Dining package and booking issues..... Help/suggestions/experience plz!

[smilegirl07]

Hi, we are a family of 5.  I have cruised back in the days quite a bit when it was just my DH and I and then kids started happening.  😂

 

So we were off cruising for a while and then when we thought we were ready, there came COVID.  And finally we did our first cruise as a family back in Nov last year on the Allure and it was amazing, kids asked me when our next cruise is on the disembarkation day.  So we booked the Wonder for this summer.

 

Long story short, when we were on Allure I got the specialty dining package and it was a pain to use and I think we barely got the value out of it.

 

Since we got the package, we were only allowed book once on board on their WiFi.  We checked in around 11 and were on the ship by 11:30, which was a breeze, getting on Voom was a pain and got help from the Guest Services.  By the time I was on ship's WiFi around 12 something and was ready to book the restaurants, they were all GONE.  They only had 5PM or 9:00PM.  And places like the Izumi Hibachi was IMPOSSIBLE to book.  So we ended up booking a few of them at 5 on sea days and some lunches.  I can't do 9 since I have little kids.

 

Since CC's fellow cruisers have so much experience and tips how to better handle situations, I thought I'd ask here.  

 

Thank you all so much in advance and happy cruising!

 

 

[smokeybandit]

If you didn't get any value out of it the first time, can I ask why you're looking to book again?

[firefly333]

4 minutes ago, smilegirl07 said:

Hi, we are a family of 5.  I have cruised back in the days quite a bit when it was just my DH and I and then kids started happening.  😂

 

So we were off cruising for a while and then when we thought we were ready, there came COVID.  And finally we did our first cruise as a family back in Nov last year on the Allure and it was amazing, kids asked me when our next cruise is on the disembarkation day.  So we booked the Wonder for this summer.

 

Long story short, when we were on Allure I got the specialty dining package and it was a pain to use and I think we barely got the value out of it.

 

Since we got the package, we were only allowed book once on board on their WiFi.  We checked in around 11 and were on the ship by 11:30, which was a breeze, getting on Voom was a pain and got help from the Guest Services.  By the time I was on ship's WiFi around 12 something and was ready to book the restaurants, they were all GONE.  They only had 5PM or 9:00PM.  And places like the Izumi Hibachi was IMPOSSIBLE to book.  So we ended up booking a few of them at 5 on sea days and some lunches.  I can't do 9 since I have little kids.

 

Since CC's fellow cruisers have so much experience and tips how to better handle situations, I thought I'd ask here.  

 

Thank you all so much in advance and happy cruising!

 

 

I've never heard you need vroom to book restaurants once you board. Did you go immediately to a restaurant like izumi or a dining pedestal and immediately book restaurants in person? Wifi not needed. Book restaurants as soon as you board  ... not get on wifi and fool around with it. 

 

Wifi 2nd, restaurants 1st. ..in person onboard. 

[smilegirl07]

I didn't say I did not get any value out of it, but I barely got what I paid for.  😃  I am hoping to get better value this time if I can!  We all obviously buy packages to get better value if we can!  And I like trying out different things!

 

Thank you Firefly333, Guest Services said I have to be on ship's wifi and then use the app to book.... I will try heading to Izumi first this time, thank you so much!

Edited June 4, 2023 by smilegirl07

[poocher]

You do not need Voom to connect to the ships Wifi.  The app works without internet access (turn on airplane mode).  If you do the dining reservations first, either through the app or by going directly to any specialty restaurant (they can do them all for you at one time), you won’t have issues getting closer to what you want.

[cynt]

When you get on the ship go directly to any specialty dining restaurant. They will assist you to book all your dining reservations for all the restaurants for the week. Forget trying to do it yourself. It's a pain. 

 

Pro tip: Have the restaurant, dates and times on a piece of paper with you. It makes booking much easier. 

[smilegirl07]

Thank you Poocher and Cynt!  I'll try that for sure.  Will make notes and then take it directly to the restaurant.  It was so weird how they told me to get on ship's wifi and then go from there using the app!  It was definitely not easy but now I know better with your help!

 

Thanks, again!

 

P.S. Is that true that Izumi Hibachi can only be booked at Izumi or elsewhere(other restaurant) as well?  I was reading through some other posts and think read it somewhere that Izumi Hibachi is only at Izumi,.,

[Coralc]

6 minutes ago, smilegirl07 said:

Thank you Poocher and Cynt!  I'll try that for sure.  Will make notes and then take it directly to the restaurant.  It was so weird how they told me to get on ship's wifi and then go from there using the app!  It was definitely not easy but now I know better with your help!

 

Thanks, again!

 

P.S. Is that true that Izumi Hibachi can only be booked at Izumi or elsewhere(other restaurant) as well?  I was reading through some other posts and think read it somewhere that Izumi Hibachi is only at Izumi,.,

Yes. You can only book the Hibachi dining at Izumi. But they can also make your other reservations. 

[Tree_skier]

The advice you have been given is the best way to approach it.  Make out a list of where and when you would like to eat and once onboard head strait to the first specialty restaurant you can and, with your list in hand, set your dining for the week.  You may need to be a little flexible with the exact times you want but I have always gotten more than my money's worth out of the UDP.

 

 Forget about hooking up to their network or Voom or internet or anything like that deal with that while you are sitting at lunch enjoying the UDP or up on deck with a drink in your hand. 🙂 

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[smilegirl07]

Very helpful, thank you Coralc and Tree-Skier!

[poocher]

They were not wrong.  You do connect to the ships Wifi but that is NOT the paid internet.  They used terminology that caused the confusion.  They knew what they meant but did a poor job of explaining it to you.

[PhillyFan33579]

Over the last year or so we have purchased the UDP a dozen times or so. From my experience the best/fastest approach is to book reservations thru the app as soon as you board the ship. Going to a speciality restaurant to make reservations like others have stated used to work well in the past. But these days so many people do that you might be waiting in line for awhile while people ahead of you are making reservations. Like you experienced before, speciality restaurants reservations usually get filled pretty fast.