I went on my first adults-only cruise. From a playground to a tattoo shop, these 8 things surprised me most.

• I took my first adults-only cruise in August 2023 with the luxury cruise line Virgin Voyages.
• The ship was full of surprises, including a tattoo parlor and a playground for grown-ups.
• The biggest surprise of my adults-only cruise was that it made me feel like a kid again.

If there had been children around, I wouldn’t have felt comfortable taking up space on this playground. I remember feeling weird as the only adult in a round of laser tag during my first cruise. But on this kid-free ship, I felt free to enjoy these activities surrounded by only adults.

Going on the swings and playing competitive games made me feel like a kid again. Simply playing refreshed my state of mind in a way I didn’t expect, and I think all adults could use it on vacation.

There was no shortage of play indoors, either.

When I wanted to beat the heat, I headed inside on deck seven, where I found a retro-style arcade and a game room full of board games, puzzles, decks of cards, and large tables to play on.

The board game selection was nostalgic — I spotted childhood favorites like Mouse Trap, Candyland, and Cranium.

I never thought I’d see a tattoo parlor on a cruise ship.

While wandering the indoor shopping strip on deck six, I was surprised when I spotted a tattoo shop called Squid Ink. Virgin Voyages says it’s the first cruise line to offer tattooing on board. According to Cruise Gear, tattoo pricing starts at about $150.

I love getting tattooed, so seeing the shop excited me, but I resisted the urge to get one on this trip.

With so many high-end restaurants on board, I was surprised that none of the food cost extra.

On my first cruise on board Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas, a lot of the food on the ship was included in the ticket price, but specialty restaurants incurred an additional price. Many cruise lines operate this way, so I was surprised to learn that none of the food on my Virgin Voyages cruise cost extra.

The all-inclusive dining was especially shocking, given the upscale restaurants offering everything from fresh pasta and Mediterranean seafood to sushi and steak. I felt like a queen as I indulged in the opportunity to forget about finances while dining.

I expected to see a lot of day drinkers on board, but the communal decks were calm during the day.

On my first cruise, I spotted many people drinking and partying throughout the day, so I expected to see even more of that on an adults-only cruise. But the communal decks were surprisingly calm when the sun was up. It was easy to relax by the pools — one had music playing, while the other was quiet.

I talked to a bartender about my differing experiences, and they said Mediterranean cruisers tended to be less interested in partying than Caribbean cruisers.

The last thing I expected from my adults-only cruise was to feel like a kid again. And that was the best surprise of all.

On a luxury ship without kids, I expected to enjoy my adults-only cruise more than my first cruise. But I didn’t expect the Virgin Voyages cruise to make me feel like a child myself.

Playing for hours surrounded by rainbows and eating whatever I wanted without thinking about money allowed me to let loose in a way I hadn’t in over a decade.

I would definitely cruise with Virgin Voyages again, and maybe next time, I’ll get some fresh ink.