Dining room table size?

[Angeejoe]

You asked to be seated alone, but were seated at a 6- or 8-top, with two or three additional couples? Yikes.

Yes, we were seated at an eight top! Only one couple showed up the 1st night. The 2nd night the 2nd couple came, & they changed the table setting to 6 at an 8 top. We really liked the 2nd couple, we’ve kept in contact, & we’re talking about another future cruise with them.

Our very 1st cruise in 2014 we were seated at an 8 top with 3 other couples, one of the couples have become great friends of ours & we’ve done 2 more cruises with them. We’ve also gone to visit them in Milwaukee.

So there’s great friends to make on cruises, it was just that we had the 4 night Dream, then meeting our friends for a night at OKW, & then a 7 night Fantasy cruise with our Milwaukee friends. So we kind of liked the idea of just the 2 of us on the Dream, but it ended well.

 

[lolomarie]

I really want to try cruising, but I really would not like to eat with other people. Is this the norm? Seems strange that you would pay so much money to go on a holiday and they would force you to eat with others. Is there any way to know in advance if you'll be sitting with others? Is this true of all cruises? Maybe I should give up my dream of a cruise and look into all inclusive resorts instead.

 

[Dug720]

I really want to try cruising, but I really would not like to eat with other people. Is this the norm? Seems strange that you would pay so much money to go on a holiday and they would force you to eat with others. Is there any way to know in advance if you'll be sitting with others? Is this true of all cruises? Maybe I should give up my dream of a cruise and look into all inclusive resorts instead.

Traditionally dining on cruises was at shared tables. You can always request a private table, but unless you're concierge it's not guaranteed.

HOWEVER, even if you do have a "private" table, in most cases there is not much space at all between them, so you might as well be at a shared table. Largely because the dining rooms were designed to have the shared tables, but as more and more people request, they try to accommodate and have separated as many as they can...but they can't change the footprint of the dining room, so there is only so much space.

 

[Shanti]

Hello, does anyone know what the typical large table size is in the main dining rooms? I did a search on the thread and it looks like the larger tables seat 8, but I wanted to check. We're two rooms totally seven people, and I was wondering if we would get a table to ourselves. TIA!

You might get a private table, or you might get a single stranger added to your table. If you want a private table, call DCL or your travel agent and request it. Also, make sure that your room reservations are linked and that they know you'll be sitting together.

 

[Shanti]

I really want to try cruising, but I really would not like to eat with other people. Is this the norm? Seems strange that you would pay so much money to go on a holiday and they would force you to eat with others. Is there any way to know in advance if you'll be sitting with others? Is this true of all cruises? Maybe I should give up my dream of a cruise and look into all inclusive resorts instead.

Yes, this has traditionally been the case with cruising (remember the scene in Titanic, where everyone is having a meal together?), but more and more in this less sociable era, some people don't want to share.

 

[lolomarie]

Traditionally dining on cruises was at shared tables. You can always request a private table, but unless you're concierge it's not guaranteed.

HOWEVER, even if you do have a "private" table, in most cases there is not much space at all between them, so you might as well be at a shared table. Largely because the dining rooms were designed to have the shared tables, but as more and more people request, they try to accommodate and have separated as many as they can...but they can't change the footprint of the dining room, so there is only so much space.

So it is garunteed if you're concierge?

 

[Dug720]

So it is garunteed if you're concierge?

As far as I know, if you shell out the ridiculous amount for concierge, you have a private table.

But again, many times the tables are still super close together. I'm talking so close that the servers cannot walk between them.

 

[lolomarie]

Yes, this has traditionally been the case with cruising (remember the scene in Titanic, where everyone is having a meal together?), but more and more in this less socialable era, some people don't want to share.

Some people are just introverted and enjoy relaxing with family and friends rather than meeting new people. Holiday to me is uninterrupted time with my family. Something that is rare in our busy lives. I want my time devoted to people I love, but at the same time I don't want to come off as rude to people.

 

[lolomarie]

As far as I know, if you shell out the ridiculous amount for concierge, you have a private table.

Lol. Maybe I'll wait to cruise until after I win the big one!

 

[Shanti]

Some people are just introverted and enjoy relaxing with family and friends rather than meeting new people. Holiday to me is uninterrupted time with my family. Something that is rare in our busy lives. I want my time devoted to people I love, but at the same time I don't want to come off as rude to people.

There's nothing wrong with wanting a private table. I'm an introvert and always want a private table. I was just describing the culture shift. Shared tables did used to be the norm. Not so much anymore.

 

[kiford]

We were seated at a 10-top on our Med cruise in 2010 (Magic, second seating). Four couples and a mother/daughter. No linked reservations. At least one of the restaurants we were at a round table, not two pushed together. So definitely larger than 8 is possible but not common. I would expect that seven people are most likely to get a table of 8 to yourself but who knows? I've no idea why they decided to make a table for 10 when none of us were related or linked.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

So are there no 5-top tables?

We are possibly take a cruise with my mother-in-law; usually we cruise as a family of 4 and request a single table.

We are a family of 5 and (on 8 of 9 cruises) have been sat at a 6-top with an empty seat. We didn't know about the ability to request to be sat alone for our first cruise and shared a 12-top with another family.

 

[cadien]

I really want to try cruising, but I really would not like to eat with other people. Is this the norm? Seems strange that you would pay so much money to go on a holiday and they would force you to eat with others. Is there any way to know in advance if you'll be sitting with others? Is this true of all cruises? Maybe I should give up my dream of a cruise and look into all inclusive resorts instead.

Disney still defaults to shared tables, but Norwegian doesn't do them at all and I think several other mass market lines are all private tables now too.

 

[JWG]

We've been a party of 7 more than once and have been put at an 8 top with an empty spot. We will be a party of 11 coming up in March on the Fantasy and assume we will be an 8+4 with an empty spot.

 

[m3gg3m]

We'll be a group of 16 in January. From what I've been reading, I expect we'll be at two 8-tops. A kids table and an adults table perhaps?

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

We'll be a group of 16 in January. From what I've been reading, I expect we'll be at two 8-tops. A kids table and an adults table perhaps?

I've seen it. I've also seen the 'mega-table' for the big parties like yours. Talk to your server and based on what y'all decide, they'll accommodate you