Ruby Princess…..why less expensive?

[muffin]

Looking at Carribean in the early winter. Ruby is significantly less expensive. Why? It is still rated 5 star and I do not see poor reports in my limited searching. Has not had a refurbish for awhile, but is it grim?  Thx for insights. 

[snoozecrooze]

Ratings on Cruise Critic or wherever mean nothing for cruise ships. There's no such as thing as an objective ratings rubric for cruise ships.

 

The itinerary for Ruby is a 10-day Panama Canal partial transit and the prices they're charging seem on par with history and how demand is. Port fees are also substantial for all Panama Canal cruises so I think the way the fare is laid out still makes it a good value. 

 

Caribbean is doing 7-day East/West Caribbean, which is the standardized, family-targeting itinerary and demand is high for those.

Edited July 5, 2023 by snoozecrooze

[MissP22]

We haven't sailed on the Ruby in many years (2009) and I suspect the difference in price is due to it being an older ship which doesn't attract newer customers like the other ships do. We'll be giving it a try this fall once again and although it might not be a shiny and new as before I'm certain it'll still be fine. 

[1965]

We were on Ruby in Feb. No issues whatsoever. Take advantage of the lower pricing. 😊

[padgman1]

On 7/5/2023 at 11:48 AM, muffin said:

Looking at Carribean in the early winter. Ruby is significantly less expensive. Why? It is still rated 5 star and I do not see poor reports in my limited searching. Has not had a refurbish for awhile, but is it grim?  Thx for insights. 

Because the Ruby Princess now has a dent/ small hole in her hull ( see recent posts in last 24 hours on Ruby Princess on this forum)...

 

Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

Hope it doesn't take too long to repair.

[Rick&Jeannie]

Ruby Princess…..why less expensive?

 

Because it keeps running into piers while docking... 🙄

[PacnGoNow]

41 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Ruby Princess…..why less expensive?

 

Because it keeps running into piers while docking... 🙄

I’m surprised you said that.  Well, maybe not. 😳

[waltd]

Older ship pricing has been  historically lower.   Everyone wants newer ships and they can charge more.  .  Its the incentive to get the older ships filled.  It's fine with me as we like the older ships.   

[katmu]

49 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Ruby Princess…..why less expensive?

 

Because it keeps running into piers while docking... 🙄

Perhaps we need the cruise line equivalent of Carfax to look up a ship’s accident history.😂

 

[JG&Lcruisingnewbies]

15 minutes ago, katmu said:

Perhaps we need the cruise line equivalent of Carfax to look up a ship’s accident history.😂

 

 

You jest. But never fear- someone has thought of this & stuck all the gory details online for us

 

CruiseMapper.com has an accidents link, located on the navy blue line on the top of the page

 

not sure I want to look though! 😱 

[katmu]

8 minutes ago, JG&Lcruisingnewbies said:

 

You jest. But never fear- someone has thought of this & stuck all the gory details online for us

 

CruiseMapper.com has an accidents link, located on the navy blue line on the top of the page

 

not sure I want to look though! 😱 

Wow, yes I was not serious.  I don’t think i want to look either. 😳

 

The good news from this morning was that no one was injured.

[Steelers36]

On 7/5/2023 at 12:48 PM, muffin said:

Looking at Carribean in the early winter. Ruby is significantly less expensive. Why? It is still rated 5 star and I do not see poor reports in my limited searching. Has not had a refurbish for awhile, but is it grim?  Thx for insights. 

It had a sizeable hole in the hull right now?  (See SF port report on another thread).  😁

[Mike07]

The Ruby is cheaper, because they check driver's licenses prior to boarding and every driving eligible passenger is required to take a shift on the bridge.

[Steelers36]

5 minutes ago, Mike07 said:

The Ruby is cheaper, because they check driver's licenses prior to boarding and every driving eligible passenger is required to take a shift on the bridge.

Graveyard shift!

[brisalta]

The Ruby Princess is schedule to go into dry dock late September followed by a wet dock. That is it is undergoing some major refurbishments. Now there will be some added work due to the incident today.

[JG&Lcruisingnewbies]

9 hours ago, Mike07 said:

The Ruby is cheaper, because they check driver's licenses prior to boarding and every driving eligible passenger is required to take a shift on the bridge.

Yes thats right. A new policy.
so they can pass the responsibility to the passengers if the ship crashes into the dock again

 

Sorry, did I say crash?

I meant ‘makes unexpected contact’

 

obviously 😏 

[Mike07]

2 hours ago, JG&Lcruisingnewbies said:

Sorry, did I say crash?

I meant ‘makes unexpected contact’

 

 

It was a difference of opinion on the ability to simultaneously occupy the same spot in the universe.

[Rick&Jeannie]

20 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

I’m surprised you said that.  Well, maybe not. 😳

Sometimes a get a bit more crazy than usual!

[kywildcatfanone]

On 7/5/2023 at 12:48 PM, muffin said:

Looking at Carribean in the early winter. Ruby is significantly less expensive. Why? It is still rated 5 star and I do not see poor reports in my limited searching. Has not had a refurbish for awhile, but is it grim?  Thx for insights. 

Older ships are generally cheaper than the newest/fanciest/biggest.  I generally prefer the older ships when possible. 

[LMaxwell]

On 7/6/2023 at 8:53 PM, brisalta said:

The Ruby Princess is schedule to go into dry dock late September followed by a wet dock. That is it is undergoing some major refurbishments. Now there will be some added work due to the incident today.

 

Repairs from this weeks incident aside, what work is being planned to be done in September and what constitutes Major refurbishment? We are considering booking for December and curious what might change or be renovated 

[ONECRUISER]

15 hours ago, JG&Lcruisingnewbies said:

Yes thats right. A new policy.
so they can pass the responsibility to the passengers if the ship crashes into the dock again

 

Sorry, did I say crash?

I meant ‘makes unexpected contact’

 

obviously 😏 

Always makes Contact just not at high rate of speed!

[brisalta]

2 hours ago, LMaxwell said:

 

Repairs from this weeks incident aside, what work is being planned to be done in September and what constitutes Major refurbishment? We are considering booking for December and curious what might change or be renovated 

 

Someone on board will have to ask an officer if they can provide details of the upcoming dry dock / wet dock that is scheduled for late September / October. I was told most of the crew were being sent home for the duration.  That is unusual as they are typically used for deep cleaning / fire watch etc..