MDR dinner question - have you ever...

[hibiscus27]

Hello CC's

 

You may find this to be an odd question.... :)

 

In your many cruising adventures... Have you ever been on a cruise where you just couldn't handle your assigned tablemates? If so...what did you do?

 

My first cruise is in Nov so I've never had experience with the assigned seating with random folks at a MDR... I'm just curious about some worst or weird experiences and how they were resolved. I sure hope that my first experience with assigned seating at dinner will go just fine... ;)

 

Thanks in advance for sharing!

[Lynnees]

Just asked to me moved. It happens all the time. We've done it before and will no doubt do it again.

[Retired LEO]

Hello CC's

 

You may find this to be an odd question.... :)

 

In your many cruising adventures... Have you ever been on a cruise where you just couldn't handle your assigned tablemates? If so...what did you do?

 

My first cruise is in Nov so I've never had experience with the assigned seating with random folks at a MDR... I'm just curious about some worst or weird experiences and how they were resolved. I sure hope that my first experience with assigned seating at dinner will go just fine... ;)

 

Thanks in advance for sharing!

 

Discretely speak to the head waiter and explain the situation. They'll try to accomodate you by switching you to another table for the next evening. It does happen and they know how to handle it. That's one reason why I only get a table for 2.

[BroncosFan2010]

I always request a table for two, or else I am seated with the people I am traveling with... Sometimes you don't want to sit with them, but what are you going to do? (Especially if they are family?) :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::p:p

[Lynnees]

I always request a table for two, or else I am seated with the people I am traveling with... Sometimes you don't want to sit with them, but what are you going to do? (Especially if they are family?) :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::p:p

 

I managed that once too. None of the others we were travelling with had sailed before and we weren't really part of their group. I had gone to the dining room as soon as we boarded and had us moved. Later, at dinner when the group leader came over and asked why we were at another table I just shrugged and said I guess they made a mistake but I'm not going to bother them now. :D

[sweetlove13]

I had this happen on my first (honeymoon) cruise. We were seated at a table for four with another couple on their honeymoon. They were very pretentious and we just couldn't find anything to talk about! However, my (now ex) husband was a very picky eater and didn't like the food in the MDR, so we didn't even try getting our table switched. After the first two nights we decided to either eat at the buffet or at one of the specialty restaurants. It worked well for us. So I guess what I'm saying is . . . you have more options than the MDR and your tablemates.:)

[mariefisher]

On one cruise I took my granddaughter, who was 6, and my friends brought their 7 yr. old daughter. We were seated at a table with an older couple. This made me very uncomfortable. I was so afraid the kids would kids and ruin this couples dinner so I asked to be moved. Well the next evening we were seated at the same table but they moved the other couple, wow I wanted to go hide. But I felt it was unfair for them to get all dressed up for dinner and then be stuck dining with 2 young girls. To make it worse when I saw them onboard I explained my thinking and they were soooo nice and said they were happy sitting with us and didn't enjoy the 2 other older couples they were seated with. I just felt like a real heel. So whomever they seat me with I'm never asking to be changed again!

[PhoenixCruiser]

That is the biggest benefit of MTD - no need to worry about table mates.

 

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[cruiserbryce]

we did once ask to be moved b/c the couple had 3 very loud children that wouldnt stop yelling at dinner at there was no attempt to get them to stop...they did it very easily

[JJSMaine]

. Have you ever been on a cruise where you just couldn't handle your assigned tablemates? If so...what did you do?

 

Thanks in advance for sharing!

 

First off... MDR dining with your tables mates in assigned seating is a great experience for many people... you meet other cultures and lifestyles you would other wise never encounter on such an intimate level... the wonderful 72 yr old woman on the cruise with my mom... by the end of the first nights dinner we were having a grand time, turns out she was the bridge coach.. and the coupel form Canada that entered the dance competition... it scared them and thrilled them! So potential is there for real enhancement.

 

However, you can and will run into people on your cruise that will in some way make you uncomfortable in their presence... at most times you can control this and turn heeel and find new space... never let someone else's mood or attitude ruin yours, take control and move on.

 

Certainly approach the MD and they will move you to another table. Be open about what you want, IE lively or polite conversation or boisterous and they will accommodate. I was very lucky to be able to join a new table and new time after the first night on a cruise where the table guests were just not friendly, but this was more due to meeting people on an excursion that took pity on my plight of less than great table mates, and I was allowed to join them.

 

Remember, it is your cruise, do what you can to make it what you want it to be.... and then be happy!:D

[cb at sea]

On our 1st cruise, we were SOOOO worried about eating with folks we didn't know...and we were worried about NOTHING! We were at a 10-top... 3 married couples and 2 younger, single girls....the first night, everyone showed...and the 2 single girls never returned..,.

(we were all a bit older than they!---they should have stayed...we had a blast!)

Give your tablemates a chance---never mind their ages! Once you've introduced yourselves, you're no longer strangers..and you have CRUISING in common!

Having tablemates really can make an evening special. We look forward to dinner every night BECAUSE of the folks we get to talk to and have fun with! You'll find that your servers prefer larger, more fun tables, too!

Don't worry about this! It's not a chore---it's enjoyable!

[ccletzgo]

We had a group of 4 abandon us once. We all really enjoyed ourselves the first eve. Well, all but the one women. Turns out the big sister didn't appreciate little brother and his wife enjoying the company of anybody other then her and her hubby.

 

(I think she was paying for there cruise, (we kinda gathered that info the first night) because when we saw them throughout the week they were following her around like ducklings following momma. );)

 

Brother and wife acted embarrassed when they saw us, while momma bear just hustled them along..

Our waiter even got a chuckle out of it as he could see what happened too.

 

It was obvious who the boss was in there party.. LOL

[JanineM]

We have only once had a table where we just could not BEAR to sit with our table mates. Fortunately it was just a 3-nighter, so we skipped the dining room for the 2nd and 3rd nights. Had it been a longer sailing then I would have asked to be moved.

 

It's not that they did anything wrong, but we had absolutely nothing in common with them, they only talked about themselves, and they were both low talkers and I couldn't hear anything they said. I even pretended to have a hearing problem so they would speak up, but it didn't work.

 

However that's the only time we've had an issue. More often than not we've found tablemates with whom we want to linger over coffee. :)

[Powriv]

With the larger tables I find that I can't hear the people across the way as people at other tables are talking so loudly, plus the general noise in the dining room.

 

We have met the nicest people sitting at the larger tables which is good for my fiance as she is very social. Me not so much but I do like going to dining room for food I might not pay for in restaurants

 

Most cruise lines seem to do a pretty good job of matching tablemates

[yogimax]

A table for two avoids the problem! We prefer to eat alone, but enjoy meeting folks in the Diamond Lounge.

[thriftycruiser]

We have already chosen the My Time Dining option. When and where does one usually request a table for 2.

[PearlRabbit]

We have been on 4 cruises and on 3 our table mates were pure joy. But on that one cruise, oh good night! We were seated at an 8 top with a couple and a family of 4. These people thought that it was OK to talk about their breast augmentation at the table and even better: how the mom and dad of the family met. They were both married to other people and were neighbors who had a secret love affair sneaking into the other's houses. This made me and their two kids blush. I just couldn't handle being seated with people talking about intimate issues that I didn't want to know about. After that first night we went to the head waiter and asked to be moved. He asked why, wondering if it was the wait staff. I simply said that the folks we were seated with discussed personal things that i wasn't comfortable with. He moved us to a table with a set of grandparents and their adult kids. We had a great time with them and we so glad that we said something rather than suffer through another "Jerry Springer" type meal. I did seek out the wait staff from the first tab;e and tell them that we moved because of those crazy tacky people and not due to his service. he seemed relieved.:o

[HUNKY]

With "My Time Dining" or MTD, the first night you go to the main dining room and tell the host that you need a table for however many, and whether or not you want to sit with yourselves or others.

 

Before leaving you can make a set reservation for the rest of the cruise, or just the next night. In addition, you can just "walk up", but you may have to wait for a table.

 

MTD operates like any other popular land based restaurant.

[BroncosFan2010]

On one cruise I took my granddaughter, who was 6, and my friends brought their 7 yr. old daughter. We were seated at a table with an older couple. This made me very uncomfortable. I was so afraid the kids would kids and ruin this couples dinner so I asked to be moved. Well the next evening we were seated at the same table but they moved the other couple, wow I wanted to go hide. But I felt it was unfair for them to get all dressed up for dinner and then be stuck dining with 2 young girls. To make it worse when I saw them onboard I explained my thinking and they were soooo nice and said they were happy sitting with us and didn't enjoy the 2 other older couples they were seated with. I just felt like a real heel. So whomever they seat me with I'm never asking to be changed again!

 

 

I would like to applaud you for thinking of other people when it comes to cruising with children! Thank you for being able to see that not everyone wants to dine with children!!! Even though it did not necessarily work out in your favor this time, I think what you did was very thoughtful! I wish more people would recgonize these sort of things!

[Yvonne]

We didn't care for our tablemates on our very first cruise, but we didn't know you could request a table change so we put up with it for the entire week. We were surprised, the first time we had dinner in the MDR, to see crayons at the table. We were seated with a family of 5. The brochure had said that Disney seats "families with other families" and "adults with other adults" so we had expected to be at a table with only adults.

 

We now know that if you don't get on well with your tablemates you can ask to be moved, which we would now do if we were seated at a table with young children.

[PSCruiser]

We have always been pretty lucky with our tables for traditional dining, however we've had some tables for lunch and in MTD situations that I was very glad were not for the duration. Two suggestions: First, I always like a table for at least 6, that way if there is one "problem" couple, they sort of get diluted out. However, something that has worked great on our last few cruises - go to your CC Rollcall, and find other cruisers on there that would like to link reservation numbers (you call RC) to make a table. As you might expect, people that post on CC are almost always positive to cruising in general, so you avoid those worst of all tablemates - the Chronic Complainers! I think that traditional dining is such a great part of the cruise experience that is different than land vacations - hate to see others miss out because of worries over tablemates.

[lovemylab]

On our first cruise we were seated at a table for 4. Due to a language barrier it made for a very quiet dining experience. After night 3 we never saw the other couple again - I think they ate in the Windjammer or specialty restaurants the rest of the week because our waiters would often ask if we knew if they were coming.

 

On our second cruise we were seated at a larger table and it made for a much better dining experience. Having more people at the table automatically led to more conversations.

 

For our upcoming cruise we have opted for MTD and plan to sit at a table for two.

 

If you are concerned about your tablemates I'd recommend either a large table or trying MTD.

[murfturf]

This will be our first cruise coming up and we have selected MTD. We did this more because of the flexability in the time to eat. We will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary, and also getting away for much needed relaxation! We would prefer having a table for 2 the entire time. We are social, but my husband has to be social for his job and I deal with people all day through my kids' activities - so we are looking to be alone!

[RevSmith]

Many years ago while on Celebrity my DH and I were assigned to a table of ten. A couple that was not there the first night and three other couples that were traveling together. After introductions were made these three couples started saying things, that sounded like they were insulting us but the comments were vague and I couldn't be sure so we do anything that first evening. The next day the other couple arrived at our table and imagine our surprise when it was this lovely couple that we had met on a cruise last year. The other three couples acted the same way toward them...and became louder and a little less suttle. By the time dinner was over the four of us decided to change tables. Unfortunately they could only change one of us as the dinning rooms were full and there was no alternative dinning in those days. So we had to stay at the table. We decided to completely ignore these people...but as the week went on they became ruder and louder. Finally other people from other tables were complaining about them, and they were telling the other people to shut up and mind their own business. Then they would also say nasty things about those people. After each meal the four of us would go somewhere and laugh and laugh. But we did have to stay at the table for the rest of the cruise. It became a cruise experience I will never forget, nor do I wish to repeat.

[cobbmom123]

Oh I am glad this topic came up! As I've mentioned before, we've only done a disney cruise and had a private table (not by choice, it was just assigned to us).

I do have the two little ones (2 & 6). They understand that good behavior is expected when dining out. But again, they are kids and kids will be kids. I don't want to ruin anyone's honeymoon dinner or anything.

As I mentioned, I don't let my kids run wild while out to eat, but sometimes kids have their moments if you know what I mean. When out to eat at a regular restaurant, my solution is to simply request my food to be boxed up and quickly get my kid out of there. Is this something that could be done in the cruise dining room? I am not really forseeing this happening, as I've only had to do this a handful of times (maybe once a year or so), but I am trying to prepare for any possible problem!