Coastal - West Coast Cruise Reviews

We boarded the ship in Vancouver, in the rain.  Unfortunately, the porters were not at the curb and we and our luggage got rather wet before we found the porters, nice and dry, inside.  There were several lines and waiting areas, but the good news was that we went through USA customs, there.  We had a nice mini-suite, so enjoyed our cabin.  It was a smooth sail from Vancouver to LA with nothing spectacular to see or do.  We traveled with 6 friends.  Relaxing with time to visit, read and listen to music.  We are Your time dining, and as on the Coral, last week, we were not impressed with the dining room service.  Enjoyed the Horizon Buffet more.  It was a fun cruise and would do again.

This was a good trip down the US West coast with stops along the way in Victoria, Canada - Astoria, Oregon - San Francisco, California - Monterey, California - Santa Barbara, California - and ending up in San Pedro, California  Embarcation in Vancouver was fast and efficient and debarkation went smoothly, as well.  Having to go through customs/immigration in Astoria freed up time for the final debarkation in Los Angeles.

All together a very good experience.  The entertainment was excellent , the staff did a great job.  Had some mechanical issues that delayed departure for San Francisco and ended up curtailing our visit to Victoria which was one of our main reasons for taking this cruise.  But the crew adjusted and the visit was very nice, but shorter than expected.  WE noted that RC seems to be cutting back on food variety, wait staff, and amenities from previous cruises. No bathrobes, no Brie cheese, fewer waiters during shows. We wonder if this is a trend.  Are they becoming like airlines?

I cruised out of San Diego on the Jewel of the Seas ,stopped at Catalina Island for the day. Next stop San Francisco stayed over night ,then a day at sea and stopped in Victoria B C . The next day Vancouver Canada got off the ship

older ship. needs refurbishing. food marginal at best. tasteless. some crew members very helpful and friendly-waiters and room attendant. the rest of crew just showed no interest. lack of activities. shows were ok. not a very good experience. probably wont use royal caribbean again. 

Enjoyed the short trip. Took this cruise because it was the first cruise for my wife and she wasn't sure if she'd get sea sick. She did great and we've gone on many cruises since. It is a good "experimental" cruise. They do need more options for dinning.

Excellent getaway! Loved all the stops and it was enjoyable to get away from all the "Caribbean" made for cruise ship destinations...

Enjoyed cruise very much--very nice passengers (most Canadians).  Lots of things to do; movies in room throughout day--ended up watching 2 @ night after a full day.  Enjoyed eating, gambling, medical spa, card-making class, etc.

This was our 4th LA/Vancouver repositioning cruise.

Fun times, good to better food, similar to other Princess Cruises that I have been on, beautiful scenery, exceptional service. The only problem was the elevator situation. I waited 30 minutes for an elevator one day.

I had a great time on the Ruby Princess , I enjoyed the food on board and the Ports were all good , except Ensenada not one  of my favorite places.The weather was good and we had smooth sailing

Since we are tired of the long trips to Europe and the Caribbean, we enjoy the Princess ships that sail the Pacific Ocean by the USA and cruise to our beautiful California cities. Since we live in Orange County and close to the LA port, we have taken this cruise three times: on the Sapphire Princess, Celebrity Century (now sold), and the most recent Ruby Princess (April, 2015).

We enjoy exploring the Northern California cities: The delicious seafood restaurants, Buena Vista for Irish Coffee, and exciting Aquarium in San Francisco; the Museum of Art and historical courthouse in Santa Barbara; and all the wonderful activites (museums, zoo, Seaport Village, Gas Light District, Old Town) San Diego has to offer. Mexico offers beautiful, colorful pottery for your kitchen, at a low cost. The people on the ship are travelers and a delight to talk about everything.

The Ruby is one of our favorite ships from Princess (we have been on nine different ships with 13 cruises) as it is a good size (3000 guests), and has the beautiful Skywalker Lounge on deck 18 with a great panoramic view; and the delightful Sabatini's Restaurant on deck 16 with delicious food and excellent service, at a great price ($25.00).

We want Princess to keep her ships on our Pacific Coast.  We have another Pacific coast cruise scheduled in October on the Crown Princess ( another great ship like the Ruby) for our 30th wedding anniversary,  and look forward to a wonderful and fun time!

Had never been on a 7 day cruise before my Princess California Coastal Cruise.  I had a great time every day.  The excursions were fun and the time on the ship was packed full of activities.  I really enjoyed the spa treatments.  I had only been on a 4 day cruise on a smaller cruise ship in Greece at the end of the cruise season.  And that ship was half full.  I thought this huge ship was going to be crowded and it would be hard to get good service and that the shows and other activities would be hard to get into.  I was completely wrong!  Really surprised me.  I loved the cruise employees.  They were wonderful and made everything easy for us!  Only thing I didn't like were the attempts to "up-sell" you..buy the special oil at the spa... buy the special Irish coffee at breakfast.  But overall... A WONDERFUL TIME!

The ship is a bit dated but  the junior suite and large balcony  was awesome!!!! all the staff was awesome except in the spa The Spa staff was unbelievable bad, not just poor, not just condescending, but "yea, you didn't get what you paid for... whatever... Ill have the manager call you. Yea, no manager call, no manager available, no return call and a reel feel that It was a bother for them for my wife and I to give them over $250 dollars and what? you dirty American didn't get what you think you paid for? stop calling us.

The ship, the crew, the food, the entertainments and the general quality is good.

The bad parts are:....(there are 2 issues that I would like to share..)

******The "WIFI"........SHOULD BE FREE, DON'T YOU AGREE? I THINK IT SHOULD BE! BUT INSTEAD, THEY'RE CHARGING $0.79 PER MINUTE! YES, YOU READ IT RIGHT! $0.79 PER MINUTE!!!! THAT'S WAY WAY TOO MUCH.

******AND THE WORST PART IS: THE HIDDEN CHARGES. BOTH ME AND MY WIFE WERE BEING CHARGED FOR EXACTLY A HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100.00). I DON'T REMEMBER SEEING OR READING ABOUT THIS ONLINE WHEN I DID THE BOOKING. YOU KNOW WHAT THE CHARGES ARE FOR? FOR CREWS' TIP. YES, RIGHT, YOU READ IT RIGHT, CREWS' TIPS. I DID NOT ALLOW THEM TO CHARGE ME FOR THAT, AND THEY CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. IF YOU WILL BE ASKED TO GIVE THEM YOUR VISA CARD/CREDIT CARD INFO, THEY'LL AUTOMATICALLY DEDUCT THE HIDDEN CHARGES. THAT IS:.....IF YOU'LL GIVE THEM YOUR CARD'S INFO. LUCKILY, I HAVEN'T DONE THAT!

RATHER THAN THOSE, IT'S EXCELLENT! CAN'T COMPLAIN. I'M SORRY, BUT I JUST HATE HIDDEN CHARGES! FOR ME, THAT IS STEALING!!!!!!!

I took my daughter on her first cruise for her birthday. I have been on several cruises with several lines and had something to compare this to, but she did not. I was extremely pleased with the experience on Golden Princess. The service was exceptional from the time we were met at the airport and transported to the ship. Even the boarding process was organized and hassle free. Onboard the staff were very accommodating and friendly. The food was excellent. We enjoyed being able to select \"anytime\" dining to accommodate a less structured schedule. My daughter certainly had a great time and it was a super choice for her first cruising experience. Will definitely sail with Princess again!

My room was very cold. The ship was very cold. Many people were cold. The ship never raised the temperature. My wife and I were uncomfortably cold. My wife and I are platium members with Princess. We love the production shows. We tried Carnival again to sort of compare and see if we would like the younger age group cruise. People were more fun. Loved the wider hallways because my wife uses a walker. I had an engineer come into our room and physically close our vent to atop all air coming in. Did I mention that the ships was cold. I made several complaints to customer service but it must of fell upon deaf ears. I could never reach customer service by phone - I tried at all hours.

I worked two jobs to buy my mother and her husband a 7 day cruise to Mexico.  When we were notified that the cruise was to leave on Sunday night at 8 pm instead of the scheduled 1 pm Saturday, I was very upset because they would not refund the money for the shortened trip.  They classified this as a "change of itinerary" not a complete cancellation of two days!  They also cancelled the port stop at Puerto Vallarta - one of the advertised destinations.  When I called customer (no) service, "Lauren" told me (in a condescending tone of voice) that the only way I could get my money back was after the cruise was over and it would not be refunded to me, but it would be given to my parents on the ship.  I had already given them cash to spend, and asked that the money be refunded to my visa card that was originally used to book the cruise.   I was now transferred to her supervisor, "Mary" who told me this was not possible.  The money would only go to "onboard credit" and would only be refunded to my parents even though they did not pay for the cruise.  She did however, tell me that the advance payment on the shore excursion would be refunded to my credit card.  (Now I have been on the phone for over an hour)  "Mary" again asked me to wait on hold (no reason given), and after 15 minutes, told me that the money would not be refunded to my credit card, but would be given to "onboard credit" and if I wanted the money back, I would have to talk to my parents.  She hung up on me before I could ask any questions, "It was a pleasure speaking to you...."  click.

So now I again called back, and was disconnected three times....

If a company cannot refund money to the customer who paid for the cruise, when that company is responsible for canceling several days and destinations in their cruise, a refund is in order!  They were more than happy to take the money, but once they have it, good luck getting anything back! 

I do not recommend until they clear the staterooms from bedbugs

The ship is small and the guests are fun. This is the best kept secret in the cruise industry. They energy and fun on this one night cruise was perfect. The ports are set and ready for these people, easy on and easy off. Great food, fun times for everyone.

We sailed on the \"Crown Princess\" for the west coast cruise from Vancouver down the coast to Los Angeles. The ship is a good ship, the cruise was smooth sailing all the way! The only thing we don't care for about the ship is the way to get to the Botticelli dining room is confusing. One elevator doesn't go there and you have to get off on the floor above it to take the stairs down somehow around it. I heard grumbling from many people as to getting to the dining area. Also the casino still smells like cigarettes! Once you figure out how to navigate these pitfalls its ok!