Festive Dining choices

[claudiniusmaximus]

Hi

 

A couple of days ago we booked the NYE cruise on Oceana. 

 

Although our dining hasn’t been allocated according to the cruise personaliser we just received an email saying that as freedom diners we need to register a dining time for NYE. 

 

Perfectly fine with all that.  Don’t mind being allocated freedom dining as it’s a guarantee saver fare and we’ll go with the flow. 

 

But the choices for NYE are 5.45pm and 8.15pm. I haven’t eaten dinner at 5.45pm since I was a kid 😂 so want to register for 8.15pm. 

 

But...when I click the link and enter the log in details as instructed (which is different to cruise personaliser log in) it says details are invalid. 

 

Just wondering if any other festive cruisers have had similar problem. Maybe it’s a quirk of being guarantee saver fare that they’ve allocated me freedom dining, so I’ve been sent the email, but in reality I don’t get to choose my time for NYE. 

 

Dont really want to spend 20 mins on hold to P&O if can help it. 

 

Cheers

[Goosebear Mum]

I was in the same situation, except I booked select very late. I have just phoned them (on free phone number!) to be informed their systems have just all gone down... yet again... (after their big crash of yesterday)  he suggested I try again tomorrow... and if not successful again, to phone back

 

P.s. it’s not just kids who eat at 6pm. Just because you don’t.  I find it a good time at home, as I get up early to have a long commute to work each day.  (Though 7pm would be my preferred choice on holiday) Anyway, it’s healthier than eating and going to bed on a full stomach.  I get up and leave home at 6am for work. I go to bed after 9pm.  When I am on holiday my body clock wouldn’t want to still be eating after 10pm, which is what happened with late dining at Christmas last year (we did it last year, but will choose early this year) 

 

5.45 will mean eating from c.6pm to 7.45/8pm.   That does me 🙂    Then time for entertainment or a stroll on the prom, if the sea allows... 

 

lucky we’re all different... 

Edited November 27, 2018 by Goosebear Mum

[claudiniusmaximus]

Ah so the login isn’t working as the system is down you mean?

 

yeah it won’t be the end of the world if the meal lasts from 6 to 8ish, fair point 😊

[zoe sproodle]

Freedom dining is effectively suspended NYE and there's just the 2 sittings for everyone (unless you want to use the buffet of course!).  I struggled with the on line system last year and P & O were very helpful on the phone and sorted it quickly.

As a rule we don't normally like to eat so early but we decided on that occasion to go for the early sitting and it worked really well - it gave more time to enjoy the celebrations uninterrupted if you get my drift!

 

[majortom10]

Of course the longer you leave it to phone there is the chance that 8-15 will be fully booked so you will have no choice but to eat at 5-45. If you prefer 8-15 I would phone sooner rather than later.

[claudiniusmaximus]

Good points both - will discuss what time is best with hubby tonight and call them in the morning if still can’t log on. 

 

👍

[Goosebear Mum]

1 hour ago, claudiniusmaximus said:

Ah so the login isn’t working as the system is down you mean?

 

yeah it won’t be the end of the world if the meal lasts from 6 to 8ish, fair point 😊

 

 

Yes, their systems crashed again, so the login isn’t working (hence the authentication error, which is technical for the server is screwed!). 

 

He was going to book it for me via the phone, but couldn’t either, so reported it to their IT team for a fix

 

I too will be phoning again again tomorrow if I can’t log in! 

 

 

p.s. I’m sure last year the times were slightly different.  On 2nd sitting we didn’t get in until about 10/15 minutes late if I remember, as some people were still finishing first sitting.  This meant we were eating very late.  So late, our waiter didn’t even bother with the cheese course.  (Made worse that we were sharing a table with a lady who was very very fussy and kept returning her food... which delayed us all further...). This year the times seem even more compressed, so I hope first sitting completes in time 😉  

 

As a tip - on board you’ll be asked to complete your drinks choices for New Year’s Day evening meal. You need to fill these in and get them to the restaurant before the evening meal.  Keep an eye out for the form/request, as it saves the waiters a LOT of time, as it’s hectic.  We always wait till we can view the menu, decide what we’ll eat, then my husband can choose his alcohol! (I’m elderflower and/or a mocktail, so that goes with anything!)

 

Enjoy and have fun 🙂 

Edited November 27, 2018 by Goosebear Mum

[cattylady]

Yes I received the message and could not log in. Rang them. Answered with no wait.

 

Apparently when entering dob put in full year ie ddmmyyyy NOT ddmmyy as directed!!

 

Although the operator did it for me on the line.

 

Good Luck. Have a great cruise:)

[Goosebear Mum]

14 minutes ago, cattylady said:

 

Apparently when entering dob put in full year ie ddmmyyyy NOT ddmmyy as directed!!

 

 

Thank You 🙂 I’m not the OP, but I now have table for 8, at 5:45 booked! 

[claudiniusmaximus]

@Goosebear Mum hmmm you’re making me think early sitting would be better (even though we don’t usually prefer to) as we won’t have got to know the people we are dining with as we would on traditional. Cheese course is the best part! 

 

I wonder why they need to know our drinks for dinner the next evening. Or why NYD would be more hectic than other days. They won’t be able to prepare them in advance as the won’t know what time we will be going in, or what table we’ll be on, as it’s back to the freedom dining the next day 😕 

 

 

@cattylady top tip thanks I’ll try that!

 

[zoe sproodle]

I'm starting to get jealous now remembering the great time we had last year, I hope you enjoy the cruise as much as we did. And please leave Oceana in one piece for us in March!

[Goosebear Mum]

46 minutes ago, claudiniusmaximus said:

@Goosebear Mum hmmm you’re making me think early sitting would be better (even though we don’t usually prefer to) as we won’t have got to know the people we are dining with as we would on traditional. Cheese course is the best part! 

 

I wonder why they need to know our drinks for dinner the next evening. Or why NYD would be more hectic than other days. They won’t be able to prepare them in advance as the won’t know what time we will be going in, or what table we’ll be on, as it’s back to the freedom dining the next day 😕 

 

 

We have been on 3 Christmas cruises now, always gone for the table for 8 on Christmas Day. We didn’t know our fellow diners beforehand, but always had an excellent fun evening. We choose a table for 8, assuming that those who wish to be sociable will go for these. No doubt one year we’ll get a bad table!  Yes, I missed the cheese course last year, but by then it was so late I told myself I was better off without it 😉   If you like eating later normally, then you’ll be fine with a later table 🙂 

 

Re the drinks. Because there’s no freedom dining for Christmas Day and New Years Day, the drinks waiters have to serve all tables at once. That’s a huge undertaking.  Because they sometimes have to collect requested drinks from other bars, it’s easier and quicker for the drinks to be preordered, collected and ready to serve at the tables.  Hence why for these meals *only* they request the prebooking of drinks. Everyone is served their drinks quicker this way.

 

 

** You don’t prebook drinks for dining on all other days. **

 

 

Edited November 27, 2018 by Goosebear Mum

[Son of Anarchy]

Thanks for the tip re pre-ordering drinks for NYE. We've done a Christmas cruise on Club Dining before, but this year will be our first NYE and we're on Freedom.  Forewarned is Fore Armed or in this case Fore Drinks!

 

Hope everyone has a great time, wherever their ship may be.

[Britboys]

If you think 5.45 is early, don't try Princess first sitting - they have just moved it to 5.00.  Second sitting is now at 7.15.  Apparently it is due to "overwhelming feedback requesting earlier dining times"... I appreciate it will suit some but I can't imagine having to start getting ready for dinner before 4.00 in the afternoon and having a pre-dinner G&T at 4.30...

[claudiniusmaximus]

14 hours ago, Goosebear Mum said:

 

 

Re the drinks. Because there’s no freedom dining for Christmas Day and New Years Day, the drinks waiters have to serve all tables at once. That’s a huge undertaking.  Because they sometimes have to collect requested drinks from other bars, it’s easier and quicker for the drinks to be preordered, collected and ready to serve at the tables.  Hence why for these meals *only* they request the prebooking of drinks. Everyone is served their drinks quicker this way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m guessing you mean New Years Eve rather than New Years Day?

 

I don’t fully understand the need to pre-order drinks (if freedom is suspended and basically traditional dining comes into play for that night, and they manage with drinks orders on traditional dining without any problem why would it be any different - unless maybe people are ordering more drinks/more specialty drinks etc and that’s the reason, but I’d assume that if that’s the case they’ll be pre-ordering in the traditional dining restaurant as well) but in any case I’m not going to worry about it as we always order the same drinks with dinner (I’m a mocktail/Diet Coke person myself)

[claudiniusmaximus]

58 minutes ago, Britboys said:

If you think 5.45 is early, don't try Princess first sitting - they have just moved it to 5.00.  Second sitting is now at 7.15.  Apparently it is due to "overwhelming feedback requesting earlier dining times"... I appreciate it will suit some but I can't imagine having to start getting ready for dinner before 4.00 in the afternoon and having a pre-dinner G&T at 4.30...

 

Yes I know crazy isn’t it. I’ve been reading about it on the princess boards (did first princess this year doing another in June next year). Although apparently actual practice varies from ship to ship regardless. 

[majortom10]

5 hours ago, Britboys said:

If you think 5.45 is early, don't try Princess first sitting - they have just moved it to 5.00.  Second sitting is now at 7.15.  Apparently it is due to "overwhelming feedback requesting earlier dining times"... I appreciate it will suit some but I can't imagine having to start getting ready for dinner before 4.00 in the afternoon and having a pre-dinner G&T at 4.30...

On our last Princess cruise in the summer we were sitting in the cafe bar at bottom of atrium and there was a queue at 4-45pm of people waiting for the restaurant to open at 5-30pm. I can only assume they were queuing to guarantee a table for 2.  

[Britboys]

Blimey - following that logic through, they will be queuing at 4.15pm for the 5.00 sitting then 

[Goosebear Mum]

On 11/28/2018 at 11:47 AM, claudiniusmaximus said:

 

I’m guessing you mean New Years Eve rather than New Years Day?

 

 

Yes, I did. I had Christmas Day on the brain, and typed New Year’s Day rather than Eve! 

[Goosebear Mum]

Wow, 5pm... that’s far too early to get ready for Dinner for.  Lunch would need to be early, then I’d be hungry later!