Just a quick question about tipping...... My family recently returned from the Radiance of the Seas and are looking at booking another one for next year. We did the pre-paid tipping for two of us only. We only went to the main dining room once and felt that the waiters were going to receive tips based on the 8-day cruise and we were never there. So instead we gave our cabin steward another 125.00 (he was amazing) and also left 125.00 for the Winjammer staff as that is where we ate everyday. Was this ok? I still feel bad but wanted to make sure that our tips were giving to the staff that actually had an impact on our vacation. Thanks

Your generosity for those who served you was no doubt appreciated. The staff who waited the tables assigned to them in the dining room were short on tips for at least one table that they had to service, change linens, make the table and bring food to whether everyone showed up or not. Following the guidelines for the tipping is always recommended and if someone wants to provide extra to someone exceptional that's great. The dining room staff will not get an extra table assigned to make up for those who do not show or provide the gratuities they make their living from. I think I'd do the auto tip and then give above and beyond as I felt was warranted in such situations, but not everyone agrees with my view on this.

Cheers, Neil

Thanks for your opinion. When making our next reservation are we able NOT to pick a seating time in the dining room? I know Princess has anytime dining option but when we booked our last cruise our agent asked us to pick a seating time anyways even knowing we wouldn't be going. Can we book without going to the dining room?
Thanks

There is not yet an anytime option on RCCL but they've experimented with it on a couple of ships. Right now, as part of the booking process you'll have to select a dining time even if you don't intend to use the dining room.

Cheers, Neil

I can't even imagine taking a cruise and not going to the dining room to be waited on throughout the cruise. I know some don't want to dress for dinner but the Windjammer and other buffet food onboard other ships is just not the same, at least for me. I even frequent the dining room for breakfast and lunch. I like a relaxing meal and being served. I also like the atmosphere and social benefits of the experience better than a buffet. Everyone has their own tastes and please don't take this as a criticism, its not intended to be. Did you have a bad experience at the dining room on a cruise or just prefer the flexibility and no dress code?

Cheers, Neil

I was curious about the buffet-only thing too. We used to be slaves to the buffet for breakfast and lunch, but for the past few years have used the dining room more often for every meal. No crowds, lines, and it is just so much quieter and pleasant.

We still use the buffet, but mostly for snacks and I also use it for early coffee and rolls before going to the dining room for breakfast.

No criticism here either. I simply wonder when people vigorously avoid the dining room.

quote:

I can't even imagine taking a cruise and not going to the dining room to be waited on throughout the cruise.

Neil and Dave,

We did that twice on two different 3-night cruises. We liked just showing up at the Windjammer when we felt like it, liked not having to make small talk with others (I'm used to cruising with groups...) and liked being able to "graze" all the food and choose what and how much we wanted.

Then we discovered that we ate way too much at the buffet, ate it much too fast, and enjoyed the company of others while we ate. So now, whether on long or short cruises, we usually do eat dinner in the dining room, and breakfast and lunch too when we want a slower, less caloric pace.

Sandy

Haven't gone to the main dining room for breakfast or lunch yet. I am going to try it next time for breakfast. I over do at the breakfast buffet.

Dwayne

Well I can understand the point that since you don't use the dinning room you don't want to pay for a service you don't use.

Here is my point of view,

even if you don't show up there is still great arrangement and work made just in case you dicide too, I was looking the other day a program in the travel channel and is wayyy difficult to prepare the food and service for 3000 people everyday so even if you don't show up they already have won their tip, and since they also work in the buffet lines the morning after they will give you food services either way.
Why not pay them that tip?
They will earn it anyway...

Better yet why don try the dining room,
My next cruise will be the last one for a few years and since I will not book an excursion on St.Thomas I will follow Dave recomendation and use the dining room for breakfast maybe ist's worth the try...

On any of the cruises I have been on the wait staf rotate to the different restaurants during the cruise .
so you may see the same waiter as was in the dining room for dinner last night in the buffet for breakfast or lunch service.

I prefer the auto tip method myself
That way I know I am not leaving anyone out & they will share the "tip pool"
We do give extra to those that go out of their way to go the extra step for us.

We usually go with open dining now as we prefer to meet new people each night & not get stuck with the same people each night.

At least you tipped!

I use the diningroom as much as I can...I like the idea of being waited on....I can do the buffets at home.....Your assigned waiter had to get YOUR table ready and then strip it down...it was your choice to not eat at the diningroom...he, or she, still deserves their share of the tips...at least I think so...but you did a gracious thing for all the others...
Happy Cruising....

Bob E

I might as well add my 2 cents- Eating in the dr for me is a long drawn out affair at best with breakfast taking almost an hour & inevitably there's something on the agenda that begins at 9 AM that I'll be missing. The buffets let me eat at my pace & schedule as does the buffet lunch. If I had to change from my bating suit (shower included) I would spend the entire day either getting ready or dining.

Thanks for all your thoughts. My problem with the dining room is eating when I am told to go there. Having my kids poses a problem....the late seating is out of the question and sometimes the 1st seating comes by too fast after returning to the ship after a long day in port. (no time to shower and get ready). The one night we did go to the dining room with the kids (age 4 and 7) they were loud (kids will be kids) and the section of the dining room we were in seemed to be all older people (not one kid around) and we felt like we were bothering them. If we were around tables with other children (and there were lots of kids on this cruise) it may have been better. Maybe next time we'll try it again.

I can see your point. I've been there when our son was younger and I had to take him out of the dining room when he made a scene - on more than one occasion. Not his fault, he just couldn't sit that long

Our experience has often been that the waiter and/or assistant waiter will dote on the kids and help to keep them in line.

Our son now looks forward to the dining room. But that is us. If you feel more settled in using the buffet all the time, then by all means stick with it. Maybe when the children are older it will be different.

It won't be much longer before all the mainstream cruise lines have an open seating dining room option. RCI is testing it on three ships. Carnival too. I think Celebrity is either testing it or at least thinking about it.

quote:

Originally posted by Dave Beers:
It won't be much longer before all the mainstream cruise lines have an open seating dining room option. RCI is testing it on three ships. Carnival too. I think Celebrity is either testing it or at least thinking about it.

That's what's great about open seating- I won't wind up at a table I don't like every evening. It give you a change of people at each meal.

I like the open dining concept. We had it the first time on NCL last December and it worked out fine.

For those people who like to eat with the same people there is an excellent option. On a roll call board for NCL there are posts like, "We like to eat with the same people at dinner. We are looking for 6 other people who would like to make up a table for 8." Once aboard they can agree on what time they want to eat each day depending upon ports and activities.

Not only do you eat with the same people each night, but you have a chance to meet and get to know them before the cruise.

When RCI goes open seating fleet wide, people will have a similar opportunity - giving open seating the best of two worlds.

Also, the tipping problem resolves itself if the ship rotates personnel. The person waiting on you in the dining room one night, is working the buffet line the next night. They can do this because in open seating you would not have the same waiter two nights in a row anyhow.

So tips are spread around evenly.

I have mixed feelings about the open seating. I have met some truly amazing people at the fixed seating and enjoyed getting to know them on more than a passing basis. My wife is not very outgoing she's very shy. It simply takes her longer to be comfortable enough to open up and join in the conversation with strangers. On fixed seating she gets to know the others at the table and get comfortable in her own time. By the second or third night she's normally comfortable enough with the others at the table to not just sit quietly and be a listener, she joins in and makes friends. When we sit at a table for breakfast or lunch with a new group of people, she's back to silent and hoping nobody asks her any questions at the table.

Being shy is not a fun way to travel or go through life but it's who she is. The fixed seating really makes for a more comfortable cruise for her so it's our preference regardless of the other benefits of flexible dining. Everyone has their own preferences and reasons why it works for them. I just hope as they introduce new dining options in the future, they don't ever eliminate the fixed option. As much as I'd like the flexibility, its just not the right choice for us.

Cheers, Neil

Despite my on-line image as a blabbermouth, I am quiet in person and so is my wife. Not shy, but really not big talkers. This is sometimes mistaken as being snobbish. An assigned seating allows us to open up - pretty much as Neil describes. I like the dining room for breakfast but with it usually being open seating, well, we are usually those people at the table who are looking off in the distance, constantly adjusting our tableware, etc. But then that seems to be the usual behavior, with those at the table keeping their conversations among their groups.

quote:

Despite my on-line image as a blabbermouth, I am quiet in person and so is my wife.

Unlike Dave, I live up to my blabbermouth rep onboard and on here. I've always been the guy who never met a stranger. They say opposites attract, my wife and I are proof that in some cases its true.

Cheers, Neil

Dave, if we ever share a table, which I hope one day to have the privelege of, you won't get to be the quiet guy. I'll want to hear about the things we don't get much chance to chat about here. Guns, politics and cruising will probably fill the first dinner night. I have a hunch from reading your posts and between the lines of your posts, we have a lot in common. Then our wives will get comfortable and we'll be left listening to to stories about our kiddos when they were babies and other lady talk.

Cheers, Neil