Ruby Princess Alaska RT Seattle July 5th Review

More pros.

 

Embarkation was very super easy at Seattle. We got there around noon and did everything in probably under 30 min in our room. Great timing and direction. Printing the Heath form beforehand saved a ton of time as there was a big line at the place to fill them out.

Where did you get the health form?

Thanks.

Where did you get the health form?

 

Thanks.

It was on another thread on here. I can't remember exactly which one but if you just search for health or health form you should be able to find it. Posted by Tom.

Alright lets try this again.

 

Blue Hawaiian

 

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

 

Yay I got it figured out! I will repost pics previously posted with much better quality tonight.

Since I am a novice posting pics; did you download your pics to flicker and then resize them; or did you download and import them from flicker? thanks

Since I am a novice posting pics; did you download your pics to flicker and then resize them; or did you download and import them from flicker? thanks

Yes so this was interesting. These pics so far are only from my iPhone 6 plus. I have the flickr app that automatically uploads them into the flickr account. I then clicked on the image to open in a new window, on the computer, and selected that I wanted to share the picture. There is an option for a BBCode to get a link for. I selected that and for my iPhone pictures to get a good size I selected under the drop down box, medium 800x600. It created a link and I copied that into the BBC link for inserting pictures on the forum here. Took a bit to figure out but pics look so much better now. Just takes a few minutes to do and I can't do it from my phone, so you need your computer. But it worked.

Hope that helped.

We have made it to Alaska! Excited to get off of the ship for the first time in Alaska! Since we didn't see any tours with Princess that really interested us, at least not for the money it costs, we decided to just explore ourselves for this port. It seemed that it was more of a shopping port than the others. Also, it would be our best chance to buy souvenirs and such. So we slept and then had a big breakfast at the HC. I was originally interested in eating lunch at a local place but I had a hard time finding any that had vegetarian options so we decided to skip that.

We got off the ship around 9 or so and went off exploring. Firstly we decided to walk around, see the totem poles and make our way towards Creek Street.

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr[/img]

Now we make our way along and see some of the famous totem poles.

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr[/img]

As we made our way towards Creek Street we passed this cafe with an interesting sign that my sister absolutely hated. So of course I had to take a picture of it.

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3751/19722734812_bc035651b5_c.jpg' alt='19722734812_bc035651b5_c.jpg'>Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr[/img]

Another totem pole.

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Pics of Creek Street

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

After walking along Creek Street we took the tram up to the lodge for some more scenery, then took it back down. We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around and shopping. One particular thing that I got that was really cute was a little bear holding a sign that had two sides to it. One side says welcome and the other says go away. I have placed it on my desk at work, angling it towards the door, lol.

We went back on the ship and enjoyed some afternoon snack of gelato. Only $1.50 for 3 large scoops. A great deal. Of course it would be wonderful if it was free but since it is gelato, which is normally 4 or 5 for a smaller amount on land, I will take it. I tried Nutella, Limencello, and Strawberry. My fav was the chocolate nutella and the Limencello.

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

We continued playing cards and having some drinks until dinner time. Here are the pics from our dinner.

Shrimp Cocktail

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

French Onion Soup

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

Some flavor of Sorbet. Can't remember which but it was awesome

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

A delicious scallop dish !

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

And of course dessert. New York Cheesecake! One of the best ever! Very light and not heavy on the cream so its not too rich. Could have it every night!!!

Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr

................................

 

As we made our way towards Creek Street we passed this cafe with an interesting sign that my sister absolutely hated. So of course I had to take a picture of it.

 

https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3751/19722734812_bc035651b5_c.jpg' alt='19722734812_bc035651b5_c.jpg'>Untitled by sarah holtermann, on Flickr[/img]

Ivar's chowder, yumbo!! :cool:

Ivar's chowder, yumbo!! :cool:

Haha yes. Wish I could have had some. I heard great things about it.

sh2738, thanks for the tip on uploading pictures

My family and I are taking this cruise the first week in Aug. so I have been following along with your reviews. Thank you so much for your honesty.

I do have a couple of questions in regard to what you have "talked" about so far. #1 - Do you have to pay extra for the food at Sabatini's? I've read other posts from people that have eaten there and am curious how it works. It seems like a restaurant, so I assume it is extra, right?

#2 - I plan to bring my camera along, but still enjoy taking photos with my iPhone occasionally. However, I do not want to have to pay for any extra charges to use the phone at all while cruising....so do you just make sure to go into Settings and have it set to "airplane mode"? Once at the ports, is it safe to use internet without having to worry about charges? I'm new to the concept and how that works, so any insight would be appreciated.

I look forward to the rest of your posts and will continue to follow this thread!

My family and I are taking this cruise the first week in Aug. so I have been following along with your reviews. Thank you so much for your honesty.

 

I do have a couple of questions in regard to what you have "talked" about so far. #1 - Do you have to pay extra for the food at Sabatini's? I've read other posts from people that have eaten there and am curious how it works. It seems like a restaurant, so I assume it is extra, right?

 

#2 - I plan to bring my camera along, but still enjoy taking photos with my iPhone occasionally. However, I do not want to have to pay for any extra charges to use the phone at all while cruising....so do you just make sure to go into Settings and have it set to "airplane mode"? Once at the ports, is it safe to use internet without having to worry about charges? I'm new to the concept and how that works, so any insight would be appreciated.

 

I look forward to the rest of your posts and will continue to follow this thread!

1) Sabatini's. There is a cover charge of $25/person. For us we didn't have to pay for this because we had a promo from booking the cruise that covered one free night of specialty dining for two. Since there was only two of us going that was nice that we didn't have to pay. The way that the specialty restaurant works is the same as the main dining room when it comes to ordering. You pay your cover charge and then can order as much or as little food as you want. Drinks not included. To see if you want to eat there, I would for sure check out the menu listed on the Princess website as it is the current menu.

One thing to consider, make sure that your whole family likes the menu before deciding to book the restaurant. For us, I would most likely not pay for this restaurant simply because my sister couldn't really eat that much on the menu, it is not vegetarian friendly at all, and I wasn't impressed by the menu items much. The food is pretty good, but there isn't a lot of options or variety in the pastas or main courses. Pastas are kind of basic, would have liked to have some sort of Risotto or Gnocchi for it being an Italian place. Save for the lobster dish, the main courses for meat dishes. Although I am not a vegetarian, I don't eat meat so my options were limited as well. Just something to consider before paying $25/person.

2) Luckily you are going to the US most of the time so you won't be without the cell phone data for long. As long as you are close to US land you will be able to use your cell phone. We were able to use it really until late night on the first night as we were still close to US cities as we made our way out of Seattle. When out at sea there isn't any service so you don't have to turn the phone to Airplane although I did to be safe. I actually turned mine to airplane the first day after dinner because mine started to say Roaming. It depends on your cell phone provider, mine is Verizon. My sister's is ATT and hers said it was Roaming at a different time.

When you get to the Alaska ports, turn your phone back on. Since you are in the US, you can use your phone completely, usually. If there is an issue with roaming, it will show up on your phone, either with a notification or at the top where it shows how much service you have it might say Roaming. But it shouldn't in the Alaska ports so use all you want. However, in Skagway the town is so small that there is very limited service so beware of that. Roaming will really kick in the Canada ports. So if you have an excursion that will go into the Yukon territory, aka Canada in Skagway or once you get to Victoria, make sure to keep it in airplane mode. You can try to find Wifi somewhere but those will be the only places that you really must have it in airplane mode to avoid charges.

Hope that helps.

sh2738, thanks for the tip on uploading pictures

Your welcome.

Hmm that was interesting. I have never posted links before on here so bear with me.

 

Try this link and let me know if it works now.

 

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B26iIuZCR6nMfjB1QlJtQlAtQlA2QzI4dEJYSXVSOXVLZjByTkxEQnBkN29qc2JDVFdlaFU&usp=sharing

Thank you! Love seeing the patters and all your photos. My Jew bone just giggled when it saw "Fiddler on the Reef". LOL. too cute.

I agree with you about the entertainment. It was so bad on the Coral it was laughable. The performances were SO CHEEZY! Even Carnival's was better, which is kind of sad. I choked it up that there was an "older" crowd our our cruise last time and it met their expectations. The main singer screeched so loud that I skipped out on the last three days of the cruise performances. I just couldn't take his singing anymore.

Thank you for the tips. It does look like there is little to do that my husband would be crazy over. We like the lectures so I'm sure that will keep us busy but I do see where there might end up being some gaps. Hopefully the weather will be pleasant enough to do at least one Move Under the Stars.

Thank you! Love seeing the patters and all your photos. My Jew bone just giggled when it saw "Fiddler on the Reef". LOL. too cute.

 

I agree with you about the entertainment. It was so bad on the Coral it was laughable. The performances were SO CHEEZY! Even Carnival's was better, which is kind of sad. I choked it up that there was an "older" crowd our our cruise last time and it met their expectations. The main singer screeched so loud that I skipped out on the last three days of the cruise performances. I just couldn't take his singing anymore.

 

Thank you for the tips. It does look like there is little to do that my husband would be crazy over. We like the lectures so I'm sure that will keep us busy but I do see where there might end up being some gaps. Hopefully the weather will be pleasant enough to do at least one Move Under the Stars.

Haha yes. Hopefully it will be. Best advice is to bring things with you to occupy yourselves. Luckily with Alaska there isn't a ton of free time but there still is a bit. Glad to see someone that agrees with me on the entertainment. Some people coming out of the shows were like that was amazing and I was like really?? So we knew who had never seen a show before. Something they was funny. They do this pop choir thing with fellow passengers sign for you at the end of the cruise. In my opinion, being a former choir singer for many years, they were a lot better than he knew on the show, haha. If all else fails, grab a drink and a table by the window and play cards while watching the awesome scenery.

 

2) Luckily you are going to the US most of the time so you won't be without the cell phone data for long. As long as you are close to US land you will be able to use your cell phone. We were able to use it really until late night on the first night as we were still close to US cities as we made our way out of Seattle. When out at sea there isn't any service so you don't have to turn the phone to Airplane although I did to be safe. I actually turned mine to airplane the first day after dinner because mine started to say Roaming. It depends on your cell phone provider, mine is Verizon. My sister's is ATT and hers said it was Roaming at a different time.

 

Yes, there is service at sea from this ship's cell phone service. It is expensive if your phone is checking often for updates and other data.

So, to avoid all those charges, put your phone in airplane mode once you leave port.

Yes, there is service at sea from this ship's cell phone service. It is expensive if your phone is checking often for updates and other data.

 

So, to avoid all those charges, put your phone in airplane mode once you leave port.

Depends how your service company works. I didn't use the ship cell service and yet still had my own for a little bit because of how long it takes to get out of the Seattle area. My sister also had a good amount of service getting out of Seattle for a while while still

Using her regular serve without getting any fees. It depends on your provider. To be on the same side though I do recommend turning it off after you get away from a lot of land or receive message about roaming or anything about higher fees. It was nice to have service while out at sea for a little bit. Advantage of going out of Seattle.

Yes, there is service at sea from this ship's cell phone service. It is expensive if your phone is checking often for updates and other data.

 

So, to avoid all those charges, put your phone in airplane mode once you leave port.

I shut off cell data, that way I can still receive messages and can see missed calls in case of an emergency. No charges for any of that. Only if I text/call or take a call.

Hope that your sister received her door decoration. We were told that the signs were put up on the birthday or anniversary date. We also found very few sugarless desserts, however, when we asked they sent someone to another venue and brought back one. All in all a great trip.

Hope that your sister received her door decoration. We were told that the signs were put up on the birthday or anniversary date. We also found very few sugarless desserts, however, when we asked they sent someone to another venue and brought back one. All in all a great trip.

Nope. She didn't get a decoration. That was a disappointment. Couldn't figure out why she was like the only one to get one.

it is too bad they didn't offer Crown Grill during the Day to play cards and games. This venue is often used for this. You can also use the Horizon Court when it is not busy with diners.

Re cell service, if you don't put your phone in airplane mode your phone will look for satellite and it will go to the Marine at sea satellite, and if you get auto notifications or your phone occasionally checks things it will use this service and it will be expensive.

Note too that shorty after you leave Seattle and head north, you are no longer in the US and if you can get service from land it will be Canadian service and if your plan doesn't include international roaming that cost can add up too. You will be off Canada for the first full day and night and last day.

thanks to the poster for the review, we head to Alaska soon again.

you mentioned that you printed out and filled in your health form ahead of time. Can you tell me where you got this form? I don't see it on my profile under documents to print. All i have is boarding pass and luggage tags. There is a health form later but that is for those with medical conditions.

The health form they give you at the pier only has five or four short yes no questions and takes no time to fill out. Would be handy to print out ahead of time if we can.

it is too bad they didn't offer Crown Grill during the Day to play cards and games. This venue is often used for this. You can also use the Horizon Court when it is not busy with diners.

 

 

 

 

 

Re cell service, if you don't put your phone in airplane mode your phone will look for satellite and it will go to the Marine at sea satellite, and if you get auto notifications or your phone occasionally checks things it will use this service and it will be expensive.

 

 

 

Note too that shorty after you leave Seattle and head north, you are no longer in the US and if you can get service from land it will be Canadian service and if your plan doesn't include international roaming that cost can add up too. You will be off Canada for the first full day and night and last day.

 

 

 

 

 

thanks to the poster for the review, we head to Alaska soon again.

Depends on your service. After leaving Seattle I still had my regular service for a few hours and wasn't charged more for using it as mine tells me when I am entering a location where using it will cost more.