Blondie511 Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 Love this forum! I have one cruise under my belt now, yeah! We booked one for next year on Adventure of the Seas. We reserved My Time Dining for our family of three. If my teen son meets a friend that week, can he spontaneously ask his friend to join our table in the MDR? Is that allowed? Also, part two of my question: since we are a party of three, will they add people that we do not know to our table to “round it out”? (I was kind of hoping not to have to socialize with people we do not know, call me crazy....LOL). P.S. the people on this forum are so much nicer than other forums..the others get a bit snippy with each other! CruisinUngs and Lovetocruise2002 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 I know what you mean about the "other" forums. I couldn't agree more. The GREAT part about the MDR is that they are so amenable to most anything you want. There will be NO problem whatsoever with inviting another person to join you for dinner. Since they will most likely seat you at a 4 top (if you ask for that), the addition of 1 more person won't even cause a blink. Whether or not they seat "strangers" with you is entirely up to you ! That's what I love about the MDR. If you WANT to be seated with others, you can ask for that and they will kindly oblige but if you are socially awkward, like me (HA !!) and do not especially want to have to make small talk with someone you don't know, they will make sure that you have a "private" table. While they are great about making sure you are happy, it is BEST if you pick one or the other (private or not) at the beginning of the cruise, let the head waiter know your preference and stick to it for the remainder of the cruise. But even if you change your mind and decide to make some new friends, they will accommodate that as well. It's just easier for them if you make a preference and then stick to it. I hope your son makes LOTS of new friends ! MikeK, ellcee and henrysea13 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 If you are doing MTD it's like any land based restaurant. You can add whoever. Just keep in mind that you might have to wait a few extra minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 13 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: If you are doing MTD it's like any land based restaurant. You can add whoever. Just keep in mind that you might have to wait a few extra minutes. Bingo. henrysea13 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 Many of us are here because of the environment you have noted. I have met people cruising solo as I often do who also had My Time Dining and we went to eat together. We both provided our cabin numbers at the hostess. There tend to be tables for two, four and then some larger tables. You can ask to sit at a shared table but in my experience the default approach would be to sit a party of 3 at a table for 4 and leave the last spot empty. As a solo cruiser I've never been placed at a table with 3 to fill in the last spot. I don't know what happens when people who have traditional dining try to eat with MTD guests. If that occurs perhaps you could come back and let us know how it went. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 4 minutes ago, twangster said: As a solo cruiser I've never been placed at a table with 3 to fill in the last spot. As a solo - how do they seat you in the MDR? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 10 minutes ago, ellcee said: As a solo - how do they seat you in the MDR? Always at a table for two, by myself. Tables are so close though that if you have friendly neighbors you can have a conversation. I actually prefer this and usually get great service. In and out in under 45 minutes, sometimes faster. coneyraven, MikeK, Baked Alaska and 3 others 4 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adriana Posted July 20, 2018 Report Share Posted July 20, 2018 I have been sat alone at a two top as well as with other people at a larger table. I have always been cool with sitting with others. I spend so much alone that it was nice to have the company and chat. ellcee and WAAAYTOOO 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mljstr Posted July 20, 2018 Report Share Posted July 20, 2018 My answer is be sure to speak up! I can tell horror stories about some dinner companions on other cruises. After the first particularly painful experience when we were new cruisers, I decided I am paying for this and I will ask to be moved. I did and it worked out fine. The last cruise we were on with our son and his fiancee and the first night we were seated in MTD at a table for 4 (our reservations were linked.) The next night they marched us past 4 top tables to a table for 8 or 10 with another family. This was my son's first cruise and I knew he would not be comfortable to I just said that table would not work and sure enough they took us back to one of the tables we had passed????? The rest of the cruise we were in our original table-no problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim&N8 Posted July 24, 2018 Report Share Posted July 24, 2018 On 7/20/2018 at 9:19 AM, Mljstr said: My answer is be sure to speak up! I can tell horror stories about some dinner companions on other cruises. After the first particularly painful experience when we were new cruisers, I decided I am paying for this and I will ask to be moved. I did and it worked out fine. The last cruise we were on with our son and his fiancee and the first night we were seated in MTD at a table for 4 (our reservations were linked.) The next night they marched us past 4 top tables to a table for 8 or 10 with another family. This was my son's first cruise and I knew he would not be comfortable to I just said that table would not work and sure enough they took us back to one of the tables we had passed????? The rest of the cruise we were in our original table-no problem. This is interesting... I don't remember being seated after night one. I wonder if we were rude and just headed on in to our table or if because we were a large group (12 adults) if we were seated and I just never paid attention to the host taking us all. #blameitonthewine Mljstr 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 24, 2018 Report Share Posted July 24, 2018 2 hours ago, Kim&N8 said: This is interesting... I don't remember being seated after night one. I wonder if we were rude and just headed on in to our table or if because we were a large group (12 adults) if we were seated and I just never paid attention to the host taking us all. #blameitonthewine The key is My Time Dining. With My Time you are escorted every night. Kim&N8 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted July 24, 2018 Report Share Posted July 24, 2018 15 hours ago, Kim&N8 said: This is interesting... I don't remember being seated after night one. I wonder if we were rude and just headed on in to our table or if because we were a large group (12 adults) if we were seated and I just never paid attention to the host taking us all. #blameitonthewine Same. We had a table of 15 and after the first night when we were told this would be our table every night at 6, we never thought to wait. Oops? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted July 24, 2018 Report Share Posted July 24, 2018 17 hours ago, Kim&N8 said: This is interesting... I don't remember being seated after night one. I wonder if we were rude and just headed on in to our table or if because we were a large group (12 adults) if we were seated and I just never paid attention to the host taking us all. #blameitonthewine 1 hour ago, ellcee said: Same. We had a table of 15 and after the first night when we were told this would be our table every night at 6, we never thought to wait. Oops? Even on our first night on Freedom, my wife and I just told the hostess that we had already found our table earlier in the day. She was totally fine with it, no escort required. I want to say that by night 3 almost everyone was just walking in to the MDR and going to their tables on their own. But we were late seating traditional -- I guess by any measure our dining room as a whole were an odd lot. Kim&N8 and ellcee 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henrysea13 Posted July 24, 2018 Report Share Posted July 24, 2018 Royal as a rule is great at accommodating your wishes I am one of those you see in the MDR sitting by myself I have spent my whole life dealing with people and there problems when I get on these magnificent ships I prefer to just enjoy the ambiance and having 4 children I am an expert at tuning out noise and superfluous chatter I love the ocean and every minute I can see it is a minute in life not wasted I sail alone a lot and cherish the time my children sail with me only once did I have a problem with my requests and that was on one of my favorites the Majesty but it is so rare to run into a maître d like that just stand firm and you will have what you wish Royal stands alone with me as the best at what they do and I consider sailing with another as a waste of my money please understand this is only my opinion go into any cruise with an open mind don't be afraid to ask for what you want treat every crew member with respect and you will have there total service and support for your requests and that will add up to the time of your life SAIL ON MY FRIENDS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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