I spite of some less than stellar moments…I’m glad I took this trip…I have two more cruises booked and will do this one again in the future
Embarkation
1 out of 5
I want to say that I do not totally blame Princess…this nightmare start I lay at the feet of the San Francisco Port Authority…I blame Princess for not scheduling things so that the Ruby was not dumped from its scheduled pier 27 to the totally unprepared pier 35…the passengers for the Ruby received no official announcement of the change…and initially the Royal was not scheduled to be in San Francisco…so poor planning Princess…For those unfamiliar with Pier 35…it was the old cruise terminal …it is on the Embarcadero a street with two lanes leading to major tourist attractions …in the past they would have had 4-5 officers controlling traffic and enough porters to move the thousands of passengers off and on the ship … the SF. Port Authorities…fully staffed the newer pier 27… but left only one officer to handle the Sunday traffic and only six porters to handle the luggage of the 3000 Passengers coming off and the 3000 boarding…… there was extreme confusion and lack of order and control…I do not blame the workers who were on site…they were doing their best in a horrendous , stressful situation…I blame the higher ups…who saw the $$$$ of two ships in port…and put no thought into staffing…since San Francisco charges the highest port fees they should offer something close to adequate service
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
I found the bar service in the explorers lounge to be very poor …if you were not a strong advocate for yourself…you would be ignored…the bar service in the main plaza was good…though at times the wait staff would be swamped and patience was required …The food was ok…just not memorable for the most part…The Crown Grill was exceptional …great for meat eaters …it is an additional charge restaurant …but well worth the price …if you wish to dine here make a reservation as soon as possible …desirable times go quickly …and if you find there on Embarkation night…the price is reduced…my last three meals at Sabatini’s had one out standing meal and two fair…my greatest issue with the last two meals was the temperature of the food and a little heavy with the salt…it might be awhile before I try Sabatini’s again…I will just keep the fond memories of the earlier great food… the Chefs’s Table was s pleasant experience …the paired wines were exceptional…all the dishes were beautiful works of art …. But my sense of things was that the Chef found tge table to be a chore…in the past the Chefs seemed to delight in showing off their skills…all of the diners seemed to enjoy the experience…and I do encourage all to experience this…but you need to get your name on the list as soon as you board…there are only twelve slots available…the main dining room had a standard breakfast…a so-so lunch and an ok dinner…I am not a fan of non assigned seating…they try to keep you with the same server…but I had ten dinners with my server and the rest were spread around…again there were issues with temperature of food and a heavy hand at times with salt and vinegar…you can look at the breakfast, lunch and dinner menus on your in cabin tv…then you can decide what dining choices you wish…the international Cafe was exceptional…great for meals or snacks… I enjoyed their sticky monkey bread and the toasty almond croissant…(no marzipan…hooray)…sadly the chocolate bear claw is gone…but the other taste treats more than make up for the loss…I did not care for the milkshake on deck 15…it was just sugared milk…they would have done better to just put in soft serve and whipped it…the room service from the television was great…normally received my order in ten minutes…but the television orders have limited offerings…you can call room service for an extended selection…but at times the phone would ring for 30 minutes before we bailed and went the television route…the deck 15 salty fog grill was ok…did not try deck 15 slice pizza…I had been disappointed too many times in the past…I do miss Alfredo’s pizza but the Ruby does not have it…and with over 90% of the passengers unmasked…I avoided the buffet…but at no time did I go hungry or had difficulty finding something to eat
International Café
5 out of 5
A perfect place for breakfast , lunch or a snack…I did not try them for dinner …loved the monkey bread, the almond croissant and the ham and cheese croissant
Da Vinci Dining Room
3 out of 5
Meals were ok…not memorable . The hostess at the door was sweet. Upbeat and friendly . The server Mario had such an exuberant upbeat attitude that fining with him was like getting an espresso…perks you up and washes away any tiredness…CAUTION… due to space limitations …requests for a table for two will likely pls e you on the bench seating with other couples only two feet away on either side
Sabatini's Italian Trattoria
3 out of 5
When it’s goof it I’d outstanding …all other times it’s ok…food temp and an occasional heavy hand with the salt can reduce the enjoyment of the meal … if you can get Bernardo as your server you are fortunate …he is a genius with napkin folding …I still have in my office a ninja figure he folded for me from a previous cruise
The Salty Dog Grill
3 out of 5
It is ok for a grill… nothing bad…just nothing memorable …it is a great alternative fining option when no other venue appeals to you
Crown Grill
5 out of 5
Exceptional dining experience for meat lovers Book early or you might be out of luck
Adagio
5 out of 5
Wait Staff was attentive and Friendly. The drinks were tasty. The atmosphere warm and intimate. Views from the aft were excellent It is on deck 16 so those prone to motion sickness might have issues
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Pretty much standard activities …for the most part the cruise staff were friendly and out going …I dropped one star because frequently two activities that would appeal to the same passenger would be scheduled at the same time (ie one trivia at midship at 7 and another trivia aft st 7:15)… just an example
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The live music was excellent
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
With the exception of wait staff in Explores lounge…i found the staff attentive and professional …some times when there is great demand for their attention, then patience red is required…but there are some note worthy staff members…Manuel from Portugal …server in DaVinci dining room…Our cabin steward got E517…he was like a ninja turn your back and poof…the room was straightened up…he was incredibly responsive to all of our needs…the Hostess for DaVinci dining room knew our dining preferences on sight and sledys had a friendly greeting for us
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
The cabin had adequate space…a nice size closet…a large screen tv…a refrigerator that kept things cold … only two negatives…there are NO USB PORTS in the cabin…so bring your own or do without …and my cabin has an obstructed view…they were not kidding …the tender completely covered my window …if I look through the tender to its other window I would get the hint of the ocean… and on four occasions I saw personnel inspecting and servicing the tender…so we became used to meting the curtain shut while sleeping , bathing or changing … minor annoyance …another minor annoyance is that the elite upgraded bathroom amenities have stopped and ghetto no longer issue the blue Princess bags…the small savings cannot possibly offset the goodwill these cheap items offered loyal customers …but then again…nobody asked for my business advice…so it must somehow be worth it
Ship tip
When ordering anything using the television … be sure to keep selecting the order now button at the end of your selection…you should see a screen that shows the status of your order…otherwise nothing has been sent…we had to press it two or three times got it to submit …Aldo special items like towels, hangers , laundry etc…are under good ordering at the bottom marked”stateroom amenities”…not an intuitive process
The Port Authorities charge the highest port fees but seem to hold passengers in contempt and offer inadequate services…considering th age of passengers and the time they must wait there should be more places to sit …
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