Legend first night ..............

[CorvetteLady]

.....is it okay to be late for dinner? I know the ship sails under the bridge at about 6:15, early seating is at 6. I've read that they expect you to come a little late on the first night but I've also read reviews were people say they missed going under the bridge because they were in the dining room.

 

We never go to dinner late so just not sure about this. My husband would rather miss the bridge than miss the dining room.

 

So is seeing the ship go under the bridge worth missing the dining room? Or can we do both?

[CapsR1]

I think that if you go 15 mins late you will be okay, but beyond that would probably mess up the servers'. Just something to think about.

[ramrax4]

Please don't be late for dinner. There are other dining options to choose from if you can't make it that night.

On our caribbean cruise we had a table for 6 and our tablemates were late every night, they never apologized or explained, they just showed up whenever. We would arrive on time and sit there waiting for them to show not knowing if they were comming or not. As a result our server was always annoyed, we had the worst table service ever on that cruise, she was always trying to catch up.

If you do decided to show up late that night please let your server or tablemates know.

[Tio Marco]

Please don't be late for dinner. There are other dining options to choose from if you can't make it that night.

 

Exactly.

[klmorg]

The beauty of anytime dining... no schedules to meet on vacation. :)

[okwriter]

.....is it okay to be late for dinner? I know the ship sails under the bridge at about 6:15, early seating is at 6. I've read that they expect you to come a little late on the first night but I've also read reviews were people say they missed going under the bridge because they were in the dining room.

 

We never go to dinner late so just not sure about this. My husband would rather miss the bridge than miss the dining room.

 

So is seeing the ship go under the bridge worth missing the dining room? Or can we do both?

 

Is it okay? No...not in my opinion.

 

Not sure where you read that they expect you to be late the first night, but it's still (again, in my opinion) rude because if your table mates don't care about seeing the bridge, they must sit and wait until everyone shows up.

We skipped dinner the first night to see it in December. If it had been a summer sailing instead of December (cold, dark, verrrry windy), it would have been much more enjoyable for us.

[serene56]

.....is it okay to be late for dinner? I know the ship sails under the bridge at about 6:15, early seating is at 6. ?

 

this is if you leave exactly on time. What happens if you go under the bridge at 6:30 - then travel time to get to the dining room--- already 45 minutes late.

 

(we are taking anytime dining the first night and requesting traditional the rest of the week)

[CorvetteLady]

Please note that we do not go to dinner late, if I did that I wouldn't be asking the question, I'd just go late to dinner.

 

I wish I could remember where I read about it being okay to be late that first night.

 

We have had people show up 10-15 minutes late which isn't too bad but anything past 15 minutes really is too late. That is why I really didn't think it was a good idea.

 

I would really like to hear from people who sailed on the Legend. Okwriter did you think seeing the bridge was worth missing dinner in the dining room?

[CorvetteLady]

this is if you leave exactly on time. What happens if you go under the bridge at 6:30 - then travel time to get to the dining room--- already 45 minutes late.

 

(we are taking anytime dining the first night and requesting traditional the rest of the week)

 

If we leave late than we would just skip seeing the bridge.

 

I thought about doing the anytime dining the first night but that just didn't seem right either. We also thought about doing the steakhouse the first night, there is always the buffet.

 

We may just go to dinner, place our order and ask the waiter if it's okay to leave for 5 minutes to see the bridge. Most likely we will just skip the bridge.

[kicia]

I've never heard that you can do anytime dining one night and change to traditional. It has to be one or the other for the whole cruise. Unless this is something new that I haven't heard about.

 

If you come late to the dining room then your dinner will run late which cuts into the turnaround time for the waiters to get ready for second seating dinner. If you are seated with other people then the waiter will usually wait to take the orders from everyone so everyone at your table will eat later. I recommend not coming late to the dining room.

[mrpayroll]

I've never heard that you can do anytime dining one night and change to traditional. It has to be one or the other for the whole cruise. Unless this is something new that I haven't heard about.

 

If you come late to the dining room then your dinner will run late which cuts into the turnaround time for the waiters to get ready for second seating dinner. If you are seated with other people then the waiter will usually wait to take the orders from everyone so everyone at your table will eat later. I recommend not coming late to the dining room.

 

You cannot switch between dining times. The dining stays the same for the entire cruise.

[kroozers]

You are either scheduled early, late or anytime dining for the entire length of the cruise. You can't opt for anytime one night if you are scheduled early. I'd suggest the buffet if you'd like to see the bridge. You appear to be very considerate cruisers judging by your posts, and being late inconveniences your tablemates ( maybe they're 15 minutes late for a show they want to see after dinner). The staff and the late seating diners who will be delayed are held up as well.

[Wekiva Jim]

OK, but would it be acceptable to show up for dinner, explain to the waiter and tablemates (if any) your plans, order your meal, and skip the bread and salad course while you are up on deck?

[paper1122]

OK, but would it be acceptable to show up for dinner, explain to the waiter and tablemates (if any) your plans, order your meal, and skip the bread and salad course while you are up on deck?

 

I would think this would be the best solution if you are dead set on seeing the bridge, which by the way, is worth it. I select late dining when I cruise because I eat late on a normal basis, but if I had early seating I'd skip dinner in the MDR and just eat at the buffett so I could see the bridge. On my first cruise out of Tampa I stayed at the front of the ship from the time we left the pier until after we passed under the bridge. (DW was not happy about this)

[okwriter]

Okwriter did you think seeing the bridge was worth missing dinner in the dining room?

 

As I said, we cruised in December. It was very cold---the morning we sailed, Tampa was in the 30s! :eek: So because it was cold, dark, and windy, it wasn't as enjoyable an experience as it would be at other times of the year. I had watched videos of it online but didn't stop to realize it would be dark when we sailed under it.

 

For what it's worth, we sailed a little late that day, so it was actually later when we went under the bridge.

[PAPERBKWRITER]

You can always see the bridge on the way back. You'd have to get up early but you wouldn't inconvienve anyone but yourself.

[FlaGrl4Evr]

OP, the best solution to this would be to book the Steakhouse for the first night. Then everyone wins. No peeved-off table mates, no stressed wait staff and no rushing around for you. This way you can enjoy seeing the ship sail under the Skyway and then go to a nice meal with a free bottle of wine. (that is the perk for booking on the first evening)

 

Just to let you know, we didn't go under the Skyway until after 6:30 so there is really not set way to tell. Ordering and telling everyone you will be back in 5 minutes will not work either. It will take you more time then that to make you way to the deck then you have to wait for the ship to sail under the bridge. It is difficult to time this exactly. We found that when it looked like the ship was almost ready to make the entry way under the bridge that it was still a ways off. The distance is deceiving. We stood up on deck for over 30 minutes thinking when we got up there that it would only be a matter of minutes.

 

Steakhouse or the buffet will be your best bet. :)

[CorvetteLady]

You can always see the bridge on the way back. You'd have to get up early but you wouldn't inconvienve anyone but yourself.

 

I thougt about that too. Do you have any idea what time that happens?

[CorvetteLady]

OP, the best solution to this would be to book the Steakhouse for the first night. Then everyone wins. No peeved-off table mates, no stressed wait staff and no rushing around for you. This way you can enjoy seeing the ship sail under the Skyway and then go to a nice meal with a free bottle of wine. (that is the perk for booking on the first evening)

 

Just to let you know, we didn't go under the Skyway until after 6:30 so there is really not set way to tell. Ordering and telling everyone you will be back in 5 minutes will not work either. It will take you more time then that to make you way to the deck then you have to wait for the ship to sail under the bridge. It is difficult to time this exactly. We found that when it looked like the ship was almost ready to make the entry way under the bridge that it was still a ways off. The distance is deceiving. We stood up on deck for over 30 minutes thinking when we got up there that it would only be a matter of minutes.

 

Steakhouse or the buffet will be your best bet. :)

 

Thank you so much for all that information! I've read a lot of Legend reviews but most people don't even mention the bridge.

 

We did think about the steakhouse, still trying to decide. I was wondering how long it would take to get from the dining room to the deck. I guess if that was really easy than more people would be doing it.

 

Most likely we will just skip the bridge, the first night at dinner is usually so much fun, meeting your tablemates and your waiters.

[okwriter]

We found that when it looked like the ship was almost ready to make the entry way under the bridge that it was still a ways off. The distance is deceiving. We stood up on deck for over 30 minutes thinking when we got up there that it would only be a matter of minutes.

 

THAT, too! :D

 

Because it was so cool and windy, we kept ducking back inside the stairwell to warm up and get out the wind...then we'd go back up and take a peek...repeat, repeat, repeat. :D

[bdstrom]

Half of our group got up during dinner to see the bridge and came back. No issues...

 

Our cruise on the Inspiration was delayed due to medical emergency at the port, so getting to the bridge was very delayed though...

[FlaGrl4Evr]

On our trip back, the ship went back under the Skyway at 3:45 am. :D We couldn't sleep so went out on our balcony to watch, it was pitch black so no pictures. At this point, the ship has to wait for the Pilot Boat to guide her under the bridge, so we sat out in the channel for about 30 min or so to wait for clearance.

[FlaGrl4Evr]

OP, I just thought of something. Make a steakhouse resv for 6pm and request a table on the upper level by the window. 6pm will insure that you are among the first to arrive in the restaurant and your table request will most likely be granted. :) Good Luck.

[Billzilla66]

.....is it okay to be late for dinner? I know the ship sails under the bridge at about 6:15, early seating is at 6. I've read that they expect you to come a little late on the first night but I've also read reviews were people say they missed going under the bridge because they were in the dining room.

 

We never go to dinner late so just not sure about this. My husband would rather miss the bridge than miss the dining room.

 

So is seeing the ship go under the bridge worth missing the dining room? Or can we do both?

 

The Legend going under the bridge at 6:15 is the reason I chose to do the late dining for my upcoming cruise. I'm sure there will be other detractors for my dicision, such as rushing to see the shows or something, but at least on the first night of dining I shouldn't be late for dinner.

 

Talk to the Matre 'd if you are going to be late, so your servers know ahead of time if there is going to be a problem in you arriving late. Or maybe you can get a table close to the window so you can view the bridge passing from your table.

 

Good luck!:)

[BrezQ]

OP, going on the Legend in November, RIGHT after the time changes! So we'll be going under in the dark! Was wondering if this would make a difference in my dining choices! Even in the dark, I would still LOVE to see us go under, I've driven OVER it many times when we lived in Tampa YEARS ago! I hope it's worth skipping the dinning room! LOL I'm sure we won't starve no matter what choice we make! Have fun!