Royal Caribbean Enhances Dining Program

[Grumpy]

http://www.leisuregrouptravel.com/br...m-0904295.html

Royal Caribbean International today announced enhancements to the cruise line’s dining program, offering guests greater flexibility, personalization and convenience. With the introduction of new flexible dining programs called My Time Dining and My Family Time Dining for kids and other enhancements, guests will now have a diverse variety of choices to dine at whichever time and however they wish, in addition to the cruise line’s traditional dining, casual or specialty dining and in-stateroom service offerings. The new dining program is available immediately fleetwide.

My Time Dining, which Royal Caribbean has piloted on select ships since early 2008, provides guests with the flexibility to enjoy dinner in the main dining room whenever they wish during dining hours. Guests choosing My Time Dining will not have a pre-assigned table, but will be seated in the ship’s main dining room and order from the same traditional dinner menu. My Time Dining guests can make daily reservations for specific seating times or choose to walk-in. Guests can be seated with the party they arrive with, request to be seated with other guests or dine alone. To ensure a smooth and undisrupted experience, no additional guests will be seated at a table once dinner service has begun. Guests choosing My Time Dining must prepay gratuities and enroll onboard or in advance.

As part of the recently announced new family program, My Family Time Dining will offer an expedited 40-minute dinner experience during the first seating in the main dining room for kids, ages 3-11, enrolled in the Adventure Ocean youth program. Once seated, kids will enjoy expedited service and be immediately served. Forty-five minutes into the seating, a youth counselor will escort kids from the main dining room entrance back to the Adventure Ocean spaces for continued evening activities, allowing parents to enjoy the rest of their dinner at their leisure. For more convenience to parents and more fun for kids, Lunch and Play provides kids in Adventure Ocean with lunch, movies, cartoons and free-play time between noon and 2 p.m. under the supervision of Adventure Ocean counselors. There is a charge of $7.95 per child for the Lunch and Play program. (800-327-2056, www.cruisingpower.com)

[Grumpy]

Royal Caribbean Expands Cruise Ship Flexible Dining Fleetwide
Royal Caribbean is the latest flexible dining domino to fall. After testing its "My Time Dining" program on five ships beginning in early 2008, the line has announced that it will roll out the anytime, anywhere option fleetwide, effective immediately.

RCI's long-expected announcement is nothing novel in itself. Following in NCL's footsteps, just about every other line in the industry already features an open-seating choice or has announced that it will (Celebrity Cruises is basically the last remaining holdout).

Here's how RCI's program works: In addition to the traditional early and late seating options, RCI passengers can now select My Time Dining and be able to make daily reservations for specific seating times or simply walk in when they're hungry. Passengers can be seated with the party they arrive with, request to be seated with other guests or dine alone. No additional guests will be seated at a table once dinner service has begun.

Those opting for My Time Dining rather than set-seating dining can sign up onboard, online in advance or through the cruise line's reservations department. There is one quirk to the new program: My Time Dining guests must pre-pay gratuities (Royal Caribbean does not automatically add gratuities to your final bill if you've elected set-seating). A spokesman from the line tells us that this is to assure a fair tip spread for the wait staff.

More intriguing than the fleetwide expansion of flex-dining is the new "My Family Time Dining" program and a "Dine in Delights" menu featuring expanded room service offerings. Introduced in March, My Family Time Dining will offer an expedited 40-minute dinner experience during the first seating in the main dining room for kids ages 3 - 11 who are enrolled in the Adventure Ocean youth program. For more on this dining option, check out our piece on RCI's newly expanded family options.

The for-fee Dine In Delights menu is an addition to the complimentary full breakfast, lunch and dinner room service menus. Beyond the traditional room service items, passengers can now order a Johnny Rockets hamburger, a slice of Eli's Cheesecake Company's cheesecake, Ben & Jerry's Half-Baked and Cherry Garcia ice cream bars, and a Ghirardelli chocolate-chip cookie with milk. The menu is available 24 hours a day, but items require an additional charge. For instance, the ice cream bars will run you $2.95 each. Add that to the late-night room service charge of $3.95 -- added to all in-room deliveries during the hours between midnight and 5 a.m. -- and that's one pricy dessert!