Dining packages

[ROYALBOY]

Hi: we are on the Apex in October and have purchased the 5 night speciality dining package. Does this include dining at Eden, Magic Carpet and Raw on 5?

[jelayne]

25 minutes ago, ROYALBOY said:

Hi: we are on the Apex in October and have purchased the 5 night speciality dining package. Does this include dining at Eden, Magic Carpet and Raw on 5?

Eden yes, Magic Carpet No ( dinner on the MC wasn't offered on any of our 3 Edge class cruises).

For Raw on 5 I believe they give a $ amount you can spend, I don't know the amount. 

[Mark_T]

32 minutes ago, ROYALBOY said:

Hi: we are on the Apex in October and have purchased the 5 night speciality dining package. Does this include dining at Eden, Magic Carpet and Raw on 5?

Think carefully about Eden though...

 

If it is important that you get a reservation on a particular night or time then it may be worth booking that one before you board as a separate reservation due to the speed with which Eden seems to fill up these days.

 

You can't make booking from your package before boarding so if you decide to stick with the package be prepared to go make the Eden reservation the moment you set foot onboard...

Edited July 20, 2022 by Mark_T

[manmachine]

22 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

Think carefully about Eden though...

 

If it is important that you get a reservation on a particular night or time then it may be worth booking that one before you board as a separate reservation due to the speed with which Eden seems to fill up these days.

 

You can't make booking from your package before boarding so if you decide to stick with the package be prepared to go make the Eden reservation the moment you set foot onboard...

True and can I say there’s nothing like having some pressure and strain immediately after boarding.  Would certainly be nice if pre-booking were allowed with the packages, as it is when purchasing only one (not as part of a package).

[Mark_T]

2 minutes ago, manmachine said:

Would certainly be nice if pre-booking were allowed with the packages, as it is when purchasing only one (not as part of a package).

That's kind of why you get a discount though, you commit to using up the residual inventory and get a price-break.

 

... although it doesn't seem like much of a saving these days...

[dazey]

I always booked a 3 night dining plan for a 7-10 cruise but found that the savings was not enough to make getting on board and immediately head to the restaurant desk to try to get the nights/times I wanted.  I now book each separately and have found that one can save a few dollars by booking a first night specialty dinner and also they are now offering a discount online on several restaurants.  Of course, all this happened within the last 8+ months and things do change.

[Surfguyxxx]

So, can you make a reservation ahead of time in Eden on the website?  

[bama4cruisin]

1 hour ago, Surfguyxxx said:

So, can you make a reservation ahead of time in Eden on the website?  

Absolutely!  Go to your reservation, go to cruise planner (as you would to book an excursion), scroll to “Dining”, then to Eden and make your reservation.  After you select the passengers, the night, the time (and available times will probably vary by night), you will “check out “.  If you have OBC you want to use, be sure to check that the OBC is charged rather than your credit card.

[jelayne]

19 hours ago, manmachine said:

True and can I say there’s nothing like having some pressure and strain immediately after boarding.  Would certainly be nice if pre-booking were allowed with the packages, as it is when purchasing only one (not as part of a package).

That is the trade off for the discounted price per dinner you get with the package. 
We stopped purchasing the package after our 1st Edge cruise when there was no availability for Eden and Fine Cut had 2 nights at 5:30 and 1 night at 9:30.  Now we  pay full price and have more options when we book.  

[Surfguyxxx]

6 hours ago, bama4cruisin said:

Absolutely!  Go to your reservation, go to cruise planner (as you would to book an excursion), scroll to “Dining”, then to Eden and make your reservation.  After you select the passengers, the night, the time (and available times will probably vary by night), you will “check out “.  If you have OBC you want to use, be sure to check that the OBC is charged rather than your credit card.

I don't know why but for some reason I thought you could only do this restaurant onboard.  Thank you.

[bama4cruisin]

39 minutes ago, Surfguyxxx said:

I don't know why but for some reason I thought you could only do this restaurant onboard.  Thank you.

Definitely not.  In fact, it may be totally booked by the time you board.  Last fall on the 14 night Apex TA, I heard many people checking daily to see if they had moved up on the waiting list.  I was very glad I had booked months before.  Well worth it!

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, Surfguyxxx said:

I don't know why but for some reason I thought you could only do this restaurant onboard.  Thank you.

You can book the specialty  restaurants via the Cruise Planner pre cruise and you pay full price.  If you have a dining package then then you can not book those reservations until you are on the ship.

Edited July 21, 2022 by jelayne
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