Clothing: The Real Scoop?

[AlanFromFL]

I believe that we've reached this point....

 

[PJNJcruise5]

To the OP, don't be afraid to look nice, on longer cruises you can wear something more than once to save on space. I usually pack a dark pair of pants and a pair of khackis for my husband and he just wears a different shirt. We don't do tuxes but he does where a suit for formal night. For ladies I have to say most of the time you will see cocktail or long formal dress for formal night and dress pants or skirts for other dinners. bringing a dark skirt or pants that you can mix and match the tops is a key idea to not overpack. The same is true for shoes, pick outfits and shoes that are interchangeable, so you don't have to pack different shoes for every outfit. The daytime is really casual, so where what ever you would wear on the weekend in summer: ie shorts and t shirts. Just a note: there are skirts and dresses everywhere this Spring, the feminine girlie look is definitely in style, so wearing skirts or dresses for a cruise will put you in style. I have seen many teen girls in our area wearing skirts and cute sandals to school. It maybe that the super casual style is going out.:D

[JenAndDan]

The majority of people on RCI ships actually follow the dress code. It is only here, on these boards, that you will find those who do not want to comply. And for anyone who needs a refresher on what the dress code is:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do;jsessionid=0000UCLOU1YOmKOUZ1czLu_m8_b:12hbiodf7;jsessionid=0000daij_3kyi2F4m-reT1g9Ajz:12hbiodf7?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&pnav=5&snav=2&faqId=255&faqSubjectId=334&faqSubjectName=Life+Onboard&faqType=faq

 

Note it says: There ARE three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal.

 

And the reference to suggestions are merely RCI's way of providing examples of what is acceptable, for the benefit of those who have no clue.

 

 

On our last RC cruise, my husband left his suit bag hanging by our front closet. We realized this when we arrived in Puerto Rico. This bag had his suits, shirts, ties, etc. The only dinner clothes he had in his suitcase was khakis and polos. We had an extra day in SJ and spent it walking around OSJ and beyond. We ended up finding a Marshalls and decided to get a few button down shirts with tie packages. We hoped this would be ok for formal night. As it turned out, my husband didn't stand out at all. Almost none of the men were wearing jackets because it was a southern caribbean cruise in the middle of the summer. The ones who had jackets - alot ended up taking them off and putting them on their chair backs. This time around (again, Southern Carib in summer), we are just packing the dress shirts and ties (for formal nights). We don't have the space to bring extra stuff as we have an infant as well and his stuff seems to take up all our luggage space:) [and even if we wanted to pay more $ for extra luggage - we physically can not do it - flew out of JFK this past week and there were none of those carts available. We struggled with the two suitcases plus kid in stroller that we had].

[Alexis]

The majority of people on RCI ships actually follow the dress code. It is only here, on these boards, that you will find those who do not want to comply. And for anyone who needs a refresher on what the dress code is:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do;jsessionid=0000UCLOU1YOmKOUZ1czLu_m8_b:12hbiodf7;jsessionid=0000daij_3kyi2F4m-reT1g9Ajz:12hbiodf7?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&pnav=5&snav=2&faqId=255&faqSubjectId=334&faqSubjectName=Life+Onboard&faqType=faq

 

Note it says: There ARE three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal.

 

And the reference to suggestions are merely RCI's way of providing examples of what is acceptable, for the benefit of those who have no clue.

 

There ARE three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal.

 

That is not correct on every cruise or ship anymore.

[Prof 100]

Add to my above post. Your husband and son do not need to wear a tie, even if there is a smart casual. ;)

 

They will be glad to hear that!

[aruvqan]

Rob wears his dinner dress uniform and I wear either a nice dress, or a pantsuit that is fairly fancy for formal night.

[Prof 100]

On formal nights I wear a dress that I would wear to church on Easter or Christmas, I'm not in to all that formal stuff. I also wear the same dress for both formal nights since I'm one of those who rush back to the cabin after dinner to change into comfortable clothes for the rest of the evening so I'm only wearing the dress for about 3 hours each night. DH wears a suit jacket but has given up the tie on formal night, we once had table mates who wore a golf shirt and slacks on formal night and they still served him.

 

Those who enjoy dressing up look amazing and I enjoy seeing them, it's just not my thing.

 

The rest of the cruise I wear slacks and a top that I would wear to work where the dress is casual, no jeans. I take 3 pair of slacks for a 9 night cruise and 5 tops, some of which I will wear during the day with shorts after I've worn them to dinner.

 

I used to pack 2 outfits per day one for day and one for dinner but it really got to be too much to pack and I always ended up bringing quite a lot of clothes home that I hadn't worn, now I have it down to wear I use everything I pack and don't run out of clean clothes.

 

There's also not enought room to unpack everything at once so I unpack half the first day then unpack the rest midway thru the cruise.

 

Thanks Morgan 1312, your post was very helpful. I am the type that will tend to overback, and I really don't want to be so obsessed! It seems that the dress code question sparked some controversy, but I am only trying to find different viewpoints from experienced travelers. I can read what's on the RCCL web page, but I wanted to hear the reality of things.

 

Thanks to all for your comments!

[Prof 100]

Thanks to all of you for your great advice. We are prepared to dress formally on the formal nights, it was just the smart casual/casual that I was wondering about. I posted my question to find out what all of your experiences/opinions were, and there were a variety of them. That's tells me something right there! I did read what was on our cruise documents and the web page, but I wanted to learn the reality of things. I tend to obsess over packing clothes (just ask my husband), and I want to try to chill for this vacation. I can't wait ....37 days and counting! Woooo...hooo!

[Alexis]

Thanks Morgan 1312, your post was very helpful. I am the type that will tend to overback, and I really don't want to be so obsessed! It seems that the dress code question sparked some controversy, but I am only trying to find different viewpoints from experienced travelers. I can read what's on the RCCL web page, but I wanted to hear the reality of things.

 

Thanks to all for your comments!

 

Another formal night idea is. I wear fancy black wide leg evening pants with very fancy tops. I bring two tops and the one pair of pants. Two completely different outfits. One white lace and satin top and one black illusion sleeve top with rhinestones.

A lot of ladies bring a basic black dress and change the jewelry, add a lace shawl etc. and have two outfits for formal nights.

On my last B2B cruises I did not take any formal clothes for the first time. We ate in the Windjammer buffet on formals nights with a lot of others doing the same thing. We loved not dragging all those clothes. We are not taking any on our next cruises either.

[j24752]

I can appreciate everybody dressing up for dinner, but i will be one of those "5%" people who dont dress up. I will be wearing a nice clean pair of jeans, a polo shirt and nice clean tennis shoes. Nobodys world will come to an end because i didnt go out and buy a sports coat or dress pants just to have a meal.

[AlanFromFL]

I can appreciate everybody dressing up for dinner, but i will be one of those "5%" people who dont dress up. I will be wearing a nice clean pair of jeans, a polo shirt and nice clean tennis shoes. Nobodys world will come to an end because i didnt go out and buy a sports coat or dress pants just to have a meal.

 

And we promise not to stare! :D

[EngIceDave]

I can appreciate everybody dressing up for dinner, but i will be one of those "5%" people who dont dress up. I will be wearing a nice clean pair of jeans, a polo shirt and nice clean tennis shoes. Nobodys world will come to an end because i didnt go out and buy a sports coat or dress pants just to have a meal.

I am going to throw a bread roll at you as you pass by

 

:)

[j24752]

DUCK!! lol

[UandMe4Ever]

IMHO: Nothing can ever surpass the elegance of a Military Uniform!! Humble thanks to all our service men and woman!

 

Have a wonderful cruise.

 

Stay safe!

[ehfl]

I think if you just follow the guidelines that are posted on the cruise line's web site, you'll be fine.

[stargate fan]

What's the real scoop on clothing? I am going a bit daffy with trying to plan for three adults...we're first time cruisers....so I am not sure who to believe. I understand the casual and formal nights, but what about the smart casual night in th MDR? Can my husband and adult son get away with a shirt and tie without a jacket? Can I wear a nice outfit that are dressy capris? I just think we are going to have way too much to pack...thank goodness we are driving!

 

Congrats on your upcoming first cruise. I hope you love cruising as much as we do.

 

As for clothing in general, you have to ask yourself how much time do you think you'll spend in a bathing suit vs. clothing. For our first cruise, we packed enough outfits (shorts and shirts) for a clean change every day. HA! We came back with more clean clothing than we wore. It's taken us a few cruises to realize that we don our bathing suits first thing in the morning and stay in them until late in the afternoon. We shower and put on shorts and shirts for hanging around before changing for dinner. We figured out that we wear the clothes for only two or three hours a day so we fold them up, put them away and wear them again the next day. (But we must have clean undies every time we change. :eek:) For the first time last year, we only had two suitcases plus a carry on for an 8-day cruise.

 

For casual dinners, I bring a couple of pairs of capris and enough matching tops and DH brings a couple of pairs of khakis and enough shirts to match. We do dress up to the nines for formal nights, though. I also learned to bring fewer sandals and flip-flops. Again-:eek:

[Prof 100]

Congrats on your upcoming first cruise. I hope you love cruising as much as we do.

 

As for clothing in general, you have to ask yourself how much time do you think you'll spend in a bathing suit vs. clothing. For our first cruise, we packed enough outfits (shorts and shirts) for a clean change every day. HA! We came back with more clean clothing than we wore. It's taken us a few cruises to realize that we don our bathing suits first thing in the morning and stay in them until late in the afternoon. We shower and put on shorts and shirts for hanging around before changing for dinner. We figured out that we wear the clothes for only two or three hours a day so we fold them up, put them away and wear them again the next day. (But we must have clean undies every time we change. :eek:) For the first time last year, we only had two suitcases plus a carry on for an 8-day cruise.

 

For casual dinners, I bring a couple of pairs of capris and enough matching tops and DH brings a couple of pairs of khakis and enough shirts to match. We do dress up to the nines for formal nights, though. I also learned to bring fewer sandals and flip-flops. Again-:eek:

 

Excellent point about time in bathing suits vs. clothing....we are a family who will spend much more time in clothing than bathing suits. I'm learning a lot from varius posts, and almost have things figured out...almost! Thanks for the comments about loving crusing...I am certainly much more excited about it than I thought I would be...actually, I'm quite obsessed already!:p

[trpjackson]

I wouldn't get too hung up on what to wear to the MDR. I have never seen them enforced the dress code in the MDR during any of our previous cruises. We just got off of the Serenade on April 24, and there were numerous people wearing jeans to the MDR.

 

On the last formal night we went to the MDR. We went back to our room and changed, and then we went to the Windjammer just to grab a little ice cream. We were denied entry because I had on a sleeveless shirt????

 

I guess you should worry more about what to wear to the Windjammer than to the MDR. :eek:

[Imasealuvr]

I also agree with you. You paid for your vacation and you should dress in what makes you comfortable.

 

Have a wonderful cruise and don't stress the dress!! ;)[/quot

AMEN

[tip]

The majority of people on RCI ships actually follow the dress code. It is only here, on these boards, that you will find those who do not want to comply. And for anyone who needs a refresher on what the dress code is:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do;jsessionid=0000UCLOU1YOmKOUZ1czLu_m8_b:12hbiodf7;jsessionid=0000daij_3kyi2F4m-reT1g9Ajz:12hbiodf7?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&pnav=5&snav=2&faqId=255&faqSubjectId=334&faqSubjectName=Life+Onboard&faqType=faq

 

Note it says: There ARE three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal.

 

And the reference to suggestions are merely RCI's way of providing examples of what is acceptable, for the benefit of those who have no clue.

 

Ah yes, we can always count on "the link" to be posted.

 

To take your comment a step further, The majority of people on RCI ships really don't care what others choose to wear. It is only here, on these boards, that you will find those who get their knickers in a knot over what others choose to wear!;)

[tinkertoy9000]

First, the formal nights are "requested attire" and while most people do dress up its not required and even then it will be anything from a tux to slacks and a dress shirt and tie for men and a long gown or party dress to a Sunday dress, pants suit or skirt and blouse for women. That's what you'll see. And although they request that everyone be sports casual after 6:00 PM you'll see people for the first dinner seating and the "My Time Dining" people dressed that way but the people just coming back on ship from excursions and those still hanging around the pools and hot tubs (because they have late seating) walking around in shorts and "t's" everywhere except the main dining room. You'll even see folks in the showroom in shorts except on the formal nights.

 

What to wear after 6 is simple: slacks,even the fancy pleated jeans and also dockers, capris, skirt, dress, blouse, shirt with a collar and a pullover is also OK (no "T's" and tanks) and shoes other than flip flops. If you are going to the main dining room or a specialty place you need more dress-up. If you plan to go to the buffet for dinner then more casual, including sneakers is OK. But NEVER try to go to the main dining room for dinner in shorts and sneakers; the MatreD/head waiter will turn you away.

[Prof 100]

First, the formal nights are "requested attire" and while most people do dress up its not required and even then it will be anything from a tux to slacks and a dress shirt and tie for men and a long gown or party dress to a Sunday dress, pants suit or skirt and blouse for women. That's what you'll see. And although they request that everyone be sports casual after 6:00 PM you'll see people for the first dinner seating and the "My Time Dining" people dressed that way but the people just coming back on ship from excursions and those still hanging around the pools and hot tubs (because they have late seating) walking around in shorts and "t's" everywhere except the main dining room. You'll even see folks in the showroom in shorts except on the formal nights.

 

What to wear after 6 is simple: slacks,even the fancy pleated jeans and also dockers, capris, skirt, dress, blouse, shirt with a collar and a pullover is also OK (no "T's" and tanks) and shoes other than flip flops. If you are going to the main dining room or a specialty place you need more dress-up. If you plan to go to the buffet for dinner then more casual, including sneakers is OK. But NEVER try to go to the main dining room for dinner in shorts and sneakers; the MatreD/head waiter will turn you away.

 

Thanks, Tinkertoy...we're not the shorts and sneakers for dinner type...so I think we will be fine.

[stargate fan]

Excellent point about time in bathing suits vs. clothing....we are a family who will spend much more time in clothing than bathing suits. I'm learning a lot from varius posts, and almost have things figured out...almost! Thanks for the comments about loving crusing...I am certainly much more excited about it than I thought I would be...actually, I'm quite obsessed already!:p

 

Our sons always spent more time in clothes than in bathing suits, so we had to pack more for them. THEY were the reasons we had to pay those stupid airline fees for having too many bags! ;) I pack more bathing suits than shorts for myself. DH is a guy, so two bathing suits suffice.

 

I bring a light sweater as the dining rooms can be a bit chilly at times.

 

Obsessed about cruising is good. And isn't it fun reading up about everything?

[sml3]

We dress nicely for dinner-main seating and then always change into more comfortable clothing such as shorts etc. and comfortable shoes for the show. My DS can not wait to get back into his shorts and t-shirt after dinner!

[Chawoobie]

I also agree with you. You paid for your vacation and you should dress in what makes you comfortable.

 

Have a wonderful cruise and don't stress the dress!! ;)

 

Agree!! The only "fashion police" who might be concerned about what you wear are those who read "suggested" dress code as a "rule" and the photographers because I believe the main reason for formal nights is to generate revenue. Once you've paid for your cruise, most cruise lines generate revenue from - Booze, Bingo, Gambling, and photos. Without formal nights, that cuts out one big source of revenue.

 

I also find it interesting that the dress codes are different in the first place. After all, we are eating in the same restaurant every night! (Except that my wife, who doesn't like to dress up refuses to eat in the MDR on formal night 'cause we're breaking the rules!:D). I can understand different dress codes for McDonald's vs a 4-star restaurant, but on a cruise we're eating in the same place every night - what's the point of having different dress rules for each night???