Why hasn't Disney solved the main/late dining debacle already?

[KashasMom]

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say each dinner has an activity or event, but Tiana's Place on the Wonder and Rapunzel's on the Magic both have music and characters at dinner. Enchanted Garden on the Dream class has the lights that open and change color.

Ah, that explains it. We haven't been on the Wonder and haven't been on the Magic since Royal Table opened.

 

[Gentry2004]

Yes, the default when making a DCL reservation is late seating. Once the reservation is made, you can change it to main (early) seating, if there is
availability.

On Costco you can just select main from the start.

 

[MomOTwins]

OP here

On our first cruise with my 8 year old son who had a pretty well-set bedtime, we just chose the later dining, knowing we weren't going and missed it. We went to one of the main restaurants for breakfast and the other for a lunch seating one day to experience the restaurants, and the other times we ate counter service/room service for dinners, because we knew we wanted to see the early shows, and he wouldn't make it up past 8:30 for a show OR for dinner. Considering the food isn't that great anyways, we didn't feel like we missed anything. I think we did try to stay up one night so we could do animator's palate, but we wouldn't have been able to do that every night. So - anyhow - don't feel like you HAVE to be at those restaurants at all, and if you want to experience them, just do what we did. No biggie.

The menu and food quality are MUCH better at dinner. We won’t eat in the MDR at lunch because the food is so bad at lunch time. If that is the only thing you’ve tried, I can definitely see why you’d think the MDRs are missable

 

[BCV23]

OP here

The menu and food quality are MUCH better at dinner. We won’t eat in the MDR at lunch because the food is so bad at lunch time. If that is the only thing you’ve tried, I can definitely see why you’d think the MDRs are missable

As always taste is subjective. While we think the food in the MDRs is quite good, we very much enjoy lunch and breakfast in Royal Court,etc., too. We've ordered an occasional miss at lunch but again it is just a miss for "us."

 

[BCV23]

Double post

 

[Tara8595]

OP here

The menu and food quality are MUCH better at dinner. We won’t eat in the MDR at lunch because the food is so bad at lunch time. If that is the only thing you’ve tried, I can definitely see why you’d think the MDRs are missable

I have eaten in all the Main Dining rooms but I stand by my original opinion. Food imo is a Disney Cruise's weakest link. My son getting to bed on time and getting to see all the shows was a bigger priority. Now we do main dining but other than the cool stuff at animators palate and the entertainment at tiana's place, the food is slightly above mediocre at best. Others of course may feel differently.

 

[disneylove69]

Foing single or with another adult we also were given late seating. Being older eating heavy meal late is not good. After years of t rying I got way seating this time. Probably because school is in session. I dont think it's fair that people with kids get first choice. Should be based on when you PIF. Timing is based on turn around for meal service.

 

[Gentry2004]

I think the most fair way is the way they do it now. In order of booking. Isn't that how most of life works? The popular stuff fills up first. Resort rooms available for free dining are first-come, first-served. People who book later can't get them. Same with the good FP's. There is no other fair way to do it.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Foing single or with another adult we also were given late seating. Being older eating heavy meal late is not good. After years of t rying I got way seating this time. Probably because school is in session. I dont think it's fair that people with kids get first choice. Should be based on when you PIF. Timing is based on turn around for meal service.

People with kids don't get "first choice". Dining preferences are done when you make a reservation. So early bookers get first choice. If you book late, you are more likely to get late seating.

Time was the default on the reservation page was late seating, and you had to change after your reservation was made. Many people were unaware they could do that, and thus wound up with late seating.

Except for 2 cruises, we've always had early seating (all adult parties only).

 

[BadPinkTink]

Im solo and I got early seating. However I paid my deposit 14 months before sailing. Like @PrincessShmoo said, book early and get more options. I logged into my Disney Cruise account today and there is an option to change to late dining if I want to.

 

[disneylove69]

People with kids don't get "first choice". Dining preferences are done when you make a reservation. So early bookers get first choice. If you book late, you are more likely to get late seating.

Time was the default on the reservation page was late seating, and you had to change after your reservation was made. Many people were unaware they could do that, and thus wound up with late seating.

Except for 2 cruises, we've always had early seating (all adult parties only).

I book early and always got stuck with late seating.

 

[Gentry2004]

I book early and always got stuck with late seating.

Who do you book with? I booked 1 cruise at 13 months out with a regular TA and our upcoming cruise with Costco Travel online at 12 months out and had no trouble getting main dining at time of booking either time. I'm not sure at what point it disappears. It probably varies by itinerary/time of year. But it has nothing to do with the age of the people in your party.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I book early and always got stuck with late seating.

How do you book? How "early"? If you book directly on the website, the default for dining is late. But you can change it.

Unless it's changed.

I can't do a dummy booking without signing in, and I don't want to do that.

 

[Gentry2004]

How do you book? How "early"? If you book directly on the website, the default for dining is late. But you can change it.

Unless it's changed.

I can't do a dummy booking without signing in, and I don't want to do that.

When I booked with Costco Travel a few months ago, it was definitely a drop down menu with Main and Late as options. I can't remember what the default was, but I knew I wanted main and I knew to look for it. It was 12 months out and main was definitely there as a choice.

 

[Undisneyfied]

With many families with young kids on board. I think many would choose the 3:30pm main dining room dinner then have to keep their kids up for an 8:00pm dinner they got assigned.

I also like those posting the idea that they keep one side of cabanas open all day for all meals. Can go and grab a meal anytime you like to have your meals. True anytime dining with food that’s better then pool deck food.

The mid-day is when they give the workers their breaks. They can't take a dinner break during dinner.

 

[Ravenne]

So since this is a known issue for every cruise, do you think Disney should move the dinners earlier? 5pm and 7:30 would be so much more manageable for families than 5:45 and 8:15. What do folks think?

Or (more controversially) do you think main dining should be reserved for parties with children age 5-and under? Let's be real, if I were sans-kids I would pick main dining too if given an option, even though I don't really need it. 6/7pm-ish is when I eat at home, plus I'd much rather enjoy a show and entertaining after dinner than watch one before and go to bed straight after eating. But realistically, if the only option for me was an 8:15 dinner, I could live with that, unlike my kids who, the last time a late flight to WDW made us eat after 8, were sobbing their eyes out because they felt so bad, couldn't eat a bite, and then fell asleep in their chairs.

I think the dining times are fine, because if you bump it up earlier, that just means you'd have to leave port and get back on the ship earlier. Personally, I prefer to spend time in port and enjoy the location. I know, for people like me, I can always switch to 2nd seating much easier than switching to main, which I have done, and didn't really like the flow of things. But there are also plenty of dining options onboard the ship that we (kids included) were never hungry. I don't think main dining needs to be reserved. Anyone can go up on deck to grab a bite to eat to hold you over till dinner at any time or go to Cabana's or order room service. It's not like in the parks where grabbing a bite to eat at any time costs extra, or they ruin their appetite for a hard to get ADR that you got up at 4am, 180 days ago for.

 

[Ravenne]

How do you book? How "early"? If you book directly on the website, the default for dining is late. But you can change it.

Unless it's changed.

I can't do a dummy booking without signing in, and I don't want to do that.

When I booked with Costco Travel a few months ago, it was definitely a drop down menu with Main and Late as options. I can't remember what the default was, but I knew I wanted main and I knew to look for it. It was 12 months out and main was definitely there as a choice.

Direct with DCL, it doesn't show you the dining seating option at all until you've entered your deposit payment info, so you at least have to book it before you can go in and modify it but you can do so on a web browser or in the Navigator app. With Costco, Dining Preferences with a drop down menu is its own page right after you enter travelers name info. It's default option is "Select" and you actually have to pick First (main) or Second, but if Second is all that's available that's what it'll default to. You can still click on the drop down menu, but that's the only option you get.

 

[Gentry2004]

Direct with DCL, it doesn't show you the dining seating option at all until you've entered your deposit payment info, so you at least have to book it before you can go in and modify it but you can do so on a web browser or in the Navigator app. With Costco, Dining Preferences with a drop down menu is its own page right after you enter travelers name info. It's default option is "Select" and you actually have to pick First (main) or Second, but if Second is all that's available that's what it'll default to. You can still click on the drop down menu, but that's the only option you get.


View attachment 424098

Yes that looks familiar. However after I had booked and went over to the disney cruise website to view my booking (maybe a couple days later), it showed my dining assignment as main. So it happened pretty automatically, despite all that disclaimer language on the costco site. I made sure I took screen shots of the booking on the Disney website in case there was ever any issue.

 

[longboard55]

we like late dining, so I am good with what they have

 

[wishuponastar1984]

I think the most fair way is the way they do it now. In order of booking. Isn't that how most of life works? The popular stuff fills up first. Resort rooms available for free dining are first-come, first-served. People who book later can't get them. Same with the good FP's. There is no other fair way to do it.

Well the cruise lines could go to a system like the airlines where you would have to pay more to select your dining time. Same thing as just picking a guaranteed room that has a lower rate. This would give the cruise lines more flexibility. I am a frequent flyer and don't book my flights very early but appreciate that the airlines block many of the good seats for elites and don't open those to the public (for a charge) till close to departure.