Ruby Princess 3/6/14 - Review with lots of pics/video! First time on Princess! :)

[geoherb]

Thanks for posting. We'll be on the Ruby on Saturday--different itinerary though (Cozumel and Grand Cayman).

[crazy4midwest]

Fabulous pictures and review, thanks so much for sharing!

[Woobstr112G]

Absolutely love the whale pictures......:):):)

 

Bob

[iloverags2]

Enjoying your review!!! What beautiful pictures, and how awesome is the excursion you did! We fell in love with the Ruby Princess as well.

 

Waupaca...is that anywhere near Door County? I grew up in Chicago, and we vacationed there often. In fact, it's where my husband and I spent our honeymoon. :)

[RedHeadTexan]

Great review so far. We have been thinking of trying Princess out in 2015 and you are definitely convincing me to give it a go. I love that the promenade deck has views the entire way around. :D

 

Lisa

[lovevacadays]

[quote name='ebandive']After lunch we did a bit more exploring and people watching. We also purchased the "soda and more" card, which happens to be the best purchase ever! I so wish every line had this! I had my fill of virgin pina coladas, strawberry daiquiris, milkshakes, soda, juice, and more! Such a great buy!

Our ship also selling the $49/day unlimited alcohol card. I saw many people throughout the cruise totally wasted with the little white sticker on their card. This sort of surprised me from Princess. Might have had to do with spring break though, too.

So, let's talk about the demographic. We were a bit worried that we were going to be bored out of our minds and surrounded by crotchety rich white people. :p No offense intended. However, this was not the case at all. Everyone was friendly and nice. Honestly, both DH and I now think Princess is our favorite. The food was sooooo much better than our last NCL cruise, the entertainment was great, the staff were average (but average in cruise standards is good!) and we loved and embraced the "escape completely" mindset. It was so nice not to be woken at the crack of down by announcements blairing into our stateroom trying to sell us bingo cards. As my hubby said, "This is REAL freestyle cruising." Maybe we are just getting older. Maybe it's because we now have 2 kids and we come on a cruise to relax and get away from it all instead of to live it up. But regardless, we LOVED princess and hope to sail with them again.

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Ha! You will find even the rich, white people on Princess are fantastic. I'm not one of them but I know a few who are doing well financially and they are amazing, down to earth people.:)

[lovevacadays]

[quote name='ebandive']And then, we found our favorite place on board. And the reason why the Ruby Promenade is our absolute favorite. It wraps all the way the length of the boat, so you can walk laps and have a constant ocean view. Every other ship we have been on, the promenade either doesn't go through on the front of the ship, or it does and the view is blocked. On this ship, and I can't believe I didn't know this before we sailed, but you can actually walk to the very very front of the ship. The very front. Look down and see water. I still can't believe it. We totally had a "I'm the king of the world" moment. SO amazing!

of course you need a video! :)
[url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wxs0MBbw5M[/url]

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[quote name='ebandive']After the movie, we went to the late comedy show with Rollin Jay Moore. Which was a total waste of time. I've never been to a worse comedy show. It was pretty bad.

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Went to bed about midnight, and got up early the next morning to prepare for our day in Grand Turk! We had a really exciting excursion waiting for us.... WHALE WATCHING!! We booked with Crystal Seas, and payed $150 each for a 4 hour tour. By far the most expensive excursion we ever booked, but this was our only stop on this short cruise, so we thought we'd make it worth it. They said 98% chance of seeing whales and 40% chance of being able to jump in the water with them. I was so excited! From January-April, humpback whales come to the shallow waters surrounding Grand Turk in order to breed and have babies, and then the moms stay with their calf for 6 weeks before heading out. We prayed for good weather and smooth waters so that the whales would come out. And they did!

Here's the sun rising over Grand Turk as we pulled in to dock:

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I really loved your review and all the pictures. I want to hop on a plane, get on a cruise ship and sail away. I'm happy to read that you enjoyed your first Princess cruise. I love the Promenade decks on Princess' ships. It makes me feel like I am at sea on an ocean liner. Your pictures are amazing! Edited March 17, 2014 by MichelleinOC

[Kenswing]

Great review and pictures! We're going on the Ruby for the first time this coming October. Your review has gotten me even more excited!

Thank you for taking the time..

[ebandive]

Thanks so much everyone for all the nice replies! I really do appreciate it! I still have more pictures of Grand Turk to post as well as our last sea day. Had to work extra and have just been busy with the two kiddos.

I'll try to continue on the review later today! :D

[Bimmer09]

Thanks for the review. I am looking forward to more!

Norris

[alreadypacked]

I only just started your review, but I remember your reviews from years past and your "1A Guide"! Love it!! I remember your posts before the kiddos! DH and I sailed Ruby a year and a half ago too--looking forward to your take! Edited April 11, 2014 by alreadypacked

[rbslos18]

[quote name='MichelleinOC']Ha! You will find even the rich, white people on Princess are fantastic. I'm not one of them but I know a few who are doing well financially and they are amazing, down to earth people.:)[/QUOTE]

One of the things we like most about Princess passengers is their diversity. We love the fact we can meet people from all over the world and from different socio-economic and religious backgrounds. Princess manages to attract a wide variety of people which is a strength.

Several years ago we were on a Princess cruise with what turned out to be a young newlywed couple from Saudi Arabia, related to the Royal family. They were a delight. Purely by chance we chose the exact same excursions together and became friends.

Near the end of the cruise, he asked my religion. When I told him I am Jewish his eyes welled up with tears and he profoundly touched my soul: "I have never met a person of your faith. You have changed my life forever. May we one day meet together in Israel." I will always cherish that exchange.

[BoxerMomNC]

I am leaving on my first Princess cruise tomorrow and wanted to let you know that I've enjoyed reading your review and seeing the pictures. Makes me really want to take that same cruise (one of my bucket list items is to swim with a whale and I never thought it would ever be possible!) This will be hubs first cruise ever and I'm hoping he will enjoy it so we can do more. Might have him come on and read your review too ;-)

[tequilasunrise]

Looks like a great time, glad you had fun :) Thanks for sharing, love the pics!

[scrapycruiser]

Thanks for the great review ! Loved the pictures and videos !
We'll be on board the Ruby soon. Did you set at the Crown Grill ?
Do you have to dress up ? We plan to eat there on formal night and wanted to avoid dresses and ties :-). How was the food. Anything you especially liked ?

[rdh rules]

[quote name='scrapycruiser']Thanks for the great review ! Loved the pictures and videos !
We'll be on board the Ruby soon. Did you set at the Crown Grill ?
Do you have to dress up ? We plan to eat there on formal night and wanted to avoid dresses and ties :-). How was the food. Anything you especially liked ?[/QUOTE]

Not to take over, but the Crown grill was great! We were on the Ruby over Easter and went there formal night. There were people in button up casual shirts, normal dining room attire. I wore a shirt and skirt, nothing too fancy. I was surprised to see families with kids. Most were well behaved, but there was a 2 yr old that wanted to run around.
We had the scallop, tiger prawn, and lamb loin appetizer split between us. The scallops were perfectly cooked. Then I had the balsamic salad, my husband the black/blue soup. I could only take 1 spoonful of the soup, very strong! The waiter recommended the ribeye over the filet, very great choice, very marbled and great flavor. He brought us 8 lobster tails to start with along with asparagus, mushrooms, creamed spinach. All was great! The lobster tails were grilled so they had the fire taste! This was our anniversary dinner so they brought us a chocolate cake, then a dessert sampler. I would highly recommend going, you'll not be disappointed. I have pictures of all our food, but still haven't figured out how to upload, everytime I try from my computer, it says security problem :(
Funny side note, our room steward, Marian, said that he goes to the Crown Grill to eat every couple of months as a treat, he has to pay the same as us, but says it's worth it!

[scrapycruiser]

[quote name='rdh rules']Not to take over, but the Crown grill was great! We were on the Ruby over Easter and went there formal night. There were people in button up casual shirts, normal dining room attire. I wore a shirt and skirt, nothing too fancy. I was surprised to see families with kids. Most were well behaved, but there was a 2 yr old that wanted to run around.
We had the scallop, tiger prawn, and lamb loin appetizer split between us. The scallops were perfectly cooked. Then I had the balsamic salad, my husband the black/blue soup. I could only take 1 spoonful of the soup, very strong! The waiter recommended the ribeye over the filet, very great choice, very marbled and great flavor. He brought us 8 lobster tails to start with along with asparagus, mushrooms, creamed spinach. All was great! The lobster tails were grilled so they had the fire taste! This was our anniversary dinner so they brought us a chocolate cake, then a dessert sampler. I would highly recommend going, you'll not be disappointed. I have pictures of all our food, but still haven't figured out how to upload, everytime I try from my computer, it says security problem :(
Funny side note, our room steward, Marian, said that he goes to the Crown Grill to eat every couple of months as a treat, he has to pay the same as us, but says it's worth it![/QUOTE]

THANKS !! Sounds wonderful ! Glad you had such a great anniversary dinner ! Thanks for " taking over " :-D

[LoveByrds]

Loved your review and all the photos!
What an amazing experience with the whales! You guys are so lucky to have so many come so close!!!
I hadn't planned on going on a Carribbean/Bahamas cruise again (not used to the heat/humidity) but after seeing your pics i'm going to check out prices right now!
How did you take photos under water and what kind of camera did you use?

[ebandive]

[quote name='LoveByrds']Loved your review and all the photos!
What an amazing experience with the whales! You guys are so lucky to have so many come so close!!!
I hadn't planned on going on a Carribbean/Bahamas cruise again (not used to the heat/humidity) but after seeing your pics i'm going to check out prices right now!
How did you take photos under water and what kind of camera did you use?[/QUOTE]

Thanks for bumping up this thread! Brought back some nice memories. :)

This is the camera I used for the underwater photos. I'm pretty sure all the other photos were just with my cell phone - I was a total slacker and left my nice camera at home this time.
[url]http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-Waterproof-Stabilized-Wide-Angle/dp/B0075SUKIC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1422023113&sr=8-2&keywords=canon+underwater+camera[/url]

[ebandive]

I'm really kicking myself for never coming back and finishing my review. Sorry, guys! Life had gotten crazy... and, well, you know how it goes. :roll eyes:

But, almost a year later, DH and I both still talk about how wonderful and relaxing our Princess cruise was. We're due with baby #3 in a few weeks, and unfortunately don't have any future cruises booked. But it is by far our absolute favorite way to travel, and we look forward to being able to take our kiddos on a cruise with us, hopefully someday soon.

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

[2 cruzen]

[quote name='ebandive']I'm really kicking myself for never coming back and finishing my review. Sorry, guys! Life had gotten crazy... and, well, you know how it goes. :roll eyes:

But, almost a year later, DH and I both still talk about how wonderful and relaxing our Princess cruise was. We're due with baby #3 in a few weeks, and unfortunately don't have any future cruises booked. But it is by far our absolute favorite way to travel, and we look forward to being able to take our kiddos on a cruise with us, hopefully someday soon.

Thanks for coming along for the ride![/QUOTE]

Congratulations on baby. I just had to read of your whale adventure in Grand Turk. We will be there in 3 weeks and doing our first water excursion. We are snorkeling 'the wall' but hope to see a whale on the ride out there.

[Aramis]

Fantastic review, I have just sat here and enjoyed everything you have posted, honest, fun and great photos. Also glad it was bumped. Love the whales :D

[rianvi]

Enjoyed the review. Well done!