New to Princess, looking for information

[zanderblue]

Hi all,

 

long time cruisers, almost exclusively with Celebrity, but with erosion of Elite perks now seems a good time to try elsewhere.

We’re looking at a cruise on Ruby Princess out of Galveston next spring, but know pretty much nothing about how things work on Princess.

Any info that would help us figure if it might work for us would be appreciated.

We like to eat before the second show, so around 7:30 ish, will dine my way work for that? 
Not really into speciality restaurants and are quite happy at 2 top in main dining room. Is that a realistic option?

I see there is more than 1 main dining room, any preferred over others?

We enjoy a cocktail pre dinner and a glass of wine with dinner, so I’m guessing basic beverage package might work?

We like bars that have background music, piped or live, but quiet enough that we can talk without shouting. Any suggestions?

We are most definitely not pool party folks. We prefer a bit of sunbathing and a dip in a quieter pool. Is there anywhere that might fit the bill?

 

Im just reading back the above and I can see it may sound we are really picky. We’re not and generally can compromise.

 

We’d appreciate any replies and obviously anything additional that you may think is worth taking into consideration.

 

thanks.

[JF - retired RRT]

1 minute ago, zanderblue said:

long time cruisers, almost exclusively with Celebrity, but with erosion of Elite perks now seems a good time to try elsewhere

We’re looking at a cruise on Ruby Princess out of Galveston next spring, but know pretty much nothing about how things work on Princess.

Any info that would help us figure if it might work for us would be appreciated.

We like to eat before the second show, so around 7:30 ish, will dine my way work for that? Yes. Most Americans eat early. MDRs are less busy after 7.
Not really into speciality restaurants and are quite happy at 2 top in main dining room. Is that a realistic option? Shouldn't be an issue. Do your DMW reservations as soon as you've booked to be sure of a 2 top. Or just show up and request a 2 top when you're ready to eat. There may be a wait. Keep in mind that most 2 tops are very closely spaced. Not really very private.

I see there is more than 1 main dining room, any preferred over others? No real difference. Many don't like the access to the aft MDR. the MDRs on 5 & 6 are definitely easier to get to.

We enjoy a cocktail pre dinner and a glass of wine with dinner, so I’m guessing basic beverage package might work? If that's all you drink, it might not be cost effective. Do the math. Most cocktails/wine are ~$10.

We like bars that have background music, piped or live, but quiet enough that we can talk without shouting. Any suggestions? Walk around and see what suits.

We are most definitely not pool party folks. We prefer a bit of sunbathing and a dip in a quieter pool. Is there anywhere that might fit the bill? Stay away from the pool where the MUTS (Movies under the stars) is located. The quietest location is the Lotus Pool (unless 500 of your fellow guests discover it). Another quiet pool is the Terrace Pool (it's aft).

Great questions.

[deepcman]

47 minutes ago, JF - retired RRT said:

Great questions.

This folks, is how you get to 11,000+ posts. Is there an awards program for the number of posts here? (Good question). I know on another site you eventually make it to 'Captain' status. 

[JF - retired RRT]

40 minutes ago, deepcman said:

This folks, is how you get to 11,000+ posts. Is there an awards program for the number of posts here? (Good question). I know on another site you eventually make it to 'Captain' status. 

Did you forget to read my RESPONSE? Would you like me to repeat it?

Look at the post again and read the RED answers in the OP's original questions.

[Lady Arwen]

11 minutes ago, JF - retired RRT said:

Did you forget to read my RESPONSE? Would you like me to repeat it?

Look at the post again and read the RED answers in the OP's original questions.

I saw your responses and they were spot on.  However, unless you click on “expand” in the OP’s post you were quoting, you don’t see your answers.  I’ve learned over the years to do that in case I miss something.

[1965]

I can possibly help with 2 of your questions. DMW means you can have dinner anytime after 5:30, so making it to the theater to see a show should not be a problem. We never make reservations. We just show up when we get hungry. But you can make reservations if that works better for you. We also prefer a 2 top. Sometimes a short wait, sometimes they take us right in. I hope you enjoy your Princess experience. We're long time fans.

[skynight]

I see there is more than 1 main dining room, any preferred over others?

All three serve the same menus. The midship ones are a little more convenient. If you are booed in a club class mini suite or a full suite dining is walk in at the DaVinci DR. Otherwise make reservation in the DMW app for each evening.

We enjoy a cocktail pre dinner and a glass of wine with dinner, so I’m guessing basic beverage package might work?

Most house wines are covered by the plus fare. Better wines are above $12. You will be charged the difference + 18%. Example a $15 glass will cost you $3.54. Most other alcoholic drinks are at or below $12. You can carry on 1 x 750ml/pp at no charge for pours in your cabin. Many people pour and carry the glass. If the bottle is brought to a public area you will be charge a $20 corkage. Additional bottles can be carried on board and are subject to the corkage when boarding.

We like bars that have background music, piped or live, but quiet enough that we can talk without shouting. Any suggestions?

In the evening there will be live music sets in various lounges. Wheelhouse Bar usually has soft dance music. Explorer's usually has games, comics and maybe the party band. There could be dancing and some activities in Club Fusion. There are various musicians that perform in the Piazza. Around 9pm there is normally a piano/singer in Crooners, a very popular location.

We are most definitely not pool party folks. We prefer a bit of sunbathing and a dip in a quieter pool. Is there anywhere that might fit the bill?

Terrace Pool, deck 14 aft, adults.  Lotus Spa pool deck 16 fwd, adults. If there are very few youth on board the Chill out pool on deck 17 aft is usually very quiet. Neptune's Reef Pool is the main pool with the grill and pizza right there. Calypso Reef pool has movies and other videos all day and evening, loud

Shows. You have to check the timing of the theater shows once the ship begins sailing. Timing may vary. 

[mtnesterz]

The others here have answered your questions, but just a couple of small points I would add.

You mention loss of Elite benefits. If you new to Princess, it won't matter, but if you are looking to build loyalty with another line, then I assure you Princess has also ceased several loyalty incentives, as your cruises accumulate.

Also, you mention you enjoy a drink before dinner and wine during. Unless you drink roughly 7 or 8 drinks per day, it makes no sense to buy the Plus package. Max drinks per day are 15.  Same if you do not plan to use the internet or prefer to be an envelope tipper. On Princess, the tronc scheme is automatic, but adjustable.

[wowzz]

11 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

The others here have answered your questions, but just a couple of small points I would add.

You mention loss of Elite benefits. If you new to Princess, it won't matter, but if you are looking to build loyalty with another line, then I assure you Princess has also ceased several loyalty incentives, as your cruises accumulate.

Also, you mention you enjoy a drink before dinner and wine during. Unless you drink roughly 7 or 8 drinks per day, it makes no sense to buy the Plus package. Max drinks per day are 15.  Same if you do not plan to use the internet or prefer to be an envelope tipper. On Princess, the tronc scheme is automatic, but adjustable.

I strongly disagree about the number of drinks you require to break even on the Princess Plus package.

As a wine drinker, the break even figure for me is three glasses,  so I am in profit by lunchtime . The 15 figure relates to alcoholic drinks only. Soft drinks, mocktails,  speciality tea and coffee is unlimited. 

[LACruiser88]

18 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

Also, you mention you enjoy a drink before dinner and wine during. Unless you drink roughly 7 or 8 drinks per day, it makes no sense to buy the Plus package.

Disagree strongly, we break even with 2 glasses of wine.  🍷🍷

[mtnesterz]

3 minutes ago, wowzz said:

As a wine drinker, the break even figure for me is three glasses,  so I am in profit by lunchtime . The 15 figure relates to alcoholic drinks only. Soft drinks, mocktails,  speciality tea and coffee is unlimited. 

Point taken. Not a wine drinker at all, so don't know the pricing on the ship. Happy you have something that works to your advantage. I also forgot about the coffee, It's early here, better go make some.

[capriccio]

23 minutes ago, wowzz said:

As a wine drinker, the break even figure for me is three glasses,  so I am in profit by lunchtime . The 15 figure relates to alcoholic drinks only. Soft drinks, mocktails,  speciality tea and coffee is unlimited. 

I think @mtnesterzis forgetting that the Plus Package includes more than alcoholic drinks including wi-fi and tips ("Crew Appreciation") plus unlimited non-alcoholic drinks. 

[wowzz]

4 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

Point taken. Not a wine drinker at all, so don't know the pricing on the ship. Happy you have something that works to your advantage. I also forgot about the coffee, It's early here, better go make some.

As mentioned just now, have you factored in the crew appreciation and wifi into your calculations? 

[Wishing on a star]

A lot of good info here!  I will add a couple of comments.

Dining:  DMW will work, as you are the one making your reservations.  To get that prime 7:00 hour, you should go to your APP as soon as it will allow.  (Not sure if for new cruisers without status if that is when you have paid in full???). These in-demand reservation times will fill up.  Yes, you can get a two-top.  Again, reserving early might be key.   Once onboard, on the first night, you might want to re-affirm with the wait staff and head of the dining room that you would like to keep your reservations at the same table for the next evening, for the duration of the cruise.

 

Specialty Restaurants:  I notice that you are not big on these.  And, with Princess for you that might be a good thing.  I have no experience, but understand that the higher end dining on Celebrity surpasses Princess.

 

Drinks and Wine:  If you want bottled spring waters, special coffee and coffee specialty drinks, juice, soda, a few alcoholic beverages, then the Plus Package would work out.   Wine seems to be a drawback on Princess right now.  I hear that many who upgrade to the Premier Package for the better wines might be disappointed.    If wine is a factor for you, you might want to bring some of your favorites onboard.  One bottle per person is okay, then you would pay corkage for each additional bottle.

 

If you are big on that pre-dinner drink, then dining off the Piazza in those two main dining rooms might be a plus.  The Aft dining room, which is not directly accessible from the Piazza and the bars, might be less crowded, or have more availability.  But you might want to focus on one of the mid-ship dining rooms.

 

Evening entertainment/music before dinner:   I think there should be some lighter entertainment going on in the main atrium/Piazza before dinner.  You might also want to look at the bar at the Crown Grill.  It has been many years since I have been on the Ruby, but I think you might find a nice pre-dinner experience in both of these places.

 

Other thoughts...   The main pool areas could be busy, crowded, or loud.  Ruby has the nice AFT. pool and bar.  As well as the Adult Retreat Pool.   If you are interested in the Sanctuary, it is really great.  But, those with Princess Captains Circle Status have the benefit of early boarding and can go up there and reserve.  So, it can be booked up.  It is recommended that you go up there, first thing, as early as you can board, to reserve loungers.  There is also a small chance that there could be a cancellation, so you might want to check back.

 

 

 

 

[JF - retired RRT]

1 hour ago, Wishing on a star said:

Other thoughts...   The main pool areas could be busy, crowded, or loud.  Ruby has the nice AFT. pool and bar.  As well as the Adult Retreat Pool.   If you are interested in the Sanctuary, it is really great.  But, those with Princess Captains Circle Status have the benefit of early boarding and can go up there and reserve.  So, it can be booked up.  It is recommended that you go up there, first thing, as early as you can board, to reserve loungers.  There is also a small chance that there could be a cancellation, so you might want to check back.

Good thought. Didn't even think of the Sanctuary (only done it once & had a disppointing experience).

@zanderblue if you want to try the Sanctuary...it costs $20/half day/pp, $40pp for a full day. There's a discount, if you book the whole cruise.

Each 1/2 day includes some food. You can read about on Princess.com (or someone here will have more info).

[skynight]

3 hours ago, mtnesterz said:

 

Also, you mention you enjoy a drink before dinner and wine during. Unless you drink roughly 7 or 8 drinks per day, it makes no sense to buy the Plus package

Disagree. If you drink a few specialty coffees, some water and other soft drinks the break even point is around two alcoholic beverages/pp/day, not 7 or 8. Maximum alcoholic drinks/pp/day is 15. Included non alcoholic beverages are unlimited.

Edited October 14, 2022 by skynight

[PRINCESS Sweet Pea]

Sorry for any confusion about the drinks and Plus package.   The Plus package is a flat $50. per day, and when you factor in gratuities and wifi and regular coffees and sodas and alcoholic drinks, can be a good way to go.

 

Also, Ruby has a few nice features, like the AFT Adagio bar which is very nice.  Not just a regular wake-view bar counter.  

 

I am seeing a really excellent ships tour has recently been posted on Youtube.  And a couple of guys have posted a good series of food and dining videos from onboard.  If you haven't seen those, they might be really good to check out.

[sonomaphil]

5 hours ago, mtnesterz said:

Also, you mention you enjoy a drink before dinner and wine during. Unless you drink roughly 7 or 8 drinks per day, it makes no sense to buy the Plus package. 

 $50 per day for the Plus package includes the approximately $15 a day in gratuites based on cabin.  Also includes Internet access valued at $10.  So now we only need to cover $25 to make it "worth it".  One speciality coffee in the morning is $5 or so.  Now we're at $20.  A couple of bottles of water at the pool, another $5.  Now we're at $15 to cover.  See how easy it is to get to this level and I haven't even mentioned alcohol yet?

[wowzz]

I think the consensus is that, unless you only drink tap water and what is described as coffee in the buffet, despite what one person may say,  Princess Plus is a no brainer.

[Mike45LC]

55 minutes ago, wowzz said:

I think the consensus is that, unless you only drink tap water and what is described as coffee in the buffet, despite what one person may say,  Princess Plus is a no brainer.

This is NOT a consensus.  Unless you drink coffees and alcohol, skipping the Plus is a no brainer!  

 

Daily tips, $15.  Daily wifi, elite discount, $5.  Daily price of soda package, $11.80 I think.  $31.80; $18.20 per day less than the Plus. No brainer for me!

 

[wowzz]

9 minutes ago, Mike45LC said:

This is NOT a consensus.  Unless you drink coffees and alcohol, skipping the Plus is a no brainer!  

 

Daily tips, $15.  Daily wifi, elite discount, $5.  Daily price of soda package, $11.80 I think.  $31.80; $18.20 per day less than the Plus. No brainer for 

A consensus means agreement by the majority. 

For you, PP is not worthwhile,  but you are in the minority,  in that you only drink soft drinks. The majority of passengers drink alcohol and tea and coffee.

The consensus view therefore is that the PP package  is  worth buying. 

 

[Wishing on a star]

To the original poster.  Many people have offered very good an helpful advice!

May I recommend that you just disregard those who might want to argue opinion.

 

[mtnesterz]

On 10/14/2022 at 6:41 AM, capriccio said:

I think @mtnesterzis forgetting that the Plus Package includes more than alcoholic drinks including wi-fi and tips ("Crew Appreciation") plus unlimited non-alcoholic drinks. 

Then I suggest you might re-read the last two sentences of my post:

"Same if you do not plan to use the internet or prefer to be an envelope tipper. On Princess, the tronc scheme is automatic, but adjustable."

Now you could say, the term internet is not the same as WiFi, but you did know what I meant about buying internet/wifi service on the ship? Of course you did.

Tipping takes different forms. The OP claims to be from Scotland. When we visited the UK, they used the term tronc scheme to describe the Princess use of a tipping pool. Tipping, as most Americans do it, is less common in the UK. We don't use this term in the US, but understand the post was directed to the OP in the UK. If it caused confusion to you in Florida, it was not intended.

[WhiteOptima]

On 10/14/2022 at 10:05 AM, Wishing on a star said:

 

Other thoughts...   The main pool areas could be busy, crowded, or loud.  Ruby has the nice AFT. pool and bar.  As well as the Adult Retreat Pool.   If you are interested in the Sanctuary, it is really great.  But, those with Princess Captains Circle Status have the benefit of early boarding and can go up there and reserve.  So, it can be booked up.  It is recommended that you go up there, first thing, as early as you can board, to reserve loungers.  There is also a small chance that there could be a cancellation, so you might want to check back.

 

 

 

 

Longtime Carnival cruiser looking at Ruby or Emerald for November 2023 because we want to go to other places than Carnival offers.  So people can book a lounger in Sanctuary for the whole cruise?  If you go up there with no reservation is there a chance there are open chairs?  This would be our first Princess cruise so won’t have perks and of course Carnival doesn’t keep your status across their lines.  Even though first cruise it would be a 14 day cruise.

[LACruiser88]

14 minutes ago, WhiteOptima said:

Longtime Carnival cruiser looking at Ruby or Emerald for November 2023 because we want to go to other places than Carnival offers.  So people can book a lounger in Sanctuary for the whole cruise?  If you go up there with no reservation is there a chance there are open chairs?  This would be our first Princess cruise so won’t have perks and of course Carnival doesn’t keep your status across their lines.  Even though first cruise it would be a 14 day cruise.

Yes, you can book the same lounges for the entire cruise.  You cannot make a reservation pre-cruise, just go up there as soon as you board the ship.

 

I hope you enjoy your trip!