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First time Disney cruise - 4.5yo and 7 months old LATE DINING change


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HI everyone,

I've been asking for a family trip for a while and we are finally going! The only problem is that we booked last minute and the early dining is NOT available. I don't know why but this makes me very nervous. neither of my kids would be able to hang on until 8pm for dining.

 

Any tips?

 

Any other advice? Thanks

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Simple--wait list for main (early) dining. THen, when you get your KTTW card at check in, it will show what you have. If it is not "main," go to "dining changes" and see if they can move you. Also, I call about once a week while on the wait list--it only takes one kind CM to move you, and you'll sometimes get one who will.

 

Worst case, feed the kids early from room service or the fast food outlets. Take them to the dining room in a stroller and let them fall asleep. Or take the older one to the OC, where they also put out sleeping mats and turn on a video..

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  • 2 weeks later...

If the above doesn't work out, there's also the Dine and Play option for your older child. They feeds the kids right away, and then counselors come to take them to the Oceaneer Club.

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If the above doesn't work out, there's also the Dine and Play option for your older child. They feeds the kids right away, and then counselors come to take them to the Oceaneer Club.

This applies to kids 3-12 only. OP has a 7 month old.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Take this for what it is worth. I was also concerned about late seating. OK we don't have kids, but are big kids.

I found that going to the shows earlier and eating late worked out great. Just guessing, but most kids want the shows and entertainment eating is secondary. (except soft serve ice cream on deck 9) You will have fun either way.

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There are other dining options. We were prepared to eat off the buffet but waitlisted the early dining and got it.

 

Our almost six year old grandchildren loved the kids club so much that I was only able to get our grandson to eat with us in the dining room two out of four nights. He was well fed in the club. His twin sister enjoyed the dining room rotation.

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There are other dining options. We were prepared to eat off the buffet but waitlisted the early dining and got it.

 

There is NO buffet at dinner time. Cabanas becomes a cruise casual sit down venue serving the same food as the MDRs but with fewer selections. In addition, they offer a salad bar and a "carved item." The food and service is excellent. It is not open the first or last night of a cruise. The fast food venues on the pool deck are open at dinner time, and room service is available.

 

Cabanas is a buffet at breakfast and lunch.

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I always wondered. Which menu does Cabanas follow for the first three nights when the menus are specific to the dining rooms?

It isn't necessarily the first three nights that this occurs, although on Bahamian and Caribbean cruises it is the first night in each restaurant. But, on signature dining nights, they choose 2 items from each signature restaurant. I had the same dish that I'd had the night before in one of the sig restaurants and it was MUCH better at Cabanas. This is likely because it was prepared when I ordered instead of being mass produced and siting under warming lights. They are happy to show you the menu for the night before you decide whether to eat there or not.

 

Cabanas in the evening used to be a training restaurant (don't know if this is still the case) for both kitchen and serving staff where they didn't have the speed pressure of the MDRs. Actually, it tends to be faster service as they don't have hundreds of people, and they are very attentive. We tried it initially because we were on a Med excursion and came back hungry. The idea of waiting till late dinner wasn't good, but if we snacked, we wouldn't be hungry for dinner. Cabanas was an excellent alternative. The only negative--we asked them to notify our servers in the MDR that we wouldn't be coming; servers never got the message.

Edited by moki'smommy
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