Before our trip to Alaska with Princess Cruises, I had never been on a cruise before and it was never on my list of things I had to do. I was actually a little nervous since I’m very prone to getting sea sick and the thought of being in the middle of the ocean with 3,000 people was a little frightening, ha! But we made it back and I’m here to report our experience aboard the Ruby Princess!
It really couldn’t have been a better experience for our first cruise. We luckily had really nice weather for Alaska that time of year and there were never any rough waters, thank goodness! It was pretty much smooth sailing the entire trip, even though you can always feel the boat swaying a little. We actually never slept better with the subtle rocking, our balcony door open and sound of the ocean… it was actually a cool experience! If it’s in the budget, I would recommend a balcony room as we spent a good amount of time in the room as well, taking in the sights, when you’re in the scenic areas.
The customer service on the boat was impeccable. All of the employees seem to love their job and enjoy working for Princess, which we felt really showed through the excellent service. Most of them had been working with Princess anywhere between 5 and 25 (or more) years!
At one point, we were at sea for 2.5 days, which I thought would be crazy, but it was actually enjoyable! It forces you to slow down because you can’t go anywhere, ha! On those days we would explore the ship and I spent a lot of time at the spa, which was heavenly! Both spa treatments were excellent and we all agreed that it was one of the best massages we’ve ever had. There was a steam room and sauna to enjoy as well. And there are tons of activities going on all day long too!
As for food, our favorite was afternoon tea served with yummy sandwiches and scones! The upper deck pizza was absolutely delicious and so was the waffle bar. The drinks were really good too! My favorite restaurant on the ship was Crown Grill and all of the bars were excellent. We stopped at The Cafe everyday for an iced latte and got to know the baristas. Zan became close friends with the Maitre D’, Generoso, who has been with Princess since 1983! It really felt like family after just a few days aboard. The soft serve ice cream they make on the ship was a favorite too. I had more ice cream cones than I should have, but it was well worth it!
In the evening we usually had cocktail parties and dinners to attend, which were amazing. But afterwards, there was live music in several areas of the ship, karaoke, which we loved, and dancing! We also saw a movie one night in the ship’s large theater. They show movies outside under the stars too, but it was a bit too cold for that experience ; )
When we would embark after each stop, we headed to the top deck, hung out on the chairs and ordered cocktails while we sailed away from shore. It was always such a beautiful view and really fun to just relax.
I got a little ahead of myself the first night and decided I didn’t need any sea sick medicine because I felt fine. 1 hour after we embarked on our journey and 15 minutes into our cocktail hour, I felt completely sick! I actually couldn’t even look outside and sat through a lobster dinner without eating anything. It was NOT okay! I quickly solved that problem by taking Bonine everyday, even when I was feeling okay and it worked the entire trip! I highly recommend packing it if you’re a first time cruiser! I thought it was interesting that the boat only travels about 25mph!
In all honesty, the experience really grew on me and changed my view of cruising. I’m so excited I’ve checked off my first cruise and visiting Alaska! We’ll share our experience off the boat soon! Enjoy the pics!
This post was in collaboration with Princess Cruises.
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