Virgin Voyages announce Dubai cruise aboard Resilient Lady for 2023
Virgin Voyages has delivered on a promise made back in 2019 and announced that its newest cruise ship, Resilient Lady, will cruise from Dubai in late 2023. Resilient Lady will reposition from Europe to Australia in October next year, and she’ll be sailing via Dubai in the Arabian Gulf.
The repositioning cruise will feature three separate legs, the first from Athens to Dubai, the second from Dubai to Singapore, and the third from Singapore to Sydney.
“Embark on a cross-continental journey with us as our lady ships set sail from their homeports in the Mediterranean and the Adriatic — seeking out the most gorgeous weather possible,” the cruise line says. “Stopping in brand new destinations along the way, you’ll be able to uncover unique places to play and even more stunning places to stay.”
“Resilient Lady’s 2023 one-way voyages will have you dancing to Balinese beats in Kuala Lumpur’s streets, yearning for Cairo’s vibrant energy, and craving Cairns’ laid-back charm — all while sailing from Athens to Dubai, onto Singapore, and finally landing in Sydney to spend her winters in the warm summer breeze,” it added.
Resilient Lady will depart Athens on October 22nd, 2023, bound for Dubai. The 14-night itinerary features port calls in Piraeus (Athens), Santorini, Rhodes, and Port Said (for Cairo), before visiting Safaga, the last port call before her arrival in Dubai.
Resilient Lady will spend the final night of the voyage docked overnight in the UAE’s tourism hub, and will then prepare for her 15-night onward voyage from Dubai to Singapore.
The cruise will board passengers on November 5th, but she’ll spend the first night in port, giving passengers more time to explore the sights of the UAE.
Resilient Lady will then depart on November 6th, calling in Mumbai (Bombay), Goa (Mormugao), Colombo in Sri Lanka, Phuket in Thailand, and Port Klang (for Kuala Lumpur) in Malaysia before her arrival in Singapore on November 20th, 2023.
“Sailing out of Dubai, this one-way voyage to Singapore is truly one-of-a-kind — with plenty of time to catch up on Goa’s susegad lifestyle, gaze at Colombo’s mesmerizing architecture, and dip into Phuket’s jade-hued waters,” Virgin Voyages says of the itinerary. “You’ll also get to spend overnights in Mumbai and Kuala Lumpur for extra doses of color and spice; indulging your cravings for discovery and awakening all your senses.”
Resilient Lady’s cruise from Dubai to Singapore will mark Virgin Voyages first ever Dubai cruise, and the first time it has sailed from any port in the Middle East.
The cruise line, part of the Virgin brand headed by Sir Richard Branson, which also owns Virgin Radio and Virgin Megastores here in the UAE, is a newcomer to the cruise scene, having launched its first cruise ship, Scarlet Lady, in 2020 just before the pandemic.
Resilient Lady is the cruise lines third ship after Scarlet Lady and Valiant Lady. All three vessels are near-identical sister ships, but Virgin Voyages itself is one of the most uncommon cruise lines in recent memory.
It has taken a novel approach to the on-board experience, while there are casinos, a mainstay of the modern mainstream cruise industry, there aren’t any Broadway or Broadway-type shows, which is also a fairly synonymous aspect of the cruise experience.
The cruise line focuses on partying hard at night and relaxing during the day. There are lots of bars and lounges and unusual night activities, including aerialists, comedy, pop-up music, interactive theater and more.
Daytime is structured around a “Vitamin Sea” philosophy that emphasizes relaxation and wellness. The line expects cruisers to participate in a detox, retox array of activities throughout the day.
The cruise line’s desire to be different is also reflected in the lack of any main dining room aboard the ships, instead there are 20 dining venues on offer, which are included in the fare. Nine of them are proper sit-down restaurants.
