Anytime or Traditional and why?

[Paula_MacFan]

I'll probably get flamed for this. You are taking your child to one of the most beautiful places on earth. Depending on whether you are southbound or northbound, it looks like you have 3 to 4 evenings in port and/or scenic cruising thru Glacier Bay National Park, College Fjord, and/or Hubbard Glacier. I don't understand why having a set meal time is more important than enjoying the nature and scenery you came on the cruise to enjoy.

 

I'm using the word 'you', but my post is not really directed towards the OP, but the others who have responded and recommended traditional vs. anytime.

 

Again, I have an 8 year old grandson and just can't imagine taking him somewhere as beautiful and wondrous as Alaska and then sitting inside the dining room for 2 hours instead of taking in the beauty of Glacier Bay etc.

 

I guess that sums up why we are 'anytime' diners and not traditional.

[Pam in CA]

The ship will be long gone from Glacier Bay by dinnertime. :) I agree that the Alaskan scenery is gorgeous and worth skipping dinner for. That's why we went up to the buffet for dinner a few times. Dining room dinners don't have to be two hours long.

 

The OP asked about early dining so I assume that's when they prefer to dine. Even the best 8-year old can get cranky and tired after a long day of tours or scenic viewing.

 

The difference between early Traditional and getting to the Anytime dining room is minimal. With the former, you have the same waitstaff who know what you like and you don't have to wait for a table or stand in line; with the latter, you're essentially arriving at the same time as Traditional but you wait to check in and be seated, and have new waitstaff every night.

Edited April 17, 2014 by Pam in CA

[Paula_MacFan]

The ship will be long gone from Glacier Bay by dinnertime. :)

 

The OP said they are on the Star. The Southbound itinerary is in Glacier Bay National Park until 7:30pm per Princess' website.

 

 

Other evenings include Hubbard Glacier until 8:30PM, College Fjord until 8:30PM, Skagway until 8:30PM, and Juneau until 9PM, again, depending on south/north bound.

Edited April 17, 2014 by Paula_MacFan
time

[Colo Cruiser]

Yes, there is still lots to see.

[Cauzneffct]

My wife and I had done Traditional on our first two Princess cruises and it was fine. We did Anytime on our most recent cruise, and without the "pressure" of a set time, we ended up eating in the dining room only once, using the HC or Pizza or the Crown Grill (once) instead.

[cruisingqueen74]

I've had anytime dining on several different cruiselines and when I've found a waitstaff that I like, I request them. They've learned what I like and have my favorite menu items ready- just like when we have a "set" dining.

 

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[Cruisin' Chick]

I'll probably get flamed for this. You are taking your child to one of the most beautiful places on earth. Depending on whether you are southbound or northbound, it looks like you have 3 to 4 evenings in port and/or scenic cruising thru Glacier Bay National Park, College Fjord, and/or Hubbard Glacier. I don't understand why having a set meal time is more important than enjoying the nature and scenery you came on the cruise to enjoy.

 

I'm using the word 'you', but my post is not really directed towards the OP, but the others who have responded and recommended traditional vs. anytime.

 

Again, I have an 8 year old grandson and just can't imagine taking him somewhere as beautiful and wondrous as Alaska and then sitting inside the dining room for 2 hours instead of taking in the beauty of Glacier Bay etc.

 

I guess that sums up why we are 'anytime' diners and not traditional.

 

As pointed out by some posters, including me, not every Alaskan itinerary has late nights in port. We only had one (Victoria) and were going to go to the Horizon Court that night -- that was fine for us. And many ships do their glacier cruising in the early morning -- we did.

 

Our girl (age 7) did get cranky on that cruise, especially as we took a scenic way (the Coast Starlight train up the west coast) to get to Seattle, which included going past Mt. Shasta and some other beautiful sights we can see from the train. And we did make her go outside to see the glaciers during our cruising (her father bribed her with a hot chocolate). We would take her to the Horizon for many of her meals, her choice, and take her to the kids' program. So even if there were sights to see in the evening, she was zoned out on scenery, and I imagine there were other kids in the same mood. But for us, a major part of cruising is traditional dining. Our one time in anytime (because we hadn't cleared the waitlist), we ended up eating in the Horizon for 7 out of 14 nights. Anytime was too much like going to eat out at restaurants back home -- nothing special.

[giselleacttwo]

Our older kids prefer not to eat in the dining room with us every night so we tend to stick with AT. We will usually feed them before they go to the kids center in the evening (buffet, grill, or pizza by the pool) and then parents can have a nice dinner alone (or with toddler, as case may be). We like to do family dinners on formal nights so we take them to the MDR with us. We like the flexibility of anytime. YMMV.

[HandS]

We just sailed on Island Princess westbound Panama Canal April 1-16. Although we were confirmed for late traditional seating at 8:00 p.m. (per the cruise personalizer), when we boarded we found our dinner time had been changed to 7:30. Not a big deal for us, 7:30 was fine. However, early traditional seating had been changed to 5:15. If we had booked early seating, I would definitely NOT have been happy with the change.

[Pam in CA]

We just sailed on Island Princess westbound Panama Canal April 1-16. Although we were confirmed for late traditional seating at 8:00 p.m. (per the cruise personalizer), when we boarded we found our dinner time had been changed to 7:30. Not a big deal for us, 7:30 was fine. However, early traditional seating had been changed to 5:15. If we had booked early seating, I would definitely NOT have been happy with the change.

The Coral and Island have been "different" for years and what is true for them doesn't apply to the Star.

[RNGALNG]

My wife and I had done Traditional on our first two Princess cruises and it was fine. We did Anytime on our most recent cruise, and without the "pressure" of a set time, we ended up eating in the dining room only once, using the HC or Pizza or the Crown Grill (once) instead.

 

Did you like the idea of anytime or do you prefer the traditional dining now that you have 'tasted' both?

 

Just wondering which one you liked better. . .

[Paula_MacFan]

As pointed out by some posters' date=' including me, not every Alaskan itinerary has late nights in port. We only had one (Victoria) and were going to go to the Horizon Court that night -- that was fine for us. And many ships do their glacier cruising in the early morning -- we did.[/quote']

 

I was responding to the OP's specific ship, the Star, which DOES have several late ports and scenic cruising in the evening.