If anyone in the cruise industry was going to get Jennifer Lopez on the payroll, it surely fell to Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group. That’s right: J. Lo — international film and music superstar and global style icon — has landed a job at Virgin Voyages.The fleet-wide partnership between Lopez, Branson, and his cruise line Virgin Voyages was revealed in a tongue-in-cheek video ahead of the launch of Valiant Lady, the brand’s newest vessel, at the London port of Tilbury on March 11. It captured a luminous Jennifer (it’s the J. Lo glow up) chatting to Branson on FaceTime. “J. Lo called. We Answered,” was Virgin’s top line.“We searched for someone very special to join us on this voyage,” said Tom McAlpin, CEO of Virgin Voyages. “Jennifer is a trailblazer and embodies the spirit of Virgin Voyages and its people.”Year of the VirginThis year, two new ships, plus homeports in Miami, Barcelona, and Athens, will extend the line’s presence. In May, the 2,700-passenger Valiant Lady heads to her summer homeport in Barcelona for a season of sun-soaked Mediterranean sailings. In August, Resilient Lady, the third “Lady ship” in Virgin’s fleet of four, will begin sailing from Athens.In what feels like a lifetime ago, in February 2019, Virgin Voyages experienced one of the toughest cruising debuts a line has seen. A brief sailing window last summer garnered plaudits and saw the brand gain a foothold in extremely challenging times. After a few months in the water, Virgin’s first ship, Scarlet Lady, was named “Best New Cruise Ship for 2021” by Cruise Critic and garnered accolades for the best suites at sea. A 70 percent uptick in bookings since December bodes well for the line’s first full Mediterranean season.President of Virgin Voyages Nirmal Saverimuttu says 2022 is all about itineraries and wooing the new-to-cruise. “This is what clients were asking for: new destinations and more exciting itineraries.”While Scarlet sails 4- and 5-night itineraries, Valiant Lady will offer 7-night voyages with late-night departures and overnight stays in Ibiza and Palma de Mallorca or Mykonos in Greece.
Source: porthole.com
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