Dining query..

[cocinelle]

Hi!

DM & I are embarking on our first ever Disney cruise next May (and we're much too excited about something that is still so far away!!),and I am a little confused about the seating arrangements in the restaurants.. As we will only be a party of two, will we have to sit with other diners?

Thanks in advance for your words of wisdom!

cocinelle x

 

[PoohJen]

I don't recall seeing any tables for 2 in the dining halls.

You can sit by yourselves at Palo's. Also, I believe lunch is open seating.

that being said, if you are apprehensive about dining with strangers, have you found the thread for your specific cruise? Alot of DISsers on my cruise met beforehand on these boards, and arranged to sit together. They had a wonderful time! Plus, if you find your cruise's thread, you get to share your cruise obsession with like-minded obsessed people until then!

Good luck and happy planning!

 

[jrabbit]

Hi!

DM & I are embarking on our first ever Disney cruise next May (and we're much too excited about something that is still so far away!!),and I am a little confused about the seating arrangements in the restaurants.. As we will only be a party of two, will we have to sit with other diners?

Thanks in advance for your words of wisdom!

cocinelle x

with only 2 of you most likely you will be sitting with other cruisers at dinner. My family is pretty shy but we have found this to be a really enjoyable part of the cruise experience. Remember, you and your dinning companions are assigned to the same table number in each restaurant and you will also have the same servers in each restaurant - so you will have plenty of opportunity to turn "those strangers" into "our new friends"

 

[jel0511]

Since there are no tables for 2 on DCL, most likely you'll find yourself dining with others. You can request a table for 4 and hope you don't get anyone assigned to sit with you, but that is unilkely especially if it is a full sailing.

 

[oybolshoi]

DH and I just took our first Disney cruise in October - we were on a 7-night cruise and it was just the two of us. We were seated at a table for four with another couple.

I was a little apprehensive about this before the trip, too - but we really enjoyed our dining partners. We were close in age, both doing the REAS package, didn't have kids, and even ended up having the same shore excursions planned. Even better - we had pre-booked Palo reservations for the same darn days!

I don't know if DCL tries to match people up for dining - if they don't then we just got very very lucky this time! Anyway, I wouldn't be too concerned - you'll probably be seated like we were, with another couple. If you are unhappy with your assignment you can always speak with your head server and request a change - I'm sure they'd be more than happy to accomodate you.

You will have a table for two at Palo - be sure that you don't miss out on that experience!

 

[CamColt]

You can request a table for yourselves, but most likely will not get it. We tried and had no luck. While dining with strangers didnt ruin the cruise for us, it did lessen the dining experience quite a bit for me. Luckily we went to Palo once so it was only 2 nights we had to dine with them, but I really would have rathered not. No tables for 2 is probably my only gripe with DCL.

 

[tvguy]

Meeting your dining mates is part of the cruise. We were disappointed that we got a table for 4,(there were 4 of us), but we survived. Basically all the tables seat a minimum of four, they just push them together as need be. We had a table for 20 next to us.

 

[mickeyboat]

We also were a party of four seated at a table for four. I would have liked to have had the opportunity to enjoy the company of other cruisers for meals.

Denae

 

[cocinelle]

Well, that's that matter cleared up! I guess we'll be brave about eating with people we don't know- and PoohJen, thanks for the top tip about checking which DISers will be on our cruise..

I am always amazed when using these message boards how quickly people respond, and with such detail in their posts- Thanks you guys, you're all fabulous!!

cocinelle x

 

[6griswolds]

I for one will be very uncomfortable with this table sharing. No I'm not an uptight weirdo or anything....but this will be the last major trip with all 6 of us. My daughter will be graduating soon and leaving the nest, and I would rather have all the one on one time with just "my" family that I can during the dining time. I'm hoping since I will have 6 (dh and I and our 4 kiddies) that maybe we will fill up a whole table. I'm sure we will meet lot's of interesting folks during all the other activities going on. Sheesh...i hope I didn't just come off as a snob.

 

[cocinelle]

Lori- wanting to eat with just your family isn't snobbery!! IMHO it's perfectly understandable,especially on such a special trip...
I know that me and my mom might find it a bit difficult, we've never been the kind of family that make friends on vacation- we like each other's company too much! But it sounds as if six of you stand a good chance of getting your own table.. We'll keep our fingers crossed for you!!

cocinelle x

 

[jel0511]

I'm also one that thought that sharing a table with others would be weird and awful, but it actually was REALLY nice. Our tablemates were really nice, and it was nice to be able to have adult conversation during dinner, instead of just talking amongst ourselves. Now, if I was in a situation as yours Lori (great name by the way!) I'd also want to sit alone, but if it doesn't happen, don't let it ruin your trip. There are PLENTY of other opportunities available to get plenty of family time and not feel like you're missing anything over dinner. Our tablemates weren't overly friendly, and sometimes we'd just each fall into individual family conversations, sometimes we'd all talk. It did help that our tablemates were a lot like us, DVC members, quiet and reserved, and really not night owls. It did help that we had similiar interests to talk about, and neither of us were overbearing. Make a request that you'd like a table for 6 on your reservation. Nothing can be guaranteed, but with the request you probably have a better chance getting it met than by just hoping for it to happen.