My family went on our first cruise adventure on Superstar Virgo. We took the 4 days 3 nights cruise to Penang and Phuket which departed from Singapore Cruise Centre on Sunday afternoon and returned on Wednesday evening.
All aboard!
We boarded the ship at about noon after checking in our bags, collecting our boarding passes, clearing immigration, and surrendering our passports to cruise officials. After a welcome drink at the lobby (a treat specially for balcony room guests), we headed straight to our room. As there were six of us, including my mom, we had to take 2 rooms. I booked the rooms several months ahead, so I got a 40% discount for them.
We managed to have a meal and explore many parts of the ship even before it departed. The lobby was really grand with three golden horses, and glass elevators. Shore excursion could also be booked at the reception at the lobby.
There was an Activity Centre where guests made reservations for activities. There were also a library, an arcade, an aquaswim, a gym and a miniature golf area at the roof deck. The Galaxy of the Stars had a dance floor with live music, food and drinks.
Just before we departed, we had to attend a compulsory safety briefing. Then, at about 4pm, the ship set sail.
Dining
Shortly after we departed, it was already time for dinner. There were several dining options. Some of them were free, while others were chargeable. Most had a smart casual dress code. Since we had $200 dining credits for each balcony room, we ate at “The Taj” on our first evening. It had a halal Indian buffet spread. On our second evening, we enjoyed a barbecue dinner at the Mediterranean Terrace.
Most of the time, we ate at the Mediterranean Buffet and Terrace, which was free and did not require us to dress up. It had a good buffet spread and good view of the sea. They even had a separate buffet line serving vegetarian cuisine.
Since our meals at the Mediterranean buffet and terrace were free, we initially used up our dining credits on drinks, but we later realised that the Swensen’s ice cream sundaes at Gelato was more worth it than the drinks.
Swimming Pools
Apart from eating, there were a lot of activities in store for guests. Everyday, we received a newsletter listing all the activities for the day. Some were free, and others were chargeable.
One of the free activities was swimming, something that my kiddos enjoy. There were two swimming pools, one for adults, and the other for kids.
The Neptune’s Wet and Wild (below) is definitely for kids. My girls enjoyed playing at Neptune’s Wet and Wild.
The Panthenon Pool was 2.4m deep! This was definitely not for kids. I wonder why they made the pool so deep. There was also a large and windy water sliding tube and four jacuzzis. The water in the jacuzzi was warm and very relaxing.
Shows
There were different shows every evening at the Lido after dinner. The first night was a magic show. The second night was a show put up by the crew, and the third night was a show put up by a professional entertainment group. The Lido theatre was so packed that a number of guests had to stand throughout the show.
The magician also put up a daring stunt for us at the swimming pool.
Gala Dinner
View from the Balcony
The best part about staying in a balcony room was the sea view. We could enjoy it without even getting out of bed. At night, it was so dark that you could not even tell where the sea ended and sky began. It was so nice just to chill out on the balcony chair watching the starry sky and enjoying the fresh breeze.
I was especially in awe by the beautiful sunrise and sunset. As our balcony room was on the port side, we got to see sunrise when we headed north to Phuket and sunset when we headed south to Singapore.
Can you tell which photo is of a sunset and which photo is of a sunrise?
Well, if you guessed the first one to be a sunrise and the second one to be a sunset, then you are absolutely right!
As we had gone during the December school holidays, there was also Nickelodeon at Sea onboard Superstar Virgo. Find out more about what fun things my kids did with Nickelodeon at Sea.
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A very nice blog with beautiful pictures. We are going on Virgo in March and booked a balcony cabin but we haven’t seen any $200 credit. Will that be given to us when we chech-in?
Thank you Rajani, I am glad you like it. The dining credit was stored in a card issued to every passenger upon check-in. Enjoy your trip!
I just wana book my trip so can u help me from where i can book my cruise trip and rooms?
Hi Sameer. You can either book through starcruises.com or find an authorized travel agent. I booked mine through Chan Brothers.
lovely write up with great inputs . I am travelling with my family in march. Just few questions . We all are vegetarian, would it be challenge to get food options. ?
when did you book for the Gala Dinner ? I have heard that all the meals are included on cruise ..so this 200 meal credit is what we are getting is extra rt ?.
Hope to heard from you soon . TIA
Hi Shalini. It’s not a challenge at all for vegetarians. There’s quite a decent spread of Indian vegetarian dishes at the Mediterranean Buffet restaurant and you don’t have to pay for it. Even the Gala dinner had a vegetarian option when I was there. There is a specific time to book the Gala dinner which they will inform you. Go early to book as there were two dining timings to choose. The later one was quite late for my kids. I think it starts about 8.30-9pm. The dining credit is extra and only for those staying in balcony class. The amount is lesser for shorter 3D2N cruise. You can use it at restaurants that are not free, or on special drinks and snacks.
exceptional coverage of the cruise you have given. I want to know which all activities are free on Cruise and on which other activities one has to pay
Hi Atul, there are lots of free activities onboard the Superstar Virgo. Apart from the swimming pools and jacuzzis, the gym, the evening shows, and the magic shows are free. Participation in certain games and activities are free as well.
Hi need to check is the food halal?
Hi there, According to the muslim staff there, the ingredients used at the restaurants are all from halal suppliers except for the Chinese restaurant. While the other restaurants offer the option for guests to purchase alcoholic drinks, the Taj, the only halal-certified restaurant, does not.
Hi. You mentioned about making reservations for the gala dinner and some of the activities..donwe do that upon check-in (ie bording) or can we do that even days ahead?
Hi, You can only make reservations for the gala dinner onboard. There will be a specific timing to make reservations for the gala dinner. This timing will be indicated in the programme sheet for the day. Interested guests will be asked to go to an auditorium and will be given a queue number. You then wait for your turn to choose the restaurant and food. Guests in balcony room are given an earlier timing to make reservations. There are two dinner slots, the earlier slot is more popular.
Is the Mediterranean Buffet Halal?
Hi there, when we went on the cruise, the Muslim staff informed us that the ingredients at the Mediterranean buffet were all from halal sources, but because guests could order alcoholic beverages, the restaurant is not halal certified.