ANY TIME DINING

[Dunx1977]

Hi everyone,

 

1st time cruisers here from not so sunny Glasgow (Scotland)

 

Just doing online check in for our 1st ever cruise on the Carnival Liberty in May (visiting Nassau and Freeport)

 

We had chosen early Dining 6pm but I can see at Check In that it offers Any time dining?  Can anyone shed any light on if this is a better option or not?

 

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you could provide.

Dunx1977

[30scruiser]

There are pros and cons.

 

Early dining: same table and waiters every night, never any waits, but if you want to eat later one night you will no be able to do so in the MDR but can in the buffet or pay restaurants 

 

Your time: You have the flexibility to eat any time in a 4 hour window which can be a different time each night. You can request the same waiters if you want, but they may not always be available or may have to wait. Sometimes there is a wait at specific times.

 

Also the waiters dance/sing sometimes but it’s timed out for the set dining times so if you care about that, it’s another reason to stick with early.

 

We prefer the flexibility of YTD so we can look at the port times, activities, see how we feel and then decide what time to eat each day.

[robertlanajean]

We've only cruised once but had any time dining when we did. We liked having the flexibility of not having to be at dinner at a specific time, especially if you like MDR on port days. We didn't get the same table twice, but that wasn't a big deal to us.

[BAMAMOMOF3]

i personally prefer the early dining so i can see most of the shows at night. Plus getting to know your table mates can be nice as well. We have made life long friends that way and wouldnt do it any other way. 

[dmdiver]

We prefer anytime dining.  While we tend to eat early, there have been days that we ate a late lunch or needed extra time after a day in port.  When we had a set time to eat, if we didn't go at the set time, we would have to eat elsewhere.  With anytime dining, we can still eat in the dining room and have the flexibility of going when we are ready.  If you like your waitstaff, you can request them every night.  If you don't care for them or the table location, just say you don't want to be in the same spot.

[ricew001]

3 hours ago, Dunx1977 said:

Can anyone shed any light on if this is a better option or not?

 

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you could provide.

Dunx1977

 

We've done Anytime Dining several times now and we love it. I'm on vacation - I want to be flexible. How will I know if I'll be taking a nap at 6 pm in November on my cruise or relaxing in the hot tub? I really do prefer any time dining. Enjoy your cruise!

[PhillyFan33579]

It all comes down to personal preference. We prefer early dining because we like having the same wait staff every night and eating at this time rarely interferes with any night time activities like production shows, comedy shows, etc. 

[browneyedangel74]

3 hours ago, 30scruiser said:

There are pros and cons.

 

Early dining: same table and waiters every night, never any waits, but if you want to eat later one night you will no be able to do so in the MDR but can in the buffet or pay restaurants 

 

Your time: You have the flexibility to eat any time in a 4 hour window which can be a different time each night. You can request the same waiters if you want, but they may not always be available or may have to wait. Sometimes there is a wait at specific times.

 

Also the waiters dance/sing sometimes but it’s timed out for the set dining times so if you care about that, it’s another reason to stick with early.

 

We prefer the flexibility of YTD so we can look at the port times, activities, see how we feel and then decide what time to eat each day.

With YTD you can request the same wait staff every night if you like. You may have to wait a bit but, that was never an issue for us, we always got right in with the staff we wanted.

[browneyedangel74]

We always pick the Your Time Dining because no matter what activity we are doing, what excursion we are on, or how early or late we eat lunch, we can go eat whenever we like in the 3 hour period. Don't worry about always having the same wait staff because if you really love your staff, you can request them every night and be seated in their section with YTD.

[stellarose]

we did anytime dining and son has severe food allergies. most night it did not take too long of wait- however some times it took forever.   next we would not choose anytime dining. 

[lalyn1983]

I've only cruised once before and had anytime dining. It turned out really well... I was surprised to find that we had the same server each night (who was absolutely extraordinary, especially with the kids!), and we were always seated in the same area. I don't know what scheduled dining is like (will find out in a few months... yay!), but we had a great anytime dining experience. The only reason we are doing scheduled dining this time is because we have a large group.

[Saint Greg]

I prefer anytime and get there right when they open to hopefully get out before the first show starts.

[Bowman1]

We prefer set dinning - in our experience on Carnival, the service seems to flow better at the set times, since the waitstaff has several tables all at the same general point in their meals

[Bookbug53]

We did anytime once. Asking for a table for 2 got us a table with one chair on one side and the other sat on a loooong bench. the bench was the second chair for numerous tables all lined up side by side. You might as well been at a picnic table with people so close you really had to watch your elbows! We also never knew how long a wait for a table and that did not suit us at all. 

 

Another interesting thing about anytime is the number of people that want 'flexibility' and yet will line up at the SAME TIME every night. We have sat having a before dinner drink and watched the line on different cruses. The same people are in line every night at the same time. Standing there waiting to eat. Don't understand the "I want anytime dining so I can stand in a line at the same time". 

 

If I do make other plans I will simply go to Lido if my early dining does not fit for that night. But I usually make plans around my dinner and go eat at my table, with my servers, at my reserved time.

 

[Bookbug53]

7 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

I prefer anytime and get there right when they open to hopefully get out before the first show starts.

So the same time each night? 

[Saint Greg]

20 minutes ago, Bookbug53 said:

So the same time each night? 

Yep. The same time. Which is before early dining even starts.  The  same table and waitstaff is always available. I don’t do it for flexibility. I do it so I can eat earlier, be done by 7 most nights, and not have to wait on a bunch of strangers.

Edited February 7, 2019 by Saint Greg

[1lizette1]

We chose anytime dining for our cruises. We like to eat a bit early (5:30 - 6:30 ish). Having said that, we've only dined in the MDR twice in the 2 cruises we've taken. We just found it took so long. Not much longer than a regular restaurant (maybe 90 minutes) but we just felt for us it was wasted "fun" time. I'd rather take 20-30 minutes for a meal then go to a show or casino or whatever

[sapphire_407]

On 2/5/2019 at 11:00 AM, ricew001 said:

 

We've done Anytime Dining several times now and we love it. I'm on vacation - I want to be flexible. How will I know if I'll be taking a nap at 6 pm in November on my cruise or relaxing in the hot tub? I really do prefer any time dining. Enjoy your cruise!

As soon as we get on the ship my husband and I hunt down the Maitre D and ask him for a table of two.  We always have late dining so the rest of the evening isn't so long and we hate rushing back from a port for early dining.  I enjoy early evenings, having a drink or two before we have dinner.   I don't want to have to wait.  I prefer my table to be ready for me.  That's my preference. 

Edited February 7, 2019 by sapphire_407
Wanted to add another point

[ricew001]

56 minutes ago, sapphire_407 said:

As soon as we get on the ship my husband and I hunt down the Maitre D and ask him for a table of two.  We always have late dining so the rest of the evening isn't so long and we hate rushing back from a port for early dining.  I enjoy early evenings, having a drink or two before we have dinner.   I don't want to have to wait.  I prefer my table to be ready for me.  That's my preference. 

 

And that's the wonderful thing about cruising! So many different options to fit so many different preferences. I can't wait until my next cruise. Already planning the one after it!

[JaniceB]

I enjoy anytime when I have a port intensive itinerary, otherwise fixed time.  

[coevan]

13 hours ago, Bowman1 said:

We prefer set dinning - in our experience on Carnival, the service seems to flow better at the set times, since the waitstaff has several tables all at the same general point in their meals

 

 

This is how all restaurants on land operate and the service is generally very good. 

[kdawg954]

Yea Anytime Dining is the better option.

 

Now don’t get me wrong . . . Set dining times has its advantages.  Potentially meeting great tablemates and them becoming friends “off the ship” is a big time pro . . .and you should get better service with minimal to no wait times becauseits the same time and same place every night.  

 

But I can’t stand being held to a strict time for my meals.  Over 7 days, I may want to eat early a few times or maybe I want to get a nap in and eat later . . . .not having that flexibility is such a drag.  Now obvioulsy you can probably still eat in that scenario but it requires some talking to and who wants to deal with that.

 

Did Anytime dining last year on the Fascination and the first night the waiter was not very good . . .second night we got maybe the best waiter we have ever had on a cruise and requested him for the rest of the nights.

 

 

[debster11]

Love Anytime dining! I love the flexibility it gives you. Eat when you want. 
Also, if you like your wait staff you can request being seated in their section.

It's great!!

[ray98]

Anytime is the best change the cruise industry made in the past two decades.  

 

Eat when you want and with who you want.

[Kevin308]

I prefer any time because I like to be able to eat when I want.  Which is usually early.   One thing about Anytime dinning most people don't know is you can request the same waiter every night that way you still get a team that gets use to what you like.