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Dining - Odyssey - Evening hours of operation.....


Mabers
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Thanks so much for posting this.....it has confirmed our worst (almost) fears. Had we known when we were booking that the first available time to eat in the dining room was/is 7 PM, it might well have been a deal breaker. We never even thought to ask!

 

Jackie and I have almost 100 cruises between us (this will our first on Seabourn), and never have we heard of a dining room not opening until 7 PM.....some start seating at 5:30! There isn't even an alternative other than eating in our suite - not something we care to do. We have booked one night in The Grill, but there are 11 more nights!

 

As for the shows not starting 'til 9:45, that's a whole other problem!

 

Oh well, at this point I guess we will just have to suck it up, but it sure has taken the edge off the anticipation that precedes every cruise.

 

Sheila.

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You didn’t ask, but here are tonight’s menus (The Grill by Thomas Keller never changes):

 

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My mother and I tried In Suite dining one night from The Restaurant’s menu but the order was wrong and lukewarm at best. I wouldn’t suggest it.

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Thanks for posting the menus.....the offerings look delectable!

 

No, we don't cruise to sit and eat dinner in a little cabin! Half the fun of cruising is getting dressed up and dining with people from different parts of the world.

 

Sheila.

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7 p.m. is actually considered quite early in Europe (including the UK, currently in Europe ) . We find it the ideal time for us - a couple of cocktails in the Observation Lounge from 6ish, or the Club from 6.30, and then down soon after 7. If you have afternoon tea, 4 until 5, you would not need to eat again until at least 7! Dinner at 5.30 would mean a very long wait until time for the show. However, if you want to try the TK grill, the slots at 6 or 6.15 will probably be available most evenings.

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LadyVol1 - could you ask Onur, the sommelier, if he will be on Odyssey for our February 3rd cruise, please? We met him last year and really enjoyed discussing wine with him. We were with our sons and daughters in law and he treated us like kings! Thank you. Margaret

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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Points in all replies well taken.....just a couple of thoughts:

 

Lots of people eat later on the larger cruise lines too - the 8:30 seating is usually full and many eat even later with the My Time Dining option. The thing is that there is a choice.

 

Our wanting to eat a little earlier has little to do with being hungry, and much to do with being 'early to bed' people.

 

We have decided to make the best of it, but you can be sure we will be banging on the dining room door at 6:59!

 

As a matter of interest, are most of the passengers on Seabourn from UK/Europe while the ships are sailing the Caribbean?

 

Sheila.

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Dear Mabers, DH and I feel for you as we tend to eat at 5PM at home (usually dark by then for most part of the year). However, once you enter the vibe of a SB or SS cruise you will not feel you have compromised your daily living while at home. It will feel different, and you will not be upset by the change. You will probably enjoy the show at 9pm!!

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We are like you, early eaters at home and thought exactly the same prior but when cruising on SB we struggled to get to the MDR by 7pm as we were enjoying the singers either in the Observation Bar or in the TK Grill Bar.

 

Where we thought it was going to be an inconvenience, in reality it was so different.

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Is the evening show really at 9:00 ? We were told 9:45 which is definitely too late for us. That would be a real shame. I eat between 5:30 and 6:00 at home, but am in bed by 9:30 unless a very special occasion. Can't sleep in no matter what time I get to bed, ( up at 7:00), but need 10 hours of bed rest ( difficulty sleeping) to function. No way one can go to bed right after eating a big meal.

Jackie

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Jackie, I think you are right about the hour of the show, generally, but - as has been mentioned - there are other entertainment options before that hour. If you have canapés with your tea or champagne around 4pm, you can go to the dinner table at 7 and enjoy a light fare... When I do this, I ask for two or three appetizers instead of the entrée, or have the main and not eat it all. I'm sure you will work it out to your satisfaction!

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Is the evening show really at 9:00 ? We were told 9:45 which is definitely too late for us. That would be a real shame. I eat between 5:30 and 6:00 at home, but am in bed by 9:30 unless a very special occasion. Can't sleep in no matter what time I get to bed, ( up at 7:00), but need 10 hours of bed rest ( difficulty sleeping) to function. No way one can go to bed right after eating a big meal.

Jackie

 

Glad you chimed in, Jackie!

 

According to 'The Herald', posted above, the show starts at 9:45. Yes, too late for us, unfortunately.

 

Sheila.

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Agree with the OP on this. We have done two Seabourn cruises and the dining/lounge/show hours just don't work for us. Seabourn draws a big north American clientele, many of whom dine a lot closer to 6:00 than 8:00. You would think (hope) that a luxury cruise line would be more accommodating and flexible (room service doesn't count). My other pet peeve, the Club, the largest lounge on the ship, doesn't open until 6:00. If you want t drink at 5:00 and the weather is bad, you only have one option. And the 9:45 shows....I only made it to one on a 23 day cruise. For folks that rise early every day and keep certain hours (in bed by 10/10:30), Seabourn 's schedule is a big negative. There are lots of us, I wish Seabourn would recognize this.

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We generally like to have drinks 6.30pm - 7.30pm and then go down to dinner. Personally, we like a long dinner with good companions and good food so we quite often miss the show unless it is something one of us specially wants to see.

 

Personally, I think that a 7pm opening for the MDR and the Colonnade is quite reasonable and a good compromise between Europeans who often eat closer to 8pm and those Americans who like to eat early (I never got out of the office before 6pm anyway).

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Agree with the OP on this. We have done two Seabourn cruises and the dining/lounge/show hours just don't work for us. Seabourn draws a big north American clientele, many of whom dine a lot closer to 6:00 than 8:00. You would think (hope) that a luxury cruise line would be more accommodating and flexible (room service doesn't count). My other pet peeve, the Club, the largest lounge on the ship, doesn't open until 6:00. If you want t drink at 5:00 and the weather is bad, you only have one option. And the 9:45 shows....I only made it to one on a 23 day cruise. For folks that rise early every day and keep certain hours (in bed by 10/10:30), Seabourn 's schedule is a big negative. There are lots of us, I wish Seabourn would recognize this.

 

Very well said. We were really disappointed to learn about these hours just 3 weeks before sailing but for sure we won't be sailing with Seabourn again if these hours continue over in this part of the world.:(

Jackie and Sheila

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Agree with the OP on this. We have done two Seabourn cruises and the dining/lounge/show hours just don't work for us. Seabourn draws a big north American clientele, many of whom dine a lot closer to 6:00 than 8:00. You would think (hope) that a luxury cruise line would be more accommodating and flexible (room service doesn't count). My other pet peeve, the Club, the largest lounge on the ship, doesn't open until 6:00. If you want t drink at 5:00 and the weather is bad, you only have one option. And the 9:45 shows....I only made it to one on a 23 day cruise. For folks that rise early every day and keep certain hours (in bed by 10/10:30), Seabourn 's schedule is a big negative. There are lots of us, I wish Seabourn would recognize this.

 

Couldn't agree more!

 

I am trying to highlight the 'wanting to drink at 5:00 and having only one option', and it's not working....is that option drinking in your suite? Is there nowhere else to go and enjoy some live music and possibly watch some dancing and enjoy a drink before 6?

 

Sheila.

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On the Quest and Sojourn we were on, the observation lounge opened at 5:00, piano player started around 5:30. The Club opened at 6:00, no entertainment before 6:30. If the weather was nice, I believe you could get a drink at the patio bar before 6:00. Otherwise, one option at 5:00, the observation lounge.

 

If seabourn opened the Club at 5:00, and at least the colonnade at 6:00 for dinner, I think that would go a long way towards mitigating the late hours problem,

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As North Americans, we are also early diners. We spent four days in Rome ahead of our cruise and it was such a comedy as we tried to have dinner before seven. It just wasn't going to happen! LOL On our cruise (on the Encore), we had dinner every night at 6:45 so that we could be at the first show at 8:45. This worked for us. After a long (but very fun day) which began around 7am, we went straight to bed after the show--which ended about 9:45 pm. We are NOT that old--only 65 and 66. It was just a full day. We loved every minute!

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The patio and sky bars (outdoors ) are open until 6 p.m. The Observation Bar/Lounge is open for drinks at 5 p.m., but the Club does not open officially until 6.30, although it is usually fine to go in before that time and find the bartender there and serving.

 

We too eat fairly at home, but find on a ship that the activities of the day take until at least 5, when we feel like going to the suite for a freshen up and rest, then up to the Observation Bar at or before 6. With nibbles provided, and a chat about the day, going to the dining room a fraction before 7 feels just right. You can still be in bed by 9 or even earlier. Also, on some evenings there will be a pre-dinner talk or show, finishing around 7 or 7.15. I know that on some lines there will be very early dinner, and then an early show before the second one - I think that may happen on Encore, but not on the other three ships - showtime is 9.45.

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