No Dynamic Dining on Oasis Class

[RocketMan275]

You said that by not deciding, I decided to let RCI decide on my menu, table, tablemates and waitstaff. What you seem to not understand is that, with the possible exception of tablemates, even when you decide to go through the trouble of planning everything via DD you are also deciding to let RCI select your menu, table and waitstaff.

 

Therefore, we both let them make several decisions for us...I just don't have to mess with making many more decisions related to dining ahead of time.

 

Besides...if I don't trust them to make good decisions on those items I am an idiot for even booking a cruise on one of their ships.

 

Let me try again.

 

Some complained that DD made them choose what to eat months in advance. My point is this. You also decide months in advance what your dinner choices will be if you decide on TD.

 

Two hypothetical situations.

 

You book a cruise. You choose DD. You choose a specific rotation of venues with their menus. For example, on Tuesday, you'll have the American Icon menu.

 

You book a cruise. You choose TD. There is a specific rotation of menus in the MDR. For example, on Tuesday, you'll have the Jasmine menu.

 

In both cases you've made the same decision. Yes, you have made a few more decisions with DD. But you're kidding yourself to think you've not decided what your menu choices will be on Tuesday by choosing TD.

 

The big advantage with DD is that you can change your mind. It's Tuesday, and you decide you don't want to do American Icon. You can always decide to change venues from American Icon to another choice. If you picked TD, you can't decide to order from any menu except Jasmine.

Edited July 17, 2015 by RocketMan275

[RocketMan275]

I can believe that. So when you break it down further, it's about:

-planning weeks in advance

-interfere with the enjoyment of a cruise

 

But don't forget:

-disappearing reservations

-organizational chaos

-mixed opinions on food/service

-boasting from the CEO that at least new cruisers don't mind

 

Then if we're going to talk about choices, RCL should introduce some sort of hybrid (additional free restaurants in addition to the MDR), and we all get to decide.

 

I look at DD, and it seems like a gimmick. 3/4 of the free menu options are just MDR type food anyways. Let's swap out a Hibachi Grill, a Spanish Tapas, a Brazilian Steakhouse, and keep the Asian Fusion, and now we have real choices.

 

I agree that RCI did a poor job of rolling out DD. But poor execution does not mean the original concept was poorly structured or chosen.

 

I also agree that DD was somewhat of a gimmick. But then, what part of cruising cannot be seen as some kind of gimmick? Water slides? Rock Walls? All are 'gimmicks'. BTW, I do like your idea about different types of MDR foods. Unfortunately, since some don't like change, you'd get as many complaints if your ideas were implemented.

 

Yes, some people are afraid of making decision since they are afraid they will make the wrong choice. I'm not sure that is a valid argument for not giving folks the ability to make choices. Personally, I like making decisions so I don't relate well to those who prefer to let others make their decision for them.

Edited July 17, 2015 by RocketMan275

[garnetpalmetto]

Let me try again.

 

Some complained that DD made them choose what to eat months in advance. My point is this. You also decide months in advance what your dinner choices will be if you decide on TD.

 

Two hypothetical situations.

 

You book a cruise. You choose DD. You choose a specific rotation of venues with their menus. For example, on Tuesday, you'll have the American Icon menu.

 

You book a cruise. You choose TD. There is a specific rotation of menus in the MDR. For example, on Tuesday, you'll have the Jasmine menu.

 

In both cases you've made the same decision. Yes, you have made a few more decisions with DD. But you're kidding yourself to think you've not decided what your menu choices will be on Tuesday by choosing TD.

 

The big advantage with DD is that you can change your mind. It's Tuesday, and you decide you don't want to do American Icon. You can always decide to change venues from American Icon to another choice. If you picked TD, you can't decide to order from any menu except Jasmine.

 

Or you can go to another complementary venue. Or order room service. Or go to a specialty restaurant. You can still change your mind if you find yourself not in the mood for anything on the Jasmine menu in your example. However, to your point about knowing which menu on which day, at the time you book you don't know that at all. Offhand I think there at least 8 MDR menus - Basil, Jasmine, Mojo, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Portobello, Saffron, and Shiitake. Items get substituted in on different menus on different ships and there's no guarantee which menus will necessarily be featured or in what order. For instance, on my Serenade cruise the order was Mojo, Saffrdon, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Basil, Jasmine, and Portobello. No Shiitake at all. On Majesty it was Mojo, Saffron, Pomodoro, and Pimiento. I don't think traditional dining in the MDR is quite as set in stone as some think it is.

[RocketMan275]

Or you can go to another complementary venue. Or order room service. Or go to a specialty restaurant. You can still change your mind if you find yourself not in the mood for anything on the Jasmine menu in your example. However, to your point about knowing which menu on which day, at the time you book you don't know that at all. Offhand I think there at least 8 MDR menus - Basil, Jasmine, Mojo, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Portobello, Saffron, and Shiitake. Items get substituted in on different menus on different ships and there's no guarantee which menus will necessarily be featured or in what order. For instance, on my Serenade cruise the order was Mojo, Saffrdon, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Basil, Jasmine, and Portobello. No Shiitake at all. On Majesty it was Mojo, Saffron, Pomodoro, and Pimiento. I don't think traditional dining in the MDR is quite as set in stone as some think it is.

 

All of the choices you mentioned are only available if you want to forgo the MDR. With MDR, not only do you have those choices but you also can switch to another venue and still enjoy a MDR-like experience.

 

For a given itinerary and cruise ship, the MDR menus are pretty much set in stone. Besides, why are experiences on Majesty and Serenade relevant to this discussion of DD on Oasis/Allure/Harmony?

[Bobal]

Or you can go to another complementary venue. Or order room service. Or go to a specialty restaurant. You can still change your mind if you find yourself not in the mood for anything on the Jasmine menu in your example. However, to your point about knowing which menu on which day, at the time you book you don't know that at all. Offhand I think there at least 8 MDR menus - Basil, Jasmine, Mojo, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Portobello, Saffron, and Shiitake. Items get substituted in on different menus on different ships and there's no guarantee which menus will necessarily be featured or in what order. For instance, on my Serenade cruise the order was Mojo, Saffrdon, Pimiento, Pomodoro, Basil, Jasmine, and Portobello. No Shiitake at all. On Majesty it was Mojo, Saffron, Pomodoro, and Pimiento. I don't think traditional dining in the MDR is quite as set in stone as some think it is.

 

But this argument isn't a strong one. a) Which other venue is complementary and comparable to a dining room experience b) why would someone who likes to dine in a restaurant choose the room service menu c) maybe you don't know what the menu will be and maybe the menus sometimes change (slightly) but the point is there are some menus where I struggle to find ANY entrees which I like so if, for instance, the MDR menu is Pimiento that night (not a favourite of mine) I am stuck with that choice. If I have DD I can choose to go to a restaurant where there are choices I like.

 

I would disagree and say the problem with the MDR is that is is exactly set in stone. These are your choices on this particular night and if you don't like any of them - tough luck, eat in the cafeteria or pay extra :(

[Paulette3028]

If you have early or late seating on your SeaPass card, then I don't think you are permitted to utilize the MTD section.

 

Well since I have had the experience, when a friend who had found that MTD just wasn't working out well for him and his wife they did get changed to early traditional seating on a cruise....and I know, because we added them to our table.

 

He spoke to the dining room Maitre D' and it was accommodated.

 

I don't see why a cruiser or several cruisers could not have a conversation with the Maitre D' and arrange for the group for an evening to go to MTD.

 

In my world it is called, ask. The goal of the staff is to accommodate and my belief is they will.

[JulieRose]

ugh. And to think of all the time i spent trying to get my MDR loving parents to understand dynamic dining... :rolleyes:

[Big Beer Gut]

Finally some common sense surfaces at RCL. The DD concept can only really be implemented when the dining rooms are designed for it. Simply, changing the chairs and putting up some different color curtains didn't help.

 

Thank you RCL

[Paulxyz2004]

But this argument isn't a strong one. a) Which other venue is complementary and comparable to a dining room experience b) why would someone who likes to dine in a restaurant choose the room service menu c) maybe you don't know what the menu will be and maybe the menus sometimes change (slightly) but the point is there are some menus where I struggle to find ANY entrees which I like so if, for instance, the MDR menu is Pimiento that night (not a favourite of mine) I am stuck with that choice. If I have DD I can choose to go to a restaurant where there are choices I like.

I would disagree and say the problem with the MDR is that is is exactly set in stone. These are your choices on this particular night and if you don't like any of them - tough luck, eat in the cafeteria or pay extra :(

 

You are pointing out my main reason for why I am happy to see the decision to drop DD from a fleet wide implementation.

 

DD gives me the choice of 3 menus each night, but also over the course of my usually at least 12-14 night cruise (never B2B so no repeat menus). So I´m stuck with 3 menus for 12 nights or more. BTW 3 menus I´m struggling to find many items I like on, just like your view of Pimento.

 

How would you view DD if those three menus would be in the same category for you as Pimento?

 

With the traditional Dining I will have only one menu to Chose from each night, but over the course of the cruise I will have 12 menus. So to me it´s 3 menus vs. 12 menus. I can far more easily avoid a certain menu I don´t particulary like for one night than avoiding 3 menus I don´t like for a whole cruise.

Bottom line to me is DD Limits my choices and not expands it.

 

In a perfect world they would probably Keep traditional and MTD as it is and ad a couple specialty Restaurants that are included in the cruise fare. I know unlikely to happen, just something that might make both sides happy. OK it probably would still have some People unhappy.

Edited July 18, 2015 by Paulxyz2004

[abridalmaven]

I am booked on Harmony for the US inaugural. I was not happy about the DD concept. So when we heard it was gone we were thrilled and our dining had been changed to second seating, our favorite. Now we will relax and enjoy our cruise instead of stressing over where and when to eat.

 

 

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[MJonTravel]

Frankly, I liked Dynamic Dining on Quantum, and I was one of the early cruisers. Was looking forward to seeing it on Allure and the rest of the Oasis ships, though I wasn't expecting it to be in place for our upcoming T/A. All that said, I wouldn't pick a cruise based solely on which dining concept was available before, and I won't start now. I'll just keep cruising.

[Cruising_Tiger]

You are pointing out my main reason for why I am happy to see the decision to drop DD from a fleet wide implementation.

 

DD gives me the choice of 3 menus each night, but also over the course of my usually at least 12-14 night cruise (never B2B so no repeat menus). So I´m stuck with 3 menus for 12 nights or more. BTW 3 menus I´m struggling to find many items I like on, just like your view of Pimento.

 

How would you view DD if those three menus would be in the same category for you as Pimento?

 

With the traditional Dining I will have only one menu to Chose from each night, but over the course of the cruise I will have 12 menus. So to me it´s 3 menus vs. 12 menus. I can far more easily avoid a certain menu I don´t particulary like for one night than avoiding 3 menus I don´t like for a whole cruise.

Bottom line to me is DD Limits my choices and not expands it.

 

In a perfect world they would probably Keep traditional and MTD as it is and ad a couple specialty Restaurants that are included in the cruise fare. I know unlikely to happen, just something that might make both sides happy. OK it probably would still have some People unhappy.

 

 

Paul, I agree 100%. The worst thing about DD is the reduced choice of menu selections. The MDR and select dining concept is a great balance and RCL finally realized they already had the concept optimized from the passenger perspective. I think RCL expected an increased use of the specialty restaurants with DD but it didn't happen.

[Calgon1]

OK, so 'Dynamic Dining' is gone. But, 'My Time Dining' is still an option. Seems to me that we still have the best of both worlds.

 

Book 'Traditional Dining', selecting the time and size table you want (based on personal habits, port times, on-board show/events and how out-going you are or aren't).).

 

If you end up with the table-mates from hell, change to a different table. We have never had a problem making a change. Or, if there is a conflict, elect 'My Time Dining' for whatever day(s) are more convenient. Yes, you have a reserved table, but if you show at a different time you won't be turned away . . .

 

 

Oh, and I just checked. Specialty restaurant dining reservations, for our Nov 14th Oasis, ARE NOT available as of now. :(

Edited July 18, 2015 by Calgon1

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

OK, so 'Dynamic Dining' is gone. But, 'My Time Dining' is still an option. Seems to me that we still have the best of both worlds.

 

Book 'Traditional Dining', selecting the time and size table you want (based on personal habits, port times, on-board show/events and how out-going you are or aren't).).

 

If you end up with the table-mates from hell, change to a different table. We have never had a problem making a change. Or, if there is a conflict, elect 'My Time Dining' for whatever day(s) are more convenient. Yes, you have a reserved table, but if you show at a different time you won't be turned away . . .

 

 

Oh, and I just checked. Specialty restaurant dining reservations, for our Nov 14th Oasis, ARE NOT available as of now. :(

 

I really don't think that they would let you do that. If you select Traditional Dining, you'll get that for the length of the cruise, same if you select MTD. I've never heard of anyone being able to switch between the two. They'll probably just send you to the Windjammer or a Specialty Restaurant.

[Calgon1]

I really don't think that they would let you do that. If you select Traditional Dining, you'll get that for the length of the cruise, same if you select MTD. I've never heard of anyone being able to switch between the two. They'll probably just send you to the Windjammer or a Specialty Restaurant.

 

What I meant by that was, if you don't want to utilize your reserved 'Traditional Dining' table, due to a scheduling conflict (shorex, etc.) or you desire to experience a differently themed MDR venue/menu, you can always elect to utilize the 'My Time" option for that seating.

[MADflyer]

One of the biggest problems that DD was created to remedy was the fact that on the Oasis Class ships, you had an incredible amount of passengers missing from the dining room on any given night. This was even a problem to a lesser degree on other ships.

 

On my September 2013 Oasis sailing I was alone on night one at a table for 10, when none of the other diners at the fully booked table showed up for dinner. I was then away 4 of the remaining 6 nights enjoying the Chef's Table and 3 specialty restaurants. My tablemates were all very disappointed as there had never been more than 4 guests at dinner on any given night during the sailing.

 

On the October 2014 Oasis Transatlantic, I had a friend from a previous sailing change to my table. The first night we were only 4 at a table for 12. This couple never returned. We were joined on night 2 by two couples and we were 6 passengers at a table for 12. This table worked out well as we did 3 evenings each at specialty dining and were away from the dining room on the same night, so that no one had to sit alone at the huge table.

 

On my Liberty April 2013 transatlantic, we were the same 4 passengers that showed up to dinner. On night 3 they took away 2 chairs from our table for 10. The other 4 passengers would never give up their 'seats' and we were just 4 for the entire sailing. We asked about having other join us, but as these 4 would not give up the seats we were not allowed to have someone else fill the empty seats. On this Liberty sailing there were many passengers that had their gratuities removed by guest services as they were not dining, but would not give up assigned seats in the dining room.

Edited July 18, 2015 by MADflyer

[The_Big_M]

 

There are pros and cons to both, and any cruiser may not like DD and that's perfectly ok! We humans all like different things.

 

Agreed, and also agree that there are some things with DD that you can't do with MDR like dressing up and having lobster every night.

 

Either way, nobody's going hungry. ;)

[RocketMan275]

Finally some common sense surfaces at RCL. The DD concept can only really be implemented when the dining rooms are designed for it. Simply, changing the chairs and putting up some different color curtains didn't help.

 

Thank you RCL

 

I'm curious. Could you explain the design differences in a dining room designed for DD and a dining room designed for regular dining? I'd like to know the specific design differences that prevent DD from being properly implemented on Oasis/Allure/Harmony.

[travelgoddess1]

< Never mind >

[John&LaLa]

I'm curious. Could you explain the design differences in a dining room designed for DD and a dining room designed for regular dining? I'd like to know the specific design differences that prevent DD from being properly implemented on Oasis/Allure/Harmony.

You will never see an answer to that question, because there isn't one [emoji6]

 

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[SherriZ366]

Well since I have had the experience, when a friend who had found that MTD just wasn't working out well for him and his wife they did get changed to early traditional seating on a cruise....and I know, because we added them to our table.

 

He spoke to the dining room Maitre D' and it was accommodated.

 

I don't see why a cruiser or several cruisers could not have a conversation with the Maitre D' and arrange for the group for an evening to go to MTD.

 

In my world it is called, ask. The goal of the staff is to accommodate and my belief is they will.

We have had a group have their own table and waitstaff twice in MTD. It is easier to get this from 7:30 PM on. We have worked with the M'aitre D' for the MTD and our Concierge has helped.

[SherriZ366]

What I meant by that was, if you don't want to utilize your reserved 'Traditional Dining' table, due to a scheduling conflict (shorex, etc.) or you desire to experience a differently themed MDR venue/menu, you can always elect to utilize the 'My Time" option for that seating.

I don't think they let you switch between Traditional and MTD unless the switch is permanent. I.E. you cannot do Traditional for 6 nights and MTD for one night.

[gkbiiii]

Sorry you are very mistaken.

I have had the pleasure of doing DD twice - on Quantum and on Anthem.

And I love it. As do others. As proven by the number of disappointed posts (by those who have done it ) on this thread.

 

 

Then why, does the ship (Quantum) have a 45% approval rate, with many saying in their reviews, that "they would never sail on another vessel with Dynamic Dining"?

 

Here is part of how I described some key features of Dynamic dining on another site:

 

1. You make different reservations for EVERY meal.

2. You have NO table-mates as you are put by yourself, or sometimes with complete strangers.

3. The menu at each restaurant DOES NOT change, for the full cruise.

4. Your servers DO NOT stay with you, for the full voyage: often you will never have the same twice.

5. If you don't make (miss) your reservation time by 15 min, your reservation is dropped.

6. Showing up without a reservation can/will often lead to you being forced, to the Windjammer Buffet.

7. Often the shows and meal times will interfere with each other and you will miss your shows.

 

Bottom line: based on MY experience both Royal/NCL's dining program is about as much "freedom of choice" with one's personal scheduled, as Magic Kingdom/Disney World at Christmas/New Years...meaning little to none!!

[PhilNDebbieAtSea]

I really enjoyed DD on the Quantum! Food was delicious and we had great service! I did not think I would like it as I am a fan of the MDR, but I loved the flexibility and the diverse menus. I am a picky eater but there were pretty many and delicious options to chose. I agree with MADFlyer who said the MDR is just not as full as it used to be, so I give a lot of credit to Royal for trying something new and exciting. I was looking forward to having DD on Harmony next year, but will still be very happy with regular dining. Can't wait to try Anthem one day!

 

 

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[nealstuber]

This seems like the culmination of a lot of bad decisions. They never should have tried to convert Oasis and Allure to Dynamic Dining. A traditional MDR is not multiple individual venues and cannot easily be made into that. They should have designed Harmony and Oasis 4 with this in mind from the start to offer a truly DD venue setup that would function. That would have also given them class diversity so that multiple Oasis class vessels sailing from Florida would offer different dining types to allow guests another detail to decide on since the itineraries are all basically the same 7 night ones. The real backlash also seemed to start with the announcement and conversion of Oasis so they could have completely avoided that. This looks like one of those times where they had a good idea that if walked carefully could have succeeded, but they chose to push it to hard and fast causing heavy pushback from guests. As a result it's reputation has been tarnished beyond saving. Many companies have done this before, it's never smart to jump to quickly with new ideas this drastically different than the existing. I think it would have been a huge success if done right on Harmony. The Oasis class has always had Dynamic Entertainment but static dining, this would have been the key to making that class finally work properly. Now we'll never get to find out.

 

I give them credit for trying and making a correction relatively quickly when they saw it wasn't working. Things that seem like a good idea on paper don't always work out that way and sometimes there are great unintended results from trying something different. Sure seems like they gave it enough time to make it work and made corrections along the way. When you made a big announcement like this and have invested time and money in such a high profile way, it takes a lot of managerial courage to reverse course.