kitchen runs as a six-course degustation with each dish built around a base ingredient, and a wine or cocktail pairing available at additional cost. It was not the standout of the trip, but the mushroom and scallop courses are genuinely accomplished plates.

Pink Agave is a favourite among repeat sailors, and Razzle Dazzle leads with vegetarian and vegan cooking while keeping a run of richer options on the menu. Its brunch is noticeably weaker than its dinner. Ask your server about the off-menu options if burgers and blue cheese appeal.

Service across every venue is the quiet strength of the ship. Crew appear genuinely pleased to be there and volunteer recommendations without being asked.

The cabin

The Sea Terrace is the third cabin category, after Insider and Sea View, and it is the most common balcony stateroom on board. It is also the default cabin when redeeming Velocity Points for an Access Key.

The design is modern and deliberately gadget-forward: auto-opening curtains, mood lighting, and an in-room tablet controlling those functions plus the air conditioning and television. There is enough space for two once bags are unpacked, with a generous wardrobe and drawers. The bathroom is tight, though it does have a separate rainfall shower cubicle. Guests in the XL Sea Terrace get the same basic layout with a bathroom more than twice the size and a separate toilet cubicle.

The red hammock on the balcony is the detail everyone remembers. Nearly every balcony has one, and it is good for both sitting and stretching out fully. Bedding is firm, which will divide opinion.

Spa, classes and entertainment

The Thermal Spa is a paid extra, sold as a three-hour pass with different pricing on port days and sea days. It includes a sauna, steam room, mud room, salt room, heated quartz beds and multiple plunge pools. The cold plunge after the sauna is bracing and worth doing.

Some activities carry a charge, including a food styling and photography workshop run by one of the Happenings cast and a painting-and-drinks class, both of which include bottomless sparkling wine with a non-alcoholic alternative. They are enjoyable, though the add-on pricing is in US dollars throughout, which lands harder once converted.

Plenty is free. The bungee and spin classes, Latin Dance 101, the opening-night PJ party, the arcade and the board games at The Social Club on Deck 7 all cost nothing.

Entertainment is not traditional theatre. The programme runs to a drag-led travelogue show, a literary cabaret in three acts, and the ship's signature production, Persephone, staged with aerialists. The centrepiece of the sailing is Scarlet Night, which replaces the formal night of conventional cruising with a ship-wide transformation and a pool party.

One genuinely clever piece of design is Shake for Champagne. Shake the app and a bottle of Moët & Chandon is dispatched to you, charged to your account. You never tell it where you are: the app and your wristband work out your approximate location, and delivery took about ten minutes.

Deep Blue Extras

Deep Blue Extras is Virgin Voyages' loyalty tier, normally earned by sailing twice within a qualifying period. A status match, including from Virgin Australia status, was open during 2023 but has since closed.

The benefits meaningfully change the trip. Priority boarding is the most practical of them, for the reasons above. A daily coffee credit covers a morning coffee and usually a second hot drink for someone else. Bar credit is included. Premium Wi-Fi is the underrated one: the standard free Wi-Fi works but stutters, and staying connected properly in open water without paying the daily upgrade is a real advantage. There is also one complimentary laundry bag, which is a large bag and far better value than per-piece pricing. On this sailing, members were also invited to a private sail-away party in Hobart with live music and drinks.

The verdict

The strengths are the crew, the ship's spaces and the dining, which is better and more varied than the fare would suggest. The weaknesses are the US dollar pricing on add-ons, which adds up faster than expected for Australian passengers, and an app that is central to the experience yet not entirely reliable.

With two full days in Hobart and a schedule that fills itself, five nights went quickly. That is probably the fairest compliment available.

Frequently asked questions

Is Virgin Voyages adults only? Yes. The ship, its spaces and its activities are designed for adults, and children are not carried.

What is included in the fare? The six signature restaurants and the casual eateries, soft drinks, basic Wi-Fi and onboard entertainment are all included. Alcohol, the Thermal Spa, some classes and premium Wi-Fi are charged separately.

Can I book the cruise with points? Velocity Points can be redeemed for an Access Key, which defaults to a Sea Terrace balcony cabin.

Why does priority boarding matter? Several popular onboard activities, including the free bungee and spin classes, can only be booked in the app once you are aboard, and they fill quickly.

Are there formal nights? No. Scarlet Night replaces the traditional formal night, with the ship transformed and a pool party to finish.

Is the Deep Blue Extras status match still available? No. The status match that was offered to holders of eligible status, including Virgin Australia, has closed, and the tier is otherwise earned by sailing twice within a qualifying period.