NIGHTMARE table mates. Request table for 2?

[PrincessShmoo]

My family also tends to prefer keeping to ourselves when dining - but we're a party of three. How would that work if we request a private table?

On our honeymoon cruise with Princess, we were at a large table with ten people, for which all the small talk and socializing quickly got tiring, to say nothing of being exhausted from the given day's activities. We eventually ended up at the buffet for the rest of the cruise, which was okay, but I've always regretted the menus we missed by doing so...

We were hoping for time to ourselves on that cruise (fun fact, we came back expecting, so SOMETHING went well!), and while not in the same situation as we have our DD8 with us this time, I worry about our ability to enjoy ourselves if seated with an overly outgoing family. I've been assuming that we'd be seated with a family of five due to our number - does that make sense? And if our ability to get a private table is compromised because we can't fill a 4-top, what could our other options be?

Mark

With 3 of you, your chances of being seated with others is greater. You can request your own table. They will seat you at a 4 top, if the request is granted.

As a party of 3 we were seated at an 8 top with a family of 5. As a party of 5, we had out own (6 top) table.

If opt to "give it a try" being seated with others, and things just don't work out, you can always ask the head server about being moved to your own table. You'll probably have to change servers, dining rotations, or even dining times, but it's usually do-able.

 

[Impromark]

Thanks! I understand that if that doesn't work out, Cabanas ends up being a table service restaurant anyway, so we won't have to fight a buffet crowd anyway (except for Pirate night?). Obviously for our first cruise we'd like to experience all the MDRs have to offer, but we want to find a balance against our natural desire to enjoy things on our own terms.

Mark

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thanks! I understand that if that doesn't work out, Cabanas ends up being a table service restaurant anyway, so we won't have to fight a buffet crowd anyway (except for Pirate night?). Obviously for our first cruise we'd like to experience all the MDRs have to offer, but we want to find a balance against our natural desire to enjoy things on our own terms.

Mark

Yes, Cabanas is a sit-down table service for dinner, even on Pirate night. The Pirate buffet is after dinner seating is done.

The menu in Cabanas is a selection of items available on the other menus that night in the other dining rooms. Plus a salad bar and carving station.

 

[oakleycat]

My family also tends to prefer keeping to ourselves when dining - but we're a party of three. How would that work if we request a private table?

On our honeymoon cruise with Princess, we were at a large table with ten people, for which all the small talk and socializing quickly got tiring, to say nothing of being exhausted from the given day's activities. We eventually ended up at the buffet for the rest of the cruise, which was okay, but I've always regretted the menus we missed by doing so...

We were hoping for time to ourselves on that cruise (fun fact, we came back expecting, so SOMETHING went well!), and while not in the same situation as we have our DD8 with us this time, I worry about our ability to enjoy ourselves if seated with an overly outgoing family. I've been assuming that we'd be seated with a family of five due to our number - does that make sense? And if our ability to get a private table is compromised because we can't fill a 4-top, what could our other options be?

Mark

Call and request a private table! We just got back from a 7-night on the Fantasy on Saturday and had a private table. Five days before we sailed, I was stressed out by work and not feeling up to small talk and my son asked if we could sit in a teacup booth in Enchanted Garden, so I called and made the request. Sure enough, got that teacup booth! They are happy to grant requests when possible. Having second seating helps too. I think next time we will request tablemates again though, as my kids ended up missing having friends at dinner.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

My family also tends to prefer keeping to ourselves when dining - but we're a party of three. How would that work if we request a private table?

On our honeymoon cruise with Princess, we were at a large table with ten people, for which all the small talk and socializing quickly got tiring, to say nothing of being exhausted from the given day's activities. We eventually ended up at the buffet for the rest of the cruise, which was okay, but I've always regretted the menus we missed by doing so...

We were hoping for time to ourselves on that cruise (fun fact, we came back expecting, so SOMETHING went well!), and while not in the same situation as we have our DD8 with us this time, I worry about our ability to enjoy ourselves if seated with an overly outgoing family. I've been assuming that we'd be seated with a family of five due to our number - does that make sense? And if our ability to get a private table is compromised because we can't fill a 4-top, what could our other options be?

Mark

We are a family of 3 and have always gotten a private table. If it's a 4-top, there will just be an empty seat. I would put in a request - it never hurts to ask!

 

[cruiser21]

My family also tends to prefer keeping to ourselves when dining - but we're a party of three. How would that work if we request a private table?

On our honeymoon cruise with Princess, we were at a large table with ten people, for which all the small talk and socializing quickly got tiring, to say nothing of being exhausted from the given day's activities. We eventually ended up at the buffet for the rest of the cruise, which was okay, but I've always regretted the menus we missed by doing so...

We were hoping for time to ourselves on that cruise (fun fact, we came back expecting, so SOMETHING went well!), and while not in the same situation as we have our DD8 with us this time, I worry about our ability to enjoy ourselves if seated with an overly outgoing family. I've been assuming that we'd be seated with a family of five due to our number - does that make sense? And if our ability to get a private table is compromised because we can't fill a 4-top, what could our other options be?

Mark

Call DCL and request a table for 3. They will note it on your reservation. I would also suggest 2nd dining.

 

[mmmears]

We have always asked for (and so far been placed at) our own table. Travel time for us is family time and it gives us a chance to talk and reconnect that we don't otherwise have. It's always been either 3 or 4 of us, and always at late seating. This upcoming cruise we are listed for main dining for a party of 3 (late is really late on this one) and after reading this I'm getting worried we will be placed with another family. I always make sure to check once we are on board just in case.

OP, I am sorry this happened to you. They sound like very rude people and I wouldn't want to spend my vacation with them.

 

[buzzrelly]

We just got off the Wonder and requested our own table for the 4 of us, me, DM, DD14 and DS16. It was so much better and way more relaxing than having to make awkward small talk with strangers like we had to on the Dream in 2016.

I will always be requesting a private table from now on.

 

[lklgoodman]

We have always asked for (and so far been placed at) our own table. Travel time for us is family time and it gives us a chance to talk and reconnect that we don't otherwise have. It's always been either 3 or 4 of us, and always at late seating. This upcoming cruise we are listed for main dining for a party of 3 (late is really late on this one) and after reading this I'm getting worried we will be placed with another family. I always make sure to check once we are on board just in case.

OP, I am sorry this happened to you. They sound like very rude people and I wouldn't want to spend my vacation with them.

We've gotten our own table as a party of 3 on the 3 cruises that we asked for, all main seating.

 

[undertheradar]

A request is simply a request. Everyone can make requests. Keep in mind that the space between tables can be as little as 10 inches, so private table can be somewhat misleading.

As for reporting another guest to DCL after the cruise has ended, I can't imagine DCL bothering to record the information.

 

[ahain]

Seriously? It's not my place to tell DCL what my family and I had to endure with these rude people?!! I guess I like to think of other people and want to save them from the hassle of dealing with them OR having to move tables.

Who knows....the other family may have already contacted DCL and did this very thing regarding OP!

 

[dcassetta]

You see every so often someone post here, DCL is great, fantastic, etc at matching table mates, but this seems to happen a lot, proving that theory very wrong.

I would guess it's more likely that most people are fine with their table mates, and as a result never mention it. It's only the really negative experiences that get discussed.

So, a shout out to Anna and Helen who were excellent table companions on my last cruise!

 

[TN_mom5]

Who knows....the other family may have already contacted DCL and did this very thing regarding OP!

Oh cool! Maybe DCL would put us at our own table next time even though I plan on requesting it anyway. Woot!

I did call DCL and come to find out that this family should have been seated by themselves anyway. The person I talked to was surprised they were seated at a table of 8. Like I mentioned in a previous post, there is a situation with them (besides being bat butt crazy) that I didn't want to discuss as it would cause drama. It did make me feel better discussing it with someone at DCL and hopefully it does help someone in the future if this family does sail again.

Thank you to those who shared your stories (still in shock over the "papists" and the freaky doll in the other thread that was shared) and for making me feel better over the whole thing. I'm pretty much over it and have even laughed about it while sharing some of the stories with friends. I don't post on a lot of forums and it seriously amazes me how people like to be downers while discussing DISNEY. Life is too short to be snarky to a complete stranger to to feel better about whatever is going on in your own life. Be happy

Waiting for Fall/Winter 2019 itineraries to come out and to book the next one. Thinking of Merry Time but can't decide between Fantasy again or trying the Wonder.

Thanks again y'all!

 

[Brennan_Crowe]

On our very first cruise, I had no idea that there was such a thing called shared seating. I was told about it and was old we would be seated with a family of four with their two kids. To my surprise, the "kids" were a married couple that had recently retired and they were taking their parents on a cruise. My wife, my DD6 (at the time)and myself were a bit taken aback. Turns out these folks were the greatest! It was their 10th cruise. We ended up having so much in common. At the end of the cruise, my daughter had a new adopted set of grandparents, Our last two nights, my daughter would sit between them and they loved it. They were sharing food and desserts with her to try. It was hugs and tears upon saying goodbye. We have two cruises this coming summer and I hope that we are just as lucky again.

 

[TN_mom5]

On our very first cruise, I had no idea that there was such a thing called shared seating. I was told about it and was old we would be seated with a family of four with their two kids. To my surprise, the "kids" were a married couple that had recently retired and they were taking their parents on a cruise. My wife, my DD6 (at the time)and myself were a bit taken aback. Turns out these folks were the greatest! It was their 10th cruise. We ended up having so much in common. At the end of the cruise, my daughter had a new adopted set of grandparents, Our last two nights, my daughter would sit between them and they loved it. They were sharing food and desserts with her to try. It was hugs and tears upon saying goodbye. We have two cruises this coming summer and I hope that we are just as lucky again.

Awesome story!! Reading experiences like this give me hope that I can someday go back to shared seating and enjoy it! I hope I'm just as lucky as your family was.

 

[cruiser21]

If they dont grant your request you could always tell them you won't give an excellent rating. I bet they find you a private table real fast.

 

[cadien]

We were hoping for time to ourselves on that cruise (fun fact, we came back expecting, so SOMETHING went well!), and while not in the same situation as we have our DD8 with us this time, I worry about our ability to enjoy ourselves if seated with an overly outgoing family. I've been assuming that we'd be seated with a family of five due to our number - does that make sense? And if our ability to get a private table is compromised because we can't fill a 4-top, what could our other options be?

Mark

Our party of 3 was seated with a party of 5. We hadn’t made any requests. It worked great. The kids all kept each other occupied and the adults at either end had uninterrupted conversation with their adult travel companions. There was some small talk across the table but the dining rooms are pretty noisy.

 

[MonaMN]

Our party of 3 was seated with a party of 5. We hadn’t made any requests. It worked great. The kids all kept each other occupied and the adults at either end had uninterrupted conversation with their adult travel companions. There was some small talk across the table but the dining rooms are pretty noisy.

Same - the three of us were seated with a family of five, with the other family having a daughter similarly aged to mine. It was fun - they were from Hawaii so it was interesting chatting with them - the only part that was kind of disappointing was that they did something else for dinner for two of the four nights - so sitting at an 8 person table with only three of us was kind of weird. But I am still glad we met them.

 

[kiford]

Awesome story!! Reading experiences like this give me hope that I can someday go back to shared seating and enjoy it! I hope I'm just as lucky as your family was.

We're going to Italy for 3 weeks with a couple who was seated at our table on our Med cruise in 2013. We went to Hawaii with them last year, visited them in Florida 2 times (or was it 3?), and did a Baltic cruise with them in 2015. On that same 2013 cruise, we were also seated with 2 brothers who visited our friends in Florida twice and they also came on our 2015 Baltic cruise. On that same Baltic cruise, there was another couple who had become friends with our Florida friends when they me on their first Baltic cruise together in 2010. And we still correspond with people we met on our 2010 Med cruise.

We were seated, coincidentally, twice with the same couple a year apart on two cruises (they were Florida residents who decided to cruise at the last minute) and we got along really well. The first time we sat with them, there was another couple who then visited them for a couple of days a few months later.

We've been seated with people who were okay, people who were somewhat unmemorable, people who I didn't especially care for or who were a little obnoxious in my opinion but not really bad and were tolerable for an hour or two a day, people whose company we really enjoyed, and people who have become friends. Definitely ask to be moved if you don't get along (or have them moved). We've had such good experiences that it seems like it would be a shame to miss out on that potential especially given that there is an alternative if it doesn't work out. I think in most cases, it works out fine; it's those bizarre ones that people experience that are so memorable that they seem stand out and appear to be the norm which I truly don't believe that they are. I'm not really an outgoing person and am a bit shy but I do enjoy meeting people who have an interest in some of the same things that I do like cruising, travelling and Disney.

 

[Chernabog#1fan]

Oh cool! Maybe DCL would put us at our own table next time even though I plan on requesting it anyway. Woot!

I did call DCL and come to find out that this family should have been seated by themselves anyway. The person I talked to was surprised they were seated at a table of 8. Like I mentioned in a previous post, there is a situation with them (besides being bat butt crazy) that I didn't want to discuss as it would cause drama. It did make me feel better discussing it with someone at DCL and hopefully it does help someone in the future if this family does sail again.

Thank you to those who shared your stories (still in shock over the "papists" and the freaky doll in the other thread that was shared) and for making me feel better over the whole thing. I'm pretty much over it and have even laughed about it while sharing some of the stories with friends. I don't post on a lot of forums and it seriously amazes me how people like to be downers while discussing DISNEY. Life is too short to be snarky to a complete stranger to to feel better about whatever is going on in your own life. Be happy

Waiting for Fall/Winter 2019 itineraries to come out and to book the next one. Thinking of Merry Time but can't decide between Fantasy again or trying the Wonder.

Thanks again y'all!

Come on, now you have to tell!!!