Virgin Voyages plans first cruises from New York, Los Angeles with new ship

Virgin Voyages is finally bringing its adults-only cruises to the New York and Los Angeles markets.

The 2-year-old cruise brand, which currently operates most of its North America sailings out of Miami, on Wednesday announced it would soon offer its first regular sailings from the giant coastal cities as well as Seattle.

The trips will kick off in late 2025 on the line's next new ship, the long-delayed, 2,770-passenger Brilliant Lady.

As part of the announcement, Virgin Voyages said Brilliant Lady would finally start sailing in September 2025. That's nearly two years later than the line originally planned when it announced the vessel in 2018.

Brilliant Lady was originally scheduled to debut in December 2023.

Virgin Voyages on Wednesday outlined a year's worth of sailings for Brilliant Lady that included sailings to Bermuda, New England and Canada, the Caribbean and the Bahamas, the Panama Canal, the west coasts of Mexico and California, and Alaska.

Related: The 5 best destinations you can visit on a Virgin Voyages ship

The trips will kick off Sept. 5, 2025, with the vessel's maiden voyage (called a Mermaiden voyage by Virgin Voyages) out of the Manhattan Cruise Terminal in New York City.

Four more voyages out of New York, ranging from five to 13 nights, will follow during September and October of 2025.

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The New York-based trips will include calls in Bermuda, as well as such eastern ports as Charleston, South Carolina; Boston; and Halifax, Saint John and Quebec City in Canada.

After operating out of New York, Brilliant Lady will reposition to Miami and then Los Angeles and Seattle for the following sailings:

• 17 voyages from Miami between October 2025 and April 2026. The trips will range in length from seven to 12 nights and include stops in Aruba; Bonaire; Curacao; Cartagena, Colombia; Turks and Caicos; Antigua; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands; and Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
• One 16-night Panama Canal cruise departing March 21, 2026. The one-way voyage from Miami to Los Angeles will bring calls to Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Mexico.
• Four voyages out of Los Angeles starting April 7, 2026. The sailings will range from five to eight nights and bring calls along the west coast of California and Mexico.
• A yet-to-be-determined number of cruises out of Seattle starting in May 2026 through September 2026. Details of the sailings will be announced soon, the line said.

While details of the Alaska sailings have yet to be set, customers can secure access to a priority booking window for the sailings by placing a deposit of $500 to $2,500 with Virgin Voyages starting May 8, 2024.

The deposit program will be called the Alaska Front(ier) of the Line Pass. The required deposit amount varies depending on the type of cabin that a customer wants to book.

Like Virgin Voyages' first three vessels (Scarlet Lady, Valiant Lady and Resilient Lady), Brilliant Lady has been designed to shake up the cruise industry with a new, hipper style of cruising. The ship will have everything from a tattoo parlor to a colorful karaoke lounge. To ensure a proper party vibe, it also will be a kid-free travel zone, with a minimum age to sail of 18.

Related: Is Virgin Voyages right for you? Our thoughts

Since its first vessel sailed out of Miami in late 2021, Virgin has been going after travelers who might think themselves too cool to cruise. To that end, Brilliant Lady will have no buffets, no dress codes, and no big Broadway-style theater shows. For entertainment, expect interactive dance parties and DJ sets. Suites will have a rock star theme.

Virgin Voyages on Wednesday said customers (called "sailors" by the line) who were previously scheduled to sail on Brilliant Lady before its debut was delayed will be given priority access to book the ship's first voyages out of New York and Los Angeles.

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