Valiant Lady. Image courtesy of Virgin Voyages.

Virgin Voyages announces second ship, Valiant Lady

By Cruise Adviser Last updated Nov 19, 2019

Virgin Voyages has today announced its second ship, Valiant Lady, which is set to debut in May 2021.

The ship, which follows the line’s inaugural vessel, Scarlet Lady, will sail seven-night Mediterranean itineraries out of Barcelona, Spain. Bookings for the three feature itineraries – all offering overnight and late-night dockings at popular destinations in France, Italy and Spain – will open on December 19, 2019.

The first itinerary stops at Barcelona, Ibiza, Monte Carlo, Marseille and Olbia. Itinerary two includes a sampling of the Med featuring Barcelona, Ibiza, Toulon, Ajaccio, Marina di Carrara and Cagliari, while the third and final itinerary is a mostly Spanish immersion, stopping by Barcelona, Ibiza, Palma de Mallorca, Malaga and the port of Gibraltar.

The Barcelona dock is walking distance from the city centre. Weekly Sunday departures means guests – or sailors, as Virgin is calling them – have time to explore the city before their cruise.

It comes after agent and passenger requests for longer stays in ports. Of note is that every sailing includes a Friday overnight stay in Ibiza, offering an opportunity to enjoy the nightlife for which the island is famed.

Tom McAlpin, Virgin Voyages’ CEO, said: “We are thrilled to unveil the name of our second ship – Valiant Lady – and to deliver on our commitment to offer travellers a sea change in how they can experience cruising in this fantastic part of the world.”

The line revealed that the name Valiant Lady was inspired by the Latin word valere and from the French origin, vaillant, meaning “bold”, “strong” and “courageous.” While historically, the image of women only graced the bows of ships to bring protection to a vessel, Valiant Lady embodies the idea that women design, captain, lead and champion change in the maritime industry.

The ship continues Virgin Voyages’ ‘Scarlet Squad’ programme aimed at recruiting, supporting and mentoring female shipboard talent, and growing opportunities to access leadership roles in on-board areas such as marine, technical and hotel management that statistically show low numbers of female leadership.