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dianadrw
LIF Adult
Member since 5/06 2092 total posts
Name:
Me
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
We are looking at booking a Disney cruise for July but the only dinner seating is the late seating which is at 8:15pm. The early seating wasn't available. Has anyone done the late seating? How is it??
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Posted 1/3/17 10:50 AM  |
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Long Island Weddings
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M514
Hi
Member since 8/10 6011 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
You can call them and be put on a waitlist for the early seating. We did this and it already got changed to the early seating on my account for our cruise in March. The late seating would have been a disaster for us.
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| Posted 1/3/17 11:09 AM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
We have done both. I like late seating better because you aren't as rushed to get to dinner after you come back on board the boat from the port you were in. Early dining is too early IMO. Late is too late, but, you can always eat at the buffet on the top deck OR order free room service.
Another advantage at late dining is they will come and get your kids in the dining room at 9:15 and take them to the kids club if you want!
Also, the shows seem to be less packed when you are attending the first show, vs. the 2nd show. More people for the 2nd show, and you have to line up earlier to get a seat!
We just booked a cruise for next month and chose the late seating.
...and yes, get waitlisted if you want. We did that last Summer and got first..but then I regretted it lol
Message edited 1/3/2017 11:47:40 AM.
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| Posted 1/3/17 11:47 AM |
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EricaAlt
LIF Adult
Member since 7/08 22665 total posts
Name:
Erica
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
We had the same thing. There was no early seating left. Honestly, it worked out best. There's no rush to all get ready before dinner. You get to see the show before dinner too. We went with friends and the kids were 7, 5 and 4. They were fine with the late seating. I also like you don't have to rush back from the beach. A lot more down time.
There are a ton of great Disney shows and movies (we brought IPADS and they were never used) on the TV in the room and after the kids showered they watched TV while we got ready.
We would have a snack for the kids around 5'ish and you can also bring food to snack on for the show.
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| Posted 1/3/17 12:30 PM |
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SLPRunner
LIF Adult
Member since 12/13 1101 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
what time is late dining? We booked one for August 2017. At first only late dining was available but I see they were able to accomodate our early request. My DS will 3 at the time. I couldn't see eating at the late time with him, but also hate rushing back for dinner.
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| Posted 1/3/17 9:10 PM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
5:45 is first seating. 8:15 is second.
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| Posted 1/3/17 9:43 PM |
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ml110
LIF Adult
Member since 1/06 5435 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
we like early dining... even with rushing a little bit to get ready and get down there. Forget about DS- *I* just can't eat that late HAHA
on both Disney cruises we've done, we booked kind of "last minute", so had late seating, but our agent put us on the waiting list for early dinner- and we got it, both times. We only have 3 of us, so they would put us with another family of 5 at a table for 8 people.... it was kind of awkward to eat with people we didn't know- BUT both times it ended up being people with kids similar in age to our DS so it wasn't bad. and it really ended up being just like 1 or 2 nights they actually sat with us. between them getting room service one night, and us doing the adults only restaurant one night and that kind of stuff.
even if you end up with late dining, like other people said- you can get snacks from other places on the ship before dinner, and you watch the show before dinner so that makes the time go faster, too...
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| Posted 1/4/17 8:53 AM |
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dianadrw
LIF Adult
Member since 5/06 2092 total posts
Name:
Me
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Thanks everyone! I think we're going to keep the late seating and see how it goes. We are going with another family and they kind of agree.
One other question, those of you that have done the late seating did you take advantage of the Dine & Play option where the kids club staff come and pick up the kids?
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| Posted 1/4/17 9:47 AM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
I have done the dine and play. Works out great. The kids clubs have awesome programs and my daughter loved it in there. She loved going in there more than sitting and waiting for our meal to finish
Message edited 1/4/2017 10:39:35 AM.
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| Posted 1/4/17 10:39 AM |
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dianadrw
LIF Adult
Member since 5/06 2092 total posts
Name:
Me
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by BargainMama
I have done the dine and play. Works out great. The kids clubs have awesome programs and my daughter loved it in there. She loved going in there more than sitting and waiting for our meal to finish
That's great to hear! One other thing, what time are the shows when you do the late seating? I thought I saw 6:15.
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| Posted 1/4/17 11:02 AM |
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EricaAlt
LIF Adult
Member since 7/08 22665 total posts
Name:
Erica
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by dianadrw
Thanks everyone! I think we're going to keep the late seating and see how it goes. We are going with another family and they kind of agree.
One other question, those of you that have done the late seating did you take advantage of the Dine & Play option where the kids club staff come and pick up the kids?
We did it one night. I think bc we had the late seating and were busy all day that by the time dinner was done we were all exhausted. I like that you don't feel rushed eating bc of late seating. The kids were always given an activity to do while waiting to eat and they feed them first. Since we went with another family they all entertained each other and the adults got to enjoy too. The waiters were great!! They cut the kids food and learn where they like to sit, drink and eat and usually have it ready waiting.
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| Posted 1/4/17 11:18 AM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by dianadrw
Posted by BargainMama
I have done the dine and play. Works out great. The kids clubs have awesome programs and my daughter loved it in there. She loved going in there more than sitting and waiting for our meal to finish
That's great to hear! One other thing, what time are the shows when you do the late seating? I thought I saw 6:15.
Yes, 6:15 and the doors open 30 minutes before Which ship are you looking at?
Message edited 1/4/2017 12:08:04 PM.
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| Posted 1/4/17 12:07 PM |
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dianadrw
LIF Adult
Member since 5/06 2092 total posts
Name:
Me
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by BargainMama
Posted by dianadrw
Posted by BargainMama
I have done the dine and play. Works out great. The kids clubs have awesome programs and my daughter loved it in there. She loved going in there more than sitting and waiting for our meal to finish
That's great to hear! One other thing, what time are the shows when you do the late seating? I thought I saw 6:15.
Yes, 6:15 and the doors open 30 minutes before Which ship are you looking at?
The Dream. It's a Castaway Cay double dip in July.
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| Posted 1/4/17 12:29 PM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Oh fun! We did that one not last Summer, but the Summer before! LOVED the two stops at Castaway Cay since our first stop was pretty cloudy and rained for a little bit! I would definitely do late seating because you will be rushing to get ready after Castaway Cay if you do the early!
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| Posted 1/4/17 12:31 PM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
And definitely try to get a cabana!!! Sooo worth it! We didn't do other excursions though since it was almost $700
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| Posted 1/4/17 12:32 PM |
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Bridex100
Two Under Two Mommy
Member since 3/08 10420 total posts
Name:
Momx100
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
How old are your kids?
I must be in the minority because 8:15 would be way too late for dinner for our family. You won't get served food until 8:30. My kids go to bed at 8:30. We eat dinner around 5:30-6. Idea of kids going to kids club in evening sounds great but my kids would not last. They would be dozing off.
We were always hungry when we got back to the boat so a quick rinse and change of clothes and dinner was perfect for us. Our whole family only requires like 20 min to get ready.
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| Posted 1/4/17 2:04 PM |
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M514
Hi
Member since 8/10 6011 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by Bridex100
How old are your kids?
I must be in the minority because 8:15 would be way too late for dinner for our family. You won't get served food until 8:30. My kids go to bed at 8:30. We eat dinner around 5:30-6. Idea of kids going to kids club in evening sounds great but my kids would not last. They would be dozing off.
We were always hungry when we got back to the boat so a quick rinse and change of clothes and dinner was perfect for us. Our whole family only requires like 20 min to get ready.
Same here. My DD goes to bed between 8-9pm while on vacation. There is no way we would be able to just sit down to dinner at that time. I was so so so happy when I saw our seating was changed to the early time. It was stressing me out!
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| Posted 1/4/17 5:18 PM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
My 9 year old goes to bed at 8:30 at home, but on vacation she has no problem staying up late
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| Posted 1/4/17 7:38 PM |
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pnbplus1
Family
Member since 5/09 5751 total posts
Name:
Mommy
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by M514
Posted by Bridex100
How old are your kids?
I must be in the minority because 8:15 would be way too late for dinner for our family. You won't get served food until 8:30. My kids go to bed at 8:30. We eat dinner around 5:30-6. Idea of kids going to kids club in evening sounds great but my kids would not last. They would be dozing off.
We were always hungry when we got back to the boat so a quick rinse and change of clothes and dinner was perfect for us. Our whole family only requires like 20 min to get ready.
Same here. My DD goes to bed between 8-9pm while on vacation. There is no way we would be able to just sit down to dinner at that time. I was so so so happy when I saw our seating was changed to the early time. It was stressing me out!
This is us too. When we booked our Disney cruise this past summer only late seating was available so I asked to be put on the waiting list for main seating. We were lucky and got moved to main about a week before we sailed. Had we not been moved, we would have done room service and Cabanas bc there was no way my 2 kids (2 and 6 then) could wait until 8:30 for food. It would've been a disaster. We pushed their bedtimes back but bc we were having fun, they were more than ready to go to bed at 9. We didn't feel rushed to get back on the boat and we always showered and changed before dinner. We did just enough to keep busy and have fun but didn't try to cram everything in to every last minute bc I didn't want overtired/cranky childen who would be a mess by day 5.
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| Posted 1/4/17 11:16 PM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
I just want to add, that we definitely eat something before having dinner at 8:15. My kids would starve to death if we didn't eat from lunch up until dinner that late. 8:15 was more like a snack dinner to us, and we weren't starving, but only went because of the "ambiance" of the dining room (Animator's Palette is fun, etc.).
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| Posted 1/5/17 7:16 AM |
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Bridex100
Two Under Two Mommy
Member since 3/08 10420 total posts
Name:
Momx100
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by BargainMama
I just want to add, that we definitely eat something before having dinner at 8:15. My kids would starve to death if we didn't eat from lunch up until dinner that late. 8:15 was more like a snack dinner to us, and we weren't starving, but only went because of the "ambiance" of the dining room (Animator's Palette is fun, etc.).
My kids definitely push their bedtime an hour or so when they are out of school. As another pp stated, there is a lot to do on the Disney cruise and islands so the kids are wiped out by their normal bedtime.
We are always one of the first to get off the ship since we are early risers. I never felt rushed to get back on the ship.
I know we are not the norm though. We wake earlier than most people, eat lunch and dinner earlier and sleep earlier too.
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| Posted 1/5/17 9:33 AM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by Bridex100
Posted by BargainMama
I just want to add, that we definitely eat something before having dinner at 8:15. My kids would starve to death if we didn't eat from lunch up until dinner that late. 8:15 was more like a snack dinner to us, and we weren't starving, but only went because of the "ambiance" of the dining room (Animator's Palette is fun, etc.).
My kids definitely push their bedtime an hour or so when they are out of school. As another pp stated, there is a lot to do on the Disney cruise and islands so the kids are wiped out by their normal bedtime.
We are always one of the first to get off the ship since we are early risers. I never felt rushed to get back on the ship.
I know we are not the norm though. We wake earlier than most people, eat lunch and dinner earlier and sleep earlier too.
Oh we definitely get up early and are first off! I can't stand showing up "late" into a crowded situation lol. My kids are older though so they push through the tired lol...9 and 17
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| Posted 1/5/17 9:56 AM |
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
I haven't booked a cruise yet but would so like to! How can you tell what times are available before booking? My kids can't eat at 8:15 lol.
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| Posted 1/6/17 8:14 AM |
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BargainMama
LIF Adult
Member since 5/09 15657 total posts
Name:
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Re: Disney Cruise - Late seating for dinner
Posted by waiting4ablessing
I haven't booked a cruise yet but would so like to! How can you tell what times are available before booking? My kids can't eat at 8:15 lol.
It comes up when you are going through the reservation process. Also, you can put a hold on your cruise on the website before having to pay just so you know! Enter your info and when it gets to deposit, select the "hold" option.
If there is no first seating, and you don't get moved off waitlist, you won't starve and aren't required to eat at 8:15. Just eat in the restaurant on the top deck as opposed to the main dining rooms, order room service, or eat at the quick serve places.
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| Posted 1/6/17 8:44 AM |
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