Coastal - West Coast Cruise Reviews

We have high expectations for Princess and this cruise did not live up.  Food was disappointing, it seemed we had what was left after the Alaskan cruises, no lobster, many things cold with no taste, some items over salted.  Duty free liquor was wiped out with over 50% of listed stock not available.  Bartenders were making obvious short pours.  Muster drill took over an hour because recordings did not work.  Disembarking took over 90 minutes after we got off the ship to get through immigration.  On the plus side, the shows were fantastic.  Victory was a nice port to visit but the 6 hours was too short.

This is my family's first cruise and the experience was excellent.  Will definitely take up another cruise in the future.

Thanks to the helpful assistance from the sales representative at ; this made the vacation memorable and enjoyable one.

Cheers;

Michael and family.

Customer service great. Ship needs repair. Internet down 2-3 days, locks in women's bathroom did not all work, leak on Baja deck, so drydock should be done sooner. Catered to my low-salt diet. Crown Grill terrific!

This was our 18th Princess Cruise and the second time on the Ruby Princess.

We were traveling with two other couples ad had a fabulous time.  One of the travelers that was with us was on his first cruise and his wife has now stated that since the return we have created a monster.  He had a great time, we all did.

The Ruby Princess/ Nov 01 2015, 7 Night Californiaq Coastal (Los Anageles Rounddtrip) cruise was a second one we made this year.  We really enjoyed things that we did on and off the Ruby Princess.  Food, service, and itinerary  

are very good.  We are from Orange County, a short drive to cruiseship 

dock is a plus.  

We had a life boat outside our window which was fine but no one told us people would be going on the boat while at sea, hence we kept our curtains open even while in bed,  one day I was laying in bed unclothed with my husband and a man was peeking in the window at me and my husband in  bed, my husband said I was going crazy that no way could be on the boat, that I had seen his reflection, that no one could get into a  boats hanging on the side of the ship  at sea,  but after this happened three time he got up and looked but saw no one,  then I saw two men  in the boat so my husband jumped up  again and looked into the boat to see I was not joking this disgusted us how long they had been looking at us we had no idea,  they need to  let people know that this can happen this was rather shocking. Staff never seemed to care at the desk when my husband told them. The room was a big let down two days running   Sewage  flooded into our room, we had to change rooms  two nights before Disembarkation  as the smell was awful and it went into mine and my husbands shoes in the room, so we had to pack up everything which took us ages, this was formal night  nether one of us   had  been able to shower so missed show and photos on our 12 anniversary.

Both rooms had awful hard beds and lumpy pillows, bedding out dated. For a ship only built in 2008 we were very supersized. everyone was talking about the food and the ship saying never again.  First timers had nothing to con-pair to, But after sailing with Holland line, P&O, Norwegian & other company this is the worse I have been on. The man at the desk was very condescending when I told him  this was our 12th anniversary and we expected better than this. I feel we should have been compensated in some way. But nothing was done we asked for someone to call us but so far no one has. 

Princess did an outstanding job of handling embarkation and disembarkation, not as good a job of handling the 3000 passengers on board.  Ship felt over crowded.  For example, twice, we were not able to be seated in the 8:00 p.m. evening show in the Princess Theater, even when getting there 10 minutes or more before curtain time.  A third time we had to be separated to get seats.  One time we were there 30 minutes early, got decent seats and then got to watch some other passengers falling asleep around us.  A lot of the staff had poor English language skills and could not answer simple questions.  On the plus side, our assigned dinning room waiters were very good as was our stateroom attendant.  The food was very good, with some servings being excellent. 

I have been in better cruises

the organization and people kind were excellent

everything on time and a good ship 

I recommend this cruise line to everyone

Foods were yummy, Music Bands were great...Wish the Wheelhouse dance area a little bigger.

And, Buffet need be opened until 12:30 midnight for late owls would be nice.

We decided to go again on this cruise because we live in the San Francisco bay area and this is a quick and easy cruise to take and avoid flying while spending time away from home.

The ship is nice, clean and everybody tries real hard to make the guests enjoy their vacation.  There are enough activities for all and our group had a very good time.

Special thanks to our dining room staff, Felipe, Rajid and the Maitre'D.

Comedian with filthy language was inappropriate. Quartet singer was too loud and ruined passengers wanting to dance. Disco night was horrible music, not really disco.  You need more danceable music for passengers.  Maybe the Mexican trio could have played in the Wheelhouse 2-3 nights instead of the screaming singer from the Quartet.   People want to dance - not listen to screamers or jump up and down to music that has no rhythm.

Aside from the music problems, the rest of the cruise was perfect.  Ric Steele was the best part of the entertainment - a real professional with something for everyone. Dancers and singers at Princess Theater and Vista Lounge put on a great show also.  Make your demographics to the population of your people, which is early rock dance and funk.  We are on the boat for "feel good" music, not to promote screaming singers.

water buckets everywhere.  In the dining rooms, hallways, elevator areas.  Smells of sewer occasionally .  Not too clean.  Holes in sheets!.  Not much activity.  Excursion selections  were just ok. Crews looked as though they were wearing hand me down clothes from the nineties.  The food was good, the crew was good too.  Put the ship to rest.  My last princess cruise.  I will stay with celebrity or better.

One of the worst cruises we have been on. Entertainment was very poor, we don't think it met the usual Princess standards. Trivia games were a disaster! Smoking area very poor location!

Everything was great!  Want to go again.  Next time Alaska, i heard it's a great one. The workers on the ship are very respectful and helpful. Only thing I didn't like, was their coffee.

the cruise had a lot of good tours and the shows on the ship were just great.

I enjoyed the ships dinning rooms and the crew in the dinning room and our room did a very good job. I wish there was more info regarding any problems the ship may or may not have had

 Very enjoyable and relaxing cruise.  Staff extremely polite, pleasant and friendly. Would cruise this ship again. Only a few problems.  First, the Alcatraz Tour, could have used an extra hour or more on the island.  Second, because of weather in Santa Barbara, of course we can not control,  for the trolley tour we waited over and hour on the street because of delay.  No cruise ship staff to give any directions. 

Easy, fun trip going to some of our favorite California cities for a day at a time, without the driving, packing and unpacking....and in our case, no need to flight across country a day in advance, saving time, money and a hotel room.  These advantages were capitalized upon by a number of physically challenged passengers. There was tendering at Santa Barbara, but otherwise, we were parked at piers walking distance to the cities.  We went to 4 shows which were all very good, two of which were musical reviews, one was magic and the fourth was a telepathic magic show of sorts.  The two magic(esque) shows were incredible.  The Princess staff was all very polite and attentive, especially our cabin steward.  Food was Princess food.  A new specialty 'event' is a Crab Fest dinner, which was quite the change....very different and generally offered only once per week.  Demand caused them to offer a second night, that we happily attended.  I would definitely do this again.

Overall our first experience in a cruise ever was exceptional w/ just some room keepsakes issues to make this cruise a complete 5 Star for us. BTW, we came with a large group (9 total) but 2 cabins. The programs and events will keep you busy enough the moment you step into the ship that you won't want to sleep anymore. You are greeted by the crew once you enter the ship so prepare your video (we miss it coz we didn't know they would announce our arrival:)The theater shows were phenomenal (too bad can't take videos to show off). All worth every $$$ paid (mind you costly get-away cruise) but hoping Disney won't increase their cruise price anymore :) like Disneyland did so we can cruise again next year. The food/restaurant/buffet breakfast all awesome. I just hoped we had a few minutes of service orientation so we know what & where we could get food haha! Drinks are free. Don't worry about bringing extra drinks instead bring wines (allowed 2 bottles by Disney cruise) and a good wine opener. Adult fun is til 2am and kids have their own places to go too(look at the program at once and GO don't waste time!!! Servers are awesome. Crews are 99% friendly and always w/ a smile. Gratuities are included in your overall cabin bill at the end of your cruise but if you want to give extra tip, envelopes are provided also on the last day. Our Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom w/ Verandah is the best for family of 5 (10-16yrs old) we were not cramped in the room at all. Bathrooms/shower are separated which is a great idea! I love everything in this cruise! Will definitely do it again!!!

This cruise was really nice. We got to stay in San Fran until 11pm which was awesome. The margaritas in Ensanada were great. Overall the cruise was awesome.

We arrived at the Port of Los Agngeles at noon, the exact time RCCL advised in an email the day before. Had a difficult time finding Jewel of the Seas because it had been moved to an auxiliary berth over a mile away from the cruise port. When we entered to drop off bags, I was advised to drop them off and then park back at the cruise port and a shuttle bus would bring us back to the ship. Fair enough I thought. When the bus arrived back at Jewel of the Seas we encountered a very long line outside the temporary tent set up for the embarkation. After standing in the sun for over 40 minutes we finally made it into the shade. Shortly thereafter, a new line appeared next toours and passengers swarmed to the front. RCCL personnel were overwhelmed and any semblance of order was lost. Platnimum and Diamond lines were a joke. People just jped into the first line they saw. The power to the computers in the tent had failed and boarding had to processed manually. The temperature in the tent was over 100 degrees and there was very little water available. RCCL personnel said it was not their fault and to blame it on the port. Bottom line we finally got on the ship at 4 PM,  just prior to the safety brief.

After finally getting to our room things improved immensely. This is a great ship and the decor was fantastic. Food in the dining room was the best I have encountered on more than 14 cruises. The waiters were accomplished and made the cruise experience worthwhile. The buffet in the Windjammer was a different story. The food was bland and underseasoned. The only saving grace was breakfast when we had on debarkation day. We took all meals in the dining room.

I can not comment on the ports as I twisted a knee on the shuttle bus prior to embarkation and was unable to walk enough to go ashore.My experience was limited to my room and the dining room.

I would love to give Jewel of the Seas another chance.