Dining preference question

[rebeccaluvscruising]

Hi All,

 

I'm new to Celebrity and just booked a cruise for New Zealand/Australia in November, 2008. As I'm excited, I'm trying to do my cruise preferences online. When it comes to dining arrangements there are 2 options: Main Dining or Second Dining. Does this refer to times or restaurants? Thanks!

 

Rebecca

 

PS I'll be cruising solo, so love any advice or to hear from fellow travelers.:o

[Tinkerbellcgy]

Main seating and second seating refer to the times dinner is offered in the dining room. I was just on a Royal Caribbean cruise and the main seating was at 6:00 p.m. and second seating was at 8:30 p.m. I can only assume that those times will be approximately the same on Celebrity.

 

I, too, am new to Celebrity and I also travel solo. Dining in the dining room is a wonderful way to expand your horizons by meeting and getting to know your tablemates. Until this past cruise, I have always opted for late (second) seating but this time I chose main seating and have decided that I much prefer it.

 

I hope you enjoy your cruise "down under" - it's one that I would love to be able to do one of these days.

[kitty9]

Main Seating is 6pm, and Late is 8:30. They are both in the same restaurant, just different times.

[lvcruiser]

My wife and I have tried both seatings and have found our favorite depends on the cruise line. When we sail on =X=, we enjoy main seating because we can schedule the shows, casino visits, etc. afterward rather than before dining. However, when we sail RCI, we prefer late seating to avoid the inevitably unruly children that attend the main seating. When on Celebrity, you seldom have that problem.

[rebeccaluvscruising]

Thanks so much for your quick responses and insight! I thought the wording they used was a little confusing so appreciate your clarification.

 

Now I have to figure out how to add this countdown clock to my signature.:o

 

Such nice problems to have...

 

Rebecca

[HAM]

I think a NASA scientist should have no problem woth the countdown clock!

My wife and I enjoy late seating. More time to relax for us, and the wait staff seems more relaxed also, they don't have a quick turn-around for the next seating. Enjoy!

 

 

P.S. - How did that happen?

[rebeccaluvscruising]

Couldn't get the second clock below the first one! Oh well, my late husband called me The Accidental Scientist...;) I wasn't the techie sort - just passionate about my subject matter. Got tired of working for the government and decided to do something more creative and fun - and it is!

 

Thanks for your input!

 

Rebecca

[aaklang]

For us, choosing between main seating and late seating depends on the times we set sail each day. On our Mediterranean cruise, we were often in port until 7:00, so we chose the late seating and never had to rush back to the ship just to make it to dinner. For our upcoming Alaska cruise, we have several days at sea and others where we depart in the mid-afternoon, so we chose the main seating and hope to enjoy some of the shows and nightlife. With the late seating last time, we often went straight to bed because dinner didn't end until almost 11:00.

 

Either way, enjoy the food - it's delicious!

[Chicago Boy]

We always take second seating because it gives us more time to get ready for dinner if we getting back late from a tour. We've seen people have to run to make it to dinner. The late seating also gives us time to relax and meet our friends for a cocktail before dinnner.

 

CB

[ccletzgo]

We always take second seating because it gives us more time to get ready for dinner if we getting back late from a tour. We've seen people have to run to make it to dinner. The late seating also gives us time to relax and meet our friends for a cocktail before dinnner.

 

CB

 

Same here, then if we want to dine earlier, we do the alternate dining, or book the specialty restaurant. Most cruises are in a time zone ahead of our time at home, so late dining is not so late for us. Now, if we cruised Hawaii, I would be in line for early dining:D