Ask Tink: First or Second Seating for Dining on a Disney Cruise?

"Hi! I'm trying to plan my Disney Cruise and they asked if I want first dinner seating or second. What do you think? Is one better than another?"

     Thanks so much for sending in that question! And by the way, I am totally and completely jealous that you have a Disney Cruise Line trip on the horizon! DCL is truly the BEST cruise line in the world and it's such a fun-filled and relaxing trip!

     When it comes to dinner, the seating time that you should select is really the one that works best for your family. I can give you some plusses and minuses to the two times, and hopefully that will help you decide!

     Your show time will be based on your dinner seating, so the schedule will work like this: First dinner seating will go to dinner at 5:45pm, and go to the theater for their show at 8:30pm. Second seating will go to their show at 6:15pm, and dinner at 8:30pm. 

     Many families with small children find the second seating to be too late for little ones to be eating, and they end up selecting the first seating. As a result, second seating typically is easier to get into, and has fewer children in the dining room. This also means that the Oceaneers Club tends to have their activities based on the schedule of the earlier dinner. That's not to say that your children cannot attend if you are in the second seating, just that they are more likely to get there mid-activity. For those in the second seating, they do have counselors come to the dining rooms around 9:15pm, to pick up any kids that want to go to the club. It's a nice feature because your kids can eat with you, and then not have to stick around. You can take your time enjoying coffee and dessert, knowing that the kids are safe and off having way more fun than you somewhere. 

     Second seating has always been favored by my family because we can't get it together fast enough to get ready for early dinner. If you have been in a port that day, or even if you're just playing around the ship, getting dressed and being at the dining room by 5:45pm means wrapping up other activities by about 4:30pm or so and that can be tough. Second seating gives you the chance to take your time a bit more. You can always go to the show in your casual attire, and then get dressed for dinner between the show and meal time. That way, you have more time to play AND to enjoy a VERY quiet ship. We found that if we went to the pool around 4:30pm or so, it was almost empty. We could swim for an hour or more, with almost no one else in the pool area, before getting ready to go to our show. And if you manage to already be dressed by the time you go to the show, you can always use the time before dinner to squeeze in an activity, or to grab a cocktail in a lounge.

     We also enjoy the fact that because there is not another group waiting to get into the dining room when you are at second seating, the servers have a bit more time to chat and for you to enjoy their company. (Of course, be mindful that they DO still have to clean up and can't spend the whole night hanging out in the dining room with you.) This is always a highlight for us, as the crew is always phenomenal. 

     The one negative we saw to second seating was that sometimes we would have to rush to get to some of the evening activities. If there was a particular cabaret show taking place, or if it was Pirates Night, we really had to scramble to wrap up dessert and get our butts out the door. This maybe only happened one or two times on the whole cruise though, so it wasn't too big of a deal. 

     So, overall, I prefer second seating, BUT, if you have small children, you may want to stick with first seating to avoid meltdowns and/or your children falling asleep at the table. Although D did fall asleep at our table once during second seating and our servers very sweetly pushed two chairs together, covered her in a tablecloth, and made a pillow from napkins. It was adorable. 

     No matter what, you're guaranteed to have delicious meals, fabulous entertainment, and an incredible family vacation! Have fun and BON VOYAGE!