m00cat Posted January 2, 2020 Report Share Posted January 2, 2020 Hi everyone, So I've been paying attention to RCL blog for quite some time, ever since me and my wife decided to make our honeymoon an RCL cruise in June 2020. I discovered the podcast this week and am making my way through the archives. Likewise I heard about the message boards because Matt mentioned them on the podcast. So we've bought an unlimited dining package, which as I understand, we make those reservations once aboard right? The thing I don't get is the cruise planner made me choose a time for this package despite being good the entire cruise right? Also I went back to the cruise planner, in the dining section there was a banner message that said "YOU CAN STILL MAKE DINING RESERVATIONS FOR NIGHT 2, NIGHT 3, NIGHT 4, NIGHT 5, NIGHT 6, NIGHT 7, BUT AVAILABILITY IS LIMITED. FIND THE PERFECT RESTAURANT HERE. PLAN ALL CRUISE DINING!" Can I make reservations using my unlimited dining package before I cruise through the cruise planner? Thanks, Danny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 2, 2020 Report Share Posted January 2, 2020 23 minutes ago, m00cat said: Can I make reservations using my unlimited dining package before I cruise through the cruise planner? Welcome to the blog, Danny and congratulations on your upcoming wedding ! No, you cannot make your dining reservations prior to boarding UNLESS you are in a Grand Suite or higher, in which case a Suites Concierge will reach out to your prior (around 5 days beforehand) to the sail date....and they would help you make advanced reservations. But not to worry ! You will be able to make reservations as soon as you board the ship and will have no trouble getting the restaurants and times you prefer. Just make sure to take care of that as SOON as you board. When you purchased the UDP the “system” automatically makes a reservation for you, at the time that you chose. Once you get onboard you can change the time and/or location of that reservation if you so choose. We always get the a UDP and nearly always get the restaurants and times that we want. The system works very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted January 2, 2020 Report Share Posted January 2, 2020 WAAYTOOO's answer is great. I'll also add this...the Cruise Planner isn't smart enough to realize you've booked the UDP so the parts advertising dining or showing you how to book dining reservations are still there. It's just what everyone sees. You can safely ignore it. There's no reason to do anything else once you've booked the UDP. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biff215 Posted January 3, 2020 Report Share Posted January 3, 2020 We just purchased the package for next week on Mariner. It gave us 8:30 for the first night with no other choices, even though I can see that all times are available at each restaurant. Sounds like I should have no problem getting that changed once on board. Another question, should I make any lunch reservations at that same time? And are Johnny Rockets and Bamboo Room included in the $35 credit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted January 4, 2020 Report Share Posted January 4, 2020 18 minutes ago, Biff215 said: We just purchased the package for next week on Mariner. It gave us 8:30 for the first night with no other choices, even though I can see that all times are available at each restaurant. Sounds like I should have no problem getting that changed once on board. Another question, should I make any lunch reservations at that same time? And are Johnny Rockets and Bamboo Room included in the $35 credit? You can request whatever times and venues you would like upon boarding. Lunch is not reserved, simple walk up basis. JR and Bamboo seems to vary. The ship can change policy week to week so for that you'll have to try and see how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biff215 Posted January 4, 2020 Report Share Posted January 4, 2020 24 minutes ago, twangster said: You can request whatever times and venues you would like upon boarding. Lunch is not reserved, simple walk up basis. JR and Bamboo seems to vary. The ship can change policy week to week so for that you'll have to try and see how it goes. Thanks. So no reservations for lunch at Chops or Jamie’s? That’s good to know! Crazy how policies differ between ships on something like this. I wish Royal would make it consistent so you didn’t need to find out the hard way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted January 4, 2020 Report Share Posted January 4, 2020 5 minutes ago, Biff215 said: Thanks. So no reservations for lunch at Chops or Jamie’s? That’s good to know! Crazy how policies differ between ships on something like this. I wish Royal would make it consistent so you didn’t need to find out the hard way. Totally agree with Royal (lack of) policy. Make a list of you desired times and venues for the week. As soon as board deal with it. The longer you wait the more "good" times are gobbled up by other package holders. You can always adapt during the cruise if you feel like more of restaurant X and less of restaurant Y but at least you have your bases covered by making all reservation on day one. Biff215 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted January 5, 2020 Report Share Posted January 5, 2020 On 1/3/2020 at 6:33 PM, Biff215 said: I wish Royal would make it consistent so you didn’t need to find out the hard way. Then they wouldn't be RCI (Really Consistently Inconsistent) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill A Posted January 13, 2020 Report Share Posted January 13, 2020 What do you recommend if the unlimited plan is sold out and I would like one for our party of four. We do have three night specialty dining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted January 13, 2020 Report Share Posted January 13, 2020 4 hours ago, Bill A said: What do you recommend if the unlimited plan is sold out and I would like one for our party of four. We do have three night specialty dining. Keep checking your cruise planner every day to see if it is available again (because someone else canceled theirs). Or try calling Royal. Their website is known for glitches so it might actually be available if you talk to someone in person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 13, 2020 Report Share Posted January 13, 2020 Even if the UDP were sold out, you can always book a specialty restaurant and pay full price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpeedNoodles Posted January 13, 2020 Report Share Posted January 13, 2020 1 hour ago, WAAAYTOOO said: .... pay full price. Quelle horreur!!! WAAAYTOOO, Ogilthorpe and KristiZ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neff.angie Posted January 20, 2020 Report Share Posted January 20, 2020 I will be a first time cruiser on RC in July with my family on Navigator of the seas. We do NOT have to purchase the unlimited dining plan correct? Our cruise includes food right? I am pretty sure I know the answer but just checking do not want any surprises. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 20, 2020 Report Share Posted January 20, 2020 Welcome neff.angie. Yes, there is PLENTY of food that is 100% complimentary. There is no need to spend a single nickel on food if you don't want to. You will never go hungry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saytheb Posted January 22, 2020 Report Share Posted January 22, 2020 If the unlimited dining is sold out, does it typically get the sold out "treatment" like other items do in the cruise planner? I ask because as of last week or so, the option is just... gone. No rhyme or reason, just gone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 22, 2020 Report Share Posted January 22, 2020 5 minutes ago, saytheb said: If the unlimited dining is sold out, does it typically get the sold out "treatment" like other items do in the cruise planner? I ask because as of last week or so, the option is just... gone. No rhyme or reason, just gone! I suppose it’s possible for the UDP to sell out but I haven’t seen that happen before. I’m not sure how it would “look” in the Cruise Planner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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