Dining times question

[sailingaway]

I am already bummed 😞 I emailed celebrity, as some on these boards said to do, to ask for possibly early dining.  We have two small (1 and 4) children on this four day Thanksgiving cruise  on the Infinity and I can't imagine them staying up till second dining to eat.  Celebrity said they are "oversold" on this cruise.  They said to check with the Maitre'd once on board.  I know they have the anytime dining but I'm not familiar with it.  Will it be difficult to eat around 6:30 if we just show up in the dining room to eat?  Thanks in advance for opinions.

Edited November 26, 2019 by sailingaway
spelling

[Cruisenouvelle]

Don't forget that the Oceanview Cafe is available if you're unable to get early seating in the MDR.  As soon as you board, visit the Maître d' of your dining room.  He'll be at the entrance to assist you. Ask to be changed to 'anytime' dining. Keep in mind that, with this, you may be seated with others if you cannot secure a table for four. Whichever you choose, enjoy.

 

[cruisestitch]

You should try to change to select and then you can eat early. Otherwise, just showing up at the dining probably will not work. They will politely tell you to wait for your assigned time. Your other option is just to forgo the dining room entirely.  A meal in the dining room can take quite a long time.  Your children make get restless waiting between courses.  Head up to the buffet instead and you will probably be happier.

Edited November 26, 2019 by cruisestitch

[PTC DAWG]

The 1 & 4 year old will be much happier and better suited at the buffet..

[TeeRick]

Not surprised on a Thanksgiving cruise that everything is booked.  But on the first day you board and as soon as possible go to the MDR entrance and discuss your situation with the dining staff at the desk there.

[sailingaway]

We already have anytime dining but we are waitlisted for early dining.  So, anytime dining will work?  Thanks for the answers!

[cruisestitch]

Yes Select (anytime) will work.  But at peak times you still may have a wait at the door. With children as young as yours, I would say go immediately when it opens, which is likely to be about five-thirty. Then you will get right in and get the kids fed.

[TeeRick]

7 minutes ago, sailingaway said:

We already have anytime dining but we are waitlisted for early dining.  So, anytime dining will work?  Thanks for the answers!

Yes that will work but you might have to wait a bit.  With young kids best to get there when it opens or near the opening.

[jelayne]

With Select dining you can make reservations online in your Cruise Planner.  Look under Sociality restaurants/dining and scroll to the bottom where you should see a place to make reservations for Select Dining.  This will shorten your wait to be seated rather than just showing up.

[thon]

34 minutes ago, jelayne said:

With Select dining you can make reservations online in your Cruise Planner.  Look under Sociality restaurants/dining and scroll to the bottom where you should see a place to make reservations for Select Dining.  This will shorten your wait to be seated rather than just showing up.

Other than on my very first Celebrity cruise we have always had Select.  I don’t trust inputting anything in my cruise planner since it entails entering things via Celebrity’s “award-winning” website.  I call them directly and request a certain time - for us it is 7 p.m. each night.  They have always been able to make these reservations directly and it works.  So you might want to try calling - if you are a Captain’s Club member this might be the best number to use.

[cangelmd]

I would hope that the maitre d' would take one look at your babies and accomodate you with hopefully select or early seating.

Having said that, as a Nana to 3 little ones the ages of yours, I would go to the buffet except maybe one night for a special dinner. Main dining is crowded and the tables are close together, not a lot of space for a high chair or booster if needed. Meals are definite courses and not as fast service as the buffet.

Celeb's buffet has grilled steak and chicken and special dinners every evening.

[sailingaway]

2 hours ago, cruisestitch said:

Yes Select (anytime) will work.  But at peak times you still may have a wait at the door. With children as young as yours, I would say go immediately when it opens, which is likely to be about five-thirty. Then you will get right in and get the kids fed.

Thank you, this sounds like a great idea! Perfect!

[sailingaway]

1 hour ago, jelayne said:

With Select dining you can make reservations online in your Cruise Planner.  Look under Sociality restaurants/dining and scroll to the bottom where you should see a place to make reservations for Select Dining.  This will shorten your wait to be seated rather than just showing up.

Thank you fior the advice.  I will do that  🙂 

[sailingaway]

53 minutes ago, thon said:

Other than on my very first Celebrity cruise we have always had Select.  I don’t trust inputting anything in my cruise planner since it entails entering things via Celebrity’s “award-winning” website.  I call them directly and request a certain time - for us it is 7 p.m. each night.  They have always been able to make these reservations directly and it works.  So you might want to try calling - if you are a Captain’s Club member this might be the best number to use.

Thank you for the advice.  My husband and I are both elite.  I'll look into this!

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, thon said:

Other than on my very first Celebrity cruise we have always had Select.  I don’t trust inputting anything in my cruise planner since it entails entering things via Celebrity’s “award-winning” website.  I call them directly and request a certain time - for us it is 7 p.m. each night.  They have always been able to make these reservations directly and it works.  So you might want to try calling - if you are a Captain’s Club member this might be the best number to use.

I must be lucky.  I have made Select dining reservations on many cruises and never had a problem with the ship having my reservations.  Now signing up for the Connections Meet & Mingle that’s a different story.

[big-time-cruiser]

3 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

The 1 & 4 year old will be much happier and better suited at the buffet..

 

Can I please offer a differing view, and not to consider the buffet.  On my past cruises, I much prefer the sit-down dining, with a waiter.  To me, it seems like a hassle (when I am on vacation) to shuffle around getting my food, dodging the other guests who are hungry too, and then having to juggle my drinks, etc.  I much prefer the sit-down, and everything is brought to me like the King I am!  ha ha.

 

 

[davekathy]

4 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

The 1 & 4 year old will be much happier and better suited at the buffet..

And neighboring tables...🤣

[PTC DAWG]

11 minutes ago, big-time-cruiser said:

 

Can I please offer a differing view, and not to consider the buffet.  On my past cruises, I much prefer the sit-down dining, with a waiter.  To me, it seems like a hassle (when I am on vacation) to shuffle around getting my food, dodging the other guests who are hungry too, and then having to juggle my drinks, etc.  I much prefer the sit-down, and everything is brought to me like the King I am!  ha ha.

 

 

Are you 1 or 4 years old? 

[PTC DAWG]

2 minutes ago, davekathy said:

And neighboring tables...🤣

Far away from me with the yutes please...thanks.  🙂

Edited November 26, 2019 by PTC DAWG

[davekathy]

51 minutes ago, jelayne said:

I must be lucky.  I have made Select dining reservations on many cruises and never had a problem with the ship having my reservations.  Now signing up for the Connections Meet & Mingle that’s a different story.

That makes two of us then. Since Celebrity introduced SD and gave us the option to reserve dining times pre cruise in our CP we do and never had a problem with the ship not having our reservations either. 

[sailingaway]

On 11/26/2019 at 10:50 AM, jelayne said:

With Select dining you can make reservations online in your Cruise Planner.  Look under Sociality restaurants/dining and scroll to the bottom where you should see a place to make reservations for Select Dining.  This will shorten your wait to be seated rather than just showing up.

So, I tried doing this yesterday! It let me do it for the four in the OV cabin, but when I tried doing it for the linked reservation (in CC Class) it would come back in bright red lettering saying “changes cannot be made to this reservation”! I probably should’ve called but I got busy and now it’s to late. I guess we’ll just try to show up when the dining room opens 🤷‍♀️ I liked the idea though! ☺️

[sailingaway]

23 hours ago, big-time-cruiser said:

 

Can I please offer a differing view, and not to consider the buffet.  On my past cruises, I much prefer the sit-down dining, with a waiter.  To me, it seems like a hassle (when I am on vacation) to shuffle around getting my food, dodging the other guests who are hungry too, and then having to juggle my drinks, etc.  I much prefer the sit-down, and everything is brought to me like the King I am!  ha ha.

 

 

My husband I will probably sit but my two daughters already said they think it would be easier with a 1 and 4 year old to hit the buffets or in room dining. ☺️

[NantahalaCruiser]

9 hours ago, sailingaway said:

So, I tried doing this yesterday! It let me do it for the four in the OV cabin, but when I tried doing it for the linked reservation (in CC Class) it would come back in bright red lettering saying “changes cannot be made to this reservation”! I probably should’ve called but I got busy and now it’s to late. I guess we’ll just try to show up when the dining room opens 🤷‍♀️ I liked the idea though! ☺️

You can also make reservations on board. Stop by the MDR or give them a call.

[Miaminice]

On 11/26/2019 at 3:45 PM, sailingaway said:

We already have anytime dining but we are waitlisted for early dining.  So, anytime dining will work?  Thanks for the answers!

if you already have Select / Anytime, there’s nothing you need to do!

just show up when you want.