Any buzz about

[Smartcookie]

The problem was that we wanted traditional and couldn't get it.

 

Oh, and you had to wait? Maybe we never waited because we were always willing to share a table, but honestly, I never saw anyone waiting, and we were sailing full.

[garykool81]

Having to worry about a reservation every night (or wait if you don't have one) would be WAY more limiting and stressful for me than simply planning to dine at a set time...

 

Agreed. Tried out Princess in December, and while I am willing to give them another shot in the future, I was not overly impressed. With our party of four, we found ourselves needing to make reservations every night so that we didn't have to stand in line for 15-20min to eat dinner.

 

I highly prefer fixed, traditional dining. That said, Oceania (similar to Azamara) does a stellar job with the casual dining set-up, and we have never had more than a 2-3min wait for a table. I believe their ships are set up so that their dining rooms actually accomodate MORE than the number onboard.

[rebeccalouise]

I can only relate what I experienced on Sapphire Princess and other comments on the Princess board.

First of all, I requested the anytime because i wanted the flexibility you described. We had no problem getting 7PM or 730 dinner reservations on Sapphire but we booked the first day of the cruise- so were locked into certain times and certain restaurants. We were traveling (four of us) and wanted to dine together each night- not with others. So it worked for us but we still had to be at dinner at a certain time each night to meet up. So this took planning. We only did the anytime because we don't like to eat as early as 6 but not as late as 8:30. The part we didn't like was the service- it was obvious that they were trying to turn the tables as quickly as possible. The waiters weren't friendly- in fact, they were surly, sweaty and rushing us through courses. Except, they took the time to sell us the daily drink in the cute little shot glasses. Tacky.

 

It was not a fine dining experience. I thought the food was so-so and that the menus were boring and the same in each of the four restaurants. Shouldn't they have themed restaurants at least?

 

If you read the Princess boards- those that think they have traditional get on the ships and are told they have "anytime"- which means they have to make arrangements to sit together at a set time. This by all accounts can be accomplished but who wants to have to stand in line waiting to make this change.

 

Also, people have something like 150 ahead of them on the waitlist for traditional dining, which means that traditional is the favored means. Since there aren't people waiting for "anytime".

 

To each their own but I don't want Celebrity to change. I love being seated with the same people each night. I have had great tablemates on Celebrity. It is fun to regroup each day and hear about their experiences. It makes it feel more intimate. And service in tradional is so much more personal. By the second or third night- they know your preferences. Plus, I love getting to see the familiar faces of the wait staff.

[rebeccalouise]

Agreed. Tried out Princess in December, and while I am willing to give them another shot in the future, I was not overly impressed. With our party of four, we found ourselves needing to make reservations every night so that we didn't have to stand in line for 15-20min to eat dinner.

 

I highly prefer fixed, traditional dining. That said, Oceania (similar to Azamara) does a stellar job with the casual dining set-up, and we have never had more than a 2-3min wait for a table. I believe their ships are set up so that their dining rooms actually accomodate MORE than the number onboard.

 

I agree with you about Oceania. It was wonderful- the food, the intimacy of the ship- the familiar faces of the servers throughout the eating venues. You do get to know the crew, since it is small. The afternoon tea was fabulous. Hope they have that on Journey. Just wonderful. The best experience at sea. The music, the ambiance, the white gloves- the food. We all miss that the most of our experience on Oceania. The food in general was the best we have experienced. The buffet was still fine dining. They carry your plate to the table, come over and take drink orders, refill your water- there are tableclothes. We did the buffet six out of ten nights because it was really upscale and the food was tremendous.

The staff couldn't have been more friendly and accomodating. They appeared to love their jobs.

I am sure this is common on small vessels. More intimacy. But it doesn't translate on a 3000 plus passenger ships. I felt like I was a number on Princess.

[GORDONCHICK]

Oh, and you had to wait? Maybe we never waited because we were always willing to share a table, but honestly, I never saw anyone waiting, and we were sailing full.

 

Actually, we never waited. That's not where my complaint was. The service was so-so at best. Like I said, we had better service on Carnival in traditional dining. That was the only thing we liked better on Carnival - that they only had traditional, and their service was better than Princess' Anytime. Would have loved to been able to compare the Princess traditional, but like I said, it wasn't an option.

[garykool81]

I agree with you about Oceania. It was wonderful- the food, the intimacy of the ship- the familiar faces of the servers throughout the eating venues. You do get to know the crew, since it is small. The afternoon tea was fabulous. Hope they have that on Journey. Just wonderful. The best experience at sea. The music, the ambiance, the white gloves- the food. We all miss that the most of our experience on Oceania. The food in general was the best we have experienced. The buffet was still fine dining. They carry your plate to the table, come over and take drink orders, refill your water- there are tableclothes. We did the buffet six out of ten nights because it was really upscale and the food was tremendous.

The staff couldn't have been more friendly and accomodating. They appeared to love their jobs.

I am sure this is common on small vessels. More intimacy. But it doesn't translate on a 3000 plus passenger ships. I felt like I was a number on Princess.

 

You're absolutely right about Oceania. The food aboard their ships is without doubt the best I've ever had with any cruise line. I would even go as far as saying that the quality is equal to a solid three and a half star land-based venue, where you would expect to dish out somewhere in the vicinity of $60 per person for a three course meal.

 

Afternoon tea on Oceania is also amazing. None of the other mass-market lines even come close to what is offered -- live string quartet, white-glove service, excellent snacks, etc. It is such an upscale and refined, yet relaxed atmosphere.

 

We're big Celebrity fans, but will cruise Oceania whenever we get the opportunity. The experience onboard a ship with a maximum capacity of 680 passengers far exceeds that of a ship where you are only one citizen in a floating city. I've never been on a cruise before Oceania where the Cruise Director personally came up to my partner and I almost every day to ask how we were enjoying ourselves, etc. The level of personal service is unmatched in the price range they service.

 

Ok -- back to being on topic now. One thing I failed to mention with my post regarding Princess is that the ship I sailed on was built BEFORE the line rolled out the "anytime" dining program, and might have longer waits than newer ships that were purpose-built for that dining arrangement.

[joelmarj]

Hate the whole concept of Anytime dining. I live in NY and we dine out all the time and many of the good restaurants do not take reservations so waiting becomes routine. That is the last thing I want to do on a cruise. We also enjoy getting a large table at late seating and having the same table mates the entire time. Having waiters and their asst's as well as the somilier know you and your preference really adds to the overall experience.

 

Anytime dining is the key reason I won't select Princess at all. I know they have the option of traditional, but being put on a waitlist to get it is not my idea of having planned the right trip. Then what happens when we don't get it. Big disappointment.

 

But having said that, this is why it is great that there are so many choices for cruises. Quite frankly, I'm glad they are not all the same.