Peak Time MDR

[Tiggipaws]

Good afternoon

 

I will be sailing on the Sky Princess later this year, first time with Princess. What is considered peak time in the MDR for dinner? So that I can avoid it

 

Thank you

[pathi]

7PM to 8PM usually. Always early birds at 5pm also.

[franktown]

Early birds 5 to 6.  Never understood it. We usually eat around 7:30 never a wait.

[Desert Cruisers]

Depends upon the itinerary and the demographics.  The more USA folks, the earlier the peak dining.  If there are more Europeans and especially South Americans, the later peak dining will be.

[startedwithamouse]

56 minutes ago, pathi said:

7PM to 8PM usually. Always early birds at 5pm also.

Peak time for waits is between 6 and 7, because the dining room is full and no one is finished with dinner yet. 

[startedwithamouse]

32 minutes ago, franktown said:

Early birds 5 to 6.  Never understood it. We usually eat around 7:30 never a wait.

Same. Never a wait. 

[wowzz]

Yup, we eat at 20:00 or so, with no issues, thanks to the early birds. 

Who wants to eat dinner in the afternoon ?

[voljeep]

3 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

Peak time for waits is between 6 and 7, because the dining room is full and no one is finished with dinner yet. 

there are empty tables ... Princess doesn't have the staff to completely cook and serve a full mdr on a timely basis - and Princess 'timely' is 2 hours - at least on our last cruise running at 100+% capacity

[wowzz]

1 minute ago, voljeep said:

and Princess 'timely' is 2 hours

That is fine by us. No need to rush.

[startedwithamouse]

8 minutes ago, voljeep said:

there are empty tables ... Princess doesn't have the staff to completely cook and serve a full mdr on a timely basis - and Princess 'timely' is 2 hours - at least on our last cruise running at 100+% capacity

That is what I meant by a full dining room. Similar to a full hospital. There could be rooms and beds available, however you need staff for them.  Capacity will vary.  We are always in and out of the MDR in just about an hour, we choose fast dining on the app, and also let the restaurant manager and servers know. We usually don't need a menu and refer to the app and let the server know immediately what we would like. They never make a recommendation and come back, and we never share a table. If the menu differs from the app we will take a glance. We also have a vegetarian Indian dish - chef's choice - prepared for us each night to share, so we can always ask for more of that.  

 

Edited March 20, 2023 by startedwithamouse

[MissP22]

It all depends on what you enjoyment is during a cruise. If you don't care about a decent seat for any of the shows or other entertainment then showing up at the DR door at 7 PM or wait for the late show at 9 PM and it'll suit some people just fine.

They don't care if it does take over 2 hours to finish dinner. 

We prefer to see an early show followed by some game shows so it means early dinner between 5 & 6 PM. 

You'll be amazed at the number of people eating dinner as we leave the DR at 6:20 or so. 

[Torfamm]

1 hour ago, Desert Cruisers said:

Depends upon the itinerary and the demographics.  The more USA folks, the earlier the peak dining.  If there are more Europeans and especially South Americans, the later peak dining will be.

I also notice that more people seem to eat early if they have young children. Early times seem busier during school holidays.

[JimmyVWine]

2 hours ago, pathi said:

7PM to 8PM usually. Always early birds at 5pm also.

Based on my observation, both for U.S. and European departures, is that it is significantly earlier than that.  I would say the peak time when most tables are filled and there is little hope of getting in without a wait is 6:15-7:00.  Around 7:00 the Early Birds have left and the tables are re-set and ready for the next wave.  Arriving at 7:20-7:40 usually results in little wait.  After 7:45, absolutely no wait.

[Southern_Roots]

We eat at 8:30 and it’s fantastic. Never a wait and the service is great due to lower volume of guests being served. Once we eat it’s lights out for us so we do all the evening activities before dinner. 

[Yehootu]

We are on the Crown right now. Dinner reservations at 6:40 in Michelangelo dining room. Never a wait, both sides just a few people in a line.Dinner for 2 taking a little over an hour. Usually see open  tables. Larger tables seem to be taking longer.

[Cruise Raider]

3 hours ago, franktown said:

Early birds 5 to 6.  Never understood it. We usually eat around 7:30 never a wait.

We used to eat dinner anytime after 8:30 PM … but aging happens to the best of us and now, we have to eat around 6:00 PM onboard.  We now eat by 4 PM while at home .. we are much healthier for it.  

[voljeep]

9 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

We used to eat dinner anytime after 8:30 PM … but aging happens to the best of us and now, we have to eat around 6:00 PM onboard.  We now eat by 4 PM while at home .. we are much healthier for it.  

Agreed - but maybe not the 4 pm ... but at least 3 hours or so before going to bed.  Yikes - right to bed after a mdr meal? no thanks

[Cruise Raider]

Just now, voljeep said:

Agreed - but maybe not the 4 pm ... but at least 3 hours or so before going to bed.  Yikes - right to bed after a mdr meal? no thanks

While I used to do that all the time, our bodies just can’t handle that anymore.  
So, for us, a 6 PM dinner now, followed by some music or the CD staff activity, the late show in the theater or maybe a bit of time in the casino … off to bed after that.  That gives us a good chance to digest our meal.  I must admit, I could probably still fall fast asleep right after a big meal .. my DH would be miserable, though.  

[Happiest when cruising]

12 hours ago, wowzz said:

Yup, we eat at 20:00 or so, with no issues, thanks to the early birds. 

Who wants to eat dinner in the afternoon ?

We do! Dinner over in time for the 7:30 production show or a trivia game, then head to Explorers, Crooners, or somewhere to catch whatever is going on in there until 11:00 or so. I don’t like all that food sitting in by stomach too late at night, unless we happen to make a stop for a quick at the IC and they have a cookie calling our names. 
Then, off to bed to relax a bit and get some sleep, so we can enjoy another fabulous day on a ship. 

[caribill]

15 hours ago, Tiggipaws said:

 

 

I will be sailing on the Sky Princess later this year, first time with Princess. What is considered peak time in the MDR for dinner? So that I can avoid it

 

 

 

By Murphy's Law, whatever time you want to dine.

[Tiggipaws]

Thank you all for all the replies

[SargassoPirate]

18 hours ago, Yehootu said:

 Larger tables seem to be taking longer.

Service is only as fast as the slowest eater and why we prefer a table for two or the buffet for dinner. 

[Southern_Roots]

20 hours ago, voljeep said:

Agreed - but maybe not the 4 pm ... but at least 3 hours or so before going to bed.  Yikes - right to bed after a mdr meal? no thanks

On vacation some people like to bend the rules of “home” 

[MissP22]

On 3/20/2023 at 3:42 PM, voljeep said:

Agreed - but maybe not the 4 pm ... but at least 3 hours or so before going to bed.  Yikes - right to bed after a mdr meal? no thanks

It's 4 PM right now here in Florida and we're finished with our dinner.

On the ship 5 to 6 PM is late for us but we adjust. 

[wrongwaywatson]

At home we try to eat between 5 & 6, preferably closer to 5.  We do the same on the cruise, so that we can see the 7:30 entertainment without being rushed.  It usually works well for us.   I would have a very hard time sleeping if I ate late.