No Early Main Dining Option

[rdcmadden]

Hi. We are sailing of the AOS from Puerto Rico next June. There is No option for Early Main Dining seating. Only late seating (08:30) and MTD. Is this new? Will they eventually add early seating. I called the RCI rep and she said this was the first time she had seen it.

[reedl]

It is probably filled up already. That is why there is no option to get it.

[BillOh]

Hi. We are sailing of the AOS from Puerto Rico next June. There is No option for Early Main Dining seating. Only late seating (08:30) and MTD. Is this new? Will they eventually add early seating. I called the RCI rep and she said this was the first time she had seen it.

 

Must be a new rep :) We've all seen in on occasion, or the opposite where they had early only and no late. Did the rep offer to wait list you for early? Since it is June, keep checking on it and ask them to wait list you, and as a last resort, you can try to change when you get onboard.

 

We've seen this happen a number of times over the years and the reasons why may vary. Early dining filled up is only one of the common reasons.

Edited August 15, 2014 by BillOh

[Lionesss]

We just booked a future cruise for next August on our last Allure sailing this past july 27th.

 

It is listed as MTD, we requested first seating.

 

We were told by the loyalty service rep that we would be able to update in September. It was only taking MTD listings.

 

Maybe they just wanted the prepaid tips:eek:

We shall see.

 

Sea Ya

[rdcmadden]

Thanks for your reply. There is no option to waitlist. According to her it's not full, it simply doesn't exist???

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Hi. We are sailing of the AOS from Puerto Rico next June. There is No option for Early Main Dining seating. Only late seating (08:30) and MTD. Is this new? Will they eventually add early seating. I called the RCI rep and she said this was the first time she had seen it.

 

we booked the grandeur out of Baltimore for next April over 2 months ago and there was no option for early or late, just MTD.

 

Since that is what we usually book it wasn't a big deal to us. :)

 

Bill

[fish6]

Maybe they are transitioning over to Dynamic Dining........

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Maybe they are transitioning over to Dynamic Dining........

 

that's what i thought too when it happened to us but people seem to think that isn't the case.:confused:

 

Bill

[rdcmadden]

After calling the rep, i just logged in and magically we're now on the 6pm traditional dining wait list?? Go figure...:)

[UCF_Knight]

When we take our kids on a cruise, we always do early traditional dining. For our last 4 cruises with them, this dining option has never been available at the time of booking. Twice we've had to pick My Time Dining and twice we picked Late dining when we booked. We've been put on the wait list all 4 times for Early dining and have gotten it assigned every time, usually in a month or less.

 

With your cruise as far out as it is, I can't imagine you won't clear the wait list. This just seems to be their way of evening out the bookings for the 3 dining options. Since Early is the most popular, they will close it for periods of time to make people pick one of the other 2 options.

[DebJ14]

Back in January I saw this with an October sailing on the Brilliance. We were going with a group of friends and the only times available were early or MTD. Everyone waitlisted for late dining and we all cleared the waitlist about a month later.

 

We ended up canceling though due to a meeting my DH must attend.

[RCCL Fan]

When we take our kids on a cruise, we always do early traditional dining. For our last 4 cruises with them, this dining option has never been available at the time of booking. Twice we've had to pick My Time Dining and twice we picked Late dining when we booked. We've been put on the wait list all 4 times for Early dining and have gotten it assigned every time, usually in a month or less.

 

With your cruise as far out as it is, I can't imagine you won't clear the wait list. This just seems to be their way of evening out the bookings for the 3 dining options. Since Early is the most popular, they will close it for periods of time to make people pick one of the other 2 options.

 

I wonder about this too --- my last four cruises have also have no availability for early seating.

 

odd

[fishtaco]

It may just be a way for RCI to get cruisers to "Pre Pay" Grats, there is lots of info about this in another thread about dinning options although its all mostly speculation at this stage, it does seems more and more that bookers are unable to get their preferred traditional dinning time even when booking well over a year ahead.

 

When you are waitlisted for early or late traditional dinning you are allocated MTD while waitlisted which requires pre paid grats, if you do get your traditional dinning preference closer to the cruise then you have already pre paid your grats.

 

I personally believe this is a pathway forward for RCI to add pre paid gratuities to all bookings regardless your dinning option and this would make sense as they get ready to introduce Dynamic Dinning.

 

With RCI sailings from Australia this has already been done with Pre paid grats being charged at booking stage and added to the total fare for all dinning options not just MTD:)

[fishtaco]

When we take our kids on a cruise, we always do early traditional dining. For our last 4 cruises with them, this dining option has never been available at the time of booking. Twice we've had to pick My Time Dining and twice we picked Late dining when we booked. We've been put on the wait list all 4 times for Early dining and have gotten it assigned every time, usually in a month or less.

 

With your cruise as far out as it is, I can't imagine you won't clear the wait list. This just seems to be their way of evening out the bookings for the 3 dining options. Since Early is the most popular, they will close it for periods of time to make people pick one of the other 2 options.

 

Why would RCI want to "even out" dinning options and close it for periods? The ships leave full so once a dinning option is full then it is full same as cabin availability.

 

I could understand an evening out of pax type for early traditional by allowing an even match of people with children and people without children but just as many with children are being waitlisted far out as without children?

 

My next RCI cruise booked well in advance only has early traditional dinning available and it is during a school break?

[fish6]

Have any of you read the review on CC from Freedom this week. It was announced that after Freedoms dry dock in January 2015 she will have Dynamic Dining. When does the Adventure go for her dry dock? Or did she already?

[Paulxyz2004]

It may just be a way for RCI to get cruisers to "Pre Pay" Grats, there is lots of info about this in another thread about dinning options although its all mostly speculation at this stage, it does seems more and more that bookers are unable to get their preferred traditional dinning time even when booking well over a year ahead.

 

When you are waitlisted for early or late traditional dinning you are allocated MTD while waitlisted which requires pre paid grats, if you do get your traditional dinning preference closer to the cruise then you have already pre paid your grats.

 

I personally believe this is a pathway forward for RCI to add pre paid gratuities to all bookings regardless your dinning option and this would make sense as they get ready to introduce Dynamic Dinning.

 

With RCI sailings from Australia this has already been done with Pre paid grats being charged at booking stage and added to the total fare for all dinning options not just MTD:)

 

 

I Keep reading about the prepaid gartuities being the reason, but what is mostly lost in the discussion is that prepaid gratuities for MTD are added to the cruise fare and not collected at the time of booking (unless you book past final payment date).

 

There is really no incentive for RCI to push cruisers towards MTD a year out and waitlist them for traditional seating. They do not collect any more Money for this in advance. If the cruisers clear the waitlist before final payment is due, the prepaid grats will fall off their bill automatically. It has happened to me a few times and I always had to advise them to leave the prepaid grtas in place, as I actually like them.

[Clarea]

Have any of you read the review on CC from Freedom this week. It was announced that after Freedoms dry dock in January 2015 she will have Dynamic Dining. When does the Adventure go for her dry dock? Or did she already?

Adventure recently had a dry dock, but for some reason it was abbreviated and they did not do all they had originally planned. It is supposed to have another dry dock in the near future.

[Merion_Mom]

I Keep reading about the prepaid gartuities being the reason, but what is mostly lost in the discussion is that prepaid gratuities for MTD are added to the cruise fare and not collected at the time of booking (unless you book past final payment date).

 

There is really no incentive for RCI to push cruisers towards MTD a year out and waitlist them for traditional seating. They do not collect any more Money for this in advance. If the cruisers clear the waitlist before final payment is due, the prepaid grats will fall off their bill automatically. It has happened to me a few times and I always had to advise them to leave the prepaid grtas in place, as I actually like them.

 

The vast vast vast majority of cruisers book and then forget about it. They don't keep obsessively checking prices or other aspects of their cruise. They just leave it alone, and when final payment time comes, they pay.

 

These are the cruisers that RC LIKES and pushes into MTD. ;)

[Paulxyz2004]

The vast vast vast majority of cruisers book and then forget about it. They don't keep obsessively checking prices or other aspects of their cruise. They just leave it alone, and when final payment time comes, they pay.

 

These are the cruisers that RC LIKES and pushes into MTD. ;)

 

Sure, nothing wrong with that as those are the ones that don´t care anyway;)

 

Still the Point about collecting prepaid grats a year in advance is simply not true.

[Montanagirlalways]

Hi. We are sailing of the AOS from Puerto Rico next June. There is No option for Early Main Dining seating. Only late seating (08:30) and MTD. Is this new? Will they eventually add early seating. I called the RCI rep and she said this was the first time she had seen it.

 

just off the Allure. Learned the ship is going into dry dock in September. Also learned they are going to MTD only

[negc]

just off the Allure. Learned the ship is going into dry dock in September. Also learned they are going to MTD only

 

When you say "learned" do you mean "heard"? There is a difference and we have all been burned too often by cruise staff (including officers as well as waiters and room stewards) all too eager to let us in on the "inside information" that they have, only to find it, shall we say, less than accurate.

I'd wait for a formal announcement from the line before betting the farm on such a significant change.

[SeaPasser]

When booking during the time that the desired dining option is not available online, a friendly call to request it due to medical issues may open it up.

[Montanagirlalways]

When you say "learned" do you mean "heard"? There is a difference and we have all been burned too often by cruise staff (including officers as well as waiters and room stewards) all too eager to let us in on the "inside information" that they have, only to find it, shall we say, less than accurate.

I'd wait for a formal announcement from the line before betting the farm on such a significant change.

 

You are correct. I heard from the wait staff.

[fish6]

Adventure recently had a dry dock, but for some reason it was abbreviated and they did not do all they had originally planned. It is supposed to have another dry dock in the near future.

 

Makes you wonder If they are going to do the same thing that they are planning on Freedom with the main dining room. I am open to the idea of DD but was hoping they would test the waters with Quantum and Anthem for awhile first before implementing these changes so soon on their other ships.

[fish6]

just off the Allure. Learned the ship is going into dry dock in September. Also learned they are going to MTD only

 

What? Next September I'm hoping!!