Dinner for 6 in Specialty ??

[golf4me2010]

No options right now to book 6. Do we:

 

1 - Wait to board the ship and try

or

2 - Book a 4 and 2 and ask to be placed together?

 

Any experience?

 

Thanks

[ggTexasGal]

1 minute ago, golf4me2010 said:

No options right now to book 6. Do we:

 

1 - Wait to board the ship and try

or

2 - Book a 4 and 2 and ask to be placed together?

 

Any experience?

 

Thanks

Take care of this, onboard, ASAP!

[bkrickles1]

3 minutes ago, golf4me2010 said:

No options right now to book 6. Do we:

 

1 - Wait to board the ship and try

or

2 - Book a 4 and 2 and ask to be placed together?

 

Any experience?

 

Thanks

Do it as soon as you board and there'll be no problem. 

[fmrlkr]

When you board the ship go to where they are making reservations and book.  They only release a small number of before sailing.  I agree, do it ASAP when you get on the ship.  I have done this on 2 different sailings in the last 2 months and have not had a problem.

[debenson0723]

You can also call NCL and see if they will do it over the phone for you. I have had success doing this several times.

[mjkacmom]

If you can’t do it online, just call. We are 7, so need an 8 top, no issues.

[golf4me2010]

Yup I called and no luck so we wait until we board. Thanks everyone !!

[ChiefMateJRK]

42 minutes ago, fmrlkr said:

They only release a small number of before sailing. 

Are you sure about this?  

[golf4me2010]

Yes that is true. Ncl told me also

[BirdTravels]

55 minutes ago, fmrlkr said:

They only release a small number of before sailing. 

This is incorrect. Urban legend. There is zero value for the cruise line to cause long lines on embarkation day. 
 

They will hold a small number of onboard bookings. 
 

We recently boarded a cruise and as general embarkation started, popular restaurants had very limited prime time dining availability for the duration of the cruise. we hand to shuffle things to get into the restaurant before 8:30 pm. 
 

On another cruise, Cagney’s was sold out all days and all time by 1 pm on embarkation day (even the 9:30 pm dining times on all nights). 

[HuliHuli]

56 minutes ago, mjkacmom said:

If you can’t do it online, just call. We are 7, so need an 8 top, no issues.

Ditto!

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Last fall I called in to do my reservations and the agent told me they only release 25-30% depending on the ship.  If it’s urban legend, someone should tell NCL personnel to stop telling this to passengers.

[ChiefMateJRK]

6 minutes ago, golf4me2010 said:

Yes that is true. Ncl told me also

NCL has told a lot of people this, but

3 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

This is incorrect. Urban legend. There is zero value for the cruise line to cause long lines on embarkation day. 
 

They will hold a small number of onboard bookings. 

@BirdTravelsis correct.  My last cruise was a B2B.  I never got off the ship and was the only one waiting at Teppanyaki when they started accepting dinner reservations.  The touch screens were not taking reservations before this (I tried several times between 10 and 11).  I had to change an Ocean Blue reservation.  They only had one or two nights when they could give me an early reservation.  All others were totally booked or down to the 8 pm or later leftovers.  This is similar to other times when I've tried to book a reservation shortly after boarding.  It is a disservice to other cruisers for posters to continue to spread the false rumor that "you don't need to worry, they only reserve a small number in advance, just book when you get on the ship."

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 minute ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

Last fall I called in to do my reservations and the agent told me they only release 25-30% depending on the ship.  If it’s urban legend, someone should tell NCL personnel to stop telling this to passengers.

I think NCL knows exactly what they're doing, and it is not necessarily in the interest of making specialty dining reservations available to the late bookers.  More likely in selling more specialty dining packages.

[golf4me2010]

So basically I'm not getting my reservations sounds like. 

[fmrlkr]

I was among the first to get reservations on my last cruise.  There was no availibility online or thru my NCL rep.  When I went once on board I was able to get everything I wanted and was able to choose from multiple times.  They had plenty of availibility.  It may be an urban legend, but if you can't get them before, it won't hurt to try once on board, where they have set up to book dining.  I have never, not been able to book dining.  Sometimes there is a slight adjustment in time or day (on my last Alaska cruise one restaurant was fully booked one night by a private group who had also booked all the Haven rooms.  I just went another night.)  Good luck!

[ChiefMateJRK]

37 minutes ago, golf4me2010 said:

So basically I'm not getting my reservations sounds like. 

You may not need reservations.  I've had consistent success in just showing up at a specialty restaurant and asking if we could get a seat.  There's never a line, because everybody thinks they need reservations.  Sometimes it works, sometimes they tell me to come back in an hour, or wait 15 minutes.  I've waited longer for an MDR than some specialty restaurants without reservations.

[cruiseny4life]

17 hours ago, golf4me2010 said:

So basically I'm not getting my reservations sounds like. 

Don't believe everything you read on the internet, as one of the above posters is wont to say. Unless you are one of the last to board the ship, I bet you'll be fine. And even if you don't get the reservations then, keep checking throughout the week. Might you get boxed out? I suppose, but I'd bet a wee bit of money that you'll get your reservation. 

[McFins]

19 hours ago, golf4me2010 said:

So basically I'm not getting my reservations sounds like. 

Why not book a table for 4 and a table for 2 if it is a restaurant you really want to try and then try to change it to 6 once on board.  We have been successful in doing that in the past.   
Also, FYI, on a recent cruise on the Prima …on about the 3rd or 4th day of the cruise we decided we wanted to go to Cagneys and were able to get a table for 6 at a 6pm time slot by calling restaurant reservations.    We were in port that day so maybe that helped but just wanted to share that it is possible you will be able to reserve once on board. 
 

[mking8288]

8 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Don't believe everything you read on the internet ... 

LOL, don't believe everything posted here on CC by the expert posters here either 😉 😆 😁  FWIW, what do I know ... cruising NCL (and, other lines) since about 2000 only.  

 

I can't and will not vouch as a generalization across NCL's fleet of ships.  Case in point, our our January Getaway 12 nighters sailing at +90% double occupancies and April's Epic TA 15 nighters at +95% double occupancies - had no problem whatsoever booking Specialty Dining on embarkation day, using the NCL App connected to ship's WiFi inTRAnet, plenty of availabilities for most days at popular "prime" time for 2 of us ...  By mid/late evening, while we're still anchored at the pier since it was scheduled for a 19:30 departure - fewer "preferred" slots were available.  Cagney's and Le Bistro were among the top choices to fill up by Day 2 and nearly all taken by Day 3, not a surprise - still, plenty of choices for Moderno and Tappenyaki.  For a larger group to do SD together, i.e. 6, 7's and 8's - it is best to book it as soon as "practical" onboard - just common sense, IMHO. 

 

In 2018 and 2019, we booked 2 tables of 4 at Moderno for the same date/time ahead on the Gem & Dawn, and spoke with the host/ess once onboard, they happily set up a larger table for 6 and 7 of us [their "system" then has a limit of 6 for the smaller venue like Moderno, specific to the ship(s)]    My advise to OP, @golf4me2010 if the system permit booking for a table for 2 and another table for 4, together at the same time & date for the specific ship in question, depending on the particular SD restaurant in question - BOOK it now and then, odds are good that the host/ess or asst manager on duty can "override" the system, make a note of linking the reservations together & join the 2 tables together, if and when possible ahead of time.  Worst case, you will be seated behind the other table, next to and not side-by-side, etc.  You'll "lock" out others ahead now from taking the "vacant" slots for a given date/time.  

 

Pre-Covid, staffing issues had sometimes resulted in empty tables not available to be booked and/or assigned as being available - I imagine this continue to be one of the many "challenges" facing the ship in managing the bookings. 

[golf4me2010]

I went ahead and booked the 2 and 4 for Cagney so we'll see. I'll book the rest onboard. Thanks

[graphicguy]

22 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Don't believe everything you read on the internet, 

Wait….WHAT???????

[kitkat343]

1 hour ago, golf4me2010 said:

I went ahead and booked the 2 and 4 for Cagney so we'll see. I'll book the rest onboard. Thanks

That’s perfect.  We are 6 and I was also told that a large number of reservations would open up onboard.  We boarded late but oceans blue, the last restaurant we wanted on a sea day was available (we were able to make all other reservations ahead of time).  But I think you’ve done the right thing here since it’ll be easier for them to put these tables together than start from scratch if less is available on your sailing as others are indicating.  

Edited June 17, 2023 by kitkat343

[Peachypooh]

Book for 4 show up with 6. I booked for 6 and showed up with 7 no problem