Early dining vs later dining

[Briitini]

If it does not matter to you either way.. no kids etc. What do you choose? Is one better than the other if you plan to attend shows etc.

[okgirl]

If it does not matter to you either way.. no kids etc. What do you choose? Is one better than the other if you plan to attend shows etc.

 

I don't think one is better than the other because the way thay are doing the shows now is they schedule the same show at two different times during the week so that both seatings can see the show.

 

For me personally, I choose Your Time Dining because I never know when I'm going to be ready for dinner.......If I had fixed time dining, then it almost always seems like early is to early (especially on port days) and late is too late and I end up eating in the buffet early then eating dinner late and that's just too much food..........

[Quilting_Cruiser]

We used to pick early dining because of traveling with my daughter, but since YTD started, we've chosen that each time and love it. No going back. :D

[Cruisin'Doc]

We use YTD so that we can decide day by day when we want to have dinner!

[SPKEMO]

I always do late dining. Couple reasons:

 

- you don't have to rush back from your ports

- I prefer traditional dining vs ATD. My wife and I are late 20's/early 30's so we like to meet new couples and talk to them during dinner.

- You get to hang out by the pool until the sun goes down.

 

That's just a few reasons.

[TeresaJ]

On our first cruise we did late dining (no kids along), so that worked great. Our last two cruises we did early dining (with kids). It was a little rushed on port days getting the family of four ready . This next time we are doing anytime dining which offers our family more flexibility.

[aVASTGrl]

I always prefer eating later...personal preference...but it's also nice not feeling rushed on port days. I travel with my sister and it takes us awhile to primp for dinner LOL :rolleyes:

[Charxu]

I have done early and late and prefer early because late is too late and I always feel so tired after a long day then full of food I just want to go to bed. Early is a little early but we eat around that time at home so not too bad and we enjoyed karaoke at the bar, then some casino time or a show and went to bed not feeling stuffed. I will try anytime, when we aren't traveling in a group.

[yogimax]

Early seating - too early!

 

Late seating = too late!

 

Now we do anytime dining and go when we want to go!

[jayscore]

At home, dinner is a past memory by 6:00 PM. So, you can guess my choice.

Plus, the sooner I get supper "through my system", the sooner I can fill up on libations without feeling bloated!:rolleyes:

[cruiseguy456]

I always do late dining. Couple reasons:

 

- you don't have to rush back from your ports

- I prefer traditional dining vs ATD. My wife and I are late 20's/early 30's so we like to meet new couples and talk to them during dinner.

- You get to hang out by the pool until the sun goes down.

 

That's just a few reasons.

 

ditto to the later seating for the same reasons

[Frank12]

Early seating - too early!

 

Late seating = too late!

 

Now we do anytime dining and go when we want to go!

 

I completely agree!

[mrsd912]

We usually eat dinner at home around 8:00 so for our last cruise we did the late seating. The only problem with this was that DH and I were so stuffed and sleepy after dinner that we just went to bed! I feel like we missed out on a lot if activities.

This time we're doing the early seating because we still want to have the same dining room servers through out the week. Who knows, maybe on the next one we'll try ATD.

[BK512]

I prefer late dining because I don't like being in a hurry to come back from port, shower, and get ready.

 

This time it will make more sense to me...coming from the west coast now, my biological clock will actually think I am eating early!

[k2excursion]

Definitely early dining. I don't like eating a ton of food so close to bedtime. And, with the shows, if they do an 8:30 & 10:30 show, early diners can pick which one to go to, while late diners only have one option. The later show is usually not nearly as crowded, which is why we sometimes choose that one.

 

My friends & I did late dining on our 2nd cruise, and it just seemed that we were missing out on so much of the nighttime entertainment. Of course, back then, Carnival had much more entertainment than they do now, even though those ships were half the size of today's ships.

[kathy884]

Early for me. On one cruise we had late dining. I loved dinner with our extended family group every night, but by the time we were done I was already getting tired and didn't make it to most of the shows, etc. It doesn't help that at home I get up at 5:15 a.m. every day. I just am not that much of a night owl and I tend with the early dining time do more of the ship activities. // In reality, though, the shows etc. although enjoyable, aren't all that great -- not absolute must sees. So for our next cruise, I will ask for early dining, but won't be too bent out of shape if I get late seating instead.

[MrPete]

We choose early simply because it closest matches our eating patterns at home.

 

We did try late once, and found it was too late.

[kingoftheicedragons]

Early, because it matches the time we eat at home. We've had late dining once, and it tended to be a little too late, plus you're eating a lot of food closer to when you go to sleep.

[rjackieb]

We'd done early dining on all our cruises until then, so on our Sept. 2008 cruise we tried late. We also tried anytime dining on the Norwegian cruise. Ever since we've done early dining. We like the same table and wait staff every night, late dining is just too late and early gives us plenty of time after eating to enjoy the nightlife on the ship.

[emelvee]

We prefer early dining; I don't care to eat a large meal late. On a cruise, we are usually up quite a bit later than normal, but getting done with dinner around 10:00pm is not preferable. We've done late dining twice IIRC.

[Andersoncd]

Definitely late dining for us. DW hates to start getting ready for dinner at 4:00 in the afternoon. We like hanging out at the pool/casino/bars until 6:30 or so, then going back to the room to get ready. Plus, we stay up late, so the late dining is perfect for us. Otherwise, I would be eating at 6:00, and then the buffet again at 11:00!!! Instead of gaining 10 pounds, I would gain 20!

[wwbill4]

We'd done early dining on all our cruises until then, so on our Sept. 2008 cruise we tried late. We also tried anytime dining on the Norwegian cruise. Ever since we've done early dining. We like the same table and wait staff every night, late dining is just too late and early gives us plenty of time after eating to enjoy the nightlife on the ship.

 

Total agreement. especially the same table issue. We did anytime dining and every night it seemed like a record with different people we sat with- where you from, what did you do, you been on this cruise line before, etc.

Plus eating late not good for you as your digestive system works overnight, not a restful night with late dining!!

[bshow]

Late seating for me. I like to dress for dinner and then relax with a cocktail before going to the dining (spelt correctly) room.

[mere08]

Even before taking the child with us, we like early dining. It's closer to the time we eat at home and it gives us time to digest before going to bed. We are early to rise, early to bed type of people.

[5Hawkeyes]

Early dining for us. Many of the same reasons, not stuffed before going to bed, time to play after, enjoy the shows, and most importantly having that late snack:). We've done late dining on one cruise in the past and felt like we missed way too many things because we ended up tired after eating so late.