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Dining |
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| For many people, a cruise really is all about the food. Yes, other things matter, but for these folks, the quality of the food and the service that goes with it will absolutely determine whether the cruise was a triumph or a bust. If the food is a major attraction for you, then you’ll want to learn what your prospective ship has to offer. |
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Main Dining (aka Formal Dining). All cruise ships have at least one Main Dining venue and many ships have more than one. The main dining room is the embodiment of luxury and service on your ship and they all work hard to offer classy selections. It’s an opportunity to try food and preparation styles that you would never experience otherwise. The main dining rooms will also open for breakfast and lunch. Many ships now offer alternative restaurants that require reservations and/or a surcharge in which you can choose from restaurants that specialize in French cuisine, seafood, '50's-style burgers and milk shakes, or any number of other themes. There is generally a $5 - $15 surcharge for each person, but for people that like the choice, it’s well worth the money. This option usually isn’t available on ships built before 1990, because the idea wasn’t popular enough to include the extra space needed. |
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Dinner Seating. Generally, ships have multiple seating times, one early (around 5:45 pm – 6:15 pm) and one late (usually around 8:00 pm). When you register for your cruise you’ll get a chance to select which time you want. Sometimes when a cruise is packed, your seating options may be limited if you register late. If something happens and you don’t end up with the seating you requested, or if you want to change it after the cruise is underway, just check with the Maitre’D he will probably find you a table. If you’re trying to move seating times for a group of people, it becomes more difficult. |
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Formal Night. On Formal Night, the dining room is a colorful tapestry of dinner jackets, evening gowns and tuxedos at a level that can rival many formal events you’ve attended. And don’t worry if you forgot to bring your tux, you can usually rent one on the ship. While the theme is definitely all about dress-up, you can still attend if you’re not ritzed out. Some cruisers LOVE this part of the cruise, and even prefer semi-formal attire for dinner at other times. Cruise lines have different dress-codes for their dining rooms, so, if your dinner will be spoiled by people showing up in golf shirts instead of blazers, find out about the ships dinner dress codes. |
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Alternative Dining. All ships have a variety of interesting food options. Each has their own version of buffet lines that operate through-out the day, and naturally, some are better than others. New York style delis, pizza and sushi bars, and the always popular poolside grills are but a few of the ideas that are employed. Most ships now also provide coffee shops, bakeries and ice cream counters which usually cost extra. |
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Room Service. Room service is usually available 24-hours a day (at no charge, though you should tip the waiter), with pastries, juices, coffee and fruit in the mornings and sandwiches and pizza the rest of the day and night. Recently, some cruise lines have stopped providing room service after midnight on the last night of your cruise. |
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Free-Style Dining. A newer trend that has been pioneered by Norwegian Cruise Lines and is gaining popularity on other lines is “freestyle dining”. You just show up at the dining room and you’re seated. This is really a very nice option. It allows you to be flexible with your dining times and you get to move around and meet different people at each dinner. The downside is that you could find yourself waiting for a table if you show up while everyone else is there, though on the cruises we’ve taken that offer this version, we’ve usually been able to get seated pretty quickly. Another downside is that your waiter never gets to know you because you're switching around. I've always appreciated the little extras that come from the waiter learning what I like, such as knowing when to bring coffee, extra bread, etc. You don't get that level of personalized service if you have a new waiter every night. |
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Healthy Eating On Board. For those passengers who are really serious about healthy eating while on board, it’s completely possible, though you might have to exert some discipline. At every meal served on the buffet lines and main dining rooms there are plenty of salads, fruit and soups. There is also at least one fish entrée and at least one chicken entrée available for each meal Even breakfast has salmon wraps! For many cruise lines you can see a copy of their menu online at the cruiseline website. |
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Choosing The Right Cruise - (cont.) [1] [2] [3] [4] |
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Articles we've written about
Cruising In The Caribbean |
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Ten Mistakes When Taking A Cruise - It’s a shame to lay out
$250 - $2,500 on a dreamy
cruise vacation only to encounter unnecessary mishaps and
inconveniences. So, in an effort
to minimize the likelihood of a
bump in the road to your perfect
vacation, here are some common
potholes that can tarnish your
experience.
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Eleven Expert Cruising Tips - Some useful,relevant tips and
ideas, and other neat stuff you
can use to make their cruising
experience better.
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Hooked On Cruising (And I Like It!) - It's official! I have a
condition, a disorder by some
people's assessment. It's called
"Caribbean Obsession Disorder",
and there really is such a thing.
Imagine that!
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