All of this! We've done both early and late seating between the ages of 1 and 10 and all have pros and cons!We have the same issue, but for us, I think it may actually work in our favour.
Our daughter will LOVE the shows. That will be 100 times more interesting to her than a sit-down dinner.
So, it's most important for us that she is "awake" to see the shows. We'll get her "dinner" from the options around the pool (pizza and chips is okay on holiday) or Cabanas buffet either before or after the show. All going well, she might have a little something at our actual dinner (probably just dessert) and then - fingers crossed - go to sleep in the pram.
Of course best laid plans ... often go awry!
EDIT: since posting, I've learned that Cabanas is NOT open for dinner.
I think my only concern would be about whether there is enough room in the theater to seat the both folks who are assigned to that show and people who elect to not go to their assigned show.
Unlike most other cruise lines, DCL calls their earlier dinner service the "main" seating.Can someone tell me if this reservation has officially been moved? I thought it used to say second seating but now it says main, however there is a link to cancel the request
Dining
You'll be seated for dinner at one of our 3 fine restaurants each night of your cruise. You've been assigned the following seating time: Main Seating – 5:45 PM Learn More
Seating
Main Seating – 5:45 PM
Your request for Main Seating – 5:45 PM was received.
Cancel Waitlist Request
It looks like it to me.Yeah I get that. What I'm asking is if the main seating request was granted.
And yes, Cabanas used to be open for dinner for a faster a la carte service between the two dining times and we actually LOVED it (on longer cruises). I think it has not returned since the pandemic (we were told it was stopped due to understaffing), but I'm hoping it will, especially on longer cruises.