Early/Late Dinner Seating With Teens

[agouracm]

We will be cruising with our two teens this summer in the mediteranean and I'm trying to decide which dinner seating is best for them considering evening activities geared for teens. Will they be missing out on anything if we choose a late seating?

[CAG5563]

I've only been on one cruise so far and we had the early seating. My kids said they wished we would have had the late seating because everyone else did. They said that while we were eating, everyone else was making their plans for the evening and then they couldn't seem to hook up with the other kids later.

 

We are booked on another cruise for next February and we chose the later seating. I guess we'll have to see how that works out.

 

until Celebrity Zenith - May 15, 2004

 

 

until Adventure of the Seas - February 20, 2005

 

Voyager of the Seas - July 27, 2003

[CruisingChick]

Definitely Second (late) seating.

 

We've been crusing since my son was 10, he's now 14 and we've been on 5 cruises. All of them have been late seating.

 

We did the Mediterranean last year and it's so port intensive, the excursions are 9 and 10 hours long. You definitely want second seating dinner. That way you can rest before dinner.

 

Remember there is ALWAYS food on a cruise. If they get hungry send them up for pizza or sushi or ice cream, etc.

 

The teen activites tend to run later anyway since they are older. We were so busy in the Mediterranean that my son and his friend never really went to any of the ship's organized teen activities.

 

Until Celebrity Zenith - NYC to Bermuda

 

 

Big Red Boat II – New York to Canada/New England, August 2000

Regal Empress – New York to Canada/New England, August 2001

Millennium – 10 Night Southern Caribbean, August 2002

Millennium – 13 Night Mediterranean, August 2003

Infinity – 7 Night Eastern Caribbean, April 2004

Zenith - 7 Night NYC to Bermuda, August 2004

 

 

[Lem]

Traveled with 2 teen girls and had early seating. They didn't want to miss a thing with their new friends. I never saw them eat so fast and want to be excused to join "the group".

[ccletzgo]

Getting teens to end there day short to get ready for early dinner would be very difficult for me. My teens have always liked late dining.

[cruisintwinsmom]

Ditto the late seating.

 

Two teen daughters and we always (two whole cruises) get late seating. They are very happy with that.

 

Happy Sailing!

[ngraystark]

We have done both early and late seatings and enjoy the late seating best. You can relax when you get in from ports before getting ready for dinner, or you can stay in port longer and don't have to rush back. Have two boys (now 16 and 11) - this is their 6th cruise and they like the late seating best also. If there is some activity that interferes with dinner, then they usually will grab a bite somewhere else on the ship, but our general rule is that they go to dinner with the "family" at least four of the seven nights.

[cindygad]

Late seating worked out better for us. No need to hurry and there was always food available if they got hungry before.We often would find out the boys had room service and then would eat again with us at late seating.At home we eat early and they seemed to adjust to late sitting just fine.. OH it is always wonderful to never hear the phrase what is for supper while cruising!

Cindy

[Jacqueline]

On our last cruise most of the kids were early seating and would meet up afterward.

I would say that the Med is VERY different than the Caribbean. In the Caribbean, my daughter did not even get off at three of the ports. She basically had a 3am curfew. Whther she saw Grenada or the DR was not really important to me.

In Europe you are very port intensive with long days and early mornings. A late dinner means limited time for the kids to socialize afterward.My kids have to be back in the cabin by midnight if we have a port the next day-

This summer will be our third European cruise with the whole family. We are doing early/late (a weird HAL thing there are two early seatings we are doing 6:15, the other is at 5:45).

BTW check your sail times- if you set sail by 5 or 6 that means that you need to be back on the ship BEFORE that. So you really are not loosing any time in port. Those nights that are late in port are good nights to do alternative dining.

 

Jacqueline

Constellation 3/20/04

HAL Westerdam 7/30/04

Tahitian Princess August 2003

Grand Princess Western Caribbean 2003

Brilliance of the Seas Baltic 2002

Ocean Princess- Alaska 2001

Celebrity Zenith- Bermuda 2001

Grand Princess Med 2000

[agouracm]

We plan on going with the late seating and let the kids "eat and run" if they want to join an evening event.