solo dining

[stacycs]

With the freestyle dining, do people ever ask to sit with others they don't know? I am cruising solo and want to know if I can join others for dinner in the main dining rooms.

thanks,

Stacy

[njhorseman]

With the freestyle dining, do people ever ask to sit with others they don't know? I am cruising solo and want to know if I can join others for dinner in the main dining rooms.

thanks,

Stacy

 

 

You absolutely can ask to be seated with others in the main dining rooms. We have. Of course, there's no guarantee that willing tablemates will be available at the time you are dining, but just ask the hostess.

[LaShelle2]

With the freestyle dining, do people ever ask to sit with others they don't know? I am cruising solo and want to know if I can join others for dinner in the main dining rooms.

thanks,

Stacy

 

 

Maybe you can meet some people from your roll call.

[Mooder]

With the freestyle dining, do people ever ask to sit with others they don't know? I am cruising solo and want to know if I can join others for dinner in the main dining rooms.

thanks,

Stacy

 

The roll call is a really good suggestion. Attend the meet and greet that they are bound to set up and you'll meet a bunch of your fellow travelers quickly. As has been said, you certainly can ask to be seated with others. FYI, You might have to wait a bit longer and there might not be any available at all at any given time. If you enjoy cocktails at all, I would highly recommend the tastings and clinics (martini, margarita, wine, etc.) that they offer. We have made friends at every one and several times ended up going to dinner with the new friends we had just made. It is just so natural to share and compare.

[Tmrlovesjr]

I am with you, I like to socialize with my fellow passengers. Unfortunatley(excuse the spelling) my husband, who has public facing employment, and can not go anywhere in town without seeing someone he knows likes to keep to himself, especially when we travel alone. For instance, he walked out of the hospital this morning, and while I ran back in to get the keys, somebody who he has no clue who they are came up and started talking to him, and knew him because he knew about us. LOL I call him my little celebrity. So please find others, somebody may be dying to meet you, especially us stay at home moms who speak only to the little ones all day. :D

[stacycs]

Thanks for the info. I have joined the roll call already. As we get closer to the cruise, I am sure it will get busier.

[numberguy]

Also, and this was on my Transatlantic cruise on the Gem, if you were a party of two, they would ask if you wished to eat with others or alone. I know there are a limited number of two-tops in the dining room, so they do ask just so they can fill a four- or six-top and save the two-tops for the people channeling Marlena Deitrich (sp?).

 

I vant to be [eat] alone . . .

[cpcanuck]

I found on my recent cruise on the Dawn that it was easier to meet other people and then arrange to eat together. Most of the time when I went to Venetians for a meal, people were grouped together already and I suspect not necessarily interested in having another person join them, although I never actually tried to do this, nor did the hostess offer it. I found I was quite happy eating on my own sometimes, and I had plenty of offers to eat with others that I had met at either our M & G (roll call) or other passengers that I connected with. Either way, I never felt alone or left out in any way. Hope you enjoy your solo cruise...I know I did!

 

cpcanuck

[CaliforniaDreamer]

If you go at a time when the restaurant is more busy, they will ask if you want to share. If it is later in the evening and not very busy, they probably wont ask you.

 

This is what i gathered when i went on my last NCL cruise..

[leeanninfla]

The fastest way to be seated is to request to sit with others. We have never waited more than long enough to say that we would like to eat.

[mtwingcpa]

If you go at a time when the restaurant is more busy, they will ask if you want to share. If it is later in the evening and not very busy, they probably wont ask you.

 

That has been my experience as well. On one cruise that was slightly over-crowded, they almost always asked. On another that was less crowed, they never asked.

[FranKes2000]

On Norwegian Dream I always asked to be seated with others but the hostess "enjoyed" seating me alone, at a table for 2 by the kitchen door. One time she told me there would be a wait & I should take a seat,she would call me. The call never came, after 1/2 hour I went back to her, she said she called, mistake, I had a witness ............... another crew member. I swore never to cruise NCL again, the next year they launched the Jewel, I had a wonderful time & all hostesses were super!

[bulgargirl]

This is all really good to know! I'm going on my first solo cruise at the end of the month and had visions of me sitting in my cabin eating room service and watching tv the whole time if I wasn't careful. :p

[snorklinbarb]

I've always found new friends from the roll call when I've sailed solo so have had some dinner company. If you have a lot of people on your RC, you could offer to organize a group dinner. I've done them in the main DR, Mexican, Teppanyaki. So that's another chance to have dinner with others.

 

Difficult to get a share table in the specialties but have done it a couple of times in the DR's.

 

The CD's staff usually has some kind of solo gathering at the start of the cruise. Sometimes they end up all having dinner together.

 

The Gem TA I was on had a lot of solos on it. Keep your eye on any deals that cuts out the supplement and you will find other solo cruisers.

 

Pls come back and tell us how things go.:D

[gracieben]

I was on a princess cruise alone last year and had a very good tho sometimes lonely times. I couldn't get assigned seating and had to eat free style. Most dinners were just great I always requested a large table and others were seated with me soon . Very nice and met nice couples.. One night was sitting alone at large table drinking my wine patiently waiting for others and even though dining room was filling up no one came to my table, it was a long time. I finally told my waiter I was going to sneak out and come back to a small table in a few minutes. He was so nice told me to wait a minute and went to head waiter and finally brought people to my table. That was my only "bad" time and I had quite a bit of wine before dinner. The shore excusions were fine and easyto meet people, and shows dark lol. But I really enjoyed myself and know you will too. Have a great cruise.

[coka]

The key is to not be shy. Having sailed solo a few times, do not wait for people to talk to you. Talk to them. At the dining room entrance, ask if anyone requested to share a table. If not, then state you are willing to share a table. If you dine alone, take a few moments to talk to your waiter/waitress, and the host/hostess who seats you. They will most likely stop by again to check in on you. You can be almost guaranteed your fellow passengers will talk to you as some tables are close enough together. The nice thing I find about NCL is that the passengers look out for one another as do the staff when someone is sailing solo. Lastly, if none of the above works, as it has sometimes for me, request a window seat. Look at yourself and tell yourself you are beautiful and how lucky you are to be spending quality time with someone you love...yourself! You will be surprised at the amount of reflection you can do while sailing solo. It builds confidence, character, and you get to listen in on all the conversations around you!

 

Have a fantastic solo cruise. It is not as bad as some people think it is!

 

Oh, I do have a story told in a past review. I was seated solo sort of in the middle of the dining room...where everyone could see the waitstaff remove all the extra dishes...I laughed out loud and put an L to my forehead and looked at the MaitreD and asked if they needed to make it look so obvious. He asked if I wanted a seat in a corner and he would move me. I replied no, no, I want to see everyone. Whenever anyone stared at me as they walked by I just smiled and nodded and said hello. Surprisingly, many stopped to chat. Likewise, the waitstaff also stopped by to chat. I believe if I was shy, none of that would have happened and I would have been miserable feeling like a loser on display. I chose to look like a winner who was very happy to be solo and it ended up being one of my more memorable meals. So, be sure to sit up straight, look people in the eye, smile, and keep em wondering what the hell you are doing!

 

coka

[cpcanuck]

The key is to not be shy. Having sailed solo a few times, do not wait for people to talk to you. Talk to them. At the dining room entrance, ask if anyone requested to share a table. If not, then state you are willing to share a table. If you dine alone, take a few moments to talk to your waiter/waitress, and the host/hostess who seats you. They will most likely stop by again to check in on you. You can be almost guaranteed your fellow passengers will talk to you as some tables are close enough together. The nice thing I find about NCL is that the passengers look out for one another as do the staff when someone is sailing solo. Lastly, if none of the above works, as it has sometimes for me, request a window seat. Look at yourself and tell yourself you are beautiful and how lucky you are to be spending quality time with someone you love...yourself! You will be surprised at the amount of reflection you can do while sailing solo. It builds confidence, character, and you get to listen in on all the conversations around you!

 

Have a fantastic solo cruise. It is not as bad as some people think it is!

 

Oh, I do have a story told in a past review. I was seated solo sort of in the middle of the dining room...where everyone could see the waitstaff remove all the extra dishes...I laughed out loud and put an L to my forehead and looked at the MaitreD and asked if they needed to make it look so obvious. He asked if I wanted a seat in a corner and he would move me. I replied no, no, I want to see everyone. Whenever anyone stared at me as they walked by I just smiled and nodded and said hello. Surprisingly, many stopped to chat. Likewise, the waitstaff also stopped by to chat. I believe if I was shy, none of that would have happened and I would have been miserable feeling like a loser on display. I chose to look like a winner who was very happy to be solo and it ended up being one of my more memorable meals. So, be sure to sit up straight, look people in the eye, smile, and keep em wondering what the hell you are doing!

 

coka

 

I couldn't have said it better myself!! You are correct - the key is to smile confidently, make eye contact and don't be afraid to say the first hello. Works every time. People are eager to have a conversation and once they know you are on your own will often keep their eye out for you and make you feel welcome the next time you meet.

 

I found most people were rather curious about me and wondered who I really was! LOL! Just keep them wondering. It makes for great conversations! ;)

 

cpcanuck