anytime dining question

[rachel58]

Have just booked our first Princess cruise I would like to know if you need to reserve a time each night for anytime dining or can you just turn up at the dining room.There will be 4 of us

[cdngrl]

you can do either.

you may reserve, but you don't have to. i don't like being on a schedule when i'm vacationing, so i just show up when i'm dressed and ready. sometimes there's a bit of a wait, most often not. especially if you don't mind sharing a table, we have never waited then.

[chipmaster]

Have just booked our first Princess cruise I would like to know if you need to reserve a time each night for anytime dining or can you just turn up at the dining room.There will be 4 of us

 

Anytime is exactly that, as the OP said you can show up when all of you are ready, between 6-7:30 there can be a line and a 5-20' wait.

 

Many times they will accept a reservation but often only for sitting before 6pm and after 8pm. if that time works for the 4 of you can you secure that at the dining room on your first day. We did a standing reservation on our past cruise for 5:30, but we were a larger party of 11. With the standing reservation we were able to get the same waiters for the whole cruise. It was the best of traditional without having to deal with the mad 5pm / 7pm rush.

[denmarks]

If there is a wait they will give you the option of taking a pager. It will start flashing when they want you to return.

[D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL]

Just recently back of a B2B and we were a group of 4 and used Anytime Dining and found it worked well. We would arrange to go to dining room for 7pm and had no issue getting a table for 4. They would always ask if you wanted to share with others but we chose not to. There was only 1 night that we had to take the beeper and that night we waited for 20 minutes. Other than that we were in within minutes. The one night there was a wait at the Coral so we went downstairs to the Island and got in right away. There were next to no lines at 7pm.

 

Dave

[BoPippy]

Just go anytime,like it says and IF you have to wait just go and have a drink like you do in restaurants from time to time until your table is ready and voila!:)don't worry,Mon!!:)

[karatemom2]

We are a family of four and have very good experience with anytime dining. Generally we just show up when we are ready for dinner and have rarely experienced a wait. Typically the nights we have experienced waits have been on formal evenings, so I have just gotten in the habit of making reservations on formal nights.

[Sandytoes]

Have just booked our first Princess cruise I would like to know if you need to reserve a time each night for anytime dining or can you just turn up at the dining room.There will be 4 of us

If you don't want to wait for a table make reservations.

Tell the Matri' D time & # of guests.

If you like your waiter, you can reserve table for the entire length of the cruise.

[cdngrl]

sandytoes: do you have to dine at the same time then too?

sometimes i get a fabulous wait staff and would like their section each night, so ask at the door. sometimes there's room, sometimes not.

[Sandytoes]

sandytoes: do you have to dine at the same time then too?.

No! Only if you want to.

Can arrange the different times with the Matri' D.

For example, we knew we were going to be late coming back from an excursion and needed time to get ready.

We told the Matri' D that we wouln't be ready for our usual time.

He told us not to worry, the table will be waiting for you.

Sure enough, there was a line, pax waiting to be seated.

We, however, walked right in.

Our table was vacant.

:)

[cdngrl]

No! Only if you want to.

Can arrange the different times with the Matri' D.

For example, we knew we were going to be late coming back from an excursion and needed time to get ready.

We told the Matri' D that we wouln't be ready for our usual time.

He told us not to worry, the table will be waiting for you.

Sure enough, there was a line, pax waiting to be seated.

We, however, walked right in.

Our table was vacant.

:)

 

thanks for the info. i like anytime as i like going to dinner 'any time' i am ready. this next trip is with a little one, so we'll eat early and there probably won't be an issue. thanks again.

[paul929207]

We had Anytime Dining for 5 weeks on the Star last year and never waited more than 10 minutes. Most nights we were seated right away.

[caribill]

Remeber that there are usually two "anytime" dining rooms. If there is a wait at the first one you check, there might not be at the other one.

 

On ships where the two rooms are near the atrium on decks 5 and 6, the one on deck 5 is usally the one with a lesser wait as many people do not realize there is a 2nd "anytime" restaurant.