My Time Dining and Prepaid Gratuities

[fairygran]

We're booked on FOS, 24th Sept for our first cruise and have chosen MTD. My question is about the prepaid gratuities. Do we have to tip anybody else or are all the gratuities taken care of? Also, we are taking our 20 year old son who is Special Needs, will he be expected to wear formal dress? He is only comfortable in tracksuit bottoms.

 

Gale

[firefly333]

Room service and drinks are not included in the tips, porters and shuttles either.

 

I guess you cant talk your special needs son into dockers or a solid color pants? just long enough to eat dinner?? You could eat in the buffet too.

 

Lots do not dress formal, but more so than track suits. If its obvious your son has issues, I doublt they would say a word about his track suit pants though. At least they are long pants.

[kc320]

The MTD tips include your waitstaff and your cabin steward..the only other tip money you would need would be if you order room service..depending on what you order it's normal to tip a few dollars...and if you order a drink or a soda the tip is included with that..

[firefly333]

The MTD tips include your waitstaff and your cabin steward..the only other tip money you would need would be if you order room service..depending on what you order it's normal to tip a few dollars...and if you order a drink or a soda the tip is included with that..

 

i.e. if the drink is $5.75, they will add 15% tip to it before they have you sign for the drink.

[SadmanCruiser]

Greetings fellow Lincolnshire cruiser!

 

The pre-paid gratuities cover stateroom attendant, head waiter, waiter and assistant waiter. If you use room service then then would need to be tipped additionally. At the end of the cruise you will find vouchers and envelopes for the pre-paid tips and you can add a little extra cash if you feel it is warranted. All drinks include a 15% gratuity so you would only tip extra if you felt the service was 'above and beyond'.

 

On our last cruise less than half of the people in the MDR wore formal gear and I actually felt a little out of place in a dinner jacket complete with dickie!

 

Don't worry what other people do just enjoy your cruise and if your son is comfortable in tracksuit bottoms let him enjoy as well.

[wg6530]

You have your grattuities answer.

 

Have your son dress as well as reasonable for him. Maybe you can find a pair of solid black or navy stretchy pants. If you can, avoid the elastic cuffs and accent stripes down the sides as those will look more casual. He may have a use for simple dark pants in for other events back home (funerals, weddings, whatever.

[Skipper Tim]

Firstly, I think we all have special needs. I think it is more obvious for some than for others. And some are more special!

 

Don't have any worries about what your son wears. From my experience, it is a very receptive community on-board.

 

There will be formal nights and your son may enjoy the dressing up for them. I would say treat it as fancy dress. I do.

 

I am sure you will have a great time.

 

Lastly, I would re-consider your choice of MTD. This will isolate you. To me, the greatest pleasure of cruising has been getting to know my fellow diners over the course of the cruise. It always starts off slowly then great bonds are formed by the end - regardless of background and circumstances.

 

I would recommend a large table, second sitting for the best benefit!

 

Tim.

[nyer]

Firstly, I think we all have special needs. I think it is more obvious for some than for others. And some are more special!

 

Don't have any worries about what your son wears. From my experience, it is a very receptive community on-board.

 

There will be formal nights and your son may enjoy the dressing up for them. I would say treat it as fancy dress. I do.

 

I am sure you will have a great time.

 

Lastly, I would re-consider your choice of MTD. This will isolate you. To me, the greatest pleasure of cruising has been getting to know my fellow diners over the course of the cruise. It always starts off slowly then great bonds are formed by the end - regardless of background and circumstances.

 

I would recommend a large table, second sitting for the best benefit!

 

Tim.

 

Can't you request a large table at MTD? I am doing MTD on my upcoming cruise and planned on requesting a large table. It is my first time doing this.

[kc320]

Can't you request a large table at MTD? I am doing MTD on my upcoming cruise and planned on requesting a large table. It is my first time doing this.

 

You can, but for the most part people choose MTD because they prefer to dine alone...or they already have a group of people they are traveling with and again prefer to dine as a group..not to say that you wouldn't be welcomed at a large table..but it's not the norn...you may want to switch to regular dining if you prefer to dine with a large group...

[Langley Cruisers]

Lastly, I would re-consider your choice of MTD. This will isolate you. To me, the greatest pleasure of cruising has been getting to know my fellow diners over the course of the cruise.

 

Excuse me Tim, but I find this to be quite presumptuous of you. The OP and family have chosen MTD, perhaps after careful thought and consideration of the alternatives. While MTD may not suit you for a variety of reasons, it does suit others for another variety of reasons. Please do not make OP and any others "second guess" their decision. It's frankly none of anyone's business.

 

OP, have a great cruise.

[gerif]

I guess you cant talk your special needs son into dockers or a solid color pants? just long enough to eat dinner?? You could eat in the buffet too.

 

Lots do not dress formal, but more so than track suits. If its obvious your son has issues, I doublt they would say a word about his track suit pants though. At least they are long pants.

 

It may not be a question of talking him into wearing something else. We have a 13 year old grandson who is severely autistic - he can only wear track suit pants (or shorts) due to ease in dressing him and he certainly does not choose what he wears, so don't judge.

 

To the OP - you can find black or navy track pants without a stripe that will look just fine for your son. Don't stress over it. I really do take issue with those that insist that "I am on vacation and I'll dress how I please" but this is not such a case. Have a wonderful cruise.

[negc]

Lastly, I would re-consider your choice of MTD. This will isolate you. To me, the greatest pleasure of cruising has been getting to know my fellow diners over the course of the cruise. It always starts off slowly then great bonds are formed by the end - regardless of background and circumstances.

 

I would recommend a large table, second sitting for the best benefit!

 

Tim.

That may be your preference but others may not agree. I am glad to hear that your greatest pleasure in cruising is "getting to know' your fellow diners, but deciding that your way is "THE way" is presumptuous to say the least. :rolleyes: There are many reasons why they may find that MTD better fits their schedule and it is very possible that they will make friends elsewhere on the ship, or, if they wish, they can request to be seated with others in MTD. They may also prefer to dine by themselves for legitimate reasons that are not for us to judge. Their reasons may not be yours but that doesn't invalidate their reasons.

[firefly333]

It may not be a question of talking him into wearing something else. We have a 13 year old grandson who is severely autistic - he can only wear track suit pants (or shorts) due to ease in dressing him and he certainly does not choose what he wears, so don't judge.

 

To the OP - you can find black or navy track pants without a stripe that will look just fine for your son. Don't stress over it. I really do take issue with those that insist that "I am on vacation and I'll dress how I please" but this is not such a case. Have a wonderful cruise.

 

Why quote me and say dont judge.. I cant find a single word judging in my post?? wierd post to quote me???!!!

 

I only said on formals night most will be more dressed up than this, but I also said if he wears long pants, they wouldnt say a word. How is this judgemental??

[Oscar_the_Grouch's_Sis]

:rolleyes: There are many reasons why they may find that MTD better fits their schedule and it is very possible that they will make friends elsewhere on the ship, or, if they wish, they can request to be seated with others in MTD. They may also prefer to dine by themselves for legitimate reasons that are not for us to judge. Their reasons may not be yours but that doesn't invalidate their reasons.

 

Yeah.

 

Finally someone sticking up for us anti-social people!! :p

 

 

 

Just kidding ... kind of.

 

I'll be the solo traveler asking for a table for ONE. When I go to eat, I want to eat. I take my food seriously and I don't want to be bothered by "small talk" ;)

[gunnercade]

We just came back from a cruise on Serenade of the Seas. We chose not to bring anything formal with us, and to just eat at the Windjammer on formal nights. Then our waiter encouraged us to attend, explaining that 'formal' is a suggestion, not a law. We ended up wearing some sort of business casual attire-not quite formal, but nice enough.

Make sure your son is comfortable, and it will be OK. No one will say a thing. Personally, I think a tracksuit looks better than lots of dresses I see on formal night.

[Familygoboston]

We just came back from a cruise on Serenade of the Seas. We chose not to bring anything formal with us, and to just eat at the Windjammer on formal nights. Then our waiter encouraged us to attend, explaining that 'formal' is a suggestion, not a law. We ended up wearing some sort of business casual attire-not quite formal, but nice enough.

Make sure your son is comfortable, and it will be OK. No one will say a thing. Personally, I think a tracksuit looks better than lots of dresses I see on formal night.

 

Exactly- "dress suggestion: formal" People go on and on about what the "dress code " is when in fact except for some specific prohibitions at dinner ( shorts, caps, tank tops, flip flops ) there is no dress code. Just a suggestion- some love to dress up and some like the OP s son may not be able to manage that.

If the OP s son were my child I wouldn't give it another thought, but if you have concerns, contact the special needs department, they will surely put your mind at ease and even prep your dining staff ahead of time for any other special needs he may have.

[Member123]

You can, but for the most part people choose MTD because they prefer to dine alone...or they already have a group of people they are traveling with and again prefer to dine as a group..not to say that you wouldn't be welcomed at a large table..but it's not the norn...you may want to switch to regular dining if you prefer to dine with a large group...

 

Of course. every ship is different. And peoples' experiences vary. But this post is directly opposite of my experience with MTD.

 

Keep in mind that I'm describing my PERSONAL experience, and of course, this may differ from others.

 

When you approach the dining room, for MTD, without a reservation, they will try to seat you immediately. If you REQUEST a table for your party... in other words... your wish is to dine alone with just the members of your group... you may be told that there's a wait for a table that will accommodate your request. However, if you just step up and request to be seated, the "norm" is that they will fill you into a table that has already been seated with some people OR they will escort you to a table and expect that you will be OK with others being seated with you. In my experience, the "norm" is that there are several people waiting for their table for 2 or 4, and that most people are being seated with others for conversation and fun.

 

If you make a reservation for your MTD table, you may find that they can't accommodate your request for dining alone. If your preference is to dine alone, then you need to make sure that you get your request into the dining room asap.

 

Most people prefer MTD for several reasons: (a) flexibility in a dining schedule, (b) they don't want to be tied down to one table with people that they might not have anything in common for a long period of time, © they enjoy meeting a LOT of different people, (d) they don't want the feeling that they're disappointing table mates if they wish to eat in the buffet or specialty restaurants during the cruise. When you're in the MDR, it's really awkward to be at a table for (say) 6 and you want to go to a specialty restaurant, and one of the other couples says that they won't be there on the same evening, which leaves one couple dining alone at a larger table. That's no fun.

 

The one thing that I didn't like about MTD when I tried it on our last cruise was that they did seat us at a table with people (a couple) who had already ordered their appetizers. So, as that couple were being served appetizers, we were handed menus. They also seated another couple right after us at this table for 6. It made for an awkward meal where we got a "preview" of all the courses before ours. Thankfully, we had already eaten with this delightful young couple and put them at ease because it was awkward for them to be served while we were waiting.... really bizarre and I didn't like this. It only happened one evening. They felt awkward leaving the table before we had our desserts, so they didn't get to an event that they were heading for until it had already started. I did mention this on my departure questionnaire because I thought it was a bit "unfriendly" of the hostess to put the table together in that way.

 

Anyway, I thought I'd just write my experience since it was so different that what was portrayed in this post.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[nyer]

You can, but for the most part people choose MTD because they prefer to dine alone...or they already have a group of people they are traveling with and again prefer to dine as a group..not to say that you wouldn't be welcomed at a large table..but it's not the norn...you may want to switch to regular dining if you prefer to dine with a large group...

 

Actually, we need to have an early seating because we are traveling with our 3 yr old granddaughter. Only late seating or MTD was available when we booked. We don't actually need to sit at a large table...there are five of us so we would be fine at a table of our own. Thanks, though.

[Babyberger]

Please, please, please don't give the dress code another thought! Last year on Oasis, myself, DH, DS, and DD were all in formal attire my middle son was in shorts and a t-shirt, we didn't think twice. My son has Asperger's syndrome (on the Autism spectrum) and clothing is an issue. He had planned on wearing nice clothes but had a rough afternoon and refused to change. We had learned prior to boarding from Autism on the Seas that there is "special needs" exemption in the dining room. We all went to dinner, got some funny looks, but were never turned away.

[chloe kitty]

Of course. every ship is different. And peoples' experiences vary. But this post is directly opposite of my experience with MTD.

 

Keep in mind that I'm describing my PERSONAL experience, and of course, this may differ from others.

 

When you approach the dining room, for MTD, without a reservation, they will try to seat you immediately. If you REQUEST a table for your party... in other words... your wish is to dine alone with just the members of your group... you may be told that there's a wait for a table that will accommodate your request. However, if you just step up and request to be seated, the "norm" is that they will fill you into a table that has already been seated with some people OR they will escort you to a table and expect that you will be OK with others being seated with you. In my experience, the "norm" is that there are several people waiting for their table for 2 or 4, and that most people are being seated with others for conversation and fun.

 

If you make a reservation for your MTD table, you may find that they can't accommodate your request for dining alone. If your preference is to dine alone, then you need to make sure that you get your request into the dining room asap.

 

Most people prefer MTD for several reasons: (a) flexibility in a dining schedule, (b) they don't want to be tied down to one table with people that they might not have anything in common for a long period of time, © they enjoy meeting a LOT of different people, (d) they don't want the feeling that they're disappointing table mates if they wish to eat in the buffet or specialty restaurants during the cruise. When you're in the MDR, it's really awkward to be at a table for (say) 6 and you want to go to a specialty restaurant, and one of the other couples says that they won't be there on the same evening, which leaves one couple dining alone at a larger table. That's no fun.

 

The one thing that I didn't like about MTD when I tried it on our last cruise was that they did seat us at a table with people (a couple) who had already ordered their appetizers. So, as that couple were being served appetizers, we were handed menus. They also seated another couple right after us at this table for 6. It made for an awkward meal where we got a "preview" of all the courses before ours. Thankfully, we had already eaten with this delightful young couple and put them at ease because it was awkward for them to be served while we were waiting.... really bizarre and I didn't like this. It only happened one evening. They felt awkward leaving the table before we had our desserts, so they didn't get to an event that they were heading for until it had already started. I did mention this on my departure questionnaire because I thought it was a bit "unfriendly" of the hostess to put the table together in that way.

 

Anyway, I thought I'd just write my experience since it was so different that what was portrayed in this post.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

I completely agree with you. We always ask for MTD and usually request a table for 6 or more. We enjoy meeting different people every evening. We have had bad experiences when we went to the MDR on other ships. We sat with people who we have nothing in common with. We also love the ability to dine at our convenience. For us, the choice will always be MTD. We are far from unsocial, which is why we enjoy meeting a variety of people from a variety of places.

[believer33323]

Excuse me Tim, but I find this to be quite presumptuous of you. The OP and family have chosen MTD, perhaps after careful thought and consideration of the alternatives. While MTD may not suit you for a variety of reasons, it does suit others for another variety of reasons. Please do not make OP and any others "second guess" their decision. It's frankly none of anyone's business.

 

OP, have a great cruise.

 

WOW, Take a deep breath, "Skipper Tom" was just making a suggesting based on his experience. As you can see the OP only has 3 posts so maybe they are new to cruising as am I. My DW and I are also the type that would usually sit by ourselves, and as others, sometimes need a push to mingle as he was suggesting. I read each post and take each one for what it's worth and move on. I would suggest you do the same and not lash out for no apparent reason.

[danne]

OP-

My husband and I LOVE to dress up--actually, now that I'm thinking about it, maybe it's just me that likes dressing up and my hubby adapts.... Anyways, I wear a cocktail or formal dress every night and hubby wears a tuxedo on all formal nights. With that being said, please know that what others wear (especially those with special needs) has no bearing on my comfort or level of enjoyment of formal night. We've encouraged table mates on numerous cruises to attend formal nights no matter what they packed (or didn't pack). Have a great time and don't worry about your son's formal attire. You're table mates will just be glad you came!

[fairygran]

Thanks for all your replies. We chose MTD because as first time cruisers and totally confused about tips etc we felt that by prepaying we would take out the confusion! LOL, not the case. Once I started reading I realised that there was a little more to tipping etiquette, hence my post.

We also felt it would suit us better as we would have a bit more freedom as to when we dined. We are fairly casual regarding this, as you have to be with Special Needs children who can screw up all your plans with one simple fallout over what, to us, is trivial but to them is monumental!

We don't mind sitting with others but our son is sometimes a little over friendly so we tend to sit by ourselves in order not to disturb others with his constant questions and chatter.

Thank you for putting my mind at rest about formal wear. He does have some 'smart' trackies for wearing when we go out that are dark colours with no stripes so he will be able to wear them. He will wear short sleeved shirts but no tie so he does look presentable but not really formal when dressed for going out.

I will be wearing cocktail dresses because I've never had the chance to go anywhere where dressing up is applicable. You tend to choose casual when going out with Special Needs kids! So I'm really looking forward to the chance to do this as is my hubby.

 

GALE

[negc]

Thanks for all your replies. We chose MTD because as first time cruisers and totally confused about tips etc we felt that by prepaying we would take out the confusion! LOL, not the case. Once I started reading I realised that there was a little more to tipping etiquette, hence my post.

We also felt it would suit us better as we would have a bit more freedom as to when we dined. We are fairly casual regarding this, as you have to be with Special Needs children who can screw up all your plans with one simple fallout over what, to us, is trivial but to them is monumental!

We don't mind sitting with others but our son is sometimes a little over friendly so we tend to sit by ourselves in order not to disturb others with his constant questions and chatter.

Thank you for putting my mind at rest about formal wear. He does have some 'smart' trackies for wearing when we go out that are dark colours with no stripes so he will be able to wear them. He will wear short sleeved shirts but no tie so he does look presentable but not really formal when dressed for going out.

I will be wearing cocktail dresses because I've never had the chance to go anywhere where dressing up is applicable. You tend to choose casual when going out with Special Needs kids! So I'm really looking forward to the chance to do this as is my hubby.

 

GALE

Enjoy your cruise and don't worry about the small stuff. MTD should work out fine for you, and most of your tipping concerns will be covered by the prepaid tips. Only room service isn't covered and generally involves giviing the person delivering your order a dollar or two at the time of service. Any drinks you order will have a 15% gratuity automatically added to it.:)