MDR Tablemates

We are sailing HAL first Tim to PC in December. We choose main seating and go to MDR every night. I know on other lines they try to match you with similar ship mates. EG language spoken, ages, etc. This time around we we be 2 63 year olds and my 24 year old son. Will they seat us with a group of 80 year olds or try to find a comparable table since we like large tables with many personalities.

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The first time I sailed we had a table for 6 and there was just my husband and I and one other couple. We were in our 50's and OMG, they were 90! It turns out that the husband worked for JFK and we spent the week enraptured by the stories at dinner. We could not have been more pleased that we had this couple all to ourselves every night for dinner. They were fascinating people.

Somehow, HAL has done a good job of matching us with enjoyable dining companions in the past.

I don't worry about their age. Age doesn't indicate if they will be interesting table mates IMO.

The people we have been with have been diverse and always interesting.

Our first cruise on a HAL ship we had a couple of tablemates who were 40 years older than we are. They were great. The other couple at our table made it fun as well, one of the guest entertainers and her husband. She just performed one show during the week, so only missed one dinner.

On other cruise lines we were matched with great table mates about 98% of the time.

But when we started to cruise with HAL, we ended up at tables with a lot of boring people, some even slept through the dinner. Other kept repeating what they talked about the night before.

So we started to get tables for 2.

Hope you have better luck with HAL than we had.

Let them know you want a table for 3.

We had dinner one evening at the Pinnacle with two much older ladies, one turning 90 soon. Best dinner ever! They had traveled the world and their stories were amazing. When they came toddling over to our table my husband and I looked at each other, but don't judge a book by its cover.

On the TA last October, my friend and I were abandoned by the 4 others at our table then we were put at an eight seated with 6 know it alls. We were the same same but I hated dinner every night.

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We would love this experience, even if it was

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All imaginary

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We had dinner one evening at the Pinnacle with two much older ladies, one turning 90 soon. Best dinner ever! They had traveled the world and their stories were amazing. When they came toddling over to our table my husband and I looked at each other, but don't judge a book by its cover.

Glad that worked out well for you, but why did you have to share a table in the Pinnacle? Aren't you usually seated at a table that you reserve only for your party?

Table mates are rather like Blind Dates -- some are better than others. :D

Glad that worked out well for you, but why did you have to share a table in the Pinnacle? Aren't you usually seated at a table that you reserve only for your party?

I've never heard of being seated with strangers in the PG.

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I've never heard of being seated with strangers in the PG.

 

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I've never encountered it myself but I remember a solo cruising poster saying a few years ago that she had to protest when she was asked to share a table in the Pinnacle. When she refused they backed down and sat her by herself.

I certainly would not take kindly to a request like that and I know you wouldn't either. I'd much sooner sit with you. :D

I've never heard of being seated with strangers in the PG.

 

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Perhaps it was the Master Chef Dinner. My DW and I were seated with some very interesting characters for this event! ;).

Once shared a dinner (it was a wine paring dinner) at the Pinnacle grill with another couple. They were a riot!!! Lots of fun. The husband at first seemed rather quiet, but he and dh were soon talking sports.. The wife had her own business and we got along like old friends. She kept talking (she had me in stitches) and would take a drink of her wine and then reach to her husband and drink from his wine glass ("he never finishes his wine" she would say) Then the steward would come by with more wine. Three hours later after many glasses of wine for her and me (and me ready for bed... too much wine) the dinner ended and actually it was the most enjoyable meal we had aboard that cruise. My comment was that yes we have shared a meal with others at the Pinnacle Grill.

Perhaps it was the Master Chef Dinner. My DW and I were seated with some very interesting characters for this event! ;).

Now that made me laugh out loud---and remember a fun night where being seated with strangers turned out very well. We weren't strangers for long. Would love to do it again.

We've had mostly good experiences, but a couple of other experiences also.... Once we were assigned a table for 8 by the window but only one other couple was there and nobody was ever seated with us, so just the four of us... and they didn't speak much English, we didn't speak German. We all ate together for 21 nights and smiled a lot.

The other odd pairing we had was when we were seated at a table for 4 but the other couple was fairly outraged and quite vocal that their request for a table for 6 had not been honored, and frankly they had nothing good to say about anything in life much less about the cruise or cruise line! On night 2 they were moved to a table for 6 but it had only one other couple... so on night 3 they invited us to join them! We politely declined and enjoyed our own company the rest of the cruise. m--

Table mates are rather like Blind Dates -- some are better than others. :D

Exactly!

After 30 cruises, (not all on HAL) we have had a wide variety of tablemates because we ask for a large table. Only once have we asked for a change in table assignments. The first night of the cruise one lady assigned to our table made her GRAND appearance - it was her admitted plan - she intentionally arrived late in order to garner more attention and it she did it in GRAND fashion. We struggled to stay seated during that dinner and knew we would never sit with her again. We liked the others (including that ladies husband) but could not tolerate her. By the end of the cruise, everyone onboard had been exposed to her obnoxious behaviors. She would make her presence known everywhere on the ship. This included the show lounges; the entertainers on stage were even subjected to her during their performances. This lady loved attention.

So, we know it's a gamble to sit with unknown folks but think we have been very lucky to have been assigned with some very enjoyable table mates, very few not as enjoyable tablemates and only ONE totally intolerable one.

Since the OP says they like large tables with many personalities, hopefully if they stay assigned to a large table, the odds of finding some compatibility with some of their table mates will work out for them.

Good luck.

Perhaps it was the Master Chef Dinner. My DW and I were seated with some very interesting characters for this event! ;).

Yeah there were some very strange people there LOL.

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On other cruise lines we were matched with great table mates about 98% of the time.

But when we started to cruise with HAL, we ended up at tables with a lot of boring people, some even slept through the dinner. Other kept repeating what they talked about the night before.

So we started to get tables for 2.

 

Hope you have better luck with HAL than we had.

ROFL! We hear ya. But our theory about HAL ( a line we still like and cruise) is that there are basically two types of cruisers. There are those that go to dinner at 5:30 (after waiting in line from 5pm) because they are afraid they will have to dine after dark :). Those folks rush through dinner, leave the MDR before 7, go to a show, and are in their cabins before 9! Some of those folks are our friends, but its just not our style. So we dine later (usually after 8). We are already ahead of the game because those who dine after 8....are going to generally be more of a lively later night crowd. We use Open Dining....but always ask to share a large table. Yes, we have had some boring tables (but its only for 1 night) but mostly we have met some fantastic folks. As a rule we have found HAL cruisers to be sophisticated travelers with lots of world/travel experience.

So now we have the BB King group (on many of the ships) which is really an interesting idea for HAL. Those that go to the BB King shows are generally happy (the one's that have issues quickly leave) and are more our type...in that they enjoy some lively music. It is hard to fall asleep at the BB King shows :). And on our upcoming VOV cruise we noticed that we also have "Barry from Boston" in the piano venue. It would be hard to fall asleep in Barry's venue :). So we expect that out of the 1200 on our upcoming cruise...perhaps half will be in bed by 9 (or falling asleep at their early dinner). But there should be hundreds of others who enjoy staying awake and socializing.

Hank

The one time we did a fixed dining time with HAL, we had the nicest tablemates--two couple and neither were from the U.S. One couple was from Australia, where we had lived for several years, so we had a lot to chat about. The 2nd couple were from Spain and spoke little-to-no English. Fortunately, my spouse speaks fluent Spanish, so they weren't left out of our conversations.

So, give it a try and I expect you'll have a wonderful experience. And, if you just don't "click", feel free to ask the Maitre D' for another table.

We always ask for late seating at a table for 8. Have always had very interesting table mates, great conversations & great times. Most nights we are among the last table to leave the MDR. We have had one cruise where a single woman was the most obnoxious table mate we ever had to experience. We where lucky that as soon as she finished eating she got up and left, the rest of us then enjoyed the remainder of the evening.

Allan

We always request a large table for late fixed seating.

Every cruise dinner grouping was fun except for the first one where the other 2 parties were sporadic about the mdr and went to the steakhouse or Lido many of the nights.

If you get an unpleasant seating you can go to the mater d' and ask to be moved.

OP, I suspect that if there are other adult families on your cruise, you will be seated with them.

Like you, we always choose late traditional dining, with a 6- or 8-top table. In 38 cruises, we've had some iffy tablemates each first night (non-English-speaking, vast age differences, showoffs), but we've always stuck it out, and were always glad we did. In many cases, those first-night "lemons" ended up being the most interesting and fun.

We know that we can ask for a move if we want -- dinner is important to us, and is our main social element of the day -- but we've never had to.

Happy sailing; I hope you have excellent tablemates!