Dining table-mate assignments | Need clarification/advice

[Cmbar]

oh That is such good information Owensamo . We are usually four or seven in our party so we have never been place with another family. I guess the 5 number gives you another scenario! Thanks for posting that and it will help us in the future.

 

[DisneyHelen]

we are a family of three and have always requested our own table.

 

[OATS09]

As a full-fledged introvert (as in couldn't possibly score higher unless the max score changes), I have really enjoyed dinners on Disney.

Cruise 1: My wife and I and three other couples (Disney Magic, 7n Eastern Caribbean)
My first cruise was my honeymoon with just my wife. Disney put us with three other couples at a table of eight. Two couples were older and well established and the other couple got married the weekend before the cruise (ironically our original wedding date until we decided to move it up but leave the cruise as is). That was a lot of fun and Disney did well pairing us up. Two new couples with two established couples was a really nice balance.

Cruise 2: All four of us at our own table (Disney Dream, 4n Bahamas)
Our next cruise was my wife and two of our friends where we all shared a room. Disney put us up at a table with only the four of us.

Cruise 3: My wife and I paired with two other couples (Disney Magic, 7n Canadian)
Our last cruise was ok. Disney tried and paired us up with two other "couples" at a table of six. Each other couple was two friends who were just traveling together. I'll fully admit this experience might have been better if we had our own table of two but it was still really good.

Long story short, again as an introvert, part of the fun is interacting with others while experiencing that Disney service - or maybe that's just me.

 

[bumbershoot]

Yes, if you do not go to dinner at your assigned time for whatever reason, your table will be empty (of half-empty)

Yep.

However, I have always thought that Disney people are happier people, yes?

Hmm. Highest price average service mainstream market cruise line doesn’t necessarily translate into happy cruisers.


I think the issue the Op and others have created for themselves is that they are limiting themselves to small talk. What a bore. No one likes small talk. Get into real talk. Not religion or politics (though my son and the two boys we wet seated with all went to the bathroom together and came back talking about Christianity and Buddhism because the kids asked joyously what religion they all were), but...ok so you find out that the woman in the other group is a railroad engineer. Ask her big questions about the job. Find out what she loves about it. Etc. That’s not small talk. That’s connection.

It’s how this shy girl deals with the world.

 

[Kernandi]

Your table mates are only strangers the first night! I am an introvert and the table sharing scenario would normally make me nervous, but for our first cruise I wasn’t even aware that was how it worked. I was traveling with my two teenage daughters and we were placed with a family of five that had three teen/young adult daughters from a neighboring state. My youngest was a bit out of the loop with the older four, but was too involved with the vibe crowd to care. The rest of us bonded and I really wish they were available to join us on our upcoming cruise. My older daughter stayed in touch with the other girls and that cruise was seven years ago.

 

[smiths02]

Yep.



Hmm. Highest price average service mainstream market cruise line doesn’t necessarily translate into happy cruisers.

I think the issue the Op and others have created for themselves is that they are limiting themselves to small talk. What a bore. No one likes small talk. Get into real talk. Not religion or politics (though my son and the two boys we wet seated with all went to the bathroom together and came back talking about Christianity and Buddhism because the kids asked joyously what religion they all were), but...ok so you find out that the woman in the other group is a railroad engineer. Ask her big questions about the job. Find out what she loves about it. Etc. That’s not small talk. That’s connection.

It’s how this shy girl deals with the world.

And you at least have the cruise in common with your tablemates. I would hope they might share at least some fondness for Disney. (I mean there has to be some reason that they are paying such a mark-up when similar cruises can be had for much less.) Also, perhaps they have been to a port before, etc.

 

[apathetic]

I am an introvert and hate the idea of small talk through a 2+ hour dinner. When we went as a couple the first time I wanted to go to Cabanas. But, we've had table mates many times since and it has always been positive. We stay in touch with many of the couples we met at dinner. Sometimes couples stopped coming, leaving the table partially empty. To be honest, when that happens the remaining couples spend a lot of time figuring out what they did wrong. So, if you decide to stop going to dinner, please let the others know why. It prevents awkward times when you cross paths later in the cruise.

But, if you are "stuck" with table mates, give it a try. It's not 2 hours of entertaining each other or making small talk. Many times couples talk amongst themselves. But, eventually you will find you have so many things in common and so many differences worth talking about. I know it is hard to believe that. We've had table mates more than 5 times and I'm apprehensive every time. But it always becomes a very positive experience.

 

[Joe Brig]

There are other options for dinner including Cabanas, Remys, and room service, so its common to have empty chairs at dinner. No one seems to mind or takes it personally.

I don't think it is random how Disney places people at a table. I travel with my son and we are usually placed with other single dads.

 

[Marc D]

There are other options for dinner including Cabanas, Remys, and room service, so its common to have empty chairs at dinner. No one seems to mind or takes it personally.

I don't think it is random how Disney places people at a table. I travel with my son and we are usually placed with other single dads.

It is not random. A head-waiter confirmed that they try to match group composition. In our case, they consciously assigned us to a table with another group of three with a son of the same age as ours. Of course, there are so many variables that they can’t match every group in the same way, but they do try.

 

[TiggerBouncy]

Yes, your servers follow you from dining room to dining room as long as you are eating at the MDR. If you choose room service, eat at Palo or Remy, the deck quick service or cabanas, you are eating by yourself. We were very apprehensive on our first cruise about being put with random strangers. We ended up at a table with 2 other couples which was nice because they also chatted between each other at times so we didn't have to hold the entire conversation. They were wonderful people. We ended up changing shore excursions to go together. The 6 of us became social media friends and although we have never managed it, we would like to see them again on a cruise sometime. It's actually pretty funny - we miss each other either on a cruise or at WDW by a week EVERY YEAR. Either we are there first or they are, but we always just barely miss each other.

Another cruise we never saw our table mates. It was a 4 day cruise and they found some other dining option every night and never actually went to the MDR. We thought they might have requested another table, but the server checked on that.

One time we did have table mates that I was not a huge fan of, but DW seemed to get along with them well enough for conversation.

Although it's certainly NOT required and you can request a table on your own, I am a fan of stretching your boundaries just a bit and sit with some random people. You already know you have two things in common. Remember you are only going to see them a few times during your cruise and you might just make some new Disney friends!

 

[Lilsia]

We always request late dining and have never been refused a private table. That said, even if you're seated "alone" tables are often so close together that you might as well be tablemates with your neighbors... but we've always had great neighbors. The difference, I guess, is that if you don't get along with your neighbors you can choose not to engage with them without being rude. With tablemates, not so much.

We have been on cruises where we have not really conversed with our table mates after the initial hello that day. You do not have to keep up a conversation with the others unless you want to. I don't know why so many people get so hung up on this. I think they blow it up in their mind to be something that it is not. In Europe people share tables all the time and never converse with their neighbors unless all parties want to. It is what you make of it, as is the rest of your life.

 

[Chewbette]

On our first cruise we (a couple) were seated with 3 other couples, we got along with 2 of them really well and the other one wasn't bad , we even cruised again with the 2 couples and one of our friend, and it was really cool! But we also had a "bad" experience on our 9n Norway cruise where we (couple + our Disney travel friend) were seated with a mom and her 2 daughters.. The mother was kind of weird, they were always late, one of the daughter was nice but no more than that. The other daughter (late 30's) was a "special need", with lots of OCDs and toys and dolls she brought every night at the table. Throw shame and tomatoes on me if you want but sorry I'm on my well-deserved holidays and don't want to deal with this kind of situations every night, and my companions didn't want to ask to change table at the beginning as I wanted, but after half of the cruise we went to Palo and Cabanas to have a relaxed time at dinner...
So for our next cruise (13n TA) for now we have asked our own table and we hope it gets granted.

 

[TJA]

OP - we went on our 2nd Disney cruise this summer. Our 1st cruise was our honeymoon years ago and I didn't know to request a table for 2. Well, we were seated with another couple around our age. We tried very hard to roll with it, but it just wasn't for us. So, we did go to guest services the next day and ask for our own table, but by then it was too late. We got around the situation by booking Palo for dinner one night and then the other nights we ordered Room Service and/or stopped in at the buffet. I know we missed out on the dinner setting and menus, but we really enjoyed the freedom of not being tied down to specific dining times and tablemates.

Fast forward to a few months ago. We went on our 2nd Disney cruise as a family of 4. I knew to pre-request a table for 4, and I also confirmed it when we first boarded the ship. When I confirmed it on board, the CM checked it and told me that we were indeed at a table for 4 because that's what we requested. So while I know not all requests are granted, my advice is to definitely make the request beforehand and then double-check when you board. I think they try to accommodate.

 

[MomOTwins]

If you have 2 rooms that are in your party, are you less likely or equally likely to be put with strangers. We will have five in two rooms. I'm hoping it's just the five of us at a table, and not an 8 top with another family.

We are a family of 5 and have always been paired with a family of 3.

 

[FigmentSpark]

We are a family of 5 and have always been paired with a family of 3.

That's what concerns me. My family is "that" family and my sister is somewhat of an introvert. It would be better for all concerned if we were by ourselves, including any potential tablemates. I don't want to come here after our cruise only to find that 'horrible tablemates' thread resurrected and our description in it.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

That's what concerns me. My family is "that" family and my sister is somewhat of an introvert. It would be better for all concerned if we were by ourselves, including any potential tablemates. I don't want to come here after our cruise only to find that 'horrible tablemates' thread resurrected and our description in it.

We're a family of 5 and after requesting to dine alone, we've always been assigned to a six-top with an empty seat (9 cruises).

 

[cadien]

We were a family of 3 paired with a family of 5 and it worked very well. There was actually minimal small talk. The kids were put in the middle of the table and yakked at each other. The adults at each end took the opportunity to just talk to each other. I mean, we had some pleasant chatting about each other's days at the beginning of the meal, but all the adults recognized the opportunity to just talk to your own adult travel companions without interruption.

And they were impressive with the matching up. One of the boys was within a month of our son's age.

 

[Lilsia]

That's what concerns me. My family is "that" family and my sister is somewhat of an introvert. It would be better for all concerned if we were by ourselves, including any potential tablemates. I don't want to come here after our cruise only to find that 'horrible tablemates' thread resurrected and our description in it.

If you get table mates that are really that "horrible" then you can go talk to your head server and they will move you. I have been on 8 Disney cruises and have not had any issues with our table mates. Like I posted, mostly we just said "hi" and kept to ourselves.

 

[KashasMom]

We are a party of 3 and have always gotten a table to ourselves when we requested it. It's OUR family time - I hate small talk in the best of circumstances. We've had one okay experience and one not-so-good at all experience when we've been seated with others.

 

[tvguy]

Just call and make the request.
Our tablemates.....for us....have always been a highlight of our cruises. But I'm an old time cruiser that misses formal night and the midnight buffet too.