Embarkation Day Lunch In A Served Restaurant?

[kazu]

32 minutes ago, Caribbean Chris said:

The HAL Lido tends to fill up fast and after people eat they seem to take root until an announcement that the rooms are ready.

 

Until the rooms are ready?  I”m confused by that.  Rooms are normally ready when you board.  No need to wait with your carry on luggage - not for a number of years.

[Smokeyham]

4 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Scheming?  Not everyone drives to the port.   Generally I’ve found you need to be out of your hotel room by 11 or 12.   I do not enjoy eating in the lido at the best of times because of the crowds.  Being around a lot of people isn’t appealing to me.  If that works for you that is wonderful.  I see no reason for a harsh reaction to those that enjoy the dining room.

I agree..... The term "scheming" is a bit harsh.   If a non-buffet lunch is provided, then there is nothing wrong with going there if that is your preference.   I don't see this a something that is an extra burden on staff.

 

This might all be moot point if boarding times are later than usual due to the additional cleaning and processing times.  It will be interesting to hear what people's experiences are in the next few weeks and months.

[Caribbean Chris]

29 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

Until the rooms are ready?  I”m confused by that.  Rooms are normally ready when you board.  No need to wait with your carry on luggage - not for a number of years.

 

In my foggy pre-Covid memories, it seems as though when we boarded (usually by 11:30), we were permitted to drop off our carry on luggage for convenience before going to lunch but that the room stewards would still working - so we could not remain until there was an announcement that rooms were available.

 

Maybe I'm confusing things with Celebrity since we sail both lines.  Although I remember having our carry on luggage on Celebrity with us during lunch in November 2019 - maybe they would not allow access at all to rooms until the announcement.

[Florida_gal_50]

5 minutes ago, Caribbean Chris said:

 

In my foggy pre-Covid memories, it seems as though when we boarded (usually by 11:30), we were permitted to drop off our carry on luggage for convenience before going to lunch but that the room stewards would still working - so we could not remain until there was an announcement that rooms were available.

 

Maybe I'm confusing things with Celebrity since we sail both lines.  Although I remember having our carry on luggage on Celebrity with us during lunch in November 2019 - maybe they would not allow access at all to rooms until the announcement.

No, I don’t think you are confusing things.  At least 20 percent of the time when I board the cabins are not ready.  Maybe smaller ships in the fleet are different.  Usually within a half hour or so they are ready.  In my cases it’s never been longer than that.

[CruiserBruce]

The cabins are almost always going to be ready when you board. I would say the cabins not being ready, in our experience, was maybe 10%, but we are always in a Neptune Suite...maybe the speeds things up. In the past there used to be an area in the Lido pool area where bags could sit for awhile, of if you had access to the Neptune Lounge, they could be dropped there. This was prior to the cabins being ready when you board.

[kazu]

54 minutes ago, Caribbean Chris said:

 

In my foggy pre-Covid memories, it seems as though when we boarded (usually by 11:30), we were permitted to drop off our carry on luggage for convenience before going to lunch but that the room stewards would still working - so we could not remain until there was an announcement that rooms were available.

 

Maybe I'm confusing things with Celebrity since we sail both lines.  Although I remember having our carry on luggage on Celebrity with us during lunch in November 2019 - maybe they would not allow access at all to rooms until the announcement.

 

Our rooms have been pretty much ready since HAL implemented the new system years ago.  If they are not “quite ready”, we’ve been able to put things in the safe, drop off our carry on’s and move on but that’s been a rare incidence.

 

 Last time I can remember having to wait  for our rooms until later was 2010.  It’s one thing HAL hasn’t gotten down to a fine art, dividing up jobs so that it is done expediently IMO.

 

[T8NCruise]

5 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

The cabins are almost always going to be ready when you board. I would say the cabins not being ready, in our experience, was maybe 10%, but we are always in a Neptune Suite...maybe the speeds things up. In the past there used to be an area in the Lido pool area where bags could sit for awhile, of if you had access to the Neptune Lounge, they could be dropped there. This was prior to the cabins being ready when you board.

Twice in about the last 5 years rooms were not ready and you had to take your carryon to lunch with you. Each time it was because they were doing a deep clean.

[HappyCamper49]

On one of the many threads I have read which mentioned sail away lunch in the Dining Room, someone said IF a passenger has had one or more PRIOR cruises as a Mariner member, they are qualified to dine in the Dining Room.  That post was not mentioned above so we hope to dine in the D.R. on embarkation day.   We have only had one prior cruise as a Mariner member in 2009 on a Carnival ship.  Hoping we will be able to dine in D.R.  if our boarding time allows.

[Crew News]

36 minutes ago, HappyCamper49 said:

On one of the many threads I have read which mentioned sail away lunch in the Dining Room, someone said IF a passenger has had one or more PRIOR cruises as a Mariner member, they are qualified to dine in the Dining Room.  That post was not mentioned above so we hope to dine in the D.R. on embarkation day.   We have only had one prior cruise as a Mariner member in 2009 on a Carnival ship.  Hoping we will be able to dine in D.R.  if our boarding time allows.

My experience is that this Mariner's only embarkation lunch varies from ship to ship.  The only way to know is to show up for lunch.

 

Although the Dining Room is an option, the service is consistently very slow.  There are other dining options that are s much faster and you will have more time to explore the ship.  Vista-class ships have a Taco Bar next to the indoor pool on Deck 9 where you can build some amazing nachos, Lido Market Buffet, or Dive-In burgers.

 

Pinnacle-class ships don't have a Taco Bar but there is the NY Pizza & Deli in a corner above the indoor pool that has made to order pizza and sandwiches.

Edited August 5, 2021 by Crew News

[Roz]

I usually head to the Dive-In for a Dive-In Dog and an Amstel Lite.  I sit out by the pool and let the starving hordes and table hogs have the Lido restaurant to themselves.

[DaveOKC]

1 hour ago, HappyCamper49 said:

On one of the many threads I have read which mentioned sail away lunch in the Dining Room, someone said IF a passenger has had one or more PRIOR cruises as a Mariner member, they are qualified to dine in the Dining Room.  That post was not mentioned above so we hope to dine in the D.R. on embarkation day.   We have only had one prior cruise as a Mariner member in 2009 on a Carnival ship.  Hoping we will be able to dine in D.R.  if our boarding time allows.

I think they did away with the Mariner requirement, so anyone can dine for lunch the first day, if it is open.

 

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

23 minutes ago, DaveOKC said:

I think they did away with the Mariner requirement, so anyone can dine for lunch the first day, if it is open.

 

You are correct and hopefully it will start again soon. 

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, Crew News said:

Pinnacle-class ships don't have a Taco Bar but there is the NY Pizza & Deli in a corner above the indoor pool that has made to order pizza and sandwiches.

 

The NY Pizza and Deli prepares excellent deli sandwiches and pizzas.

 

1 hour ago, DaveOKC said:

I think they did away with the Mariner requirement, so anyone can dine for lunch the first day, if it is open.

 

 

I am glad that when the MDR is open for Embarkation Day Lunch that first time to HAL guests are able to dine.  My most pleasant lunches on that day have been with guests either new to HAL or new to cruising.  Their enthusiasm is infectious!  

[rwmiller]

We were on the first NA sailing and, since we had an early transfer, we’re onboard quickly. After dropping off our carry-on bag, we headed to Lido Market where we were the first up there. I was concerned that it wasn’t open yet but we were able to get whatever we wanted and had a leisurely lunch. 
 

Bob

[kevingastreich]

7 hours ago, Roz said:

I usually head to the Dive-In for a Dive-In Dog and an Amstel Lite.  I sit out by the pool and let the starving hordes and table hogs have the Lido restaurant to themselves.

We appreciate it! 😁

[HappyCamper49]

22 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

I think they did away with the Mariner requirement, so anyone can dine for lunch the first day, if it is open.

 

Thank you!  I was dreading the madness of the Lido at lunch.

[HappyCamper49]

22 hours ago, Crew News said:

My experience is that this Mariner's only embarkation lunch varies from ship to ship.  The only way to know is to show up for lunch.

 

Although the Dining Room is an option, the service is consistently very slow.  There are other dining options that are s much faster and you will have more time to explore the ship.  Vista-class ships have a Taco Bar next to the indoor pool on Deck 9 where you can build some amazing nachos, Lido Market Buffet, or Dive-In burgers.

 

Pinnacle-class ships don't have a Taco Bar but there is the NY Pizza & Deli in a corner above the indoor pool that has made to order pizza and sandwiches.

Since we are new to HAL ships, we may take one of your alternate choices named.  We want to explore our new home for 14 nights!

[Crew News]

45 minutes ago, HappyCamper49 said:

Since we are new to HAL ships, we may take one of your alternate choices named.  We want to explore our new home for 14 nights!

On the new Pinnacle-class ships, the Dutch Cafe is another option and there is seating sround and in a room behind the counter.  The pea soup is amazing and those 7-inch diameter, chewy, chocolate chip cookies are memorable.  The cookies sell out by dinner time, so stop by during the day to get one or two.  Here is the menu:

 

https://rogerjett-photography.com/here/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Dutch-Cafe-1.pdf

[HappyCamper49]

4 minutes ago, Crew News said:

On the new Pinnacle-class ships, the Dutch Cafe is another option and there is seating sround and in a room behind the counter.  The pea soup is amazing and those 7-inch diameter, chewy, chocolate chip cookies are memorable.  The cookies sell out by dinner time, so stop by during the day to get one or two.  Here is the menu:

 

https://rogerjett-photography.com/here/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Dutch-Cafe-1.pdf

 Thank you!  Hopefully we won't be boarding at the busiest time and can find something to hold us til 8pm dinner.

[HappyCamper49]

On 7/4/2021 at 2:32 PM, kazu said:

 

Until the rooms are ready?  I”m confused by that.  Rooms are normally ready when you board.  No need to wait with your carry on luggage - not for a number of years.

The attitude "I got mine" never fails to amaze me.  You are right about people taking root in their chairs for as long as they wish.  Never mind people walking around with their plate of food searching for empty chairs!