Your Time Dining question

[RobinCruiser]

Curious if you can make reservations online ahead like RCI? Or do you have to do it once onboard? Or can you even make a reservation on Carnival if you have your time dining? I'll be on the Imagination in 13 days and would like to pre-reserve a dining time if possible. 

 

Thanks!

Robin

[shof515]

no. only onboard the ship

[bury me at sea]

You can't truly make reservations either pre-cruise or on the ship.  You show up and are seated when a table is available.  If you arrive when the doors open you will be seated right away.  

[SRQbeachgirl]

The Hub app now has a feature where you can check-in using the app and it will notify you when your table is available. We used it recently on the Breeze to check in as we were leaving our cabin (Deck 11) to go to dinner and we typically got a notice that our table was ready before we even got down to the restaurant.

[jsglow]

The Hub app is great. Ask for your table anywhere on the ship, get a notice that your table is ready before you get to the dining room door.

Edited September 17, 2019 by jsglow

[Princess_K]

On 9/16/2019 at 8:08 PM, jsglow said:

The Hub app is great. Ask for your table anywhere on the ship, get a notice that your table is ready before you get to the dining room door.

 

This exactly!  On my last cruise in May, I tried My Time Dining for the first time.  I had my reservations because I was used to having the set Late Dining.  On Formal night, I heard it was best to use the Hub App so I did.  I requested a table while we on the Lido deck and headed to the dining room, by the time we got out of the elevators on the third floor, I received an alert that our table was ready.   Other than that, there was never a wait when we arrived to the doors of the dining room, even for the specific section I requested.  I didn't even have to use the Hub App for those nights. 

[Wanna_Cruize]

On 9/16/2019 at 6:08 PM, jsglow said:

The Hub app is great. Ask for your table anywhere on the ship, get a notice that your table is ready before you get to the dining room door.

However, I don't think the Imagination as that feature inside the HUB app yet. We are just off the Inspiration and didn't find a way to reserve a table in advance. That being said, we never had a wait, because we generally went around 6 or so. I'd say if you are a party of 4 or less, any wait time should be minimal.

[coevan]

to the OP question they do not take specific time reservation for YTD. you can use the app when you are ready to eat same day only. BTW we never had any problems eating at the time we wanted

[RumpunchGirl]

Dh and I are trying YTD for the first time next month. Can you go to either of the dining rooms or is one of them designated for YTD?

[2wheelin]

Does anyone know if Legend has the app ability to ask for a table? We may want a large table some nights as there are several cabins traveling together.

Also can you if you have a cabin for two, request a table (on the app if available) for 6 without linking the cabins. All have YTD.

[five.]

Note, on CC I had seen others post that they had success making special requests in person, "away from others", "ocean view", "Julio's section", etc. And maybe they did, but the two times I tried on Magic last week, I was told to use the app. This was in the dining room and talking to the hostess. I do know on Horizon it was an either/or thing. There was a place you could go to make a reservation, it was near the coffee bar I think OR you could do it on the app. But on the Magic, they were not taking walk-up reservations or requests at least when I tried. Which doesn't seem right, I am sure plenty of people don't have the app.

 

If you do it on the app, it is first available from the time you make the request. So you're not specifying a time, you're simply saying "first available" and you have 10 minutes once it's filled. Most nights it was filled right away, but one night (the first elegant night) it was a 40 minute wait.

 

And there might be some formula or rhyme or reason, the app uses to where it assigns your party, but I'm not a huge fan. We really like the convenience of your time dining, from being able to do more stuff. But we definitely miss having the same staff and table mates every night. You are definitely missing out on a humanity aspect with the YTD. With the brunch and breakfast we attended, it was assigned by a human and was much better every time.

[five.]

9 minutes ago, RumpunchGirl said:

Can you go to either of the dining rooms or is one of them designated for YTD?

On the Magic, we specifically asked this question and was told no we could not switch. We were in northern lights and wanted southern lights. I don't know if it was specific to our cabin number or if it was specific to YTD. I know the upper level of northern lights was assigned seating. I don't know if southern lights was the same way.

 

4 minutes ago, 2wheelin said:

Does anyone know if Legend has the app ability to ask for a table? We may want a large table some nights as there are several cabins traveling together.

Also can you if you have a cabin for two, request a table (on the app if available) for 6 without linking the cabins. All have YTD.

The app has no ability to make any special requests and you just have to be friends on the app, in order to include them when making the request. I added Simon the CD as a friend on the app and I was then able to include him when reserving our table.

[grandmarnnurse]

13 minutes ago, RumpunchGirl said:

Dh and I are trying YTD for the first time next month. Can you go to either of the dining rooms or is one of them designated for YTD?

You go to only the one used for YTD, and it will state which one on your Sail and Sign card.

[RumpunchGirl]

2 minutes ago, grandmarnnurse said:

You go to only the one used for YTD, and it will state which one on your Sail and Sign card.

Thanks for clearing this up.

[2wheelin]

1 hour ago, five. said:

.

The app has no ability to make any special requests and you just have to be friends on the app, in order to include them when making the request. I added Simon the CD as a friend on the app and I was then able to include him when reserving our table.

So you list the names of all requesting at the same time, no matter the cabin number. I then assume if people in the same cabin wish to dine at different times, that is possible by waiting to request (sign in) separately.

Wasn’t asking for any special request except the table size to accommodate our party.

[five.]

Yea, seems like you just select the names, cabin number doesn't matter. And you can split up the cabin.

[stellarose]

we did anytime last summer on the pride. it was a nightmare some nights . we had a group of 6. we are back on the breeze and will do early seating this time. 

[coevan]

1 hour ago, stellarose said:

 it was a nightmare some nights

 

 

what specifically was a nightmare? How do land restaurants survive without assigned dining times?

 

On the Magic the YTD is mid ship , behind the Atrium Bar

[stellarose]

2 minutes ago, coevan said:

sometimes it was a quick wait sometimes it was a long, over an hour wait. it was hard to judge when to show up. 

 

what specifically was a nightmare? How do land restaurants survive without assigned dining times?

 

On the Magic the YTD is mid ship , behind the Atrium Bar

 

[coevan]

so waiting for a table is a nightmare? We never waited for YTD more than a few minutes.

[stellarose]

the pride did not have the option to do the hub for YTD.  we waited from 20 minutes to over an hour. 

[coevan]

we never used the app for dining, just went to the MDR and were sat like any normal restaurant. We actually never saw a full dining room

[five.]

Yea, the night we waited 40 minutes, once we were seated, there were seats available everywhere. It made no sense. It was the busiest night, but at the same time, it was not at capacity.

[coevan]

big difference is I speak up, it's not like a private restaurant who would never turn away guests like Carnival does. We have gone to the Steakhouse without reservations when we didn't care for the MDR menu. We were asked to wait in the bar and were seated in 5 minutes.