Pro's & Con's of Late Dining

[papilliontraveler]

In my opinion(only), unless you must have the same servers, etc., there is no reason to take anything other than YTD. That way you aren't rushed, can nap, get back late from an excursion, etc. and still eat whenever you want, early or late.

You are not stuck with one of the other.

[Cupcrazy]

I always take the late seating. I like it because it gives you more time off the ship if your staying there later. It just means I don't have to rush back to my cabin early to get ready. I also most days have a little routine where I go to the gym at approx 5:30 for around an hour. Then relax in the cabin for a bit before dinner. Most shows are played twice or start late enough so the people with late seating can get there. I also don't eat dinner at 6pm when I'm home so the late seating is more like home.

[patseacruiser]

What was enjoyable about late dining was that at about 6 the Diamond lounge emptied and we went up there and had trail mix and drinks until 8 pm and watched as we pulled away and it got dark from one of the high tops at the window. That was pleasant.

[sarafs]

We have done both early and late. We eat early at home, but on a cruise we tend to start our day later and eat each meal later. The early dining is just too early for a vacation.

[Luv2Travelnow]

In my opinion(only), unless you must have the same servers, etc., there is no reason to take anything other than YTD. That way you aren't rushed, can nap, get back late from an excursion, etc. and still eat whenever you want, early or late.

You are not stuck with one of the other.

+1 At home I eat when I want. Why should I be stuck on a schedule when I'm relaxing on vacation?? :confused:

[T. Advisor King]

I'll add my votes to the early dining (if you have to pick one) or YTD, if you can get it. I wouldn't call 6:00 "early" compared to when we regularly eat after work at home. If I don't get home from work until 6:30, then I'm probably eating by myself and my family has moved on to doing other things. As a result, it is normal for us to eat around 6:00.

 

Pros

- more in line with our usual routine

- still leaves some time in the evening to "do something". If you have late dining, then that's pretty much what you're doing for the evening

- if you have lunch at lunch time, then you're not forced to either (a) starve for the last 2 hours before dinner, or (b) snack in the afternoon, which probably leads to either (i) unhealthy overeating, or (ii) not being hungry for dinner, in which case you're picking at your food, which is a waste of food and time.

- I've never had late seating dinner, but my sense (particularly from discussions about "elegant night" attire) has always been that it is a little more formal and less relaxed. I strongly prefer a more relaxed atmosphere.

 

Cons: I don't really see any. I've heard people say that they are "rushed" to get back in time on port days, but it is just a matter of planning and knowing how much time you have. Sometimes these comments are combined with references to the time it takes to "get ready" for dinner. I'm not really sure what that means, other than changing into appropriate clothing, if necessary. How long can that possibly take?

 

For our cruise on the Magic this summer, we're requested YT dining, so I'm looking forward to that. It is my one pet peeves about cruises compared to regular vacations that you're not just stuck with the ship's travel schedule, but you're also stuck with its meal schedule. Plus I'm hoping that we can get through some of our meals more quickly with YTD. I like being served a sit-down meal and I don't mind an occasional long meal. But I sure hate having to choose between burning two hours a day on dinner and having to skip the main dining room altogether.

[MrsMMark]

We are also torn between early and late dining for cruise to be booked later this month. We have always done early dining, but are considering late because (1) we don't want to be rushed or have to stop other activities to get ready for dinner and (2) we want to have time for sushi before dinner (sushi bar open approx. same as early dining time).

 

MY QUESTION for those of you who have done anytime dining, does it "feel" as formal as the scheduled dining? This will be our kids (17, 15, 11) first cruise and we think they would prefer the formaility of scheduled dining. Also, we want the dining to be as "different" from real life as possible -- seems like anytime dining would be too much like going to a nice restaurant at home or on other vacations.

[vanityfur]

I hate late dining. Who wants to finish dinner at 10:30?

 

Who finishes dinner at 10:30? We were never in there for 2 hrs. and 15 minutes... The latest we've ever been done was 9:45.

 

We stay up late, so eating at 8:15 is not a big deal at all for us. Some like it, some don't.

[shelkate1]

We prefer late dining because we don't like being rushed like everyone else said. I like to do whatever it is that we want during the day. That way we can get a nap, relax, watch the sunset, or whatever before we have to go get ready for dinner.

Our upcoming cruise we are planning on YTD. We'll have to get back with you to see if it is our cup of tea!

[travelingtriumphess]

I tend to go to bed earlier than some. I did late dining last time, and after eating, I was ready to go to bed. I think it really depends on whether you are a morning person or a night person. Do what you like; it's your vacation. :):D

[frangran]

I don't like going to bed stuffed. Late dining is too LATE.

 

Me too! That's the advantage of Any Time Dining, if you can get it. We've been assigned ATD once, and LOVED it. On the other hand, we've also asked the Maitre D' twice on other cruises & been turned down both times. They seem to limit the number of people who can be on it.

[laumicmah]

We are also torn between early and late dining for cruise to be booked later this month. We have always done early dining, but are considering late because (1) we don't want to be rushed or have to stop other activities to get ready for dinner and (2) we want to have time for sushi before dinner (sushi bar open approx. same as early dining time).

 

MY QUESTION for those of you who have done anytime dining, does it "feel" as formal as the scheduled dining? This will be our kids (17, 15, 11) first cruise and we think they would prefer the formaility of scheduled dining. Also, we want the dining to be as "different" from real life as possible -- seems like anytime dining would be too much like going to a nice restaurant at home or on other vacations.

We've done YTD twice and it is the same...formality wise...as traditional seating.