Last dinner time to get the show

[Normandie-BCN]

I am going to have a B2B cruise in the Riviera next August, from Venice to Barcelona.

 

In order to make the reservations in the specialty restaurants, or have dinner in MDR, at which hour, the latest the best (the equivalent of a late sitting), should we have dinner to have time enough to see the show?

 

Thanks for your help.

[Mura]

I hate to say specifically. I would say earlier as opposed to later, but I guess that's obvious! We usually go in to dinner around 7:45-8:00, and almost never have time to get to the show in time.

 

My guess would be 6:45-7:00. It does depend on how fast they serve, of course. You can try telling the server that you want to get to the show but i haven't found that to be all that helpful ...

 

Mura

[hondorner]

The shows start at 9:45 PM for the most part (occasionally 10 PM). I find that dinner in the Grand Dining Room or any of the specialty restaurants takes an average of 2 hours. We try never to miss a show, so we like to dine at 7:30 or before. It's possible to get faster service in the Grand Dining Room by letting your waiter know you're trying to make the show. Then, there's always the Terrace -- you don't have to wait to be served and can get out about as fast as you want.

 

If you're set on dining after 8:30, you'll propbably miss the shows. In the past, lots of people would have said it didn't matter -- there has been a general attitude that the entertainment is not that good. If you're sailing on Riviera this year, however, the shows are remarkably good.

 

On a B2B, you'll get two chances to see the entertainment provided by the Jean Ann Ryan singers and dancers. Some of the cabaret acts, like our recent classical guitarist and a great comedian, are specific to each cruise, but generally perform twice on each cruise. You shoulod make every effort to see the singers and dancers in their Andrew Lloyd Webber show, preferably on the first leg, because it's so good you'll likely want to see it again on the second leg.

[cruisecountess]

Our experience is that if we dine alone we can get out a bit faster. We don't order every course so that helps. When dining with others, if they order each course, your entree will not be served until they reach that part of the meal. Watching others eat soup, etc. was time-consuming. I don't mean for this to sound anti-social, as we are not; but if you want to make a show, dining alone will help.