Scarlet Night on Virgin Voyages: When It Is, What to Wear and What Happens

If you only go to one party on a Virgin Voyages cruise, make it this one. Scarlet Night is Virgin’s signature night: the whole ship dresses in red, the crew stage a story that spills across the decks, and it ends, for many, in the pool.

We’ve now been to Scarlet Night on three different Lady ships in 2026 alone: Resilient Lady in the Caribbean, Brilliant Lady in Alaska and on the Pacific Coast, and Valiant Lady. Here’s what actually happens, what to wear, and how to make the most of it.

What is Scarlet Night?

Scarlet Night is a ship-wide themed night built around Virgin’s own legend of a mermaid and the sea, which is why you’ll see octopus tentacles everywhere. It isn’t one show in one room; it’s a whole evening of surprise performances, acrobatics, hidden happenings and music that moves around the ship, finishing with a pool party and an after-party.

It’s included in your fare. The only thing you pay for is your drinks.

When is Scarlet Night?

There’s one Scarlet Night on each sailing, usually around the middle of the voyage. The exact night depends on the itinerary, so check the Sailor App once you’re on board, or ask your First Mate before you go if you want to plan an outfit change around it.

On the night itself, it typically starts around 8pm with the story of Scarlet Night, followed by the main opening event at about 9pm, then happenings on Decks 6 and 7, the pool party and the after-party in The Manor.

What happens on Scarlet Night

• The story. A short performance that tells the legend behind the night. Worth arriving for.
• The opening. Music, dancing and a toast as the whole ship gathers.
• Happenings around the ship. Acrobats, flash mobs and surprise performances on the main decks. Keep wandering; you’ll stumble across something.
• The Octopus Garden. The Red Room is transformed into an undersea world.
• The pool party. The pool deck becomes the main stage, giant octopus and all, and yes, people do end up in the pool.
• The after-party in The Manor, for those still going.

On Resilient Lady, our Scarlet Night came straight after dinner at Gunbae, somewhere between Grand Cayman and Bimini. A crowned headliner, acrobats balancing above the crowd and a pool full of Sailors in red made it the highlight of the week.

Our top tip: make time to visit the Octopus Goddess in the Octopus Garden. For us it’s the highlight of Scarlet Night by far. The Hostess tells you the backstory of Scarlet Night, the drowned Sailor and the Octopus Goddess, and suddenly the whole night comes together.

Virgin runs themed parties, and they change. Check the Sailor App for what’s on your sailing.

Scarlet Night on Valiant Lady

On Valiant Lady’s Comedy Festival sailing, Scarlet Night fell on 25 August 2026, near the end of the week. The highlight was the Octopus Garden in the Red Room, where The Hostess, crowned as the Octopus Goddess and draped across a velvet chaise, told the story of the drowned Sailor and the Goddess. Later the pool deck took over: dancers in tartan, glowing orbs the size of beach balls, a singer in red sequins in front of the giant octopus and, as the finale, dancers splashing through the pool while the whole ship watched in red.

And on Brilliant Lady

A few weeks later we did it all again on Brilliant Lady’s Pacific Coast sailing with friends: matching red outfits, the photo wall and performers taking over the pool deck.

What to wear for Scarlet Night

Red. That’s the only rule, and it’s more of an invitation than a requirement. Some Sailors go all out with sequins, capes and headpieces; others wear a red T-shirt and shorts. Both are completely fine.

• Easy: a red shirt, top or dress you already own.
• Step it up: sequins, a red jacket, heart-shaped sunglasses, red accessories.
• Going for the pool? Wear red swimwear underneath, or bring a change.
• Sailing to Alaska? It’s chilly on deck at night, so pack a red layer you’re happy to be seen in.

Pack it from home rather than relying on the shops on board. For everything else you’ll wear, see our Virgin Voyages dress code guide and packing list.

Our tips for Scarlet Night

• Book an early dinner so you’re free when the story starts.
• Don’t camp in one spot. Move between Decks 6 and 7; the best moments are the ones you stumble on.
• Find the photo spots early, before the queues.
• Get a spot at the pool rail before the pool party starts if you want to see the show rather than be in it.
• Use your Bar Tab. It’s a long, fun night.
• Leave your valuables in the cabin if there’s any chance you’ll end up in the pool.

If you have RockStar access, use the RockStar line for the main event. On Brilliant Lady in Alaska, Scarlet Night’s main event was in the Red Room, and the RockStar line got us VIP entry and the best view of the night. Our RockStar guide explains the other perks.

Scarlet Night on an earlier sailing

These photos are from an earlier Virgin sailing and first appeared in our entertainment guide. Put them next to the 2026 ones and you can see how much of the night has stayed the same: the octopus, the acrobats, the red-lit decks and the pool.

Other Virgin parties worth dressing up for

Scarlet Night is the big one, but it isn’t the only night worth packing an outfit for:

• We Fancy. One of our favourite parties on Virgin. It takes place in The Manor and it’s a celebration of simply loving yourself. Think gold, glitter and fans (we went on Valiant Lady in August 2026).
• The PJ Party. Exactly what it sounds like. We went on Resilient Lady in April 2026.
• Electric. A neon party in The Manor; ours was on Brilliant Lady.
• The sail-away party. Not a dress-up night, but on every Lady ship we sailed in 2026 it came with 30 minutes of free-flowing bubbles.

Is Scarlet Night different on each ship?

The heart of it is the same across the fleet: red outfits, the legend, the octopus and the pool party. The performers, staging and some of the happenings vary from ship to ship and change over time. Having done it on three ships this year, we’d happily go again on any of them.

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