dining

[nicholasis1]

we are going on the caribbean princess nov 25th and have been assigned any time dining. in the past we have had our traditional dining and have heard the food at the buffet is not as good as the buffet. can anyone help us decide and what time are the seating on the ship? Have read some good reviews here lately but also some not so great for st thomas( crowded, hard to get off ship early etc) any hints would be so appreciated. thanks:p

[RetireeWannabee]

I'm not completely sure what you are asking.

 

Anytime Dining is not the buffet, it is dining room dining, you just show up when you want. I don't know when the Traditional seatings for your cruise are.

 

If you have already been assigned Anytime, I would not assume that you can switch to Traditional (maybe, if still available). You should call whoever you booked with (TA or Princess) and ask these questions.

 

We were on Diamond Princess a year ago and did not think the buffet food was inferior. We enjoyed it but do prefer the dining room experience whenever possible.

[flamomo]

We've cruised on 4 different princess ships so far, and the buffet food was quite good with lots of variety on each of them. However, satisfaction with food is so subjective, no one can tell you that you will or will not enjoy the buffet.

As the OP said, Anytime Dining does not mean eating all your meals at the buffet, unless you choose to. There are separate dining rooms for traditional (assigned dining times) and Anytime (you go when you want to during the dining hours). You just show up at the appropriate dining room between 5:30 and 10 PM and tell the maitre 'd whether you want a table for just your party or if you want to be seated with others. Some people like traditional because they sit with the same people and have the same servers every time. We enjoy getting to meet new people at every meal that we have in the dining room, and we find the service has been good in Anytime. By the same token, we like the buffet when we are tired from a day ashore and don't want to get cleaned up to go to dinner.

[cb at sea]

We prefer traditional dining--(I HATE buffets!!!) and I like being served! Call whoever booked you, and request a change, if that is what you want!

[kitty9]

Anytime dining isn't the buffet. It's in the main dining room, but with anytime dining you go to the dining room anytime you want, when it's open for dinner, and you sit where they put you. You get the same menu, it's just that you don't have an assigned time or assigned table and waiter. The dress code is the same as if you had traditional dining. If it's formal, you dress formal.

[newmexicoNita]

We prefer traditional dining--(I HATE buffets!!!) and I like being served! Call whoever booked you, and request a change, if that is what you want!

where are you getting the idea "anytime dining" is a buffet? There is a 24 hour buffet, but anytime dining has nothing to do with buffets. Most cruise lines are not introducing flex dining. Why would the Op have to change this?

Nita

[vmom]

We prefer traditional dining--(I HATE buffets!!!) and I like being served! Call whoever booked you, and request a change, if that is what you want!

 

Anytime dining also referred to as personal choice dining...is NOT the buffet. There are 3 dining rooms total. 1 dining room is for traditional style in which you are assigned a specific time to dine, such as 6:30 or 8:30.

 

For anytime dining/personal choice dining....you show up at one of the other 2 dining rooms anytime between 5:30 and ?....can't remember when the dining rooms close but I think around 9:00 or there abouts...

Its dining when you want to, not when you are assigned a time. You still sit a a table and are served. The menu is the same as the dining room for the traditional dining. All 3 dining rooms use the same menu.

 

 

The buffet is completely different and is available for anyone 24 hours a day.

[Plant]

We just came home from a two week cruise on Caribbean Princess and chose "Personal Choice" (Anytime) dining. We love being able to eat when we want, where we want and with whoever we want!

 

Some nights we ate in the Palm Dining Room. We asked for a table for two and never had to wait (you might have to on formal nights). Some nights we ate at the buffet and thought it was fine. A few nights we just ordered Room Service and "chilled" :) . Twice we ordered Room Service pizza ($3.00 charge). I thought it was just okay, but DH liked it. The only choices are cheese pizza and pepperoni pizza (don't go by the menu in the cabin).

 

At this point it's very doubtful that you can get into Traditional Dining. You can ask to be added to the waitlist if that's what you'd prefer.

 

We didn't have any problems getting off the ship in St. Thomas. When you go through immigration they give you a card that allows you to get off when you want. You no longer have to wait for the whole ship to be cleared.

 

How crowded it will be depends on how many other ships are there. Check cruisecal.com to check the number of ships in port when you're there.

 

Have a wonderful cruise! We did :D !

[cruise_lover]

We just came home from a two week cruise on Caribbean Princess and chose "Personal Choice" (Anytime) dining. We love being able to eat when we want, where we want and with whoever we want!

 

Some nights we ate in the Palm Dining Room. We asked for a table for two and never had to wait (you might have to on formal nights). Some nights we ate at the buffet and thought it was fine. A few nights we just ordered Room Service and "chilled" :) . Twice we ordered Room Service pizza ($3.00 charge). I thought it was just okay, but DH liked it. The only choices are cheese pizza and pepperoni pizza (don't go by the menu in the cabin).

 

At this point it's very doubtful that you can get into Traditional Dining. You can ask to be added to the waitlist if that's what you'd prefer.

 

We didn't have any problems getting off the ship in St. Thomas. When you go through immigration they give you a card that allows you to get off when you want. You no longer have to wait for the whole ship to be cleared.

 

How crowded it will be depends on how many other ships are there. Check cruisecal.com to check the number of ships in port when you're there.

 

Have a wonderful cruise! We did :D !

 

 

Well Said!