Really Disappointed with the Shows on the Ruby Princess

[teresastreed]

:confused:I was really disappointed with the shows on the Ruby Princess! This was our first Princess Cruise and I couldn't believe the lack of entertainment. We are experienced cruisers this was our 16th cruise. Can any of you long time Princess cruisers comment for me. The Ruby Princess repeated it's shows for 2 Nights! They didn't have a new show every night. I'm not used to repeat shows on different nights. Normally they do an early show and a late show for the 2 different dinner times in the dining room with most of the other cruise lines. The singers and dancers performed the same show at 2 different times (early and late) and then repeated that EXACT SAME SHOW the next night. I expect and like different shows every night. Is this there NEW way of trying to cut costs??? Also the shows were lacking is costume changes and scenery changes. All they used for scenery was a projector screen showing different backgrounds. We were really disappointed with the shows and entertainment. They also had 2 different comedians with shows and they were repeated again the next night. The one thing they did have was Movies showing all day long. They started at 9AM and ran until midnight! I guess that is a way of cheap entertainment for Princess! I don't go on a cruise to watch Movies. I prefer live entertainment. Is this something NEW on Princess.....repeating shows?????????????

[Toto2Kansas]

It seems Princess found that on the larger ships, they didn't provide enough seating (even with two different showtimes) for all passengers to be able to see the shows. So, not all that long ago they began replaying the shows for two nights in a row so all had the opportunity. As far back as I can remember, Princess never had a production show each and every night, even before the larger ships. They do however have shows of different types provided in different clubs throughout the ship so there is an alternative. Sorry you were so disappointed.

[Tinious]

:confused:I was really disappointed with the shows on the Ruby Princess!

 

With all due respect, it seems like you took the Ruby because you were originally booked on the Carnival Splendor, and they strung you along and canceled it on you. So perhaps you weren't the happiest of people going into this cruise and are looking to latch on something negative?

 

Any time I've sailed there's been both (a) more people wanting to go to the shows than space and (b) nights where nothing happens in the main theater. It seems like a win-win to repeat some shows on some nights.

[teresastreed]

Yes, we were cancelled on the Carnival Splendor Cruise. However I was VERY excited to be going on a new cruiseline Princess with a better itinerary and VERY excited to be going to the Caribbean! I had high expectations of our Princess cruise. However, I was very disappointed with Princess Shows or should I say lack of shows. Overall we had a good cruise. Just really disappointed in Princess Shows! Other cruiselines have much better shows and every night is something different. Carnival owns Princess so I expected better shows! The only other complaint we had was the food choices. The food was OK on Princess but they lacked the variety and quality of Celebrities food. We don't pick a cruise because of the cruiseline we select a cruise on the itinerary offered and the price. We plan on trying every cruiseline at some point. They are all different and I'm sure we'll find something we don't like about each of the cruiselines. I do feel ALL of the cruiselines are making cutbacks to save money. On Princess I felt it was on the entertainment. I will say Princess had the best and friendliest service crew. The Ruby Princess was exceptionally CLEAN and everyone was very friendly!

[1 HappyCruiser]

You might as well get used to the new schedule as this seems to be the way of the future. On our last cruise in Oct they had an old movie shown in the main show lounge at 8 & 10 PM with a repeat of a comedian in the Explorers lounge for his third performance. We just went back to the cabin to watch a movie on the TV - about the same thing we'd do at home. :cool:

[Tatka]

The only other complaint we had was the food choices. The food was OK on Princess but they lacked the variety and quality of Celebrities food.

 

Lacked the variety!?! We found the variety to be great! So many themed nights, seafoods etc.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

:confused:I was really disappointed with the shows on the Ruby Princess! This was our first Princess Cruise and I couldn't believe the lack of entertainment. We are experienced cruisers this was our 16th cruise. Can any of you long time Princess cruisers comment for me. The Ruby Princess repeated it's shows for 2 Nights! They didn't have a new show every night. I'm not used to repeat shows on different nights. Normally they do an early show and a late show for the 2 different dinner times in the dining room with most of the other cruise lines. The singers and dancers performed the same show at 2 different times (early and late) and then repeated that EXACT SAME SHOW the next night. I expect and like different shows every night. Is this there NEW way of trying to cut costs??? Also the shows were lacking is costume changes and scenery changes. All they used for scenery was a projector screen showing different backgrounds. We were really disappointed with the shows and entertainment. They also had 2 different comedians with shows and they were repeated again the next night. The one thing they did have was Movies showing all day long. They started at 9AM and ran until midnight! I guess that is a way of cheap entertainment for Princess! I don't go on a cruise to watch Movies. I prefer live entertainment. Is this something NEW on Princess.....repeating shows?????????????

 

I agree with you 100%. We did the diamond Princess in September 2009 and found the same thing you did.

 

Went to the main theater and saw the show and then went to the lounge to see the comedian.

 

The next night same show and same comedian. (YAWN)

 

Very dissapointing.

 

After going on the Caribbean Princess in 2005 and 2007 we were quite surprised and this NEW style of entertainment.

 

As one of the previous posters said it's a win win situation but I don't see how.:confused:

 

That being said we are booked on the Golden but this time we'll be forewarned. Just see one show and save the comedian for the next night and just go to bed early.

 

Bill

 

Who thought a 900 seat theater would be good for 3000 pax?

[Umbarger]

I agree. Entertainment on other cruise lines much better, NCL being the best. Princess didnt used to be like this but seems to be changing to this format of repeat shows and poor ones at that.

[1 HappyCruiser]

 

Who thought a 900 seat theater would be good for 3000 pax?

 

Even on the older ships with larger capacity show lounges there still wasn't sufficient room to seat 1/2 of the ship but at least they had a different show each night. I can understand the repeat performances in the Explorers & Fusion lounges as they can't hold even close to 1/4 of the people for each show. So the only possible reason for the cutback on the shows boils down to $$$.

[asctony]

I agree. Entertainment on other cruise lines much better, NCL being the best. Princess didnt used to be like this but seems to be changing to this format of repeat shows and poor ones at that.

 

Just got off of RCI and X. Regardless of cruise line, all are cutting back in all areas. Shows on RCI and X were OK, but the same as on Princess. It seems that they are all getting a different type of entertainer. Much younger, not as experienced, etc. Even the costumes are very plain, too. No big glitzy gowns, backgrounds,etc.

 

Maybe they should start hiring top notch entertainers and have specialty shows that you pay for like they have specialty restaurants. WOW, great idea! LOL

[Wecruise8]

Aren't there lots of other options such as games, piano/dance music in the lounges, a party on deck? I keep reading about so much to do that there isn't time to do it all. Maybe they repeat shows not only because the theatre is not large enough but because they expect people to partake in other forms of entertainment as well and want to give everyone a chance to see the show if they wish. That said, I'm sure there is a financial consideration as well. I for one am glad that we'll have a chance to see a show one night and not feel pressured to miss something else that we may want to see as well. Seems like a smart move to me.

[teacherman]

We have done 17 cruises, 5 on Princess, and I feel the Princess main theater entertainment is the poorest quality of all the lines we have experienced. BUT I do feel they have good entertainment in their lounges, and that is where we usually go. I have sometimes wondered why these people were not featured in the theater. I wish ALL cruise lines would give you a list on the first day of what is scheduled for each day of the cruise in the theaters, lounges, dining room menus, etc. They could run it repeatedly on one of the TV channels, as they seem to do for all of the things they are trying to sell you. Then we would not find ourselves walking out on an entertainer whom we saw do the same material the previous night.

[W5KAP]

:confused:I was really disappointed with the shows on the Ruby Princess! This was our first Princess Cruise and I couldn't believe the lack of entertainment. We are experienced cruisers this was our 16th cruise. Can any of you long time Princess cruisers comment for me. The Ruby Princess repeated it's shows for 2 Nights! They didn't have a new show every night. I'm not used to repeat shows on different nights. Normally they do an early show and a late show for the 2 different dinner times in the dining room with most of the other cruise lines. The singers and dancers performed the same show at 2 different times (early and late) and then repeated that EXACT SAME SHOW the next night. I expect and like different shows every night. Is this there NEW way of trying to cut costs??? Also the shows were lacking is costume changes and scenery changes. All they used for scenery was a projector screen showing different backgrounds. We were really disappointed with the shows and entertainment. They also had 2 different comedians with shows and they were repeated again the next night. The one thing they did have was Movies showing all day long. They started at 9AM and ran until midnight! I guess that is a way of cheap entertainment for Princess! I don't go on a cruise to watch Movies. I prefer live entertainment. Is this something NEW on Princess.....repeating shows?????????????

 

Assunming you just got off the Ruby, I am astounded by your note. We gto off her the 14th of November and our entire group all commented about how wonderful the entertainment was. And I say this because we too think cruise ship entertainmnet as a whole has been declining for years. Last year on the Island to Alsaka it was terrible. So I expected it would be bad. Wow, were we wrong. The stage shows were incredibly good (an I usually don't care for them). They had a New York Doo Wop group called Spank that was simply incredible to hear. Also they had a jugglar/comedien who was tremendous. Now I may be wrong and the shows may ahve changed since early last month but I have to tell you, we thought the shows and entertainment in general were the bset we have seen in years. Sorry you didn't enjoy it. I do, however, agree on the the fact that the venus is too small. People were holding seats an hour before the show started.

 

Cheers, Kenn

[1 HappyCruiser]

Assunming you just got off the Ruby, I am astounded by your note. We gto off her the 14th of November and our entire group all commented about how wonderful the entertainment was. And I say this because we too think cruise ship entertainmnet as a whole has been declining for years. Last year on the Island to Alsaka it was terrible. So I expected it would be bad. Wow, were we wrong. The stage shows were incredibly good (an I usually don't care for them). They had a New York Doo Wop group called Spank that was simply incredible to hear. Also they had a jugglar/comedien who was tremendous. Now I may be wrong and the shows may ahve changed since early last month but I have to tell you, we thought the shows and entertainment in general were the bset we have seen in years. Sorry you didn't enjoy it. I do, however, agree on the the fact that the venus is too small. People were holding seats an hour before the show started.

 

Cheers, Kenn

 

If you cruise long enough on Princess you'll begin to get bored with seeing the same show year after year also. Sure, the first time you see a new show, it's great & next 5 or 6 times still enjoyable, but after seeing Piano Man, It's a Swell Party, Boogie Shoes, etc. for the last 8 years on numerous cruises you'll be praying for anything new. Actually a few shows on the Ruby are better because they were only designed for that particular ship.

[sirwired]

Entertainment is highly subjective... but yes, Princess repeats the shows so all that want to see them have the opportunity.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Entertainment is highly subjective... but yes, Princess repeats the shows so all that want to see them have the opportunity.

 

So about 5 years ago on Princess they didn't care if everybody saw the shows? This comes at a time when the economy is bad and per diems are low. Coincidence? I think not.

 

There is no need to sugar coat this with excuses, just call it what it is. A cutback.

 

If that's what they have to do to make money and keep the prices low in this economy I'll adjust.

 

Bill

 

Bill

[randyfipps]

They repeated the production show that the people were at the comedian show in the Explorers Lounge at the same time could see both the comedian and the production show.

Go to one after dinner one night the other the next. That's how Sam the cruise director stated it . If you have early dining it's easy to see both in one night with late dining you would have to hustle to get seats at both especially if you have a group not just one or two people. Some people only want to see 1 show a night and spend some time at MUTS or the casino.

[1 HappyCruiser]

They repeated the production show that the people were at the comedian show in the Explorers Lounge at the same time could see both the comedian and the production show.

Go to one after dinner one night the other the next. That's how Sam the cruise director stated it . If you have early dining it's easy to see both in one night with late dining you would have to hustle to get seats at both especially if you have a group not just one or two people. Some people only want to see 1 show a night and spend some time at MUTS or the casino.

 

Isn't it wonderful that they give us the opportunity to see all the shows & not have to miss any of them. :rolleyes::rolleyes:

[S.S.Oceanlover]

They repeated the production show that the people were at the comedian show in the Explorers Lounge at the same time could see both the comedian and the production show.

Go to one after dinner one night the other the next. That's how Sam the cruise director stated it . If you have early dining it's easy to see both in one night with late dining you would have to hustle to get seats at both especially if you have a group not just one or two people. Some people only want to see 1 show a night and spend some time at MUTS or the casino.

 

Not all ships have MUTS and it's kinda cold to be watching MUTS in Alaska in September when we are going.

 

That leaves the casino. Aha!! Maybe there is a method to their madness. Get you to do something that you have to pay for and not them.

[lusitanica]

Assunming you just got off the Ruby, I am astounded by your note. We gto off her the 14th of November and our entire group all commented about how wonderful the entertainment was. And I say this because we too think cruise ship entertainmnet as a whole has been declining for years. Last year on the Island to Alsaka it was terrible. So I expected it would be bad. Wow, were we wrong. The stage shows were incredibly good (an I usually don't care for them). They had a New York Doo Wop group called Spank that was simply incredible to hear. Also they had a jugglar/comedien who was tremendous. Now I may be wrong and the shows may ahve changed since early last month but I have to tell you, we thought the shows and entertainment in general were the bset we have seen in years. Sorry you didn't enjoy it. I do, however, agree on the the fact that the venus is too small. People were holding seats an hour before the show started.

 

Cheers, Kenn

 

We were on Ruby early November and had 4 shows in the main theatre.

With the addition of the Culinary Show - there were 5.

 

There was much to see in smaller lounges as well.

Great etertainment program.

 

Much better than we had on Epic two months earlier.

 

[Sailfish]

There are several entertainment venues on the Ruby open every night - you'll find a show in the theater, something on MUTS (football perhaps), or a comedian or singer in a smaller show lounge, a movie or another activity, etc. If all you do is go to the theater every night, you'll be severely limiting your entertainment choices. But if you do what most other passengers do, and go to the other venues, you'll see that there is a lot happening every evening.

 

I think Princess does this (unlike other cruise lines who schedule their nightly shows in the theater on main and late dining room schedules) to accommodate all the passengers who opt for anytime dining. I personally prefer a variety of entertainment over production shows, whcih IMO aren't Princess' strength. But that's me.

 

Good Luck!

[Katie333]

Different strokes for different folks ... we've never been to a single main theatre production show, but have certainly enjoyed shows in the smaller venues such as comedians etc. The lack of variation in main theatre shows does not impact us one iota.

 

If they didn't repeat some shows, you'd probably see people upset that they didn't get a chance to see a certain production because the theatre was full. :rolleyes:

[kruisey]

I came off a 32 day cruise end of October...We had 5 only really good production shows with the singer and dancers .The others so called comedians:rolleyes: and the rest were those on the way down.

Good movies but then went into repeat mode.

What can anyone expect though the actual cruise package costing less these days. Something else has to be forfeited.

[Woobstr112G]

I personally enjoyed the entertainment on the Ruby.....:):):)

 

Bob

[kruisey]

I personally enjoyed the entertainment on the Ruby.....:):):)

 

Bob

The show' Piano Man' is shown yet again as it has on all my cruises with Princess .The Captains Circle cocktail half hour clapping for the most travelled customers winning their numerous crystal edition of the ship.woopeee doo:D