Dining Times?

[talkorpi]

Completely new to Princess and wanted to ask for some advice regarding dining times.

 

We were watching a video of some folks who were on the same ship and itinerary as we are just a few weeks ago and they said that there were only 5:00 and 9:00 dining times available since they did not pre-book their MDR times as soon as they boarded.  This makes me nervous - we have always cruises Carnival and with YTD there, we could just check in at dinnertime every night and would be seated after a 10-15 minute wait no problem, even at 6:00-6:30 peak times.

 

So now I am wondering - what is the best way to do dining with the new app?  We liked the flexibility of being able to make reservations on the same day, but I don't want to get stuck with just 5:00 or 9:00 times like the guests in the video did.  Do you really have to pre-book every single night when you get onboard if you want to eat in between 5:45 and 7:30?  And, if so, what is the ideal time to book dining so that you can still see all the evening entertainment?

 

For context, we are on Ruby out of Galveston on April 2.  Right now the cruise barely looks half full, so I didn't expect this to be a problem, but for the video I watched (they sailed mid-January), it was.

 

Appreciate the help.  

[Rick&Jeannie]

You will likely get a range of answers for this...here is my personal experience.

 

We have *usually* been able to get a halfway decent reservation through the app...not always.  For those times that we got a crazy time that just did not work for us we would just show up and ask if they could accommodate us.  They always did. It is my personal opinion that they hold back a number of tables for just such a situation.  So...just show up at a decent time...be polite...and ask.  Also discuss with them at the hostess station the ability to set that time for each evening (assuming you want to do so).

[Potstech]

We have always used Anytime Dining and just went to the MDR of our choice and are usually seated within a short wait.  We do not mind sharing a table with others.

[Torfamm]

It is possible to just turn up at the MDR without a reservation and be seated pretty quickly in my experience. I wouldn’t worry if you don’t or can’t reserve ahead of time

[jeromep]

Lots of "just turn up at the MDR" answers, and I agree.  We've had to wait for a table a number of times, but it isn't long.  It helps if your dining time can be flexible.  If you don't have to have dinner at 5:15 pm every night and can delay to 6:45 or 7, you'll find table waits quite a bit shorter.

 

As for reservations in the app, reservations move around... a lot.  People add them, then delete them, and there are some folks that add a standing reservation, trying to make things look and feel like old traditional dining, and leave the reservation there even if they aren't going to use it.  That is part of the reason why you may find that just showing up at an MDR might get you seated just as quickly as if you had a reservation.  Also, since everything is now Dine Your Way through the app, go visit the MDR that is off the beaten path.  There is an aft MDR on the Princess Ships which used to be reserved for traditional dining, but is now basically open seating under the new program.  If there are lines at the MDRs at the Piazza, visit the one that is at the back of the ship, it will probably have fewer lines.

Edited January 31, 2023 by jeromep

[ericosmith]

The reservation I made in the app was totally changed when it appeared on board.  Same time (6:00) but different dining room and a shared table vs. table for two.  I just showed up where I originally reserved and requested what I really wanted (and the same table each night).  At some point the next day that request showed up as a reservation in my app.