My Time Dining questions

[bassspanker]

Still trying to figure out exactly how My Time dining works. I haven't found any specific details either on the RCI website or on other posts here. Can you help me with a few questions?

 

If we make reservations, do you typically reserve a time slot for the week & stick with it? Or can you change your reservations daily? I'm sure you "can" do this, but some of the posts I read made it sound like you have to reserve a time slot early in the week & stick with it because all the reservations fill up & don't give you much options to change later. Is that true?

 

Also, I gather that there are two options- reservations, or just show up in line. Can you bounce around between either option throughout the week? Or if your reservation isn't going to work out one night, can you just cancel & show up in line at a different time? I assume so, but just wanted to make sure.

 

I guess I'm just trying to figure out if this is really as flexible and convenient as advertised, and if so, why doesn't everyone do it?

 

In our situation, we like to eat late, so we signed up for the late MDR seating thinking that would work well for us. But I just remembered that on our last cruise, it seemed like the late seating conflicted with some of the evening shows, so we had to eat in the buffet on nights when we wanted to catch a show (different cruise line, so I'm not sure about RC). So now I'm thinking MyTime would be a better choice. Any comments & suggestions would be welcome. Thanks.

[Jolimont]

I'm in the same situation you are, and a tad confused too. But, it seems to me there are constraints no matter what you choose, it's just about choosing the devil you dislike least.

 

First of all, you can change times every night, that's certain.

 

Depending on what shows are on at what time, when you get back from excursions, you may want to eat at different times. You can reserve for the whole week before you ever set foot on the ship. But what time would you choose since you don't know show times?!

 

So I booked for the first night 6:45 because the show on the first night is usually at 7:45, for the rest of the week I'll wait and see.

 

There may be times when we can't get the time we want. Oh well, we're on vacation, that sort of thing isn't going to bother me.

 

It also seems like MTD means we're more likely to eat by ourselves and not share dinner with the same fellow passengers twice. We don't mind that so much either. We would probably prefer sharing a table however, but even on that we're flexible.

[octagonmike]

Basically you can just show up and wait. Waiting time for us on Liberty last year was about 15 - 20 minutes.

 

We found it better to reserve a table each day. First thing we did on boarding was to go to the third floor of the MDR and booked a table for that evening. And then each evening after eating we would book a table for the next night or if it was too busy book it the next morning.

 

As I say the alternnative is to show up and wait. My Time Dining worked for us and we generally found service to be ok.

[NorbertsNiece]

Hi, the joy of MTD is that you can turn up and eat when you are ready to. They have recently introduced the option to reserve times online for each night but it's not compulsory to do that. You can just roll up when you are ready. I believe they prefer to know when they can expect you so they can seat you quickly. We did have a short wait once last time but it was no big deal.

[newbiecruiser09]

See my experiences below in red

 

Still trying to figure out exactly how My Time dining works. I haven't found any specific details either on the RCI website or on other posts here. Can you help me with a few questions?

 

If we make reservations, do you typically reserve a time slot for the week & stick with it? You can if you want or not if you want Or can you change your reservations daily?Yes I'm sure you "can" do this, but some of the posts I read made it sound like you have to reserve a time slot early in the week & stick with it because all the reservations fill up & don't give you much options to change later. Is that true? We would make the ressie for the following night either as we were leaving dinner or the next morning (depending on what we were doing that day) Sometimes they may fill up a time slot but it seemed pretty accomodating to us

 

Also, I gather that there are two options- reservations, or just show up in line. Can you bounce around between either option throughout the week? Yes if you want but you may have to wait if you go at a popular-ie filled up-time Or if your reservation isn't going to work out one night, can you just cancel & show up in line at a different time? I assume so, but just wanted to make sure. Yes

 

I guess I'm just trying to figure out if this is really as flexible and convenient as advertised, and if so, why doesn't everyone do it? Because they only allow a certain number of folks to have this option. They have a special section in the MDR and it is limited. You will hear/read about folks who want MTD but can't get it cause it's filled up for their sailing.

 

In our situation, we like to eat late, so we signed up for the late MDR seating thinking that would work well for us. But I just remembered that on our last cruise, it seemed like the late seating conflicted with some of the evening shows, so we had to eat in the buffet on nights when we wanted to catch a show (different cruise line, so I'm not sure about RC). Many shows have 2--one for early and one for late seating. So now I'm thinking MyTime would be a better choice. We really liked it cause early was too early for us with excursions and late was too late for our kids. We liked that we could choose what time we wanted and were able to get that time with no waiting any night on our last cruise. Any comments & suggestions would be welcome. Thanks.

[Gingerbint]

We Did MTD for our 1st cruise last year and enjoyed it.

We liked the flexibility of not having to eat too early or too late for us which the MDR times were.

We usually ate between 7-8pm, and did mention our requested time for the next night on leaving the MDR each night.

We had no problem changing it and if it was too busy when leaving we would phone up and book it from our room.

I would suggest though, that you don't turn up to eat around the same time as the set diners. They is usually alot of people milling about and the wait will be longer, so try to avoid it and come 15 mins before or after.

We never missed a show and always got a seat.:D

Re seating with others - On our first night we sat at a table for 8, then by choice we had a table of 2 for the odd night mixed with a table of 4 and 6 on other nights. It is up to you, if you want a table for 2 every night, ask and you will usually be accomodated. We had a nice couple on our 4 top and arranged to sit together again a couple of nights later.

If you make friends on board who are also MTD you can request a table to sit with each other if you like.

This is not possible if they are set dining obviously.:rolleyes:

[TiredOl6]

First to the OP - this is a good thread; thanks.

 

We are on Brilliance for a 12 night out of Barcelona this summer and are trying MTD for the first time due to the long days in port and the late time of the second seating in the MDR.

 

I have a few of questions as well.

 

1. Is the menu for MTD the same as the menu for those at the early and late seatings in the MDR? Do you still have the option for the Chop's Filet with MTD.

 

2. Is the section that is set aside for MTD in the main section of the MDR - would you consider it equivalent with other MDR seating in terms of openess, views, table spacing, etc?

 

3. Is the MTD wait staff as attentive and do you have the same options to try multiple entrees, desserts, etc. as has commonly been allowed in the MDR seating.

 

Any comments on MTD on Brilliance of the Seas specifically would be appreciated as well.

 

Thanks

 

Tiredol6

[Albert Ross]

First to the OP - this is a good thread; thanks.

 

We are on Brilliance for a 12 night out of Barcelona this summer and are trying MTD for the first time due to the long days in port and the late time of the second seating in the MDR.

 

I have a few of questions as well.

 

1. Is the menu for MTD the same as the menu for those at the early and late seatings in the MDR? Do you still have the option for the Chop's Filet with MTD.

 

2. Is the section that is set aside for MTD in the main section of the MDR - would you consider it equivalent with other MDR seating in terms of openess, views, table spacing, etc?

 

3. Is the MTD wait staff as attentive and do you have the same options to try multiple entrees, desserts, etc. as has commonly been allowed in the MDR seating.

 

Any comments on MTD on Brilliance of the Seas specifically would be appreciated as well.

 

Thanks

 

Tiredol6

1. Yes same menu and same dress code

2. Yes - you are on one floor of the dining room so have the same selection of window tables or tables by the edge.

3.Yes. And service is at your speed so you can be as rushed or relaxed and lesiurely as you like.

 

I have done MTD on Brilliance twice and it has been excellant both times. We find the food is much hotter and freshly prepared with MTD too.

The tables for 2 are close enough together that you can chat with your neighbours if you wish, or ignore them if you wish.

[Jasperdo]

As others have mentioned, it is your choice. You can just show up when you feel like eating. Or you can set a standing reservation for the same time every night. Or you can make a different reservation time every evening. Totally up to you. Plus you can choose to eat alone or at a table with others. Again, totally up to you. That's the beauty of My Time Dining.

 

In our case, my wife and I made a standing reservation for the same table at the same time every night. We did this because we were seated at a wonderful table for two that overlooked the entire dining room. And we were pleased with the servers at that table. So we reserved that same spot for the entire cruise. But, it is not necessary to do that. You can just show up whenever you choose every night if you prefer. There might be a wait some nights if you do this, however. We noticed a couple of nights that the people ahead of us in the My Time line were told they had to wait for a table, yet we were seated immediately at "our" table. That only happened twice. Most evenings, nobody had to wait to be seated.

 

Have a great cruise!

[TiredOl6]

1. Yes same menu and same dress code

2. Yes - you are on one floor of the dining room so have the same selection of window tables or tables by the edge.

3.Yes. And service is at your speed so you can be as rushed or relaxed and lesiurely as you like.

 

I have done MTD on Brilliance twice and it has been excellant both times. We find the food is much hotter and freshly prepared with MTD too.

The tables for 2 are close enough together that you can chat with your neighbours if you wish, or ignore them if you wish.

 

Thank-You!

[HarrisonCity]

Do you remember what time the shows were on the Mariner? I'd like to reserve dining times in advance but would like to know what time the shows are so I don't miss them. Thanks!!

[printingchick]

Still trying to figure out exactly how My Time dining works. I haven't found any specific details either on the RCI website or on other posts here. Can you help me with a few questions?

 

If we make reservations, do you typically reserve a time slot for the week & stick with it? Or can you change your reservations daily? I'm sure you "can" do this, but some of the posts I read made it sound like you have to reserve a time slot early in the week & stick with it because all the reservations fill up & don't give you much options to change later. Is that true?

 

Also, I gather that there are two options- reservations, or just show up in line. Can you bounce around between either option throughout the week? Or if your reservation isn't going to work out one night, can you just cancel & show up in line at a different time? I assume so, but just wanted to make sure.

 

I guess I'm just trying to figure out if this is really as flexible and convenient as advertised, and if so, why doesn't everyone do it?

 

In our situation, we like to eat late, so we signed up for the late MDR seating thinking that would work well for us. But I just remembered that on our last cruise, it seemed like the late seating conflicted with some of the evening shows, so we had to eat in the buffet on nights when we wanted to catch a show (different cruise line, so I'm not sure about RC). So now I'm thinking MyTime would be a better choice. Any comments & suggestions would be welcome. Thanks.

 

I've used MTD twice now.

 

The first time, on Freedom of the Seas, we just showed up. We ate at different times each night. We never made a reservation. We never waited in line. It was just like going to a restaurant.

 

THE UPSIDE: FLEXIBILITY! No planning. When we felt like eating, we ate.

THE DOWNSIDE: We had a different table and different waitstaff throughout the week. The host tried to seat us in the same section, so we got the same assistant waiter every night but one and we floated between about three different waiters. The assistant waiter was great and she really got to know us. The others, well...it was just like eating at a restaurant.

 

The second time, on Serenade, we made a standing reservation. We didn't intend to do this, but we met another couple in the MDR the first night (they were sitting at the table next to us) and we really hit it off. We decided to eat toghether every night. The host told us that, if we'd come around 6:30-ish every night, he'd give us the same table by the window. We didn't have to wait to be seated, we just walked right to our table. We had the same waitstaff every night and they were WONDERFUL.

 

DOWNSIDE: We were locked into a specific time. The port-intensive cruise gave us a relatively small window in which to dine and still make the shows, so we'd have eaten within 30 minutes of our reserved time each night regardless, so it wasn't a big issue.

UPSIDE: Preferred beverages showed up on the table automatically. Our waiters became our friends. Our tablemates became our friends. It provided all the benefits of traditional dining, without having to eat too early or too late.

 

I would never go back to traditional dining. LOVE MTD, however you choose to use it.

[Jasperdo]

Do you remember what time the shows were on the Mariner? I'd like to reserve dining times in advance but would like to know what time the shows are so I don't miss them. Thanks!!

 

Here's a link to my Mariner of the Seas Cruise Compasses. They are from December, but they should give you a good idea of the show schedule for the week:

[Bold21]

I agree with most posts on this topic. We really enjoyed MTD. We were on Liberty of the Seas on April 4th and had found someone who had posted the Cruise Compasses for our same itinerary/same ship a few weeks before our sail date. So the show times & port times were exactly the same. That allowed us to pre-book our dinner reservations online for different times each night depending on how long we were in port & the show times. It worked great. We had a group of 10 people, and still worked very well. And even though it was a different time each night, we had our same table and waitstaff everynight. We were very impressed. Based on that experience, we would never go back to traditional dining.

[HarrisonCity]

Thanks, Jasperdo, for posting the Compasses from the Mariner. That's exactly what I was looking for! I would imagine that they don't change much from week to week, so that will definitely help with my planning! Thanks again!!

[MrsPete]

I've never been quite as enarmoured with traditional dining as some people are:

 

- Early seating is a little too early, late seating is a little too late. A wait is worth the flexibility of going when I want.

 

- With traditional dining, we always seem to get a bad table. Once we weren't even seated in the main dining room; that was really the last straw for me. I recognize that someone has to sit by the kitchen, and I don't mind so much having a bad table occasionally, but having the same bad table for the whole week puts a damper on the experience.

 

- While all the wait staff I've encountered has been good, I've never had the ones with ESP who already know my drink order and have it waiting at the table -- and I don't care. I don't have any problem with having different wait staff each evening.

 

- We've never had tablemates who were anything but pleasant; however, that's not a highlight of the cruise for us.

 

Of course, no system is perfect:

 

- If you care about the shows, you have to plan your dinner meals. With traditional dining, no thought on the guest's part is necessary: You go to dinner, you go to the show . . . or you go to the show, you go to dinner . . . if you alter your dinner time, it's your own responsibility to get to the show. Personally, I don't care about that, but you might.

 

- You might wait. My family thinks this is better than being tied down to one time for the whole week.

[spammie]

We tried MTD for the first time last month on Independence and LOVED it. We never made a reservation, we just showed up when we were ready to eat and we were seated right away. I loved the flexibility and not feeling like my schedule was dictated by what time we had to eat dinner. We generally showed up at the dining room between 7:30pm and 8:15pm. We also liked that dinner didn't take as long. We don't like to be rushed but I also don't like sitting there for two hours either.

[katiel53]

We are having MTD on Freedom and have made reservations in advance for 7:30 nightly. Is there just one line where those with reservations and those without reservations stand in? Or, is there a line for those with reservations? I realize that there might not be a line, but I am guessing that 7:30 is a relatively popular time and that there might be a line to get in.

 

We tried to get reservations for 7, but it was filled, so we opted for 7:30. I am trying to determine if we need to be there earlier to get in a line if we need to. Also, if we like the waiter the first night, and we request him for the week, are we able to do as someone posted earlier, just go to the table nightly or should we wait to be seated?

 

This is our first time with MTD on Royal Caribbean. We have done it on other lines and loved it. Thanks for your help.

[cruizinmimi]

We are having MTD on Freedom and have made reservations in advance for 7:30 nightly. Is there just one line where those with reservations and those without reservations stand in? Or, is there a line for those with reservations? I realize that there might not be a line, but I am guessing that 7:30 is a relatively popular time and that there might be a line to get in.

 

We tried to get reservations for 7, but it was filled, so we opted for 7:30. I am trying to determine if we need to be there earlier to get in a line if we need to. Also, if we like the waiter the first night, and we request him for the week, are we able to do as someone posted earlier, just go to the table nightly or should we wait to be seated?

 

This is our first time with MTD on Royal Caribbean. We have done it on other lines and loved it. Thanks for your help.

 

Katie - 7:30pm is a very popular time. Here's my suggestion. On the 1st night get there a little early 7:20/7:25. You will have to wait to be seated and they will take down your information. After you leave dinner on the 1st night, if you want the same waiter (same table) request it as you leave and make another ressie for the 2nd night. You will come at that designated time and again wait to be seated. You will always have to wait to be seated because someone may be at your designated table still. So each night that you leave, you make a new ressie and so on and so on.

 

We love MTD. It works out well, but sometimes you will have a wait. We have not waited more than 8-10 mins (max).

[printingchick]

Katie - 7:30pm is a very popular time. Here's my suggestion. On the 1st night get there a little early 7:20/7:25. You will have to wait to be seated and they will take down your information. After you leave dinner on the 1st night, if you want the same waiter (same table) request it as you leave and make another ressie for the 2nd night. You will come at that designated time and again wait to be seated. You will always have to wait to be seated because someone may be at your designated table still. So each night that you leave, you make a new ressie and so on and so on.

 

We love MTD. It works out well, but sometimes you will have a wait. We have not waited more than 8-10 mins (max).

 

 

We made a standing reservation for the week and were assigned a table on night 2. We never had to wait to be seated. We just walked to "our" table.

[Jasperdo]

We are having MTD on Freedom and have made reservations in advance for 7:30 nightly. Is there just one line where those with reservations and those without reservations stand in? Or, is there a line for those with reservations?

 

 

At least on the Mariner, there was only one line, whether you had a reservation or not. Even though we had a standing reservation , we still got on line so the Maitre'd would know we were there and that table was occupied. It was usually a real short line, a minute or two at the most.

[wolv4life]

I have another MTD question.

 

I know that gratuities are paid in advance for MTD, but just how far in advance do you pay? Do you pay before you board the ship? Do they charge your SS card the first night?

 

Also, can you pay for the gratuities out of OBC.

 

My first MTD experience will be on SOS this May. Can't wait to try it out.

[RevSmith]

Still trying to figure out exactly how My Time dining works. I haven't found any specific details either on the RCI website or on other posts here. Can you help me with a few questions?

 

If we make reservations, do you typically reserve a time slot for the week & stick with it? No, you do not have to do that.

Or can you change your reservations daily? Yes, you can change your reservation daily.

I'm sure you "can" do this, but some of the posts I read made it sound like you have to reserve a time slot early in the week & stick with it because all the reservations fill up & don't give you much options to change later. Is that true? No, this is not true.

 

Also, I gather that there are two options- reservations, or just show up in line. No there are more than that...you can call and ask for a certain time during a certain day.

Can you bounce around between either option throughout the week? Yes

Or if your reservation isn't going to work out one night, can you just cancel & show up in line at a different time? Yes

I assume so, but just wanted to make sure.

 

I guess I'm just trying to figure out if this is really as flexible and convenient as advertised, and if so, why doesn't everyone do it? Some people love tradition and would prefer, for their own personal reasons, the choice to dine traditionally.

 

In our situation, we like to eat late, so we signed up for the late MDR seating thinking that would work well for us. But I just remembered that on our last cruise, it seemed like the late seating conflicted with some of the evening shows, so we had to eat in the buffet on nights when we wanted to catch a show (different cruise line, so I'm not sure about RC). Yes this is also true with RCI, the shows etc. are designed around those that have traditional dinning, but you can adjust your schedule to fit both dinning and shows in.

So now I'm thinking My Time would be a better choice. Any comments & suggestions would be welcome. Thanks.

 

I myself love traditional dinning and am so glad that this option is available to me...I also understand the reasons why some do not like it or don't even wish to try it. The fact that we are all diverse makes this a much more interesting world. So what ever you chose to do, have a great trip.

Rev

[Albert Ross]

I have another MTD question.

 

I know that gratuities are paid in advance for MTD, but just how far in advance do you pay? Do you pay before you board the ship? Do they charge your SS card the first night?

 

Also, can you pay for the gratuities out of OBC.

 

My first MTD experience will be on SOS this May. Can't wait to try it out.

You either sign up for MTD before your cruise and you will pay the service charge when you pay the final balance.

If you sign up for MTD on board, if there is any space left,and it is very popular, then the service charge is added to your account so you could pay for this out of OBC.

 

We are having MTD on Freedom and have made reservations in advance for 7:30 nightly. Is there just one line where those with reservations and those without reservations stand in? Or, is there a line for those with reservations? I realize that there might not be a line, but I am guessing that 7:30 is a relatively popular time and that there might be a line to get in.

I have seen it done both ways.

One line that moves quickly.

Two lines where those who have booked a time walk straight in and are seated within seconds, and get glowered at by those who have not booked!!:D

[scooter90]

We are having MTD on Freedom and have made reservations in advance for 7:30 nightly. Is there just one line where those with reservations and those without reservations stand in? Or, is there a line for those with reservations? I realize that there might not be a line, but I am guessing that 7:30 is a relatively popular time and that there might be a line to get in.

 

 

We were on the Freedom a couple weeks ago and did the MTD. The cons are you do not get the same wait staff unless you find a great waiter (which we finally did) and request a seating they have available. There is ONE line -- those with and without reservations and all were seated by place in line -- so to me it didn't seem to make a big difference whether we had a reservation or not. Personally, I think there should be TWO lines -- those who have reservations and those who do not. Let those who made the reservations get seated right away instead of waiting for those who did not make reservations get seated.

 

If you are on the Freedom and MTD, asked for a table in EDISON's area -- he is a fantastic waiter and the bar server (SILVIA) in his area has a memory that was great. After one night with this combination we requested them for the three remaining nights of our cruise (we had other wait staff prior to Edison).

 

MTD is great for those that want flexibility -- but you do give up some of the traditional dining arrangements you have had in the past.