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Boarding the Brilliant Lady in Vancouver, BC! My First Days on Virgin's Newest Ship

Mer Cruises Solo

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Join me as I board the Virgin Voyages Brilliant Lady in Vancouver, BC for a SOLO repositioning cruise down the California coast!

This vlog covers Day 1-3: embarkation day plus my first two sea days onboard.In this video I'm sharing what boarding is really like as a solo sailor on Virgin's newest ship — from the Vancouver cruise terminal, check-in and getting onboard, to first impressions, exploring the ship, where I ate, and how those first lazy sea days actually felt traveling solo.

If you're considering a solo cruise on Virgin Voyages, thinking about a repositioning sailing, or just curious what the Brilliant Lady is like — this one's for you.

🚢 Sailing: Virgin Voyages Brilliant Lady — Vancouver to California (repositioning)
🎥 In this vlog: boarding day, cabin first look, ship exploring, food, sea days

Let me know in the comments — would YOU do a repositioning cruise solo?

📸 Follow along for real-time cruise updates on Instagram & TikTok: @mer.cruises.solo

📩 Business inquiries: mercruisessolo@gmail.com

CHAPTERS (update times to match your edit):
00:00 - Intro
02:10 - Boarding day in Vancouver!
04:00 - First impressions of the Brilliant Lady
18:02 - Sea Day 1 as a solo sailor
34:14 - Sea Day 2 + final thoughts

Book a shore excursion!: https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/...

Book a cruise with a reputable Travel Agency: https://mercruisessolo.membercruises....

Need to fill time while waiting for a late flight? Book a Resort for a Day!: https://lddy.no/1or15
Support me!: coff.ee/mercruisessolo
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📧 Email: mer.cruises.solo@gmail.com

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🎬 Filmed with:
📸 DJI Osmo Pocket 3 (https://amzn.to/47plA8B)
📹 DJI Osmo Action 4 (https://amzn.to/4e1tOpZ)
📹 Sony ZV-1F (https://amzn.to/40mnpB7)
📱 iPhone 16 Pro Max
🎶 Music: Epidemic Sound (https://share.epidemicsound.com/xetgrd)

20 Comments

@EdwardBielawa 2 days ago

Great to have you back, Mer.
A beautiful ship in a beautiful city.
Top-notch vlog as always.
Thanks, Mer.

@Paul_Knowles 10 days ago

Living in the Vancouver area, we have sailed a few times from here. I still get jealous of every ship I see pulling away without us, so we’re enjoying this cruise thanks to you!

@flyddw 13 hours ago

I'm going on Valiant Lady in Nov. This looks fun!

@LindaBulman 3 days ago

Another great vlog. I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it: You are excellent at what you do! Thank you.

@DaveLovesToTravel 10 days ago

Hey Mer! Good to see you back. Being a solo cruiser myself, I've always been on the fence about Virgin. I appreciate that they are an Adults Only cruise line, which is nice to not have to listen to screaming kids around the ship, and taking up all the pool areas. I don't know if it's my vibe, though...just being honest. I'm more of a quiet, chill cruiser. We'll see if the rest of this series will change my mind. Always love your video's. You do a great job showing all the areas, and the entertainment. You provide lots of good info...Thank you! Looking forward to all the Port video's, but until then... Peace, Love, and Happy Cruising!!! ✌❤🚢

@artgirllovespaint 9 days ago

Glad you are back! I always enjoy your reviews, practical tips, and the chill vibe. I love live music so I'm glad you usually include a little snippet of the acts aboard ♥
Like other commenters mentioned, you didnt miss a thing about Tim Hortons (on par with Dunkin -and they are coming back to Canada in the next few months). Finding a local coffee place (non-franchise) when possible is usually a better option.

@aleshalee3394 10 days ago

Meredith, you inspire me to try solo traveling! Thanks for taking us along on your travels! I’ve really enjoyed your vlogs!

@peacefullymorgan 10 days ago

Was nice to meet you on this voyage. I like how VV can be either mild or wild depending on what suits you. Look forward to the videos for the other days.

@Atsushi-ayumi 11 days ago

Hi Mer it’s been a long time since u uploaded anything finally there’s one again👌im so happy thank u🥰

@skipfrey4603 11 days ago

Not a fan of Virgin Cruises but I am a fan of yours so I will watch the video to support you.

@wandac371 11 days ago

I’ve missed your weekly posts! We sailed on Brilliant Lady in February, and we loved it!

@iriswagstaff 11 days ago (edited)

Hyped! Will be on her in January - the last of the four lady ships for me after 8 sailings. Looking forward to the modifications they made on her compared to the others.

@nmckinney82 11 days ago

Ready to enjoy your vlog, I enjoy watching people try Virgin for the 1st time. You guys either love it or hate it😂

I love Virgin 🥂🛳️🌊

@BillH-bb3ex 9 days ago

I was in Vancouver at the Exchange Hotel and left on the Konigsdam for Alaska on Sept. 12. First time in Vancouver and enjoyed it very much. The cruise was great, Holland America never disappoints.

@ajmayowskijr 11 days ago

Nice to see you again Meredith. We cruised out of Vancouver last month and loved it. Amazing work on the video.

@Anubis-i4l 3 days ago

Nice to have another video post. Was kinda worried that you weren't going to post anything anymore, thx for the great post again. Looks like a great ship, Virgin, and every cruiseship probably has something for everyone, I mean If you want alone time, you go somewhere that's less crowded. That's the nice thing about cruising: go and do whatever you want when you want to, solo or in crowds, it doesn't matter🙂, food looked great love pizza, and those sweets looked amazing too, getting hungry by just looking at it 😛, I would love to go to Canada one day. Did you do a video from your time in Vancouver?

@rhondalyn100 11 days ago (edited)

LOVE this SO much, Mer! I'm a huge Virgin fan and I've been on all four ships; Brilliant was my last cruising this past January. It was great seeing all the places I've been on that ship through your eyes...like you, the Dock is my fav place to go on embarkation. My cocktail of choice there is the Fig Sour. Thank you SO MUCH for the memories. I hope to be doing Virgin again in 2027. 🙂

@pipessurer9359 11 days ago

Thanks for recording and sharing this video- it was my first cruise ever and I really enjoyed it going solo. It was an experiment to see if I like cruising and I can now say that I do and already booked the reverse itinerary in May.

Your videos have inspired me to cruise solo and I especially love your journey on Explora. I am looking for the right itinerary with a low solo supplement.

Recognized you while you were relaxing on the Dock but did not want to disturb you.

Highlight of the cruise was my 8 mile hike in the Catalina mountains- not one person on the trails and views of the ocean and mountains.

Only downside was the tender line back to the ship in Santa Barbara.

@alil7348 11 days ago

Looks like a great ship and atmosphere!

@JosephTerrini 11 days ago

Canada welcomes all