Topic: Open Dining

[QUOTE=Neil Down, Southampton;8724]In a probably vain attempt to get away from the two most written about subjects can I ask for your thoughts on:

OPEN DINING

Its not often I disagree with Neil, but on this we'll have to agree to differ. Late/set dining suits us and we have never had a problem with dining companions. The elderly guests tend to eat early, see the early show and be in bed by 10 pm. This leaves the 'younger' element to party until they shut the bars. Seems to suit everyone. If excursion times mean that restaurant arrangments need to be changed, they are changed - no problem! I can see the drawbacks to half the table dining in the buffet every night, but if this option was included on the booking form, with the alternative of the restaurant if one wished to book for an evening surely this would help to sort the problem? Small ships are so much less complicated aren't they? Judith

[QUOTE=Cooke, Ashby;18203]

QUOTE:

In a probably vain attempt to get away from the two most written about subjects can I ask for your thoughts on:

OPEN DINING

Its not often I disagree with Neil, but on this we'll have to agree to differ. Late/set dining suits us and we have never had a problem with dining companions. The elderly guests tend to eat early, see the early show and be in bed by 10 pm. This leaves the 'younger' element to party until they shut the bars. Seems to suit everyone. If excursion times mean that restaurant arrangments need to be changed, they are changed - no problem! I can see the drawbacks to half the table dining in the buffet every night, but if this option was included on the booking form, with the alternative of the restaurant if one wished to book for an evening surely this would help to sort the problem? Small ships are so much less complicated aren't they? Judith

Shut the bars!!!! All the ships that I have been on keep the bars open until there are no customers left standing. :D

May and I always book late sitting(table 6 or 8) and really enjoy the frisson and excitment of meeting our dining companions.Sometimes things may get off to a slow start,people opening up at different speeds,but we would feel total failures if our "people skills" didn't make people warm to us and us to them.Most cruisers who request a table for 6,8,or 10 are probably "people persons?" anyway so you're off to a good start already.We've just returned from a weekend in Stoke with some lovely friends we met on a cruise and our Christmas cards arrive from such diverse places as Wellington(N.Z.) Washington(U.S.)Wisconsin(U.S.)Melbourne,Noosa Point (Queensland) and even Southern England;all from fellow second sitters ,so I guess our policy and attitude must have some merit.Stan.

Hello Neil! I think that the set times for dining in the ships main dining rooms should remain as they are. With the the alternative dining room and the specialist dining rooms around the ship, gives one freedom dining aplenty. When booking our cruise, which starts next Monday, and told our TA that we did not intend to use the main dining room, we were advised that we had to state a 1st or 2nd sitting in the main dining room. We will of course advise the dining room manager when we board of our intention of not using the venue. (Before anyone brings up the dreaded gratuity question, it is my perogative how I choose the system of my personal choice) John

Have just come back from a cruise on Oceana where we opted for open dining and enjoyed meeting lots of different people. We found we liked a table of 6 as it was easier to have a conversation with everyone on the table. One evening we overheard a lady saying you got a better class of diner in Club Dining maybe I should pick that next time :o)

This was only our second cruise and on our first cruise we had club dining and got on well with the people we shared a table with.

We used Cafe Jardan several times for breakfast and lunch which was really nice though you can't get breakfast toast.

One night we had dinner there, I loved my starter and desert but was not impressed with the main course.

I am a wee bit cross at the moment as it has proved impossible to get 1st sitting dining on Celebrity Eclipse in October.

This despite booking in March 2009 and requesting early dining.

20.45 is much too late for my insulin dependent husband to begin a meal. According to our travel agent our only option now is to choose freedom dining and pay gratuities of £254 upfront. Seems a bit like blackmail to me.

We are happy to pay gratuities but we haven't had any service and have no idea what it will be like! So it looks like the buffet for 16 nights for us.

QUOTE:

I am a wee bit cross at the moment as it has proved impossible to get 1st sitting dining on Celebrity Eclipse in October.

This despite booking in March 2009 and requesting early dining.

20.45 is much too late for my insulin dependent husband to begin a meal. According to our travel agent our only option now is to choose freedom dining and pay gratuities of £254 upfront. Seems a bit like blackmail to me.

We are happy to pay gratuities but we haven't had any service and have no idea what it will be like! So it looks like the buffet for 16 nights for us.

As soon as you get on board, check the Celebrity Today sheet to see what time the Maitre D will be on duty. He is usually available for a couple of hours in the afternoon to sort out any table queries. You may have to wait in a bit of a queue and he may not be able to sort you a table straight away but hopefully you should be able to make a switch from 2nd to 1st sitting.

QUOTE:

I am a wee bit cross at the moment as it has proved impossible to get 1st sitting dining on Celebrity Eclipse in October.

This despite booking in March 2009 and requesting early dining.

20.45 is much too late for my insulin dependent husband to begin a meal. According to our travel agent our only option now is to choose freedom dining and pay gratuities of £254 upfront. Seems a bit like blackmail to me.

We are happy to pay gratuities but we haven't had any service and have no idea what it will be like! So it looks like the buffet for 16 nights for us.

Don't confine yourselves to the buffet because you will be missing out on one of Celebrity's stengths, the food in the Main Dining Room. Pay the gratuities up front (you say you don't mind paying them) and go for freedom dining. Once aboard you can go to the Maitre D' and ask for 1st sitting but you will have the Freedom option if 1st is full.

The gratuities are added to the shipboard account daily otherwise but I'm pretty sure that you will be happy with the service from Celebrity because it is another of their strengths.

You will also be able to discuss your husband's dietary requirements and you will find the staff to be very considerate to supplying them. In the event that you are disappointed, go to the Maitre D and complain - although this really should not be necessary from my experience.

Myself, Husband & two young children have just returned from the Azura, we have cruised before, but always seem to have a problem re dinning arrangements! firstly we always state that our children will not be dinning with us as they go to the childrens tea at 5, we always request a table of 8 Adults because we like to meet others. But however many times we request this, the children are always allocated dinning withn us, we therefore have to explain again once on board & have our table changed, after promising to put us on a table of 8 Adults, still after the fourth day there was still only 6 of us! after speaking to the restaurant manager again it appeared bthe spaces were still for our children!! very frustrating that they still hadn't listened! eventually we just told them to make it a table of 6! the same sort of problem arose on our previos cruise as well. Secondly last year we did 2nd seating- wasn't getting into dinner till about 8.45pm by the time we finished you could hardly get a seat in any of the entertainment, the kids had fallen asleep in kids club, so we missed quite abit of the entertainment, this year we decided to go 1st sitting, but that wasn't much better as it was such a rush to get ready for 6.30, we missed most of the sailaways, in saying that it was better for the shows, entertainment etc & the kids could join us about 8.30. If we go again we will def try freedom dinning,hopefully this would work better for us.

Krisskross we usually cruise with Celebrity and choose 1st sitting, which we always get, fingers crossed for this years sailing 18th Sept, ;). a lot of the tables can have 2 or more empty seats so if you ask to be moved from 2nd to 1st as soon as you board and explain about your husbands type 1 diabetes status they will do everything they can to change you to 1st sitting. it might take a day or two but they will move you. as good as the buffet is please do not eat there every night as MDR food is lovely.