Just back from the RUBY PRINCESS 1.31 - 2.7

[sfken1977]

Just returning from the a lovely 7 day trip on the Ruby to the Mexican Riviera.

 

It was a rough start, as we didn't leave the port until almost 9:30 due to high winds and commensurate with that - it was a VERY rough ride out of the port. Imagine being inside a washing machine. It was even worse overnight as we attempted to sleep. I heard one of the hot tubs overflowed from the terrace area and flooded a cabin.

 

The first sea day was very chilly - I don't think we topped 55 degrees the entire day, so it was mostly a drinking day.

 

The second sea day warmed up to what I call San Francisco summer - if you were out of the wind and in the sun it was quite lovely. We took over the terrace pool and enjoyed the sunshine finally. The seas were rough at night again -but not nearly as bad. I think with Princess ships being so tall - the wind catches her and pushes her around.

 

By the time we got to PV it was full on sunshine and almost 80 degrees. Ditto for Mazatlan and Cabo.

 

Our sea day back was warm and sunny, but increasingly chilly as we approached LA. It was much calmer - and now in LA its a sunny cool day.

 

A little bit about the Ruby - it's a nice ship, very clean and well kept (considering it did do the dry dock in December). The new beds are indeed installed.

 

We ate at the Salty Dog - and really enjoyed our meal there. In addition we were selected for the Chefs dinner which was an amazing experience of too much food and a lot of special attention!

 

Overall not my favorite ship - it seems a lot of the venues are too small for their purpose, and I didn't really find any of the lounges very comfy for just hanging out - they all seemed a bit too formal for my taste.

 

We're off to to Monteray to avoid the Super Bowl traffic of SF -and then back to SF tomorrow. I'm happy to answer any questions :)

[Pam in CA]

Say "Hello!" to El Niño. :) We've had a very cool/cold winter so far, not counting today. There was a lot of wind damage from fallen trees to glass walls flying about from the storm you experienced at sailaway. Even then, you can almost always expect cool temps and often moderate seas for a day or two when sailing to/from San Pedro thanks to the California Current.

[AF-1]

Hi, glad you had a nice cruise; despite the weather. Which port did you enjoy the most and why? Which ship is your favorite? What type cabin do you have? and was it comfy?

[shredie]

I was on the Ruby just prior to her dry dock. Did you get into SHARE at all?

[Keith1010]

Thank you for your review.

 

Keith

[Colo Cruiser]

Thanks for the comments.

Glad you had a great cruise.

[emt1958]

I was on this cruise also. Yes, the first night was a little rough sleeping. Only one time I thought I was going to fall out of bed. The waves were only 15-20 feet that night. lol. I slept well and after the first full sea day, I was able to use my balcony. Yes, I even got me a little sun tan. As food is very subjective, I thought the food in the horizon court was lacking taste and selection. I usually cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale. The food in the main dining room was very good. Our service was excellent. This was only my sixth cruise with princess. I have come to accept certain situations like the theater is going to get crowded every night, so I just get there about 40 minutes early. It is my vacation and I tend to look at things positively. Its not partly cloudy but its partly sunny etc. I used princess shore excursion in Cabo doing the whale watching by zodiac. A excellent choice as the crew was great. I booked the excursion on line and saved $20 per person. I am spending the night at Best Western and flying out in the morning to Atlanta, then a short three hour drive home. Overall, I enjoyed the cruise and would even do this cruise again in the future.

 

Andy

[AF-1]

emt1958, thank you for your review.

[DrivesLikeMario]

The winds we had were epic - truly incredibly strong - even in San Diego and we rarely get wind like that near the beach. I was wondering how the ships were doing in all that wind!

[riclop]

Just returning from the a lovely 7 day trip on the Ruby to the Mexican Riviera.

 

It was a rough start, as we didn't leave the port until almost 9:30 due to high winds and commensurate with that - it was a VERY rough ride out of the port. Imagine being inside a washing machine. It was even worse overnight as we attempted to sleep. I heard one of the hot tubs overflowed from the terrace area and flooded a cabin.

 

The first sea day was very chilly - I don't think we topped 55 degrees the entire day, so it was mostly a drinking day.

 

The second sea day warmed up to what I call San Francisco summer - if you were out of the wind and in the sun it was quite lovely. We took over the terrace pool and enjoyed the sunshine finally. The seas were rough at night again -but not nearly as bad. I think with Princess ships being so tall - the wind catches her and pushes her around.

 

By the time we got to PV it was full on sunshine and almost 80 degrees. Ditto for Mazatlan and Cabo.

 

Our sea day back was warm and sunny, but increasingly chilly as we approached LA. It was much calmer - and now in LA its a sunny cool day.

 

A little bit about the Ruby - it's a nice ship, very clean and well kept (considering it did do the dry dock in December). The new beds are indeed installed.

 

We ate at the Salty Dog - and really enjoyed our meal there. In addition we were selected for the Chefs dinner which was an amazing experience of too much food and a lot of special attention!

 

Overall not my favorite ship - it seems a lot of the venues are too small for their purpose, and I didn't really find any of the lounges very comfy for just hanging out - they all seemed a bit too formal for my taste.

 

We're off to to Monteray to avoid the Super Bowl traffic of SF -and then back to SF tomorrow. I'm happy to answer any questions :)

 

Thanks for your thoughts.

[lois1112]

I was on this cruise also and agree with emt1958 that the food was lacking in Horizon court. I cruise frequently with princess (I'm elite) and this is the worse I've ever known it to be. They did have a mexican buffet in Cafe caribe one afternoon that was very good.

 

The staff on the Ruby was excellent, and other than the weather I had a great time

[Mike45LC]

I had a great time on the Jan 31 2016 Ruby Princess cruise.

 

This was the third time I've taken the seven day Mex-Riviera cruise in the last year. I have never before been on a cruise with such a high percentage of gays and drag queens. The Club Fusion was closed one evening for a private drag event! And the conference room outside the Princess Theater (on Deck 6) was taken over the entire cruise for alterations in the drag costumes.

 

I have also never been on a cruise with such a vast amount of facial hair on the men passengers!

 

Very strange!

[TracieABD]

Thanks for the review. I loved my cruise on the Ruby. I hope you escape some of the Superbowl traffic!

[cruiser1956]

Hi,

I was also on this sailing. I found the food to be wonderful in the dining room. The wait staff did a great job of keeping things moving in the buffet. I am partial to Royal Caribbean’s buffet, but Princess does a much better job with the pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, and ice cream. In the main dining room we had the pleasure of receiving the Best Service Ever. Everyone from the Jr. Waiter to Head Waiter treated us like royalty. Even if we weren’t at the Captains Table. There was a wonderful selection of food. I truly enjoyed the addition of the Curtis Stone Selections. We tried all of them, and they were delicious. Who doesn’t love Mac & Cheese with Bacon?

 

We ate at the Crown Grill one night. It does compare to the finer steakhouses in town. We decided the food in the main dining room is good enough that we won’t have to do that again. This was my third time there. My only complaint of the cruise, and forgive me if this upsets anyone, but there was a very large dark bristle (not hair) in the side of mushrooms. I simply did not eat them, and that was fine. I did not bring this to the attention of the waiter, because there was enough food without the mushrooms. I did however, move the large black bristle off to the side of the white plate, thinking the waiter would see it, but he did not. No biggie. The sampler dessert is by far the best dessert ever. In my humble opinion.

 

I missed having the waffles at breakfast. I did not know they were making them where the pizza place is in the morning. I saw them on someone’s plate, and the next morning, they were not making them. I need to be sure I remember this the next time. The waffles looked amazing.

 

We tried the Pub Lunch at the Salty Dog. It was good. We toured SHARE, but did not eat there. The restaurant is beautiful. The menu was a bit too * fru fru* for our taste. Why would I have beef cheeks for $ 39.00 per person when I can have Mac and Cheese in the dining room, surrounded by steak, for free? Again, just my opinion.

 

The seas were the roughest I have ever sailed. We were not sickened by the motion, but I think it kept some people away from the buffet etc. This is not a negative comment, but I was extremely thankful to get on steady ground after 3 days of rocking and rolling.

 

When in port at San Pedro the tug boats were directly below us, in an attempt to keep us stable. I was thankful they were there, but they did add quite a bit of noise and vibration in the cabin. We could look out of our balcony, and down, and see them working feverously to keep us safe. Great job done by them.

 

We took a shore excursion to Yalapas Beach, and snorkeling in Puerto Vallarta. The catamaran could not bring us to the dock at Yalapas Beach. They were shuttling people back and forth in small fishing boats. My sister has a bum knee, and the 4 foot drop was not something we wanted to attempt. The captain let us stay on the catamaran, and kept the free bar open. It was an amazing day. Shopping in Mazatlán, and whale watching in Cabo. The catamaran in Cabo was clean, beautiful in fact. The snacks were typical. Cookies and Chips. Free flowing alcohol, and soda. We did see a couple of whales, but I was not impressed. They were pretty far away, and hard to see. Not the excursions fault. The whales were probably tired of the rough seas also. They just stayed away. I would not do that again, but I am glad we did it at least once.

 

As far as the groups on the boat, it was interesting. I think a woman tried to pick me up. (I am female) I guess I did not realize it until, well I realized it. Sailing with my sisters, it was pretty funny. I looked at my sister and said, “I think she just hit on me”. The consensus was I was right, and we laughed. It was a great cruise.

 

The shows filled up fast. We arrived sometime 45 minutes early just to get a choice seat. I will never understand how some people will sit down right next to you, and take up all of their seat, and half of yours. I would have rather been hit on, then squashed in my own seat.

 

Princess did an amazing job. I loved the ship, the cabin, the ports, and everything about sailing with my sisters. Especially sailing with my sisters.

[Mike45LC]

Cruiser1956: "Who doesn’t love Mac & Cheese with Bacon?":confused:

 

How about the roughly 25% of the world population which does not eat bacon due to religious prohibitions? That is 1 out of every four people.

 

I found the entire Curtis Stone nonsense to be a major step down -- I preferred Sabettini's to Share, and I much preferred the old "Always Available" menu to Stone's "creations.":mad:

 

Why the #$^& would Stone blend culliflower into potatoes au gratin? I was expecting to have chunks of the offensive vegetable in the potatoes, that I could pick around, but that jerk instead blended them in, so I could not avoid them except by not touching the potatoes at all.:mad:

 

As to you being hit on: I did not notice a lot of Lesbians on board (except for the two Asian dance partners, who danced the entire cruise!!), because unless they are flaunting (or hitting on you!!), it is hard to tell. But this cruise was the most gay I have ever experienced. I assume that some gay-oriented group(s) decided to travel together. There were a couple of drag events, and the hot tubs were filled with guys, shoulder to shoulder (or chest to back). Live and let live!:)

[shredie]

 

I found the entire Curtis Stone nonsense to be a major step down -- I preferred Sabettini's to Share, and I much preferred the old "Always Available" menu to Stone's "creations.":mad:

 

 

Be careful! The CSCS (Curits Stone Cheerleading Squad) will be after you! LOL. I agree, cauliflower in potato is weird.

[cruiser1956]

Oh wow! Flamed for a bacon comment. Go figure. I proudly eat bacon. :eek:

 

The potatoes with cauliflower were delicious. Creamy, yummy, ordered them twice.

 

If you don't eat bacon, or cauliflower, don't order the potatoes or Mac & Cheese.

[ccruisequeen]

How cool was the ship temperature wise? Can I wear shorts and sun dresses, or are long pants and t-shirts more comfortable? Trying to narrow down my packing list.

 

 

I still cruise for Warm Chocolate Melting Cake (with 2 sugar-free vanilla ice-creams)

[sfken1977]

Hi, glad you had a nice cruise; despite the weather. Which port did you enjoy the most and why? Which ship is your favorite? What type cabin do you have? and was it comfy?

We really enjoy PV; it was a full beach day and the weather was perfect!!

 

We had a balcony on Caribe, mid aft starboard. It was perfect! We had city views each time when docking/anchoring. The beds were quite comfortable and the space was workable. We even had the ultimate balcony dining on the balcony with no problems!

[sfken1977]

How cool was the ship temperature wise? Can I wear shorts and sun dresses, or are long pants and t-shirts more comfortable? Trying to narrow down my packing list.

 

 

I still cruise for Warm Chocolate Melting Cake (with 2 sugar-free vanilla ice-creams)

 

The first sea day was chilly - you'll want a jacket or hoodie (as I live in SF - we have an abundant supply laying around). By the middle of the second sea day it was what we call San Francisco Hot - about 65, and if you were in the sun and sheltered from the wind - perfect!

 

Once we got to PV and all the way to the end of the trip it was sunny, warm, and shorts/tank top weather

[sfken1977]

I had a great time on the Jan 31 2016 Ruby Princess cruise.

 

This was the third time I've taken the seven day Mex-Riviera cruise in the last year. I have never before been on a cruise with such a high percentage of gays and drag queens. The Club Fusion was closed one evening for a private drag event! And the conference room outside the Princess Theater (on Deck 6) was taken over the entire cruise for alterations in the drag costumes.

 

I have also never been on a cruise with such a vast amount of facial hair on the men passengers!

 

Very strange!

 

That was us! :) I thought overall the spaces we took over were fairly unused during the times we were given - a few days in Club Fusion, a few later nights at Club Skywalker, and the theater for one late evening. We also managed to take over the back terrace pool, but were welcoming to anyone that wanted to join our party!

 

We had a great time overall.

[elliair]

Be careful! The CSCS (Curits Stone Cheerleading Squad) will be after you! LOL. I agree, cauliflower in potato is weird.

 

Actually, cauliflower is the closet you can get to being "mock" potatoes. I have several recipes that I use using cauliflower instead of potatoes and some can't tell the difference. Some of us can't eat potatoes due to it's carb content.

 

Our first experience with Princess cruises was on the Diamond Princess. We were on the geriatric and LGBT cruise. No inbetween. We were either dodging wheelchairs and walkers or ran out of the hot tubs that were taken over by the LGBT groups. We refrained from taking any more cruises on Princess for a while.

 

We took the Ruby to Hawaii recently and found the ship to be nice. We ate mostly on Lido. It was always salad for me and not much from the hot food venue. We didn't miss happy hour too many times as we purchased a wine package and enjoyed it on our balcony in the evening. We had a cabin on the Caribe deck almost below the bridge. I didn't care for the location as there was no privacy from the bridge.

 

We're on the Ruby in a couple of weeks to the Mexican Riviera. We're on the Baja deck this time as Caribe was sold out.

[cruiser1956]

sfken1977 -

 

Was that you in the silver lamiae shirt? I loved that shirt! :D

[ccruisequeen]

Actually, cauliflower is the closet you can get to being "mock" potatoes. I have several recipes that I use using cauliflower instead of potatoes and some can't tell the difference. Some of us can't eat potatoes due to it's carb content.

 

Our first experience with Princess cruises was on the Diamond Princess. We were on the geriatric and LGBT cruise. No inbetween. We were either dodging wheelchairs and walkers or ran out of the hot tubs that were taken over by the LGBT groups. We refrained from taking any more cruises on Princess for a while.

 

We took the Ruby to Hawaii recently and found the ship to be nice. We ate mostly on Lido. It was always salad for me and not much from the hot food venue. We didn't miss happy hour too many times as we purchased a wine package and enjoyed it on our balcony in the evening. We had a cabin on the Caribe deck almost below the bridge. I didn't care for the location as there was no privacy from the bridge.

 

We're on the Ruby in a couple of weeks to the Mexican Riviera. We're on the Baja deck this time as Caribe was sold out.

 

Will you be on the Feb 29 10-day? If so there's still room on the Roll call

 

 

 

I no longer see carnival from my condo front porch :(

[rbt001]

 

I found the entire Curtis Stone nonsense to be a major step down -- I preferred Sabettini's to Share, and I much preferred the old "Always Available" menu to Stone's "creations.":mad:

 

 

Tinkering with the "Always Available" was a mistake; those are the comfort foods that guests can rely upon if they don't like choices on the rotating menu.

 

If the intent was to truly FEATURE new Curtis Stone items, they could have featured a different one each evening as one of the five entrees.

 

Then, for those willing to try something new, they could without the menu imposing upon guest favorites.

 

I've had dinner in SHARE a few times and have found the food very tasty.

 

But I really do miss Sabatini's. I always ate/eat in Sabatini's at least once per cruise, but I don't know that I would make SHARE the same habit. Next week I'm back on Emerald and will visit SHARE at least once, since there's two other menu items I'd like to try. But after that, it would be a possible dinner in SHARE, unlike the definite visit to Sabatini's.