Cobraman

I presume you meant to say that SHARE is coming to Ruby Princess. Which is interesting news given that there is no gap in Ruby's schedule between now and May, and the current Princess press on SHARE is that it is currently on Crown and Emerald and opening on Sun in April. Plans to add it to Coral were scrapped and no other ships besides those three are mentioned on any official release.

Share is now available on the Ruby, Sabatini's is gone, and the suite breakfast has been moved to the Crown Grill.

My apologies, I stand corrected. I confused the layout on the Ruby for our recent visit on the Grand. I forgot the Crown Grill is located on deck 7 on the Ruby and on the Grand that space is occupied by Sabatini's.

With that said; the Crown Grill prepared the suite breakfast with all of the pleasures Sabatini's could provide.

Not a mac and cheese fan, especially on a cruise. :(

Believe me, it's not your regular mac-n-cheese.

http://www.curtisstone.com/recipe/mac-and-cheese-gruyere-cheddar-and-bacon

Just off the Ruby, the Share offerings on their MDR menu include a delicious Mac-n-Cheese that is rich, filling and very addictive....

Maybe a European inspired duvet is nothing more than a comforter between two sheets.

 

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Just got off the Ruby on Thursday; our last two days coming back from Mexico were very rough (10 foot seas at times with heavy rain and wind) but tolerable. We were in an aft suite with the new beds and linen.

I think you hit it on the head; call it a comforter or a duvet, it is clean and so much better than the previous fitted comforter that never was laundered, always too heavy and (in our case) was always removed, folded and shoved under the bed for the duration of our cruise. The new beds are soft to the first touch, but are very supportive once you lie down. The pillows are a bit soft, but we requested firmer ones and got them next time the room was cleaned.

Food was awesome, service was friendly and the entertainment was very good. Overall, a great ten day cruise!

On the Ruby they converted Sabatini's to the Crown Grill, so the location, window seating and support kitchen are the same. The decorations are different but the laid-back breakfast ambiance is still there. Just got off last week, enjoyed every morning of fresh squeezed juice, and anything you can dream up for breakfast!

On our last two cruises on the Ruby, we received a call soon after boarding asking if we wished to take advantage of the first night specialty dining.

If you are looking for a hand cleaner with a high percentage of alcohol, I don't believe you will find one better than the Zylast Broad Spectrum Antimicrobial Anticeptic. 76% ethyl alcohol coupled with Benzethonium Chloride.

We use it when we travel, and I keep a bottle in my car for use after pumping gas. God knows whose hands were on that nozzle before me.......

We did a MR cruise in late 2014, in an aft suite. While in port (tender) in Loredo, the ship was forced to run its thrusters most of the day. The vibration was so bad by mid-morning I counted a dozen buckets catching water from ceiling leaks. The water leaks were so bad they had three high-volume fans set up to dry carpets in the aft elevator area. Several cabin entrance lights (small can light above doorway entrance) had shook out of their mounts are were handing by wires. If you walk the upper decks and look at the external walls and heavy metal supports, you will see dozens (and I mean dozens) of spots where staff are marking cracked welds and metal tears with red markers, dating them as they continue to widen. The ship needs some real work, in my opinion the leaks have created a health risk from mold growing under carpets and behind wall panels. We will not book the Grand again. Service was first class, food was excellent but the ship is worn and suffers from significant vibation issues from many different sources.

I believe the restriction is still in place on commercial flights, but if driving you can bring them aboard the ship.

We spend alot of sea time and even some port calls on our balcony, so for that reason we always book aft suites. We prefer the extra room and the location.

Couple of years ago we booked a seven nighter to Mexico out of San Pedro. There was a storm headed into the area, but we were told at muster that we were sailing south. A few hours out of San Pedro the captain announced an itinerary change, we ended up doing a modified CA Coastal. Still had a great time, just alot of people with warm weather clothes in cold weather ports.......

Several years ago, we booked a 7 nighter to Mexico on the Sapphire. On the day we boarded a storm off the Mexican coast was growing and the decision was made after we left port to alter the itinerary. We ended up with a couple California ports including San Francisco with a stop in Ensenada thrown in. Not what we planned (or packed) for, since SF was cool, foggy and breezy but in the end we had a great time.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2014/09/16/princess-cruises-new-craft-beer-seawitch/15711063/

Early 2015 for fleet-wide availability.

Nice label.

New IPA beer produced exclusively for Princess; Seawitch IPA.

Strike Brewery is a SF based company, makes a pretty decent line of brews.

Cruise Directors can (and I assume other Princess management team members) assign a passenger to the "VIP" list, which, among many things includes a bridge tour while at sea. They have a nice handout which describes all of the bridge staff and their roles, the navigation and ships control equipment and a detailed statistics list of the ship.

I can only speak for us, but we don't tip for breakfast, nor do we tip for dinner at Sabatini's. I figure we paid for the meal already, and the service is included, otherwise make it a buffet style meal and be done with it.

With each passing year, my wife and I become more jaded to the whole process. We pay the going rate for the cruise, and always leave the auto-tip in place. We then tip stewards, MDR staff and good bartenders. But with our upcoming cruise, we have decided we will only tip for room service deliveries which we initiate.

We will no longer tip a steward who does his/her job AND already receives a tip from me, same with the MDR wait staff.

I am ready to embrace the Princess philosophy of "cashless cruising".......no cash, no tips.

Noro is caused by a virus, not a germ. There is a difference.

 

DON

I guess I should have explained better - benzethonium chloride, a synthetic germicide is effective against many germs, viruses and bacteria.

The Clorox hand cleaner is a great product, however you may want to check out a similar product called Zylast. It contains a 5% higher concentration of ethyl alcohol and also contains effective levels of benzethonium chloride, a synthetic germicide used in many non-alcohol hand cleaners. We use it and find it does not dry your skin even when used several times during the day to augment soap/water cleaning of your hands often, especially during the first few days after boarding.

We now use the Clorox hydrogen peroxide spray to wipe down our room.

Thanks for the review, we will be on the Grand again in October. BTW - if you are a suite guest, always request that your steward pick up MDR menus and leave them in your room. That way you have the lunch and dinner menu so you can plan accordingly. Much like you, my wife and I often times eat dinner in our room so we don't have to dress up, then if we want to go to a late show or the casino we can take our time getting ready.

I guess the whole idea of suite vs. other arrangements, Sabatini's vs. buffet vs. MDR breakfast is all about personal taste and preferences.

We always book an aft suite, or we don't go - period. We have stayed in smaller cabins and just find it too confining and the aft view is worth the money it commands.

I'd rather take two cruises per year and get exactly what I want, rather than more travel time compromising on living arrangements. Yes, elite members get many of the suite perks (we are elite too) but they don't enjoy the larger living arrangements, balcony, etc.

Sabatini's is for those who enjoy a more formal breakfast arrangement, attentive service and much more variety than the menu provides. If you ask for a rib-eye steak with your roasted potatoes and eggs; you will get it. I remember the first time I requested a double ration of crispy fried corn beef hash.....but, once they realized I would not be happy without it, they found it and fried it to my specs. They were happier than me in the fact they met the challenge and proved once again they really do want to exceed your expectations.

BTW - If you want rustic bread for toast, you just have to make the point that is what you prefer, they will do whatever they possibly can to exceed your expectations.

Those little extras are what generates employee feedback forms with glowing comments, which is the greatest currency you can utilize while on board.

Sabatini's is not for everybody, but as far as perks go, it is high on my list since they open and operate that space just for suite guests, many of whom never enjoy it. The cost vs. return is questionable, however they continue to offer it and I will continue to enjoy the hell out of it.

We build a folder for each cruise/vacation, so we can compare/reference little things.

I have folders for each cruise lines membership kit and the Princess sticker passports and pins are in their own folder. I like the little stickers, we have onew for every Princess cruise location/itinerary.

I do the same for RV memberships and hotel/airline loyalty memberships.

Over the years you pile up quite a bit of stuff, but keeping it all organized pays dividends when you need a number, or want to compare past cruise pricing, cost of excursions, etc.

I really like Princess and have no complaints, but the best cruise experience I've ever had was a two week run to Hawaii from San Pedro on the Celebrity Summit. From the sky suite butler service, to the entertainment and the food - all were a noticable notch above Princess's best effort.

We all have our own experiences; so this one is mine and I know many others who feel differently and hopefully so since that variety is what drives competition amongst service providors.

We just got off the Sapphire, this was our 9th time aboard. Overall we found the ship, the crew and the food met our expectations. Most of the crew we spoke to were looking forward to the itinerary shift.

There was obvious construction in many areas, new carpet and lounge chairs, new flooring around the shops which created a bit of noise but overall we had a great time. We were on the Sapphire following its last, major refurbishing and the current work being done is nothing close to the inconveniences we experienced after that dry dock.

The one thing I hate to see go is Churchill's. It is going to be gutted, making room for a "high rollers" extension of the casino.