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Ruby Princess Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

KenCrabbs

Contributor Level: Third Mate

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 52

Overall rating:

2.8 out of 5

Verified Review

10 Night Panama Canal With Costa Rica & Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 29, 2024

Ship: Ruby Princess

Cabin type: Oceanview

Cabin number: E507

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 9 months ago

Review summary

This was our 44th cruise, but our first with Princess. Friends and relatives had raved about it over time, so we were looking forward to a premium experience. We really wanted to like Princess, but within a few days, we realized we'd made a big mistake in booking this cruise. The food selection was limited and bland. There was no enforced hand washing (we did it voluntarily), so we weren't surprised when we came down with the flu on the fourth day. We spent most of the remainder of the cuise in our cabin. The room service menu was extremely limited, so we ventured out for bad meals in the buffet - diligently washing our hands and staying away from others. We were so sick of that food that late in the cruise, we went to the main dining room to ask for take out from the regular menu. They were able to arrange to have the meals sent back to our cabin with room service. It was one of my favorite dishes - Beef Wellington served with spinach and a twice-baked potato. However, I only finished the spinach. The Wellington was tough and bland and the potato was very dry. We loved the ability to track our travel mates with the medallion and the app. However, aside from that, the app wasn't very good. We couldn't find important information like the service hours of various things throughout the ship. I don't know how the Ruby Princess compares to other ships in the fleet; however, based on our experience, it feels like Carnival Corporation has essentially abandoned what was once a premium cruiseline and are milking it dry.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

The food was generally bland and the variety was subpar. The buffets reminded me of the midnight buffets we used to have where the cheap cruiselines used it to get rid of its leftovers. There was no hand washing enforcement anywhere! In addition, the headline desset in the main dining room was served from an open bowl in the middle of the dining room. Does Princess not understand basic food safety? Beverages in the buffet were horrible. No fruit punch, flavored water, and very limited juices at breakfast. Water/Ice dispensers seem to be a maintenance problem on this ship. Lemonade and iced tea put out in pitchers. Iced tea is opaque sludge.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

This is not a ship built for thrills. However, we enjoyed the enrichment programs. The port expert was excellent. Unfortunately we missed much of this because we came down with the flu after three days (see comments above about hand washing).

Entertainment

3 out of 5

The first production show felt like watching Lawrence Welk. However, we really enjoyed the "sand art" performance. Missed the remaining shows.

Service and Staff

2 out of 5

The first couple of dinners in the main dinning room were chaotic. Things seemed to be better by the third night, but not great. Don't know after that as we got the flu. We tried using the Medallion to order coffee to come to use in a lounge that didn't offer coffee. The app told us that it was on the way, but after a long wait, we finally gave up and left. Didn't bother to try again.

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

The ship had a refit a few months ago. It was clear that some areas had gotten more love than others. There were some very nice rooms. The outside promenade really felt like the full age of the ship. The overall layout was reasonable with the exception of the Botticelli dining room which required going up one deck to get past the main kitchen before going back down to the dining room.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

The size was good. Overall, it felt a bit dated. NO OUTLET OR USB NEAR THE BEDS! Come on, it's 2024. The closet was adjacent to the bath room and seperated from the main cabin by a wall. It had a lot of hanging space. However, it had a bright light that automatically came on when someone walked in/by (which was every time anyone went to the bathroom). This was very unfortunate in the middle of the night. Could be very easily fixed by adding a curtain in the doorway between the closet/bedroom and the rest of the cabin. The was the first time I was in a cabin with a shower curtain in years. Wasn't a problem, but felt a bit like motel 6.

Ship tip

Find another ship

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

3 out of 5

Would have loved to have done the Intracoastal waterway tour at the back end of the cruise, but it was sold out.

Thumbs Up 0

Montego Bay, Jamaica

4 out of 5

Cartagena, Colombia Did not visit port

Flu

Thumbs Up 0

Panama Canal (Cruise Into Canal) Did not visit port

Flu - saw what we could from the ship.

Thumbs Up 0

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica Did not visit port

Flu.

Thumbs Up 0

George Town, Grand Cayman Did not visit port

Bad weather closed the port.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

4 out of 5

Very smooth and ran ahead of schedule.

Traveler Photos

13 Comments

1960cruiser 9 months ago

Chances are you were sick before you boarded the ship, and far as your opinion of the food, well, I don't know how you rated the food, but I never had a meal like you described on any Princess ship. The Ruby is one of my favorite ships in the Princess fleet, but some people aren't happy unless they are complaining about some. Personally, things have to be really bad before I start whinging about a cruise, cause things will go wrong, when you pack 3500 people onto a ship for 7 days. I have been on over 4p cruises in the past 8 years, and so far, I have not had a perfect cruise, but I also don't complain about every little thing which then ruins the cruise, and the only one to blame for that woukd be me, so make the best of every cruise, and enjoy it.

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Merriwether 9 months ago

How many days was your cruise? I've found that cruises less than 7 days usually aren't optimum.

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Gwbigdog 9 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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RoyalCruzer 9 months ago

I share your sentiment. We stopped cruising all Carnival brands 10 years ago. They are in financial trouble, their stock price hasn't recovered from covid and are making drastic cuts.

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millersaboard 9 months ago

Thanks for sharing 🙂

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karlgrgurich 9 months ago

Unfortunately you chose an older ship. So…not the experience of the newer ones

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karlgrgurich 9 months ago

When our friends got covid on our Princess cruise last summer, they contacted the medical centre. They were isolated to their cabin. All meals were delivered, and they could order off the MDR menus. They also were reimbursed for all missed excursions and days they were quarantined.

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javawoody 9 months ago

It’s understandable that you didn’t enjoy with the flu

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Niavlys 9 months ago

Ouf, sorry to hear that you didn't enjoyed your cruise

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AuntPinkie 9 months ago

Appreciate your detailed feedback. Sorry you became ill. Hope your next cruise is better.

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picalo 9 months ago

i love a good beef wellington... sorry it wasn't good. I just got off Princess last month and had a very similar experience... they had the washie washie person out there the first night and that was it. Great review

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HeavySeas 9 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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Skooby 9 months ago

Thanks for your review. Sorry to hear about your illness. It's unfortunate, but most cruisers don't wash their hands on cruise ships. I've witnessed the same. That's why there's norovirus running rampant on Queen Mary cruise ship right now. I recall in 2013 Ruby Princess docked in Dubrovnik and said to myself.... that's one beautiful ship. But I guess not any longer.

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