Carnival Cruise Line Clarifies Dining Time Adjustment

Carnival Cruise Line has noted a change in assigned dining times for one upcoming cruise, but the adjustment is only for two particular sailings of Carnival Legend – the current sailing to Greenland as well as the second Greenland cruise in mid-September. Guests have been surprised to see the main dining times adjusted to earlier hours for those two cruises.

Carnival Adjusts Assigned Dining Times

Carnival cruise ships offer both designated early and late dining times on all their ships. The early seating generally begins from 5:45-6:15 p.m. depending on the exact ship and dining room, while the late seating typically begins from 7:45-8:15 p.m.

On Carnival Legend‘s two Greenland cruises, however, the set dining times have been slightly adjusted for even earlier mealtimes. The early dinner will now begin at 5 p.m., while the late seating will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Guests booked on these sailings have noticed the difference, and expressed concern about whether or not the change is fleetwide and permanent.

Dining time preference is widely varied, but for some travelers, especially guests from Europe or other areas of the world with traditionally later mealtimes, even a 7:30 dinner time may seem too early.

Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald has clarified the change in dining times, however, and noted that it is for these two Carnival Legend sailings only.

“There have been quite a few questions about dining times with people asking if we are changing them across the fleet,” said Heald. “The answer is no, we are not.”

Heald goes on to note that the change for Carnival Legend‘s dining times is “only for these specific cruises” and “based on the demographics we have onboard.”

The popular “Your Time” dining option has also been adjusted earlier for these cruises, with a dining window of 5-8 p.m. for guests to use at their leisure.

The length of the dinner seatings remains unchanged, so guests will not feel rushed to complete their meals and can enjoy dining with elegance and excellent conversation with their companions.

Cruising to Greenland

Carnival Legend‘s cruises to Greenland are unique 14-night sailings roundtrip from Baltimore, Maryland. When the first itinerary was announced, it proved so immediately popular that a second sailing was quickly added to meet the great demand.

Each cruise has an identical itinerary. After departing Baltimore, guests enjoy five days at sea before arriving in Nanortalik, Greenland. The next day, the ship makes another Greenland call, to Qaqortoq. Both ports of call are full day visits from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m.

After such amazing Greenland visits, Carnival Legend will again sail south for three calls in Canada – St. Anthony and Corner Brook in Newfoundland as well as Sydney, Nova Scotia – before arriving back in Baltimore after two more days at sea.

The 88,500-gross ton Carnival Legend is a Spirit-class vessel, a favorite design and layout of many Carnival cruise fans. The ship can welcome 2,124 passengers at double occupancy and as many as 2,610 guests when fully booked with all berths filled.

In addition to the main dining rooms, Carnival Legend also offers the casual Lido buffet, The Golden Fleece steakhouse specialty restaurant, Guy’s Burger Joint, the BlueIguana Cantina, the Carnival Deli, and more. Operating hours will vary for different venues, and guests can check the Carnival Hub app for details.

Why Change Dining Times?

No explanation about exactly why the dining times have been shifted earlier has been offered, other than the “demographics” being a factor in the decision for these two cruises.

This could mean several things. Many older guests tend to choose earlier dining times as a personal preference, or to accommodate medication schedules that require food at the time the medicine must be taken.

Similarly, families with young children often eat dinner earlier so the children are ready for bed at an appropriate time, and are not overly tired and cranky for a much later dining time.

Earlier mealtimes are also a popular preference in American culture, with dinner times from 5-6:30 p.m. very common. European cultures, however, tend to eat later in the evening, with mealtimes from 8-9 p.m. or even later.

In some areas, work schedules impact mealtimes. Many American jobs, for example, only permit very short lunches, and so a larger, longer dinner meal is eaten earlier in the evening. Other cultures may have much longer or later lunch periods, leading to later dinner mealtimes.

Climate can also impact typical mealtimes, with some extremely northern or extremely southern global cultures preferring earlier meals to maximize evening recreation hours when sunlight hours are more limited at certain times of year.