1st time in the Fantasy and will love to have different opinions!

[l4dk]

Hi,

I am trying to decide on the dining rotation for our western Fantasy cruise this summer. Is our 1st time on the Fantasy and not sure which restaurant to skip for Palo or Remi?

Any favorite MDR on the Fantasy? Is EG same as Parrot Cay on the other ships? PC is our less favorite.

Best restaurants for formal or semi-formal nights?
Rotation:
RAERAAE
AERAEER
ERAERRA
Formal is day 2 and Semi-Formal Day 6
Thanks,

 

[kimkreis]

We don't have little kids, so we just plan to do Palo or Remy on Pirate night. I don't like picking my dinign rotation, seems too much planning and who knows what Disney magic will occur if I go with their plan. Hasn't failed me yet.

 

[cheribelle]

Favorite restaurants are all subjective opinions. What is good to one is not so good to another.

My suggestion is to look at the menus for all the restaurants and see which one is the least appealing to you. Then maybe book Palo for that night, if you choose a rotation.

We have been on the Dream and Enchanted Garden was the least of our favorites. Mind you it was good, but the menu had the least favorites for our family. Now we are booked on the Fantasy and I requested Palo for the night we will be in Enchanted Garden. I put in that dining rotation request.

As for formal nights- I just take whatever they put me in. Everyone is seated (so attire is not focused on), restaurants are busy and bustling. Doesn't feel all that formal anyway. The ambience seemed to be outside the restaurants with the characters decked out in their formal wear, people walking around. It doesn't really matter to me what restaurant I am in. But again, that's my opinion and others will feel different. You may too.

Check out the menus online and decide for yourself. You know your tastes and favorites. That will really help in your decision! Enjoy

 

[elphie101]

Next time we're on the Fantasy, I plan to do Palo or Remy on Prince & Princess night (Night 5 on our cruise, which I'm pretty sure is always P&P or occasionally Pirate Night depending on your itinerary), simply because that was our least favorite menu of the week. Our server also mentioned on Night 3 after we had gone through the standard rotational menus of each restaurant that he recommended skipping the Pirate Night or Prince & Princess menus for the adult meals (we really enjoyed the Pirate Night menu, though that goes against popular DIS opinion ) My advice is look up the menus online and decide for yourself.

I've only been on the Fantasy, but while Enchanted Garden is the same function as PC (concealed buffet, table service at night) it's certainly not the same style-wise, nor menu. Enchanted Garden actually had my favorite entree of the cruise (the sea bass), though I would say it was my least favorite ambiance wise (Royal Court wins there).

Are you positive your rotation will be one of those, or do you ? We had AERAERA (Itinerary A - St Marteen/St Thomas/CC). Put us in Enchanted Garden for the formal nights, which was fine by us - if anything it was cool to be in AP on Pirate Night, as they utilize the screens to display pirate concept art, etc.

 

[Quellman]

Parrot Cay has no equivalent on the new ships in terms of theme. I love the theme of enchanted garden, but not so much the dinner menu. Since you mentioned the formal/semi formal, then maybe if that is important to you, use the rotation that has Royal table there those nights. All of the photo portrait studios will be set up right outside where you enter, so that will be an easy transition. Other people prefer to do Palo or Remy on pirates night or on a formal night, so they don't have to dress up an extra night.

 

[Joel0917]

I LIKE AERAERA
this way we get animator's pal on pirate night and the last night for the drawing...great way to end
do palo/remy on the second enchnanted gardens night

 

[Dug720]

They seem to have changed the rotations since February - I had AERAAER which a) let me go to the MDR the first night as I love AP, b) be in AP for Pirate Night, which is awesome, and c) skip Enchanted Garden for Palo as I detest the regular EG menu.

I normally like starting my cruise with Palo, but it was nice to meet my serving team the first night. (Of course had I stayed with them it would have been nicer, but I had zero in common with the other two solo cruisers I was seated with while they had pretty much everything in common, so it was more comfortable for me to switch.)

 

[Drusilla99]

I have never requested a dining rotation and always been pleased with what I got. To say I can't find anything to eat on a certain evening's menu seems a little odd when there's so many choices and I'm always up for trying something new. What I've done for my Palo dining is just make the Palo reservation later in the evening, I'm a first seating girl. We still go to the MDR, have a drink and an appetizer. That way we are still dining with the kids. Then when their dinner is done, we go up to our reservation and enjoy. That way we don't feel like we've missed a thing.

 

[Dug720]

I have never requested a dining rotation and always been pleased with what I got. To say I can't find anything to eat on a certain evening's menu seems a little odd when there's so many choices and I'm always up for trying something new. What I've done for my Palo dining is just make the Palo reservation later in the evening, I'm a first seating girl. We still go to the MDR, have a drink and an appetizer. That way we are still dining with the kids. Then when their dinner is done, we go up to our reservation and enjoy. That way we don't feel like we've missed a thing.

I didn't say I couldn't find anything to eat. I just find the menu in EG sorely lacking compared to the others (and yes, I find most of it disgusting) - there is NOT something for every course I'd eat. So why not go somewhere I KNOW I will enjoy and have a good meal on the night I'd be there (as opposed to one or two courses only and likely having the bland (ie: lighter side) menu stuff)?

 

[OhThePain]

In September my wife and I had ERAERRA. It worked out nicely that formal, semiformal and Pirate night all wound up being in RC, which is by far the most formal, nicest and most comfortable (IMO) of the dining rooms. We had lunch and dinner the first day in EG and didn't return the rest of our trip (we went to Remy on our other EG night). And we were able to finish up our trip in AP, which is the most "Disney" of the dining rooms, IMO. It was a homerun of a rotation for us.

 

[Justacruiser]

I recommend not missing the menus for the specific dining rooms. To me they are the best menus! After that there are 4 menus, the same for everyone. So, everyone gets the exact same food or the course of the cruise.

For your first on the Fantasy, I would go with the flow and not worry about the MDR rotations. There are much more fun things to worry about. I highly recommend a Brunch at Palo or Remy. Make the reservation for around 1100 on the first sea day and you won't miss anything but still get to sleep.

Also, there will be no problem making a dinner reservation for Palo or Remy once onboard. You can make it after you see what's going on each night.

IMHO, don't overthink the MDR rotation.

 

[l4dk]

Great! Thank you all, can't wait!

 

[Uncleromulus]

We skip Pirate night no matter where it is in favor of Remy.

For Palo, we skip the first Animators night, which is the "Nemo night in that restaurant.

Animators is our least favorite restaurant on the Fantasy.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

We are brand new to cruising -- booked a 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy! I must admit that this entire thread is "Greek to me", as my mother would say! Is there a "Cruise Dining 101" thread that someone could point me to? So much to learn...

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We are brand new to cruising -- booked a 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy! I must admit that this entire thread is "Greek to me", as my mother would say! Is there a "Cruise Dining 101" thread that someone could point me to? So much to learn...

Basically, each ship has 3 Main Dining Rooms. You will be assigned a rotation in which you will dine in each MDR. On a 7 night cruise you will dine in 2 of the MDRs twice and the third one 3 times. Each MDR serves it's Signature menu (Rotational menu), generally the first time you are in that MDR. The other nights all MDRs serve the same menus. These will include the Pirate Night menu, Prince & Princess, Till We Meet Again, for example.

There's really no reason to stress about the dining process. We've never requested a specific dining rotation and have always been quite happy with our dinner service.

 

[disney debi]

We are brand new to cruising -- booked a 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Fantasy! I must admit that this entire thread is "Greek to me", as my mother would say! Is there a "Cruise Dining 101" thread that someone could point me to? So much to learn...

Try this http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/crui...es+(Disney+Updates+-+wdwinfo.com)#restaurants

 

[Uncleromulus]

And get the Passporter DCL Cruise Guide--it is absolutely great for first time cruisers. It helped us so much on our first DCL cruise.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

Basically, each ship has 3 Main Dining Rooms. You will be assigned a rotation in which you will dine in each MDR. On a 7 night cruise you will dine in 2 of the MDRs twice and the third one 3 times. Each MDR serves it's Signature menu (Rotational menu), generally the first time you are in that MDR. The other nights all MDRs serve the same menus. These will include the Pirate Night menu, Prince & Princess, Till We Meet Again, for example.

There's really no reason to stress about the dining process. We've never requested a specific dining rotation and have always been quite happy with our dinner service.

Try this http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruise-new/cr-dining.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+disney-updates+(Disney+Updates+-+wdwinfo.com)#restaurants

And get the Passporter DCL Cruise Guide--it is absolutely great for first time cruisers. It helped us so much on our first DCL cruise.

You guys are all awesome -- THANK YOU!!!