We’re back onboard Resilient Lady for a repositioning voyage “San Juan to Spanish Nights”, this time we have 14 nights from Puerto Rico across the Atlantic to Barcelona ahead of her summer season in the Med.
This is our first cruise since giving up the booze, so it will be interesting to see how that goes. It’s also the first voyage we’ve experienced with 7 consecutive days at sea. Additionally, Mike is working as the destination speaker presenting information about our ports of call.
Our embarkation was super smooth in San Juan, guest entertainers were invited to board early at 11:30 so we were well settled and unpacked before sail away.
Mike’s Thoughts
You’ll want to read on for all the fabulous detail and the amazing photos Julie has compiled during this trip, but allow me to interrupt for a moment, and add my quick thoughts on this one.
I approached this with some trepidation, wondering if starting a cruise with a week at sea would be boring, but in reality, it was pretty much perfect! It was a joy not to have the pressure to go ashore every day and explore, and to really lean in to just enjoying the ship and the facilities. Each morning, we power walked the running track, then we headed off to classes or the gym. The rest of the time was all about relaxing, reading, enjoying the entertainment and planning the next meal. The amazing premium Wifi meant we were able to keep up with our work, even in the middle of The Atlantic, and when we arrived at the port days, I felt totally relaxed and ready to get out and about and do my “job” as the destination speaker.
One thing this cruise reaffirmed for me is that Virgin Voyages is my preferred cruise line, and we’ve tried a few now. I love the adults only experience, the full a la carte restaurant offer, the interesting, empowered and diverse crew, the epically talented entertainers the line seems to attract, and above all, the fact that most other passengers feel like “my kind of people.”
We’re booked on our next Virgin Voyage in March 2026, but I’m already looking at options to slot another one in between now and then.
A Week At Sea
This is our first cruise with extended time at sea, as we waved goodbye to Puerto Rico, it would be 7 full days before we were in sight of Tenerife, with nothing but the Atlantic Ocean in between. For some the thought of not seeing land for a week could be daunting, for us we were excited about having time to experience the facilities on Resilient Lady.
We’ve made good use of The Runway, a 250m oval track on deck 17 (6 laps = 1 mile). I’ve been to loads of the free fitness classes, whilst Mike’s enjoyed time on the cardio machines in the gym.
For dining, we’ve taken it day by day, we didn’t prebook restaurants in advance of boarding so that other sailors had priority. The downside with doing that was that most reservations left available on the app were late from 8.30pm onwards. That said, we still managed to get into our favourite restaurants via walk in or picking up a cancelled reservation.
As you’d expect with Virgin Voyages there’s been some interesting entertainment scheduled. We particularly enjoyed the presentations by David Tait and his Virgin Atlantic tales, and laughed along with the loveable idiots Griffin and Jones. We haven’t really got into the musicians so far on this voyage, but I’m sure it was us, rather than them as we haven’t spent loads of time in the bar areas where many of the performances take place. Lola’s Library was a delight, our first time watching this show, unbeknown to us the queue started an hour before the event, so we were lucky to get a seat, although not the best view. We’ve also booked to see Another Rose again this voyage, this time on the front row, we observed from above previously so it will be a different experience. Interestingly the non-alcoholic version of the included menu contains vegetarian dishes for this event, so another aspect for us to try.
Zero Alcohol Experience
The pink fizz was flowing well at the sail away party in San Juan, however there wasn’t a non alcoholic option available, so we purchased a couple of Heineken 0.0 beers which is the standard NA beer available onboard in bottles or cans.
It’s been interesting visiting the different bars to taste their non-alcoholic drink options. The restaurants also vary in which NA drinks they offer too.
There were two non-alcoholic beers on board, the standard in all bars and restaurants is Heineken 0.0 at $7, the other option not so widely available was the Boulelvard Flying Start, non-alcoholic IPA at $8. The IPA was available at the Draught Haus, Razzle Dazzle & The Dock / Dock House. A range of Noughty non-alcoholic wines were available included a sparkling, blanc, rose, rouge option from Spain at $9 per glass.
Non-alcoholic cocktails:
- Draught Haus: Rings of Saturn shot-tail with tanqueray 0.0 gin, passionfruit, orgeat & lemon $8
- Sip: Step & Repeat Spritz with three spirit livener, noughty sparkling wine, berries & lemon $13
- The Dockhouse: Harborside with lyre’s agave blanco, martini & rossi vibrante, lime, grapefruit sode & basil $11
- The Dockhouse: Italian Spritz with lyre’s Italian spritz martini & rossi vibrante & noughty sparkling wine $11
- The Manor: Dancing Dove with lyre’s agave blanco spirit, pineapple, lime, agave & serrano spice $9
- Pink Agave: La Vida Libre with lyre’s agave blanco, agave, lime, angostura bitters & salt $9
- Pink Agave: Aqua Fresca choice of coconut, pineapple or passion fruit $6
- On The Rocks: Strong Silent Type with three spirit livener, early grey tea, honey, orange essence & angostura orange bitters $11
- Gym & Tonic: Stay Grounded with tanqueray 0.0, beet, apple, lime, london essence, grapefruit & rosemary tonic $11
- The Wake: Aperitivo Spritz with lyre’s Italian spritz, noughty sparkling wine & orange blossom water $11
We booked Another Rose for our last evening, although there wasn’t a non-alcoholic welcome drink, the wait staff were very accommodating once they realised and provided NA cocktails and bubbles for the rest of the evening.
My favourite non-alcoholic cocktails are the ones served in Sip and The Wake. The Gym & Tonic bar on the pool deck serves some wicked smoothies, In The Tropics with whey protein was our favourite recovery drink after a workout.
Like so many others, we did “Dry January” this year, and we felt so good afterwards that we just decided to carry on and do a “dry 25!”
But for people who struggle with alcohol…..
There’s a daily AA meeting shown on the agenda as “Friends of Bill W. Meet”. William Wilson, known as Bill W was a co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Time Zones
Our voyage had 6 hours time difference to make up on route from Puerto Rico to Barcelona. We had six nights of time moving forward by 1 hour. Ship time was adjusted at 2am on the dates below. We made up the five hours to arrive in Tenerife (GMT, the same as UK), then one more adjustment before arrival in Barcelona (CEST).
- Monday 14 April 2025
- Tuesday 15 April 2025
- Wednesday 16 April 2025
- Friday 18 April 2025
- Saturday 19 April 2025
- Wednesday 23 April 2025
Time change can be difficult enough to adjust with the usual spring forward, and fall back each year. As a sailor we had the freedom to naturally wake up and start the day at our own pace. This regime must be hard on the crew as their work schedules remain the same.
We found the time changes okay, the hardest part was adjusting the time on our devices which was playing havoc with some software we use. We had to turn off the automatic time zone change and manually move the time forward to match ship time, however there were days where there wasn’t any other country on the same time to set a time zone which was where the conflict was happening.
Fitness Classes
I’ve absolutely embraced all the different fitness classes available on this voyage. Everyone was made to feel so welcome regardless of their fitness level and ability. Instructors took their time to explain how harder moves could be adapted for a lighter version of the workout. For me, Steven the Balancer’s classes were outstanding. His communication skills were excellent, we always knew when there was a routine change coming up and he gave lots of encouragement endorsing our efforts.
VHS Workout – This was a fun class instructed by three of the happenings cast LP (The Bounce), Je’Dion (The Glow) and Amanda (The Flare). Expect day glow outfits, head bands & leg warmers with some epic 80’s tunes, a touch of karaoke and a shake stick.
Spin-Out Class – Options are very limited as places go quickly for the spin classes. We managed to get in a morning class with Ash when we docked in Tenerife. Keep checking the app as cancellations can come up. The tunes were great and we had some banter with the other cyclists.
On-the Upswing Bungee Class – Again another class that fills up quickly, I grabbed a place on the afternoon class when docked in Tenerife. This was showing as sold out, however only 2 of us showed up out of the 6 places available. There is a $10 charity penalty donation on some classes, for those sailors that don’t show up having committed to a place and who don’t cancel within 24 hours of the class. ?? instructor photos
HIIT (Don’t Quit) Class – A couple of different instructors take the HIIT classes. Again these are incredibly popular so book your place quick once onboard. I managed to get a spot on a morning class which had 8 different stations and 2 sailors on each for 3 circuits with a warm up and cool down afterwards. Held in the Training Camp on deck 16.
Power Flow Yoga with the Balancer – There’s no better place than The Perch on deck 17 for a workout and I really enjoyed a couple of these sessions with Steven (The Balancer). Get there early for a prime position as they’re well attended and allocated on a first come, first served basis.
Origin Story: Core Basics Class – I’m not going to lie this was a tough workout and I felt it for a couple of days afterwards! The instructor kept us motivated and encouraged through the pain.
Lower Body Funk with the Balancer – Another of Steven’s classes at The Perch. The weather wasn’t favourable, it was extremely windy with rain at the start for this afternoon session and it was touch and go if we could proceed. Thankfully the floor dried and the rain held off for the class. This was part HIIT, part dance, we learned a fun routine with a few Ahoys thrown in!
Feel the Beat: Zumba Class – These classes with Steven (The Balancer) varied between The Red Room and The Manor on deck 6. I was a bit hesitant about doing this workout due to the location, I much prefer to be outside, however they were very good and I’m glad I made the effort. The routines were interesting and some great tunes, without being overly complicated for anyone new to Zumba.
Roll-Out and Recover Class – Sam was the instructor for this class in the B-Complex Balance area. Before we started we removed our shoes & socks to create a footprint for analysis later. Next we spent some time stretching and rolling different muscles over a foam cylinder, apparently the pain felt was doing us some good! The analysis was interesting at the end of the class, Sam took time to explain what each of our prints was demonstrating and how innersoles and good posture could improve back, hip and knee pains.
Ports of Call
Santa Cruz, Tenerife: We docked at the cruise terminal under heavy cloud and strong wind, which was a shame as we wanted to see Teide on the approach. There was a shuttle bus service to the port pedestrian ramp, however it was only a 1km walk so we strolled back afterwards. It was Easter Sunday, so Tenerife’s capital was mainly closed for shopping. La Recova food market was open with a great vibe and plenty of pavement cafés and restaurants for refreshment.
Casablanca, Morocco:
We woke up to being docked between two container loading areas in Casablanca pre 6am. VV had provided a free shuttle bus service to United Nations Square, there was no hassle with immigration, we simply walked through showing our passports. Unusually rather than just the 2 of us, we’d ended up as a group of 10 who fancied tagging along to explore this destination. We walked a short distance to the Marché Central to see the local food stalls, the fish section had an impressive display of produce. From there we took the Casa Tramway to Habous, it was easy to purchase the 1/2 trip tickets priced at 8/14 Dirhams at the kiosk and machines and the tram was very clean and modern. One tip is the doors only open for a few seconds so get on/off quickly. Quartier Habous was a delight to wander around, first stop was Pâtisserie Bennis a delightful family owned bakery since 1930. We ventured around the corner to the Cafe Impérial for mint tea, whilst we munched on our delicious box of delights from Bennis. We also took advantage of the facilities at Imperial which thankfully was a Western style toilet with paper! Next on our list was the Habous olive market, the olive aroma let’s you know you’re in the right place, before you even walk through the archway. We stopped at a leather stall on the way back to the tram and a few of us purchased bags and a belt. Next up was a leisurely walk though the Medina to La Sqala for lunch. This popular Moroccan cuisine restaurant is situated inside the old Portugese Fort. The food was delicious, we shared two different Kemia selections of small plates (Squalla & Moresque), a portion of mixed samosas and two tagines, one beef, the other chicken. It’s a lovely setting and the benefit of being a small group was that we could try more dishes! To finish we had a short stroll to Rick’s Cafe, as we arrived a coach load of Asian tourists descended to pose outside. We didn’t visit the Hassan II mosque on this visit as we’ve seen it previously.
Palma de Mallorca, Spain:
Palma de Mallorca is such a beautiful port to sail into. From the Serra de Tramuntana mountain backdrop, Bellver Castle standing guard and the Catedral-Basílica de Santa María de Mallorca dominating the waterfront, it’s a pleasant view which ever way you look. They also have fabulous facilities, there was a hop on hop off bus tour from the cruise terminal, the local bus service was €3 to the city centre, or walk 4km along the Passeig Marítim with pedestrian & bike lanes around the massive yacht marina. Palma is a such a lovely city, with lots of fascinating streets and passageways including Paseo del Borne, Carrer de Sant Miguel, Costa d’en Brossa and Avinguda de Jaume III. We had some amazing ice cream at Giovanni L, and an obligatory ensaimada this time from Can Joan de S’Aigo. It’s not our first time in Palma, and it won’t be the last.
Strait of Gibraltar
We woke up to a surprise this morning! Having made the decision not to get up between 5-6am after a forward hour change overnight to see the passage through the Gibraltar Strait, it was fantastic to see Tangier from our cabin balcony as dawn was breaking. Thank you captain Hannu Haaponiemi, we joined many other passengers on deck to watch the sunrise as we cruised through the 7.7 nautical mile gap separating Europe and Africa.
We’re updating this post as we travel, so check back if you want more!
