Disgruntled Sky Passengers

[memoak]

1 hour ago, cltnccruisers said:

Yes we are booked for a private table every night at 6:00 in Estrella.  That leaves location and crew.  If those are not the same every night it will be the first cruise for us that has ever happened.

Everyone needs to remember that traditional dining really doesn't exist anymore - at least not in the form it did pre-pandemic

[cltnccruisers]

20 minutes ago, memoak said:

Everyone needs to remember that traditional dining really doesn't exist anymore - at least not in the form it did pre-pandemic

We were on Celebrity Equinox beginning of September and the only discernable difference was the number of empty tables.  But there were on 1,200 passengers so that made sense.  But as I said, we haven't been on Princess for years so we'll have to wait and see.

[Splice the mainbrace]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

But have you cruised since the medallion and Dine My Way has been introduced?  Everything has changed, and specific tables are no longer reserved for individual bookings. Yes, you will get a two top, but that is your only guarantee.

 

We were on Sky in October and we were on the same table and waiters for the first 2 nights, we asked to move tables as we were by the revolving doors into the kitchens. They made a note and on the 3rd night they showed us to another table, asked us if we liked it which we did, so they made a note and we had that same table for the last 7 days of the cruise as did all others around us. We had block booked in advance the same time every night.

Maybe they changed the system after our cruise?

[cr8tiv1]

3 hours ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

@wowzzI know!  I feel so incredibly fortunate that Yalchin was able to accommodate my request to have Valentin and Slobodan every night. I do not expect such magic will repeat on my upcoming 15 days on the Ruby. But if it does I will be just as pleasantly surprised and delighted. 

 

I understand not everyone is able to enjoy the perks of Club Class  (Grand) dining.  I love "traditional" dining with the same MDR staff.  Yalcin made all the difference in the world when it came to a wonderful dining experience.  He and Jennifer were able to find a table in Savio's station every night.  We did dine early.  The ship was very empty.  We were fortunate that the situation played in our favor.  I am very glad I chose to sail early.  The start up headaches were well worth being on a cruise before the masses returned.  I am sure much of the food/menu had to do with the Executive Chef.  He did a remarkable job, if the food supply was interrupted due to the pandemic.  He did like goat cheese...

[cltnccruisers]

4 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

I understand not everyone is able to enjoy the perks of Club Class  (Grand) dining.  I love "traditional" dining with the same MDR staff.  Yalcin made all the difference in the world when it came to a wonderful dining experience.  He and Jennifer were able to find a table in Savio's station every night.  We did dine early.  The ship was very empty.  We were fortunate that the situation played in our favor.  I am very glad I chose to sail early.  The start up headaches were well worth being on a cruise before the masses returned.  I am sure much of the food/menu had to do with the Executive Chef.  He did a remarkable job, if the food supply was interrupted due to the pandemic.  He did like goat cheese...

If everyone could do, it wouldn't be a perk.  😄

[Steelers36]

58 minutes ago, memoak said:

Everyone needs to remember that traditional dining really doesn't exist anymore - at least not in the form it did pre-pandemic

Well it may be true in practice at times, but your statement is supposed to be categorically false.  Admittedly, several posts at the bottom of the previous page indicate people being randomly assigned tables each night.  DMW system is not working properly and the ship dining mgmt needs to step in.  But, the guest needs to make it known that they want the same table and wait staff each evening and should be accommodated.

 

I wish I knew exactly what the process was, but supposedly a team (don't ask me if IT or other) looks at all the requests close to the sail date and puts tables together depending on if requested sharing or private.  Of course, there is still a gap because we cannot select preferred sharing size.  

 

It is far far from perfect, but I suggest speaking to dining room mgmt on Day 1 and make sure get same table and wait staff for all nights.

 

IMO, this should never have been taken away from the ships (setting up TD I mean).  DMW can work fine if it had the AT inventory, but for now they have mixed everyone up.  We are supposed to be able to select our dining room, but I believe many future voyages do not have all DR's loaded to select from which is also making things difficult with DMW.

[cr8tiv1]

6 minutes ago, cltnccruisers said:

If everyone could do, it wouldn't be a perk.  😄

Maybe "perk" was the incorrect choice of word...would you accept "benefit" of dining in Club Class?  As @Steelers36mentioned, maybe Princess is "working" on some form of traditional dining for all.  I am hopeful that if you request the same MDR staff each night, that Princess might be able to accommodate you.

[cltnccruisers]

Splice the mainbrase's comment was encouraging.  At least it showed the staff to be accommodating. 

[geoherb]

What exists now is not traditional dining even if you are able to get the same table, dining time, and waiters each night. It might be close for those who do not wish to share tables. But for those of us who do like to meet new folks, it's not at all the same. 

[cltnccruisers]

8 minutes ago, geoherb said:

What exists now is not traditional dining even if you are able to get the same table, dining time, and waiters each night. It might be close for those who do not wish to share tables. But for those of us who do like to meet new folks, it's not at all the same. 

We've had very good luck with tablemates on all our cruises.  But some things DW had read about DMW made her want to just do a private table this time.  We did have a two-topper on Infinity but it was close enough to the others that it made no difference.  

[memoak]

1 hour ago, Steelers36 said:

Well it may be true in practice at times, but your statement is supposed to be categorically false.  Admittedly, several posts at the bottom of the previous page indicate people being randomly assigned tables each night.  DMW system is not working properly and the ship dining mgmt needs to step in.  But, the guest needs to make it known that they want the same table and wait staff each evening and should be accommodated.

 

I wish I knew exactly what the process was, but supposedly a team (don't ask me if IT or other) looks at all the requests close to the sail date and puts tables together depending on if requested sharing or private.  Of course, there is still a gap because we cannot select preferred sharing size.  

 

It is far far from perfect, but I suggest speaking to dining room mgmt on Day 1 and make sure get same table and wait staff for all nights.

 

IMO, this should never have been taken away from the ships (setting up TD I mean).  DMW can work fine if it had the AT inventory, but for now they have mixed everyone up.  We are supposed to be able to select our dining room, but I believe many future voyages do not have all DR's loaded to select from which is also making things difficult with DMW.

And all these issues are on cruises with low passenger count - I can only imagine what will happen when they go to 100% capacity (or something close to it)

[Steelers36]

2 hours ago, geoherb said:

What exists now is not traditional dining even if you are able to get the same table, dining time, and waiters each night. It might be close for those who do not wish to share tables. But for those of us who do like to meet new folks, it's not at all the same. 

Table sharing should be possible.  Thing is, most TD'ers who also like to share expect the same tablemates for the full voyage (even though some report absences occur from time to time).  I am do not think DMW is setting it up that way.  IDK for sure if the people working on setting table assignments are doing it that way.  IMO, the DORO or Assistant on board should be able to setup a table.  I just don't have enough info yet to know what is being done exactly and there have not been many detail reports in live cruise reports. 

 

[cltnccruisers]

12 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

Table sharing should be possible.  Thing is, most TD'ers who also like to share expect the same tablemates for the full voyage (even though some report absences occur from time to time).  I am do not think DMW is setting it up that way.  IDK for sure if the people working on setting table assignments are doing it that way.  IMO, the DORO or Assistant on board should be able to setup a table.  I just don't have enough info yet to know what is being done exactly and there have not been many detail reports in live cruise reports. 

 

I'll have to chat with someone on board for how we should do dining for our family cruise in March, 2022.  7 people, 3 different booking #s.  Surely we can expect to dine together.

[Steelers36]

19 minutes ago, cltnccruisers said:

I'll have to chat with someone on board for how we should do dining for our family cruise in March, 2022.  7 people, 3 different booking #s.  Surely we can expect to dine together.

I should think so.  Have you had Princess (either direct or via TA) link all three bookings?  They can be noted that all parties wish to dine together (this used to be cross-noted in each booking since each party is supposed to agree they wish to dine with the other party).  

 

If you also link up everyone as Travel Companions of yours, you can book dining for all which means DMW needs to find a 8-top or 10-top to fit you.

Edited November 4, 2021 by Steelers36

[cltnccruisers]

9 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

I should think so.  Have you had Princess (either direct or via TA) link all three bookings?  They can be noted that all parties wish to dine together (this used to be cross-noted in each booking since each party is supposed to agree they wish to dine with the other party).  

 

If you also link up everyone as Travel Companions of yours, you can book dining for all which means DMW needs to find a 8-top or 10-top to fit you.

This started out as just the family cruise but with cancellation, rescheduling, cancellation....you know the routine....we wound up with so much FCC that now we have our 11/27 cruise, then the family and finally a 2023 TA as my retirement cruise.  Through it all we had cabin and passenger changes and worked with a great PVP who took care of us every step of the way.  I'll talk to her once we're back in December and all the apps are set up.

Edited November 4, 2021 by cltnccruisers

[NevadaCruiser52]

I was just on the Majestic and thought the food in the Concerto dining room was very good. The portions are quite a bit smaller than my previous cruise 2 years ago. However we ate dinner at the buffet once or twice and I thought the offerings there were fantastic. I especially like the Indian food & other ethic varieties they seem to have often at the buffet. The servers at the buffet on the Majestic were very helpful & were there at every turn. We were able to order cocktails & wine at the buffet too and they would be delivered quickly (we ordered drinks sometimes from the servers and sometimes with the app). The pizza was also amazing & I am wishing I was still onboard!

[caribill]

17 hours ago, wowzz said:

We met a couple on Sky last night, who had pre-booked the same time in the same MDR for the entire cruise. They got totally different tables every night!

 

16 hours ago, cltnccruisers said:

Why?  We're pre-booked for a 2-topper every night.  I fully expect the same table and crew every night.

 

16 hours ago, wowzz said:

Because you have just reserved a time and a table size, not a location. 

 

When I have spoken to Princess about this, I have been told that to have the "traditional dining experience," booking like this (same size table at same time for entire cruise) would get you the same table and waitstaff.

 

Looks like another case of home office not familiar with how the Medallion works on board.

[geoherb]

From my experience in August, I had a standing reservation at 8 and was willing to share. The problem was that at time of night, no one else was asking to share a table. I did get seated close enough to others to have a little conversation. Two nights I ate with new friends. One night I went to the winemaker's dinner. So it was just four nights where I ate by myself. It was efficient because the dining room was not busy.

 

When I sail solo, I go with anytime dining after having bad experiences with traditional dining. But when DH sails with me, we'd rather have traditional at a table for six or eight. By the end of a cruise, we've become good friends with some of the people. 

[Ladyshopper23]

We also booked 6pm every night in Estrella. On the first night we asked to sit in a section with a particular waiter we had had on our last night back in September, who we'd been very impressed with.

We asked the same on the second night, and after that, we didn't need to ask again, we were sat at the same table every night (and had the same neighbours on the next table, who also liked to eat early). If we wanted to go down earlier than 6pm (which we did a few times) it was no problem, as it's very quiet at that time.

Suited us perfectly, we're early eaters at home, and I enjoy it more when the dining room isn't so manic.

We also had the same head waiter attend to us every night (had to pre-order due to being coeliac). 

We had a long chat with the food and beverage director about halfway through the cruise, as we had written up a lot of feedback for him in relation to gluten free dining (and also praising the staff we had had, including the chefs who really went the extra mile for us). He explained they had suffered no end with the supply chain issues in the UK. This has specifically impacted on cuts of meat they've been able to get (they had to change some of the menu items in Crown Grill because of it apparently, and also change MDR menus). Weirdly it also affected orange marmalade (who knew that was so popular!) and he explained he'd had members of staff off in ports trying to source marmalade!

 

He was fully aware that some of the food wasn't up to scratch compared to pre-covid, but they are doing the best they can in difficult situations.

 

 

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

34 minutes ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

 

He was fully aware that some of the food wasn't up to scratch compared to pre-covid, but they are doing the best they can in difficult situations.

It was difficult for them I am sure but if they had just fessed up with a letter to our cabins letting us know of their difficulties I am sure most people would understand and it would set our expectations but to just soldier on pretending there are no issues is guaranteed we are disappointed when it is not up to scratch.

Edited November 5, 2021 by Snaxmuppet

[fishnchips]

So I spent 15 days in the SKY (2 separate cruises ) and 11days on the Regal (b2b)

I have to say the taste of food was better on the Regal than on the SKY ,different chef obviously and commented to the head staff ...also same menu so had a heads up on menu 

Also had requested on the app same table number (2) got lucky on both times (window) with waiters and requested same table through the cruise ...also granted no problem.

Gained some weight SO not too bad food in my opinion...

Yes the menu was a more European one but not much to Princess normal, I found most of the regular that I had in the States but menu was also being changed for the next cruise ( Regal) which was the TA. 

Waiters told us so ..

[velohike]

A little late to the topic. I just got off the same Sky Princess cruise as the OP last Friday. The main dining room menu was one of my favorite things about the Sky Princess. Our party all agreed it was even better than our last cruise Grand Princess/Alaska, which we thought was excellent as well.

 

And I say this as someone who eats a lot (high metabolism). I mean, I'm pretty sure I ate more than anyone else on that cruise 😜 I attended the gym 2-3 days a day just to burn calories for eating delicious foods a few times burning 800 calories in an hour on the spin bike. We ate at the MDR every night but two, where those were at the Crown Grill and Sabatini's. My usual MDR dinner was 2-3 starters, 1 salad/soup, and 2-3 main courses, plus dessert! There were only 1-2 main courses the whole trip I can remember not liking, and everything else was fantastic. I will say the MDR offerings that matched the specialty restaurants were never as good, to no surprise. For example, the MDR's Petite Filet was no where as good as Crown Grill's, or the MDR's spaghetti and meatballs was no where as good as Sabatini's.

 

That said my American palate back home is pretty boring, as I am not well traveled nor live in a big city, so I am not as accustomed to eating fancier foods all the time.

[wowzz]

9 hours ago, velohike said:

My usual MDR dinner was 2-3 starters, 1 salad/soup, and 2-3 main courses, plus dessert

Crikey!

I hope you weren't sharing a table!

Personally, some nights there was virtually nothing of interest on the MDR menu, other than the ubiquitous salmon or chicken. As a result we used the speciality restaurants 4 times, the buffet 5 times, and the MDR only 5 times. That is the lowest percentage of MDR usage for any cruise we have been on.

[bellagiio]

11 hours ago, velohike said:

A little late to the topic. I just got off the same Sky Princess cruise as the OP last Friday. The main dining room menu was one of my favorite things about the Sky Princess. Our party all agreed it was even better than our last cruise Grand Princess/Alaska, which we thought was excellent as well.

 

And I say this as someone who eats a lot (high metabolism). I mean, I'm pretty sure I ate more than anyone else on that cruise 😜 I attended the gym 2-3 days a day just to burn calories for eating delicious foods a few times burning 800 calories in an hour on the spin bike. We ate at the MDR every night but two, where those were at the Crown Grill and Sabatini's. My usual MDR dinner was 2-3 starters, 1 salad/soup, and 2-3 main courses, plus dessert! There were only 1-2 main courses the whole trip I can remember not liking, and everything else was fantastic. I will say the MDR offerings that matched the specialty restaurants were never as good, to no surprise. For example, the MDR's Petite Filet was no where as good as Crown Grill's, or the MDR's spaghetti and meatballs was no where as good as Sabatini's.

 

That said my American palate back home is pretty boring, as I am not well traveled nor live in a big city, so I am not as accustomed to eating fancier foods all the time.

Have be agree with you in our experience of the same cruise we loved the food choices in the main dining room..  Plenty of choice and excellent food  .

[rbtan]

On 10/30/2021 at 9:09 AM, JF - retired RRT said:

My son lives in Minnesota and whenever he visits California, the first stop is In-N-Out.

We ate there when doing our Hawaii trip in late Jan. 2020(yeah, sooo close!) We ate at in & out. I'm still wondering what all the hulaboo is about. I still think 5 Guys is better.