Sailing into the Future: A Virgin Voyages Deep Dive with Ruel Campbell

In this exciting episode of Going Beyond the Castle, Lori and Fred welcome Ruel Campbell from Virgin Voyages to explore all things Virgin Voyages Cruise Line! Whether you're a seasoned cruiser or new to the world of cruising, Ruel shares insider insights into the unique experiences Virgin Voyages offers. From the innovative ship designs to the luxurious onboard amenities and thrilling itineraries, this conversation covers everything you need to know about sailing with Virgin Voyages. Join us as we dive into the future of cruising, what sets Virgin Voyages apart, and why it might be the perfect vacation choice for your next getaway.

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Transcript

Lori Talamo (02:35.83)
Well, hello and welcome back to going beyond the castle podcast. We are so excited to be back. I know we threw you guys for a loop because we changed from Sunday to Monday, but that's because I'm super excited that we get to chat with Ruel tonight from Virgin Voyages. So it's so excited to have you guys with us and to have a well with us. Virgin is probably my favorite, not probably it is. It's my favorite cruise line that I've sailed on. So this is something that

I've been excited for and I'm so happy that we're able to chat with with you tonight. And so to kick things off a little bit, why don't you go in and give us a little bit of background and tell us about yourself.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (03:20.68)
Alright, well first and foremost thank you all for having me, the gang, thank you for bringing me along, taking your time out from a Sunday to schedule your own on a Monday to accommodate me. So of course I'm happy to be here, you my name is Ruel and I am one of the regional sales managers here for Virgin Voyages and we're super excited to talk about the brand, exactly what we're all about and why we're so different, what makes us so unique and why we want to get you aboard one of our ships.

Lori Talamo (03:48.728)
Yes, I'm ready for another one. So how long have you been within the cruise industry?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (03:57.266)
Well, I've been a little shy over 13 years in the industry in a whole. The cruise industry itself, two years. I'm a virgin virgin to the industry itself. So, yeah, yeah.

Lori Talamo (04:02.008)
Mm-hmm.

Lori Talamo (04:08.828)
wow.

I would not have expected that from the conversation that we had previously. this isn't specifically in the questions, but based on our conversation we've had before, what brought you or what has held you? Because I remember one of the things that stood out from our conversation when we met that you said that like, now you're virgin for life. And so...

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (04:33.595)
Yeah. You know what? Starting out working for Virgin Voyages and of course the brand itself started a long time. Virgin Group celebrated over 50 years. Virgin Voyages itself has been sailing over the last four years. It is the culture that is here.

Lori Talamo (04:34.296)
What was it about Virgin specifically that really sealed the deal and then you're like, is the company for me and where I want to be?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (05:01.542)
It's walking into an office and feel like you're family. And it's a tight knit family when you walk in. Starting from the captain itself, Sir Richard Branson, all the way down to even the front desk worker that is there. It is that culture that is developed here. I've been in other industries, I've worked for other company. But it hit home. It hit home walking over here, finding family and working amongst a group of people that...

It always feels like work when you feel like you're working with your family. And that's what has really tight-knit me here at Virgin Voyages and why I'm a virgin for life. I'm here for Virgin Voyages to stay.

Lori Talamo (05:45.337)
Yeah, that was a really good intro. know we just kind of, you know, like rushed right into it. But I wanted to get, I wanted us to have enough time, you know, it's late for everyone and I really wanted to have enough time. But that's exactly the atmosphere too that you feel when you step on one of these cruise ships. And we'll get into a lot of the details, you know, as we go through this. But it's definitely, you can just tell the atmosphere amongst the crew, the happenings cast.

Fred Briley (05:49.01)
Yeah. Yeah.

Lori Talamo (06:14.968)
You know that it does you do get that sense of family feel.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (06:20.386)
Yeah, you get authenticity. It doesn't feel scripted like, you know, go on some other line. It just feels scripted. Like everyone just seemed to say the exact thing. Sorry, but I thought I heard that five minutes ago on Deck 5. It just feels the same. With us, you feel that authenticity. You feel like the crew is being themselves and they get to express themselves just the same. And that is a culture that has been developed here at Virgin Voyages. And I'm not going to lie, we have a good thing going on over here.

Lori Talamo (06:49.464)
Yeah. All right, Fred, I'll kick it over to you.

Fred Briley (06:55.454)
So as somebody who's never been on Virgin Voyages, especially speaking for myself, I've never been on Voyage, Lori's already talked me into going, so we'll get that plan. You guys offer a lot of different experiences on your cruises. For the individual who's never cruised with Virgin, what is the typical just base bare minimum cruise look like for you guys? What all does that include?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (07:05.667)
You

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (07:21.795)
The bare minimum cruise actually for us is like your maximum cruise. That's what makes us so unique. You get on Virgin ships and you book an insider cabin. Let's say Fred just calling you out because you're on my screen. Fred books an insider cabin and you know what? Lori says, you know what? I'm a top dog. I'm rolling in the biggest suite that is there on the ship. The most expensive one. Fred experience.

is just the same as Lori's experience. We've created such a product where everyone feels like a rock star. No one gets on board and feels like they're a third world citizen on a ship. That's why we include all of our restaurants. It doesn't matter what cabin type you book. Every single restaurant amongst our ships are all included. Wi-Fi, we have our classic Wi-Fi that is included for everyone. All right? Your tips and your gratuities.

big these days in the cruise industry. We've seen a lot of lines even increase their tips and gratuities in the last few months. For us, you're not worrying about the nickel and diamond. The tips and the gratuities are included. know, sometimes we at the port, remote to board a Virgin ship and we look across terminal at other lines, and we've seen them hugging those cases of waters and so, and I'm like,

Fred Briley (08:22.471)
yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (08:47.937)
Is that really how you want the cruising experience to be? You want to pay all this money just to do whole cases of water to get on a ship because it's not included. For us, we include that water, whether it's parking or still water, your sodas, your drip coffees, your teas, your shows and entertainments that's there on board, group workouts, fitness classes that are there.

So you're not digging deeper into your pocket in order to create and get an experience. It's like you already pay for it. Let's try to enjoy it. And that's what as a brand new sailor is like, I don't know, is this Virgin gonna be for me? It is. Once you're over 18, it is. That's it.

Fred Briley (09:32.488)
Okay. Yeah, that that's super cool. Like especially because I didn't know all that stuff just to get to know. Because I mean, I've looked at a lot of different cruise lines and it seems like I mean, you mentioned some key hitters like, you know, Carnival Cruise Line. A lot of times there's like extra packages that you got to purchase just to get, you know, select drinks or there's restaurants that you got to spend extra money at. Like it's definitely like it kind of takes the ease off your mind to know that you could show up and get on a boat and everything's included.

Lori Talamo (09:32.994)
Definitely.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (10:01.951)
It's already pay for.

Fred Briley (10:02.62)
Yeah, and that is like that's got to be super nice. How would you say like the the pricing model for Virgin Cruise Line compared to some of the others that are out there?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (10:16.991)
We're a fear. We're a fear and freaks of the brand. And with us being the brand that we are, we make comparisons, day to day, of what we do, how we stand up, how we match up. And we're a fear and freaks of the brand. We're not here, again, to create a brand so that your clients feel like they're being stretched. Everyone books their vacation, feel like they got the best value for their money. And we walked away with an award.

Fred Briley (10:36.584)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (10:45.084)
the best value for money. That stands huge for a brand new company coming into this industry. Getting out of a Travel Leaders Award with the best cruise line, the number one cruise line, but also the best value for money. So that Travel Leaders Award does sit home for us.

Fred Briley (11:02.802)
Yeah, absolutely. That's cool. Cool.

Lori Talamo (11:06.073)
Yep, sweet. So let's talk a little bit about the ships in the cabins. Yes. So the one that I went on was a Scarlet Lady. So I know we have four ships. So what's a little bit about the design and the aesthetic and kind of what makes each one of those four lady ships different?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (11:12.775)
Whoo! Whoo!

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (11:19.249)
Okay? Yes.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (11:28.293)
Alright, so first off the bat, the physical hardware of our ships are the exact same. Might be some aesthetic changes here and there, but the physical hardware of our ships are the exact same. Same tonnage, they carry the same amount of passengers, they have the same amount of crew, same amount of cabins. Now what makes our ship unique is not only that we touch all seven seas, but also that our actual ships

also mimic our entire genre that is there. Virgin Voice itself has four lady ships and each of our four lady ships also have four mermaids that are represented on each as well. You know we have our Scarlet Lady, have our Valiant Lady, our Resilient Lady and coming on fleet with us brand new we're having our Brilliant Lady. Now these ships weren't old ships that came into commission. They're brand new ships that were built from scratch.

So you're not only getting a brand new product, but you're also experiencing this product on a brand new ship just the same. And we sail in the Caribbean, we sail in the Med, we also sail out of North America. So it just depends on where your clients wants to go. And of course, we'll touch a little later on into what the experiences does look like. Because what sets us apart, of course, everyone has beautiful ships. You know, what is the experience that you get on these ships that makes a difference for you? Why do you want to spend your money to go on this product?

Lori Talamo (12:57.667)
Yeah, they're so cool. Just in walking around and the atmosphere of the ship and the different unique areas that you could go into are super cool. You mentioned a little bit about the inside cabin and the suites. I know we have the Rockstar cabin. Yeah, so is the Rockstar the top tier?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (13:17.178)
Ooh, you're gonna be spoiled. Go, hey.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (13:24.474)
We have the Mega Rockstars, these are the top tier cabins on board. yeah, Fred, if you think the Rockstar was there, we got some Mega Rockstars for you. What makes the difference and what, you we always say, you know, when you go on a voyage, that's why Virgin is like a cruise. It is a voyage, bringing people together, providing them with different experience. So when you get back, just like you did Lori, you start talking it up with Fred and he's like, man, I should have been there. That's what voyage is all about.

Lori Talamo (13:26.007)
Mega Rockstar.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (13:52.846)
Going from place to place, experiencing different cultures and atmosphere, coming back to tell your friends and family about it so we can do it all over again. So our cabin types, to have an experience from day to day, you have to experience it on your balcony. And that's why Virgin Voyages, 86 % of our ship have those beautiful balcony cabins. You know, a lot of cruise lines have multiple different, you know, attractions that are there, but a lot of them are

Lori Talamo (14:15.288)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (14:22.617)
inside the ship. So you get to bypass, you know, that make, know, much, how many times you go on a ship and you hear them talking about a school of dolphins that pass by. Nope, you didn't see it because you were inside doing something else. For us, it's, we don't want life to pass you by. We want you to experience all that is happening. We always say, catch that wind on your balcony, relaxing in your hammock while catching that ocean breeze. So yes, if you were talking about fleets.

The Mega Rockstar Suites, that's the bad boy that we have there. These are going to come with your private transfers. These have your bottomless bar tabs. These are going to come with your rockstar agents. There are a lot of people who know them in quote unquote butlers. You know, these cabins you will get access to the spa for hydrotherapy, steam room, sauna, mud room, all of those good stuff that is included for you. And of course, our founder and CEO, Sir Richard Branson,

has a private area that it's on board, it's Sir Richard's rooftop. You there in your Rockstar or Mega Rockstar suite do get access there for you to enjoy, lounge, and enjoy what the good life have to offer up there for you.

Fred Briley (15:33.074)
Man, like we're 15 minutes into this podcast and I'm already about to go book a Virgin cruise. Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (15:36.408)
Ready to pop that credit card out.

Lori Talamo (15:39.385)
Yes, I cannot wait. Well, my daughter will be 18 in December and I cannot wait for us to do like a family trip because my husband and I talk about it so much that like, and we even have some friends, we're actually going to try to go at the end of this year with some friends. But yeah, I'm excited to take my kid. So I can't wait for her to turn 18 so we can take her.

Fred Briley (15:47.579)
yep.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (15:48.363)
Ready to go. Ready to go.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (16:05.449)
Awesome.

Lori Talamo (16:05.45)
But you mentioned one of the best things about the cabin, which was the balcony hammock. So do you know what kind of inspired that or is that just something?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (16:13.866)
Laurie, I've missed dinners. I've missed dinners, I've missed shows, I've missed days gone by. Those hammocks, they're lifesavers. They're lifesavers.

Lori Talamo (16:25.109)
yeah, it's-

Fred Briley (16:27.066)
Does every balcony have a hammock?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (16:30.41)
have a hammock or even a woven egg chair, but it's the same material that is there to hold it as well. So Virgin Voyages, of course, you know, everyone gets on board, you have an amazing time, but it comes back to giving back to, you know, the society itself. those hammocks that are there hanging, those beautiful red hammocks that are hanging on the balconies of four ships, those actually come from Yellowleaf hammocks.

Fred Briley (16:34.46)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (16:58.101)
These come from an organization that fosters its women empowerment and community transformation in rural Thailand. So we're supporting these ladies that are there in Thailand that does amazing jobs with these hammocks so that they can feed their families as well. And can you imagine woven so many hammocks per ship? We have four ships. Plus we also have them in the gift shops as well. So if you'd like a really nice hammock,

Lori Talamo (17:24.984)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (17:26.239)
come hang outside on your patio where you can get an amazing Virgin Voyages hammock. It may not be a red one, it might be a yellow one that is there in the gift shops. But yes, it's unwoven by those ladies that are there in Thailand and they do such an amazing job for us in making sure that we're also giving back and they're supporting us just the same.

Lori Talamo (17:51.193)
Sweet. Okay, and then one other thing before we move on is the wristbands. I thought that was super cool with the wristbands and I love how they are personalized and will have, I cannot remember for the life of me what I said, but I know it had a little saying on the wristband. So can you tell us a little, yes, that's what it was. Yes. Yes.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (18:09.725)
Feeling naughty. Feeling naughty.

I figured more or less. I mean, we did a lot of research when the brand started. And of course, a lot of the research came from a lot of sailors all over the world, people that have been on ships. And a lot of times what the headache is on a ship is, I locked my cabin, Fred, it's time to go to dinner. But guess what? Forgot that key card.

I forgot that key card. As soon as I shut that door, I forgot that key card. Or that big lanyard sitting around your chest plate at dinners all day, all night. We're creating a different experience. We're an elevated brand. We're an ultra-premium cruise iron. We found ways to navigate through getting rid of those unwanted new signs that people have really been gone, you know, they want to get rid of for years. So we came up with

Lori Talamo (18:57.112)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (19:14.832)
The Virgin Voyages Band. Now what's so unique about this band? First and foremost, it is waterproof and it also have, it is adjustable. So it's one size fits all. And it also has a wearable technology on the inside. So the band is not just fashionably perfect looking good. It is also your wallet while you're on board. It also is your key card to enter and exit your cab. Well, enter your cabin.

And it's also your security guide to enter and exit the ship as well. So no need for you to walk with your credit card or your cash. Your band, which is your wearable, does all that work for you. So when you're ordering a drink, and just giving you a question here, when you order a drink on a typical cruise line, and they go through your card and they go swipe it and they come back,

There's a line building up behind you. Can imagine that one guy that came in that line last? How long does it take for everyone in front of him to order drink, go swipe, make sure that you have the right drink package that is there. God forbid you don't have the right drink package and you order something that's not there, then that's you going somewhere else. For us, it's a one tap order go. Five, 10 seconds, you have drink in hand, you move right along. Service, efficiently, fast.

Lori Talamo (20:19.99)
Yeah.

Lori Talamo (20:33.58)
Right?

Lori Talamo (20:43.03)
Yeah, yeah, it's super cool. And it's, it's like a little accessory too. You know, it's there's this. Yeah, yeah, let's say they're, they're cute. And yeah, you take it home. I still have mine.

Fred Briley (20:48.222)
I'm looking at it now, it's actually super cool.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (20:51.578)
can even take a home.

Yeah, we know have some smaller ones. So I know a lot of people are going, ooh, I need a small one, some really nice small trinket ones that are there.

Lori Talamo (21:04.867)
Wow, super cool.

Fred Briley (21:08.606)
Okay, so let's dive into some onboard experiences. How would you describe the nightlife and the social scene onboard of Virgin Voyage?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (21:20.249)
So first and foremost, entertainment that is there and traditionally on a cruise line, it's typically entertainment from land to sea. Now Virgin Voyage has decided that we're going a different route. Why not have entertainment that is from sea to land? So all the entertainments that are there on board are created for Virgin Voyages. So you will never find any one of our entertainments off the ship. The Virgin brand is known for music, of course, Virgin Records.

So on board, you will find parties if that's what you're looking for. You will find some amazing, nostalgic shows that are there as well. You will also find live events right around the ship, whether it is that you want karaoke, cabaret, or you just want to go enjoy yourself in the nightclubs. So we have something for everybody, whether you're so extroverted out there, or you're really in that shell as an introvert, we have something there for you on board that is going to capture that niche.

Fred Briley (22:20.924)
Yeah, I like it's always nice to have all those like essentially all this stuff playing out for you and just kind of get a pic from it and just be like, where do we want to go now?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (22:28.366)
Yeah. Yeah. Last time I was on board, and it was my first time doing this, because I always see it on the app, stargazing. I'm like, watching those stars. But if there's no stars, though, tonight. And I tried it, and it was so relaxing. It was amazing. It was an awesome love story. And a drinking hand relaxing on the dock.

Lori Talamo (22:41.496)
Hahaha

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (22:57.097)
and the back of the ship just watching the ocean goes by lit up in blue phenomenal and that's just winding down before because it's hustle and bustle of life you know you get back work-life balance is there it's just relaxing and just forgetting about everything that's in the world and just focus on nature love this definitely doing it again

Fred Briley (23:05.373)
Yeah.

Lori Talamo (23:17.804)
Yeah. When my husband and I went, because I don't know why, but usually when we cruise, we don't really go to the parties or to the clubs ever. But we did the Scarlet Night and then we ended up going to the club. My husband and I, we just made 23 years married. We've never been to a club together because we don't go drinking and go partying like that. But we went to the club and we were dancing.

We had a good time and also the pajama night too. We did that.

Fred Briley (23:48.446)
Sold, I'm in.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (23:49.579)
You can't go wrong. Where else are going to go and see adults dressed in pajamas? And see, the thing with Virgin is that we're not a formal cruise line. We're so casual that you have folks already in their pajamas from like 5 p.m. So they're going to dinners in the pajamas because they're getting ready for the pajama party on the first night. And then Scarlet Night is in a week. And these are on every ship.

Lori Talamo (23:56.055)
Right.

Lori Talamo (24:12.866)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (24:16.939)
So the Scarlet Knight, have our entire ship transformed from in the afternoon. It's a full red night, but of course, we're not a formal. if Fred don't, know, red just is not Fred's thing. know, Fred wear whatever feel comfortable for him. But we know Lori's gonna be, as soon as Lori books her cruise, Lori's getting ready for her pajamas, so she's gonna buy a brand new one, plus she's getting ready for her.

her scarlet night for her red dress. Meanwhile Fred be like, I'm not a pajama type of guy, I wearing no pajamas. And red just ain't my thing, so I ain't wearing no red. Perfectly fine, you won't find anyone on board looking at you judging you. Wrong with him, he ain't no red tonight, he don't know what night it is. No, you're not gonna find that. That's just not the virgin way.

Fred Briley (25:02.686)
Yeah

Lori Talamo (25:03.778)
Right?

Fred Briley (25:07.356)
And you mentioned like this whole, you know, formal versus informal side of the cruise line. So a lot of cruises they call their people like the cruise directors, but Virgin calls them the happenings cast. So how do they differ like from, know, your typical like cruise director and like, what do they contribute to the overall cruise experience?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (25:22.505)
happening in SCAAS.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (25:31.379)
So these are typically when you have a mass market line, you have a cruise director, their job, of course, is to gather the entire mass market crop. For us, we focus more on the individual sailor. So we have happening cast team that focus on each individual sailor. So we have the foodie. I ain't looking at nobody. I'm just saying. So we have the foodie. We also have the spark.

Lori Talamo (25:55.672)
That's Fred.

Fred Briley (25:56.68)
I'll take it.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (26:01.267)
We have the diva, we have the hype, we have the gamer. So there are different characters around the ship and their main job is to make sure that each individual sailor that is there on board is fully entertained. So you're entertained in different areas around the ship. So instead of you having to go to a particular area in order to have entertainment happening for you, they flow right around the ship and you'll just have a pop-up, full-blown...

VHS magician show right next to your table sipping your cocktail. Because they flow right around the ship and once they find sailors that are ready to have some fun, they pop up to have some fun. Freddy or the foodie? You get hip, you gone over, you probably do some tasting over there. They'll do different bar crawls, bar crawl. They do some amazing things on board. Why? We're not a mass market.

Cruise line so when we get off the ship we want Fred's experience to be curated just for Fred and Lori's Experience is curated just for Lori while a mass-market cruise line Fred and Lori experience is the same thing because it's one guy on a mic and he's Flipping five six thousand people at the same time. So that's a difference between us and your mass market

Fred Briley (27:22.11)
Interesting.

Lori Talamo (27:24.822)
Yeah, I wish I could remember his name. When we went, we were at the, we were, was at the Scarlet night and we went, I don't know what whatever deck the pool is on. We were at the bar that was all the way in the back and they were doing karaoke. And that was one of the, one of the cast. He was so fun. He's, I think he sang a little bit and he would, I mean, he was dancing. Me and Josh just sat there and watched him. They were so much fun. Yeah, it was fun.

Fred Briley (27:24.99)
Now let's.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (27:28.335)
Ryan.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (27:47.846)
They're amazing. They're very talented. And again, it's hard for us to even explain it. You have to be there to see it. know, lot of audience see the Virgin brand and they're like, it's so brand new. What are they doing? We're doing some excellent job over here. Just need for you to get on and see it.

Fred Briley (27:55.24)
Yeah.

Fred Briley (28:12.178)
And I think that's super cool that like, I mean, you mentioned like a really great point, like a lot of the cruise lines, you know, that you have out there, they really, they really draw to a specific like, well, I said, they really draw to like the general masses. Like you said, it's like Disney's cruise line. Like it's all about families, like bring your old family, like let's all go. And so it's kind of cool to hear that there's a cruise line out there that like is going to meet you where you're at and like.

tailored experience to you and that's super cool.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (28:43.641)
Yeah, they have folks that get on board and they get on the ship and the first thing they look at is, okay, I just want something relaxed. I don't need no music. Give me a glass of champagne and I'll paint or I'll knit and that's my jam. Or I'll read a book and that's me. We have painting classes.

Fred Briley (29:06.162)
That's cool. I'm sure we'll get to it. My wife would appreciate that. I'm good. I'll stick with the bar crawl and the food tastings. So wellness, obviously, Virgin Voyages definitely emphasizes wellness as an important aspect. earlier, I kind of heard you mention, you know, spa type commodities. How does

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (29:07.395)
And I know you're probably going to ask about tattoo.

Fred Briley (29:36.126)
Virgin Cruise Line really emphasized wellness on its cruise ship.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (29:41.059)
So for us, it is part of our DNA. We embodied that from the get-go, which is why we include the workout classes and the fitness classes. It's not always just your physicality, but it's also your mental well-being as well. And for us, being a post-pandemic, you know how it is, post-pandemic cruise line, health and wellness is top.

top of class for us. It's top of mind and we focus a lot on it. Actually, January is our wellness month on Virgin and we focus heavily on programming on board our ships. We have a track that is on board our ships and we do our eight leg race up there as well. It's amazing. We also focus on, again, not just your physical wellness, but also your mental wellness as well.

We have sailings that think about energy boosting events. What about some Zen indulging events as well? We also heavily focus on the spa. We spend a lot of time in ensuring that our sailors are fully recharged while they're there on board, not just drinking all the alcohol and eating all the food, but also sit back and focus on your life. We have doctors that are there on board that

speaks on different things about your body while you're there as well. So it comes down to you finding, know, Freddy, how much do you eat per day? You know, maybe, you know, based on what you eat per day, is it possible that maybe this is contributing to this headache that you've been having in the last five years? Maybe we need to cut out this or cut out that. So we focus a lot on the cruise, but also your physical well-being.

Because at the end of the day, there's only one body that you got. So you gotta take care of it. Yeah. Yeah.

Fred Briley (31:44.826)
you mentioned mental therapy, big fan of mental therapy, especially the kind that puts permanent art onto my body. I hear there's rumors that you guys have an on ship tattoo parlor.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (31:53.779)
Lori Talamo (31:53.88)
Hahaha

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (31:57.578)
Fred, let me tell you something. You think when you get on a ship, a lot of people are like, let me hurry and go make a dinner reservation. Let me hurry up and go get me a spot to go watch one of the shows. The first slots to be filled on the ship is at the tattoo shop. It's at the tattoo shop. So, now.

Fred Briley (32:16.317)
That's awesome.

Lori Talamo (32:17.698)
Yeah.

Fred Briley (32:19.43)
Now I just want to go on a virgin cruise so I can get a tattoo.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (32:22.098)
No, trust me that line as soon as folks get on the ship they don't even worry about what the cabin look like, where it's located, it's where is the tattoo shop.

Lori Talamo (32:29.464)
Mm-hmm.

Fred Briley (32:31.656)
That's awesome.

Lori Talamo (32:32.088)
I have some friends that actually just got off the ship maybe yesterday and she got a tattoo again. This is our second time getting a tattoo on the Virgin Cruises.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (32:43.391)
But come to think about it, let's push back years. Just go beyond cruising. Let's go on ship sailing. The sailors have tattoos. So for us, we were just embracing that tradition of the tattoos for sailors at sea. And we partnered up with Squid Ink.

Lori Talamo (32:58.902)
Yeah. It makes sense.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (33:11.454)
their production studio company that is there in New York. They're famous for some amazing tattoos up there as well. So we have Squid Ink amongst all of our ships. They bring in their celebrity artist as well. So you will have sailors who follows them on their Instagram or whatever social media platform and see what ship they are. Start the dialogue and as soon as they get on the ship,

Fred Briley (33:27.454)
Top dot.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (33:40.22)
They find their tattoo artists, get inked up.

Fred Briley (33:43.08)
That's cool.

Goals.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (33:48.051)
Sorry?

Get your design and we're going to see you on board.

Fred Briley (33:52.718)
Absolutely. I'm, I'm overdue for a new tattoo.

Lori Talamo (33:53.133)
Yes, definitely. So I will admit Fred that I selfishly, usually, usually when we have anything that has to do with food, it always falls on Fred where Fred kind of leads those questions. But I loved the food so much on this cruise line that I made sure that I took it for myself. So I will admit that this one I did, it wasn't a random selection.

Fred Briley (34:01.256)
fine. I saw it. It's fine. I'm not offended much.

Fred Briley (34:15.506)
That's fine.

Lori Talamo (34:22.718)
And that's what I tell people all the time is the it's like you're eating at a five star restaurant every single night when you go in there. OK, not to get ahead of myself because the food is exciting. We know that Virgin has done away with the traditional buffets in the main dining rooms. So tell us a little bit about that approach and how it's different from traditional cruise lines.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (34:49.636)
It's simple, waste. Any brand, any cruise line, any resort, any hotel, any establishment, if you can minimize waste, that means you minimize spending too much dollars. The thing with buffet is that it's a lot of waste. And if it's, I'm hoping, I'm just hoping the traditional cruise line at the end of the night, throw it away and start from scratch again. Just hoping that it doesn't come back the same thing the very next day. Just hoping.

but sidetracking.

Fred, buffet guy, loves buffets. Why? Full variety that is there. But here's the thing, Lori comes and Lori is a picky eater. Lori comes, she picks up three scoops of rice. Lori don't need three scoops of rice anymore. Shoves back the rest into the plate. She picks up three pieces of chicken.

Really need three. Should put ones back.

See where we're going with the buffet? Not sanitary, not the experience you wanted it to have. So as much as all the buffet experience is amazing and people love it, it's not for Virgin Voyages. What we do is we're creating an elevated experience for your sailors, we're creating an experience for you. And again, it's included. So we're giving it down to order food. For a sized ship that we have, we're not too big, we're not too small, we're just perfect size.

Fred Briley (36:00.222)
Yep.

Lori Talamo (36:00.344)
Yes. Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (36:26.127)
We're providing your sailors with an elevated experience with menus prepared by Michelin star rated chefs that is done to order and we're not providing in a buffet atmosphere. So we're going to reduce the waste and then we can capture how your temperature of your food is going to be, your season level that your food is going to be, and we can ensure that you get the best quality when you order your food as well. That's why we don't have the buffet.

Lori Talamo (36:53.016)
Yeah, and that...

Fred Briley (36:53.086)
These are great.

I am a buffet guy solely for the fact that I have two kids and I can just really take all the food. But when I'm paying a lot of money to be on a cruise, like I definitely appreciate the fact that it's like it's quality, you know, controlled food that you're getting. And that's just. I really like that that change of direction for voyage cruise.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (37:03.222)
lol

Lori Talamo (37:04.472)
Ha

Lori Talamo (37:15.628)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (37:19.929)
Yeah, and we take it a step above the rest. The fact that your traditional cruise lines, and we always, you we never want to call out anyone's, but in order to get really good food, they charge you extra. You know, speciality dining. And these speciality dinings, they do rack up quite a bit of charge. You know, it can run you up to, you know, 70 up to $150 per person on these speciality restaurants.

Lori Talamo (37:20.908)
And that pizza.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (37:50.221)
And we come into the industry saying, you know what? Why do you have to pay extra for good food? You already pay a lot to get on the ship, pay a lot of money to go, you know, work hard to pay for this experience. Why should you pay more to get good food? Think you're deserving of good food as you pay all this money. So for us, we include all your speciality restaurants.

You you make dinner reservations to go dine when you choose. There is no set dining time, which is something that we we pro it off here at Virgin. Because, Fred, how do you know you book a cruise for next year, February? How do you know you want to eat at five thirty? You know, if you go home, get five thirty, you might be ready to trot down another cup of beer at five thirty. Now, you got to cut it short because your dinner time is set for five thirty.

Fred Briley (38:36.263)
Yeah, absolutely.

Lori Talamo (38:37.335)
Exactly.

Fred Briley (38:41.182)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (38:47.402)
So we ditch away with that, you we're not controlled. You you spend your money to come up with an experience. We want you to dictate what that experience is going to be. You work hard for your money. So for us, you get to select the time that you want to dine. We give you six speciality restaurants. Overall on board, there's over 20 different options of dining for you to select from. And these options are included. All right.

You have areas in the restaurants where you can spoil yourself and go above and beyond. But you get into, let's say you go into the steakhouse, which is the wake, your filet mignon, that's included. You know, your typical restaurant you go to, that's not so much. You know, for that voyage fare that you pay to get on Virgin, we include over a thousand dollars in that fare for you. You know, we're eating that money. So we are ensuring that when you get on board,

you don't have to feel like you need to dig deeper into your wallet in order to have an experience. Because you pay a lot of money to get here, you work hard in order to book this experience. So we don't want you to feel like you have to dig further into that pocket. We call it happy dollars here at Virgin. That's why, and Lori can mention, you won't see anyone running around when you're on Virgin trying to take your pictures.

That's not our line. Everybody has a cell phone. Everybody. The latest of technology on a camera is on these cell phones. So we don't need a camera guy all over you at the restaurants when you're walking trying to have an experience for yourself in order to say, well, it's going to be $25 per picture. That's not the experience you wanted.

Lori Talamo (40:30.102)
All

Lori Talamo (40:34.39)
Yeah. And I'm not going to say the order because I know I'm going to say it wrong. But I remember when we went every night, I was like, gosh, this is my favorite. No, this is my favorite. It was I mean, the only one we did not try was test kitchen because we were on a I know we were on a five night and so I had to skip one.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (40:51.849)
You missed out. You missed out. You missed out.

Lori Talamo (40:57.881)
And that one I was a little I was a little skeptical but now that I've seen so much and some pictures from my friend that goes often But I know we got the the steak at pink agave was amazing

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (41:05.001)
Woo, messed up.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (41:12.383)
Okay, gnocchi made from scratch. Nowhere else is gonna give you gnocchi from scratch.

Lori Talamo (41:19.08)
Man, I can't remember what I got at extraversion but all of it. mean like the food was just so good That was like really to sell in point. I mean a lot of stuff was but I think the food experience Really is a selling point because like you said when a lot of people think when you go on a cruise the food is terrible. Well, not on virgin like the food really was Elevated at every experience that we went to and then and I'm not sure

I don't want to speak out, can correct me, but I know when Josh and I went, we sat at our own table. our anniversary's in January, we went in December, kind of like an early anniversary, and so we didn't share a table with anyone, except for when we went to Gun Bay.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (41:58.801)
huh.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (42:03.46)
and we always say you know on your first night on the ship trying to get gun bay, it's Korean barbecue, you sit with strangers, you play a really fun game, you drink sake, after a couple shots of sake everybody's family now. You know have really good food and that's it and that's how we want your experience to be. Be on board with like-minded people so you can have fun eat good food.

Lori Talamo (42:19.52)
Yes. Yes.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (42:32.518)
and get off to prepare when you need to come right back.

Lori Talamo (42:35.842)
Yeah, do you have a favorite?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (42:39.314)
I don't I I love different things in different restaurants, so it's it's it's yeah, yeah, I Know it's hard. It's hard. It's hard. Do you love breakfast Fred? We have an all-day breakfast restaurant all day All day

Lori Talamo (42:40.504)
You know.

And each one, yeah.

Lori Talamo (42:48.46)
Gotcha. understand. I get it. I get it.

Fred Briley (42:55.646)
Oh, best meal of the day. So I'm in, you had me at the beginning of this podcast, but I'm just confirming that I'm still in.

Lori Talamo (43:04.931)
I know, I'm like, when we get off, I'm gonna be like, okay, Josh, it's time for us to book another one. well, we don't have this on here, but I'll throw this in really quick, because I forgot about it till recently. Y'all are getting ready to start doing, correct me if I'm wrong, like onboard ceremonies, right?

Fred Briley (43:10.45)
I'm the book one.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (43:25.508)
Yeah, we launched our wedding program. we're going to start Virgin Voyage is going to start hosting weddings summer of this year. So we've already started taking bookings from last year, but the official ceremonies are going to start summer of this year. So we're super excited to get these weddings on board, know, planning these weddings. don't have no kids as a part of the wedding party. Why not do it on the ocean? You know, the wedding.

Fred Briley (43:34.475)
that's cool.

Lori Talamo (43:52.246)
Yes.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (43:53.44)
honeymoon at the same time. Get you one of those rock star sweets.

Fred Briley (43:57.32)
Mega Rockstar.

Lori Talamo (43:58.861)
Yeah, my husband and I talk about doing something for our 25th anniversary. And I remember it just sparked a memory that maybe we'll have to do it on a Virgin Voyage cruise. Olivia will be 18 by then, so. Yep. I'm gonna invite you if we do it.

Fred Briley (44:11.356)
Redo those vows. Let's go.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (44:11.418)
here for it.

I'm here for it.

Fred Briley (44:15.686)
I'll book and I'll be there for you guys. Moral support. Yep.

Is it my turn?

Lori Talamo (44:24.034)
Yep, we're winding up.

Fred Briley (44:25.598)
Alright, so let's we've talked a lot about the cruise ships, but you've already sold me But tell me about some of the itineraries that version crews offer

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (44:33.444)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (44:38.979)
Alright, itineraries is gonna be based on your sailor's preference. Of course, we do a lot of sailings in the Caribbean all year round. We do have a ship that's sailing out of Miami doing four and five nights. Of course, these are gonna appeal a lot more to your working class, you know, over a weekend, quick trip, and back. Seasonally, during the summertime, we also have ships that are there in Barcelona.

We also have ships that sail in Athens, Greece, and we also have ships that sail in Portsmouth in the UK. Now, our unique itineraries that are there is that if you have clients that have been there, done that in the Caribbean, we have something for you outside of that Caribbean. So four or five nights, get your feet wet, try to see what Virgin is all about. These four and five nights are going to give you that full blown experience so you can...

Lori Talamo (45:23.608)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (45:34.03)
You can indulge in what Virgin Voyage's private beach club looks like in Bimini. But we also want to take that experience for you. And here's why I want to touch on this one. A lot of cruise lines and I'm... I looked at it and I'm like, I don't know how, how, how... For years.

People didn't complain.

The packed itinerary is into destinations. And the ship pulls into port and the ship's there four hours, five hours, and it's pulling out. When do you get to enjoy the destination? You really don't. For Virgin, what we did is we realized the ships are amazing. The ships are beautiful. But you know what's going to win you over?

Fred Briley (46:17.053)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (46:27.008)
the destination that we sail to. So when Virgin sail to a destination, we're going to dock at 8.30, 9 o'clock. And we're going to be there until 7 p.m., 8 p.m., midnight some destinations. In Europe, when we go to Ibiza or Mykonos, the ship stays there two days because we know those destinations are

all about you enjoying that. The ships is beautiful and amazing, but we know you're to come back talking about that destination you went to. So the ships, when we pull into port, we maximize the time in each and every single one of these destinations. And that's why we have some unique itineraries as well here at Virgin where who wouldn't want to do a 100 % eclipse at sea?

And that's what Virgin Voyage is created. We have a total eclipse voyage sailing in the Med. We also have an 80 % eclipse voyage sailing in the Med as well. We have another eclipse voyage that's sailing to the Panama at Keanaw. Those are some very unique itineraries. We're traditionally sailing out of Miami. We do a lot of four and five nights out of Miami. We're going to do some longer itineraries coming 26 because...

We're brand that listens. are, we're sailors always ask, you we love that you're doing the four and five nights. Give us more. Like, all right, let's give you a six. We love the six. Give us more. So now we're giving you long itineraries mixed in with your shorter itineraries close to home. What if you want to explore Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, Amsterdam?

Fred Briley (48:05.267)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (48:19.069)
We're going to give you that sailing in the Med Ibiza Santorini Mykonos Bodrum. We're going to give you those epic destinations packed you into one sailing. So when you come back, you have those Instagram worthy pictures where they want to go next time. You didn't tell us about it. They want to go.

Fred Briley (48:35.837)
Yep.

Fred Briley (48:42.392)
I think your husband just commented and said best cruise we've ever taken. Thanks, Josh.

Lori Talamo (48:44.408)
He did. He did. Yes.

Fred Briley (48:50.814)
One of the things you mentioned was the beach called it the mini at the mini is that how you pronounce it? Bimini I'm from Kentucky. I'm lucky. I knew how to read it. What can you tell us about the beach club and like what makes it a special part of the the overall cruise experience?

Lori Talamo (48:57.112)
Bimini.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (48:57.181)
Bimini? Yes.

Thank you.

Lori Talamo (49:01.816)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (49:10.761)
So our beach club is an extension of our ship. We're in the Caribbean. We're extending that Caribbean feel from the ship on the land. So what we do is we carry your full experience that you had on the ship to land. So Bimini is designed to give you that Maldives style of experience. We have beautiful crystal clear waters.

And for those people who are Caribbean folks, they know certain time of the year you have sea weeds or sarcasm that you'd call it in some destinations. Bimini is 100 % seaweed free. So when our ships pulled into Bimini, crystal clear water. Here's another thing with Bimini. Virgin Voyages ship, when we pull in, that's the only ship that's there. So you're not going to have, okay.

2,000 people on Virgin but here's another ship pulling in with 5,000 and there's one another one pulling on the other side with 6,000 now Bimini can carry on that experience for you. So the ship is adults only When the ship pulls in Bimini and you get to the beach club that is also adults only Now the restaurants that you have on the ship that are included to you when you get to Bimini Beach Club

those restaurants they are included to you. Now Virgin Voyages does not have a drink package. I wish that question was here but it wasn't there so I'll touch base on it because your traditional quote unquote cruise line have a drink package.

Lori Talamo (50:46.893)
Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (50:52.785)
Can I derail before I come back to Bimini? All right, I'll derail. All right, so your traditional cruise line is super important. I'm happy I'm gonna touch base on this one. Your traditional cruise line have your quote unquote drink package. Now here's how the drink package works. Josh drinks a lot. Lori doesn't drinks. Here's the thing, on your traditional cruise line, Lori has to buy a drink package. Josh has to buy a drink package.

Fred Briley (50:54.44)
Cup be my guest.

Lori Talamo (50:54.486)
Yeah, go ahead, go for it.

Lori Talamo (51:19.512)
Mm-hmm.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (51:22.167)
I don't think that's fair to Lori if she doesn't drink. Why does she have to buy a drink package if she doesn't drink? What on your quote-unquote traditional cruise line in order for Josh to enjoy the drinks, Lori gets to buy it as well. Now for us, continuing our fear and flexible that we are, we're not gonna let Lori buy a bar tab. Josh is the only one that's gonna buy a bar tab. Now when Josh is on board, these bar tabs are a different increment.

You have 200 all the way up to a thousand. Just depend on Josh's drinking limits. Now, you may ask, okay, how much drink package, sorry, how much bar tab should I actually purchase? Now that depends on how much you drink. Now the prices on board are completely fair. So we already include the tips. We already include the gratuities. The beers that are there on board are going to start from $5.

Fred, the bears are starting from $5. Inclusive of tips, inclusive of gratuities. Your cocktails that are there on board, and that's just depend on what cognac. I'm not selling, hey, I'm selling to who's watching here, who's listening here. Your cocktails that are gonna be there are gonna start you from $10. And again, it depends on the cognac and the spirit you want in it.

Lori Talamo (52:19.544)
It's not bad.

Fred Briley (52:20.626)
That's not

Lori Talamo (52:22.84)
You

Fred Briley (52:24.338)
That's beautiful price.

Fred Briley (52:31.282)
but you, you don't have to sell me anymore. You've already got me.

Lori Talamo (52:36.987)
Hahaha

Fred Briley (52:45.128)
Beautiful. Yeah.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (52:48.131)
Your glasses of wines that are there on board, over 40 % of them that are there, are about $10 there about per glass. And again, that's your flat price. There's no $10 plus 18 % or no, that's your flat price. So when someone says, why should I try Virgin? These are the reasons why you should try Virgin. It is a brand that is fear. It is a brand that is flexible for you.

And it's also a brand that's not going to nickel and dime you all the way through. start with your drink with your bar tab. Depending on how much you drink based on those prices that I say, you'll determine whether you drink 50 beers a day or five beers a day. So you get a bar tab from 200 to however you choose and it's shareable. So Josh can buy a lower your glass of wine here and there.

by whoever it is, any friend that he meet around the ship, the bar, at the casino, wherever it is, share the love by anyone who choose to buy a drink. Why? You're on vacation. We think you need to determine what your vacation needs to be. Not me telling you, Lori needs to buy it. Josh needs to buy it. Fred needs to buy it in order for you to drink. No, you should have the flexibility of sharing it with whoever it is that you want because it's your money. All right.

So that also follows you to the Bimini Beach Club as well. So we have different aspects to the Beach Club. We start out again, we're a wellness brand. We're big on focusing on not just your physical, but also your mental well-being. So Bimini Beach Club, get off the ship at 8.30, 9 o'clock. We're going to start off with a yoga session, meditation session that is a little more calming and soothing for

those sailors that are really into a beach atmosphere. And then come 1pm and then that's Laurie's favorite time of the day because that's when the floaties come out, the DJ come on the pool and it's a full blown pool party with music and dancing and drinks and the food to complete the evening before you get on the ship. So it's something for everybody.

Lori Talamo (54:52.631)
Yes.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (55:07.072)
So if you're not really into the heavy music and the party and all of that, you have the first half of the day. And then also the DJ booth is on the north side of the beach club. So on the south side of the beach club, it's a little more calming, more relaxing, more quiet for those people that are really lounging and really just want to relax. Then on the north side, can't wait for my favorite song to start because I'm ready out there. That's for those folks. So that's your Bimini experience right there in a nutshell.

Lori Talamo (55:36.79)
Yeah, so fun.

Fred Briley (55:39.614)
last second, the last question as we begin to wrap up, you've already mentioned a couple new exciting things that are coming to Virgin Voyages, in the future. Is there anything else that's new and exciting that you can tell us about coming to Virgin Voyages?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (55:55.626)
Well, I'm happy you asked. So we do have our brand new Brilliant Lady that will be launched in September of this year. This is our first ship to touch all four corners of the United States. So we're going to welcome Brilliant Lady in September to New York. We're going to sail out in downtown Manhattan. Beautiful five night voyages to kick it off to introduce the Virgin Voyages brand in Miami.

It's going to sail from New York down there. It's going to spend the winter season with us in Miami. Before it's going to do a 60 night voyage from Miami through the Panama Canal over to Los Angeles. It's going to stay in Los Angeles for a few months, giving them some love before it sails up to West Coast to Seattle, gets to Seattle. And that's where Virgin Voyage is going to sail to Alaska. So we're going to give you

adults only brand new ship, the Virgin way in Alaska. So 2026, start in May, get ready, start securing those dates, May to September, Virgin voyages, brand new ship sailing out of Seattle and Vancouver to Alaska.

Fred Briley (57:15.55)
That's cool.

Lori Talamo (57:17.57)
Yeah, my husband has been wanting to do on the Alaskan cruise. Yeah, that'll be just he and I though. Olivia is like, no, if I'm going on a cruise, I got to go to the beach.

Fred Briley (57:20.85)
bucket list item for me.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (57:29.181)
She's now ready for the sightseeing.

Lori Talamo (57:32.116)
Yeah, not yet.

Fred Briley (57:34.078)
Alright, so as we wrap up, what would you say to someone who is an experienced cruiser but is hesitant to come over and experience the goodness of Virgin Voyages?

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (57:51.91)
We're adults only. There's no kids on board and we're not adults only, but a sleepier brand. We're not so much of a sleepier adults only like some other brands that are there that probably traditionally focus on adults. You kind of find that they kind of stick to a sleepier style where come nine o'clock, time to go to bed because the piano guys stopped playing.

That's not us. We are adults only, but we find that our average age can fluctuate between 47 to 50, 50 to 55. That's a sweet spot right there. Another thing as well is, you're an avid cruiser, why should you try Virgin Voyages? It's the fact that we're not going to nickel and dime you because we include so much into your voyage fare.

Again, as I said, over a thousand dollars is included when you book a trip through Virgin Voyages and sail any one of our lady ships. The fact that we're going to give you fresh, made to order meals, including your specialty restaurants. There's no buffets, there's no huge dining halls, there's no stuffy formality that is attached to you. You know, there's no captain's dinner or a white party that's attached on to you.

We're giving you that full-fledged atmosphere for you to be yourself, to voyage your way. Let's put it that way. Voyage your way without having any stigma or asterisks over you. Because everyone on board comes from different walks of life, on board to enjoy themselves. And that's what we're doing. Creating that atmosphere, creating just a brand that we know not just we're going to enjoy, because we're loving it over here.

But we know you are going to love our culture as well because we're focused on a brand for you and not for a mass market.

Fred Briley (59:56.734)
That's cool. I will say I've said it multiple times as someone who's never been on a Virgin voyage. You you definitely sold me Virgin voyage. It sounds like, you know, it's a different breed of cruise lines that just sets itself above the standard. So, you know, thanks for coming on the episode. Really appreciate the information. It's been awesome talking with you. So I really appreciate you taking the time to come out and join us tonight and educate me and everybody else.

about Virgin Voyages.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (01:00:27.992)
Absolutely, and of course, it's always a pleasure. Happy to be here, happy to shed some dibs, shed some tea, shed some light on the brand itself. you know, we could talk all night and we probably won't even get to 10 % of what the experience is going to be on board. Just got to get on board. Got to get on board. You got to experience it on yourself, create your own experience and see what it is to set sail the Virgin Way.

Lori Talamo (01:00:28.354)
Yeah.

Lori Talamo (01:00:44.685)
Right.

Lori Talamo (01:00:54.552)
Yeah, absolutely. And I have a photo album on my personal Facebook page with all the pictures. So I'll share a link in the Facebook page so people can go and check it out. Definitely on board. I cannot wait to do another one. So excited. Just even talking about it is, I'm ready to go. It was super cool. Again, and my husband who isn't,

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (01:01:17.656)
Hahaha

Fred Briley (01:01:18.588)
Yeah.

Lori Talamo (01:01:23.176)
I guess he's coming around a little bit. not a huge cruising fan. However, he did love that, where he's even talking some of his friends into wanting to go. So super excited for that. But again, thank you so much for joining us, as Fred said. It was really great meeting you. And next time you're back in the New Orleans area at Total Wine, Fred and I will have to come over to your training so he can hear.

the presentation that you gave there because that was, you know, different audience. So a little bit different message, but still very informative and super cool to hear about all the things that Virgin does.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (01:02:01.238)
Absolutely, I should be down there in NOLA in March, possibly. Fingers crossed, I'll let you all know once I'm solidifying on dates.

Fred Briley (01:02:08.466)
Yeah, absolutely.

Lori Talamo (01:02:10.744)
All right, perfect. All right, so that's a wrap for this session. Next week, we'll be back on Sunday. And this time, we'll be going back into the theme parks, and we'll be talking about Mardi Gras in the parks. So being from New Orleans area, and it's super fun to see the things that Especially Universal does for Mardi Gras. So catch us next week, and that's what we'll be talking about.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (01:02:25.93)
Woo.

Fred Briley (01:02:37.694)
I'm bringing King Cake to that episode.

Lori Talamo (01:02:40.62)
Go for it.

Fred Briley (01:02:42.078)
Okay, cool cool. Well as we wrap up just a reminder of ways that you can reach out to us here at going beyond the castle as Always we have our website www.goingbeyondthecastle.com. Here you can find all the information about Lori and myself You can find the latest episode of our podcast and of course you can always request a quote their website For example to go on a virgin voyage. So if you're looking for information, you can find us there Best way to get all of our social media handles through our beacons channel

vegans.ai forward slash GoingBeyondTheCastle as all the ways that you can find both Lori and I individually where you can find us live each Sunday night and where you find our audio only podcast which will launch on Wednesday and then last but not least if you're ever interested in reaching out to us directly you can email us at info  if you're ever interested in booking a trip again to origin voyage cruise or

any other type of information, feel free to reach out to us there. With that being said, again, Ruel, thank you so much for coming on. Such a pleasure. For those listening, please make sure you follow us, like our content, and definitely subscribe, leave us some reviews so that way we can continue to grow and reach the masses. And as always, thanks for joining us and we will talk to you guys next week.

Lori Talamo (01:03:50.242)
Yes, thank you.

Lori Talamo (01:04:07.928)
Bye.

Ruel, Virgin Voyages (01:04:09.864)
Bye y'all.