Dinner obligations at restaurants / other??

[my3princesses]

I have asked if before, but can't find the thread so I am asking again.

Are you obligated to go to the restaurants planned for your group each night or can take other options? I am looking forward to some but see that the menu is the same in each. Also our family loves buffets as they have more choice and is nice for kids.

Is the buffet even available for dinner?

I know you have the same waiter and sit with the same people for each dinner so I am not sure what your choices are for dinner.

As well in regards to the shows, are attendance for these prebooked or can you go to them whenever you want? Are they ever "sold out" in that if you do not get there in a reasonable time the theatres fill up? Also in regarding to the "family lounges" do you need to get there early to get a seat? I would think with it being such a big ship and so many options particular areas would not get too full.

 

[jel0511]

As to dinner, you are on an assigned dinner rotation whereas you rotete to a different restaurant each night. If you wish to eat in the sit-down restaurant, you have to go to your assigned restaurant for the evening, you can't go to another one. Usually the first three nights of the cruise, each restaurant serves it's signature menu (so those nights each restaurant is serving something different) and after that there are theme nights, whereas all the food in all three dining rooms is the same. There is only a buffet option on the Magic, and it's only offered on nights 2 - 6, so not on the first and last nights. Other than that, the only other dining options are grabbing from one of the snack aread near the pool, or room service. Topsiders, really isn't a buffet in a true sense. It is a modified buffet at dinner. I believe the salad/soups and appetizers are in the buffet, but the main courses are ordered and brought out to you.

As for the shows, if you get there 15 minutes or so before you should be fine getting a seat. There is no reservations/prebooking necessary, though you are asked to go to the 6:30 if you're on late seating and the 8:30 if you're on early seating. The shows can get full, DH and I got to The Golden Mickeys just at 8:30, and we got two of the last seats in the theatre, so if you're getting there just at showtime, seating is definately limited.

We've never encountered a problem in Studio Sea, but we've only been to one thing there, since my kids are only 6 and 3.

 

[jrabbit]

Are you obligated to go to the restaurants planned for your group each night or can take other options?

You're not obligated to go anywhere except for the Manditory Safety drill at 4pm on the first day of the cruise. For dinners, if you are assigned to Parrot Cay and want to go to Tritons instead, you're out of luck. They only have room for those assigned to that dinning room that evening. If you want to go to Palo, you should have resservations ahead of time. You can walk up to see if there are any vacancies, but usually there are no times available. That leave you with the fast food places on the ship - but why miss out on the fabulous dinners in the main dinning rooms. Go, try some new things, you might be plesantly surprised.

 

[ksjayhawks]

Also, Palos is adult only.

 

[tvguy]

You're not obligated to go anywhere except for the Manditory Safety drill at 4pm on the first day of the cruise..

And if on the Eastern, you are obligated to go to the 6:30 am immigration check in St. Thomas.

 

[Tylerandalliesmom]

Ugghh what is that about? Does averyone have to go for the immigration check or only those leaving the ship?

 

[Verandah Man]

Ugghh what is that about? Does averyone have to go for the immigration check or only those leaving the ship?

"Everyone" has to show up for this one!!!

Unless it is a "special cruise" and they go to St. Thomas first like we did last August, then the immigration check wasn't necessary. My DD 14 and DW were very happy about being on that cruise!!!

 

[soleglo]

On our recent 4 night, we only went to our rotation 2 of the nights. And of those 2 nights our sons only went once. We didn't really like the menus the other nights. We just went and had room service, pizza, or burgers etc.

 

[lbgraves]

If you don't have an excursion they say that you can show up at 7. They aren't suppose to allow anyone to leave the ship until everyone has checked in. On that note, I don't understand how they know since they just asked where I was born & we were stamped.