Are you planning a cruise? There are certainly some benefits to cruise vacations, including a more relaxed style of vacation, a chance to see some cool sights, and having things like dining included in the cost of your cruise.
©Virgin Voyages
Now, normally, you pay one set rate for a cruise, but Virgin Voyages is shaking things up and will soon offer a tiered fare system that will include gratuities separately (and we’re honestly not sure how we feel about that).
Virgin Voyages, an adults-only cruise line, has announced a new fare system that will launch on October 7th, 2026, which will feature three different pricing tiers. The three tiers offer different levels of Wi-Fi access, how early dining reservations can be made, and how flexible books are.
©Virgin Voyages
The three tiers are as follows:
- Base Fare: A non-refundable fare with a Basic Wi-Fi tier for one device per person for social media, messaging, and light browsing. This fare also includes access to dining reservations 15 days before sailings. However, changes to names, cabins, or dates aren’t allowed.
- Essential Fare: This fare includes Classic Wi-Fi for one device per person with social media, messaging, browsing, and audio calling. Those on this fare can make dining reservations 45 days in advance, and have the flexibility to adjust dates of cruise as well as make name changes for passengers two through four. This fare is in line with the current one-tier fare available on Virgin Voyages.
- Premium Fare: This fare includes Premium Wi-Fi for two devices per person with streaming and video capabilities. Sea Terrace categories can book dining reservations up to 60 days in advance, plus get an included drinks credit plus access to a priority support line before the cruise.
©Virgin Voyages
Note that RockStar and Mega RockStar cruisers will be able to book dining reservations 120 days in advance.
The biggest change, though, comes with gratuities. Currently, gratuities are bundled into the fare, but now they’ll be listed as a separate line item when a cruise is booked. You’ll be able to pre-pay gratuities at a discounted rate of $20 per person per night or settle onboard for $22 per person per night. So, basically, gratuities are no longer covered as part of the fare you book — they’ll be paid separately.
These new fares, as well as line item gratuities, will start for cruises on or after October 7th, 2026, so if you’re booking a cruise on Virgin Voyages, keep that in mind.
Stay tuned to DFB for more.
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What an ugly looking ship. Not for me.
They’re beautiful ships inside and out, with an amazing crew and atmosphere. It really makes a difference to travel with only ages 18-plus. Plus all restaurants are included in your fare, your party can choose to sit at its own table (no matter party size), and the food is incredible. After we sailed VV, we haven’t gone back to any other line. Cruise #5 is coming up soon!