Photo Review of Ruby Princess to Mexican Riviera 01/19/2019

[Bostonjetset]

Recently back from the 7 night Mexican Riviera cruise on the Ruby Princess so thought I'd post my thoughts.  We stayed 1 night pre-cruise on the Queen Mary in Long Beach [wonderful!] which I posted about under the port boards so I'll skip that part here.

 

Some background info:

I am a 36 y/o man from the suburbs of Boston.  My 65 y/o mother got a great casino rate on this cruise and since I have much more time off work than DH does and my dad doesn't love to travel I decided to join her.

 

For those that have read previous reviews of mine, you will remember that I take a travel journal on my trips to record my thoughts "in the moment". I then post, pretty much word for word and in the 1st person, what I recorded in my journal. I change names to initials so as not to positively identify anyone against their wishes and I add photos after each section to correspond with what I posted about. Please feel free to post comments or ask any questions you may have; I will try my best to answer everything. Thank you in advance for reading and for being a part of my journey.

[Bostonjetset]

01/19/2019 - 10.30pm

After checking out of the Queen Mary this morning we took an Uber [$14] to the port at San Pedro to board the Ruby Princess.  We were literally on the sip in 20 minutes from the time we left the car;  I'm pretty sure that's a record for me.  Princess really has the whole process down to a science at this port.

 

The Ruby Princess is a beautiful ship inside, with the classic Princess color scheme of beiges and golds.  I love the open closet/dressing area as it really allows for ample clothing storage.  Dinner was at a table for 8 in the Botticelli dining room at 7.30pm.  I really like the larger tables for fixed dining.  In addition to mum and myself, there was a couple from Washington state, a couple from Montana, and a couple from Oregon.  Food was good [short ribs!] but I'll never understand why Princess serves cold soups in a cocktail glass with a straw!  Soups, cold or hot, belong in a bowl.  Also, sad to see the parmesan bowls are no longer available with the fettuccine alfredo; they were the best part! 

 

[Bostonjetset]

01/20/2019 - 11.16pm

We had planned to attend the Zumba class this morning at 9.00am but we overslept.  Instead, we did a 2 miles walk [5 laps] around the Promenade Deck.  For lunch we had the pub lunch at the Crown Grill.  The fish was wonderful and tasted fresh.  After lunch we went to the Terrace Pool to have a swim and lounge about; there were not many sea-day activities today that we of interest so we just relaxed.

 

The show tonight was a singing/variety show with Bryan Cheatham of America's Got Talent.  He was very good but I still preferred last night's show "Magic To Do" which featured musical theatre songs by Steven Schwartz.  That really was a fun show.  Tonight was the first formal night; I always enjoy the chance to dress for dinner.  Tomorrow is our first port of call: Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.  We're thinking of making this our beach day of the trip.

 

 

[gdisney]

Loving the photo review so far!

[Bostonjetset]

1 hour ago, gdisney said:

Loving the photo review so far!

Glad to hear it!  Thanks for reading.  :)

[Bostonjetset]

01/21/2019 - 10.49pm

Our day in Cabo San Lucas was lovely.  The weather was a perfect 78F with low humidity and a nice breeze; so much better than the hot and sticky Caribbean!  After tendering ashore we took a local glass-bottom boat tour out to El Arco that finished by dropping us off at Medano Beach.  At $20 each it was much cheaper than any of the ship's tours.  At the beach we picked a restaurant for a lunch of tacos.  We ended up at a place called Billygan's Island as it wasn't packed but wasn't empty either.  The fish tacos were fresh and wonderful even if the prices were tourist-driven.  As we were walking back to the marina, we ran into K and J from our dinner table so we joined them for a drink before heading back to the ship.

 

Tonight's dinner was at SHARE, the Curtis Stone restaurant on board.  What a fantastic meal!  Well worth the $29pp cover charge.  The duck confit was one of the best I've had and the strip loin steak was also wonderful.  The almond marzipan was the perfect way to finish the meal.  

 

The show tonight was another Broadway-inspired act called "On Broadway" with 4 singers performing songs from famous musicals.  So far all 3 shows have been great.  Tomorrow is Mazatlan. 

 

 

[Bostonjetset]

PICTURES FROM SHARE

 

[Bostonjetset]

1/22/2019 - 10.21pm

Mazatlan was a wonderful town with a much more authentic Mexican feel to it than Cabo.  Of course many Americans and Canadians retire here as the prices are low but still felt more "real" that Cabo.  We walked along the blue line into the central historic district to see the cathedral and the lively plazas so typical of Spanish-influenced cities.  The volunteer guides [expats who retired to Mazatlan] were very helpful and you can tell they are proud of their adopted home.  We walked over to the Malecon area to grab a coffee and the ocean breeze really helped with the humidity that we encountered today.  Lunch was at an outdoor restaurant on the Plaza Republica where we talked to an Australian couple who lived there for 2 months per year.  Two margaritas, beef nachos, and marlin tacos came to only $18 USD!  What a steal compared to Boston.  There were some really cute artisan shops around town so I picked up an Xmas ornament as well as a hand-painted tile for DH.  

 

After returning to the ship we had a swim in the Terrace Pool [whilst it wasn't busy] before taking a nap.  After dinner was the Love Boat Disco Deck Party which was pretty fun for the half hour or so that we went.

 

 

[Bostonjetset]

01/23/2019 - 11.08pm

It was pretty hot in Puerto Vallarta today so going to the beach was basically a must, at least for a little bit.  We grabbed a taxi to the Malecon and walked the length of it, into the old town, and all the way to the end of Playa los Muertos.  Having a hard time deciding where to spend the afternoon, we stopped for coffee on a side street at a place called Dee's.  We started talking to a Canadian guy who lives part time in PV and he recommended a place call Si Senor so we went there.  We got a table right on the beach and ordered some Coronas and fish tacos.  A nice way to spend the afternoon indeed.

 

After beach time, we walked back through the old town on the normal road [of the beach] and looked in some jewelry shops.  I ended up getting a silver brooch in the shape of an abstract seagull.  We finished the day with a visit to the Cathedral of Our Lady Guadalupe before heading back to the ship.

 

After dinner there were Mexican Hat Dance lessons in the piazza with a Mariachi band.  It was pretty entertaining to watch.  Tomorrow is the first of our last two sea days.

 

[Grburkart]

Thanks for posting these photos and doing the write ups. 

I’m enjoying the food and ship photos very much. 

 

Glenn

[Bostonjetset]

01/24/2019 - 11.28pm

A day at sea is a nice break after 3 straight days of touring ports.  There weren't many "must-do' activities today so we just hung around the pool after our 2 miles walk around the promenade deck.  A full promenade that wraps around the entire ship really is a wonderful feature [even when it involved stairs like on this ship] so it amazes me that some new ships omit this.

 

After some swimming we went to afternoon tea.  Princess really does a nice job of afternoon tea; I'd say the best of all the lives I've sailed save for Cunard.  

 

The show tonight was called "Colors of the World" and I'm quite certain I've seen it before.  I'll have to look at my Patters from the Regal Princess trip we took in 2015 to see if it was on that ship too.  Tonight was also a formal night but I noticed a few more passengers skirted the dress code than they did last Sunday.  I only saw a handful of tuxes but saw many in jeans.  They served Beef Wellington which is one of my favorites.  The also had lobster tails which many people enjoy.  Tomorrow, sadly, is our last day aboard.  I always get sad when a trip comes to a close.

 

Edited January 30, 2019 by Bostonjetset

[Bostonjetset]

01/25/2019 - 10.30pm

Today was one of the best last days of any cruise I've been on.  The fact that I won $500 in the casino likely contributed to that feeling!  I paid off my room charges for the trip and picked up a bottle of Hermes perfume in the duty-free shops;  I'll still go home with a couple hundred dollars extra to boot!

 

The finale of "The Voice of the Ocean" was this afternoon and what fun!  We all got a little electronic voting machine to vote for the winner.  Unfortunately, the guy with the best voice did not win with his rendition of "You Raise Me Up" though it was by far the best.  The winner sang "I've Got Friends in Low Places" so I've a feeling there were just a lot of country music fans in the audience. 

 

For lunch we tried the Salty Dog Grill for the first time; the burgers were very good but the fries just so-so.  The comedian tonight was Carlos Oscar and since we missed his show earlier in the week, we decided to attend with D & A and C & J from dinner.  He was pretty funny.  In fact, I can confidently say that this ship has had some of the best entertainment of any cruise.  Dinner tonight was lovely but bittersweet as the last night of a cruise often is. 

[Bostonjetset]

9 minutes ago, Grburkart said:

Thanks for posting these photos and doing the write ups. 

I’m enjoying the food and ship photos very much. 

 

Glenn

 

4 minutes ago, fyree39 said:

Great photos!

Thank you both!  

I will post the recap of the whole trip now.

[KCsealegs]

Thanks for the excellent pics and the review! I’m thinking about doing this itinerary on the Royal Princess in April.

[Bostonjetset]

01/26/2019 - 6.45pm

Currently on the flight back to Boston so figured it would be a good time to recap the trip.  Overall, the Mexican Riviera was delightful and the Ruby Princess was a beautiful ship.  Staying aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, pre-cruise, was the perfect way to kick off the trip.  This is an itinerary worth repeating.

 

THE SHIP:  Though she is a larger ship than I normally prefer, the Ruby Princess truly is beautiful.  The interiors are elegant and tasteful in shades of cream and gold with paler woods.  Cruise ships can often come across as garish or gaudy but his ship was neither.  The crew was friendly and professional but overall not quite as "warm" as the crew on Holland America Line.  Still, there were no complaints.  The only service issue we had was the Princess method of dealing with towels.  No beach towels were delivered to the stateroom before the port days; this was the first time this has happened to me on a warm weather cruise.  Also, the towels at the Terrace Pool were not replaced quickly enough to keep up with demand. These should be very simple, minor things address.

 

THE FOOD:  After our cruise 4 years ago on the Regal Princess, I've always thought Princess had better food that the other lines I've sailed.  Our trip on the Ruby just reinforced that theory.  The meals in the dining room were all wonderful in both taste and presentation though I wish they would stop serving chilled soups in glasses with a straw!!  Soups belong in a bowl or soup plate, not in a drinking glass!!  The SHARE restaurant by Curtis Stone was a cool experience and not like anything else I've seen on a ship.  I don't quite understand why it hasn't taken off and been put on more than just 3 ships.  The buffet was decent though not as great as the more robust one on the Regal.  Afternoon tea is something Princess does wonderfully, coming in second only to Cunard.

 

THE SHOWS:  Entertainment on the Ruby was much better than expected.  Every night was a professional act; either a production show, a singer, or a comedian.  All the guest-participant "shows' were during the day, not the evening's main form of entertainment.

 

THE PORTS:  Cabo San Lucas had wonderful weather with almost no humidity.  By far it was the best, weather-wise, of the three.  I don't know if it's always like that or if we were just lucky.  Weather aside though, I found Cabo felt the least authentically Mexican.  The prices were high by Mexico standards and the marina was filled with foreign-owed yachts.  The scenery out among the rock formations was, however, truly beautiful.  Mazatlan, on the other hand, felt the most authentically Mexican.  The lovely plazas surrounded by cathedrals, shops, and locals having their shows shiner is something I love about Mexico [and many other Spanish-speaking countries].  The artisan shops had cute stuff at reasonable prices and the restaurants catered to locals, expats, and tourists alike.  We didn't even go to the Golden Zone on this visit so if I return that will be on the list.  Puerto Vallarta had a nice mix of city/beach.  There is an open-mindedness in the city that made it feel a bit like a much larger Provincetown or Key West.  It is no surprise that people of all types choose to retire here.  This itinerary had more to offer, in my opinion, than most of the Caribbean trips.  The weather was better, the cities had cultural sights that were easily explored, there were much less crowds, and the locals were friendlier.  Even the street hawkers would leave you alone after a simple "no, gracias"; one rarely finds that in Jamaica or the Bahamas.

[Bostonjetset]

16 minutes ago, KCsealegs said:

Thanks for the excellent pics and the review! I’m thinking about doing this itinerary on the Royal Princess in April.

I'm glad you found them helpful.  It's a great itinerary and the Royal class ships are fabulous!

[Bemidji Ty]

Thanks for your review.  The MR is one of my fav cruises.  

 

Cheers.

[tutuwahineLV]

Lovely review.  I appreciate the pictures of the ship and the food.  Will be on Ruby in March, doing the Cali Coastal though, and not the Mex Riviera.  So glad to hear that the food in general, and Share in particular, is not as bad as many would have us to believe.  There's going to be 9 of us, and we're all looking forward to an evening at Share,  simply because it's so not our normal everyday....  

Glad you had a wonderful trip, and thank you for sharing it with us. 

[Bostonjetset]

24 minutes ago, Bemidji Ty said:

Thanks for your review.  The MR is one of my fav cruises.  

 

Cheers.

Thanks for reading!  I'm glad you enjoyed it.  MR is a great itinerary.

 

7 minutes ago, tutuwahineLV said:

Lovely review.  I appreciate the pictures of the ship and the food.  Will be on Ruby in March, doing the Cali Coastal though, and not the Mex Riviera.  So glad to hear that the food in general, and Share in particular, is not as bad as many would have us to believe.  There's going to be 9 of us, and we're all looking forward to an evening at Share,  simply because it's so not our normal everyday....  

Glad you had a wonderful trip, and thank you for sharing it with us. 

Thanks for reading!  I'm so glad you enjoyed the review.  Have a great time on your cruise and at SHARE...it's a cool experience.

[mthomp5]

Thank you for the wonderful review and pictures.  It was so fun to read!  We were in the Ruby in September and we love that ship.  We’ll be doing the MR itinerary in April on the Royal and I like the idea of the local glass bottom boat that took you out to El Arco.  Do you remember the name of the company you used?

[tukogirl]

This is a lovely review. I will be on this ship I just a few says so I’m especially like reading about the Ruby, but your review is lovely and I’d enjoy even if I weren’t sailing on her soon! 

 

I do have one question.  We (my parents and I) are planning on doing a glass bottom boat and then drop off at Medano Beach. Did your mother have any issue getting off the water taxi?  I believe they drop you off and you step into the water?  Also, how did you return to the port area? 

[Kingofcool1947]

Thank you for your review and the photos.  I usually sail out of San Francisco on the Grand for the 10 day Mexican Riveria Cruise.  Unfortunately no C.S. SHARE on the Grand. I for one enjoy the C.S. offerings I’ve had, but many posters on Princess threads here,  do not like the menu or concept of SHARE.   I guess I will need to find a reason to sail on the Ruby.

King

[Bostonjetset]

10 hours ago, mthomp5 said:

Thank you for the wonderful review and pictures.  It was so fun to read!  We were in the Ruby in September and we love that ship.  We’ll be doing the MR itinerary in April on the Royal and I like the idea of the local glass bottom boat that took you out to El Arco.  Do you remember the name of the company you used?

Thanks for reading. I don’t remember the name of the glass bottom boat company but when you arrive at the pier there are tons of people pushing tours. They are all similar. We paid $20pp but I know people paid $15pp for same trip with other companies. With just two of us it’s marginal but if you have a large family you may want to bargain to save a bit. 

 

9 hours ago, tukogirl said:

This is a lovely review. I will be on this ship I just a few says so I’m especially like reading about the Ruby, but your review is lovely and I’d enjoy even if I weren’t sailing on her soon! 

 

I do have one question.  We (my parents and I) are planning on doing a glass bottom boat and then drop off at Medano Beach. Did your mother have any issue getting off the water taxi?  I believe they drop you off and you step into the water?  Also, how did you return to the port area? 

Thanks for the compliments. I’m glad you enjoyed the review. One does have to step into the water but it’s not hard and my mother (and all other people on the tour) were fine. It’s only up to your ankle but they do tell you to remove your shoes. 

 

We walked back to the port area. It takes about 25 min but it’s a nice walk and passes lots of higher end shops and restaurants. 

 

7 hours ago, Kingofcool1947 said:

Thank you for your review and the photos.  I usually sail out of San Francisco on the Grand for the 10 day Mexican Riveria Cruise.  Unfortunately no C.S. SHARE on the Grand. I for one enjoy the C.S. offerings I’ve had, but many posters on Princess threads here,  do not like the menu or concept of SHARE.   I guess I will need to find a reason to sail on the Ruby.

King

Thanks for reading!  I noticed that many on here did not like SHARE and I can’t understand why. It’s a unique concept unlike most other specialty restaurants at sea. The food was delicious and well presented. Also, the space was quite chic as well. 

[victory2020]

Bostonjetset, we were on this cruise also. I noticed you have also done NCL Sky to Cuba twice. We've also done that itinerary twice, & am going back next March. Wondered what your impression of the Sky was.

[2363]

Hi,

 

Thank you for this review, especially the Share menu photo.  I'll be on this cruise next week and I'll be sure to eat at Share at least one night.

My question if you remember,  what time did you arrive in Cabo?  Were you a little early? Right on time?  We are scheduled to arrive at 1pm on my cruise and I really want to participate in a non ship excursion that starts at 1:30 pm. The tour operator told me he can wait till 1:45 for me to arrive, but no later.

If you remember, thank you for your response. 

 

Alex