Chances are that if you’ve sailed Virgin in the Caribbean, you’ve stopped at Bimini. It’s not on every itinerary they have in the region, but it’s on a lot of them – and with good reason. When they are in port, the place becomes the Virgin Beach Club at Bimini and it’s exclusive to them. It’s a selling point for the line with many guests loving the beach day. You can also zhuzh up your day at the beach with a private cabana. But, what’s it like to book one of these? I decided to endure the “suffering” and book one for the day on my last trip.
What can you do at Virgin Beach Club at Bimini?
Before we talk about the cabana specifically, let’s go over what’s available to do at Bimini. The main draw is, obviously, the beach. Its long, sandy, and warm, everything you want in a Caribbean beach. Even if you come from a place without miles long, sand strewn coastlines at the ready, the Virgin Beach Club at Bimini fits into the mental image of paradise.
The warm ocean water awaits, just feet away from you, but there’s also a pool for those less inclined to partake in anything that has a tide. There’s beach chairs everywhere you look, so there’s no shortage of seating. At one of the two pools there’s a DJ and at the other there’s a net set up to play pool volleyball. The bars (did you really think there wouldn’t be bars?) have a set cocktail and beer list and there’s lots of supply. Conveniently, any drinks that you order are charged to your cabin through your Virgin Voyages wristband, exactly like it would be on the ship.
There’s nothing quite like a warm sandy beach, and the Virgin Beach Club at Bimini certainly offers that.
Perhaps best of all, the Beach Club is included on Virgin. Other lines stop at Bimini and go to this resort. When they do, though, it is not included – it costs extra. When you are at the Virgin Beach Club at Bimini, the food is included as are soft drinks. Other lines stopping there can’t claim the same.
Besides drinking and lounging, guests can also choose to go on an excursion at Bimini. They offer snorkeling, kayaking, cultural tours, jet ski tours, even painting! Some of the most talked about are the stingray and dolphin tours though. Not all of those are, strictly speaking, at the beach club, but they are all available through Virgin at Bimini.
What’s the Virgin Voyages The Beach Club at Bimini like?
These pictures should give you a pretty good idea of what the Bimini facilities are like.
Everyone will have access to seating, but getting there earlier would get you more choice. The pools and beach are lovely. The music is loud, for good or for ill is up to you, but you can find seating far away from it if you aren’t in love with the beats – a travel agent can you help figure out which areas are the quietest or loudest if you care.
Bars and bathrooms are located throughout the club, but mostly toward the edges. Keep that in mind with your seat selection. Whether you want to party or nap in the sun, there’s a place for you here. As I’ve said many times before with Virgin, it’s rep as a fun party line is well earned, but it’s also a very chill relaxing line, where you can leave socialization to others. Bimini is no exception to that experience.
What’s it Like to Have a Private Cabana at Virgin Beach Club at Bimini
The cabana itself can hold a maximum of 6 people. There are two chaise lounge seats inside the cabana itself. Then there are two beanbag chairs just outside the cabana. Finally, two more chaise lounge beach chairs sit out in the bright light for those who want to sunbathe or dry off from the water.
You’ll also have access to some small and medium-sized tables where drinks and food will be set. Towels are provided at the cabana to lay on or dry off with. Everything we touched or sat on was very comfortable. I even took a brief nap in the shade on the chaise inside the cabana. I’ve got scoliosis and it makes getting comfortable enough to fall asleep a bit of a fussy affair, so being able to enjoy a nap on something says volumes about its comfort.
There’s not much that can beat that view. The sea breeze was lovely frome the shaded cabana.
If I wanted to, I could have stayed in that chair all day because the private cabanas also come with a dedicated attendant who will bring you food and drinks. I never needed to get up for anything. Our attendant simply asked what we wanted and then brought us that. Our attendant checked in frequently, at least once every 15 minutes. By the way, for those of us who like blue flavored things, I do recommend the blue flavored drink.
There were some real delights on the menu, like the fried cassava root (front and center).
Now, I know that this will sound like I’m a hopeless technology addict (not an entirely unfair accusation), but my favorite feature was having access to a power outlet. Every private cabana has its own dedicated power outlet. You can charge your phone or tablet while at the beach! Look, I know, people often deride others for refusing to “unplug” on their vacation, but we’re all allowed to have fun in our own way. If you want to share pictures or just play some mobile games, you’re covered. They even have wi-fi at the beach, and it matches the ship wi-fi, so you don’t even have to do anything extra to connect. There’s no need to worry about a data plan here! Feel free to call your friends on Whatsapp and make them jealous.
Was it worth it?
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, value is subjective. Only you can make that determination, but here’s a breakdown to help illuminate the differences.
| Standard | Private Cabana |
| Comfortable chairs that are first come, first serve. | Very comfortable chairs that are reserved for up to 6 people. |
| Some chairs have umbrella shade. | Guaranteed shade inside the cabana. |
| Food and soft drinks are complimentary. | Food and soft drinks are complimentary. |
| Alcoholic drinks are pay by the drink (you can use your bar tab from the ship). | Alcoholic drinks are pay by the drink, but you also get a $100 bar tab credit for the day, in addition to any other bar tab you have. |
| No attendant to bring you drinks or food, which means waiting in line. | There’s an attendant to bring you drinks and food. |
| No privacy from neighbors. | Some private space from your neighbors. (it’s not a changing area though) |
| No dedicated power outlet. | Dedicated power outlet. |
| Wi-fi included. | Wi-fi included. |
You don’t need a private cabana to enjoy the pool, which was very popular by the end of the day. This picture was almost right at opening, so there weren’t many people there yet.
Right now, it’s $650 to reserve a private cabana on the beach. I won’t mince words, that’s a fairly hefty sum of money for roughly 6-8 hours of time on the sand. That’s especially true, if you consider that you already have access to the Virgin Beach Club at Bimini as part of your cruise. When you compare that cost against the total cost of a 5-day cruise in a sea terrace cabin, averaging around $2300, the price of that cabana is like adding an additional 25% to the cost. Now, yes, there’s $100 of bar tab included at Bimini, but even then the cost is still high at $550.
Further, if you find any of the excursions on Bimini interesting, then you’ll be allowing yourself even less time to enjoy your private cabana. I do not recommend that you book both an excursion and a cabana, it’s one or the other in my opinion.
In fairness to Virgin, the Beach Club at Bimini is an excellent value for their customers. Other lines have similar private beaches to Virgin and the costs on other lines are similar, or more, for an equivalent experience. They also have similar conflicts with excursions, all because of that pesky linear time thing…
Now it may sound like I’m rather down on these private cabanas, but I’m not. I don’t think that they’re valuable to a solo traveler or even a couple, but I do think they are valuable for a group.
Get the party started
If you’re getting together with a bunch of people, a private cabana is the perfect way to get yourself a little space of your own. Celebrating a birthday, meeting up with some friends you haven’t seen in a while, getting together with your siblings because you don’t get to see each other as much these days. Those are all perfect gatherings for a private cabana.
We had 6 folks in the cabana next to us, but there was more than enough room for us all and we hardly heard them. You can have a very relaxing time as a group in the cabanas like the ones on the left.
The Virgin Beach Club at Bimini is a great place for groups like that to meet up, but you’re left a little bit at lady luck’s mercy for space. Remember, seating is first come, first served, and if there’s 5 or 6 of you in a group, that’s harder to find a cluster of chairs for. And someone is always getting up to get a drink or grab some food, which interrupts doing the thing you probably want to be doing – talking with each other!
Split the cost of a private cabana, set your stuff down, and let an attendant handle all the rest. It’s what you really want to do anyway. But if it’s just a couple of you, grab some chairs and enjoy the sun, there’s better ways to spend the money on your vacation.
