How to Truly Enjoy Your Dining on 3 Major Cruise Lines

You can receive daily cruise news updates directly to your inbox, so you don't miss a thing! Go ahead and Subscribe here.

If you think of dining on cruise ships and think of stuffy, three-course meals with food reminiscent of bad catered wedding buffets, think again.

In recent years, cruise lines have really revamped their dining options and now, foodie travelers canโ€™t get enough of some of the award-winning, celebrity chef-approved eats offered on some of your favorite cruise lines.

However, really getting the most out of your dining experience on a major cruise line will take a little extra effort on your end. Donโ€™t expect to just show up on the ship and have a stellar, rave-worthy meal, three times a day. Youโ€™ll need to plan, purchase the right drink and meal packages and go to the right restaurants, at the right times.

Hereโ€™s everything you need to know to truly enjoy dining on Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean.

How to Truly Enjoy Dining on Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian offers a bevy of delicious restaurants, with lots of options that are free-of-charge, as well as specialty options that come with a la carte fees.

The offerings are diverse, providing no shortage of unique dishes, so you can try something new, every day of your cruise. Dining on Norwegian is also extra-easy, thanks to the cruise lineโ€™s โ€œFreestyleโ€ dining approach.

Hereโ€™s how you can make the most of it.

Make a Reservation (when you need one!)

While some cruise lines may require you to pick a set time and place to dine every day, with reservations galore, Norwegian makes things simple and streamlined. Freestyle dining allows you to eat where you want, when you want.

Norwegian Cruise Line's Cagney's Steakhouse
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Cagney’s Steakhouse (Copyright Cruise Hive)

That said, freestyle dining does come with some downsides. You may end up waiting in line on occasion, if you try to eat at certain, busy times of day.

So, if you do want to make a reservation at one of the main dining rooms, so you can be assured that youโ€™ll get that table, as soon as you walk up to the hostโ€™s stand, you can.

Worth Reading: What You Should Never Do at the Cruise Ship Buffet

You should also make reservations at specialty restaurants, which book up quickly. Plan to make reservations for your specialty restaurant dining experiences before your cruise sets sail, in the Norwegian app or on the website.

Avoid the Crowds

Sometimes, during a cruising experience, crowds are unavoidable. However, if you can avoid them, especially while dining, why wouldnโ€™t you?

Itโ€™s a given that most cruise ship buffets will be extra-busy on embarkation day, but NCL’s buffets are also often busy during breakfast. As such, consider dining elsewhere.

Norwegian Cruise Line's Prima Ship
Norwegian Cruise Line’s Prima Ship (Photo Credit: AlexKuznetsov)

You can get room service on Norwegian, 24/7, but also check out the breakfast options at Oโ€™Sheehanโ€™s, the lineโ€™s pub, or those at the suite guest-only restaurants, Haven Restaurant. The Observation Lounge also offers some breakfast options on select ships.

Similarly, Norwegianโ€™s specialty restaurants are usually busiest in the evening, as most cruisers save their more formal meals until dinner, so consider visiting the specialty restaurants for lunch instead. This is when you can often find more affordable prices as well.

Donโ€™t Limit Yourself to Just the Complimentary Dining Options

NCLโ€™s ships typically have around five or so complimentary dining options, including the buffet and the main dining room (some ships have up to three main dining rooms).

While this is enough to give you something new to try, each day of most cruises, definitely donโ€™t miss out on the specialty dining options, if you really want to get the most out of your cruise.

Norwegian Jade Cagney's Steakhouse
Photo Courtesy: Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegianโ€™s fleet boasts nearly 30 specialty dining options, so plan to visit at least one or two during your cruise. The extra expense will be well worth it, when you visit some of the lineโ€™s most acclaimed restaurants, like Ocean Blue, Cagneyโ€™s Steakhouse or Onda by Scarpetta.

If you want to save a little cash, and plan on going to multiple specialty restaurants during your cruise, consider investing in a specialty dining package, which allows you to pre-pay a flat fee for a set number of meals at select specialty restaurants ahead of your cruise. The bigger the package you buy (in terms of number of meals), the less youโ€™ll pay per meal.

How to Truly Enjoy Dining on Carnival Cruise Line

Carnival is known as a fun, family-friendly cruise line where you can cruise for a relatively modest price and have an amazing party, every single day. However, while the focus may be on the fun, donโ€™t overlook the food.

Carnival offers some really spectacular dining options that you wonโ€™t want to miss. Hereโ€™s how to make the most of them.

Make Tracks for One of the celebrity-endorsed restaurants (at the right time!)

Carnival has done an awesome job of partnering with celebrity chefs and celebrities to create unique restaurant concepts that cruisers have come to love.

Thereโ€™s Guyโ€™s Burger Joint, Guyโ€™s Pig & Anchor Smokehouse, Emerilโ€™s Bistros at Sea and Shaqโ€™s Big Chicken, to name the most popular. Youโ€™ll find Guyโ€™s Burger Joint on every Carnival ship, while the other restaurants are found on select ships.

Emeril's Bistro on Carnival Cruise Line
Emeril’s Bistro on Carnival Cruise Line (Photo Credit: Melissa Mayntz)

Since these restaurants have gained quite a fan following, they can be busy, so make plans to go to them during, ideally, port days, when other cruisers are off the ship and you wonโ€™t have the long wait to get into some of them.

Additionally, take note of these restaurantsโ€™ hours. Some close earlier in the day, as is the case with Guyโ€™s Burger Joint, so youโ€™ll want to plan accordingly.

If You Like to Party, Buy a Drink Package

Carnival cruise ships definitely have a party-like atmosphere, and if you plan to party each day away, save yourself some money by investing in a drink package.

Not only will it make your long afternoons by the pool more enjoyable (and more affordable), but it will also do the same for each and every dining experience.

Carnival Liberty Alchemy Bar
Carnival Liberty Alchemy Bar

Carnivalโ€™s Cheers beverage package will give you 15 alcoholic beverages per person per day, and youโ€™ll have your choice of any and all beer, wine and spirits that come at less than $20 per drink. The package starts at $70 per person per day.

Take Advantage of All the Freebies

There are certain food freebies that you can find on Carnival, beyond just whatโ€™s on offer at the many complimentary restaurants (which includes favorites like Guyโ€™s Burger Joint!).

For example, cookies and milk before bed? Free via room service. Room service breakfast is also free. You can also order a cheese plate in the main dining room to take back to your room for free, for later noshing.

If you donโ€™t want to buy a drinks package, you can bring a bottle of wine onto the ship (one bottle per person) for free. During afternoons, you can find free sandwiches, pastries and similar light bites at the Javablue Cafรฉ.

Guy's Burger Joint on Carnival Mardi Gras
Guy’s Burger Joint on Carnival Mardi Gras

Additionally, do keep in mind that, if youโ€™re dining in the main dining room, youโ€™re not limited to just ordering one appetizer, one entrรฉe and one dessert. You can order multiple appetizers and desserts, as well as two entrรฉes per person.

Itโ€™s a great way to try a few different menu items and all for free (if you do order more than two entrรฉes, thereโ€™s a $5 fee per each extra after the first two).

You can also ask for smaller portions of these multiple menu items, if youโ€™re positive you wonโ€™t eat everything youโ€™re ordering and you donโ€™t want to waste food.

Check Out the Special Dining Experiences (that, yes, you can sometimes get for free!)

Carnival offers a bevy of specialty dining experiences for a fee, like The Chefโ€™s Table experience, wherein a select group of cruisers enjoy a chef-led dinner, and the Green Eggs and Ham breakfast for families, with visits from Dr. Seuss characters.

These are enjoyable experiences worth a splurge, but donโ€™t overlook the free special dining experiences that you can find in the main dining rooms.

Carnival Cruise Line Chef's Table
Photo Courtesy: Carnival Cruise Line

Most cruise itineraries include a special Brunch at Sea meal, on sea days, and others also include an afternoon tea, also on sea days. Carnival also hosts either one or two Cruise Elegant dinners in the main dining room, each cruise, during which a slightly fancier menu is offered and cruisers are asked to wear their nicest attire. If youโ€™ve never attended such an event on a cruise ship before, these are a canโ€™t-miss.

How to Truly Enjoy Dining on Royal Caribbean

Royal Caribbeanโ€™s dining options get a lot of love from the cruising industry, especially on the cruise lineโ€™s newer ships that offer a jaw-dropping number of restaurants, both complimentary and specialty.

In fact, some of these newer ships might have so many restaurants that you could never experience them all in just one cruise (as is the case with Icon of the Seas, with more than 40 restaurants and bars, or Utopia of the Seas, with more than 20 restaurants alone).

With so many options, how do you make sure you have the best time possible?

Get Those Reservations and Dining Packages ahead of Time

Royal Caribbean has several dining programs and packages, unlike some other cruise lines that may just give you an option between reserved dining and non-reserved dining. Whichever you pick, though, you need to do it in advance.

Thereโ€™s My Time Dining, which allows you to reserve your table, but you can pick a different reservation time every day. That way, youโ€™re not stuck making your way to the main dining room, every single day at the same time, leaving you more flexibility in your plans.

Then, thereโ€™s My Family Time Dining, which allows families with small children to get into the dining room first, so the kids can eat quickly. Then, after theyโ€™re done, parents stick around for a longer meal while Adventure Ocean staff take the kiddos away for an evening of play.

Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship
Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship (Photo Credit: Wagner Santos de Almeida)

For specialty restaurants, though, you will need specific reservations, and you can make those starting 90 days ahead of your sail date. (You can make reservations once youโ€™ve boarded the ship, too, but you might not have as many options.)

Read Also: Royal Caribbean Amenities You Should Pre-Book

If you want a specialty restaurant package, to pay a flat fee for a set number of meals, you can purchase either a three-restaurant package that allows you to dine at three different restaurants, three times during your cruise, or you can purchase an unlimited specialty dining package that allows you to eat at a specialty restaurant every night of your trip.

Youโ€™ll also be able to eat at any specialty restaurant during lunch on sea days, and youโ€™ll get discounts on bottles of wine at meals.

Additionally, if you want to save a little cash, look for specialty dining specials, like reduced menu prices. Royal Caribbean sometimes offers these on embarkation day.

Go to the Right Restaurants, at the Right Times

If you want to avoid the crowds that flock to the buffet and the main dining rooms, consider eating in the main dining rooms for breakfast or lunch, and then eating at the buffet during sea days or at dinnertime. These are the times when both are the least crowded.

Cruise Ship Buffet on Odyssey of the Seas
Cruise Ship Buffet on Odyssey of the Seas (Photo Credit: Melissa Mayntz)

If you want an uncrowded breakfast and donโ€™t fancy the main dining room, consider stopping into the Solarium Bistro. It also has a buffet, but itโ€™s adults-only, so may be preferrable to the actual buffet. If youโ€™re a suite guest, you can likewise grab breakfast at Coastal Kitchen. Johnny Rockets also serves breakfast on select ships.

Make Reservations Based on the Main Dining Roomโ€™s Menus

Thereโ€™s a little bit of overlap between whatโ€™s served in the main dining room for dinner, and whatโ€™s served in the buffet for dinner.

Spectrum of the Seas Dining Room
Spectrum of the Seas Dining Room (Photo Credit: I Love Drones)

With that in mind, if there are certain days that the main dining roomโ€™s menu doesnโ€™t look quite so appetizing to you (because the main dining room menus change every day!), opt to make your specialty restaurant reservations for those nights.

Otherwise, you could end up looking for another meal elsewhere and not really liking your options. You can find main dining room menus in Royal Caribbeanโ€™s app or online.

If you enjoyed the article and would like no fuss daily cruise news to your inbox directly from Cruise Hive, you can Subscribe here.

Holly Riddle
Holly Riddle
Holly Riddle is a travel and food freelance writer whose work can be found in print and digital publications all around the world. She is additionally an entrepreneur specializing in content and marketing services. Beyond frequent travel, Riddle enjoys cooking, reading, camping and spending time with her husband and two dogs. Her favorite travel destinations include Chicago, Amsterdam, Edinburgh and just about anywhere in the Caribbean. Find out more about us here.

Don't Miss Any Cruise News!

We'll send you the latest cruise updates daily to your inbox.

Don't Miss Cruise Hive's Daily Update!

Free expert cruise tips and news from Cruise Hive! We'll send you the latest cruise updates daily to your inbox.

850 Shares
Copy link