Securing Select Dining times

[CruiserByHeart]

I've booked a lot of Select Dining times for our upcoming TA and they all show in our "cart" along with proposed shore excursions and specialty dining package. However, we're not ready to commit to the for-fee items yet... is there a way to only check out/ lock in the Select Dining items?

[jelayne]

If so I m not aware of it. You really don't need reservations for for Select dining, we just show up when we are ready and rarely have we had to wait more than 5 minutes. If I make reservations it is only for the first night as things are always a bit chaotic on the first night.

 

You can purchase the dining packages on the ship so no need to decide ahead of time.

[kpun]

Yes you can. Take out all the for fee items from your cart and check out with only your Select Dining.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Piper77]

If so I m not aware of it. You really don't need reservations for for Select dining, we just show up when we are ready and rarely have we had to wait more than 5 minutes. If I make reservations it is only for the first night as things are always a bit chaotic on the first night.

 

You can purchase the dining packages on the ship so no need to decide ahead of time.

 

I was on the Reflection in the beginning of May and found the waits for the main dining room to always be 20 to 40 minutes. One night we even gave up. Didn't seem to depend on the time either as each night we tried to vary it to avoid show ends etc. Now, our service in the MDR was incredibly slow as well, so hopefully it was just a ship issue that they worked out (we were the first after a crossing)

 

It was the longest I had had to wait on any cruise line.

[villauk]

Yes you can. Take out all the for fee items from your cart and check out with only your Select Dining.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

Correct, you can definitely pre-book without charge once you've removed the other items. OP, you will receive an email confirming the booked times for Select and they will also show on your calendar for the booking in My Celebrity ;).

[champagne123]

All you have to do, is "check out", but please know that anything that you choose that has a "fee", must be paid for at the time of "check out".

[CRZR58]

Do yourself a big favor and prebook your dining times. It will reduce your wait time significantly, especially on the first 2 nights before the masses realize that they need to book times. It also gives you the first choice of dining times.

[Fouremco]

Do yourself a big favor and prebook your dining times. It will reduce your wait time significantly, especially on the first 2 nights before the masses realize that they need to book times. It also gives you the first choice of dining times.

We've always had set time dining in the past and haven't concerned ourselves with reservations. How does one do it on the website?

[Fouremco]

We've always had set time dining in the past and haven't concerned ourselves with reservations. How does one do it on the website?

Never mind, I found the place to do it. I liked the fact that you could just enter the guests once and not repeat the exercise for each evening. Too bad they didn't offer the same option for the choice of time and dining. Still, in the greater scheme of things, for the Celebrity website it worked quite well. :halo:

[swigso]

Do yourself a big favor and prebook your dining times. It will reduce your wait time significantly, especially on the first 2 nights before the masses realize that they need to book times. It also gives you the first choice of dining times.

Don't get it😱

Why book when it is anytime/select dining.

Really never had a problem, if we have to wait 10 mins

so be it, the team give you a pager and just wait at the bar.

[mafig]

Do you have to cancel if you decide on a specialty or buffet or just can't make it?

[Fish Lover]

Do you have to cancel if you decide on a specialty or buffet or just can't make it?

 

No, but it's a courtesy to do so.

[Turtles06]

Do you have to cancel if you decide on a specialty or buffet or just can't make it?

 

I don't know whether you "have to" (as in, there's a penalty), but as a matter of courtesy you certainly ought to.

[Fish Lover]

Don't get it😱

Why book when it is anytime/select dining.

Really never had a problem, if we have to wait 10 mins

so be it, the team give you a pager and just wait at the bar.

 

Anytime dining allows you to pick the time you want to eat instead of a set time seating. For example, we prefer to eat at 6:45 to 7. On port days, we may choose a later time, giving us an opportunity to shower etc.

 

While you can just show up when you are ready, you can also make reservations ahead of time. If it is a popular time, then you may have to wait.

 

You can make reservations online or call Celebrity. You can also call the dining extension when on board. However, they will only take so many reservations for a specific time. The longer you wait, the less likely you will get precisely what you want without a little wait.

[CRZR58]

Don't get it

Why book when it is anytime/select dining.

Really never had a problem, if we have to wait 10 mins

so be it, the team give you a pager and just wait at the bar.

10 Minutes? You must tell them that you'll take anything that comes up.

 

We like to sit at our own table, which makes it take a lot longer than 10 minutes, especially during prime time.:cool:

Edited June 4, 2017 by CRZR58
to sit

[Fish Lover]

10 Minutes? You must tell them that you'll take anything that comes up.

 

We like to sit at our own table, which makes it take a lot longer than 10 minutes, especially during prime time.:cool:

 

If you insist on sitting at a table for two, near the window....well then you will wait unless you make a reservation.

[CRZR58]

If you insist on sitting at a table for two, near the window....well then you will wait unless you make a reservation.

Didn't say near the window. It's nice when it happens tho.

[suec12]

Three cruises we did select dining - Silhouette and Constellation, I think. We made reservations each time - NEVER honored - was one hot mess - I think it got worse every time. Maybe other ships have their act together but we got very frustrated and went up to the buffet several nights. Even couples willing to share were sometimes waiting over an hour! In fact we are now done with Celebrity, this definitely a big part of the reason.

[cruisin lady ca]

We had Select Dining on our last cruise on Equinox. We prefer to dine early and had no problem getting seated within 5-10 minutes after walking in - did not make reservations in advance. We did find that sitting near the entrance/near the overlook to deck 3 was way too noisy for our taste. We asked for a quieter location and were seated in the "private" section which is in the back of the MDR and liked it much better. We asked to be seated in that section each evening for the remainder of our cruise.

 

As an aside, I was disappointed with the wines listed in the dinner menu. After a few evenings of less than stellar experiences with the sommeliers, I resolved to request the wine list. Happy to report that the "wines by the glass" choices were all there and I was much happier with the wines and the sommelier in the private section of the MDR was much more helpful and communicative. So, it all worked out for the best.