Ongoing propulsion points onboard Ruby Princess have the passengers feeling extra chilly towards Princess Cruises than Alaska’s glaciers.
The issues grew to become obvious on embarkation day, July 9, 2025, proper across the time that the three,080-guest ship set sail from her homeport of San Francisco, California, on an 11-night cruise to Alaska.
“They introduced over the PA proper about 4 PM on embarkation day (Wednesday) in SF that as a result of a propulsion system difficulty we will likely be touring slower than anticipated till it’s resolved,” a present passenger relayed.
This meant that the voyage would start with three sea days as a substitute of two, and the primary port name on Ketchikan could be pushed again from July 12 to July 16 to accommodate the slower speeds.
Certainly, cruise monitoring information exhibits the 113,561-gross ton ship crusing at speeds of 12.7 knots per hour, when her common is normally a lot nearer to 23 knots.
“So Ketchikan (which was presupposed to be Saturday 7/12) and been rescheduled Wednesday 7/16. Our first cease will now be Juneau on Sunday 7/13 — three sea days to begin the journey as a substitute of two,” the visitor confirmed.
The go to to Juneau was already deliberate for July 13, so this isn’t a change. The next name on Skagway on July 14 was additionally unimpacted.
Nonetheless, continued propulsion points have nonetheless not been resolved as of day six of the voyage.
This led to the last-minute cancellation of the scenic cruising day by means of Endicott Arm on July 15, which visitors weren’t glad about.
“On the Ruby and we had been simply knowledgeable that we are going to not be doing the scenic cruising to Endicott Arms at 8am. So, the problems are usually not mounted. What a disappointment,” one other passenger shared.
The prolonged port name on Victoria, Canada, which was scheduled for July 17, has additionally been changed with a shorter day in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, which is nearer to each Skagway and Endicott Arm.
The 2008-launched ship will depart Prince Rupert at 2 p.m. native time, most probably to make sure she returns to San Francisco well timed for disembarkation on July 20.
Victoria is a particularly in style port (I’m keen on Butchart Gardens personally) and the ship wasn’t presupposed to depart till 10:00 p.m. to permit for ample exploration.
Understandably, this ultimate change has additionally been met with anger and disappointment.
The Affect on Cruisers
With the vast majority of the itinerary rearranged by the continuing propulsion points and a few bucket-list locations nixed completely, many onboard are usually not glad.
As compensation for the inconvenience, Princess Cruises has supplied visitors with a $50 onboard cruise credit score, which some don’t really feel is sufficient.
“Simply boarded the Ruby Princess to solely hours later hear an announcement from the Captain saying a significant malfunction of the propulsion and in consequence we are going to miss a few of our stops,” one such cruiser stated on embarkation day.
“Such a joke that they wait to inform us simply as we’re setting sail. And supply solely $50 in reimbursement. Ought to be half or or extra of our charges. By no means cruise on Princess once more.”
Per the cruise contract, the cruise line is allowed to alter the itinerary for quite a lot of causes, so visitors are usually not essentially entitled to a much bigger credit score or refund right here.
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Right now, it’s not clear what’s inflicting the propulsion points, however the voyage would have been delayed in San Francisco or cancelled completely if the issue was extreme sufficient to pose a security danger at sea.
Educated engineers and upkeep groups are onboard for each voyage, and have seemingly been working to resolve the problem behind-the-scenes the whole time.
However as this matter appears to be taking some time to resolve, there’s a chance that the 11-night Alaska cruise that embarks from San Francisco on July 20 is also affected.
Booked passengers ought to maintain an eye fixed out for any updates from the cruise line, simply in case.
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