Arrival in Miami
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| View from Plane |
Carrie and I went on our first
Virgin Voyages cruise back in
2023, and
we liked it so much that we signed up for a second cruise while we were
still on the ship. We went on our second cruise from March 28 through
April 2. It was another wonderful time, and we're already thinking about
our next cruise on
Virgin. We started this trip by spending two days in
Miami before departing. We really like Miami and wanted to spend time
there before leaving on our trip.
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| Hotel Pool View for Afternoon |
We flew down early on the morning of Wednesday, March 26. We had a
low-key first day, spending the day at the hotel pool, which was
amazing, and then had a casual meal for dinner before making our way
back to the hotel. We ate at some good spots this day, including Las
Olas Cafe, which serves Latin-style food. It was so good that we went
back again the next day to get coffee.
Exploring Miami Beach
The next day found us in Miami Beach for breakfast at Cortado Cafe and Coffee House, where we ate breakfast, read, and I did some brief work.
It's a popular spot for breakfast or coffee. We enjoyed our time on the
corner watching people, and the food was great!
We were close to an Apple Store, as Carrie needed to stop by for an
issue she was having with her Apple Pencil. After the Apple Store, we
walked along the shops before deciding to grab a quick bite and drink at Oh! Mexico, where we had an appetizer and drinks. Actually, we had one
appetizer and three drinks. It was an expensive bill for just an app and
drinks, but it was good. It's a good spot to sit on the patio and
people-watch while we snacked and drank.
Dining in Miami
Las Olas Cafe
We ate at some good spots this day, including Las Olas Cafe, which
serves Latin-style food. It was so good that we went back again the next
day to get coffee.
Cortado Cafe and Coffee House
The next day found us in Miami Beach for breakfast at Cortado Cafe and Coffee House, where we ate breakfast, read, and I did some brief work.
It's a popular spot for breakfast or coffee. We enjoyed our time on the
corner watching people, and the food was great!
Oh! Mexico
After the Apple Store, we walked along the shops before deciding to grab
a quick bite and drink at Oh! Mexico, where we had an appetizer and
drinks. Actually, we had one appetizer and three drinks. It was an
expensive bill for just an app and drinks, but it was good. It's a good
spot to sit on the patio and people-watch while we snacked and drank.
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| Stone Crab from Stiltsville |
Stiltsville Fish Bar
Thursday night, we made reservations at a spot I selected called
Stiltsville Fish Bar. We were drawn to this location due to their menu. I
was interested in trying stone crab, which I had never had before and
had never heard of until we were checking places to eat in Miami Beach.
Stone crab is special to the Florida area, and it was good. We only had
one as they are expensive, but it was worth the visit. We looked through
other places to eat but decided on
Stiltsville Fish Bar because of
other items on their menu. Excellent!
Other items we had from Stiltsville Fish Bar...
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Crab Cake from Stiltsville Fish Bar |
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Fish for Dinner From Stiltsville |
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Crab Cakes from Stiltsville |
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Key Lime Pie from Stiltsville |
Following dinner, we headed to a nearby brewery where we could have
some drinks while I watched the Washburn Ichabods on ESPN+ in the Final
Four of the NCAA D2 basketball tournament. It was a good spot to watch
the game on my phone while having some good drinks. Unfortunately, the
Ichabods ran into a good team that went on to win the NCAA D2
championship.
Boarding the Virgin Voyages Cruise
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| Top Deck and Ready to Deport |
Priority Boarding and Perks
Friday morning found us headed to port to board the Virgin Voyages
cruise line. Carrie and I were so excited to be on vacation and headed
to our second cruise with Virgin Voyages. For this cruise, Carrie and I
decided to sign up for more events than we did on the first trip. I’m
glad we did, as we signed up for a painting class (more on this later), a
spin class, morning meditation, and we went to both ports where we had
originally thought we would remain on the ship. Again, I’m glad we
signed up for more things, and for the most part, we stuck to the areas
we signed up for.
The process of getting aboard was easy as we had priority boarding,
which included a "Splash of Romance" that got us some Champagne along
with some other perks we enjoyed. Virgin added some new options that
could be ordered before leaving port, which included a bucket of beers, a
bucket of Moscow Mules, and I also ordered premium WiFi so I could
watch the basketball games I was hoping would take place on Saturday.
The new additions of being able to have buckets of drinks waiting for us
when leaving port were great!
Dining on the Ship
Pink Agave
One thing I do not like about the Virgin Voyages app is that after the
cruise ends, I cannot go into the app to see what we did or details
about what we ordered. Everything ends except the home button on the
app. However, I think I can remember the places we ate and call those
out here.
Pink Agave is my favorite of the places we ate. This was our second
time eating at Pink Agave, as the restaurants are similar between ships.
Pink Agave has good drinks, the food is outstanding, and the wait staff
is on point with recommendations, answering questions, and being
attentive to our needs while we eat.
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| Seafood Dinner at The Wake |
The Wake
The Wake is another favorite on the trip. We went here twice, once for
breakfast and then for dinner. It’s at the rear of the ship with large
windows that look out over the ocean as we leave a wake in the water.
Razzle Dazzle
Razzle Dazzle is another good place to eat on the ship. We went here our first night and had a good meal along with drinks.
Extra Virgin
Our least favorite spot on the ship, both this voyage and our first
voyage in 2023, is Extra Virgin. It’s an Italian place to eat aboard,
and just like our first voyage, our experience lacked at Extra Virgin.
The waiter took a while to greet us, get our drinks, and seemed burdened
by our questions. We had the same experience on our first voyage too
with Extra Virgin, where the food was alright, but the attention to
detail or being there to answer our questions was lacking.
The Galley
We did eat a few times in The Galley. It’s always a spot that is open
for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks, and we stopped by there most
days while aboard. We liked to check their daily special to see what was
available and found some good things to eat in The Galley.
The Pizza Place
Finally, not mentioning The Pizza Place would be remiss. Another place
that is open throughout the day and late into the night, we stopped by
to get pizza a few times, which was very good.
Activities on the Cruise
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| Carrie on Left, Mine on Right |
Painting & Boozy Bevvies
We signed up for Painting & Boozy Bevvies, which I will admit, I was
a little anxious about doing. We had a great time. Champagne was being
served, and they walked us through painting with watercolors.
Truthfully, I was surprised how well mine turned out, where I can
actually see the sun reflecting off the water. We sat at a fun table
with other sailors and had good conversation.
Spin Class
The spin class I attended was a lot of fun. The class totally kicked my
butt, but it was worth it and made me feel good to work out while
enjoying food, drinks, and snacks throughout the day while aboard. The
class was packed, and I only did one spin class, but I would sign up for
classes on our next trip.
Port Stops
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| Selfie at Pool in Dominican Republic |
Dominican Republic
As I mentioned earlier, we did make it into both of the two ports where
we stopped. At the Dominican Republic port, we stayed at the resort pool
off the ship and had a wonderful day. We found a nice spot with some
shade to spend the day and enjoy the pool. There was a lazy river too,
which we did, but we ended up getting out about halfway through as it
was a long experience.
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| Bahamas Port |
Bahamas: Virgin Voyages Beach Club at Bimini
The other port we stopped at was in the Bahamas at the Virgin Voyages
Beach Club at Bimini. This was our second time at Bimini. This time,
though, we got there early around 9 am and had a great spot in front of
the beach. It was an enjoyable day spent at the beach, and again we
enjoyed good drinks, delicious food, as well as reading and snoozing.
Wonderful day spent at the beach.
Departure and Final Thoughts
Leaving the Ship
The last day aboard the ship was Wednesday, April 2. It was a sad day as
we were leaving the ship and our vacation was ending. The process to
exit the ship was the easiest it has ever been on any ship. We were off
the ship and headed to the airport within thirty minutes. The fun had
only started, though, as our flights were changed because of weather. We
ended up not getting home until Thursday, with our Wednesday night
flight being canceled.
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| Selfie in front of Virgin Voyages Ship |
Looking Forward to the Next Cruise
We had a great time on our trip and thoroughly enjoy Virgin Voyages. We
are not sure when we will be sailing again, but we do want to go again
on Virgin Voyages.
See all photos from our trip on Flickr.
