$10 Charge for Character Dining?

I just saw that Character Dining on Oasis has been moved from the Dining section to the Onboard Experiences section and a $10 charge has been added.

Anyone else seeing this as well?

On hold with RCI right now, customer service rep had no idea about the charge and doesn't seem to see any paperwork or notice of a policy change that states there should be a charge. She is checking with a supervisor right now.

I just saw that Character Dining on Oasis has been moved from the Dining section to the Onboard Experiences section and a $10 charge has been added.

 

Anyone else seeing this as well?

 

On hold with RCI right now, customer service rep had no idea about the charge and doesn't seem to see any paperwork or notice of a policy change that states there should be a charge. She is checking with a supervisor right now.

Oh heck not another change :confused:...please say it is just a glitch...I loved the Character Breakfast on Allure :D but I am not paying for it in the future....no way !!

Finally heard back and after the customer service rep checked with multiple people there is now a $10 charge for adults and kids are free. So apparently you now have to pay to take your kids to a character breakfast. Sounds pretty ridiculous to me.

I was told the reasoning behind the charge was too many people would book and then not show up. I am holding out hope that they are charging people up front to book and then upon showing up to the breakfast, the money will be refunded (like a deposit of sorts). Hopefully that is the case, but if not...I (and I'm sure many others) will not be happy!

Finally heard back and after the customer service rep checked with multiple people there is now a $10 charge for adults and kids are free. So apparently you now have to pay to take your kids to a character breakfast. Sounds pretty ridiculous to me.

 

I was told the reasoning behind the charge was too many people would book and then not show up. I am holding out hope that they are charging people up front to book and then upon showing up to the breakfast, the money will be refunded (like a deposit of sorts). Hopefully that is the case, but if not...I (and I'm sure many others) will not be happy!

Thanks for the update.

Not happy now.:(

In my opinion, it is not worth the $10. We won't be doing it again.

Isn't that the same when they start implementing charges for Johnny Rockets, when in fact, it was just another cash grab?

Interesting that they would only charge the adults but not the kids. Wonder if any parents would try to send the kids to these character breakfast by themselves.

I think they should waive the fees to those who had reserved their cruise prior to implementing the new charge.

Is the character breakfast held in the main dining room? Are the food options the same as they would be in the regular dining room breakfast? And, is the dining room closed for regular breakfast when the character breakfast is held?

My documents say "no charge"... Is this for new reservations? My date is April 26, 2014

It's held in the main dining room and the menu options seem to be quite comparable if not pretty much the same as the normal main dining room breakfast options. They close off a section of one floor of the main dining room where they have the breakfast and only seat people there if they have reservations (or those waiting in line w/o them). There is absolutely no reason to charge extra for it.

My documents say "no charge"... Is this for new reservations? My date is April 26, 2014

Mine is for a May 10th cruise, definitely was not a new reservation. But today was the first day that the Character Breakfast was finally available to be booked. The rest of the specialty restaurants and shows were open for booking months ago.

It's held in the main dining room and the menu options seem to be quite comparable if not pretty much the same as the normal main dining room breakfast options. They close off a section of one floor of the main dining room where they have the breakfast and only seat people there if they have reservations (or those waiting in line w/o them). There is absolutely no reason to charge extra for it.

Perfect. So we (adults) can sit by ourselves at breakfast in the main dining room and send the kids over to the character breakfast by themselves since they're free. That makes sense, right?

This is what was stated in their webpage prior to March 16, 2014:

"Dreamworks Character Dining - DWBFBRKFST

 

Menu

Our DreamWorks-inspired menu features a wide array of morning favorites from "Fresh-a-Liscious Yogurt Selections" to "Crack-a-Lackin Smoked Salmon Plate." Parents who are not quite ready to dive into a serving of "ferocious French toast" will be happy to find a menu featuring traditional à la carte breakfast items and coffee.

 

Where You'll Find it

DreamWorks Character Dining takes place in the Main Dining Room onboard Oasis of the Seas®, Allure of the Seas®, Freedom of the Seas®, Liberty of the Seas®, Mariner of the Seas® and Voyager of the Seas®.

 

Dress Suggestion

During breakfast hours, casual clothes are fine for the Main Dining Room.

 

Reservations

Reservations are required for Character Dining. Reservations can be made pre-cruise through royalcaribbean.com or on board in the main dining room.

 

Costs

DreamWorks Character Dining (including coffee, tea, water, iced tea or lemonade) is included in the price of your cruise.

 

This is what is stated now:

DreamWorks Character Dining - DWBFBRKFST

 

 

Menu

Our DreamWorks-inspired menu features a wide array of morning favorites from "Fresh-a-Liscious Yogurt Selections" to "Crack-a-Lackin Smoked Salmon Plate." Parents who are not quite ready to dive into a serving of "ferocious French toast" will be happy to find a menu featuring traditional à la carte breakfast items and coffee.

Dress Suggestion

During breakfast hours, casual clothes are fine for the Main Dining Room.

 

Reservations

Reservations are required for Character Dining. Reservations can be made pre-cruise or on board in the main dining room.

 

Costs

A nominal fee of $10 applies for guests 6 years and above. Guests who are 5 years and under are free.

Therefore, I think they should waive the fee for those who booked prior to March 16, 2014

Im booked character breakfast 10-15 days ago.... And say "no charge"..is posible they charge it aboard?:eek:

:(My kids loved it on Allure and Oasis. On those ships the breakfast was full, or at least close to capacity. It is sad that they would now charge for it.

Im booked character breakfast 10-15 days ago.... And say "no charge"..is posible they charge it aboard?:eek:

I would print off the screen where it says "no charge" and bring it along. Just in case.

Im booked character breakfast 10-15 days ago.... And say "no charge"..is posible they charge it aboard?:eek:

You should not be charged if you made a booking prior to the new charges.

We went to the character breakfast on Allure with my nieces and nephews in December. 8 adults, 4 kids; (2 of them over age 6). I can assure you no one in my family would agree to pay $100 to eat MDR breakfast. Ever. Under any circumstance.

The characters walk around to the tables for a photo op and there is a little song/dance. It's cute. It was fine as a "freebie". The characters appear on the promenade for photo ops throughout the cruise for free too (check cruise compass for times)

My issue is that I was unable to book until today...and now I know why. The delay in adding it to the MyCruises booking system for my sailing was that they were in the process of implementing the $10 charge.

Like I mentioned earlier, all other items were available to pre-book online for several months, and this morning was the first time the Character Breakfast was open for booking. I even tried calling multiple times to see if I could book over the phone, but it was not available in their system.

I have an email out to our good friend Mr. Goldstein so we'll see what he (or his representatives) come back with.

I do not think it is fair to start charging people for this who have already booked their cruise prior to the change in policy.

Am I supposed to send my 1 year old to the character breakfast on his own? I'd love to see their reaction as I walk up to the dining room to check-in for my reservation of 1.

I though about doing this with the DW just for something fun and different but not at 10$ a person. Ill just go to the WJ

Thanks for the heads up. Our Character Breakfast reservation for our Apr 27th cruise has disappeared from our reservations list and this option is not available to book anymore....:confused:

Thanks for the heads up. Our Character Breakfast reservation for our Apr 27th cruise has disappeared from our reservations list and this option is not available to book anymore....:confused:

:eek::eek::eek:???!!!???

We booked and went to the Character Breakfast on Freedom last October. It was kind of fun and we liked seeing the kids that were there having a good time but there were only 2 characters there. We saw more around the ship during the week of the cruise. Now having been and knowing how it is, I will not go again on future cruises for $10 or for free! :cool:

Three adults including myself just did this on Oasis March 7. Have been 3 times so will not be doing this again. Menu is the same as the regular dining and you can also choose from the buffet like others who have not booked the Character dining have access to.

They usually offer it 3 mornings during the cruise. It certainly was not packed or anything.

We booked and went to the Character Breakfast on Freedom last October. It was kind of fun and we liked seeing the kids that were there having a good time but there were only 2 characters there. We saw more around the ship during the week of the cruise. Now having been and knowing how it is, I will not go again on future cruises for $10 or for free! :cool:

I would hope that with the implementation of this "user fee", the experience would be upgraded. Two characters is pretty weak.

The Disney theme park character meals are pretty good about letting the children have ample time with the characters with a minimal wait; but you're going to pay between $50 and $20 per person for the experience.

I though about doing this with the DW just for something fun and different but not at 10$ a person. Ill just go to the WJ

My advise to you would be to skip it even if it is free. I am not sure you would enjoy it. You might end up feeling awkward because this event is really geared for kids.

Also even if you didn't pre book the character breakfast, the people in the other part of the dining room was still able to view it depending on where you were seated. The kids who were with their parents having breakfast in the MDR were able to come over to take pictures with the characters also if you were not able to book it! :cool: