dining question help!

[califmamabear]

We have cruised a couple of times and enjoyed traditional dining. We liked getting a drink before dinner and loved the big formal dining room. (Different than home!) This time we are traveling with another couple who enjoy any time dining. We would like to have dinner together so I am willing to compromise and do the any time dining. Am I going to miss that feeling I love walking into the dining room? If so how could I convince the others to go my way? Also any difference in food? Can you do one way one night and another way another night?

[vmom]

No, you can't go trad one night and anytime the next. It really causes huge problems when people assigned to trad dining then just start going to anytime.

 

Frankly, its the same food, same service, and the dining rooms look so similar that its really not an issue. I think this would be a great time to try something new and if you don't like it, you can always go back to trad dining for your next cruise.

[ncsongbird]

The dining room used for anytime dining will be just as beautiful and formal as the dining rooms used for traditional dining. Same type of linens, china, silverware, etc. Only difference is that the people at different tables will come and go at different times just like in a restaurant. If you want to sit at the same table with the same waiter every evening you can usually arrange to do that.

[rdsqrl]

On Princess, the Traditional and Anytime dining rooms look virtually identical, so the "experience" of walking into each one is going to be the same. The menu, dress code, etc. are also identical in each.

If they want to do Anytime because they don't want to be locked down to a particular time or the Traditional times aren't good for them, you probably won't be able to sway them and in Anytime, you can always request to be seated in the same waitstaff's area each night, just be prepared to wait (which you'll probably have to do anyway on most nights if you show up at a popular time -- which is good, because then you'll have time for that drink before dinner).

No, you aren't allowed to switch between the two.

[Loonbeam]

The menu is exactly the same. Service may be a bit better in the TD area as your waiter gets to know you, experiences seem to vary (we had no complaints in AD). The dining rooms themselves (at least on the ships I have been on) seem fairly similar in design.

 

If you select TD, you are not supposed to eat in AD, and if you select AD you will not have a TD table assignment. While TD diners have been known to eat in AD, I think the general consensus based on prior threads is that this is a faux paus (and the Maitre'D may check your room cards - again, experiences vary).

 

Other than the fact that if you eat during peak periods you may have a short-medium wait for a table (good time to get the drink, they give you a pager), I suspect the experience won't be too different.

 

We have cruised a couple of times and enjoyed traditional dining. We liked getting a drink before dinner and loved the big formal dining room. (Different than home!) This time we are traveling with another couple who enjoy any time dining. We would like to have dinner together so I am willing to compromise and do the any time dining. Am I going to miss that feeling I love walking into the dining room? If so how could I convince the others to go my way? Also any difference in food? Can you do one way one night and another way another night?

[paul929207]

The food is the same. The dining room is essentially the same. With AD, you get a lesser level of service because the waitstaff changes each night. They don't know your preferences.

[califmamabear]

Thanks for your thoughts. Actually I think I will be happy any where as long as I'm cruising!!

One more question though- do people still dress formal in the anytime dining?

[cruisingallover]

Thanks for your thoughts. Actually I think I will be happy any where as long as I'm cruising!!

One more question though- do people still dress formal in the anytime dining?[/quote

 

yes:D

[rdsqrl]

Thanks for your thoughts. Actually I think I will be happy any where as long as I'm cruising!!

One more question though- do people still dress formal in the anytime dining?

Yes. As I said, the dress codes for both are the same and I've never noticed a obviously distinguishable difference in formality levels between anytime and traditional diners [emphasis added in a vain attempt to ward off the anti-formal-attire brigade, who will inevitably pounce upon this thread to assert how much more prevalent casual dress is in the Anytime dining room. . . . ].

[califmamabear]

Haha Thanks!

[horizonbound]

I'd recommend making dinner reservations if you're on Anytime Dining. If everybody just showed up at 7pm for dinner (and they DO!), diners with reservations will be seated first. You can reserve a time, a table type or a specific server's station. If you liked your server from the first night, keep him. If you didn't, cut him loose. Try THAT with traditional dining!

 

There's a speed dial on the phone in your cabin. They call it the DINE line.

[Coracii]

The food is the same. The dining room is essentially the same. With AD, you get a lesser level of service because the waitstaff changes each night. They don't know your preferences.

 

This can be a case where your mileage may vary. My wife and I really don't have a set of preferences that the waitstaff has pre-set in their mind when we arrive in Traditional Dining, so the times that we've done Anytime the service has been essentially identical in quality. We always get a table for two, so that does have an impact on the dining experience.

[Pam in CA]

The differences that I've experienced is that in Anytime, you can have a considerably long wait even with a reservation. Also, with tables on different schedules, there is often a wait for your entree, for instance, while the table next to you is seated and orders taken. We also find ourselves chatting with people at nearby tables when we're in TD.