wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #126 Share Posted January 5, 2020 38 minutes ago, Harry Peterson said: In practice, as on land, reservations inevitably mean periods, however short, when tables are empty. The present system provides close to 100% occupancy. That can only mean less efficient use of tables and longer queues for anyone wanting the freedom to dine when they choose to. Another vote against from me, purely on logical grounds. Sometimes people don't understand the complexities of restaurant management. Well said Harry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteukmcr Posted January 5, 2020 #127 Share Posted January 5, 2020 37 minutes ago, wowzz said: Sometimes people don't understand the complexities of restaurant management. Well said Harry. I’ll take that as a dig at me who worked in a restaurant for 6 years 😀. You still can’t convince me it can’t be done, as I stated at least 3 other lines we sail on operate a reservation system, it’s obvious to me P&O don’t want to be more customer focused. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy v Posted January 5, 2020 #128 Share Posted January 5, 2020 6 minutes ago, peteukmcr said: I’ll take that as a dig at me who worked in a restaurant for 6 years 😀. You still can’t convince me it can’t be done, as I stated at least 3 other lines we sail on operate a reservation system, it’s obvious to me P&O don’t want to be more customer focused. Or......they are focused on what their customers want. I.E. freedom to dine when you choose, and not to be told it is full when you can see empty tables. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecttr Posted January 5, 2020 #129 Share Posted January 5, 2020 On 1/4/2020 at 2:51 PM, Denarius said: Shared tables in select restaurants in the evening, for solo passengers wishing to eat there in company. As a solo traveller, I would like to eat in Sindu etc but do not wish to do so in splendid isolation. I suspect that others feel the same way. I would like to see a shared table available every evening at which solo travellers could book a seat. I accept that for practical reasons this would probably have to be at a fixed time. As a solo cruiser returning to P&O I think that is an excellent idea. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy v Posted January 5, 2020 #130 Share Posted January 5, 2020 7 hours ago, jeanlyon said: Further to my previous, if when you check the Itinerary, it just gives AM and PM, click on Learn More and the times appear. Jean, I may be thick, most probably am🙂, but I can't see Learn More on the itinerary page. In fact it doesn't even say AM, PM. But I did know we were late in Genoa so I must have seen it somewhere. Now I'm just confused! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecttr Posted January 5, 2020 #131 Share Posted January 5, 2020 2 hours ago, dunnster1965 said: Green beans on the menu in the MDR... 😉 Aaargh! they are still serving them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecttr Posted January 5, 2020 #132 Share Posted January 5, 2020 4 hours ago, Britboys said: I would like to see solo pax pre-dinner drinks get-togethers listed in the Horizon Paper - not hosted or with free drinks of course, just a 'focal point' for us solo pax. I would also like to see 'thermos' carafes for water in each cabin with chilled water stations on most decks. That was one of the few decent things on Marella Discovery 2. Carafes in the cabins and chilled water stations on passenger decks are an excellent idea. However some passengers need reminding that the carafe is not a flower vase! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majortom10 Posted January 5, 2020 #133 Share Posted January 5, 2020 (edited) I am of the opinion that freedom/anytime dining should be exactly that and no reservations should be made in advance. Princess allows reservation and on one occasion we asked for a table for two at the front desk and told there would be a wait as there were no tables for 2 available. When we were buzzed in less than 5 minutes later that wasnt a problem but when we were taken to our table there were loads of empty tables for 2 and when we asked why we had to have a pager we were told that those were for tables reserved in advance and they hadnt arrived yet. Sorry but that cannot be right. Edited January 5, 2020 by majortom10 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteukmcr Posted January 5, 2020 #134 Share Posted January 5, 2020 7 hours ago, jeanlyon said: Further to my previous, if when you check the Itinerary, it just gives AM and PM, click on Learn More and the times appear. Thanks for the info. I assumed it was in the personaliser (the most logical place IMHO) but I can't see them in there, but can if I review the cruise as though I was making a new booking! 26 minutes ago, happy v said: Jean, I may be thick, most probably am🙂, but I can't see Learn More on the itinerary page. In fact it doesn't even say AM, PM. But I did know we were late in Genoa so I must have seen it somewhere. Now I'm just confused! As I mentioned above I found them for our upcoming sailing on the main site, not the personaliser. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davemorton Posted January 5, 2020 #135 Share Posted January 5, 2020 3 hours ago, Tikka234 said: Something more for families to do together, mini go!f, or games tables (air hockey type of thing), not just children clubs. maybe a slide in a slide in a pool. Not looking for things like RC ships just a couple of things daughter likes being with her kids There is a small room on at least 2 of the ships which has air hockey, but its well hidden just near the casino/pub. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grapau27 Posted January 5, 2020 #136 Share Posted January 5, 2020 1 hour ago, peteukmcr said: I’ll take that as a dig at me who worked in a restaurant for 6 years 😀. You still can’t convince me it can’t be done, as I stated at least 3 other lines we sail on operate a reservation system, it’s obvious to me P&O don’t want to be more customer focused. I agree. I always pre-book RC My Time Dining on line months before the cruise. If we need to change on board it is easily done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted January 5, 2020 #137 Share Posted January 5, 2020 3 hours ago, peteukmcr said: How does it make table management more difficult? Surely as in a restaurant on land, if you know what reservations you have for the evening, you know how many ‘walk ins’ you can manage. Front of house staff can ‘reserve’ tables in preparation, just as we used to do where I worked. In addition, at least 3 other cruise lines manage this in our experience superbly (one of which is totally ‘freedom dining’). As opposed to wait times, showing how full/busy a restaurant is does help. RCI's reservation system caused major queues in the MDR with loads of empty tables awaiting tardy passengers, I do hope P&O dont go down that route. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davecttr Posted January 5, 2020 #138 Share Posted January 5, 2020 If you want a freedom dining reservation scheme charge £30 per person refundable deposit which you forfeit if you don't turn up within 15 minutes of your reserved time. the table is immediately allocated into the general pool 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ann141 Posted January 5, 2020 #139 Share Posted January 5, 2020 38 minutes ago, terrierjohn said: RCI's reservation system caused major queues in the MDR with loads of empty tables awaiting tardy passengers, I do hope P&O dont go down that route. We too found on a Princess cruise last year that so many people wanted to reserve tables for Freedom Dining (often for 2 but also several larger groups)that when we arrived at the restaurant the staff were busy sorting the 'reserved' queue out and we had to wait ages to 'share' a table mainly because nearly everyone had a reservation.On our previous Princess cruise a few years earlier we didn t find it a problem but I think the problem has been caused by allowing reservations.We like sharing a table with others on Freedom Dining and have found previously on Club or Fixed dining there is a problem if one of the couples(or both) decides to eat elsewhere on certain nights.This didn t used to happen until speciality dining restaurants became popular.I also hope P and O don t go down the route of reservations for Freedom Dining Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #140 Share Posted January 5, 2020 11 minutes ago, davecttr said: If you want a freedom dining reservation scheme charge £30 per person refundable deposit which you forfeit if you don't turn up within 15 minutes of your reserved time. the table is immediately allocated into the general pool An excellent idea, but personally I would say that if you want a table at a specific time, you should pay for it. After all, I have paid extra for a select fare, so that I can dine whenever I want. If someone wants to reserve a table to dine at a specific time, they should pay for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted January 5, 2020 #141 Share Posted January 5, 2020 18 minutes ago, davecttr said: If you want a freedom dining reservation scheme charge £30 per person refundable deposit which you forfeit if you don't turn up within 15 minutes of your reserved time. the table is immediately allocated into the general pool 15 minutes is way too long, you should be there on time or the table is forfeited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted January 5, 2020 #142 Share Posted January 5, 2020 1 minute ago, wowzz said: An excellent idea, but personally I would say that if you want a table at a specific time, you should pay for it. After all, I have paid extra for a select fare, so that I can dine whenever I want. If someone wants to reserve a table to dine at a specific time, they should pay for it. Hey that's even better, but you should still turn up on time, or pay anyway and forfeit the table. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #143 Share Posted January 5, 2020 3 minutes ago, ann141 said: We too found on a Princess cruise last year that so many people wanted to reserve tables for Freedom Dining (often for 2 but also several larger groups)that when we arrived at the restaurant the staff were busy sorting the 'reserved' queue out and we had to wait ages to 'share' a table mainly because nearly everyone had a reservation.On our previous Princess cruise a few years earlier we didn t find it a problem but I think the problem has been caused by allowing reservations.We like sharing a table with others on Freedom Dining and have found previously on Club or Fixed dining there is a problem if one of the couples(or both) decides to eat elsewhere on certain nights.This didn t used to happen until speciality dining restaurants became popular.I also hope P and O don t go down the route of reservations for Freedom Dining We didn't find a problem on Princess, but, to be fair, that was 3 years ago. My feeling is that freedom dining is exactly that. You turn up, you get a table. Just don't allow reservations, as it makes a mockery of the whole process. Why should I, as a freedom diner, have to wait because someone has reserved a table. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #144 Share Posted January 5, 2020 1 minute ago, terrierjohn said: Hey that's even better, but you should still turn up on time, or pay anyway and forfeit the table. Agreed. I'm just aware that we may be strolling into "table policing" territory! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ann141 Posted January 5, 2020 #145 Share Posted January 5, 2020 Just now, wowzz said: We didn't find a problem on Princess, but, to be fair, that was 3 years ago. My feeling is that freedom dining is exactly that. You turn up, you get a table. Just don't allow reservations, as it makes a mockery of the whole process. Why should I, as a freedom diner, have to wait because someone has reserved a table. When we cruised on Princess 3 years ago we didn t find a problem.It was only on our cruise last June that it seemed to cause problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted January 5, 2020 #146 Share Posted January 5, 2020 2 minutes ago, wowzz said: We didn't find a problem on Princess, but, to be fair, that was 3 years ago. My feeling is that freedom dining is exactly that. You turn up, you get a table. Just don't allow reservations, as it makes a mockery of the whole process. Why should I, as a freedom diner, have to wait because someone has reserved a table. Just now, wowzz said: Agreed. I'm just aware that we may be strolling into "table policing" territory! Maybe but my view is that if you want fixed time reserved dining then you book club. If the times are not right for you then take it up with the cruise line, but leave us genuine Freedom diners alone. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #147 Share Posted January 5, 2020 2 minutes ago, ann141 said: When we cruised on Princess 3 years ago we didn t find a problem.It was only on our cruise last June that it seemed to cause problems. I just wonder if Princess have been coerced into this reservation malarkey by their predominantly US clientele, who expect table reservations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteukmcr Posted January 5, 2020 #148 Share Posted January 5, 2020 Well I give up. I really do give up. Freedom to me means I can dine at a time that I choose, not at a fixed time mandated by the cruise line. If I can make reservations to guarantee that time, as on land, I will. I can also guarantee we are not tardy, so charge me a deposit, because I won’t lose it. Why do I like reservations as on other lines. Because I can choose my time, my table size and don’t have to stand in line waiting for the next to be free like a cafeteria! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wowzz Posted January 5, 2020 #149 Share Posted January 5, 2020 2 minutes ago, terrierjohn said: Maybe but my view is that if you want fixed time reserved dining then you book club. If the times are not right for you then take it up with the cruise line, but leave us genuine Freedom diners alone. Totally agree with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ann141 Posted January 5, 2020 #150 Share Posted January 5, 2020 Just now, wowzz said: I just wonder if Princess have been coerced into this reservation malarkey by their predominantly US clientele, who expect table reservations. There were far more Americans onboard than our Princess cruise 3 years ago and that could have been a factor particularly as there were some quite large groups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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