Dinner timing....

[MaiTaiMary]

What time is the "anytime dining"?

 

How long does an average dinner in the MDR last?

 

 

Thanks. :)

[4104ever]

What time is the "anytime dining"?

 

How long does an average dinner in the MDR last?

 

 

Thanks. :)

 

 

Anytime dining means you can arrive and dine anytime between the hours of 5:30 and 9:30 on most ships. Dining time usually averages 1 1/2 hrs in my experience.

Edited September 22, 2014 by 4104ever

[ncovert]

 

How long does an average dinner in the MDR last?

 

 

Thanks. :)

 

The average dinner in the MDR will last over an hour to two hours. It will depend on if you (or any other person at your table) choose to order all courses.

[serene56]

It also depends on the number of people the server is taking care of

Bigger tables take longer.

 

We are either a table for 2-3 or 4.

Prefer traditional-- seated by 6 and out before 7:30

[funinthesun1964]

What time is the "anytime dining"?

 

How long does an average dinner in the MDR last?

 

 

Thanks. :)

 

If you have anytime dining, you can go whenever you choose. (Between 5:30 - 9:30 or as stated in Fun Times)

Dinner duration depends on your wait staff and other variables. Last cruise we were on, we had very prompt service, DH and I had a table for two, and we were out in less than an hour most nights.

ETA: just remembered we had late assigned dining, not anytime. But times can be similar, a lot depends on efficiency of your wait staff and how "needy" other tables are.

Edited September 22, 2014 by funinthesun1964

[Anita Latte]

Just did anytime dining on Fascination. It was 5:45 to 9:30.

 

How long dinner took would depend on how busy the dining was. There were a couple nights where every table was filled and thus the kitchen was slower. On other nights, we somehow picked an odd time and far fewer diners...our plates were whisked away only to be immediately replaced.

[cmich068]

One thing to keep in mind with anytime dining is that the entertainment options are usually scheduled to work around the two assigned dining times. If you decide to take advantage of the shows and similar entertainment, you may find that you end up dining near the regular dining times regardless.

[lostdart1]

One thing to keep in mind with anytime dining is that the entertainment options are usually scheduled to work around the two assigned dining times. If you decide to take advantage of the shows and similar entertainment, you may find that you end up dining near the regular dining times regardless.

 

Bingo!!

[MaiTaiMary]

One thing to keep in mind with anytime dining is that the entertainment options are usually scheduled to work around the two assigned dining times. If you decide to take advantage of the shows and similar entertainment, you may find that you end up dining near the regular dining times regardless.

 

 

What time is early dining? What about show start times?

 

Sorry. I've been on a couple of Carnival cruises, but it's been a few years and I can't remember these details. :o

 

 

Thanks! :D

[serene56]

What time is early dining? What about show start times?

 

 

early traditional is at 6pm. late is 8:00 (some ships are 8:15)

 

there will be two shows at night-- one is at 8 and the other is 10:30

[lostdart1]

What time is early dining? What about show start times?

 

Sorry. I've been on a couple of Carnival cruises, but it's been a few years and I can't remember these details. :o

 

 

Thanks! :D

 

Early dining is 6PM and late dining is 8:15. Show times are different but will work around these dinner times.

 

For instance on the Dream:

Show: 8 More Seconds

 

7:PM Late seating(before dinner)

8:45PM Early seating (after dinner)

[beachbum53]

Some advantages to Anytime Dining: You don't have to share a table with others, so you don't have to worry about letting others know whether or not you'll be there to eat. You may want to opt for some other dining option, such as a specialty restaurant, the buffet, room service, or whatever. With Anytime Dining, you can usually be in and out within an hour, as opposed to 1 1/2 hours (or longer) with traditional dining. Everyone has different preferences, but we've found Anytime Dining to be very relaxing and enjoyable.

[riffatsea]

We always do Anytime Dining. I don't go to the MDR to see waiters dance!! It is not an important part of my agenda at all! In fact I've never seen them and don't think I've missed much!!

I go to the dining room to enjoy my food. It doesn't take 2hrs. for my husband and myself to be served and eat.

I'd say an hour to 1 1/2 would be all. It depends on

[092306]

We do anytime dining and have been done in under an hour. Very few times has it been 1.5 hours and I don't recall ever having it take 2 hours. We don't go during peak times, so that makes a difference too.

[sharona211]

We always do Anytime Dining. I don't go to the MDR to see waiters dance!! It is not an important part of my agenda at all! In fact I've never seen them and don't think I've missed much!!

I go to the dining room to enjoy my food. It doesn't take 2hrs. for my husband and myself to be served and eat.

I'd say an hour to 1 1/2 would be all. It depends on

 

While I agree that the waiters dancing is not a top 10 highlight of the cruise, we do find it fun especially if there are newbies in our group. After that its sort of a been there done that item. If you've never seen it, you can't know that you're not missing out. It's a tradition that many others enjoy.

[Lovefuninthesun]

This will be our first experience with Your Time Dining.

 

If you have done YTD before, in your experience, what dining time do you recommend for shorter wait times and prompt dinner service?

 

TIA.:)

[MaiTaiMary]

We always do Anytime Dining. I don't go to the MDR to see waiters dance!!

 

do they not do this for anytime dining?

[It's a Ship!!!]

do they not do this for anytime dining?

You will be in the same dining room, just in a different section. So you will see it if your timing is right. The waiters do the dancing near the end of both early and late seating.

[serene56]

do they not do this for anytime dining?

 

 

 

they do dance-- but if you are seated after 7:30 you just missed it.

 

and more then likely will be done before the 2nd set is done

[Anita Latte]

You will be in the same dining room' date=' just in a different section. So you will see it if your timing is right. The waiters do the dancing near the end of both early and late seating.[/quote']

On Fascination...most of the performing was for every table...whether you were assigned or anytime. The only one that had all the waiters in one spot was the singing "That's amore".

[serene56]

Some advantages to Anytime Dining: You don't have to share a table with others, so you don't have to worry about letting others know whether or not you'll be there to eat..

 

I never had to share my table with strangers on any of our cruises that we did traditional dining. We sail with 2, 3 or 4 of us at a time. Only my family is at our table.

 

if you find you are at a larger table with strangers you can always meet with the matre de and ask for a "private table"

[John1928]

Even with fixed time dining I've found the service to be asynchronous between tables if the wait staff is good (and they usually are).

 

We typically have a table or more for our whole family, so sometimes we're the slow ones in the room if there are 20 odd people putting in orders. Those meals could push two hours as everyone is chatting about what they did during the day and generally just relaxing over a meal.

 

Other times we're traveling with a smaller group of 8-10, including my sister who should be a pit crew chief, or a boot camp DI. On those occasions we may be ready to order a minute after the menus arrive, and it wasn't uncommon to be receiving our desserts at the same time or slightly before the folks at the neighboring tables (who likely showed up 10 minutes late and took their time) received their entrees. Those meals were often about an hour long.

 

On my own I'd choose to move at a slower pace but you can see the potential amount of variance and try to aim for either end of that spectrum.

Edited September 26, 2014 by John1928

[cruzinlisa]

While I agree that the waiters dancing is not a top 10 highlight of the cruise, we do find it fun especially if there are newbies in our group. After that its sort of a been there done that item. If you've never seen it, you can't know that you're not missing out. It's a tradition that many others enjoy.

 

I personally don't care one way or another, nor does DH. But one of my two favorite memories from my DD's first cruise involved the dancing waiters. They starting dancing to the song "Low." My daughter (15 months at the time) was kind of fussy and cranky. But when they started with the music and dancing, she just lit up and about screamed with delight, she thought it was SO SO SO funny. She still loves music and dancing, so I know she will enjoy it.

[portocaller]

We opted for traditional because we like to take it slow and I like to have a seat, not potentially have to wait until there is room. My sister is am anytime dining fan but she said they usually ended up eating at 6 anyhow. She just liked knowing she wasn't going to be late.

 

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[momof3cruisers]

We always do Anytime Dining. I don't go to the MDR to see waiters dance!! It is not an important part of my agenda at all! In fact I've never seen them and don't think I've missed much!!

I go to the dining room to enjoy my food. It doesn't take 2hrs. for my husband and myself to be served and eat.

I'd say an hour to 1 1/2 would be all. It depends on

 

It is my goal to NOT deal with the dancing, but we seem to hit it everytime! It always delays courses and is just too long. So, when do you go that you manage to miss it?