Dinner seatings

[kristen821]

Is there an advantage to either the first or second dinner seating? Will we miss anything doing either one. Also, if you choose the 2nd seating does that mean you get the 2nd seating for breakfast too? Thank you everyone this is the best website!

 

[Mickeyhugger]

It might all depend on the age of your children if traveling with any. Most parents w/toddlers and preschoolers prefer the earlier seating.

However, if your children are grade-school age or older, I would suggest the late seating if you really want to enjoy any shore excursions. (Many people dislike having to 'rush' back to shower before dinner.)

Yes, if you do earlier seating, you'll have earlier breakfast seating if you're doing a 7-day which includes a character breakfast. Early breakfast also (6:30!) on disembarkation.

Our family much prefers the later.

Hope this helps!

 

[KYCruiseCrazy]

with second seating you will have first show of the nite. less crowded. and if on excursions you have less to worry about with a 8 pm dinner. less rush more relaxed i think.

 

[mmouse37]

We have taken 10 DCL cruises and have picked late for all 10 of them!!! Even when our kids were small we chose late seating. Now they are 20, 19 and 16 and would not like early seating at all...they like to nap by the pool in the late afternoon!!!

Also, you do not have to have breakfast in one of the dining rooms....you can go at any time up to the buffet on Deck 9 at Topsider's. The dining room breakfasts do not have a "seating time" except Character Breakfast morning and debarkation morning. They do serve a sit down breakfast and you can go at any time....often you are seated with others to fill tables unless you specifically ask the server for your own table.

We prefer breakfast at Topsiders buffet!!! Great outdoor seating!!!

http://community.webshots.com/photo/76180824/76181148XiTsPp

http://community.webshots.com/photo/76180824/76181139WYtFUY

MJ

 

[mobetsy]

We just came back from a week on the eastern Magic with early seating, and I can honestly say that I never felt rushed on excursion days. We were ready to be back on the ship in plenty of time to get ready for dinner at a comfortable pace, even with "getting ready" including coaxing our 9 and 5 y.o. sons into dinner clothes! Seems like St. Thomas and Castaway Cay both have all-aboard times around 4:00-4:30 anyway. We spent all the time we wanted at dinner, and never felt any pressure to get out for the second seating; the 2.5 hours between seatings is plenty. Because we are from the west coast, I was a little worried that the time difference might be a confusion for our stomachs, but it wasn't. We went to the matinee shows (lots less crowded!), seeing the show before vs. after dinner wasn't an issue. On the last day we ate at Topsiders for breakfast.