Royal Caribbean has pushed a new update to its website that adds a very useful function to its dining plan.
Last month the cruise line added the functionality to book its Unlimited Dining Package online and pre-reserve restaurants before getting on the ship.
This was a huge improvement, because prior to that feature, passengers had to wait to make reservations once they got on their ship.
It took the cruise line much longer than they originally estimated to roll out the feature, but a year later, the first version was implemented. It's a major upgrade for passengers, because it makes it significantly easier to get reservations instead of running around on embarkation day to make them.
This week, it appears there is a new update that has rolled out to allow anyone with the Unlimited Dining Package to change or add reservations after booking it.
When the online booking feature was released last week, it came with a giant caveat that you could only pre-book restaurants at the time of purchasing the dining package. There was no means to add reservations unless you cancelled and re-booked. This would be a problem for anyone that booked the dining package at a better price than offered today.
With the new update, it appears that issue has been fixed.
Guests can go to their order history and modify their purchase to be able to select restaurants and times.
To do so, go to your sailing and click on your name in the top right and then click Order history.
Find the purchase you made with the Unlimited Dining Package, and then click Modify.
The choice of days and restaurants should appear for you to pre-book restaurants.
A big improvement
Allowing passengers to make dining package reservations before their cruise begins is a huge help, and this new update makes it even easier.
When you can avoid running around the ship on the first day trying to get dining reservations, it's one less "errand" to have and reduces the stress of trying to get things done.
Royal Caribbean has steadily worked on making the first day of the cruise as relaxing and enjoyable as possible, from making check-in and embarkation as smooth and efficient as possible, to reducing things passengers need to stop and do on day one.
"We spent a lot of time researching with guests what their day one experience is," explained Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President and Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schneider.
Mr. Schneider reported his team found having to wait until the day of the cruise to book reservations generated a great deal of "angst".
The feedback from guests was to make it easier by not having to go to various booths that Royal Caribbean would set up only on day one of the cruise on the Royal Promenade.
Along with the dining package change, some ships now auto-connect the WiFi via the Royal Caribbean app so passengers do not need to visit the Voom desk for assistance.
On Icon of the Seas, there's a new chat feature within the Royal Caribbean app to communicate with Guest Services so you don't have to stand in line. They also added virtual queues to reduce lines.
Other dining packages not supported yet
In case you're wondering, the ability to pre-book restaurants appears to only be available for the Unlimited Dining Package so far.
In our spot checking, there is still not the ability to pre-book restaurants with the three night dining package, or any of the other dining packages.
Considering how the ability to modify or add new reservations took just a few weeks to complete, there's good reason to believe Royal Caribbean will push new updates soon with similar functionality for the shorter duration dining packages.
Should you book the unlimited dining package?
Specialty restaurants are a very popular add-on for any cruise, so is a dining package a good value?
If you think you might want to dine at more than two specialty restaurants during your cruise, a dining package can make a lot of financial sense.
At it's core, the unlimited dining package promises a flat fee to enjoy as many specialty restaurants as you like for a fixed price.
It will absolutely save you money compared to eating at the same amount of restaurants if paying out of pocket.
A caveat to that flat fee is certain restaurants will still have a surcharge to dine there. This is because the dining package covers up to a certain amount, but certain experiences or restaurants cost more than that, and Royal Caribbean offers a discount if you have the dining package.
As an example, if you bought the unlimited dining package and wanted to dine at these restaurants, you'd pay:
- Izumi Hibachi/Teppanyaki: $15
- Royal Railway:
- Adult $50
- Child $25
- Chef's Table & Holiday Dinners: $50
- Izumi Omakase: $60
- Empire Supper Club: $130
Another compelling reason to book the dining package might also be based on your opinion of the Main Dining Room.
Some cruisers have an aversion to the ship's complimentary Main Dining Room, based on cuisine, seating, or regimented times.
Lastly, the decision to buy a dining package also depends on which Royal Caribbean ship you are sailing on.
Each ship has a different line-up of specialty restaurants, and some offer many more options than others.
Icon, Oasis and Quantum Class ships offer the greatest variety of restaurants before you'd have to repeat.
The line's older and smaller cruise ships have less specialty restaurants. In fact, Enchantment of the Seas only has Chops Grille and Chef's Table as specialty offerings.
