The hours vary depending on the guest count. The more guests, the earlier the start of dining. The dance hours are generally a set before dinner. A set after dinner, pre-show, and more dancing after the show.
If you have OC documentation that shows your number of cruises, I recommend bringing it with you. Some database errors have taken nearly 6 months to straighten out even when shipboard personnel knew the numbers were wrong.
Where does it say, they don’t count? That’s not what I was previously unofficially led to believe.
You could book 1 less than Sapphire and apply the upgrade. If one books solo and upgrades, I assume it’s to a double window room. Just a better location but essentially same room. That’s not attractive. Would have to pay for a double in order to get a worthwhile upgrade.