Early dining on Carnival Horizon

[cocomango]

Hello all, 

I need some help. 

We are going on Carnival Horizon in a month. 

This is our 6th Carnival cruise and it's really important for us to have our 6 p.m. dinner time, same table, same wait staff. 

We booked our cruise 9 months ahead, couldn't confirm early dining and no option for a wait list. 

We've always gotten our dining arrangements done before we get on the ship so this one is a bit different. Does Horizon's dining work differently than the other ships? 

I know we can go to the dining area to make arrangements when we board but is there anything else I can do in advance?  

 

Thank you!

 

[iamsteph]

There should be an option for a waitlist under your booking reservation, but if not, you can call to get on the waitlist.

 

If you have anytime dining, after the first night, you can request the same table/waitstaff that you had the night before (but you should in line before the open up for the best chance of the same table being available). 

[1025cruise]

Four days before you sail, post on John Heald's FB page with your request and he will forward to the Maitre'D to try and get your request in.

[30scruiser]

2 hours ago, 1025cruise said:

Four days before you sail, post on John Heald's FB page with your request and he will forward to the Maitre'D to try and get your request in.

This. Or some people have reported success with emailing the Maitre’D directly a week or so before. If you do a search on here for the ship code you should be able to find the email address.

[30scruiser]

Also if you have a medical reason or young kids or something I would mention that when you reach out to John Heald or the Maitre’D

[cocomango]

Just wanted to post an update here. 

 

I did send an email on a Monday for our Sunday sailing and requested a 6 p.m. dining time.

When we embarked, our cards already had an assigned table and it said YTD at 5:45. 

It was really tough for us to get to the 5:45 especially on the formal nights but our server said we can show up as late as 6:15. 

 

I did find out that there are 2 dining rooms on the Horizon: Reflections and Meridian. 

Reflections had the 6:00 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. seating. It was a one-level dining room, smaller than the Meridian which had 2 levels. 

 

Meridian was for the YTD. 

It was nice to already have a table assigned. We just walked in every night. 

I was very pleased with the table we got on the 2nd level- had a really good view of the lower level and the "show time." 

 

 

 

[Illbcruzn4life]

11 hours ago, cocomango said:

Just wanted to post an update here. 

 

I did send an email on a Monday for our Sunday sailing and requested a 6 p.m. dining time.

When we embarked, our cards already had an assigned table and it said YTD at 5:45. 

It was really tough for us to get to the 5:45 especially on the formal nights but our server said we can show up as late as 6:15. 

 

I did find out that there are 2 dining rooms on the Horizon: Reflections and Meridian. 

Reflections had the 6:00 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. seating. It was a one-level dining room, smaller than the Meridian which had 2 levels. 

 

Meridian was for the YTD. 

It was nice to already have a table assigned. We just walked in every night. 

I was very pleased with the table we got on the 2nd level- had a really good view of the lower level and the "show time." 

 

 

 

 

not having sailed on CCL in a while is it something new to have assigned dining in the YTD? Is it maybe just the Horizon that they do this?

 

We have a booking on the Horizon next year and also keep reading that you need to go up to deck 5 to check in before going down to your dining room.

[2wheelin]

You either go to deck 5 and check in or do it on the hub app. No reservations but they are very accommodating if you go before they get too busy. Just returned from an 8 day and never had a wait and had a choice of many table.

[RWolver672]

On 4/28/2019 at 12:15 AM, cocomango said:

I did send an email on a Monday for our Sunday sailing and requested a 6 p.m. dining time.

When we embarked, our cards already had an assigned table and it said YTD at 5:45. 

It was really tough for us to get to the 5:45 especially on the formal nights but our server said we can show up as late as 6:15. 

 

 

 

I must be missing something here.  You requested an early seating time and got it, then say that it was tough getting there on time.  Why did you request  it if you were going to have trouble doing it?  That fifteen minutes early shouldn't have been that hard to make it on time.

[PhillyFan33579]

On 4/28/2019 at 12:15 AM, cocomango said:

Just wanted to post an update here. 

 

I did send an email on a Monday for our Sunday sailing and requested a 6 p.m. dining time.

When we embarked, our cards already had an assigned table and it said YTD at 5:45. 

It was really tough for us to get to the 5:45 especially on the formal nights but our server said we can show up as late as 6:15. 

 

I did find out that there are 2 dining rooms on the Horizon: Reflections and Meridian. 

Reflections had the 6:00 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. seating. It was a one-level dining room, smaller than the Meridian which had 2 levels. 

 

Meridian was for the YTD. 

It was nice to already have a table assigned. We just walked in every night. 

I was very pleased with the table we got on the 2nd level- had a really good view of the lower level and the "show time." 

 

 

 

 

I am confused by two things. First, you had an assigned table under YTD?  I have never heard of that before. Second, you asked for early dining and than had trouble making it on time?  Why would you request an early dining time if you couldn’t make it on time?

[cocomango]

Came back to clarify--

 

We asked for dining time at 6 p.m. , which was fixed seating (early dining time) but couldn't get it for this sailing and there was no waitlist for fixed seating. 

 

I sent an email one week prior to sailing. 

 

Yes, we were assigned a table under YTD. That's actually what it said on the card. YTD- 5:30 (I put 5:45 on my earlier post but looked at the card and it said 5:30).  We were confused too. We actually went to the Java Blue cafe when we got on the ship to ask about our time and table and the staff pointed out that we had been assigned a table for the week. We did not have to check in at Java Blue cafe again or check in through the app. We just walked right to our table.  We were having a hard time making the 5:30 dinner time so we asked our server if it was okay if we were a few minutes late and he said as long as we arrived by 6 or 6:15 that they'd hold the table for us. 

 

Hope this helps! 

[RWolver672]

7 hours ago, cocomango said:

Came back to clarify--

 

Yes, we were assigned a table under YTD. That's actually what it said on the card. YTD- 5:30 (I put 5:45 on my earlier post but looked at the card and it said 5:30).  We were confused too. We actually went to the Java Blue cafe when we got on the ship to ask about our time and table and the staff pointed out that we had been assigned a table for the week. We did not have to check in at Java Blue cafe again or check in through the app. We just walked right to our table.  We were having a hard time making the 5:30 dinner time so we asked our server if it was okay if we were a few minutes late and he said as long as we arrived by 6 or 6:15 that they'd hold the table for us. 

 

Hope this helps! 

 

If you had YTD, you can show up anywhere from 5:30 - 9:00 or 9:30 (I don't remember the exact hours.)  Your cards may have said YTD but if they told you that you could be a few minutes later than 5:30 and you had an assigned table, what you had was early seating.  They don't assign tables for YTD.

 

[purplephenom]

I've heard of an assigned table at YTD- because it almost happened to us, accidentally.  We prefer late seating, but our table in the MDR was somehow double booked- they were looking at a couple options- one was giving us an assigned table/time at YTD.  It ended up not happening, they were able to pull another table against a wall during late seating.  But I wonder if they have that available as a way to remedy situations.  Never heard of it happening pre-cruise though

[cocomango]

There was another dining room called Reflections and that one specifically said the seatings were at 6:00 and 8:15.  That 6:00 seating was what I thought we'd have when I made the request. 

 

But, whatever it was called, we had an assigned table and the same staff every night for the entire sailing. 

I was confused too on how our dining was going to work out but all in all, we were good with it.  We were in the Meridian dining room, upper level.  The guests around us changed every night. It was never the same people. Folks came in and out at different times as well.  

 

 

[2wheelin]

I suspect overflow requests for early or late dining are accommodated by giving them an assigned time in YTD seating area. Thus the combination of set time with the designation (confusing) of YTD.

[Shelldore]

We are booked on Carnival Horizon November 10th - after reading this posting I tried to change our dining to early (we have 3 cabins - 6 people).  They said both early and late dining were booked and couldn't even get on waiting - how do I try and get a table for us so we can eat all together every night?

[CheckersMidwest]

• When you check in for Your Time Dining, you tell them how many people then you wait. They'll sit you together. We had 6:00 early seating on the Horizon in May. Those fixed times go fast.
•  

[cruizergal70]

This sounds like the OP's request for fixed seating was accomodated AFTER the SS cards were printed. Thus, the card showed the original YTD but the computer showed fixed 

[RWolver672]

18 hours ago, Shelldore said:

We are booked on Carnival Horizon November 10th - after reading this posting I tried to change our dining to early (we have 3 cabins - 6 people).  They said both early and late dining were booked and couldn't even get on waiting - how do I try and get a table for us so we can eat all together every night?

 

It's probably too late now but if you ever cruise again with multiple couples, just have your bookings linked together and you will automatically be put at the same table.  You do this when you book the cruise.