As You Wish Dining - What and How

[codyody]

We changed, before we boarded, to AYWD, with a little apprehension. We ate in the Lido several times (I wish it were open later), the Pinnacle Grill once and the DR (no problem getting a reservation time) twice. The very best part about the Lido, IMHO, is that it can be very quick. No, you do not get the "fine dining" experience, but that is not first on our list. We are always so busy, we still, in 3 cruises, have not been able to see a show. We HAVE met many wonderfule, fascinating people. The food in the Lido in the evening is as good as the DR.

[artravel]

Read somewhere on these boards that if you use your platinum card you can get a free entrance to the Pinacle room. Anyone have any info????

 

Thanks:)

[jannandjohn]

. No, you do not get the "fine dining" experience, but that is not first on our list. We are always so busy, we still, in 3 cruises, have not been able to see a show. .

 

If you were NOT spending a lot of time dining, and NEVER been to the shows, what do you do with your time??...not being scarcastic, just curious:)

[codyody]

I read, start a conversation with anyone who will talk back, enjoy the drink of the day (DH enjoys beer), utilize the casino, sit on deck, have new friends over for pre-dinner (BYOB) snacks and sometimes cards on the verandah, nap, watch the stars, sunset, view, rain, people, repeat. It just seems that the dining hours are always when the best "viewing" and conversation is:D

[jannandjohn]

I read, start a conversation with anyone who will talk back, enjoy the drink of the day (DH enjoys beer), utilize the casino, sit on deck, have new friends over for pre-dinner (BYOB) snacks and sometimes cards on the verandah, nap, watch the stars, sunset, view, rain, people, repeat. :D

yes, we do all of the above too, but still find time for fine dining,and wonderful dinner conversation, and still fit in going to the shows.

[redhead1944]

We had AYWD on an Alaskan cruise on the Oosterdam in Sept - 2008 - easy breezy - had an SS suite - phoned every am and got what we wanted - if the line was bz, we would check w/ the maitre d when we went to breakfast - we sat w/ multiple people during the 7 days - only had one table where the people didnt converse - we enjoyed our dinner & didnt try to rethink why they didnt socialize - we are going on the May 19th Med cruise on the "O" and looking forward to AYWD as we still keep us w/ some of those we met on our first cruise. We like the dining room - so we met lots of nice folks throughout the day - probably someone has said all this but I liked the freedom....

[janerd]

I tried the search but didn't find the info I'm looking for.How do you get a table that you want the first day.Ok so I board the ship at around noon,where do I go and who do I see about dining that night.Do I have to show up or can I reserve a table after I board.Thanks for all the help here.Mike.

[ileina makai]

redhead1944,

Just browsing through the boards and caught your name. Were you born in 1944? I live in the San Diego area and belong to a group called the 1944 Club. We are planning a big 65th birthday party later this year. You are welcome to join us

Elaine

[redhead1944]

redhead1944,

Just browsing through the boards and caught your name. Were you born in 1944? I live in the San Diego area and belong to a group called the 1944 Club. We are planning a big 65th birthday party later this year. You are welcome to join us

Elaine

 

Yep Elaine - the 5th day of March 1944 - would love to join you but have travel plans out the kazoo this year - a cruise in May, the beach in July and possibly a Fall cruise...thanks for the invite and yall have fun..c in PacNW:)

[kcasey]

Would like to know the extra charges that aren't covered such as coffee's, bottle water & on the Noordam ship is the Exploration Cafe an extra also? This is a great site.

[DavidPatrick]

On board the QMII we had a chinese couple that couldn't speak English and a women drunk at our fixed dinning table, luckly they both left after the first night and we got a "swinger" couple that were fun and two sisters that were also fun, so the fixed worked out.

We just came back from the Eurodam with open seating and one night we got a really stupid husband from Idaho who railed against Obama all night, but with open seating we shifted table the next night. With open seating you don't have to put up with Texans etc. who bore you to death with how great their football progam is.

[Ready4Cruise]

I tried the search but didn't find the info I'm looking for.How do you get a table that you want the first day.Ok so I board the ship at around noon,where do I go and who do I see about dining that night.Do I have to show up or can I reserve a table after I board.Thanks for all the help here.Mike.

 

On our March 2009 cruise on the Ryndam there was a dinning room staff member in the Lido buffet when we had lunch after boarding. He was taking AYWD reservations for the 1st night. You can probably also make reservations by phone after getting your cabin, the way you would normally do each day. On our cruise we were allowed to make reservations (time and table number) for up to 2 nights in advance. If you meet someone one you want to dine with or have a favorite table you can give a table number (While they say they will try to honor your table number request, it is not guaranteed. I am not sure if this works for tables next to windows.). When you phone you can make reservations for yourself and friends assuming you know their cabin numbers and names.

[slp123]

Read somewhere on these boards that if you use your platinum card you can get a free entrance to the Pinacle room. Anyone have any info????

 

Thanks:)

 

One of the perks given to American Express Platinum Card holders who use their card to pay for the cruise is free entrance to the Pinnacle Dining Room 1 time on cruises of 14 days or more. You will need to check with HAL or your TA as to what night(s) on the cruise are set aside for Platinum members to gain free entrance but generally it's usually the first night of the cruise and then a second designated night. Advance reservation are required.

[bv521]

One of the perks given to American Express Platinum Card holders who use their card to pay for the cruise is free entrance to the Pinnacle Dining Room 1 time on cruises of 14 days or more. You will need to check with HAL or your TA as to what night(s) on the cruise are set aside for Platinum members to gain free entrance but generally it's usually the first night of the cruise and then a second designated night. Advance reservation are required.

I have a Delta Sky Miles American Express Platinum Card which is apparently not the same as an American Express Platinum Card, at least according to customer service. We are booked on the Rotterdam 15 day trans-Atlantic from NYC to Rotterdam.

[cp556]

I have a Delta Sky Miles American Express Platinum Card which is apparently not the same as an American Express Platinum Card, at least according to customer service. We are booked on the Rotterdam 15 day trans-Atlantic from NYC to Rotterdam.

 

 

Correct. The Delta Skymiles cards don't have the full privileges of the AX Platinum cards. They also don't have as high a fee ... I think Platinum Skymiles is $150/year and Platinum AX is ~$400/year... if I'm wrong someone will be along to update this.

[bv521]

Correct. The Delta Skymiles cards don't have the full privileges of the AX Platinum cards. They also don't have as high a fee ... I think Platinum Skymiles is $150/year and Platinum AX is ~$400/year... if I'm wrong someone will be along to update this.

My last Platinum Skymiles renewal in November was $95 so I am not about to argue over a $40 Pinnacle freebee :p

[MarilouR]

On our first cruise we had fixed dining. On our 2nd, we had open dining and I think we prefer open. Our schedule was different everyday and it allowed us to plan dinner around our activities rather than the other way around. In addition, we met so many wonderful people from all over the world - one family, we plan to keep contact with. We may never had met them without open dining.

[Queen of DaNile]

We're with you Marilou. We've enjoyed open seating on Oceania and look forward to trying it on HA next go around.

[Kay240]

Our longest cruise (to date) was in December, with FIXED SEATING. We realized that 2 weeks or more is too long to stay with the "same crowd" when one benefit of cruising is meeting MANY new people.

At our April cruise, we were very pleased to have the opportunity to eat when our schedule dictated, and in addition had the opportunity to meet so many people. An unexpected result was "breakfast for two" on the mornings we were in a rush for an activity or shore excursion. We were able to make dinner reservations for two at 7PM, sit with two more people at 7:15, or just walk in and join a large table.

Karen

[Brad1185]

What gets me is me is we booked the Zaandam Hawaii cruise for this Oct over a year before and Hal will not confirm us for early seating.

 

I thought "as you wish" was as you wish not what Hal wishes.

 

We don't like open seating. NCL and Princess turned us off that for ever.

[skankycat]

What gets me is me is we booked the Zaandam Hawaii cruise for this Oct over a year before and Hal will not confirm us for early seating.

 

I thought "as you wish" was as you wish not what Hal wishes.

 

We don't like open seating. NCL and Princess turned us off that for ever.

 

 

I'm sure it's been noted before, how can they call it 'as you wish' when you ask and they say 'no'?

[Barry Shaw]

We requested second seating but were given open dining.

On the first night we were told we could have reserved open dining!!??

We said that we did not understand the reason for having a reserved place if it was open dining but did not receive a clear explanation.

 

We certainly found out the significance the next night whioch was the first formal night.

It seemed that half the ship descended on the Vista Lounge for open seating at the same time (after the show).

After waiting in line we were given a pager and told to wait patiently until we were called.

We saw many others (without reserved places) making their way to the entrance and being taken into the dining room.

After waiting impatiently for half an hour and then seeing a couple who we had previously dined with (and we know they did not have any reserved places) be admitted into the Vista Lounge I blew my top!

 

I demanded to see the manager and expressed my anger to him. After an initial attempt to keep me waiting further he managed to find us two places.

 

Unfortunately, during that meal, the waiters brought us the wrong meals after we had ordered, causing us further frustration.

 

After the meal we returned to the manager and really gave him hell.

To his credit he promised, and delivered, the second seating fixed dining that we had requested six months earlier...

 

The moral of the story - do not go for open dining on HAL ships.

[Brad1185]

What happened to you Barry is what we are trying to avoid. We were one of the first to book the up coming October cruise, and after repeated calls we are still waitlisted for early fixed. We don't ever want to be handed a pager on a cruise ship. NCL was enough.

[Joy2theWorld]

I just read about 6 pages of this thread and didn't find the answers to questions I have, so, please forgive me if they have already been asked.

We just got off Royal Caribbean and had open seating, so, I'm trying to figure out the differences. First, how do tips work? We never gave anyone a tip envelope at the end since we had different servers throughout. The tip was prepaid, so, everyone who was supposed to get a tip, got one, but how does HAL do this?

Secondly, I absolutely don't want to eat with different people every night. I can imagine having the same conversation seven times... where are you from? what do you do? etc... Is there a way to make a reservation for two each evening? Also, we will be traveling with people we know onboard and they have open seating apparently, but have an assigned time already. Is that possible?

[RuthC]

First, how do tips work?

A service charge of $11 per person, per day is added to your on-board account. This represents the tips to your dining stewards, and others.

Secondly, I absolutely don't want to eat with different people every night. Is there a way to make a reservation for two each evening?

You can call each morning, starting at 8:00, and make a reservation. Or, you can arrive without a reservation and take your chances on how long the wait will be.

Also, we will be traveling with people we know onboard and they have open seating apparently, but have an assigned time already. Is that possible?

No, that's a contradiction in terms. It's either fixed seating, or open seating.