Ruby Nov 7th review- a little overdue and long!

[Wecruise8]

Thanks for the review and looking forward to the rest. We'll be on her in less than 2 months and very much looking forward to it. Will have to check out the gown website as well.

[Woobstr112G]

Thanks for posting the additional thoughts.....:):):)

 

Bob

[red4u2]

I’m so sorry that it has taken me so long to finish this review.. My mother is in a nursing home and this week I put together about 30 gifts for some of the staff that work there and help take care of my mother, I went and passed them out over a few days time after working a ten hours day, so again I do apologize in the delay, but every year I like to try and remember the people that work so hard at taking care of our loved ones and go above the required job duties.

So the next day was St. Thomas/ St.John- this was the big day for us, I bought an underwater camera and snorkeling sets for the both of us for this day. We were going to St. John on our own, we were literally the first people off the ship, unfortunately it was overcast, drizzly and on the cool side. We made our way over to the taxi stand at about 715. Thinking that we would hop in a cap and head right over to Red Hook to catch the 8 Am ferry to St.John- well one thing we learned is that the taxi dispatchers dictate when the taxis leave, even if you are willing to pay more to leave right away, they want to have each van hang around and try to fill it up before it leaves, in our case this didn’t work out so well, they also boarded a couple that was going to a golf course that was not anywhere near Red Hook and our van had to detour over flooded curvy mountainside roads to get there, it took an extra half hour or so to drop them off and because of that it took over an hour to get to the Red Hook ferry so we missed the 8 am and had to wait for the 9 am ferry. While I understand that this is a business, they made us wait while they filled the van and then didn’t tell us that we were taking that detour, I was upset because we were on such a tight time constraint, but we made it to St.John at 920am- the cost was $22 one way for two people in taxi fare, and $14 per person Round trip for the ferry. Once on St.John we took and open air taxi to Trunk Bay, they do stop briefly at a couple overlooks so that you can snap a few quick pics, (sit on the driver’s side for this trip if you want to take some photos) This was $6 PP one way. The admission price to Trunk Bay is normally $4 PP- but it was Veterans day so it was free, we traveled all that way to find out hurricane Tomas had stirred the seas up so much, the snorkeling trail at St.John was closed, in fact the life guards were warning people not to go into the water because of dangerous shore breaks. Talk About disappointed!!

This was the biggest day for us, we found out if you check with the ships excursions desk and the snorkeling trips to St. John are canceled, then you will know if the conditions are calm enough for snorkeling, I wish I would have thought of that, we only stayed for an hour, (it is still a gorgeous beach) and then we took a cab back and caught the 11 am ferry back to Red Hook. I have been reading about this little known beach called Lindquist/Smith bay beach that is about a mile and a half from Red Hook. We asked the taxi dispatcher for a ride to Lindquist, with the arrangement that the taxi driver would pick us up in an hour and a half from Lindquist and take us to the vendor’s plaza in Charlotte Amalie., she said that we could be dropped off at Lindquist and then a life guard would call for a taxi- well this is an undeveloped beach at this time, no facilities whatsoever, and there were no life guards on duty, ( I was lucky enough to know about this ahead of time from reading the St. Thomas board) so I insisted that we had it pre- arranged that the same driver would pick us up an hour and a half later and that we would pay him once dropped off at Charlotte Amalie. Lindquist is a beautiful calm un-crowded beach, it is not a good place to snorkel, but the water is calm and clear, and the Iguanas roaming around made for great photo ops. Sure enough our taxi driver came at the agreed upon time and took us back to vendors plaza, the total for that was $30- plus tip of course.

Vendor’s plaza was different than I expected they sold a lot of knock off purses and sun glasses and had t-shirts three for $10, but I expected more local souvenirs. We then wandered around the main street and went in and out of Jewelry stores,, I was amazed that some had bars in them, and the ones that don’t will call out for drinks for you, we tried our first Bushwhackers at the store that I ended buying a nice piece from, I bargained a great price for the Rose gold and chocolate diamond necklace that I bought. We also stopped by A.H. Rise and had a couple free samples of rum, and found that the price of the Cruzan rum was actually cheaper by a $1 a bottle on the ship. It does get tiring trying to get back out of a jewelry store if they don’t have what you want or the prices aren’t that good, we found that too be true in St. Marten and Alaska as well. Once back at the port we went into the bar that has the donkey in the front to get a real Bushwhacker,, and oh my gosh,, I think it was the best drink I have ever had.. Not sure what is in there but, boy oh boy they are not to be missed!!! More great photos ops await on all the rocks at the dock, iguanas are all over the rocks, you just have to kind of look for them, again I wish I could figure out how to upload them here, but every time I try it says unable to down load.

 

This was also the day of the second formal night and the captains past guest party, being our second cruise with Princess this was our first one and when people say that the bar is not open long and the drinks are watered down they are not kidding, I think that the cocktails were only passed around for about a half an hour and I found the champagne cocktail to be a cost cutting measure for sure, fortunately I have read these boards enough to know that you can order whatever type of drink that you want, so I ordered a Chocolate raspberry martini, ( which I gave a gratuity for ) and it was yummy, I thought that I would be able to order another one, but before you know it, the bar was closed.

 

Lobster night had been changed to the next night so we went to the Crown Grille on this evening. This was also our first time at any alternative restaurant. I can’t say enough good things about the Crown grille, the food was outstanding, we had the black and blue soup minus the blue (I don’t like blue cheese) King Prawns and the best saffron rice I had ever had and the small lobster tails for apps. The menu has changed and they were not offering the $9 up charge for the bigger lobster any longer. For dinner we both had filet mignon and lobster tails, and about four sides. For dessert we had the mini selection of all the desserts but the molten chocolate cake was so good we had to get a full size one.

 

Our last stop was Grand Turk and the arrival to this port for me was the best, the view of the drop off called the “Wall” a few hundred feet from shore was spectacular, the weather was finally great, warm sunny skies and calm water. This was a great beach day; we walked right past the crowds at Margaretville to Jacks Shack, and went a little father down past it. We snorkeled right from shore and even went out to the wall, but as soon as the water got deep I chickened out and came back closer to shore, Jacks shack was great, nice cocktails in a fun atmosphere. I thought that the whole cruise facility was very nice as well.

 

On our last sea day we again enjoyed the Lotus spa pool area, the International café and the pizza place, we went on the galley tour and relaxed. This evening they did the lobster night in the MDR, it was very busy, but again we had no problem getting a four top table in the dining room.

The next morning we ate breakfast in the dining room and had the corn flake crusted French toast.

 

Debarkation was a breeze, we had an early flight and we were off the ship by 830 am, Just a side note here as you are leaving the terminal and going to the taxi stand there are aggressive bus drivers that tell you have to get on the bus to the airport, If you didn’t know that the taxis were just a 100 feet away I could see a person being easily bullied into taking one of the large busses and spending more money and taking a lot longer than the ten minute ride that it is.

 

In conclusion- the Ruby is a spectacular ship, beautiful, sparkling clean with an amazing crew that caters to their passengers. The food was outstanding, especially the pizza, soufflés, the IC the Crown Grill—well you get the picture!

In fact we loved it so much we have already booked our next cruise on the Ruby!!!!

Thanks for reading..

[trixiee]

Thank you, thank you!! Just what I needed to read today with all our snowy weather! :D Good info on St. John's. I had wanted to do exactly what you had said, but will likely find an alternate activity, or just book through the ship.

 

Thanks again for sharing your experiences with us!

[Sheffie]

Great review! It makes me even more excited about our April cruise on the Ruby.

 

For those going over to St. John, it is very easy to catch the local bus for a $2 ride each way. Info is over on the St. Thomas/St. John board. I agree that waiting for those taxis to load and go is aggravating. With just a little sense of adventure, you can get there quicker on those busses.

 

Had to laugh about the guy at Orient rubbing his belly!

[BoardwalkBabe]

What a great review! Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

[laemerald]

I’m so sorry that it has taken me so long to finish this review.. My mother is in a nursing home and this week I put together about 30 gifts for some of the staff that work there and help take care of my mother, I went and passed them out over a few days time after working a ten hours day, so again I do apologize in the delay, but every year I like to try and remember the people that work so hard at taking care of our loved ones and go above the required job duties.

So the next day was St. Thomas/ St.John- this was the big day for us, I bought an underwater camera and snorkeling sets for the both of us for this day. We were going to St. John on our own, we were literally the first people off the ship, unfortunately it was overcast, drizzly and on the cool side. We made our way over to the taxi stand at about 715. Thinking that we would hop in a cap and head right over to Red Hook to catch the 8 Am ferry to St.John- well one thing we learned is that the taxi dispatchers dictate when the taxis leave, even if you are willing to pay more to leave right away, they want to have each van hang around and try to fill it up before it leaves, in our case this didn’t work out so well, they also boarded a couple that was going to a golf course that was not anywhere near Red Hook and our van had to detour over flooded curvy mountainside roads to get there, it took an extra half hour or so to drop them off and because of that it took over an hour to get to the Red Hook ferry so we missed the 8 am and had to wait for the 9 am ferry. While I understand that this is a business, they made us wait while they filled the van and then didn’t tell us that we were taking that detour, I was upset because we were on such a tight time constraint, but we made it to St.John at 920am- the cost was $22 one way for two people in taxi fare, and $14 per person Round trip for the ferry. Once on St.John we took and open air taxi to Trunk Bay, they do stop briefly at a couple overlooks so that you can snap a few quick pics, (sit on the driver’s side for this trip if you want to take some photos) This was $6 PP one way. The admission price to Trunk Bay is normally $4 PP- but it was Veterans day so it was free, we traveled all that way to find out hurricane Tomas had stirred the seas up so much, the snorkeling trail at St.John was closed, in fact the life guards were warning people not to go into the water because of dangerous shore breaks. Talk About disappointed!!

This was the biggest day for us, we found out if you check with the ships excursions desk and the snorkeling trips to St. John are canceled, then you will know if the conditions are calm enough for snorkeling, I wish I would have thought of that, we only stayed for an hour, (it is still a gorgeous beach) and then we took a cab back and caught the 11 am ferry back to Red Hook. I have been reading about this little known beach called Lindquist/Smith bay beach that is about a mile and a half from Red Hook. We asked the taxi dispatcher for a ride to Lindquist, with the arrangement that the taxi driver would pick us up in an hour and a half from Lindquist and take us to the vendor’s plaza in Charlotte Amalie., she said that we could be dropped off at Lindquist and then a life guard would call for a taxi- well this is an undeveloped beach at this time, no facilities whatsoever, and there were no life guards on duty, ( I was lucky enough to know about this ahead of time from reading the St. Thomas board) so I insisted that we had it pre- arranged that the same driver would pick us up an hour and a half later and that we would pay him once dropped off at Charlotte Amalie. Lindquist is a beautiful calm un-crowded beach, it is not a good place to snorkel, but the water is calm and clear, and the Iguanas roaming around made for great photo ops. Sure enough our taxi driver came at the agreed upon time and took us back to vendors plaza, the total for that was $30- plus tip of course.

Vendor’s plaza was different than I expected they sold a lot of knock off purses and sun glasses and had t-shirts three for $10, but I expected more local souvenirs. We then wandered around the main street and went in and out of Jewelry stores,, I was amazed that some had bars in them, and the ones that don’t will call out for drinks for you, we tried our first Bushwhackers at the store that I ended buying a nice piece from, I bargained a great price for the Rose gold and chocolate diamond necklace that I bought. We also stopped by A.H. Rise and had a couple free samples of rum, and found that the price of the Cruzan rum was actually cheaper by a $1 a bottle on the ship. It does get tiring trying to get back out of a jewelry store if they don’t have what you want or the prices aren’t that good, we found that too be true in St. Marten and Alaska as well. Once back at the port we went into the bar that has the donkey in the front to get a real Bushwhacker,, and oh my gosh,, I think it was the best drink I have ever had.. Not sure what is in there but, boy oh boy they are not to be missed!!! More great photos ops await on all the rocks at the dock, iguanas are all over the rocks, you just have to kind of look for them, again I wish I could figure out how to upload them here, but every time I try it says unable to down load.

 

This was also the day of the second formal night and the captains past guest party, being our second cruise with Princess this was our first one and when people say that the bar is not open long and the drinks are watered down they are not kidding, I think that the cocktails were only passed around for about a half an hour and I found the champagne cocktail to be a cost cutting measure for sure, fortunately I have read these boards enough to know that you can order whatever type of drink that you want, so I ordered a Chocolate raspberry martini, ( which I gave a gratuity for ) and it was yummy, I thought that I would be able to order another one, but before you know it, the bar was closed.

 

Lobster night had been changed to the next night so we went to the Crown Grille on this evening. This was also our first time at any alternative restaurant. I can’t say enough good things about the Crown grille, the food was outstanding, we had the black and blue soup minus the blue (I don’t like blue cheese) King Prawns and the best saffron rice I had ever had and the small lobster tails for apps. The menu has changed and they were not offering the $9 up charge for the bigger lobster any longer. For dinner we both had filet mignon and lobster tails, and about four sides. For dessert we had the mini selection of all the desserts but the molten chocolate cake was so good we had to get a full size one.

 

Our last stop was Grand Turk and the arrival to this port for me was the best, the view of the drop off called the “Wall” a few hundred feet from shore was spectacular, the weather was finally great, warm sunny skies and calm water. This was a great beach day; we walked right past the crowds at Margaretville to Jacks Shack, and went a little father down past it. We snorkeled right from shore and even went out to the wall, but as soon as the water got deep I chickened out and came back closer to shore, Jacks shack was great, nice cocktails in a fun atmosphere. I thought that the whole cruise facility was very nice as well.

 

On our last sea day we again enjoyed the Lotus spa pool area, the International café and the pizza place, we went on the galley tour and relaxed. This evening they did the lobster night in the MDR, it was very busy, but again we had no problem getting a four top table in the dining room.

The next morning we ate breakfast in the dining room and had the corn flake crusted French toast.

 

Debarkation was a breeze, we had an early flight and we were off the ship by 830 am, Just a side note here as you are leaving the terminal and going to the taxi stand there are aggressive bus drivers that tell you have to get on the bus to the airport, If you didn’t know that the taxis were just a 100 feet away I could see a person being easily bullied into taking one of the large busses and spending more money and taking a lot longer than the ten minute ride that it is.

 

In conclusion- the Ruby is a spectacular ship, beautiful, sparkling clean with an amazing crew that caters to their passengers. The food was outstanding, especially the pizza, soufflés, the IC the Crown Grill—well you get the picture!

In fact we loved it so much we have already booked our next cruise on the Ruby!!!!

Thanks for reading..

Did you have Lisa Ball as a cruise director and if you did how was she.

[red4u2]

Did you have Lisa Ball as a cruise director and if you did how was she.

 

No we had a lady named Sam- sorry i dont remember her last name, and i didnt think that she was that good, her assistant CD was much better than she was IMHO.

[red4u2]

Thank you, thank you!! Just what I needed to read today with all our snowy weather! :D Good info on St. John's. I had wanted to do exactly what you had said, but will likely find an alternate activity, or just book through the ship.

 

Thanks again for sharing your experiences with us!

 

thank you for the kind words.. i cant wait to go back..

[red4u2]

Great review! It makes me even more excited about our April cruise on the Ruby.

 

For those going over to St. John, it is very easy to catch the local bus for a $2 ride each way. Info is over on the St. Thomas/St. John board. I agree that waiting for those taxis to load and go is aggravating. With just a little sense of adventure, you can get there quicker on those busses.

 

Had to laugh about the guy at Orient rubbing his belly!

 

Hi Sheffie! i was looking on the St. Thomas boards and just posted a question about where to pick up the busses from the Crown Bay pier,, can you help with that one? Im up for an adventure!!

 

I will never forget that guy on orient beach, between the belly rub and the slow motion turn in all directions,, oh my gosh it was too funny!!!

[red4u2]

What a great review! Thanks for sharing your trip with us.

 

Thank you!! i know i left some things out, like the great quiet considerate neighbors that we had, we were very lucky

[joyride]

Great review Red, thank you for sharing. I look forward to being at Princess Cays on my Ruby Cruise 8 weeks from today!!!! Woo Hoo!

[Sheffie]

Hi Sheffie! i was looking on the St. Thomas boards and just posted a question about where to pick up the busses from the Crown Bay pier,, can you help with that one? Im up for an adventure!!

 

I will never forget that guy on orient beach, between the belly rub and the slow motion turn in all directions,, oh my gosh it was too funny!!!

 

Sorry, I have never docked at Crown Bay, so I have no clue as to where the bus pick-up is there. :( Hopefully you will get a quick answer over on the St. Thomas boards.

[Clutterlady]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. The pizza is great isn't it:)

[red4u2]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review. The pizza is great isn't it:)

 

oh yes! the best i have ever had,, and it was the first time on Princess that i have ever had a souffle in my life..now im hooked..this is bad, very bad...

[MINI-ME]

Hi there! Thanks for the excellent review. I have used the Thermal Suite on ships before. I also use the spa quite a bit. I was reading that massages are $119 plus tax and gratutity. Is this what you recall? Also, did you have to pay to use the Thermal Suite? My experience is that you either have to buy a pass, or use it for free on a day that you already have a service booked. What do you know about this on the Ruby?
thanks

[red4u2]

[quote name='MINI-ME']Hi there! Thanks for the excellent review. I have used the Thermal Suite on ships before. I also use the spa quite a bit. I was reading that massages are $119 plus tax and gratutity. Is this what you recall? Also, did you have to pay to use the Thermal Suite? My experience is that you either have to buy a pass, or use it for free on a day that you already have a service booked. What do you know about this on the Ruby?
thanks[/QUOTE]

Hi MINI Me- cute name! yes you have to pay to use the Thermal suite, a one day pass was $20, for the whole cruise one person was $99 and for two it was $150- yes you can use it for the day you book a treatment for free,, there was an attendant at the top of the stairs at the entry to the Thermal Suites, but i was never asked to show proof of purchase.
As for the messages i think that they were more than that, but i dont recall the specific amount- they did run a lot of 20-20-20 specials for about $89 dollars i think it was, if you chose one of those specials be aware that sometimes they were for services that were performed in the salon and not in a massage room.

[winncruiser]

so sorry that you did not enjoy Sam, the CD...did she ever warm up/get better? I have just known her as a member of the CD staff on former cruises and she was quite friendly and perky. Perhaps they're are just exhausted and need a vacation!