Formal/Elegant wear...will we be out of place?

I was planning on my husband wearing his Dress Blues (Army) and myself wearing a ball gown. I keep reading that people are wearing jeans/sundresses/etc. Will we be the only ones dressed up??? He just bought a new pair of his uniform shoes (that he'll need for the ball in December anyways...) because I said he had to bring it, LOL. I'd LIKE to dress up like this...but if no one else will be...

If it matters...we leave next Monday on the Ecstasy.

Still wear my Tux every cruise and I have yet to be alone. I usually see about 10 tuxes on a formal night.

We don’t wear formal wear but I am always amazed at how many people do. This board makes it seem like nobody wears formal wear anymore but they do. I’ve seen whole families in long dresses and suits. You definitely won’t be the only ones.

Enjoy your cruise and thank you to your family for your service!

In 22 cruises I have never seen anyone wear any kind of military dress blues. I spent 20 years in the military and would never wear dress blues, service dress, etc. on a cruise. However, just because I have never seen it or wouldn't wear it myself, doesn't mean it hasn't happen. I also don't recall ever seeing a ball gown either. There are people who dress up as others have mentioned in this thread, but not to the level you are planning. Keep in mind it is no longer called formal night, it is called elegant night. The vast majority of passengers will not be dressed close to what I would consider formal wear. A previous poster mentioned seeing around 10 tuxes. That is an extremely low number when you consider the thousands of passengers on the ship.

On a separate topic, make sure you attend the Military Appreciation Gathering on the ship. It is definitely one of the highlights of every cruise I go on.

Finally, thank your husband for his service, it is greatly appreciated.

I plan on dressing up every night for dinner, including gowns for elegant nights.

Dress as you like and enjoy!

I have seen dress blue. - more so in the past however. There is a trend to wanting pure casual to the point where people feel that a polo is a dress shirt and jeans are elegant. It’s a reflection of the societal trend to casual and you see that reflected on the ship.

But don’t let that stop you from dressing to the 9s. There are lovely photo opportunities and no need to let the casual people control your decisions.

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Dress up if you like - there will be others. Hubby & I have worn tux & long formal before. While we may have been in the minority, we were not the only ones. We got some great pics, too. I've also seen plenty of military men in uniform on elegant nights. We did not feel out of place at all.

My DH always wears his Navy uniform on formal nights. I wear something that is complimentary. Problem is, he is often mistaken for the Captain. Lol

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Thank you, all! He's worn his formal uniform on every cruise we've been on...but that was 2 Disney and one other Carnival and the last was 6 years ago, lol. We'll take them and get some amazing pictures! :-)

Dress however you like. My wife and I dress as nicely as we can afford (usually nice suits). This is so we can take the professional quality photos. We don't want to go to the expense of having a professional photographer take photos of us. But the ship photo crew will take all kinds of photos on elegant nights. Then you just look through all the pics they took and pay for the one you want. No sitting fees!

Thank your Husband for his service. Dress up and be proud and have fun, you deserve it. You will not be out of place.

I always wear a tux (I have 4 bought on Ebay about $25 each). I have often observed men and women in dress uniforms, including some in kilts-----just be prepared to be stopped many times as people thank you for your service! This $25 velvet tux INCLUDING ALTERATIONS is worn on a Holland America ship that had an escalator onboard!

I've worn my Air Force mess dress on multiple cruises - and only occasionally got asked where the dining room was. :') But seriously, I've seen military formal wear on multiple Carnival cruises. Now that I've just retired, I have been known to take long gowns as well. Neither of you will be out of place. Enjoy your cruise and all of the opportunities to take photos and make memories. :)

On our cruise to Hawaii back in 2014 (R/T from San Diego) and I saw an officer in Dress Blues. I'm also a 20 year vet (Army and Navy combined) and I wouldn't personally wear it as I don't like any attention. And, I really hate it when people thank me for my service. But, if he wants to, I would encourage him to wear it.

I have gotten over worrying about what other passengers wear. I love dressing up and cruising is my one excuse to wear something extravagant.

As for me, I dress up for each dinner and formal for elegant night.

What you are planning on weari g sounds beautiful. At least there will be two of us all ready tor the ball.:)

I was planning on my husband wearing his Dress Blues (Army) and myself wearing a ball gown. I keep reading that people are wearing jeans/sundresses/etc. Will we be the only ones dressed up??? He just bought a new pair of his uniform shoes (that he'll need for the ball in December anyways...) because I said he had to bring it, LOL. I'd LIKE to dress up like this...but if no one else will be...

you will not be out of place there are a LOT of people who dress way up - i've even seen men in tuxes. I always wear a floor length formal gown for at least one night of elegant night - if there is more than one elegant night like on the 7 night cruises, i will typically wear a formal gown for one night then wear dress pants and a dressy blouse for the 2nd one

Dress up and enjoy! Your pictures will be beautiful and something to treasure. We made an appointment at the photography studio on elegant night and had our pictures done. I have on a floor length black dress with a plunging neckline and dazzling jewelry. Those pictures are our prized possessions

Just off the Sunshine a couple of weeks ago, and for the two elegant nights in the MDR, it was about 90% who were dressed nicely...by which I mean men in a collared shirt w/ khakis and ladies in a skirt (or slacks) and blouse.

Thank you all! Some of these replies made me giggle but most made me feel better! He definitely doesn't want to wear it, LOL, but his suits just don't fit him right and *I* prefer the uniform. I'm a mean wife. But I really love dressing up!! I just wanted to make sure that it hadn't gone completely out of style...that would be unfortunate!

I made our son wear a tie on formal night on our last cruise. He was mortified at the idea of being the only kid dressed up, and he even hid behind me in the elevator due to his embarrassment over this. Of course, there were MANY other kids dressed up, which he quickly realized and stopped hiding.

Our son wore his military dress uniform when he was on active service. I am not sure whether he would now but i suspect it would be more an issue of it fitting than anything else. We used to dress up in tux, formal dress, etc. but for the past several years have not done so as much. We were disappointed at first with the formal evenings becoming more casual but began to enjoy the comfort. On our most recent cruise we did dress up a little more to get some new photos since it has been years since we did that. I think I can say that it is nearly impossible to be "out of place" any longer on formal nights. You see the full range from shorts to tuxes and everything in between. When we dress down (khakis and short sleeves for me) nobody seems to notice. If we dress up, the same except for maybe a compliment or two (nice). Be yourselves and enjoy. I am betting the dress blues will get at least a dozen "thank you"s.

It seems as if you have made up your minds to wear dress blues/ballgowns. That’s your choice and I’m sure you will look smashing. (I know I love seeing my son in his dress blues). BUT, based on my two most recent Carnival cruises, including one last week, you will be in a very small minority. I saw no tuxedos, only a few suits and just a smattering of cocktail dresses (but no gowns).

From what I have seen the past few years, I do think you'll be in the minority but it still shouldn't stop you from dressing up. Dress however you like and enjoy your dinner and cruise.

If it matters...we leave next Monday on the Ecstasy.

Most on carnival want to be relaxed but does it matter if it is what you want to do then do it.we felt out of place going to steak house dressed up.but it was our cruise and is what we wanted to do.dress up and enjoy.im sure you will get lots of compliments.