Dining and Gratuities

[acct4woof]

Hi y'all,

I am traveling with my family of 4 which includes our 2 daughters (age 6 & 8). I booked a cruise with RCCL Freedom of the Seas via a club warehouse travel site and the only choices for dining were the 8 PM seating in the MDR and My Time. I have not traveled with RCCL before. In 2013, we traveled on NCL Epic and there was no designated seating or time and we prepaid all gratuities so this is somewhat of a new experience for me.

I went ahead an chose the 8 PM MDR seating but I am now re-thinking it.

-Will there be enough time to catch the earlier shows and then go to dinner?

-How are gratuities paid? It appears you pre-pay if you choose My Time. If you choose the MDR, do you just pay at the end of the cruise?

-If we choose to eat in Windjammer all week and maybe a few specialty restaurants (Johnny Rockets, Chops, Portofino) along the way, is this frowned upon? I don't want any of the waitstaff to feel slighted because we didn't eat in MDR most of the week.

And going to the late shows can be hard on the kids so arranging a fixed dining time may have been the wrong decision. Our kids did not really enjoy the kids club on Epic, we are hoping for a different experience on RCCL.

Thank you in advance for any advice/tips you all might have.

[Clarea]

The shows are timed for traditional dining, so since you have 8pm traditional dining, you should be OK for catching all shows. However, every night may not have an early show for late diners. Sometimes the show might be 10:30pm for late diners.

 

Gratuities will be charged automatically to your SeaPass account on a daily basis.

Edited May 6, 2014 by clarea

[leaveitallbehind]

Hi y'all,

I am traveling with my family of 4 which includes our 2 daughters (age 6 & 8). I booked a cruise with RCCL Freedom of the Seas via a club warehouse travel site and the only choices for dining were the 8 PM seating in the MDR and My Time. I have not traveled with RCCL before. In 2013, we traveled on NCL Epic and there was no designated seating or time and we prepaid all gratuities so this is somewhat of a new experience for me.

I went ahead an chose the 8 PM MDR seating but I am now re-thinking it.

-Will there be enough time to catch the earlier shows and then go to dinner?

 

Yes. The shows are generally timed with the early / late dinner seatings.

 

-How are gratuities paid? It appears you pre-pay if you choose My Time. If you choose the MDR, do you just pay at the end of the cruise?

 

Standard (non-MTD) gratuities are charged daily to your SeaPass account.

 

-If we choose to eat in Windjammer all week and maybe a few specialty restaurants (Johnny Rockets, Chops, Portofino) along the way, is this frowned upon? I don't want any of the waitstaff to feel slighted because we didn't eat in MDR most of the week.

 

No it is not frowned upon. With the daily charges the wait staff will still receive their gratuities. Part of the surcharge for the specialty restaurants includes a gratuity for that staff.

 

And going to the late shows can be hard on the kids so arranging a fixed dining time may have been the wrong decision. Our kids did not really enjoy the kids club on Epic, we are hoping for a different experience on RCCL.

 

When our kids were of an age to participate in the RCI programs, they really enjoyed them. Perhaps yours will as well. As to the show times, the main entertainment for the late dinner seating typically is during the early seating hour - not late at night after the late seating. You can always change to MTD to adjust your dinner hours if desired, at which point the gratuities will be prepaid at final payment.

 

Thank you in advance for any advice/tips you all might have.

 

See my answers above. Enjoy your cruise!

Edited May 6, 2014 by leaveitallbehind

[dplusd]

Hi y'all,

I am traveling with my family of 4 which includes our 2 daughters (age 6 & 8). I booked a cruise with RCCL Freedom of the Seas via a club warehouse travel site and the only choices for dining were the 8 PM seating in the MDR and My Time. I have not traveled with RCCL before. In 2013, we traveled on NCL Epic and there was no designated seating or time and we prepaid all gratuities so this is somewhat of a new experience for me.

I went ahead an chose the 8 PM MDR seating but I am now re-thinking it.

-Will there be enough time to catch the earlier shows and then go to dinner?

-How are gratuities paid? It appears you pre-pay if you choose My Time. If you choose the MDR, do you just pay at the end of the cruise?

-If we choose to eat in Windjammer all week and maybe a few specialty restaurants (Johnny Rockets, Chops, Portofino) along the way, is this frowned upon? I don't want any of the waitstaff to feel slighted because we didn't eat in MDR most of the week.

And going to the late shows can be hard on the kids so arranging a fixed dining time may have been the wrong decision. Our kids did not really enjoy the kids club on Epic, we are hoping for a different experience on RCCL.

Thank you in advance for any advice/tips you all might have.

 

It is fine to eat some of your dinners in alternative dining venue. However, if you have traditional dining and tablemates, it would be appropriate to let them know you will not be attending one night so they don't hold up dinner waiting for you.

 

As for the auto tips, they cover all dining staff...not just MDR staff. So where ever you choose to eat, your gratuities are covered by the auto tips.

[cb at sea]

Late seating (which is what you have) will go to the shows BEFORE dinner. Yes..you will have PLENTY of time to get ready for shows and dinner! The "late night" show is billed as "adult", so you may not want the kids to attend those. Traditional seating takes all the guesswork out of it....if you do My Time Dining, it's up to YOU to schedule your dining times to make whichever show (early or late) you want to see.

 

Your kids are at the PRIME age to enjoy Adventure Ocean! I predict they will have a blast!

Edited May 6, 2014 by cb at sea

[OCruisers]

Both My Time Dining and Traditional Dining are in a MDR.

With MTD you are correct, prepaid. With TD the charge is added by the day.

The gratuities cover lots more than just tips for your evening meal.

LuLu

[summersigh]

-If we choose to eat in Windjammer all week and maybe a few specialty restaurants (Johnny Rockets, Chops, Portofino) along the way, is this frowned upon? I don't want any of the waitstaff to feel slighted because we didn't eat in MDR most of the week.

 

The wait staff won't feel slighted but ....

Unless you have a table just for your family of 4 - not eating in the MDR most nights may leave your tablemates feeling slighted.

Most folks who request larger tables look forward to meeting and chatting with other folks.

On our cruise last week that happened to folks at a number of tables near ours and from the look on their faces it did diminish a good portion of their dining enjoyment. I know their feeling should not be our responsibility but in my mind it's a matter of manners.

 

I would suggest going to the MDR shortly after you board and request a change to My Time Dining.