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Midnight Buffet

masterty

By masterty,
in Princess Cruises

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kingart55

kingart55

Posted
Posted (edited)
Most lines I have cruised discarded that years ago. Celebrity does a brunch, usually on the last sea day, with all the fancy carvings. EM

 

Celebrity DID a brunch. On the Eclipse, Sydney-Honolulu in April they had an

Australian dessert free for all in the atrium at 11am

Edited by kingart55
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cubfan63

cubfan63

Posted
Posted
Celebrity DID a brunch. On the Eclipse, Sydney-Honolulu in April they had an

 

Australian dessert free for all in the atrium at 11am

 

 

For some reason, the mention of "Australian dessert free for all" gave me the mental image of a food fight using Lamingtons and Pavlovas! LOL

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Boytjie

Boytjie

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You're right. There was an enormous amount of food wasted. Not to mention staff needed to keep the buffet running. Very few people went to the buffet and yes, the cruise lines (including Princess) have cut back but then cruise pricing has remained the same or even lower than it used to be. Some lines, such as HAL, close up the buffet tighter than a drum at 8pm. Even if you're in the middle of dinner and don't make it to get dessert, you're outta luck.

 

One perk of our charters: the buffets are open till about 4 am - with hot food. And it is busy. Then again, dance parties go till 2:30 am out on deck.

Edited by Boytjie
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OzKiwiJJ Great Review Rare

OzKiwiJJ

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For some reason, the mention of "Australian dessert free for all" gave me the mental image of a food fight using Lamingtons and Pavlovas! LOL

 

ROTFLMAO! :D

 

The pavlova is probably better than a custard pie but the lamingtons could be lethal (depending on who baked them, of course) ;)

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jrzebird

jrzebird

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On the Princess Halloween repo we've had a big display of various Halloween carvings and desserts. We've had poolside buffets with desserts. This doesn't happen every cruise, but mostly on the longer 10+ day cruises. None of the buffets they've had in the past few years have been midnight.

 

My first HAL cruise we sailed with 2 other couples and they insisted on having an early seating for dinner so they could have another meal at the 11:30 buffet! :eek:

 

Someone said that the buffet closes up tight at 8:00 p.m. on HAL. I'm sure that the meal service does, but this past March my son went up to the Lido every night about 11:00 and got cookies or a dessert and tea to bring to the cabin to enjoy on the balcony. They must put out the left overs after they clean up from dinner.

 

Maureen

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caribill

caribill

Posted
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The previous cruise' date=' there was a nighttime buffet on the night of the Ultimate Deck Party right there on the lido deck. Here's some photos of the food:

 

 

[/quote']

 

When was that cruise?

 

On the Princess cruises I have been on, there has been no buffet with the ultimate deck party for about three years.

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gdisney

gdisney

Posted
Posted
Thanks for the info everyone. One more question. After dancing till 1 am.....where are the snacks?

 

Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk

 

When I was in the Star in 2012 (Seattle to Alaska), the Horizon Court offered light snacks from 11pm-midnight. After that it was just snacks/desserts at the Intl Cafe. Or room service.

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SoCal Cruiser78

SoCal Cruiser78

Posted
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Boy, I take a 4 year break from cruising and look what happens...they go and change stuff :)...

 

I hear you! It's been 9 years for me. My last cruise (a 14-day on X) had people dressed "to the nines" at the midnight buffet in addition to the many formal nights. No shorts allowed anywhere on board for men after 6 PM even on casual nights.

 

I know things have changed, but I'm determined to have a great time anyway! Packing will sure be easier :).

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Lovetocruiseprincess

Lovetocruiseprincess

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I hear you! It's been 9 years for me. My last cruise (a 14-day on X) had people dressed "to the nines" at the midnight buffet in addition to the many formal nights. No shorts allowed anywhere on board for men after 6 PM even on casual nights.

 

I know things have changed, but I'm determined to have a great time anyway! Packing will sure be easier :).

 

Even Celebrity has relaxed their rules to keep up with what people want.

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OCruisers

OCruisers

Posted
Posted
When was that cruise?

 

On the Princess cruises I have been on, there has been no buffet with the ultimate deck party for about three years.

 

I haven't seen a buffet at the ultimate deck party in several years either.

Things change!

LuLu

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hllwdcruiser Great Review Rare

hllwdcruiser

Posted
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On our Princess cruises to Alaska, they've had a "Taste of Alaska" poolside buffet one afternoon featuring difference Alaskan specialties including fresh salmon and rockfish chowder.

 

When did you cruise to Alaska and on what ship? I wonder if they are still doing it - if so, I'm going to be first in line! :D

 

As far as midnight buffets - I remember them fondly from my first few cruises. As others have mentioned - you got to walk through first for a photo opportunity and then get in line again to actually eat. If I remember correctly, the food always looked better than it tasted.

 

I'm actually relieved they don't have them anymore....it would be absolute torture for me to stay awake that late (I'm sure not as young as I used to be) yet I know I would force myself to just to experience it!

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Loonbeam

Loonbeam

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They had snacks out on our Canal cruise but not a real buffet (cookies, some cakes, etc) - The CD/EC/MD have some discretion about how dining services can be used to support events, supplies permitting.

 

When was that cruise?

 

On the Princess cruises I have been on, there has been no buffet with the ultimate deck party for about three years.

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Cruisin' Chick

Cruisin' Chick

Posted
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When was that cruise?

 

On the Princess cruises I have been on, there has been no buffet with the ultimate deck party for about three years.

 

We took that cruise in December 2010. The next cruise, exactly two years later, no buffet for the UDP. But I figured not a problem as the Horizon Court is right there (and the IC eight decks below).

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OCruisers

OCruisers

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Posted
We took that cruise in December 2010. The next cruise' date=' exactly two years later, no buffet for the UDP. But I figured not a problem as the Horizon Court is right there (and the IC eight decks below).[/quote']

 

Horizon Court now closes at 11 PM. The IC is open 24 hours.

LuLu

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