My wife and I sailed the Ruby Princess from Feb 20th - 27th, 2011. Loading onto the ship was fast. Being that we are Platinum level guests, we were allowed to get into the express line. We were brought into a room that had beverages and snacks set up until we could board the beast.

At 1133 hours, we were given the green light to enter the area where we get our cruise cards, provide our credit card info, etc. That took less than 5 minutes to accomplish. From there, we boarded the ship. Here is my first issue with Princess. If guests don't want to take photos - I would hope that the staff didn't make us feel as though we were doing something wrong. This is one of the biggest money makers on ships - photos !!! I would suggest that no one get involved in the endless photo ops. Just a scam. We brought our camera and got just as nice photos as standing in front of a drop cloth with the Titanic spray painted on it in a background.

Although I hate the safety debriefing just prior to sailing - it's a necessary evil. I am referring to the session where everyone is cattled into several rooms to demonstrate the proper way to put a life jacket on. It isn't so much the demonstration on how to put a jacket on, as it is to show the guests where their mustering station is. I get that. Read more