? About Changing Dining Onboard

[RealDeal]

Is it usually a problem to change from early seating to select dining upon boarding?

[jpf]

Don't know if this will help....but, I had to pre-pay the gratuities with select dining, maybe you also did.......I think they require that.

[RealDeal]

Don't know if this will help....but, I had to pre-pay the gratuities with select dining, maybe you also did.......I think they require that.

 

That's exactly what I'm trying to avoid, so I was thinking of picking early dining & then switching once I board, but I don't want to get "stuck."

[jagoffee]

Is it usually a problem to change from early seating to select dining upon boarding?

 

I would say that it usually is not a problem, but it would be sometimes. It would depend on how many people have chosen Select dining.

[DebbieMacG]

That's exactly what I'm trying to avoid, so I was thinking of picking early dining & then switching once I board, but I don't want to get "stuck."

 

 

If you request to switch onboard and they have room in select (they don't always) then you will need to pay all grats before you can change.

[X-elite]

Select Dining can fill up, so I would recommend signing up sooner rather than waiting until on board (and perhaps being disappointed if it is not available then).

 

On my next cruise, I was wait-listed for Select Dining for about three days until it opened up.

 

On my last cruise, Select Dining was full upon reservation and not available when on board.

 

I'm going to pay tips one way or another, so whether I pay those tips in advance upon Select Dining sign-up or they are charged daily throughout the cruise is not consequential for me. The advantages of Select Dining are worth the pre-payment to me. Hope that helps!

[Chicago Boy]

Select Dining can fill up, so I would recommend signing up sooner rather than waiting until on board (and perhaps being disappointed if it is not available then).

 

On my next cruise, I was wait-listed for Select Dining for about three days until it opened up.

 

On my last cruise, Select Dining was full upon reservation and not available when on board.

 

I'm going to pay tips one way or another, so whether I pay those tips in advance upon Select Dining sign-up or they are charged daily throughout the cruise is not consequential for me. The advantages of Select Dining are worth the pre-payment to me. Hope that helps!

 

 

We were with friends last year on a Caribbean cruise and we booked our Select Dining reservations (table for four) as a compromise a year in advance. Our friends like to eat early and we like the late seating. When we arrived we could not be seated because Select Dining had been over booked. Great planning on someones part. First night out our wait was over an hour. We ditched our Select Dining reservations and went to late dining which is where we stayed for the entire cruise. That was our experience with Select Dining. Needless to say never again.

[RealDeal]

Thanks everyone. Better not to chance it. Just trying to figure out ways to not prepay gratuities so I can use my OBC. I have another thread going in which we talk about the fact that X is now saying you can't withdraw non-refundable OBC from the casino for a 5% fee. I have $400 on NRF credit that I will never use & b/c I'm doing select dining I can't even put it toward gratuities. I think I'll have to switch my 123 promo to prepaid gratuities instead of the $200 OBC, although I'm not thrilled about giving up the $32, but it's not that big a deal I guess.

[cruisestitch]

Real deal when are you sailing?

 

I'm Boarding Eclipse today. I will investigate this at the casino and will report back when we are in St Thomas in three days.

[RealDeal]

Real deal when are you sailing?

 

I'm Boarding Eclipse today. I will investigate this at the casino and will report back when we are in St Thomas in three days.

 

That would be awesome! I'll look for your report. You could also email me at lisa21 at optonline.net if you want. Really appreciate it! I'm not sailing til September, so plenty of time. Happy travels!

[jagoffee]

We were with friends last year on a Caribbean cruise and we booked our Select Dining reservations (table for four) as a compromise a year in advance. Our friends like to eat early and we like the late seating. When we arrived we could not be seated because Select Dining had been over booked. Great planning on someones part. First night out our wait was over an hour. We ditched our Select Dining reservations and went to late dining which is where we stayed for the entire cruise. That was our experience with Select Dining. Needless to say never again.

 

That is an amazing and shocking experience. Yours is the first post that I have every read that had to wait over an hour and had to switch. I used Select on four cruises and I had no problems. We usually ate around 7PM. I would have thought that late seating would have been even easier.

It might be hard for you to do given your experience, but you might want to try it on a different cruise. Your experience is not the usual experience.

[dread_pirate]

Is it possible to change from Select to late traditional on board? On Princess, it seems that traditional books up and everyone else goes into Anytime as the default. On Celebrity, is it the other way around?

 

I'm not sure that I want to eat at 8:30, but 6 is definitely too early.

[jagoffee]

Is it possible to change from Select to late traditional on board? On Princess, it seems that traditional books up and everyone else goes into Anytime as the default. On Celebrity, is it the other way around?

 

I'm not sure that I want to eat at 8:30, but 6 is definitely too early.

 

Yes, it is the "the other way around". Select Dining is 1/2 of the 2nd floor dining, so fewer people than anytime.

 

See other comments concerning switching. It would depend on whether Select Dining is full.