Requested dinner reservations

[Woofbite]

Booking wasn't nearly as bad as a few people on here made it sound.  Booking opened June 21 but we arrived back in town June 26 and I was able to book a two-top at 6:30 in two restaurants and 8:00 in the other two.  Granted we didn't have any specific days in mind so reservations were made according to times available.

 

[Harters]

24 minutes ago, Woofbite said:

we didn't have any specific days in mind

It's good to be flexible with this. We have days in mind that we want to avoid for specialities - mainly if we've planned a long lazy lunch ashore, then we don't want a big dinner. But that's pretty much as far as the planning goes. 

[Techno123]

Our dining opened yesterday but we were camping - fortunately the campsite had good Wi-Fi so so at 8am 4 bookings made for a table for two at 8pm - Im so happy others like to eat (much) earlier 😁

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

53 minutes ago, Woofbite said:

Booking wasn't nearly as bad as a few people on here made it sound.  Booking opened June 21 but we arrived back in town June 26 and I was able to book a two-top at 6:30 in two restaurants and 8:00 in the other two.  Granted we didn't have any specific days in mind so reservations were made according to times available.

 

 

23 minutes ago, Techno123 said:

Our dining opened yesterday but we were camping - fortunately the campsite had good Wi-Fi so so at 8am 4 bookings made for a table for two at 8pm - Im so happy others like to eat (much) earlier 😁

It just depends upon a number of factors - probably sharing or non-sharing requests most often, plus booking category (suite or lower, etc.), how full ship is, how many Europeans are on board, whether people care about sailaways, whether they might go to Tea at 4, or whether they want to stay off the ship one night for dinner, etc.  But overall, I've been on quite a few Oceania cruises and I've always gotten good nights and times. 

 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

On 6/23/2024 at 5:12 PM, MEFIowa said:

A big issue is whether and when G-B cabin passengers can actually book reservations in them on their cruise, since they have to WAIT and book them after the A and higher-level cabins have supposedly had their first cracks at booking.

 

So for the G-B passengers, tends to mean 8:30 and 9 pm reservations, if any, on a given day. And if O forced you into a 9 pm reservation slot, they'll reserve the right to then back you to a 8:30 slot because there are so few passengers with these late reservations.

 

Seems like many of the PH and higher passengers claim they could just make daily reservations in them at "good times" when the G-B passengers had already been told, "No reservation available at that time."

 

Learned the fascinating ins and outs from our B2B on Riviera that started off in an A3 for 10 nights but we then moved to a B3 for the 2nd 10 nights. We had nothing but undesired reservation times for the B3. No problems with the A3.

 

Hard to tell how "fair" the system is actually being applied to the various classes of cabins.

We've never had a problem getting good reservations even at 45 days out, and we've never eaten at 8:30 or later.  But we're fine sharing OR non-sharing, which definitely makes a difference. So does having experience with Oceania procedures.  Many of the newbies don't know to book early and/or don't realize that flexibility goes a long way in getting their number one choices. Is the system fair? I think so.  

Edited Thursday at 02:11 PM by IWantToLiveOverTheSea

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

12 minutes ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

 

 

Edited Thursday at 02:22 PM by IWantToLiveOverTheSea

[mc_reeve]

First timers on O and celebrating a big anniversary so we really wanted a nice table for 2 at Jacques on a specific night.  Our O rep volunteered to make the reservations but I just felt better staying up to make them myself - we are in an A3 cabin on Marina in late August.  So my report for other newbies is that it was very easy to make all the dinner reservations online with one small exception.  Dining reservations became active for me right on time and opened without any problems - and was pretty easy to navigate.  My one issue is that one must select either dine alone or share prior to and separately from selecting a specific restaurant and date.  (There are buttons at the top of the dining reservation page that are quite separate from the actual act of making a dining reservation.)  If you want all alone tables or shared tables it isn't much of an issue - but we wanted a mix and you have to remember to make the change at the top of the page for table type before moving on to the next desired reservation.  But, even though I made a mistake on table type - it was easy to correct and I was all done by 12:15AM EDT.  So overall - very easy and we got all the restaurants, dates and times we wanted. 

[mb777]

Just returned from 10 day Lisbon to Le Havre in a B1 Verandah.  Pounced on dining reservations the absolute second they opened.  Had everything written in front of me with first choices, alternate dates, you name it.

I didn't attempt 2-tops because friends on the same cruise were unable to get 2-tops at 6:30 even in concierge level and they kept trying over and over since their window opened earlier than mine.

I got one 6:30 shared and one 7:30 shared.  Tried all combinations/days at either restaurant and basically the 6:30 slots are almost all gone by the time the lowly non-concierge guests get to choose.  Some have said be flexible and I don't know how more flexible to be than any restaurant, any day, 6:30 shared.

This had been a big concern for me for the entire year leading up to the cruise.  Obviously the 6:30 slots are the favorites because late dining seemed to be very easy.  My concerns proved correct just as with many on this thread.

 

After boarding I immediately (with my carry on luggage) went to the dining reservations desk and was told there are no 6:30 slots available for any restaurant, any day, shared or not, period.  I stopped by the desk many times during the cruise and received the same answer.  I did however snag an additional reservation at Toscana on embarkation day as a shared table but thankfully the other people never arrived.

 

It would seem a relatively easy solution would be to start dining at all venues at 6pm.  I believe other cruise lines start as early as 5pm.  Why Oceania starts at 6:30 is frustrating and as we have seen in this discussion very stressful.

 

For those who say to just relax and enjoy whatever comes along, I find this unacceptable at this level of expense.  It's obvious that many, many Oceania guests are frustrated with the unavailability of 6:30 dining.

 

[clo]

1 hour ago, mb777 said:

For those who say to just relax and enjoy whatever comes along,

I'm with the ones who say that. Just chill. This isn't world peace. Just dinner time.

[Harters]

5 minutes ago, clo said:

This isn't world peace.

No, it's more important than that. The wrong dinner time can ruin a cruise.

 

Many years back, when P & O had fixed sittings for dinner, we found ourselves allocated to the first siting at something like 6.30 which, to our mind, is still pretty much afternoon. Straight away after boarding, we went to see the restaurant manager to see about a swap to later. No joy, in spite of the offer of, ahem, a financial "thank you" if he was able to help us out. We were already becoming disenchanted with P & O's formality but this was the final straw and we didnt cruise with them again. 

[pinotlover]

All the passengers are on vacation. I don’t understand why some consider a 6:30 opening time late? All those wanting to eat earlier may do so via room service or high tea. Quite a few take that option. 
 

To answer the actual question, as addressed by a past Social Director: Oceania sails smaller ships, 670-1280 passengers , than most of the major lines. The fear is, with Oceania’s demographics and the smaller ships, the ships will become “ghost “ vessels by 7:30 or so. This may be received more negatively by more than a 5-6:00 opening would please.

[MEFIowa]

On 6/26/2024 at 10:09 AM, Woofbite said:

Booking wasn't nearly as bad as a few people on here made it sound....

What cabin level? The complaints are mainly for G-B cabins. They have a short 45-day window. Few complaints from A (concierge), who have an earlier window. Not sure I've seen one from someone PH or above.

[clo]

2 minutes ago, Harters said:

No, it's more important than that. The wrong dinner time can ruin a cruise.

 

I thought they were talking about one or two meals on a cruise. RUIN? Wow.

[clo]

15 minutes ago, MEFIowa said:

What cabin level? The complaints are mainly for G-B cabins. They have a short 45-day window. Few complaints from A (concierge), who have an earlier window. Not sure I've seen one from someone PH or above.

We had a 45 day window and may not have gotten our first choice but certainly did on second choices. Again, in the grand scheme of things this doesn't even make the list of negatives.

[mauibabes]

@mb777

Sorry  to hear you came out on the short end when it came to your dining reservation times/experiences. Every ship, every cruise and every night is different on Oceania. We have not had your experiences but maybe we have been “Lucky” over the last 15 years.

 

Vista was opening dinner reservations at 6:00 during her Inaugural sailings but I don’t know if they are still opening then or not. Staffing and crew rest and staggered starting shifts and illness and time off can present a real issue in the Specialties. A lot of people do like to dine between 6:30- 7:00 so it can get tight. You were on an R ship so your restaurant capacities were reduced and you encountered a cruise with an over abundance of early diners, it happens. 

Can you get what you want when you want them, maybe yes but you might have to consider booking a different stateroom level. Remember the Reservation window can be 45, 60 and 75 days and it can make a difference if you use a connected TA or are a DIYer. There have been times when we had to settle for 7:30 reservations, we can not do 8:00-9:00, or we just try for another night. We have moved up our bookings to PH’s in our later years so our window opens early.  We vstill may not get every reservation when desired but really never come up short because we love to “Share” and are “Flexible” when requesting extra Specialty reservations. I may also suggest getting to know Maitre d’s in the various restaurants and you will see them in the TC during breakfast and lunch to chat with. The Restaurant Manager can be a great friend and the Food and Beverage Director can even be a source for a reservation. Your Concierge can be helpful and should you have a Butler, they do have “Friends” 🤪👍. If the ship is FULL, the challenge is definitely greater, especially during certain peak cruise periods like the summer. 
 

Don’t just get frustrated over one sailing, you will find it easier as you make new staff and guest friends who can be quite connected. If you are a “Two Top Only” cruiser, then you might need a lot of stars to align 😇🙏🤞.

 

Enjoy,

Mauibabes

[roothy123]

For those ending up with 8 PM reservations, I'd suggest attending tea at 4 PM to try a few finger sandwiches or a scone, ordering a shrimp cocktail from room service, or getting some cheese and crackers (or whatever) from The Terrace at 6:30.  

[mb777]

1 hour ago, mauibabes said:

@mb777

Sorry  to hear you came out on the short end when it came to your dining reservation times/experiences. Every ship, every cruise and every night is different on Oceania. We have not had your experiences but maybe we have been “Lucky” over the last 15 years.

 

Vista was opening dinner reservations at 6:00 during her Inaugural sailings but I don’t know if they are still opening then or not. Staffing and crew rest and staggered starting shifts and illness and time off can present a real issue in the Specialties. A lot of people do like to dine between 6:30- 7:00 so it can get tight. You were on an R ship so your restaurant capacities were reduced and you encountered a cruise with an over abundance of early diners, it happens. 

Can you get what you want when you want them, maybe yes but you might have to consider booking a different stateroom level. Remember the Reservation window can be 45, 60 and 75 days and it can make a difference if you use a connected TA or are a DIYer. There have been times when we had to settle for 7:30 reservations, we can not do 8:00-9:00, or we just try for another night. We have moved up our bookings to PH’s in our later years so our window opens early.  We vstill may not get every reservation when desired but really never come up short because we love to “Share” and are “Flexible” when requesting extra Specialty reservations. I may also suggest getting to know Maitre d’s in the various restaurants and you will see them in the TC during breakfast and lunch to chat with. The Restaurant Manager can be a great friend and the Food and Beverage Director can even be a source for a reservation. Your Concierge can be helpful and should you have a Butler, they do have “Friends” 🤪👍. If the ship is FULL, the challenge is definitely greater, especially during certain peak cruise periods like the summer. 
 

Don’t just get frustrated over one sailing, you will find it easier as you make new staff and guest friends who can be quite connected. If you are a “Two Top Only” cruiser, then you might need a lot of stars to align 😇🙏🤞.

 

Enjoy,

Mauibabes

We understand that Concierge level will get us 6:30 specialty dining but seems to be quite a jump in cost to an already expensive cruise in order to have dinner when we prefer.  This cruise we were flexible with any day, any shared number of people, but we don't consider 6:30 early.  We normally eat at home 5:30-6 and just because we are docked at a European port that doesn't change the time we prefer to eat or the time we get hungry.  Also, we enjoy going to the 9:30 show and that is not possible with a 7:30 or later reservation.  Our specialty meals were taking an average of 2+ hours unfortunately.  About 90 minutes in the dining room.

We did make friends with the Toscana restaurant manager while he was working the other meals in the dining room but he said we would need to go to the specialty dining desk to make any changes.  Perhaps we didn't speak to the correct manager although he was the one standing at the podium every night in Toscana.

 

It's just frustrating at this price point that Oceania doesn't do something to accommodate the obvious need for "early" diners.  I don't buy the argument that the ship will become a ghost ship with the casino, shops, quartet, showroom all going strong in the evening.

Thank you for your post, it was very nice.  

[iowananny]

I sure hope I don't across as being rude because that is not my intention.  But O doesn't start serving full meals whether specialty or not until 6:30. They do have tea in the late afternoon and Baristas serves small sandwiches too.  But there is nowhere to be served a meal until 6:30 and I realize it can be very difficult to get a meal in a specialty restaurant at that time, but I don't know where you can go to get a full meal before 6:30. Maybe it's not a good decision but for now it is what they do.  If their decision doesn't fit your needs maybe you should look into other cruise lines that do serve their meals earlier and will meet your needs better.

 

We really enjoy Oceania but we also like eating later.  I'm sure not saying we're better than you, it's just our preference.  I think everyone has to find a cruise company that fits their needs and wants.

 

Please accept my apologies if I offended you, I certainly didn't mean to do so.

[mauibabes]

@mb777

We too eat early, sometimes going out to dinner before 5:00 but we do change our dining habits when on board. When back from excursions, we may head for tea in Horizons or our common practice is to visit friends and guests in Horizons or Martini’s for Happy Hour with a snack and a glass of wine or maybe a Big O or ?  If we have had a snack, perhaps that has taken the edge off a state of perpetual cruise hunger 😇👍 We tough it out and try to dine at 6:30 whenever possible. 
 

With excursions returning any hour of the afternoon or early evening, I don’t think early dining is ever an option, other than a bite ordered thru Room Service which is included on Oceania. 
Maybe one day on a future cruise we will have the opportunity to meet and share a beverage or a bite. We will even invite you to a Specialty dinner at 6:30, IF I can get that early reservation.

Mauibabes

[Mura]

I apologize for being so late to the party, especially since I only read the first few messages. We usually are in a suite, so we have advantages, of course over lower level cabins. Having said that, we have always booked our specialty reservations early (opting for sharing rather than just the two of us alone) and had no problems.  We aren't early diners, so that wasn't a problem either.

 

I would just say that making reservations as soon as you can (whatever your cabin level) and being flexible as to whether you opt to share or dine alone is the best approach.

 

We've met some very good friends on board by sharing a table with them ... One time which stands out when we were at a table for 6 in the GDR. It turned out that we were ALL classical musicians.  One of the other women was celebrating a birthday and had ordered a very special cake, which we all shared.  A very special night indeed!

 

And yes, you can make changes!

 

Mura

[sunlover12]

We prefer 6:30 reservations.   A couple of reasons why we like dining earlier:  *We don't go to afternoon tea although occasionally we'll order canapes that arrive at 5:00.  So on most days we are hungry at 6:30 because we haven't eaten since lunch.  *We go to the evening show at 9:30 and with a later dining time we'd be rushing through the meal.  *Going to bed at 10:30-11:00 on a big meal that hasn't been fully digested because I ate a late dinner is not a good feeling. 

 

I would choose GDR, Terrace Cafe or room service if I couldn't get the early reservation in one of the specialty restaurants.  It's just my preference but everyone is different. 

 

I agree with @mauibabes that opening the restaurants before 6:30 isn't practical because of staffing issues.

[clo]

1 hour ago, mb777 said:

We understand that Concierge level will get us 6:30 specialty dining but seems to be quite a jump in cost to an already expensive cruise in order to have dinner when we prefer.  This cruise we were flexible with any day, any shared number of people, but we don't consider 6:30 early.  We normally eat at home 5:30-6 and just because we are docked at a European port that doesn't change the time we prefer to eat or the time we get hungry.  Also, we enjoy going to the 9:30 show and that is not possible with a 7:30 or later reservation.  Our specialty meals were taking an average of 2+ hours unfortunately.  About 90 minutes in the dining room.

We did make friends with the Toscana restaurant manager while he was working the other meals in the dining room but he said we would need to go to the specialty dining desk to make any changes.  Perhaps we didn't speak to the correct manager although he was the one standing at the podium every night in Toscana.

 

It's just frustrating at this price point that Oceania doesn't do something to accommodate the obvious need for "early" diners.  I don't buy the argument that the ship will become a ghost ship with the casino, shops, quartet, showroom all going strong in the evening.

Thank you for your post, it was very nice.  

Please realize that you may have been off on shore excursions on a number of port days and may simply be tired. More so than if you're at home. And if you are off, then your lunch may be later and bigger than you're accustomed to. We've had big, special lunches ashore and one time even shared a room service burger 🙂

[clo]

15 minutes ago, Mura said:

One time which stands out when we were at a table for 6 in the GDR. It turned out that we were ALL classical musicians. 

Wow! I love that story. Thanks for sharing.

[ORV]

2 hours ago, roothy123 said:

For those ending up with 8 PM reservations, I'd suggest attending tea at 4 PM to try a few finger sandwiches or a scone, ordering a shrimp cocktail from room service, or getting some cheese and crackers (or whatever) from The Terrace at 6:30.  

For us it's not about being hungry, it's about not wanting to go to bed on a full stomach. We tend to go to bed between 9-10 at home. If we don't get done with dinner until 9 or later then we have to try to stay up for a while, we also tend to be up around 5-6 to get ready for a full day of touring. The eating late European model just doesn't work for us. 

[mb777]

57 minutes ago, mauibabes said:

@mb777

We too eat early, sometimes going out to dinner before 5:00 but we do change our dining habits when on board. When back from excursions, we may head for tea in Horizons or our common practice is to visit friends and guests in Horizons or Martini’s for Happy Hour with a snack and a glass of wine or maybe a Big O or ?  If we have had a snack, perhaps that has taken the edge off a state of perpetual cruise hunger 😇👍 We tough it out and try to dine at 6:30 whenever possible. 
 

With excursions returning any hour of the afternoon or early evening, I don’t think early dining is ever an option, other than a bite ordered thru Room Service which is included on Oceania. 
Maybe one day on a future cruise we will have the opportunity to meet and share a beverage or a bite. We will even invite you to a Specialty dinner at 6:30, IF I can get that early reservation.

Mauibabes

I should probably explain, by early dining I'm talking about 6:30 which is very difficult to obtain.  We did go to happy hour which is 5-6, then the natural move for us would be heading to dinner at 6:30 after happy hour.  Hope this makes sense.