How easy is is to meet new people on board?

[ripaula]

DH and I will be taking our first cruise in Feb. We enjoy meeting and talking with people, especially from distant places, when we travel.

 

We don't want to be in their pockets or hang out constantly...just a little!

 

How easy or hard is this?

 

(We'll be on Ruby Princess...anytime dining.)

[firefly333]

I always got stuck with anytime on Princess which to me makes it harder to get to know table mates and exchange stories. Dinner is usually a great time to talk among table mates and discuss what you did and when you have the same tablemates, you get to where, ok so how did the ziplining go today or whatever and to hear their stories.

 

With anytime you can ask to be seated with others, but every night its the same, introduction and brief chatter, but more superficial usually.

 

Any meal is a good time to meet people. Eat in the MDR for lunch and you can choose to sit with others or by yourself. We always ask to sit with others. Talk to those sitting next to you in the theater or whatever you are doing.

[paul929207]

We find it is very easy to meet people on cruises. Afterall, you have at least one thing in common, you like to cruise.

 

At breakfast and lunch, we usually eat at the buffet and often wind up either joining others or having people join us. On shore excursions we meet others. Sitting in the lounge before a show or a talk we chat with the people next to us.

 

Another way is to join the Roll Call for your cruise. It is a great way to meet others traveling with you. Most Roll Calls organize a Meet & Greet for early in the cruise. Often people will plan a private excursion and post on the Roll Call to find others to join them.

 

To join, go to the Boards Menu, Scroll down to Roll Calls, click on your cruise line, Click on your ship. Find the thread for your sailing.

[Keith1010]

If you want to meet people it is easy to do so. A good way to meet people is over a meal but there are many other opporunities including if you take shore excursions.

 

Keith

[Underwatr]

Our easiest and best new friends were at our assigned dinner table. We ended up doing some touring around the ports with the two other couples at our table. The second best opportunity was at breakfast, where we usually opted to sit at a larger table with other passengers rather than request a table for two. Generally breakfast was with different people each day, but toward the end of the cruise we ended up eating with people whom we had met at breakfast earlier.

 

We didn't do any excursions on that trip (I grew up in New England so we had been to most of the ports at least once) but I'm sure that ship's excursions present another opportunity to make more than a passing acquaintnance with other passengers.

[cb at sea]

Dine at a large table with tablemates. At the pool, strike up a conversation with those sitting near you. Chat with the folks in the theatre (before the show starts!)....just be friendly and willing to chat!

[trish1c]

Go to your meet & greet.

Just smile & say hello to folks. You are packed into the pool area like sardines. It's hard not to talk. Some times it's hard to find an empty table at the buffet just ask somebody if you can share theirs.

[LarryL]

We've found that, along with meet & greets and dinner, many of the same people attend activities such as trivia, kareoke, and bingo to name a few. We have met people after seeing them regularly at such events. Quite often, the roll calls will have planned excursions you can join in on. Also, don't forget the staff. They are from all over the world. I really enjoy visiting with those from the Philippines and Thailand as I was stationed in those places while in the military and find they really like to speak of their home. We have also had wonderful conversations with people from the former Eastern Bloc countries. If you like meeting people, cruising provides plenty of opportunity to do so. Happy sailing.

 

Larry

[sjcruiser]

You'll meet new people when cruiser before you even get on the ship. If coming in early, hotels near ports are filled with cruisers, the shuttles to the port, and while waiting to embark you can or other people will strike up a conversation. Its even easier onboard in any venue or setting.

[johneeo]

DH and I will be taking our first cruise in Feb. We enjoy meeting and talking with people, especially from distant places, when we travel.

 

We don't want to be in their pockets or hang out constantly...just a little!

 

How easy or hard is this?

 

(We'll be on Ruby Princess...anytime dining.)

 

Join the roll call and begin meeting people there.

 

Then, participate in the meet and greet. Get a cabin crawl together and also consider a "casino slot pull". You can search the board for these, as there are lots of posts on them and different ways to set them up.

[Euphemus]

I always got stuck with anytime on Princess which to me makes it harder to get to know table mates and exchange stories. Dinner is usually a great time to talk among table mates and discuss what you did and when you have the same tablemates, you get to where, ok so how did the ziplining go today or whatever and to hear their stories.

 

I agree with everything that has been said although I will give a different spin on what firefly333 said (with all due respect...)

 

We find it easier to meet *more* people with Anytime/My Time Dining. We (DH and I) ask to be seated at a table of 8 or larger. Most people who choose MTD *and* choose to sit at a bigger table (instead of a table for 2 or a table the same size as their traveling group) are also, generally speaking, looking to strike up conversation and meet new people.

 

I do agree that there is that initial part of the conversation that gets repeated every night (Where are you from? What do you do? How many cruises have you been on? Boy, it must be cold up there in...fill in the blank) but usually by the time the appetizer is over, the conversation has gotten more interesting. We find that we run into many more people all over the ship or in port that say 'hello' and chat because we sat together for one dinner.

 

On the other hand, I find with Traditional Dining that, unless we *really* hit it off with the people we are sitting with, conversation can get kind of stilted by the end of a week. After "How'd the zipline thingy go?" sometimes there is not much else to talk about.

 

This is also true of breakfast and lunch in the MDR since you can be seated at a larger table with more and different people.

 

The good part is that, if you don't hit it off with the other people, hey, it's one meal. If it's Traditional Dining you're stuck for the rest of the week. If it's a total train wreck, you can asked to be reseated...but if it's just...blah...well, most people tend to stick it out and the rest of the week is just blah.