Richard Branson’s Virgin Voyages Gets Set to Sail the Seas

Richard Branson’s new Virgin Voyages took delivery last week of the first of four cruise ships, and on Friday he is revealing the carbon-neutral Scarlet Lady at Dover harbor in the United Kingdom.

The Florida-based Virgin Voyages' first ship will serve adults only and is set to disembark in March on a week-long Caribbean adventure to the Bahamas, Dominican Republic and Mexico.

Virgin has hired staff from companies like JetBlue and Uber, looking for out-of-the-box expertise. Moreover, its crew are paid a salary that is adjusted so as not to require any gratuities.

The cruise line, which is majority-owned by Bain Capital, is expected to roll out the rest of its fleet over the next few years, with all of the 2,700-person vessels built by Fincantieri in Italy.

Virgin is promoting the gender diversity of its crew, with more female staff and flexible rules that allow employees to express themselves. Meanwhile, trade association CLIA says that Generation X and Millennials both have increasingly positive attitudes about cruising.

Cruise lines have responded to a change in passenger demographics with more singles activities, studio cabins and dating lounges. Some companies are also offering quicker three-to-five day trips geared towards younger travelers.