Ruby or Emerald…help!

[Mrgoodbar]

I am surprising my wife with a Panama Canal cruise next year.  Looking at the aft suites on Aloha or Caribe decks on either Emerald or Ruby.  Do both decks have totally covered balconies?  Are aft balconies able to be used during canal passing?  We usually pick partially covered but I cannot find a lot of updates info on these older ships.  Any info is appreciated.

[Ombud]

Sister ships, pick Caribe deck as it has larger balconies

[Thrak]

Same ship - different name. Caribe deck balconies are larger than other balcony cabin balconies. They are half-covered, half-uncovered. I always choose a Caribe deck balcony if possible. I'd choose aft-facing balconies but they are more expensive and I'm too cheap to pay for them.

[nini]

Aft facing Caribe deck- the balconies are much larger.

WE were not crazy about the Emerald last May, but maybe the crew and vibes have improved.

But we have not been on the Ruby.

[talkorpi]

Emma Cruises (one of the best Cruise YouTubers) recently did a video on the Emerald and she had one of the aft-facing cabins.  Might be worth your time to take a look at the video, it's pretty comprehensive.

 

 

[wcflats]

Both ships are our favorite layouts.  Crews change but ships don’t.  Agreed that deck ten is the best for balcony size.   Don’t care for aft balcony but that’s an individual preference.  Won’t go wrong with either one.   We’re going on emerald in May which is essentially identical to both ships mentioned.

[Essiesmom]

Choose your cabin location for the itinerary, not for canal day.  It’s only one day of the cruise and you should want to be moving around for different views.  Remember, Ruby and Emerald will be using the new locks, not the original historic locks.  Emerald on full transit today:

 

 

[eclue]

Both are pretty much the same  - go with the itinerary and ports.

 

[gottagocit]

We’ve sworn we would never sailing on the Ruby again. It’s probably only a coincidence but the two times we sailed on her we both got awful stomach sickness and couldn’t leave our cabin for a few days. As I said it’s probably only coincidence but why tempt fate. Lol. 
Never had any digestive system issues on any of our other Princess voyages on 10 other ships. 

[sonomaphil]

During canal day on Emerald back in January FLL-LA we moved around the ship for different views so much we set a record with out Fitbit steps.  You really don't want to just stay in one place like your own balcony.  Pick whatever balcony and price you are comfortable with.  If doing full transit you're on board for 15 days...consider a mini, that extra space is very appreciated on the longer cruises.  We love both ships and have two Ruby cruises scheduled for this season out of San Francisco. 

Edited March 22, 2023 by sonomaphil

[claudia814]

Join us April 5th next year on Emerald for a Total Eclipse of the Sun cruise from Los Angeles through Panama Canal to Fort Lauderdale 😎. Enjoy the surprise!

[eclue]

19 hours ago, gottagocit said:

We’ve sworn we would never sailing on the Ruby again. It’s probably only a coincidence but the two times we sailed on her we both got awful stomach sickness and couldn’t leave our cabin for a few days. As I said it’s probably only coincidence but why tempt fate. Lol. 
Never had any digestive system issues on any of our other Princess voyages on 10 other ships. 

We have sailed on the Ruby 4 times since last June and never had a problem!

[Papa Yoda]

Those ships are almost identical and issues can happen on any. We tend to avoid Vista Suites (S6) on Caribe or Emerald decks aft - too many pillars.  Dolphin Deck Vista Suites are our favorites, but don't tell anyone!  But you can't go wrong with Penthouse or Owner suites on Aloha or Caribe.