Is Second Seating Dead

[ronjj66611]

After reading all the boards (okay, not ALL the boards, but quite a few) I rarely ever see anything written about second seating. I am getting worried that we'll be all by our lonesome!:(

 

Does anyone else like the second seating? I enjoy it because it allows us to come back from an excursion and relax, rather than have to rush into the shower and get ready for dinner (not easy with a duaghter and wife)

 

We also enjoy having a leisurely dinner without worrrying about those eating after us, as is the case with first seating. I also like the idea of getting to know people over the course of the cruise and sharing daily experiences rather than having new table mates each meal, as I would assume is the case with PC dinning.

 

I understand some of the reasons for eating early, and PC dining, but I just hope that there are enough of us who enjoy a late meal with new friends.

 

Happy Sailings.:D

Ron

[amagar]

we took my parents with us on our last cruise (their first). they're the eat at 5:30 p.m.-type (in their 70s). when i told them we were going to eat at 8:30 p.m., they balked a little, but trusted us to make plans. we're accompanying them again early next year and they asked for the second seating, recognizing the benefit of time. like you mentioned, those two hours after a day on shore make an enormous difference. and, at least we hope, we escape children that way.

 

my mom, by the way, also said she doesn't drink. one night at dinner, i looked across the table and she had an empty gin and tonic from before dinner, a glass of mostly finished red wine from dinner...and a fresh apertif.

now i need to keep limes in the frig for her visits because she expects a gin and tonic ; )

[CL-JW]

We are definitely second seating people, for many of the reasons you stated.

[cruiserforlife]

I don't think 2nd. seating is dead,it's what we usually always choose for all the reasons you listed.We tried PC dining last time out and it worked so well for us,I may do it again.The only think that is getting old about 2nd seating is the 8:30 start time.:mad:

[johnql]

To the OP, I agree with your reasons for preferring second seating. But that's only if I had to choose between early and late. I now prefer Personal Choice or NCL's Freestyle dining because I prefer having no fixed time at all.

[spongerob]

We love second seating. We almost will not book a cruise if we can't get it. That's one of the reasons we usually book well in advance.

[tjatczak]

17 cruises and 15 have been late seating!

 

We prefer the flexibility it gives us to enjoy more food in the day time.

early lunch-lunch-late lunch-afternoon snack-dinner

 

We never really got into the 'midnight buffets' - we do, however, enjoy Carnival pizza after midnight!

Ted

[celebrity]

At home I would never eat so late but who wants to rush back from the islands on a cruise? I llike a leisurely shower, chill out time on the balcony and time to primp. PC is not an option for me at this time since I know my sons would never be ready when I want to go to dinner.

[LARGIN]

We have PC and usually eat around 8-8:30

[Druke I]

Traditional 1st here - I don't think I could survive waiting that long to eat, and then I would probably fall asleep at the table!

[VibeGuy]

Dinner hour at Chez VibeGuy is *never* before 7:30, and usually more like 8:15. . . one of the attractions to PC for me is being able to go later than 8-8:30.

 

Eric

[ondeckatsea]

Our first cruise we had first seating and felt rushed to get cleaned up, dressed and to the dining room in time. The next 16 cruises we opted for the late seating. We both love to see the captain take the ship out of port from way up high beside the bridge. All that extra time to relax is so nice, then we have a great evening to look forward to.

[nanlaur]

I love second seating dining. I usually feel sorry for those folks rushing back and hurrying to get ready to eat early, especially on formal nights. Not me, man! I have enough hurry-up in my regular life. Besides, how else can you fit tea in ;) ?

[ronjj66611]

One thing I forgot to ask, does anyone ever bring kids to late seating, or are they in the kids club. My daughter is 8 and will be in the kids club during the day, but at night, it runs 7-12, so can she eat with us a 8:30 and then take her over to the kids club after. Or are we better off feeding her early.

 

Ron

[grace5]

I am from California and second seating is great for us. Basically the same time as we eat at home - at least for the Craibbean cruises. Have had second seating for all 12 of my cruises and love it. Have the time to get to know the wait staff as they are not in a rush to turn around the tables.

 

I belive that second seating is as booked as ever. There always seems to be a long wait list for it, especially compared to the early seating. This was even true on my Caribbean Princess cruise last February.

[Pam in CA]

Another late seating afficiando here. I love having time to relax, get dressed and have a leisurely drink before going to dinner. I've tried PC dining a couple of times and the last time, we wound up making a reservation every night for 8PM. What's another 15 minutes for late traditional seating? (It's not always at 8:30PM.) From now on, I won't go on a cruise if I can't have late traditional seating.

 

I normally have lunch at 1:30 - 2PM and dinner around 7:30PM or so at home, so I just adjust the times for breakfast, lunch and dinner while on a cruise.

[whale-watcher]

One thing I forgot to ask, does anyone ever bring kids to late seating, or are they in the kids club. My daughter is 8 and will be in the kids club during the day, but at night, it runs 7-12, so can she eat with us a 8:30 and then take her over to the kids club after. Or are we better off feeding her early.

 

Ron

We usually feed the kids early, then bring them to the kids club and enjoy a quiet dinner on our own; this is why PC dining works so well for us -- we can either all dine together early, or feed the kids at the buffet early and dine on our own late; either way, we avoid the peak dining times, and never have to wait.

[Pam in CA]

...and never have to wait.

That's why I love traditional dining. I know what time I'm eating and I don't have to wait. :)

[yancycruiser]

We are traditional early seating and have done so on all of our cruises. However, it is my understanding that late is more popular. In fact, there is a poll on the 2nd or 3rd page (right now) that shows of all registered pollers that 123 perfer early, 174 prefer late, and 271 prefer personal choice.

[GottoCruise]

We are Traditional second seating!!! Need that nap time in the afternoon...... a cocktail before dinner ...and a little dance or two!! :D GotToCruise (aka Renee)

[twocats]

The Coral Princess had a full dining room recently for second seating traditional. So we were in great company each night. Love late seating, makes your day longer.

[June Bug]

We also are a Traditional 2nd Seating family...We love to watch the ship leave port, take our time getting dressed (there are 3 women in this group of 4...my poor husband), and we also like to see the others dressed up BEFORE we get dressed to see what everyone is wearing on formal night. We would never want to get any other seating time!

 

June

[Layla]

We also love second seating - I love coming back to the cabin and chilling out on the balcony before having to get ready for dinner.

[Tania]

I think you'll find 2nd seating is waitlisted as ships fill up. We prefer it for reasons everyone has listed. Especially in Europe, I don't want to have to rush to an early dinner. We prefer to chill out on the warm balcony for a couple of hours with drinks, then shower and primp...

 

Twice we didn't get traditional because we booked late. First, we did PC. Absolutely horrible. Had to wait with one of those lights. Never again...

 

Second time, we went to see the maitreD and requested a table at 8:30 every evening in PC, something with 6 or 8 people. Turns out three other couples did the same thing. These were the best tablemates we've ever had. Even though they had plans to do so, no one ever went to Sabatinis or Sterling.

 

The conundrum comes with the Diamond class ships: I think I'd still do 2nd trad, with a night in each of the Pacific Moon and Sterling restaurants. On a longer run, this might be a very difficult choice to make...

[MGilly]

Is second seating dead? Well, if it is, it took all the reservations with it! We booked the Golden ten months in advance, and we were waitlisted #217 for second seating. Our number is down to #109 now, but I have a feeling we'll be stuck with PC dining. <sigh>