DCL Increases Adult Dining Prices Across the Fleet

[kathi]

So if you are already booked for a future cruise, will the price stay the same or go up for that reservation? I know that with tastings when the price went up, our existing reservations did not change in price.

I haven't thought Palo dinner has been worth it since they changed the menu. As a vegetarian it's just not a great option. We do Palo brunch since we are Pearl and it's complimentary. I don't think I'd pay $50. Now Remy is a totally different story. It's still a steal at $135 (I didn't see what brunch went up to, but I'm sure it's still well worth it.) Now I just have to find out what the champagne journey has increased to for Remy dinner (because it's a must-have for us)!

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

I think I remember it being as low as $15 for Palo. It definitely was $20 at one time.

It was $15 prior to 2011. May have been less before that but the threads I found weren't entirely clear on their terminology.

 

[professorandmom]

Are my calculations correct if one does not use the prix fixe menu:
$45 fee plus $12 caprese salad + $32 dover sole + $ 10 souffle = $99 plus tip

I haven't been to Palo with the new pricing
And, in 2003 my Palo dinner was $5... I just double checked...

 

[ljhayes]

It was $15 prior to 2011. May have been less before that but the threads I found weren't entirely clear on their terminology.

We paid $10 at some point in history, but we started cruising in 2004.

 

[ljhayes]

Are my calculations correct if one does not use the prix fixe menu:
$45 fee plus $12 caprese salad + $32 dover sole + $ 10 souffle = $99 plus tip

I haven't been to Palo with the new pricing
And, in 2003 my Palo dinner was $5... I just double checked...

You don't pay $45 if you don't use the prix fixe, just the price of your food/drinks.

 

[Mommb]

Are my calculations correct if one does not use the prix fixe menu:
$45 fee plus $12 caprese salad + $32 dover sole + $ 10 souffle = $99 plus tip

You don't pay $45 if you don't use the prix fixe, just the price of your food/drinks.

That's correct. In that given example, you'd pay $54 plus tip, so you're paying a little more than the prix fixe price to get Dover sole rather than pasta, chicken, salmon, or beef.

 

[Mango7100]

I want to know where people live where they can get a meal like Palo for $50 or less. In March for brunch I had a mimosa, charcuterie board app, eggs Benedict, half a pizza, lasagna, and a dessert and could have had more if I wasn’t exploding from the amount of food. Along with beautiful sea views with great service and a long 2 hour relaxed meal. If I had that at any brunch spot in my city it would be $125 easy per person.

 

[auntlynne]

Are my calculations correct if one does not use the prix fixe menu:
$45 fee plus $12 caprese salad + $32 dover sole + $ 10 souffle = $99 plus tip

I haven't been to Palo with the new pricing
And, in 2003 my Palo dinner was $5... I just double checked...

If you are eating just the salad, sole, and soufflé (that’s a tasty meal), you only pay for the food - not a $45 cover charge.

(12 + 32 + 10) x 18% auto gratuity = 63.72

The $45 ($50 if not already booked) would get you the 4-course Prix Fixe meal - no auto gratuity.

There is no minimum, as I understand it.

(Redundant. Missed all the previous answers.)

 

[Aimeedyan]

We had a really poor Palo brunch experience recently and didn't think it was even worth $45, much less $50. Not to mention the amount of time lost that day on it. It was, perhaps, the only low point of our EBTA.

That said, the dinner we had the cruise prior was actually excellent and worth every bit of the $45 cost for the prix fixe meal. It was a highlight of our trip and we'd do it again even at $50.

 

[gometros]

So if you are already booked for a future cruise, will the price stay the same or go up for that reservation? I know that with tastings when the price went up, our existing reservations did not change in price.

We booked our activities for our September cruise earlier this month, before the announcement. The prices showing are still the old prices.

 

[bigAWL]

We had a really poor Palo brunch experience recently and didn't think it was even worth $45, much less $50. Not to mention the amount of time lost that day on it. It was, perhaps, the only low point of our EBTA.

That said, the dinner we had the cruise prior was actually excellent and worth every bit of the $45 cost for the prix fixe meal. It was a highlight of our trip and we'd do it again even at $50.

What was poor about the experience? Food quality? Are you comparing it to the old buffet brunch?

 

[tvguy]

I definitely wouldn’t pay $50 for Palo if I had to pay for it. I remember when it was $20 when I first sailed which was 2012. They only hiked the Palo price right after COVID IIRC, so two years ago.

I will continue to use my Platinum perk there, but I’d not book it otherwise. And I still think DCL would just be better giving the $50 OBC and not filling Palo tables with Platinum cruisers in the first place.

$50 extra charge does seem excessive. That's more than the meal costs them in total, not counting you already paid for all your meals in your fare.

 

[RedHead0186]

I want to know where people live where they can get a meal like Palo for $50 or less. In March for brunch I had a mimosa, charcuterie board app, eggs Benedict, half a pizza, lasagna, and a dessert and could have had more if I wasn’t exploding from the amount of food. Along with beautiful sea views with great service and a long 2 hour relaxed meal. If I had that at any brunch spot in my city it would be $125 easy per person.

Same here! I live in Chicago and a Palo-type dinner would easily be over $100. Same with brunch, if you can eat that much. I find Palo prices very reasonable for that reason (though I guess some of that depends on where you live).

 

[professorandmom]

If you are eating just the salad, sole, and soufflé (that’s a tasty meal), you only pay for the food - not a $45 cover charge.

(12 + 32 + 10) x 18% auto gratuity = 63.72

The $45 ($50 if not already booked) would get you the 4-course Prix Fixe meal - no auto gratuity.

There is no minimum, as I understand it.

(Redundant. Missed all the previous answers.)

THANKS everyone for the clarifcation

The "Palo worth it" debate is a time honored tradition on the DCL boards - especially every time the cost increases....I am from Long Island where a glass of wine is $24 so I am grateful for everyone's perspective

 

[SnowWhite2]

I have a B2B scheduled this fall. I've scheduled brunch and dinner for both. I expect to cancel one brunch and use the 2nd dinner to go for dessert only.

 

[bigAWL]

For reference, I scoured the Disney Cruise Line Blog to find the most recent history of Palo and Remy price increases. Here's what I could find...

Pre-2013 (not sure about previous rates at Palo)
Palo Brun/Din: $20
Remy Brunch: $50
Remy Dinner: $75

Oct 2013
Palo Brun/Din: $25
Remy Brunch: $50
Remy Dinner: $75

Apr 2015
Palo Brun/Din: $30
Remy Brunch: $55
Remy Dinner: $85

Nov 2016
Palo Brun/Din: $30
Remy Brunch: $60
Remy Dinner: $95

Dec 2018
Palo Brun/Din: $40
Remy Brunch: $75
Remy Dinner: $125

Apr 2021
Palo Brun/Din: $45
Remy Brunch: $75
Remy Dinner: $125

Jul 2023
Palo Brun/Din: $50
Remy Brunch: $75
Remy Dinner: $135

 

[mjstaceyuofm]

So if you are already booked for a future cruise, will the price stay the same or go up for that reservation? I know that with tastings when the price went up, our existing reservations did not change in price.

We booked our activities for our September cruise earlier this month, before the announcement. The prices showing are still the old prices.

gometros - this is our experience as well; sailing in September and booked Remy in late June; still showing up as $125. I also thought I read on dclfan that if you booked before July 11th, the prices would be honored.

 

[Aimeedyan]

What was poor about the experience? Food quality? Are you comparing it to the old buffet brunch?

It was primarily the length/service - we showed up hungry for our brunch reservation and 3.5 hours later, finally finished. One of the first tables seated and the place was almost empty when we left. Our first course of items weren't delivered until 1.5 hours in and there was a long lull in between each (and I didn't want to fill up on the pastries but I was so hungry!). We also struggled to get refills on drinks, coffee, etc. The server was apologetic about the kitchen being slow to bring food, but he was also largely absent so we had no refills on things while we waited.

Our three year old in the kid's club kept paging us because he was hungry (we thought we'd finish by lunchtime) so that put a big damper on our enjoyment, too. We wanted "our monies worth" but also were hungry/frustrated/worried about our son. My husband skipped dessert and went to feed him on the pool deck while I had dessert and hunted down the check.

Food was fine, I guess, but certainly not mind blowing or worth the time investment and lack of service. But I have found that for me personally, service makes or breaks a dining experience. I'm sure that's not the case for everyone. We had dinner at Yachtsman last week and the steak was excellent but the service was awful. We all left frustrated by the entire experience and cost involved, instead of walking away thinking how tasty the steak was. KWIM?

(our last Palo dinner experience was wonderful! Food was excellent, timed correctly, and the service was what I expect of that kind of dining experience)

No doubt a one-off (everyone else in the room seemed to have no issues being served) but was a downpoint of the trip.

 

[auntlynne]

@Aimeedyan - 1.5 hours to get food?

In the real / non-cruise world, that would have resulted in a free meal. And guests standing up to leave. How many times did the manager come and apologize or acknowledge this? Or the ship’s dining officer?

So sad to hear this for you. (I have a hard time speaking up in these situations, but this sounds like one I might have just said “we’re leaving.”

 

[Aimeedyan]

@Aimeedyan - 1.5 hours to get food?

In the real / non-cruise world, that would have resulted in a free meal. And guests standing up to leave. How many times did the manager come and apologize or acknowledge this? Or the ship’s dining officer?

So sad to hear this for you. (I have a hard time speaking up in these situations, but this sounds like one I might have just said “we’re leaving.”

Yeah, admittedly I was very passive (sorta unlike me) but we were dining with company we didn't know well, and extended family, so I was trying to be really, really patient and understanding. But I did get up several times to talk to the kid's club from the host stand phone which should have been a clue

(now at Yachtsman, we were with family we are very comfortable with and did all start to get up to leave to finally get our waiter's attention!)