Concerned

[Thrak]

1 hour ago, DRS/NC said:

 

Thrak -- please quit telling people about the outer deck area behind Adagio!  That's my secret place on the ships!  😉

 

D'Oh! My bad. Sorry about that. Since most folks never even find Adagio you are likely still safe.

[DRS/NC]

3 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

D'Oh! My bad. Sorry about that. Since most folks never even find Adagio you are likely still safe.

 

Let's just keep it our secret!

 

[tobyt]

I would add try to hit the open restaurant for lunch instead of the buffet. Even if you are a fan of a buffet  it is generally a madhouse and a leisurely launch will start your cruise off right!

i would also add to all the great tips that we love to watch sail away up on deck. It really puts me in cruising mood and everyone is generally happy start of vacation mode.

 

Worry less about the negative nellies on CC and focus on using it as a learning tool for excursions, information and the stuff that perhaps you would miss out on...like crepes.

 

Alaska is amazing enjoy the ride!

 

[jaycruising]

We just got off Ruby last week, we sailed on her for the first time in 2014 (our first cruise) and she was even better this time. As others stated she was in dry dock recently has got new beds, which are amazing, new carpet and they are constantly working on her. In Victoria she was getting some paint refreshed. 

 

As as for the staff, they are exceptional, we like to go to the MDR every evening for dinner and before the week was out we had got to know the hostess and several of the servers (we don’t do assigned times). The staff is exceptional. Over the course of the week I did run into 1 or 2 grumpy staff, but given the amount of staff that is nothing, everyone else was ready with a smile and hello. 

 

As for embarkation and departing, don’t worry abut that, they do it every week and are pro’s and they will lead you through every step. 

 

My only embarkation pointer for Seattle is that beware if you use ride sharing to get to the port, the ship and the terminal building is about half a mile from where they can drop you off, and we could not find a porter to help with our luggage. 

[gngrbas]

THANK YOU ALL!!  I am once again excitedly anticipating next weekends departure.   Here's to a great adventure - - it's our 31st wedding anniversary and it's been an extremely difficult year as we lost our 2 1/2 yr old grandson in October to SUDC.  We need a reason to smile and learn to enjoy the beauty of sunrises and sunsets again.   Thank you all again for your helpful information.  Fair winds and following seas 🙂

 

[cdngrl]

2 hours ago, gngrbas said:

THANK YOU ALL!!  I am once again excitedly anticipating next weekends departure.   Here's to a great adventure - - it's our 31st wedding anniversary and it's been an extremely difficult year as we lost our 2 1/2 yr old grandson in October to SUDC.  We need a reason to smile and learn to enjoy the beauty of sunrises and sunsets again.   Thank you all again for your helpful information.  Fair winds and following seas 🙂

 

 

i am so sorry for your loss, such a tragic experience for your family.

alaska will be a great reminder of the beauty in the world and i may be a bit biased but victoria is also lovely.

from the time you arrive at the airport in seattle, there will be many helpful people. once on board, you will be taken care of and directed to whatever you need to do (very little!). the rest of your vacation will be full of doing whatever you want whenever you want. on my first cruises i went home tired because i didn't want to miss anything and did all of the activities.... and it was totally worth it!

 

[COMBOY]

23 hours ago, gngrbas said:

THANK YOU ALL!!  I am once again excitedly anticipating next weekends departure.   Here's to a great adventure - - it's our 31st wedding anniversary and it's been an extremely difficult year as we lost our 2 1/2 yr old grandson in October to SUDC.  We need a reason to smile and learn to enjoy the beauty of sunrises and sunsets again.   Thank you all again for your helpful information.  Fair winds and following seas 🙂

 

I'm sorry for your loss.  I'm sure you will have a wonderful cruise.  If you go into it with a positive attitude you will have marvelous time.  You and only you can decide what works and doesn't work for you.  Hopefully you can come back to Cruisecritic after your cruise and write your own review about your Alaskan cruise.  Don't worry about being a newbie cruiser.  Each day in your cabin you will get a ship's newsletter, The Princess Patter, that tells you everything that going on and where to go.  Make sure you read it and if you have any questions the cruise staff is right there to answer any questions and assistance you.  Remember this a vacation - a time to put your cares aside and relax.  I did an Alaskan cruise several years ago and it was amazing.  The scenery is breathtaking.   

[Lindaru]

Also, the ship time (so that you know if you disembark to explore ports) is real time to the time zones in Alaska.  They will send you reminders of when to change your clocks/watches/devices to match on a little card the night before.  This way you will know when to be back on ship or when to attend any events that you would like on the ship.

 

I add my condolences for your loss as well.

 

31st wedding anniversary and first cruise!  May this year was our first cruise and 25th wedding anniversary.  I often replay our cruise adventure in my mind as I drift off to sleep at night.  It was purely magical.

 

[Arwen]

On 7/3/2019 at 1:49 PM, gngrbas said:

My husband and I are first time cruisers set to sail on the Ruby Princess July 13th.  We were referred to Princess by a trusted family friend, but after reading some of the reviews - I'm extrememly concerned.  We paid a pretty penny and saved a long time and are hoping for a positive memoriable experience.  Someone enlighten me - we are on the LIdo Deck . .  ??? WE KNOW NOTHING.  Embarking - Disembarking???? Lots of friends have said to arrive early and we can tour the ship, however, according to a great majority of reviews - the ship is old, out dated, and the staff isn't friendly.  Please put my mind at ease and tell me (truthfully) that it's going to be alright. . . . please.🙄

hi...we just returned home a week ago from a cruise on the Ruby.  We sailed from Seattle to Alaska for a week.  We all enjoyed ourselves as we were with many family members this time around.  The Ruby is a tired looking ship, but we found it to be clean and the crew and staff to be wonderful.  'Service was excellent and we have taken over 25 cruises, most on Princess.  

 

We found the food to be better than average.  The entertainment better than average.  And our granddaughter and her cousin loved the kid's program called "Discovery".

 

Everything from embarkation to debarkation was so smooth

 

What was different?:  Well, our daughter, hubby, and DD had a mini-suite.  It was tired looking and definitely not up to the new mini-suites like on the Royal.  However, if you have a child, it is nice because the room has a type of divider that gives a bit of privacy and play area for the child.  My DD and SIL liked that feature.  

 

The International Cafe was nice but they did not have the sugar free syrups that I like for my iced mochas (not a huge issue unless on a long cruise)

 

The Horizon court is an older design and it is a bit more of a challenge to find a table.  However, we always were able to.  We made sure to secure a table first before getting our food.

 

I would sail on the Ruby again for Alaska.  I would rather be on the Royal for a longer cruise.  We took a seven week cruise around South America on the Royal a couple of months ago.

[elliair]

On 7/3/2019 at 1:49 PM, gngrbas said:

My husband and I are first time cruisers set to sail on the Ruby Princess July 13th.  We were referred to Princess by a trusted family friend, but after reading some of the reviews - I'm extrememly concerned.  We paid a pretty penny and saved a long time and are hoping for a positive memoriable experience.  Someone enlighten me - we are on the LIdo Deck . .  ??? WE KNOW NOTHING.  Embarking - Disembarking???? Lots of friends have said to arrive early and we can tour the ship, however, according to a great majority of reviews - the ship is old, out dated, and the staff isn't friendly.  Please put my mind at ease and tell me (truthfully) that it's going to be alright. . . . please.🙄

We've been on the Ruby 2-3 times - we're picky when it comes to ships.  We know which ones we'll cruise on again and which ones we won't - not even for FREE!  Ruby isn't one of them.  I would not have chosen Lido deck for a cabin.  We always get a Caribe deck cabin due to the larger balconies.  You will be the one to make it a memorable time, not what someone who left their 2 cents worth on a message board.  It will be your experience and no one else's.  I take most reviews of a ship as only an opinion.  I know there's a lot of nit picky cruisers who gripe just to be griping.  We read a lot of their cry baby issues and the OP generally doesn't fair very well with the responses.  Embarking is easy.  Get to the port, get in line, get your S&S card, wait to board the ship.  Debarking:  Go to your designated debarkation area and wait to be released from the ship.  Have your S&S card in hand as you will need it to get off the ship.  Easy.  You cannot tour the ship - only when you board for your cruise will you be allowed on the ship and not beforehand.  It's going to be alright.  Many of us are seasoned cruisers here, you will have a good time.

Edited July 8, 2019 by elliair

[ifihadamilliondollars]

On 7/3/2019 at 4:49 PM, gngrbas said:

My husband and I are first time cruisers set to sail on the Ruby Princess July 13th.  We were referred to Princess by a trusted family friend, but after reading some of the reviews - I'm extrememly concerned.  We paid a pretty penny and saved a long time and are hoping for a positive memoriable experience.  Someone enlighten me - we are on the LIdo Deck . .  ??? WE KNOW NOTHING.  Embarking - Disembarking???? Lots of friends have said to arrive early and we can tour the ship, however, according to a great majority of reviews - the ship is old, out dated, and the staff isn't friendly.  Please put my mind at ease and tell me (truthfully) that it's going to be alright. . . . please.🙄

 

I just laugh and shake my head at some of the stuff people complain about on here. Don’t pay any attention. A lot of it is petty like dirty windows, rust, jibber jabber about butter, missing chairs in stateroom, it goes on and on. “First world problems”!

 

Im on your cruise. We are going to have an awesome time with fabulous weather! 

Relax and get packing. 😁

 

Are you flying in the day before? We are flying to Vancouver on thurs (Canadians eh) and taking the Amtrack Cascades down to Seattle Friday morning.

 

[Kansas Gal]

If ships could talk--I wonder what the Ruby might have to say about the age and condition of some of her passengers lol!

[Lindaru]

5 hours ago, Kansas Gal said:

If ships could talk--I wonder what the Ruby might have to say about the age and condition of some of her passengers lol!

I am sure she knows I need WD-40, duct tape and some new paint.

 

🤣

 

[MauiLvrs]

On 7/5/2019 at 5:27 AM, deliver42 said:

We just got off the Ruby in May, and while she's not the newest ship around, she was clean and the crew was great. Would I go on the Ruby again? Definitely.

And besides .... The layout is better than all of the new ships 😬