Dining with the Captain

[jules815]

We've never had the honor of being selected to dine with the captain. Is it a totally random thing? How do they go about making their selection?

 

Sailing on FOS again this September and always hopeful. :)

[cb at sea]

ITs random, to a degree.....(and nowadays, dining with the Captain doesn't happen as often!) If staff or crew believe you to be a "good fit", then you may get an invite...

[Clarea]

We've never had the honor of being selected to dine with the captain. Is it a totally random thing? How do they go about making their selection?

 

Sailing on FOS again this September and always hopeful. :)

Not totally random. Selection method differs based on the management. We've seen high point cruisers, suite guests, personal friends or relatives of the Captain or other officers, or just random guests.

[Retired LEO]

We've never had the honor of being selected to dine with the captain. Is it a totally random thing? How do they go about making their selection?

 

Sailing on FOS again this September and always hopeful. :)

 

Nobody will ever know. Sometimes it's the top cruisers. Sometimes those staying in suites. Some Captains want just single ladies. ;)

The Matre'd may choose. The concierge may choose. Some Captains choose people from his Country. Some Captains don't do it at all.

 

Bottom line...Nobody knows.

[George C]

It appears suite people get a priority on this, we had it last year on 1st time we booked a GS. We meet a very nice couple this year and they were invited and they were in Royal suite

[kandj05]

On our Panama Canal cruise, we invited the Food & Beverage Manager to have dinner at our table of 10. He accepted and we had a great time!! I know he is not the same level as the Captain or Hotel Director. We still felt honored that he would take the time to have dinner with our crazy group. Cornelis is the best!

[Cruising_Tiger]

How does dinner with the Captain work with Dynamic Dining?

[ChipLondon]

Completely differently, the Captain does not have a fixed table. If he chooses to dine with guests, he chooses them and the which restaurant. Could be a speciality, one of the four, or Johnny Rockets. Other Officers have chosen to invite people to a private dinner in the closed section of the WJ ( sometimes those are the best as they are less formal, and real fun. :eek:

 

 

How does dinner with the Captain work with Dynamic Dining?

Edited May 11, 2015 by ChipLondon

[iluvit!]

On our carnival Tropicale cruise back in the early 90's my sister and I were invited to join the Captain's table on formal night. There was a newlywed couple, an older probably Diamond couple, and 2 lively pretty single women (us!). The Captain drank about 2 bottles of wine as the dinner dragged on forever. He shot me such a look of gratitude when I realized that the officers probably could not be the first to leave the table and I got up with "I hate to be the one to break up this part but..." It was a special dinner, great service and free-flowing wine plus a keepsake photo.

[Trekker954]

Some Captains want just single ladies. ;)

.

 

 

Oh please, tell me this isn't so. ewwwwwwwwwwww

[MrCruzeaddict]

We've been lucky enough to dine with the Captain 3 times and we are NOT suite people. We have dined with Capt. Bang (retired) twice and Capt. Per once. It is a great experience. Great food and great service. We have met some great people in the process too.

 

 

Joe

[textbookcase]

It appears suite people get a priority on this, we had it last year on 1st time we booked a GS. We meet a very nice couple this year and they were invited and they were in Royal suite

We usually sail in suites since we don't cruise very often and we have never been asked to dine with the captain. We sailed in the Royal Loft Suite on our last cruise and I had hoped we would get an invitation, but we're still waiting. And those captains are missing out, because we are FUN! LOL

[BARNET]

Some Captains want just single ladies. ;)

 

Must work for Costa

[skyking]

We have had the joy of sitting at the Captains table on 6 occasions, the best was on the Mariner with Captain Pier, he was very social and had a bottle of aquavet brought out. Another awesome occasion was on the QM2 on Thanksgiving, NO IDEA how we got invited all those times, luck I guess.

Edited May 11, 2015 by skyking

[Iamthesea]

We have been invited 3 times...all with the Captain. We turned down one invitation.;) Our accommodations were in standard balcony's and a Sky Suite.

 

On a separate occasion...again in a standard balcony...we dined with a cruise director.

[WEGL81]

We were invited to dine with the Captain on a formal night on our very first cruise in 1988. Being new to cruising, we thought this was pretty standard and would get to enjoy this many times in the future. We have never been invited since.

[racerxspeedy]

This subject hits home for me a bit. Semi-related story:

 

About 10 years ago we were eating breakfast in the MDR on Explorer and an officer approached our table of 4. He asked if we were interested in dining with the Captain that night. We agreed to change our dining time. The wives were very excited. The girls actually used this as an excuse to purchase new jewelry on board. This shopping experience did not go well(overcharged).

 

About an hour before we planned to meet for dinner I got a call from the officer we met earlier in the day. He informed me that "I am sorry, but we cannot seat you with the Captain tonight".

 

I assume he must of had someone "more important" request our seats. Our friends were first time RC guests....and were not impressed. When I was discussing the shopping "issue" with a high level officer the next day I brought up the Capt dinner. After getting my bill corrected she said " sorry - there are a lot of diamond+ on board". Not a happy day for us.

 

Oh well - live and learn. We still had a great time in Bermuda.

[WyKnott]

My very first cruise in the 80s, my friend and I were invited to dine with the Captain and Chief Engineer. There were three different couples and us two 20-something women. At the Captain's reception, right after going through the reception line, the cruise director asked us if we'd like to sit at the Captain's table that evening. I don't know if he picked us or if the Captain gave him the high sign.

 

The wine was flowing, the meal was different than what was on the menu and many toasts were had.

[Jasp 0401]

We've never had the honor of being selected to dine with the captain. Is it a totally random thing? How do they go about making their selection?

 

Sailing on FOS again this September and always hopeful. :)

I have over heard someone being told that it is picked at random. They don't give a priority to any guest including suites and CA members .We love to cruise in suites and have even had the Royal and didn't get an invite. But I also don't think he ate with any passengers during our cruise.

Good luck I hope you get picked

[George C]

The dinner we had was as good as any meal I have had at sea ( 58 cruises) , wine was top notch, and they gave us all copy of menu signed by Captain and they took group photo and gave each of us a copy. Ours was in main dinning room with a small champagne reception before dinner, I can not understand why anyone would turn this down.

[papaflamingo]

We have dined with the Capt. 3 times. The first time was in 2000. We were in inside cabins. We were 3 couples traveling together, our 3rd cruise, the other 2 couples 1st cruises. We were just having a good time on the first night when the Maitre de stopped at our table and invited us to dine with the Captain the next night (Formal Night)! Turns out that particular Captain looked for "fun" people for one Formal Night and then "high rollers" for the second.

The second time was a Trans Atlantic in 2012 on Vision. We were 4 couples traveling together and the Captain was Captain Srecko Ban. What a great Captain. Anyway, we went to the Captains Reception and were wearing "flamingo ties." He commented on the ties and one friend jokingly suggested we have dinner with him. He said he'd see but there were a lot of high level C & A passengers on board. Through the next week or so we would see him about the ship and he would remark that he was still trying to work out dinner with us. We, of course, knew he was just being nice. Then the night before the 3rd Formal Night he personally came to the Diamond Event (we were all Diamond) and found one of our friends and said he had been searching the ship for us to get our cabin numbers to invite us to dinner! It was a great experience (as was the first time).

The third invitation was on Legend in Feb. 2014. We got to know the Dining Room Manager, and he took me aside one night and invited my wife and I to dine with the Captain the next night, the second Formal Night. Again, another wonderful experience. I will add this, he told us quietly because our tablemates weren't being invited. The stated reason, we dressed better. I had a Tux and my wife dressed formally. Our tablemates, although dressed up for Formal Night, were not dressed formally, but in shirt and tie.

So, not opening a discussion, but in our case it seemed that being dressed formally and wearing "smart casual" for other dinners, was critical. I also think there is a better chance on a smaller ship. But I have never seen anyone at the Captains table that hasn't adhered to the suggested Formal Night dress code. No judgement, just my observations.

[Retired LEO]

We have dined with the Capt. 3 times. The first time was in 2000. We were in inside cabins. We were 3 couples traveling together, our 3rd cruise, the other 2 couples 1st cruises. We were just having a good time on the first night when the Maitre de stopped at our table and invited us to dine with the Captain the next night (Formal Night)! Turns out that particular Captain looked for "fun" people for one Formal Night and then "high rollers" for the second.

The second time was a Trans Atlantic in 2012 on Vision. We were 4 couples traveling together and the Captain was Captain Srecko Ban. What a great Captain. Anyway, we went to the Captains Reception and were wearing "flamingo ties." He commented on the ties and one friend jokingly suggested we have dinner with him. He said he'd see but there were a lot of high level C & A passengers on board. Through the next week or so we would see him about the ship and he would remark that he was still trying to work out dinner with us. We, of course, knew he was just being nice. Then the night before the 3rd Formal Night he personally came to the Diamond Event (we were all Diamond) and found one of our friends and said he had been searching the ship for us to get our cabin numbers to invite us to dinner! It was a great experience (as was the first time).

The third invitation was on Legend in Feb. 2014. We got to know the Dining Room Manager, and he took me aside one night and invited my wife and I to dine with the Captain the next night, the second Formal Night. Again, another wonderful experience. I will add this, he told us quietly because our tablemates weren't being invited. The stated reason, we dressed better. I had a Tux and my wife dressed formally. Our tablemates, although dressed up for Formal Night, were not dressed formally, but in shirt and tie.

So, not opening a discussion, but in our case it seemed that being dressed formally and wearing "smart casual" for other dinners, was critical. I also think there is a better chance on a smaller ship. But I have never seen anyone at the Captains table that hasn't adhered to the suggested Formal Night dress code. No judgement, just my observations.

 

That is definately a criteria to get chosen. The Matre'd and head waiters observe who dress appropriatley and go from there.

[iheartbda]

Nobody will ever know. Sometimes it's the top cruisers. Sometimes those staying in suites. Some Captains want just single ladies. ;)

The Matre'd may choose. The concierge may choose. Some Captains choose people from his Country. Some Captains don't do it at all.

 

Bottom line...Nobody knows.

I suspect the upgrade fairy knows.:D

[elkay68]

I am going to inquire on our upcoming explorer cruise with the concierge. We are a party of 14. We have 2 Royal family suites and 2 owners suites....I doubt that matters but I have learned there is no harm in asking😊

[papaflamingo]

I am going to inquire on our upcoming explorer cruise with the concierge. We are a party of 14. We have 2 Royal family suites and 2 owners suites....I doubt that matters but I have learned there is no harm in asking😊

 

One problem, I believe the Captain's Table is space limited to 8 plus the Captain. A party of 14 would be tough.