Dine and Play was an amazing service provided on Disney Cruise Line for guests at second seating with children 3-12. Although they don’t offer this anymore, we would like to take some time to share how you can still make this happen. And the best part is, you can do this at either seating.
First of all, the oceaneers club is available throughout the evening and during meal times. The only difference is you have to drop them off now. They don’t provide dinner. Here are some ways you can use this on your trip.
Specialty Dining
This is a great option if you want to do Palo, Enchante, or Remy. Feed your kids first at Cabanas, Marceline Market, etc and then drop them off at the Oceaneers Club before you head to dinner. You can let the cast members know you are heading to specialty dining. In fact, it may be perfect for one parent to drop them off if the other needs a little more time to get ready.
Rotational Dining
During your regular meal times you will want to think about how you might want to use Dine and Play. Some restaurants are very entertaining, such as Arendelle and World of Marvel. Your kids will be engaged and not want to miss a thing. In those cases, it’s the perfect night to stay together as a family. Other meals will be a little more formal. There is one on every ship. 1923 on the Wish for example doesn’t have a lot of entertainment during the meal. You may want to let the server know when you are seated that you would like the kids’ meals brought right away and then the kids are going to go to the Oceaneers Club. Let them know you would like to have your entrees after they go. This works best if you order a few appetizers to eat while the kids eat their meal.
Once the kids have finished eating, one of the parents can run the kids over to the Oceaneers Club and drop them off. The kids will be excited to go and you can enjoy your entrees and a relaxing cup of coffee and dessert without being rushed.
Dine and Play Tips
Be sure the kids have already been to the Oceaneers club and you are all familiar with drop off. This will help it be quick so you can go back to your meal.
This is not recommended for the first night of your trip as you are all getting settled with your servers and the routine.
Talk to your servers about your plans the night before. They like to know if you are planning to miss the seating for specialty dining or if you want to do something different.
Dine and Play is an amazing thing! You get to enjoy some family dinner time, some adult dinner time, and the kids get to go play when they are done eating. Its a win-win for everyone.
