Talking Ruby Princess

There is always a certain excitement about going on a new ship. However, one usually has to expect that there will be new ship problems as well. The facilities are untested and the crew is not used to working with each other or within the new ship. Ships work best when they have settled into a routine and it takes time to establish routines.

One of the things that impressed me about Ruby Princess when I sailed on her was that there were no new ship problems. The ship had only been in service less than a month yet the crew knew what they were doing and were able to work together efficiently. In sort, it was the best of all worlds - - one had the feeling of being there at the start of the ship’s career, yet none of the problems.

I spoke about with this with Dirk Brand, the Passenger Services Director on Ruby Princess. Dirk has headed the hotel department on Queen Mary 2 and on several of the Grand-class Princess mega-cruise ships. He is an experienced professional and thus not surprisingly, Princess asked him to bring out their new ship.

Dirk responded by outlining how the Ruby Princess team was formed and the steps that were taken to build that team. My interview with Dirk is posted at: http://www.beyondships.com/Princess-RU-art-Brand.html