Standing reservation - ATD

[llwccc]

Four of us are sailing on the Ruby to Alaska on 9/1. When we made our reservations, we chose traditional dining, 8:15 seating. My friend has celiac disease so I felt this was the best way to get her dietary needs met. Just this week I've been diagnosed with GERD, (yay aging!) and my husband reminded me I'm not supposed to eat that late. There's a long waiting list for the earlier TD. I've read, but searched and can not find any info, that you can get a standing reservation with ATD, and have the same table and serving crew.

 

Is this true? Has anyone done this?

 

I've used ATD on my last cruises but always sat at different stations and I'd rather not have that this time.

 

Thanks for any help!

[floridalover5623]

Why not just show up at the door when you want to eat like all the rest of the people?

That's what anytime dining is supposed to be - Anytime your ready.

[llwccc]

Why not just show up at the door when you want to eat like all the rest of the people?

That's what anytime dining is supposed to be - Anytime your ready.

 

I liked the idea of knowing we'd have the same serving team, I've heard that they'll work with my friend about her strict dietary issues.

[Steelers36]

I suggest meeting with the MD on embarkation afternoon (available hours will be printed in the initial welcome Patter and location will be one of the mid-ship DR's). Mention your diet needs and I suspect he/she will find a way to make it work for you. But, floridalover is right - if you switch to AT, you can show up at the appropriate DR and be seated in order with other waiting guests. No, you won't necessarily have the same table and waiters each evening. If that is important to you, then I recommend the MD suggestion - I have found that past requests have always been met and sometimes I don't know how they manage it.

[53sunset]

Four of us are sailing on the Ruby to Alaska on 9/1. When we made our reservations, we chose traditional dining, 8:15 seating. My friend has celiac disease so I felt this was the best way to get her dietary needs met. Just this week I've been diagnosed with GERD, (yay aging!) and my husband reminded me I'm not supposed to eat that late. There's a long waiting list for the earlier TD. I've read, but searched and can not find any info, that you can get a standing reservation with ATD, and have the same table and serving crew.

 

Is this true? Has anyone done this?

 

I've used ATD on my last cruises but always sat at different stations and I'd rather not have that this time.

 

Thanks for any help!

 

On a recent cruise to Alaska, we had ATD and our waiter told us that if we wanted to dine at his table every night, all we had to do was call the dining reservations line and let them know what his table number was and what time we wanted to dine each night.

[cdngrl]

in anytime (without a standing reservation) your friend's diet will be well taken care of. princess is excellent at this.

[fishywood]

In Alaska the Traditional Dining times always turn out to be much earlier than the personalizer indicates once your board. Very likely they will be 5:15 and 7:30.

 

If 7:30 is still too late for you you should go ahead and request the early seating in your personalizer right now. You never know if you will clear the waiting list until you board. If you don't you will be assigned ATD; if that is what happens the advice given above about seeing the Matire d' is the best. I do not know if contacting the Special Needs Medical desk will be of any assistance; likely they get tons of marginally valid "medical" requests to intervene in dining assignments already.

[paul929207]

Why not just show up at the door when you want to eat like all the rest of the people?

That's what anytime dining is supposed to be - Anytime your ready.

Showing up when you want to eat does not guarantee you a seat at that time. Better to call and make reservations.

[neverbeenhere]

Showing up when you want to eat does not guarantee you a seat at that time. Better to call and make reservations.

 

 

Call and get the time you want. The “system” doesn’t always work, if you just arrive at a particular time.

[Homosassa]

Have your reservation switched to early traditional requested.

 

There usually is a waitlist for early traditional. However, when the dining requests are assigned and there is a waitlist for early traditional, one of the dining rooms will become become an overflow early traditional seating and you will be given a table.

 

Be warned that the overflow traditional dining room may have an earlier start time than the other traditional dining room as any open sections in the dining room that have not been turned into traditional dining will open for anytime dining at some point (usually later than the opening time of the dining room being used for anytime dining).

[PrincessLuver]

Why not just show up at the door when you want to eat like all the rest of the people?

That's what anytime dining is supposed to be - Anytime your ready.

 

Agree....do not see where the issues they have are related to what time they eat but more what they eat.....more "entitled" trying to game the ATD system IMHO.....:cool:

[floridalover5623]

Agree....do not see where the issues they have are related to what time they eat but more what they eat.....more "entitled" trying to game the ATD system IMHO.....:cool:

 

What about Club Class? They could have a table waiting for them at ANY time they decide to eat. No waiting, special dishes prepared every night & you can select your favorite wait staff and table size.

[capriccio]

In Alaska the Traditional Dining times always turn out to be much earlier than the personalizer indicates once your board. Very likely they will be 5:15 and 7:30.

 

 

OP - we were on the Ruby a month ago. Here is the dining room info from our embarkation day Patter:

 

 

• Michaelangelo - deck 5 midship (anytime dining): 4:30 - 8:30 pm
  
• Botticelli - deck 6 aft (traditional): 5:30 (1st seating; door will close at 6 pm); 8 pm (second seating)
  
• DaVinci - deck 6 midship:
  
  • breakfast port days: 7 - 9 am
    
  • breakfast sea days: 7:30 - 9:30 am
    
  • lunch sea days (including Ketchican with 1 pm sailing): noon - 1:30 pm
    
  • afternoon tea: 3 - 4 pm
    
  • traditional dining: 5 pm (doors close at 5:45)
    
  • anytime dining: 7:30 - 9:30 pm
    

   

[capriccio]

What about Club Class? They could have a table waiting for them at ANY time they decide to eat. No waiting, special dishes prepared every night & you can select your favorite wait staff and table size.

 

You just have to pay for that privilege and I'm sure the OP already has made final payment for a September 1st cruise.

[weedpindle]

Hey. It's always about ME.!!!!!

[Cruise Raider]

What about Club Class? They could have a table waiting for them at ANY time they decide to eat. No waiting, special dishes prepared every night & you can select your favorite wait staff and table size.

 

I absolutely agree with trying to get a club class room if pricing is within your budget! It is amazing!

If this is not an option, I would try to make reservations for anytime dining for the time you prefer to eat. Introduce yourself to the maitre’d when you arrive or as you are leaving and explain your situation. If you like your table and waiters, they will most likely hold that table for you every night to that time. If you are not going to make it, please advise them ahead of time or that table most likely will be given to someone else. We had no problem getting the same table and waiters for four at 6:30 every night after getting to know the maitre’d and letting him know how much we appreciated our waiters.

And, just knowing all about GERD from my DH, eating around 6 PM has become a must do.... 5:30 if we want to catch the early show and there is usually a very minimal wait at that time. And, usually the waiters know all about foods that are acceptable within a celiac diet.

[satxdiver]

We once shared a table with a lady who had celiac in TD. A chef came out every night showing her the next night's menu and they discussed what she could have plus any changes that had to be made. The next night her food was ready. I am not sure how one would do this in ATD with different waiters and perhaps different MDR. I would hope that the OP can go to the appropriate MDR the afternoon of boarding and discuss the problem with the maitre'd who would be willing to help out.

[JimmyVWine]

I've read, but searched and can not find any info, that you can get a standing reservation with ATD, and have the same table and serving crew.

 

Is this true? Has anyone done this?

I know of no official way to do this. "Unofficially" we have done this twice, but always dining at 7:30 or later so I don't know if this will help you. The first time we dined at the Transitional ATD room at 7:30 on the first night and loved our wait staff. The second day we made a reservation for the same dining room also at 7:30 but did not ask for a particular table or section. When we arrived at the dining room that night and checked in, we inquired if we could be seated in the section staffed by the servers we had the night before. The Head Waiter said yes, and asked us if we would like that table for the rest of the cruise and we said yes. I will note that the Transitional dining room was never more than half full from 7:30 onward on any night during the cruise, so no one was being inconvenienced or delayed by this. Every single person who showed up at that dining room at or after 7:30 was seated immediately.

 

The second time the situation was similar. We made a reservation for the Transitional dining room on the first night at 7:30. And we did the same on the second day. When we arrived and checked in on the second day the Head Waiter told us that we didn't need to call for a reservation for the rest of the cruise and that a table would be available to us each night at 7:30. It wasn't always the same table. But we always had a table ready.

 

The two common threads here were that this happened in the Transitional dining room after conversion to ATD. That dining room is usually the least busy. I don't know if you can pull this off at 5:30 or 6:00. The other commonality is that both times the HW initiated the accommodation and it isn't anything we asked for. I suspect that had we made the request it would have been granted. But I know that this can be a sore subject among cruisers so we preferred to have the offer extended to us rather than have us ask for special treatment.

[moki'smommy]

Celiac is easy. It is a fairly common problem and the chefs deal with it every day.

Talk to the powers that be after boarding (location and time is in the Patter), and all will be well.

[rdsqrl]

Wouldn't the simplest solution simply to be to stay up two hours later? Then, you're eating the same number of hours before bed as you would have been if you had switched to 6pm. Problem solved.

[floridalover5623]

You just have to pay for that privilege and I'm sure the OP already has made final payment for a September 1st cruise.

If it's a health problem cost shouldn't be a problem.

[antsp]

If it's a health problem cost shouldn't be a problem.

It is if you haven’t got the money. I find flying economy not very healthy, but I cannot afford first class.

[TheSmartOne]

I’ve always had ATD and have gluten/egg issues. Because they assign me a “head waiter” on the first night and I order for the next evening after my dinner each night, wherever I’m seated I just tell the waiter “I have food allergies, so [name of head waiter] has my order.” Then my head waiter is alerted that I’ve been seated and he comes by the table to confirm my order...and all is well! (haven’t gotten sick on Princess or Norwegian using the same ordering method, so something must be working!) [emoji4]

 

 

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[floridalover5623]

It is if you haven’t got the money. I find flying economy not very healthy, but I cannot afford first class.

Cost is no object when it comes to ones health.

[capriccio]

Cost is no object when it comes to ones health.

 

That is a lovely platitude but it has no bearing on reality for most people. Cost is no object only when you have unlimited wealth. Otherwise cost is most certainly an obstacle and must be a consideration in making any decision with a monetary impact.