Why hasn't Disney solved the main/late dining debacle already?

[serenitynow]

And, if they'd done any research about it, they would have been aware that Cabanas was closed the last night. Even as late as the night before when they get their next day's Navigator.

The Navigator is not delivered the night before any longer. Anyone who wants a Navigator must pick up a copy from Guest Services.

 

[Dug720]

3:30 or 4?? That is called snack in my world.

If your schedules are that far off what typical cruise schedules are, something as relatively regimented as cruising may not be for you IMHO.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

The Navigator is not delivered the night before any longer. Anyone who wants a Navigator must pick up a copy from Guest Services.

In the past (as most of these posts are referring to) it was. And it still can be, if you ask your room host to supply it. Or you can pick it up yourself at Guest Services. Or you can see it on the Navigator App. The information is out there.

 

[bbel]

One issue with a 3:30 seating is that a lot of the MDR staff also work in Cabanas.

My guess is that it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for them to close up, clean and reset Cabanas for dinner, and then prep the MDR (and themselves) in time for a 3:30 seating.

Its not even the issue of them cleaning and re-setting, its the crew themselves getting a break and a chance to eat! The mess opens at 4.30 and is packed with dining staff at that time, and the mess closes at 8.30, and then reopens again for a late night snack (MDR leftovers) for an hour at 10pm (Royals Oasis class ships are the only ones I've come across that have a 24 hour crew mess). They eat their lunch before guest lunch starts, so unless its ok for them to go 11am-10pm without food then its not going to happen. Then there's MLC, and dining crew already work almost maximum hours, any more and they'd be breaking the law. Yes, you could add more staff but crew berthing is already over capacity and would add on to the price of already pricey cruises, or add in some rotation, but then you run the risk of not having the same servers every night, which people expect. So its a kind of 'pick your battles' situation.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Has this changed? This was on the Fantasy (at Flo's V8 cafe):
View attachment 410769
Lots of fruit options.

Ah! Who knew? I sure didn't, lol. Thanks for posting.

 

[Geomom]

Ah! Who knew? I sure didn't, lol. Thanks for posting.

On the Magic and Wonder, Daisy's DeLites have fruit, salad, sandwiches, noodle/rice bowls and cookies. We got these yummy funny looking peaches on our Baltic sea cruise last year as that was the local supply. And yes, room service has fruit bowls.

 

[squirk]

Its not even the issue of them cleaning and re-setting, its the crew themselves getting a break and a chance to eat!

Yes, that’s what I meant when I said they have to get themselves ready for the 5:45 seating. They need to rest, they need to eat, they need to shower (please!), they need to dress, etc.

 

[squirk]

They make dinner a big deal and tout it as part of why you are paying more for a Disney Cruise. This why those other people canceled before PIF. They weren’t going to get what they were paying for. (In a way they found reasonable to enjoy their trip)

Disney never promises anyone that they will get the dinner seating they want. You are not paying for a guaranteed 5:45 seating. Anybody who thinks that is either unreasonably presumptuous, grossly misinformed or failed to do their research. None of those are DCL's fault.

At the risk of sounding like Thanos, the ship is finite in space. It is finite in resources. DCL cannot snap its fingers and instantly increase the size of an MDR to accommodate everyone who wants the 5:45 seating.

When the next iPhone is released and you show up to the Apple store late in the day after the mad rush is over, Apple isn't "in the wrong" because it no longer has the color and configuration iPhone you want. Apple wasn't obliged to hold onto a unit for you because you were sick or couldn't get off work to stand in line earlier in the day. Why would DCL have "a problem to fix" under similar circumstances?

I don't mean to sound harsh, but if you book late and there is no 5:45 seating space available for your party, them's the breaks. Cancel if you must, but don't blame DCL just because you were too slow on the draw.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We are a family of three with a DS11 and, even now, if I'm shopping cruises and I can't select the main dining time, I pass on the cruise. Late dining doesn't work for us and I'm not chancing it with a wait list. I'm also not giving up MDR meals by eating at buffets, pool decks, etc. Given how DCL schedules the rest of the days (shows, nighttime activities, etc.), I don't see this schedule changing anytime soon.

 

[MomOTwins]

Also I don’t understand why if late dinner is a problem, then why wouldn’t going to the late show after early dinner be a problem?

Just to answer this one: the way it works is my DH take turns. One night, I will go to the show while he goes to the cabin and does bedtime routine/babysitting duty; the next night we swap. Sometimes my older (but still very young) kids will make it to the show but for our youngest it is just not an option. It's not ideal, but we have to do the same thing on any other vacation too.

Also to everyone who said some variation on "you booked late so sucks to you and of course DCL favors early bookers"--I'd just like to say, I don't necessarily see your logic on why DCL would prefer to reward early bookers with main dining when they already have the very real benefit paying the lowest fares. We tried this time to book a cruise early and hope we got to take it, even though my employer does not let me plan that far ahead. Unsurprisingly, it turned out I was not able to take vacation for the cruise date I originally booked in October and had to cancel and book the November cruise I am currently on. So I had main dining, but lost it when I had to make the switch. And DCL still had my deposit the entire time so it is not as though I paid any less than the early bookers who got to keep the original cruise they were one. And on top of that, I paid about $600 more than this same cruise cost when I was first looking (which I know, because it was on the short list back when I was originally looking at cruises).

If the new cruise ships have sort of actually enjoyable dining alternative to the MDR for families at an upcharge, they are going to make sooo much money. I would pay an upcharge every single night to avoid late dining if I could, at least until my kids are old enough to stay awake that late without a total meltdown.

 

[pixiedustedme]

Just to answer this one: the way it works is my DH take turns. One night, I will go to the show while he goes to the cabin and does bedtime routine/babysitting duty; the next night we swap. Sometimes my older (but still very young) kids will make it to the show but for our youngest it is just not an option. It's not ideal, but we have to do the same thing on any other vacation too.

Also to everyone who said some variation on "you booked late so sucks to you and of course DCL favors early bookers"--I'd just like to say, I don't necessarily see your logic on why DCL would prefer to reward early bookers with main dining when they already have the very real benefit paying the lowest fares. We tried this time to book a cruise early and hope we got to take it, even though my employer does not let me plan that far ahead. Unsurprisingly, it turned out I was not able to take vacation for the cruise date I originally booked in October and had to cancel and book the November cruise I am currently on. So I had main dining, but lost it when I had to make the switch. And DCL still had my deposit the entire time so it is not as though I paid any less than the early bookers who got to keep the original cruise they were one. And on top of that, I paid about $600 more than this same cruise cost when I was first looking (which I know, because it was on the short list back when I was originally looking at cruises).

If the new cruise ships have sort of actually enjoyable dining alternative to the MDR for families at an upcharge, they are going to make sooo much money. I would pay an upcharge every single night to avoid late dining if I could, at least until my kids are old enough to stay awake that late without a total meltdown.

Disney already makes "so much money"... I think at a certain point they have to do what works for them operationally, in tandem with providing the stellar MDR experience they're known for. No one knows what they have planned for the new ships, but I do think it would be a major logistical and financial challenge for them to try to provide a top-notch structured MDR experience each night to every guest, while simultaneously offering a top notch eat-whenever-you-like experience to every guest. An enormous amount of food would be wasted, and a lot more manpower would be needed, in that scenario. I could see them possibly moving to more of a buffet drop-in dinner experience with the new ships if they felt customer demand was that strong, but that would have to be at the expense of the traditional MDR experience, not merely in addition to it.

First come, first served is a logical and universal rule. If you're stuck with very last-minute travel all the time, you already know that comes with penalties, such as more expensive airline tickets, less availability for highly sought-after lodging & activities, etc. And yes, not being able to get first choice for everything on a DCL cruise. But that doesn't indicate a problem with DCL. It's a problem with the way you have to travel.

If early dining is critical for your family's enjoyment of the cruise, and you can't book early enough to guarantee it, you might consider booking concierge when available. It's more expensive, but your concierge team would make sure you got early dining.

 

[Wmuflyguy]

I'm currently dealing with the stress of hoping to be moved off the waitlist for main dining. Every time I get some version of "no we can't tell you where you are on the waitlist, but everyone wants main dining because everyone has small kids." Two people in my [social media not-to-be-named] group actually cancelled the cruise because they could not get main dining before PIF. And I recall seeing a man flipping out at guest services on day one because his travel agent apparently didn't explain dining times to him and he had a baby and toddler who couldn't wait until 8:15.

So since this is a known issue for every cruise, do you think Disney should move the dinners earlier? 5pm and 7:30 would be so much more manageable for families than 5:45 and 8:15. What do folks think?

Or (more controversially) do you think main dining should be reserved for parties with children age 5-and under? Let's be real, if I were sans-kids I would pick main dining too if given an option, even though I don't really need it. 6/7pm-ish is when I eat at home, plus I'd much rather enjoy a show and entertaining after dinner than watch one before and go to bed straight after eating. But realistically, if the only option for me was an 8:15 dinner, I could live with that, unlike my kids who, the last time a late flight to WDW made us eat after 8, were sobbing their eyes out because they felt so bad, couldn't eat a bite, and then fell asleep in their chairs.

Haha, no. Just book earlier. I booked a different cruise so I could have the main dining and we don’t have kids. First come first serve is fine.

 

[Dug720]

We are a family of three with a DS11 and, even now, if I'm shopping cruises and I can't select the main dining time, I pass on the cruise. Late dining doesn't work for us and I'm not chancing it with a wait list. I'm also not giving up MDR meals by eating at buffets, pool decks, etc. Given how DCL schedules the rest of the days (shows, nighttime activities, etc.), I don't see this schedule changing anytime soon.

If you are just booking via the website and not using a TA or calling DCL, you may be cutting off your nose to spite your face since as I understand it, the default is late and you have to tell them you want earlier.

 

[squirk]

Also to everyone who said some variation on "you booked late so sucks to you and of course DCL favors early bookers"--I'd just like to say, I don't necessarily see your logic on why DCL would prefer to reward early bookers with main dining when they already have the very real benefit paying the lowest fares. We tried this time to book a cruise early and hope we got to take it, even though my employer does not let me plan that far ahead. Unsurprisingly, it turned out I was not able to take vacation for the cruise date I originally booked in October and had to cancel and book the November cruise I am currently on. So I had main dining, but lost it when I had to make the switch. And DCL still had my deposit the entire time so it is not as though I paid any less than the early bookers who got to keep the original cruise they were one. And on top of that, I paid about $600 more than this same cruise cost when I was first looking (which I know, because it was on the short list back when I was originally looking at cruises).

I’m sorry your employer wouldn’t accommodate your original sailing, and that you lost your Main seating and paid more money because you had to move to November. However, absolutely none of that is DCL’s concern.

Customers who commit early have to pick a seating, and if they ask for 5:45, what is DCL supposed to do? Tell them “Yeah, no, sorry. Even though you’ve placed a deposit and committed to sailing with us, there might be some people out there who haven’t booked yet because they don’t know if they can get off work or haven’t been able to scrounge up the deposit money. So, even though you are asking for 5:45 and we have 5:45 slots open, we’re gonna stick you in the Late seating so we can accommodate those other people“?

Is Apple supposed to sell you the new iPhone you want if you show up late on release day?
Is Delta supposed to offer you the seat you want if you book the day before your flight?
Is the movie theater supposed to delay starting the movie by 30 minutes because your boss needed you to work a little late?

I totally understand that these cruises are expensive, and you don't want your family to have to make any compromises for what you're paying. However, there are lots of other people in the mix who also are spending a lot of money on the cruise. Are they supposed to be disadvantaged because of complications in your life?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

If you are just booking via the website and not using a TA or calling DCL, you may be cutting off your nose to spite your face since as I understand it, the default is late and you have to tell them you want earlier.

The default when doing the online reservation is late dining. But, once the reservation is made, you can go back in and change it - as long as there is availability on early seating. Of course, you won't know that until the reservation is made.

 

[BruinEd03]

I'm currently dealing with the stress of hoping to be moved off the waitlist for main dining. Every time I get some version of "no we can't tell you where you are on the waitlist, but everyone wants main dining because everyone has small kids." Two people in my [social media not-to-be-named] group actually cancelled the cruise because they could not get main dining before PIF. And I recall seeing a man flipping out at guest services on day one because his travel agent apparently didn't explain dining times to him and he had a baby and toddler who couldn't wait until 8:15.

So since this is a known issue for every cruise, do you think Disney should move the dinners earlier? 5pm and 7:30 would be so much more manageable for families than 5:45 and 8:15. What do folks think?

Or (more controversially) do you think main dining should be reserved for parties with children age 5-and under? Let's be real, if I were sans-kids I would pick main dining too if given an option, even though I don't really need it. 6/7pm-ish is when I eat at home, plus I'd much rather enjoy a show and entertaining after dinner than watch one before and go to bed straight after eating. But realistically, if the only option for me was an 8:15 dinner, I could live with that, unlike my kids who, the last time a late flight to WDW made us eat after 8, were sobbing their eyes out because they felt so bad, couldn't eat a bite, and then fell asleep in their chairs.

Here's an easy solution. Provide a $10 gift card per day per room for late seating. Provide $0 for early seating. That will incentivize people who don't really care to take the late seating. If that doesn't work, but with somewhat the same economics, charge people $10 per day per room for early seating (people often feel more pain from losing $10 than from gaining $10).

 

[squirk]

ere's an easy solution. Provide a $10 gift card per day per room for late seating. Provide $0 for early seating. That will incentivize people who don't really care to take the late seating. If that doesn't work, but with somewhat the same economics, charge people $10 per day per room for early seating (people often feel more pain from losing $10 than from gaining $10).

I like your first idea, but your second? I'm booking and placing my deposit early, and you're gonna charge me $10 extra dollars per day to opt for Main/Early seating? **** that. People who make the financial commitment early should be given a carrot, not a stick.

If I show up early at the Apple store on an iPhone release day, should they charge me an extra $10 if I want to buy a popular color or configuration just so someone who shows up hours later can be accommodated?

 

[BruinEd03]

I'm booking and placing my deposit early, and you're gonna charge me $10 extra dollars per day to opt for Main/Early seating? **** that.

If you read my full post, an alternative is to provide people who choose late seating a $10 gift card per room per day (and $0 for those who choose main dining). Main dining is apparently a limited commodity. That's one of the ways you deal with limited commodities - providing economic incentives.

If you choose not to book with Disney, Disney won't care so long as the policy increases the number of people who book with Disney (e.g., those who book late but who might otherwise not book if they can't get main dining).

Just like, while we may not like Ticket Price increases at Disneyland or Disney World. They will keep increasing to what the market will bear.

 

[squirk]

If you read my full post, an alternative is to provide people who choose late seating a $10 gift card per room per day (and $0 for those who choose main dining). Main dining is apparently a limited commodity. That's one of the ways you deal with limited commodities - providing economic incentives.

If you choose not to book with Disney, Disney won't care so long as the policy increases the number of people who book with Disney (e.g., those who book late but who might otherwise not book if they can't get main dining).

Just like, while we may not like Ticket Price increases at Disneyland or Disney World. They will keep increasing to what the market will bear.

I did read your full post, and I understand the laws of supply and demand.

If your first idea doesn't work, that would suggest the Main/Early seating is full. How can the $10 surcharge work in that situation? You can't charge a fee for a seating that has no space available.

DCL is sailing pretty damn full with the policy they already have in place. If the late-bookers feel aggrieved about the current policy, I can only imagine the outcry if DCL applied a surcharge to early bookers who want the Main seating.

And again, why make such an accommodation to support late-bookers? Why jump through such fiery hoops when "first-come, first served" works and is accepted in almost every other aspect of retail business?

 

[FigmentSpark]

Here's an easy solution. Provide a $10 gift card per day per room for late seating. Provide $0 for early seating. That will incentivize people who don't really care to take the late seating. If that doesn't work, but with somewhat the same economics, charge people $10 per day per room for early seating (people often feel more pain from losing $10 than from gaining $10).

You're suggesting they monetize dinner seating? Like higher on the ship and you pay more for your view? I could see them doing this, but I don't like it. That's $70 for a 7 day cruise. Are you suggesting that's per person or per cabin? Because that would really add up. You might actually have the reverse happen... too many people wanting late seating. Or people who take late seating but just don't bother with the MDRs, so miss the 'shows' and there's a run on people wanting Cabanas right around early seating time. So then, Cabanas would have to be by reservation, probably at sign in time and then the first timers wouldn't have a chance at reservations.