IS THE ROYAL CARIBBEAN UNLIMITED DINING PACKAGE WORTH IT? EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE BUYING.
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- Опубліковано 18 жов 2024
- We're back with another review of Royal Caribbean's Unlimited Dining Package, which we tried out on our amazing cruise on Allure of The Seas in May 2022. In this video, we'll show you how to buy your Unlimited Dining package online or onboard, how to get the best bang for your buck with this package, and how you can save money on drinks with this package too. We'll also share our opinions on some of the awesome restaurants onboard Allure of The Seas, such as Chops Grille, Izumi Habachi, Giovanni's Table Johnny Rockets, 150 Central Park, Sabor, and Samba Grill.
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We went back and forth on whether to do the dining plan and decided to do it. Absolutely loved it and added up all the cost if we did not and saved so much!
Yep we are fans of the dining plan for sure!
We absolutely LOVE Chop's grill! Our next cruise we are doing the Unlimited Dining Package to see how much we like it. Thank you for the information and your perspective.
Glad you enjoyed the video! Enjoy your next cruise!
We are going to board the Icon in April after two recent Oasis cruises and one Ovation cruise within the last year and a half. We had a 15 year break from cruising. We are just like you; my wife chose Izumi and I chose Chops. I must say that the Wonderland restaurant on the Ovation was really fun. I still miss the 80's and 90's cruise experience when the specialty was the main dining room and every night was a theme night but I guess I am showing my age. Thank you for your reviews. I really enjoy your personalities, enthusiasm, and love for each other.
Thanks for your kind words! Enjoy your upcoming cruise on Icon and keep an eye out for our videos on Icon this month!
Speciality dining is EPIC... I've never done Royal but I've done NCL. It's amazing. Cagneys or their Texas de brazil style places is unreal
Agreed. We did enjoy Cagneys on NCL, if you do a Royal cruise definitely check out Chops Grille.
Thanks for sharing. We just booked the chops +1 . We've never done an unlimited dining package maybe some day. Thanks for the advice to keep checking back for price change.
Thanks for watching and all the positive feedback!
So good to see you guys. I have been wondering about y’all and missing your great content. I love Sabor and the steak house
Jim thanks for comment! Glad to be back!
Do you recall which speciality dining was open on sea days? I heard only specific ones offer lunch? We cruise in 3 weeks on the Allure and I want to be ready with a plan when I board! Thanks for the tip to go straight to a speciality dining venue to make reservations! I will definitely do that once we board!
On our cruise Chops Grille, Giovanni’s, and Sabor we’re all open for lunch! Have a great cruise!
Another bit of info...remember all Star Class guests have the dining package included. So for example there are 11 Star Class Suites on Allure. That means 11 Suites worth of people that will be dining at the restaurants, so reservations are a must for sure. You are SPOT on with Chops...they vary from ship to ship. Had Chops on Rhapsody of the Seas and it was Excellent! Older ship in the fleet and they did a 10000% better than Allure Chops. I too noticed the steak trick with ordering one level up from what you want...ordered med once and it came out rare adn the waiter actually questioned me when I wanted it cooked more. I suspect its a cultural thing with steak temps.
Great insights, thank you for sharing and watching!
I agree 100% with you both. Enjoyed listening to you and have subscribed.
Welcome aboard!
Very helpful content! My husband and I are going on the Allure in October (Aruba, Curaçao and Labadee) for our anniversary! Super excited to experience the unlimited dining this trip! Thanks for the helpful tips, especially the one regarding booking right away from a specialty dining location and not the promenade! On sea days, are you allowed to eat lunch at specialty dining and then again dinner at specialty dining?
Glad you found the video useful. And yes you are able to eat lunch and then dinner at a specialty restaurant!
Great video! We have never done Royal before (only cruised w Disney a bunch) but we have booked Icon of The Seas for April 2024. I don't see dining packages yet, I see drink packages but not dining yet. I wonder when they open that up to book. I didn't know you would be able to see what the MDR was serving for dinner on all the nights. That is a great tip!
Glad you enjoyed the video. Our January sailing of Icon already had some items open up, like CocoCay, so keep checking. Also, the week of Thanksgiving typically has some deals on things like the dining package so keep checking!
If you go online, you can book it. The option isn't in their app. For 3 people and gratuity, it is about $1,260 extra for a 7 day cruise. Roughly $60 per person per day.
Thanks for sharing. I haven't booked the dining package. I have just chosen one or two restaurants to try and that's it. However, this upcoming cruise, there was a deal on the dining package so I thought about grabbing it. I wondered if it would be more valuable on a bigger ship with more options vs the small ship we are on next month. You were on a large ship and it sounds like it just makes sense to have the package. Side note: we have those exact same two t-shirts.
It all depends. One of the things we like about specialty dining is the ambiance vs. the main dining room. Also, you can go to the same specialty restaurant multiple times.
Have a great cruise!
@@NavigateWith in
Thanks for the review. Planning all the options for our cruise on Allure out of Galveston in December.
What are your thoughts on The Key? Is it worth it?
Funny we were thinking on doing a videos on this. The biggest perks of the key for us are the early embarkation and the ability to disembark when you want on the last day.
Very helpful. My husband and I r going on the ovation of the sea in august. So excited. Was wondering about about making dinner reservations before we boarded from home but u said that we need to wait until on board rite? Also is it possible to exchange a big dinner meal for a lunch meal instead? There is another couple going with us as well we have adjoining balconies so excited this is our first cruise.
Unfortunately as of now you have to wait to make reservations with the Unlimited Dining package. The good news is you can use the package for lunch at the specialty restaurants that are open and then use it again at dinner. The only establishments that you can only use the perk once a day are the a la carte options like Johnny Rockets, Playmakers, and Izumi Sushi 🍣.
Just watched your video, thank you for the advice as my husband and I are taking our first cruise on Ovation to Alaska in July. I was not sure how the unlimited package works this helped. If you have any other tips I would appreciate them. I think I did a my time dinning but not sure I need to.
Thanks. One thing we would recommend is figuring out what restaurants you want to eat at on what night and book them as soon as you get onboard. Also check the app a week before your cruise as usually it will start to populate with events that can help you figure out what time you want to make reservations.
@@NavigateWith thank you I will definitely do that.
Thank you for the tips for booking specialty restaurants! Going on my first RC and I’m the planner of my family so I’m stressing about getting all the reservations in once onboard.
Do you guys think reservations will be difficult to get during a Christmas cruise?
As long as you go first thing when you get onboard you should have options. Typically half the people onboard are first time cruisers so a good chance, unless they watched our video, they won’t get their reservations (on our last cruise we sat next to first time cruisers who had no clue they needed to do this).
Make sure to check in on the Royal App at the first possible time (typically 45-60 days before sailing) and select the earliest boarding time so you are first on the ship.
Also, have dining times and restaurants written down with your backup times. Pro tip, the app will start to populate about a week before with events and shows so you can start to plan around evening entertainment (like the aqua show).
Happy sailing!
Thank you! Awesome advice😊
You're so welcome!
We always do the dining package and use it every night and lunches. Last cruise because of the Covid restrictions they could not bring my escargot to the steakhouse because they were not allowed to cross restaurants. But he sent it to my room after the show it showed up lol. But then after dinner the night they had the Asian pork tacos I went by the restaurant and got a to go plate. I also love Izumi’s. I make my list of restaurants and nights and times on a piece of paper take it to a specialty restaurant had them the paper and they set it all up for me. Done in less than 5 minutes. They laugh at me because I have it all written out. They usually say they wish everyone was that prepared. With my husbands health, looks like it might be a while before I get to cruise again. 😢
Yep you can never be too prepared. Also, hope your husband’s health improves soon so we can see you both back on the sea 🌊!
Are all the specialty restaurants open during sea day for lunch
@@clarksanaka chops, Mexican, Italian, Johnny rocket’s, playmakers think hooked was open for lunch, Izumi’s. But 150 was not open for lunch. 150 had an amazing soup that was different sunchoke veloute if you eat there ask about it. I could have eaten that everyday.
Hey there! The video was extremely helpful and appreciated. About to take our first cruise ever, and it is with Royal Caribbean. I bought the unlimited dining package for my boyfriend and I. I was wondering when we go to the speciality restrurants though, is there a limit on how much food you can order? Like an appetizer, entree and dessert per person type rule. Thank you!
When we went there were no limits and at Giovanni’s we ordered a few different half portions of pasta. But things are constantly changing so feel free to double check with your waiter, but you’ll have plenty to eat! Happy cruising!
Hi guys, thanks for doing these videos, they are really informative. I am wondering about diversity of races amongst staff and guests aboard these cruises, Is it correct to assume that different people from all different walks of life, cultures and races would have amazing experiences aboard whichever cruise they choose or are there some concerns?
There are people from all over the planet on these cruises as guest and staff. Sailings out of US the staff will all speak English along with the language from their home countries. We have hung out with people from every type of background and cruisers are a community that are very welcoming.
Thank you guys for all of this valuable info, however, I’ve found this phrase written on what’s included section in the ultimate dining description page:
For ships with these venues, Teppanyaki/Izumi Hibachi is included, with a $10 surcharge, Chef's Table is included, with a $49.99 surcharge, and Dadong is included, with a $35 surcharge. These will be charged once onboard.
what’s that mean ? Sounds weird to pay a total of $94.99 as a surcharge for restaurants that i may not visit! and do u have an idea of whether those extra charges are deducted once or each time the passenger visits each of the above restaurants ?
Those are add ons experiences for only the Hibachi and Chefs Table. Izumi has two parts to the venue, the Hibachi side ($10 dollars extra) and the sushi 🍣 side (included). The Chef’s Table is a 2-3 hour meal that is usually $99 without the unlimited package and with the unlimited dining they usually knock $50 off that experience. Also, there maybe certain items at specialty restaurants that are a surcharge, but Royal tends not to do that too often as compared to other cruise lines. Hope that helps!
@@NavigateWith thank you so much for the clarification
@@NavigateWith one other question though, sorry for bothering, is it true that someone can make two dining reservations on the same day (one let's say at 6 and the second at 9 pm) on two different specialty restaurants using the unlimited package ?
We’ve never tried that, but if you give it a shot you’ll have to let us know!
I seem to not be understanding whats included in the unlimited dining package. I bought it for my group for Liberty of the Seas going to Bermuda in October. Does this mean i can order any item in each of the included restaurants? And is there a limit to how many times a day I go to these restaurants and main dining hall...?
So you can eat in the specialty restaurants during each meal. Most have no limits, except for al a carte options (like Playmakers) you get a credit per person. We prefer specialty dining over the main dining room, especially for dinner.
@@NavigateWith that sounds awesome!! Thanks so much. We are looking forward to pigging out
I am looking at Royal as a first time cruiser with this line. On NCL, booking a balcony can get 2 perks. I choose dining and drinks and pay gratuities. Does Royal have anything like this? Or do I have to get both pkgs outright to try and enjoy? Could you give pricing for the dining please?? Thanx
So so far Royal has yet to bundle in things like drinks, Wi-Fi, or gratuities. We have paid anywhere from $150-200 for the dining package, but the pricing will always vary from sailing to sailing. We just posted a video on why you should consider sailing on an older Oasis class ship, that might be the way to go for a first Royal cruise.
Do you know for the $20 credit in addition to the unlimited dining package can you use that for Starbucks? Or only the restaurants. Thanks!
Restaurants only! You can use your Starbucks app though, so we like to preload it ahead of time!
Thanks! I also have to wait to makw reservations for UDP until I’m on the ship correct?
Going in may solo- is this a good place for singles?
I’d say Celebrity is a great ship for solo cruisers. We met and spoke to more people on Celebrity than other cruises.
Can you take bottles of wine from the specialty restaurant you don't finish back to your room?
Yes you can, we did this on our last cruise when we were late to a show and had to leave a little early.
I see where it tells me about the surcharge for certain restaurants if it’s on the ship . Do they charge you for that if you go to that restaurant and is there a limit to the place listed and is there a limit of food you can eat for one day
So typically you can use your plan for both lunch and dinner. Dining options that charge a lacarte pricing (think Playmakers) you have a credit per person that can be applied to the bill.
I have not been on a cruise where there was a 'dining package'. What does this mean? Isn't the price of the cruise, the taxes, the port charges, the tips, enough??? I just finished a 5 day cruise and the food was free. And it was EVERYWHERE!!
This is for the specialty dining that you find on many cruise lines like Royal and NCL. There are cruise lines like Virgin that have a different model and dining experience. On Royal there are plenty of free dining options too!
Can you order multiple appetizers or entrees?
Yes. Royal stopped pushing it, but there have been a few times that I wanted to try a different app and ordered it. This is always subject to change so keep an eye out for any news on that front.
Great video 🌸💐🌸
Glad you enjoyed it!
There are specialty dining restaurants open at lunch on embarkation day. If you purchase the UDP how can you reserve for lunch on day 1?
One day one the specialty restaurants are not open for lunch that we have seen, they are typically open just to do reservations for dining. Many of the venues are open for lunch throughout the cruise and you can also use your package at places like Johnny Rockets and Playmakers too. We are on a cruise right now and have gotten a ton of use out the unlimited dining package!
On both Symphony of the Seas and Independence I’ve reserved lunch time reservations at Giovanni’s and Jaime’s Italian on day 1 at noon. I just had to pay and reserve at time I purchased it pre-cruise. I got a nice 15% discount for purchasing early as well.
I just realized I could ask concierge by email when it’s closer to sail date to make reservation for me for Jaime’s on day 1.
@@cherloe1145 great hack will have to try that in the future if we don’t get the key.
They will not let you pre select your dining time because that will be available for a one time purchase to offer those guest to pre book a single dinner
Yep, but we can hope that one day Royal will change that!
Guess they needed to compete with Virgin which includes all dining in the cruise cost. But Virgin lets me book my dining in advance and alter it after boarding IF space is available. How much does this unlimited dining package cost?
The package will vary from sailing to sailing dependent on the ship and number of nights. For a 7 night sailing, we have paid from $200 to $300 per person!
Can you place an order and take out from any of the restaurants with the UDP?
Hmmm. Good question. I know they have some boxes for leftovers but never tried takeout.
Am I reading this correctly it an unlimited dining package can be $219.00 per guest per day? or total?
Annmarie the price is for the entire trip per person. Typically the price will very based on the ship and number of days. For our next sailings, we were able to get it for $200 per person during a holiday sale. Our cruise next year on Wonder we have it for $250 a person. So the price does vary and can change leading up to your cruise.
Do you know if they have a Memorial day sale for the dinning package
You never know. But we recommend buying it and repricing. But holidays are a great time to check to see if there are any deals.
Royal has sales frequently. You'll get emails telling you or just check the cruise planner every few days.
@@julieb7882 Thanks
For vegetarian people how many options are available on the royal Caribbean cruise from Singapore
Hmmm 🤔, we’re not vegetarians but at the specialty restaurants we don’t recall seeing many vegetarian dishes. But I would contact the cruise line and see if perhaps there is a different menu at the specialty dining, they can also help you with any dietary requests.
Thanks for your prompt reply.. please do let us know about vegetarian dishes....
Hi, can you explain about the surcharge when onboard
You can pay for the unlimited dining before you get onboard. That allows you to eat at all the specialty restaurants.
Is Izumi hibachi included in the dining package?
For an up charge yes. I believe it was $10 per person plus gratuity on our cruise and was well worth it. But always double check for current pricing from Royal Caribbean.
Thanks, just booked a 6 night criuse on symphony and this is the main restaurant I want to dine at!!!
Are all the specialty restaurants open during sea day for lunch
We have found that can very from ship to ship and restaurant to restaurant. If you use the Royal Caribbean app, you can look each day and see what restaurants will be open for lunch. On our cruise Chops Grille and 150 Central were not available during lunch, but Izumi, Johnny Rockets, Sabor, and Giovanni’s Table were open on some sea days!
@@NavigateWith Do you need to make a reservation for Sea Day Lunch ? Or you can just walk in ?
@Christoper Sigit If you want to be assured a table when you walk in, make a reservation