What if you dont like.....

[aussiespirit]

What do you all do if, on going to dinner the 1st night you take an instant dislike to your table mates. We are pretty tolerant and would give it at least 2 to 3 nights, but on one cruise our table mates were the biggest bunch of snobs we have ever met, we tolerated it for a couple of nights then decided it was actually spoiling our cruise experience so we approached the Maitre'D and asked him for a new table, only to be told, impossible, there are no empty seats, we ate in the Buffet for about 6 nights then luckiliy we started chatting to a couple one day, they asked us where we sat in the dining room, when we told them the story they informed us that there had been 2 empty seats at their table since the beggining of the voyage, so we ended up joining them for the last few days and had a great time.

We are due to sail on Rhapsody in 75 days, (not that I am counting or anything, ha ha), and cannot make our minds up what to do, wether to go straight to the dining room and try to get a table for 2, (we do love each others company even after 50 years of marraige!!) or once again take the risk of being stuck with someone we dont like and not being able to change.

Please dont get me wrong, we are very happy outgoing people who love to meet new people, the folk on the cruise that we didn't like had one topic of conversation, which and how many cruises they had been on and their likes and dislikes of various cruises, not my idea of scintillating conversation.

[Merion_Mom]

What do you all do if, on going to dinner the 1st night you take an instant dislike to your table mates. We are pretty tolerant and would give it at least 2 to 3 nights, but on one cruise our table mates were the biggest bunch of snobs we have ever met, we tolerated it for a couple of nights then decided it was actually spoiling our cruise experience so we approached the Maitre'D and asked him for a new table, only to be told, impossible, there are no empty seats, we ate in the Buffet for about 6 nights then luckiliy we started chatting to a couple one day, they asked us where we sat in the dining room, when we told them the story they informed us that there had been 2 empty seats at their table since the beggining of the voyage, so we ended up joining them for the last few days and had a great time.

We are due to sail on Rhapsody in 75 days, (not that I am counting or anything, ha ha), and cannot make our minds up what to do, wether to go straight to the dining room and try to get a table for 2, (we do love each others company even after 50 years of marraige!!) or once again take the risk of being stuck with someone we dont like and not being able to change.

Please dont get me wrong, we are very happy outgoing people who love to meet new people, the folk on the cruise that we didn't like had one topic of conversation, which and how many cruises they had been on and their likes and dislikes of various cruises, not my idea of scintillating conversation.

I would do what you did: Go to the Maitre D' and ask for a new table assignment.

 

You seem to have conducted yourselves with grace and good will, and coped as well as possible - and karma rewarded you in the end!

 

If the Maitre D' told me that there was nothing that he could do, I would gently insist that he try harder. If he wouldn't budge, I would do what you did: eat elsewhere.

[suezyq50]

I would do the same, talk to the Maitre D'. It is unfortunate, and you surely don't want to, dread going to dinner due to your table mates. We had to ask twice before the Maitre D' got the message to move us.

[debache]

How about My time Dining? Since RCI started MTD we have gone that route quite often....We set up are time before we leave home and ask for a table for the amount of people we happened to be sailing with (2 to 9 people) and have always had our own table....

[critterchick]

We had the great good fortune to sail Rhapsody Down Under, and I am sure that the Maitre D' will be able to change your table if it doesn't work out for you. If you don't want to risk it, I second the suggestion of My Time Dining, which is what we did. We shared a large table a couple of times and then decided that we preferred to dine alone, so we started requesting a table for two. There are many in MTD and we could converse with the people near us if we chose, or not.

[aussiespirit]

We had the great good fortune to sail Rhapsody Down Under, and I am sure that the Maitre D' will be able to change your table if it doesn't work out for you. If you don't want to risk it, I second the suggestion of My Time Dining, which is what we did. We shared a large table a couple of times and then decided that we preferred to dine alone, so we started requesting a table for two. There are many in MTD and we could converse with the people near us if we chose, or not.

 

Thankyou all for your suggestions, MTD certainly sounds attractive, as you have sailed on Rhapsody, would you have by any chance noticed if there are tables for 2 in the dining room for first and second sitting? We are booked for early dining.

[xpcdoojk]

Thankyou all for your suggestions, MTD certainly sounds attractive, as you have sailed on Rhapsody, would you have by any chance noticed if there are tables for 2 in the dining room for first and second sitting? We are booked for early dining.

 

When we travel as just a couple we always ask for a table for two, and we have always had the request granted. That said on our last cruise we did MTD and it was perfect for us to get our table for two. In fact if you want to be seated with others that are not part of your party, I think MTD stinks, because most people who do it seem to not sit at a table for 8 just their group. In fact on our last cruise there was very nice couple from Australia, who were quite frustrated with MTD because they wanted to be seated at a table for 8 and nobody ever joined them most nights. So, if you don't like your table mates night one, just switch to MTD. Then you can choose early, middle, middle late and late. :D

 

jc

[MiniMom57]

On one of our cruises, we were thoroughly annoyed by our assigned tablemates within minutes and asked for a new table. The next night we were at a table with 4 other people who had all asked for new tables. It ended up being the BEST table I have ever had in the dining room! We actually looked forward to dinner so we could share our days with everyone. We referred to our table as "the island of misfit toys" and were sooo happy we asked for a change!!

[north29]

I think you have to be more flexible in your dining time, I know this is hard for many of our friends, but I find it more enjoyable and meet many interesting and uninteresting people who you probably will never see again or maybe will.

I like the tables for two, now days they are very close to each other, but just far enough away that interaction with others can be fun. On our last cruise, we meet some people setting beside us and enjoyed their company enough we arrange through MTD to have dinner with them a couple of times at a table for 4 and then a table for six and met there another interesting couple they had met, great time and that is what travel and cruising is all about meeting new and interesting people, and maybe making new friends and seeing the world(well from a Cruise ships perspective).

[Philly Steve]

We referred to our table as "the island of misfit toys" and were sooo happy we asked for a change!!

 

That's great! Glad it worked out so well for you. ;)

[Wilda]

I think if you are going to do the traditional dining then the trick is to request a table change on the first night. I commend you for 'toughing it out' to see if your tablemates would come around...but it's your time and your dime. Usually 3 days into it it is difficult to make changes in the MDR.

[kyriecat]

Aussiespirit,

 

I had a similar experience as you on one cruise. Hubby and I were seated at a table for 8 with 6 women who were traveling together on a "ladies cruise." My husband was the only man at the table. I felt so bad for him because these women were really bashing their husbands/boyfriends. I was even uncomfortable when they started discussing bedroom scenarios. They acted like hubby and I weren't even there. We knew after that first night that the seating wasn't going to work for us. We asked the maitre d' for a switch and were told that the seating was full. Fortuntately it was only a 3-night cruise so we ate at WJ the second night and stuck it out in the dining room on the last night. I don't know what we would have done if the cruise had been longer. Probably eaten in WJ every night like you did.

 

We had another situation where we switched seats after a couple of nights. We were seated at a table for 6 with a family of 4 - parents and 2 kids. They weren't obnoxious or rude. We simply didn't have anything in common. The only topic the parents wanted to discuss was their children. Hubby and I have no kids so it was hard to relate to them. The parents let their kids bring Nintendo DS's to the table to play during dinner so the kids didn't participate at all in the conversation. I found the music and beeps coming from the video games to be a distraction and thought the kids should be old enough (9, 12) to eat a meal without requiring constant entertainment. Fortunately we were able to switch to another table on that cruise and ended up with two other couples who were a bit older than us, but we got along very well.

 

Other than the above two cases, I've enjoyed having fixed seating and eating with the same group of people each night. Dinner can be a great experience with the right people. If you find that the group you are seated with isn't going to work out, there isn't anything wrong with asking to be moved after a night or two. If you prefer dining by yourselves, then MTD is probably a better option.

[cb at sea]

Mybe we've been lucky, or maybe we're just easy to get along with, but we've NEVER had tablemates that we didn't like...yes..some have been more fun than others, but we still enjoyed our 1 1/2 hours per day with them.

 

I'd just wait, and see how it plays out...if you switch before you even meet them, you could be missing out on a really fine time!

[compman9]

The cruise before my time dining started we turned up at our table to find a Greek couple that barely spoke English. It was our wedding anniversary and we spent the evening trying to translate the menu to the waiter whilst otherwise sitting in silence.

 

For the rest of the cruise DW and I joined three Canadian girls we met in the line to get on the cruise. We had a great time with them and still keep in contact with them.

[Beanie01]

My sister and I had a great time on Liberty of the Seas (7-night) doing MTD. We went to dinner around 8:00-ish each night, and were seated at a table for 10. We met different people each night, sometimes dined with folks we met at dinner earlier in the week. We met people from all over - Holland, England, France, Scotland. Made many friends for the week.

[Desert Cruizers]

We experienced a situation where for two nights 3 couples failed to appear ( All were friends). We were at a table of 8 and the Maitre-d came to our table and asked if we would like to move if they failed to appear the following night. We told him yes and had no clue where they were. Well they did reappear and had not eaten in the main dining because they wanted to see a show they missed, not sure why they weren't there the other night, but we stayed where we were. We thought that was really nice of the Maitre-d to come over and offer to move us.

[critterchick]

Thankyou all for your suggestions, MTD certainly sounds attractive, as you have sailed on Rhapsody, would you have by any chance noticed if there are tables for 2 in the dining room for first and second sitting? We are booked for early dining.

 

I'm afraid that I didn't notice. You can certainly request a table for 2 prior to the cruise (your TA will do it for you if you booked with one). When you board the ship, go find your table and, if it's not a 2-top, they will have hours where they switch assignments around.

 

Early seating tends to be more popular than late, so it might not work out for you. Good luck!