Ruby doing 4/5 day sailings!

[wallie5446]

Well the new Princess by Carnival has come full circle. We just got the mailing about the Ruby doing 4 & 5 day East/West sailings in Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, and April from FLL. What a sad schedule for a great Ship.

[fishywood]

You're a bit behind on the news. They have been on sale for nearly six months now. Lots of marketing of back-to-back bookings, and now seeing quite a bit of discounting as they are obviously not selling. I don't see this as much as another "Carnivalization" but as still more aping of Celebrity; its four and five day sailings out of Miami are popular--especially as 2 or 3 B2B--and rarely discounted. But it appears Princess regulars are smart enough to know that a nine day "Grand Voyage" that features an extra turnaround day at Port Everglades in the middle is a sham.

 

(Though to be fair, I must add that the 3 and 4 day West Coast Getaways from LA are proving popular enough that some Hawaii sailings have been cancelled in order to add more. But I don't think there is nearly as much oversaturation of short sailings from other lines in CA as there is in FL)

[dmwnc1959]

This was a topic that I brought up in March 2012, and the idea was summarily dismissed.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1595655

 

The official announcement from Princess came a month later in April 2012 that Princess Cruises was entering the short cruise market. Celebrity Cruises has been doing this for several years now and it seems to work well enough for them.

 

Ruby Princess however will not remain in the 4- and 5- day cruise market forever as I believe the Caribbean Princess is taking over those routes in 2014/2015 and Ruby Princess returns to a rotating Eastern/Western 7-night itinerary.

 

As for the short market cruises, in 2012 I combined two 5-night cruises on Celebrity Millennium and sailed a 10-night B2B and it was absolutely great. The cruise repeated no ports other than on turn-around day and the demographic aboard ship was not the 'party crowd' everyone envisioned, albeit it was during the slow time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The key to avoiding a more 'energetic' crowd is, as always, travelling in off-peak non-holiday times. Theses cruises on Ruby Princess will be a great way for others to 'sample' Princess Cruises and then book longer ones other Princess ships.

[Rosefloater]

As for the short market cruises,....These cruises on Ruby Princess will be a great way for others to 'sample' Princess Cruises and then book longer ones other Princess ships.

 

We are taking 2 cruises on the Golden (a 3 day and a 4 day) in October. We are starting to get tired of Carnival and want to see what Princess has to offer.

[Blue Line]

We are taking 2 cruises on the Golden (a 3 day and a 4 day) in October. We are starting to get tired of Carnival and want to see what Princess has to offer.

 

Where are you going on the 3 and 4 day, and what ship are you taking?? From your profile it looks like you are in CA as well.

[Whimsy]

We actually are keeping an eye on one of the 5 day sailings to possibly take before our Panama Canal cruise in March. I'm hoping the price goes down and we can take a short cruise on one ship, disembark and get on another ship.

[dmwnc1959]

We are taking 2 cruises on the Golden (a 3 day and a 4 day) in October. We are starting to get tired of Carnival and want to see what Princess has to offer.

 

It is a nice way to introduce yourself to Princess without a huge investment of time or money. And once you've cruise on Golden Princess you'll probably enjoy the rest of the Princess fleet as they are more similar than different, especially in decor and ambiance. Even though Carnival Cruise Lines has a lot of ships each has their own identity and theme. Lots of fun. Princess relies on being more consistent with its ships, so for some it's like 'coming home', even if it's a completely different ship.

 

Have a GREAT cruise!!! :D :D :D

[dorisis]

We actually are keeping an eye on one of the 5 day sailings to possibly take before our Panama Canal cruise in March. I'm hoping the price goes down and we can take a short cruise on one ship, disembark and get on another ship.

 

That's the only way i would take one of those short cruises and even then I know it would be nothing like the longer cruises.

[leavingocalaagain]

This was a topic that I brought up in March 2012, and the idea was summarily dismissed.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1595655

 

The official announcement from Princess came a month later in April 2012 that Princess Cruises was entering the short cruise market. Celebrity Cruises has been doing this for several years now and it seems to work well enough for them.

 

Ruby Princess however will not remain in the 4- and 5- day cruise market forever as I believe the Caribbean Princess is taking over those routes in 2014/2015 and Ruby Princess returns to a rotating Eastern/Western 7-night itinerary.

 

As for the short market cruises, in 2012 I combined two 5-night cruises on Celebrity Millennium and sailed a 10-night B2B and it was absolutely great. The cruise repeated no ports other than on turn-around day and the demographic aboard ship was not the 'party crowd' everyone envisioned, albeit it was during the slow time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The key to avoiding a more 'energetic' crowd is, as always, travelling in off-peak non-holiday times. Theses cruises on Ruby Princess will be a great way for others to 'sample' Princess Cruises and then book longer ones other Princess ships.

 

 

Living in Florida... we are thrilled that Princess now has the shorter cruises that we can fit in periodically. The Carnival and RCI ship offerings were terrible with the exception of the Jewell of the Seas out of Tampa. We prefer Princess so we will take a 4 nighter in December on the Ruby. Of course, it is going to Cozumel and back, so after a slew of cruises to there we will likely just stay on ship at Cozumel.... or just walk up the pier for a Mexican beer!

[dmwnc1959]

Living in Florida... we are thrilled that Princess now has the shorter cruises that we can fit in periodically. The Carnival and RCI ship offerings were terrible with the exception of the Jewell of the Seas out of Tampa. We prefer Princess so we will take a 4 nighter in December on the Ruby. Of course, it is going to Cozumel and back, so after a slew of cruises to there we will likely just stay on ship at Cozumel.... or just walk up the pier for a Mexican beer!

 

That's pretty much what I did on the Celebrity Millennium in Cozumel, Falmouth, and Roatan, just stayed on the ship or ventured out for an hour then went back. The Celebrity Constellation (out of FLL) and Brilliance of the Seas (out of TPA) are in competition with Ruby Princess for the short cruise market on the nicer ships, and two of those have recently undergone some really sweet renovations.

[minniem]

We are very excited to be taking a 5 day with Princess in February. It will be our first with Princess and a short cruise is a good way to sample the cruise line. From all I read I expect to love the cruise and hopefully we can do a longer one on Princess next time.

Minnie

[English Tim]

We may be in Miami in January, for a few days prior to a New York wedding, so imagine my delight when I saw the Ruby 4 dayers, which will fit just nicely. Much better than a 5 day cruise on Disney Wonder, I'd think.

[Woobstr112G]

We've had 3-4 day cruises out here for awhile. I just wish the itineraries were better. No real desire to go to Mexico.....

 

Bob

[leavingocalaagain]

That's pretty much what I did on the Celebrity Millennium in Cozumel, Falmouth, and Roatan, just stayed on the ship or ventured out for an hour then went back. The Celebrity Constellation (out of FLL) and Brilliance of the Seas (out of TPA) are in competition with Ruby Princess for the short cruise market on the nicer ships, and two of those have recently undergone some really sweet renovations.

 

We really like the Brilliance class of ship and almost booked her since we enjoyed the Jewell so much. Tampa is also quite convenient to the Ocala area. However, the trip to Port Everglades is not too bad and we grabbed a $229 fare sale for the Ruby since the schedule fit perfectly for us around other events we have planned.

[dmwnc1959]

We really like the Brilliance class of ship and almost booked her since we enjoyed the Jewell so much. Tampa is also quite convenient to the Ocala area. However, the trip to Port Everglades is not too bad and we grabbed a $229 fare sale for the Ruby since the schedule fit perfectly for us around other events we have planned.

 

One thing to do as well if your schedule is flexible is keep an eye on those Tuesday Specials with RCI and Celebrity Cruises. Last year and the year prior both cruise lines were offering some of those 5-night cruises for $299 (or cheaper), and that's the same price that I got the Celebrity Millennium for. When I combined the two cruises for the 10-night B2B it came out less expensive to do that than it would have been for a 7-night cruise. I just wanted to be on a ship, didn't care where it went, and the deal was too good to pass up.

[mafig]

What's the itinerary for Ruby?

[English Tim]

What's the itinerary for Ruby?

Cozumel

[dmwnc1959]

What's the itinerary for Ruby?

 

There are several different ones (nine in total according to the Princess Cruises website) in the 4- and 5-night cruises that go to either Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Princess Cays, and/or Grand Turk in some combination or another.

[mafig]

Thanks. I was looking at Brilliance and Connie for next year. I liked the Coz. and Key West combination.

 

A couple of years ago we got a 5 day Millennium cruise in a Concierge cabin for $299!:D

[dmwnc1959]

Thanks. I was looking at Brilliance and Connie for next year. I liked the Coz. and Key West combination.

 

A couple of years ago we got a 5 day Millennium cruise in a Concierge cabin for $299!:D

 

You're welcome! Given the choice between the three ships personally I would probably pick Brilliance of the Seas first and Celebrity Constellation second, but it would be a very, very close race as both classes of ships are really wonderful. I love what I see in the revitalizations. I think all of the Millennium-class ships have now gone through the Solsticization process and look very nice, and the newly added additional restaurants on the Brilliance of the Seas are great as well. The last minute deals are quite good as you mentioned but the airfare down there sort of hinders me from taking advantage of them sometimes.

[mafig]

I would probably pick Brilliance also. We've never been on that class ship and I understand they are beautiful and Tampa is a closer port for us.

 

BUT a cruise on Constellation (after our Century cruise in Feb.) would put us at Elite (and the comparable level at RCI).

[sunluva7]

I, for one, am very excited about our 5-day cruise on Ruby next April. My husband is a school administrator and is unable to take the entire April break for vacation, so the 5-day cruise is perfect. I don't look at it as princess stooping to Carnival's level. I see it as a way for the line to offer shorter get-aways for folks who can't get away for a full week.

[dmwnc1959]

I would probably pick Brilliance also. We've never been on that class ship and I understand they are beautiful and Tampa is a closer port for us.

 

BUT a cruise on Constellation (after our Century cruise in Feb.) would put us at Elite (and the comparable level at RCI).

 

I think the deciding factor for me would also be airfare and hotels near the port. The cost for the cruises is usually similar. Either way both ships are an excellent choice. I'd love to spend 10-nights on either one just relaxing and spending time aboard ship when it's docked in Cozumel. I think doing the Regal Princess and Celebrity Constellation as a B2B out of FLL would also be interesting. I'll have to see if the dates work. ;)

[oceansandseas]

DH and I have been on 17 cruises, Cunard, Oceania and only 1 on Holland America. We are taking an Oceania cruise out of Miami this February. I was wondering if there might be a reasonably priced cruise before our big cruise. I saw that there was a Princess cruise and even though it was out of Fort Lauderdale, the dates would be perfect. We would just have to travel from Fort Lauderdale to Miami the day of our Oceania cruise.

 

I had always wondered about Princess and thought this would be a good way to try it out. We usually have a balcony, but I want to do this one on the cheap. Wondering what it would be like to have an inside for just a few days. Anyone know of an inside cabin that might be good, or one that would not be good.

 

Is it best to buy the cruise from Princess, on line or a brick and mortar cruise agency.

 

Of course I will have many questions after we book. Mainly what extras do we pay for.

[dmwnc1959]

Hi oceansandseas,

 

I had an Inside Cabin (C404) on Ruby Princess this past December. You can see some of my pictures near the bottom of this album...:D

 

 

It was in a GREAT location amid ships just down from the self service laundrymat and next to the fire door so there was no cabin next to me on the one side. There was also no other cabin sharing the entrance way area at the stateroom doorway like some of the others where two cabins share the same recessed area.

 

.