My Time Dining is only applicable to the Main Dining Room on your ship. You can then book dinner in the Main Dining Room for any time you want, or just walk in without a reservation. In that sense, the current system is more equitable than the old system of cash tipping, which favored certain workers, lines say. Feel free to leave a comment below to let the community at Cruise Fever know how you feel about My Time Dining in the comment section below. 0000003388 00000 n Contact Us Get support by Phone or Email 866-562-7625 Email Your Questions Our points-obsessed staff uses a plethora of credit cards on a daily basis. Remember that all additional tipping is at your discretion. |, www.royalcaribbean.ae is part of Royal Caribbean Arabia owned by Safeen Tourism LLC the Sole Middle East Representative of Royal Caribbean International, 2023 All Rights Reserved | ROYAL CARIBBEAN ARABIA. Additional cash gifts are not expected. You dont have to attend dinner at the same time, and you can arrange a table that works for you. At some lines, these charges run as high as $25 per day. Search Multiple Sites at Once Tipping on a cruise does not have to be complicated, but you need to understand the big picture to budget for your vacation appropriately. That's exactly the case with the Amex Platinum card. To this day it still references dynamic dining in the cruise planner even though that is long gone. Online, you can only book My Time Dining for up to eight guests. Learn more. Royal Caribbean recently added "My time dining" as a dining option. Cruise lines say they pass the money collected from service charges to the shipboard crew. I will HAPPILY pay my gratuities, and feel that having them paid in advance is very convenient, andprobably saves me some money. $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card on one or more of the following: Audible, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, SiriusXM, and The New York Times. Once you have decided on the perfect ship and itinerary, you are ready to move forward with the cruise booking process. The agent asked us which dining option wed like and we chose my time. If you want, you can even try to switch onboard. After sneaking a peek at our dining table the 1st night out & seeing we were seated with 4 elderly women, we decided to consider switching to My Time. 0000005956 00000 n Love Cruise Fever?Sign Up to Our FREE Newsletter! You will be seated with whomever you arrive to the dining room with. On a cruise ship there are so many activities and fun shows, that it can be easy to lose tract of time, and not having to worry about being at diner at a specific time works for some people. At least, thats how it is supposed to work. Please note, you can only choose one dining style per sailing so once they join you they must use My Time Dining for the rest of the cruise. You can then book dinner in the Main Dining Room for any time you want, or just walk in without a reservation. . As I mentioned, most of the time you will be eating with just your party, but if you prefer to eat with others you can still request it. Since you stated that you have already paid you cruise in full I would not go back to your TA just to pay them, I would just pay them at the end of the cruise when you settle your account, there are 2 different rates, one for regular rooms which I believe is $14.50 per day, per person, what you see on my picture is for a suite which is $16.50 PD, PP. 0000006002 00000 n 0000005051 00000 n 0000755747 00000 n Some people also like to pay their service charges in advance for budgeting purposes. 0000021713 00000 n #4. Unlike traditional dining - where a dining time is assigned to you - guests who opt for My Time Dining can eat in the Main Dining Room whenever they like during dining hours, according to availability. 0000909755 00000 n 0000883078 00000 n I have just booked the allure this afternoon and was told by the iglu cruiserep that if I wanted my time dining then I would HAVE to pay the gratuities up front at the time of booking,but if I had first or second sitting then I didn't need to pay I was imformed that royal had made this part of their booking conditions 2 months ago.this is royal caribeans latest sneaky trick to get you to part with more money than you need to.the gratuities payment are VOLUNTARY you have the choise to pay them or request onboard the ship to take them off of your account . You may tip extra if you feel you have been "WOW'd". If, for instance, you plan on staying late in port one day but still wish to eat in the Main Dining Room, you could make a reservation for later in the evening, rather than miss out on the experience because you have early dining. However, as mentioned, it is usually just easier and more convenient to leave the auto-gratuity/service charge/hotel charge (it is called different things on different cruise lines) in place. That said, some people do leave a little extra for crew members who go above and beyond. Then, Norwegian Cruise Line decided to shake things up a bit with "freestyle dining", an innovation that allows guests to eat dinner anytime . $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. If you pay them onboard, it will be charged automatically each day of the cruise. Theres also a dining hotline you can call from the phone in your stateroom to make changes to your reservations. The recommended dress code for the Main Dining Room for traditional dining or My Time Dining is smart casual. You may find that you are split up at different tables that are not located near each other. 0000896900 00000 n Join 40,000 cruiserswho readmy email each week Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. For lines that do have them, service and gratuity charges are touted as a convenient alternative to the practice of cash tipping on cruise ships something that once was common. That is really the biggest flaw with My Time Dining. 0000901714 00000 n Be the first to rate this post. Can I participate in My Time Dining but make a reservation for a specific time? If youre not someone who has cruised before, you might not be aware of traditional dining times on cruise ships. You no longer have to prepay gratuities if you select My Time Dining. 0000690334 00000 n The only real downside beyond having to pay your gratuities in advance is that you arent guaranteed the same waiter every night. Its much better if youre someone who likes to play it by ear for dinner, based on how hungry you are. No votes so far! 0000916923 00000 n MY FAMILY TIME DINING MY TIME DINING DAILY RESERVATIONS Awards FOLLOW US JOIN CROWN & ANCHOR SOCIETY CALL US NOW +971 4 331 4299 0000722800 00000 n I am not trying to get out of tipping, I would like to be convinced that the automatic charge actually gets passed on to the crew?? ;p, You will be able to leave a comment after signing in, By KA^tQmy9*yE'6C'VBz@JKz+I_0U{:$asg* \ endstream endobj 157 0 obj <>/Size 28/Type/XRef>>stream Follow along on this incredible voyage! That is not the case anymore but Royal is not great about updating their website information. Here is why some people dislike the more informal dining option. Yes, if there is availability in the My Time Dining Room, we would be happy to accommodate the request. Enrollment required. 0000003714 00000 n 0000002916 00000 n This also applies to sailings departing from Australia and New Zealand. Booking MTD on certain ships requires individual checkouts for each night while other ships you can make reservations for the whole cruise and check out once. But I remember the days before MTD and Automatic Tips when, on the last night, TIP Night, people would eat at other venues and skip out on tipping the wait staff. A. Plus Ups are excluded. Aside from formal nights, there is no enforced dress code except that bare feet and tank tops are not allowed in the Main Dining Room. If you have a smaller party, you might find that you do not have to wait as long as larger parties. If not, just leave blank, How to book My Time Dining on Royal Caribbean, What you need to know about Royal Caribbean's My Time Dining, Royal Caribbean My Time Dining versus Traditional Dining. Never feel pressured to add an extra tip when you've already paid one. (Enrollment required for select benefits.). 0000736746 00000 n 0000755470 00000 n The Dining experience was Excellent as were the Waiting Staff, the only gripe, there had to be one, was the cost of the Wine. Started June 21, 2021, By If we paid the gratuities up front when onboard would we still have able to do MTD? Royal Caribbean gratuities for children and infants So if I cancel my gratuities what will be added to my account for my time dining. You will be able to see the exact times that My Time Dining is offered each evening once you book your cruise. Powered by Invision Community. Check here before booking an award fare. Two brothers started Cruise Fever in 2011 when they decided they couldn't stop cruising so they might as well write about it. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); | Gratuities haven't been going up "almost every year." Itll be one less thing on your final bill at the end of the cruise. If you arrive as soon as the Main Dining Rooms open, you will be able to be seated shortly. For instance, in recent years, Norwegian has been continuously running free at sea promotions that include not just free crew tips but free shipboard Wi-Fi and a free drinks package, too. What happens if I cancel the gratuities? Your link has been automatically embedded. Both Royal Caribbean and Carnival have slightly different daily gratuities. If you would like a specific waiter or table, they are more likely to be able to accommodate your request with advance reservations (however, please note this is based on availability). 0000738152 00000 n You don't have to tip on these cruises because the line is already paying gratuities to the staff on your behalf. If you want to use My Time Dining you must pay for tips in advance. Whats Included in a Royal Caribbean Cruise? View All Cruises Royal Caribbean does make it easy to enjoy flexible dining with My Time Dining, so just make sure you sign up to it if you want to decide when you eat each day. Jon lives in the foothills of North Carolina and wishes there were a cruise port that far inland. Don't know why you want to do this (are you planning to carry cash every time you go to the WJ?) Any amount is fine and will be appreciated by the hard-working crew. If you are adjusting a gratuity charge downward, expect to be asked about the reasons behind the adjustment. Also (and I'm probably being the grammar police on this one) do you really mean "you HAVE to pay the gratuities up front at the time of booking" or do you mean they have to be added to your bill at time of booking? 0000902188 00000 n Paste as plain text instead, 0000909381 00000 n Related: The best cruise booking perks and which ones are actually free. Others tip their room service or wait staff at their favorite bar, either early in the cruise in the hope of getting better service or at the end to thank them for enhancing the vacation experience. It's kind of a runaround to personally get to everyone who is included (my opinion). Once you have made your My Time Dining reservations, they will appear in your cruise calendar, both on Cruise Planner tab and Royal Caribbean's app. 13 Biggest Mistakes Made by Carnival Cruise Passengers [Carnival Tips], Cruise Ship Room Service: Menus and Fees for Cruise Lines, Carnival Anytime Dining: Tips for Your Time Dining with Carnival, Carnival Bringing a Fourth Cruise Ship to Galveston, Texas, Carnival to Send Newly Upgraded Ship on 14-Day Transatlantic Cruise, Royal Caribbean Updates Perks in Loyalty Program. If you have an issue with how the crew get paid don't withhold your tips since that will only penalize the crew. 0000891423 00000 n We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Dine as you want, when you want. On a typical seven-night cruise, thats nearly $600 in fees. Card Rating is based on the opinion of TPGs editors and is not influenced by the card issuer. 19952023, The Independent Traveler, Inc. Answer (1 of 4): Fares purchased on the Australian website will always include pre-paid gratuities. We can honor requests to change only once based on availability. Your statement You cannot sign up for My Time Dining until you are on board the vessel is incorrect you can do this online when you book the Cruise. Royal Caribbean Dining. Can they join me in the My Time Dining Room. *Please see all applicable Terms & Conditions for Promotions. Do you have Cruise Fever too? If you're wondering how much you should tip on the specific cruise line you're considering or have already looked, we've compiled that information here. There have been both positive and negative reports on Royal Caribbeans My Time Dining. Even if you initially booked Traditional Dining, you can call your travel agent or Royal Caribbean directly to change to My Time. What is Royal Caribbean's service gratuities (tips) price and policy? However, a lot of people do uphold the dress code, so if you turn up in a t-shirt and shorts then you may look out of place. Improve earnings, maximize rewards and track progress toward dream trips. You can disable the usage of cookies by changing the settings of your browser. That's because some cruise lines tack daily service fees onto passenger bills yet many travelers still hand out additional cash gratuities, either as a matter of course or for exemplary service. It truly depends, though. You need to contact your TA and have her add it to your invoice in order to prepay gratuities. My Time Dining uses the same menu as traditional seating. 0000011539 00000 n Then, contact one with a best-price guarantee and have them beat it! Understood, and many passengers also feel this way. You must have JavaScript enabled to use this form. 0000905656 00000 n There are even more places your Platinum Card can get you complimentary entry and exclusive perks. 0000005911 00000 n M&-]f_Le}BXJ.D7CCx. Looking for the Best Cruise Deals? Quote tiny260 Members 2.4k LocationOklahoma Posted January 11, 2019 I think you probably have had you questions answered already but I wanted to show an example. No reservation is needed, but Royal Caribbean strongly encourages you to get a reservation if you dont want to spend a lot of time waiting when you go to dinner. Search Now Related: Use these credit cards to maximize your next cruise vacation. These 9 Drinks Are Free on Royal Caribbean Cruises. I'm travelling with guests from another stateroom who selected Traditional Dining. Alternatively, you can have the charges added to your room bill on board. If you need to change or cancel a reservation for any reason, you will have to go into the specific order and cancel each reservation separately before you are able to rebook. Find the right card for you. Traditional seating will mean that guests will keep the same wait staff and dining companions throughout the cruise. My Time Dining is not available for breakfast, but you can still use it for both lunch and dinner. When making a reservation you will be offered My Time or traditional dining times (i.e., 5:30 pm & 8:00 pm). You can reserve My Time Dining when you first book your cruise, or by logging onto the Royal Caribbean website to amend your booking. Now you have a choice to prepay gratuities or not with either Traditional or MTD. Why is it combined? CC Help Jenn As soon as you place the deposit for your cruise, you will gain access to the Cruise Planner. %PDF-1.4 % Note, however, that this means you may not be able to have as flexible of a dining experience as you might be hoping for, especially if prime reservations have been secured in advance by other guests. Started in 2010, Royal Caribbean Blog offers daily coverage of news and information related to the Royal Caribbean cruise line along with other relevant topics of cruising, such as entertainment, news, photo updates and more. $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card. So by your definition no one should tip because others will make up the difference? Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. 0000019459 00000 n On a Royal Caribbean cruise, you need to register for My Time Dining if you don't want a set dining time. Still, not all lines have service fees that high. But its not strict. Also as others have stated, prepaid gratuities and MTD have nothing to do with each other anymore. A list of those who do this is available to the staff. E{3bEi_,FdTneL m!TlmJ=&esmh~rqbo)q9V'{7_LA74us i%@MZC1twwBjkC%{'BLTzP64Z{C@gC;qdF\u4:}NiIYmKzuu>k&dOWd1ydzW ]EhWJt*iLAcGMUyhvjw%m&_I;jxt' jg|zn~7_{ksiY15M HHnV6@,,TnMv9GU{$ Australians typically do not tip because the minimum wage in Australia is $20.33 AUD/hr ($14.56 USD/hr). Royal Caribbeans award winning dining program, My Time Dining, offers flexible and traditional options. By Please view our advertising policy page for more information. Still reserve a table if you can otherwise, you might be waiting with a grumbling stomach until a table becomes free if you just walk in. John2195, June 24, 2017 in Royal Caribbean International. That said, if you want to, you can often adjust the charges (either up or down) while youre on board by visiting the guest relations desk. Member Title: 100,000+ Club. I'm travelling with guests from another stateroom who selected Traditional Dining. 0000906618 00000 n 0000014304 00000 n My Time Dining usually begins around 6:00pm and lasts until 9:30pm, giving you a wide range of times to choose from. Traditional dining guests may be seated with other parties to form a larger table, which can be fun if youre confident enough to make new friends. For guests that want to experience the Main Dining Room without the formality of having a set time, Royal Caribbean, Royal Caribbean offers its guests two choices for enjoying dinner in the main dining room: My Time Dining or. Not every ship has it though, so you should check out their website to see if your ship will offer this service if you are interested. Royal Caribbeans award winning dining program, My Time Dining, offers flexible and traditional options. If you do get the same waiter every night, theyll remember your name and your preferences. My Time Dining is now a choice within the booking process. 0000841664 00000 n My Time Dining is therefore available to anyone who wants to mix things up. The early seating is usually around 5:30pm, while the late seating is around 8:00pm. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. HW[U5}@iy% $Q'i'xNg2f(-E2obIcUHQ?/yZ!X}qu`?x %PM-*9:^C^%4eKYT,wybq6hkG7w@N5r~ wj,_u';d'QLOC >g18&fa[2.K\TXHkAnA;C:j>, F nf9|t&ix2KXRlb@}dnMqe@Vc8pXN-:{d2{sPVuINq?1k0BaL ;>9tH4w%E3@NH"e&z j9VMF}|^~*h hXH9K Im really asking the opposite - We havent prepaid gratuities, but the agent has booked us in for My Time Dining! Flexible seating works very much like standard restaurant seating. Details: Gratuities are included in the fare. It's also not possible to update every forum discussion when information changes so it can be confusing to read conflicting threads. 0000006236 00000 n You can choose a different time each day, so you can fit dinner around the rest of your onshore and onboard plans. The traditional dining experience allows you the choice of either early or late seating times for each day of your cruise. The problem is, I cant see anywhere how to prepay the gratuities? Automatic gratuity charge: None. Credit ranges are a variation of FICO Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu. We strongly recommend reserving your dining times through Cruise Planner prior to your sailing as dining times may fill up. 2011-2023, Cruise Fever . Smart cruise advice, cruise deals, and breaking news. u"7QV-gL)qO^>#~r{e7|W(WFAX>B|zj&u{P$LEi7+?X!^ Even if I opt out of automatic gratuities? Check out Intelligent Cruiser here for a better cruise vacation. 0000891340 00000 n 0000911365 00000 n 0000916095 00000 n Below is a line-by-line look at policies for automatic gratuity charges (called service charges or crew appreciation charges at some lines). Lines that now cover gratuities in their fares include Azamara, Ponant, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea Cruises and Virgin Voyages. Kudos to NCL for no longer allowing grats to be removed onboard. At the same time, you will be able to add prepaid gratuities and vacation protection, if you choose to do so. ;) Can we opt out of those added on charges also?? Upload or insert images from URL. Hes sailed on more than 150 ships. But even so, it's more likely to keep up with cost of living, not to make up for those who don't tip. If you are choosing My Time Dining because you are not a fan of either set dining times, you will need to ensure that you make nightly reservations as soon as possible via the Cruise Planner. Rather, you will be seated wherever there is availability. Do you plan on dining anywhere except the dining room? In this case, no gratuities will be charged to your onboard account. Ive worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and now my blog helps over a million people to plan their cruises each month. All rights reserved. For your convenience, prepaid gratuities are automatically added to your flexible option reservations. When you eat with someone different every night it can be hard to get past the introductions every night and really get to know someone. Once they go to the My Time Dining desk to be seated for dinner, the waiter will look up the guests stateroom and pull any special dietary needs or amenities purchased for them. There will be a My Time Dining check-in desk at the entrance to the dining room with wait staff to greet guests. 0000812508 00000 n If anyone on our team wouldnt recommend it to a friend or a family member, we wouldnt recommend it on The Points Guy either. We were unaware of the automatic (recommended amount) tipping charge applied to our credit card when we switched to My Time on the 3rd day of our recent 8 day cruise. All rights reserved. trailer <]>> startxref 0 %%EOF 158 0 obj <>stream When you log into the Cruise Planner, all you have to do is navigate to the "Dining" tab and scroll down until you see "My Time Dining.". Pasted as rich text. Traditionally, dinner on a cruise ship has been served at two specific seating times. When making a reservation you will be offered "My Time" or traditional dining times (i.e., 5:30 pm & 8:00 pm). So with My Time Dining, you might lose some of that experience, but the flexibility of your own table and time is often preferable anyway. Reservations arestronglyrecommended in order to avoid a delay in seating (reservations will be taken once onboard, based on availability). 0000910770 00000 n I am looking at cancelling my gratuities when I get on board so I can pay these personally. Suggested read: 6 Things You MUST Know About Formal Night on a Royal Caribbean Cruise. Hi, I'm Jenni. 0000897170 00000 n Getting to know the staff and allowing them to get to know you is also a fun part of cruising for some people and My Time Dining would severely limit activity. Obviously through this conversation you can tell that you can pre-pay your gratuities our they will be added to your onboard account daily as you cruise. The actual times, however, will vary by sailing. Depending on when you go, you may have to wait until there is an available table. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); About Us | You do have to prepay your gratuities in order to sign up to My Time Dining. It is more difficult for the Main Dining Room to accommodate larger groups with My Time Dining, as there are fewer tables set for bigger parties. Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card. If you plan on spending most of your time in the buffet restaurant anyway, then you might not be concerned about the Main Dining Room and your dining times. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 20 cruises. Theyll be able to make recommendations based on what youve previously ordered and make sure your favourite drink is waiting for you, if you want them too. 0000417581 00000 n That said, the total number of lines with a service fee has been shrinking over the years. I take any thread older than a year (sometimes less) with a grain of salt. 0000419103 00000 n Sorry- Im not expressing myself too well! 0000901330 00000 n Princess, for example, has added a Princess Plus plan as a booking option.
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