Ruby Princess - Alaska Inside Passage from San Francisco
Ruby Princess is the only large ship sailing Alaska roundtrip from San Francisco, departing under the Golden Gate Bridge for a 10-night Inside Passage voyage. Two sea days each way bookend calls at Ketchikan, Juneau, and Skagway, scenic cruising to Dawes Glacier in Endicott Arm, and a stop in Prince Rupert, British Columbia.
Price Range
$$
Mid-Range
*Prices vary by cabin type, sailing date, and availability. Confirm rates with Princess Cruises before booking.
Ship Details — Ruby Princess
View full Ruby Princess details
Year Built
2008
Tonnage
113,561 GT
Passengers
3,080
Crew
1,200
Decks
19
Class
Grand
Itinerary & Route Map
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Where this cruise calls, day by day
7 ports and 4 sea days over 10 Nights.
- Day 1San Francisco, CA port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
San Francisco, CA
United StatesDepart Day 2 · At sea
Day 3 · At sea
- Day 4Ketchikan port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Ketchikan
United StatesPort - Day 5Juneau port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Juneau
United StatesPort - Day 6Skagway port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
Skagway
United StatesPort - Day 7
Endicott Arm (Dawes Glacier)
United StatesPortEndicott Arm is a narrow granite fjord running over 30 miles inland south of Juneau, ending at the tidewater face of Dawes Glacier. Ships thread past floating ice - some pieces the size of a small building - and harbour seals hauled out on the floes, then hold position off the glacier and slowly rotate so both sides of the ship get the view. It is frequently used when Tracy Arm next door is choked with ice.
- Holding station off the calving face of Dawes Glacier while the ship turns through 360 degrees
- Harbour seals and their pups resting on drifting ice floes
- Waterfalls dropping straight off 2,000-foot walls into the fjord
- The entrance to Fords Terror, a side inlet named for the tidal current that trapped its first visitor
- Getting ashore
- Scenic cruising only - no landing; larger ships may stop short of the glacier and send tenders or excursion boats closer.
- Best months
- May-Sep (Jul-Aug for the most open water; heavy ice can turn ships back in any month)
- Day 8
Prince Rupert
CanadaPortPrince Rupert is a working fishing and container port of about 12,000 people on the north coast of British Columbia, and one of the wettest places in Canada - assume rain and pack for it. The cruise berth is in Cow Bay, a few minutes from downtown on foot. Behind the town is Tsimshian territory and some of the best grizzly viewing on the coast, up the Khutzeymateen inlet.
- Museum of Northern British Columbia for Ts'msyen art and history
- Grizzly viewing by boat in the Khutzeymateen, 37km up the inlet - watching is from the water, nobody goes ashore
- North Pacific Cannery National Historic Site at Port Edward, the oldest surviving salmon cannery in BC
- The Butze Rapids boardwalk trail out to reversing tidal rapids
- Getting ashore
- Docked at the Northland Cruise Terminal, which takes ships up to 335m; downtown and Cow Bay are close enough that passengers walk in.
- Best months
- May-Sep (Alaska season); Jun for grizzlies
Day 9 · At sea
Day 10 · At sea
- Day 11San Francisco, CA port guide: where ships dock and what to do ashore
San Francisco, CA
United StatesArrive
What to know about this sailing
Drawn from 67 traveler threads about Ruby Princess in Alaska (2017–2024), 130 about the ship generally and 458 about Inside Passage routes on other ships, plus the route data and port notes above.
Nobody else in the catalog sails Alaska round trip from San Francisco, and the price of that is four sea days out of ten: two up the open Pacific before Ketchikan and two back after Prince Rupert. A November 2023 thread weighing this against Koningsdam from Vancouver put it plainly, a lot of sea days because of the San Francisco start, but no flight, no Vancouver hotel and a longer trip, which is the whole trade. Prince Rupert, rather than Victoria, is the foreign call the cabotage rule requires, and it sits between the glacier day and the run home. The glacier is Endicott Arm and Dawes, which here gets a day of its own after Skagway instead of being squeezed into a Juneau morning. It is not Glacier Bay, and that needs saying because older San Francisco itineraries on this ship included it: a June 2022 passenger listed Icy Strait, Juneau, Glacier Bay, Ketchikan and Prince Rupert, and the most-upvoted replies in every Alaska comparison thread from 2023 to 2024 treat Glacier Bay as essential for a first trip, with one travel agent putting Endicott at about two hours against a full day there. Check the specific departure before assuming either.
Posters who sailed Ruby to Alaska describe a comfortable, unspectacular ship that is not the reason to book. A July 2024 first-timer on the Vancouver version rated the cabin seven out of ten, the food good and the whole trip eight, while admitting glaciers were not their thing; a May 2019 passenger from Seattle found the ship a good size, never crowded, and an obstructed oceanview perfectly adequate because the upper decks gave ample viewing in the glacier. A February 2024 thread added that aft cabins on Ruby carry a vibration and recommended the partially covered midship verandas on Caribe deck. Two threads are specific to the San Francisco departure: a June 2022 parent found the satellite Wi-Fi degrades as the ship goes north and is blocked in Ketchikan and Skagway by the mountains, so the first and last sea days off California are the usable ones; and illness has followed the ship, with a June 2023 passenger isolating with COVID on this round trip, a May 2024 sailing where the buffet switched to served-only and security checked for people who should have been in their cabins, and a widely discussed norovirus outbreak in March 2023. Against Discovery and Emerald Princess, which do the same three ports and the same glacier in seven nights for less, Emerald from Vancouver, this is the pick for Northern Californians who will not fly and actively want the sea days; it is the wrong buy for someone counting port days per dollar, or for a first-timer who wants Glacier Bay.
Questions about this sailing
Does the Ruby Princess Alaska cruise from San Francisco go to Glacier Bay?
Not this version: the scenic cruising is Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier on day 7, and Glacier Bay is not on the itinerary. Older San Francisco round trips on this ship did include it, as a June 2022 passenger's port list shows, so check the exact departure. Posters are firm that the two are not equivalent, with a travel agent putting Endicott at about two hours near the face versus a full day in Glacier Bay with rangers aboard.
Is the Wi-Fi usable on the Ruby Princess Alaska cruise from San Francisco?
Poorly once north. A June 2022 parent whose daughter needed to sit an online exam was told the satellite connection weakens the further north the ship goes and drops in Ketchikan and Skagway, where mountains block the signal, and that 5am is the least congested time. The advice was to use the first or last sea day, when the ship is still off California, or a port day with a phone hotspot; one poster found a public library a nine-minute walk from the Juneau pier.
Do I need a balcony on Ruby Princess for Alaska?
Posters split, but the budget view has support. A May 2019 passenger with an obstructed oceanview said the upper decks gave ample viewing in the glacier and they liked moving around for different angles, and a 2024 reply said a balcony does not offer much on an Inside Passage route because the promenade deck is always there. If you do book one, a February 2024 thread recommended the partially covered midship verandas on Caribe deck and warned that aft cabins on Ruby vibrate.
Are Alaska shore excursions more expensive than Caribbean ones?
Yes, by roughly double according to a 2017 thread from a couple booked on Ruby for late September who had priced them against Caribbean trips. The budget options replies offered were a guided kayak trip at Ketchikan booked directly with the operator, hiking up Mount Roberts in Juneau and taking the tram down, and whale watching in Juneau with an operator that refunds if no whales are seen; the Skagway train was the one splurge posters said was worth it.
Onboard Amenities
Cruise Highlights
About the Ship
What Travelers Say About Ruby Princess
Reviews of the ship itself — the same for every Ruby Princess sailing. Distilled from 137 traveler threads, Cruise Critic member reviews and travel blogs.
Ruby Princess is a 2008-built Grand-class ship (Crown subclass) that delivers the classic, mid-size Princess experience rather than the bells and whistles of the line's newer Royal-class giants. At roughly 113,000 gross tons and 3,080 guests, she feels noticeably more intimate and walkable than ships like Royal or Sky Princess, and reviewers consistently describe a relaxed, traditional cruising vibe. Guests who value calm over crowds and warm service over the latest tech tend to be her biggest fans.
What People Love
- Specialty dining is a highlight - Crown Grill and Sabatini's earn consistent praise
- Personable, going-the-extra-mile service is the most-repeated compliment
- The Sanctuary adults-only retreat with Serenity Stewards delivers a real escape
Common Complaints
- Main dining room and buffet food quality is the top complaint
- Visible post-pandemic cutbacks with reduced menu variety
- Showing its 2008 age, with some worn linens and tired cabin finishes