Have you ever not liked your table mates??

Hi-Husband and I love to meet new people when we are cruising. We also like to sit with people for dinner. Our last experience doing that wasn't great. The people were rude, racist, and just all-around horrors. We couldn't get away from them fast enough. Then of course we would see them all over the ship and they would want to stop and talk to us..we would just say quick "hello, how is your day?" and keep moving.

We want to be able to sit with others again..but now we are a little nervous about it.

I don't bother with the MDR these days not unless I'm forced into it by family. I do remember being seated with people that didn't speak English in the past. it was not a Fun For All experience. One time we were seated with a know it all school teacher that didn't let anyone else talk .Even though his mouth was full of food when he was trying to give us all an education. :rolleyes:

So far, we've never had tablemates we couldn't get along with. Sure, some are more fun than others, but none have been obnoxious or mean and nasty! I mean, folks are on vacation, and want to have a good time! We've never experienced rude, racist or horrible tablemates! I think you must have had a 1-off experience.

If a conversation starts that is a potential problem....steer it to something else! Talk about your plans for the next day...or ask about their kids or family....just get off the "hot-topic"!

A lot of how you perceive others is up to YOU!

I don't bother with the MDR these days not unless I'm forced into it by family. I do remember being seated with people that didn't speak English in the past. it was not a Fun For All experience. One time we were seated with a know it all school teacher that didn't let anyone else talk .Even though his mouth was full of food when he was trying to give us an all education. :rolleyes:

It's true, you never know who you are going to get and that can make for an awkward week, but then you have stories to tell! We've also met great people, some whom I keep in touch with still today and some not so great. Over the years we've had millionaire lottery winners, an Argentinian family that spoke no English at all and just ignored us, an Irish woman who would floss her teeth right at the table, an Italian who told us every night how much she loved jicama, a dating couple on their first cruise who didn't like each other anymore Once, my husband and I were the only couple at a table of spring breaking girls who shared their drunken stories and hookups from the night before. My best friend and I cruise together and we've shared a table with a couple of Cuban brothers who were hilarious, and another year we were seated at a table with 3 other women, and all of us keep in touch yet, too. Honeymooners, solo travelers, first-time cruisers. My first cruise I was the only single young woman seated at a table with all 40 something couples...but you know what? They were so kind and fun and our whole table even ended up doing an excursion together.

Now, when we take our kids we end up just at a table with each other and not that it is bad (I get not everyone wants to sit with other people's kids), we just don't meet as many new people.

I have a lot more stories, but the point is stay open to it...you just never know who you will meet. You don't have to do every cruise that way but if you like the experiences of meeting people, take it with a grain of salt and chalk it up to "oh well, maybe next time". My dining mates have never ruined my cruise.

So far, we've never had tablemates we couldn't get along with. Sure, some are more fun than others, but none have been obnoxious or mean and nasty! I mean, folks are on vacation, and want to have a good time! We've never experienced rude, racist or horrible tablemates! I think you must have had a 1-off experience.

If a conversation starts that is a potential problem....steer it to something else! Talk about your plans for the next day...or ask about their kids or family....just get off the "hot-topic"!

A lot of how you perceive others is up to YOU!

I converted to My Time Dining about 7 cruises ago. You get the chance to sit with or near other people, and if you don't like your tablemates the chances are good you won't have to sit with them the next day. If you do like them, you just pick a time to meet up the next day and go into the dining room as one group. I love the flexibility.

You can ask the maitre d to reseat you the next night. I once sat with a four top with a German couple 20 years my senior who didn’t speak English. Awkward.

The maitre d moved me to a different table without issue the next night after I asked. Doesn’t really matter the reason.

We like to choose our tablemates ourselves.

That is why we do Your Time (any time) dining.

We either enjoy each other's company at a table for 2 or we invite people to join us who we have met around the ship.

We have done traditional seating and have not enjoyed it.

It's true, you never know who you are going to get and that can make for an awkward week, but then you have stories to tell! We've also met great people, some whom I keep in touch with still today and some not so great. Over the years we've had millionaire lottery winners, an Argentinian family that spoke no English at all and just ignored us, an Irish woman who would floss her teeth right at the table, an Italian who told us every night how much she loved jicama, a dating couple on their first cruise who didn't like each other anymore Once, my husband and I were the only couple at a table of spring breaking girls who shared their drunken stories and hookups from the night before. My best friend and I cruise together and we've shared a table with a couple of Cuban brothers who were hilarious, and another year we were seated at a table with 3 other women, and all of us keep in touch yet, too. Honeymooners, solo travelers, first-time cruisers. My first cruise I was the only single young woman seated at a table with all 40 something couples...but you know what? They were so kind and fun and our whole table even ended up doing an excursion together

 

Now, when we take our kids we end up just at a table with each other and not that it is bad (I get not everyone wants to sit with other people's kids), we just don't meet as many new people.

 

I have a lot more stories, but the point is stay open to it...you just never know who you will meet. You don't have to do every cruise that way but if you like the experiences of meeting people, take it with a grain of salt and chalk it up to "oh well, maybe next time". My dining mates have never ruined my cruise.

No way I'm playing that lottery because I meet lots of people I don't like on a cruise. I will take a table for 2 every time. I am there to spend time with my wife away from our busy lives anyway, not to make mindless chatter with some random person.

No way I'm playing that lottery because I meet lots of people I don't like on a cruise. I will take a table for 2 every time. I am there to spend time with my wife away from our busy lives anyway, not to make mindless chatter with some random person.

You can ask the maitre d to reseat you the next night. I once sat with a four top with a German couple 20 years my senior who didn’t speak English. Awkward.

The maitre d moved me to a different table without issue the next night after I asked. Doesn’t really matter the reason.

We've met a lot of different sorts in fixed late MDR seating but none we couldn't get along with for at least the time we sat at dinner. There have been numerous ones that at home would not have been bff's but for a few dinners it was fine. There have been some we still keep in touch with. When in doubt I always ask a question about past travels or what they have planned for the next port of call.

If all else fails and the company was intolerable I'd follow the suggestion I quoted above and ask to be moved.

Hi-Husband and I love to meet new people when we are cruising. We also like to sit with people for dinner. Our last experience doing that wasn't great. The people were rude, racist, and just all-around horrors. We couldn't get away from them fast enough. Then of course we would see them all over the ship and they would want to stop and talk to us..we would just say quick "hello, how is your day?" and keep moving.

 

We want to be able to sit with others again..but now we are a little nervous about it.

Though a small yacht charter of "you and yours" is about the only way to achieve true homogeneity, your concern about the "luck of the draw" dining partner experiences on a "trying to be everything to everybody" behemoth ship is one of the very reasonable factors that convince many folks to move up to the premium/luxury cruise lines (which still will have its sampling of butt heads, albeit a handful rather than a herd).

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We were on a cruise several years ago and were seated with 3 other couples .We introduced ourselves by last names and one couple constantly told us that they knew people of our religion .

We too have had tablemates who were overtly racist . On our last cruise we had a table for 2 and it was fine.

My spouse and I are both super introverted, but on our last cruise, I enjoyed making small talk with the other family at the table. If you stick to ordinary subjects such as the weather, how wonderful the food is, excursions and port activities, asking about where they live and how hey like it, there are plenty of ways to foster a harmonious, friendly table.

We were given the choice of begin seated by ourselves, but frankly we don't take ourselves out of our comfort zone much, and I think it's good for us to do that sometimes.

Though a small yacht charter of "you and yours" is about the only way to achieve true homogeneity, your concern about the "luck of the draw" dining partner experiences on a "trying to be everything to everybody" behemoth ship is one of the very reasonable factors that convince many folks to move up to the premium/luxury cruise lines (which still will have its sampling of butt heads, albeit a handful rather than a herd).

 

 

 

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Are you saying that Carnival caters to the Rift Raff type of people :cool:

On a Celebrity family reunion cruise we were at a table for ten and there were 8 of us (family). The ship thought it would be a fine idea to sit 2 strangers with us. My brother talked to them and told them the situation and they agreed they wouldn't belong and got another table.

When my wife and I cruise together we always use MTD and get a table for two. I wouldn't want to eat with strangers at a shoreside restaurant and we don't want to eat with them on the ship. Sometimes we meet people outside of the MDR (on deck or Lido) and if we like them we ask if they would like to join us for dinner.

In response to your thread's title: Yes, but they were family and I did book the cruise with them....:D

My only experience with "bad" tablemates was a couple assigned to our table of eight. They were evangelicals that came to dinner with a Bible in hand, wanted to hold hands for a blessing before the meal (we let them do it the first night) and was always looking for a way to bring a mini sermon of redemption and salvation into the conversation.

Luckily, they were pretty easy to shut down when they tried. :evilsmile:

On a Celebrity family reunion cruise we were at a table for ten and there were 8 of us (family). The ship thought it would be a fine idea to sit 2 strangers with us. My brother talked to them and told them the situation and they agreed they wouldn't belong and got another table.

 

When my wife and I cruise together we always use MTD and get a table for two. I wouldn't want to eat with strangers at a shoreside restaurant and we don't want to eat with them on the ship. Sometimes we meet people outside of the MDR (on deck or Lido) and if we like them we ask if they would like to join us for dinner.

Wow.....some people :o

In response to your thread's title: Yes, but they were family and I did book the cruise with them....:D

 

My only experience with "bad" tablemates was a couple assigned to our table of eight. They were evangelicals that came to dinner with a Bible in hand, wanted to hold hands for a blessing before the meal (we let them do it the first night) and was always looking for a way to bring a mini sermon of redemption and salvation into the conversation.

 

Luckily, they were pretty easy to shut down when they tried. :evilsmile:

Try sitting down with a couple from Japan that couldn't speak or read English. They had no clue what they were ordering and never ate it when it arrived. They just sat and stared at us for 4 days. Never saw them after that. Awkward!!!

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Are you saying that Carnival caters to the Rift Raff type of people :cool:

No. I'm saying that "trying to be all things to all people" (an impossible task) is the major flaw of mass market cruise lines (or destination locations like Las Vegas). If one can afford it, looking for some homogeneity in preferences and experiences of fellow passengers is sure to lead to a much more pleasant experience.

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Hi-Husband and I love to meet new people when we are cruising. We also like to sit with people for dinner. Our last experience doing that wasn't great. The people were rude, racist, and just all-around horrors. We couldn't get away from them fast enough. Then of course we would see them all over the ship and they would want to stop and talk to us..we would just say quick "hello, how is your day?" and keep moving.

 

We want to be able to sit with others again..but now we are a little nervous about it.

I really love the luxurious feeling of formal dining. To me, it’s part of the cruise experience. On my first cruise I had the ideal table mates. They ranged from farmers to educators. Our conversations were lively and fun. It was a difficult time for me because my fiancé was between chemo treatments and was not well enough to make every dinner but insisted I go. They took good care of me. Since then, my daughter and I have cruised 5 times. We have had okay and downright bizarre table mates. We finally drew the line when we were seated with a couple who “shared” her drink package, ordered every appetizer, entree and dessert and ate them with their hands. The man was unemployed because he couldn’t find a job that paid $80 an hour. The woman was a teacher at a private school. I make $16 an hour, my daughter, a little more. We scrimp and save all year for our one week of pampering. And we each have our own drink packages. That was it. We now do table for two, second seating because we love having the same wait staff and we can take our time dining.

I really love the luxurious feeling of formal dining. To me, it’s part of the cruise experience. On my first cruise I had the ideal table mates. They ranged from farmers to educators. Our conversations were lively and fun. It was a difficult time for me because my fiancé was between chemo treatments and was not well enough to make every dinner but insisted I go. They took good care of me. Since then, my daughter and I have cruised 5 times. We have had okay and downright bizarre table mates. We finally drew the line when we were seated with a couple who “shared” her drink package, ordered every appetizer, entree and dessert and ate them with their hands. The man was unemployed because he couldn’t find a job that paid $80 an hour. The woman was a teacher at a private school. I make $16 an hour, my daughter, a little more. We scrimp and save all year for our one week of pampering. And we each have our own drink packages. That was it. We now do table for two, second seating because we love having the same wait staff and we can take our time dining.

I can’t! Lol!

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