Not Another Dress Code Topic

[POA1]

Canaletto is really just a cordoned off part of the Lido, with service, that serves quasi Italian food.

 

Cannot remember if it keeps the same hours as Lido...hopefully not.

Canaletto was open an hour later, 9:30 vs 8:30 for the Lido, last month on the Nieuw Amsterdam.

[kazu]

hit the like button.:)

 

+ 1

[LoveyHowell]

I believe in dressing nicely, being clean, having good table manners and a friendly attitude.

 

That said, the service has gone downhill, and the food has definitely gone downhill, so if anyone doesn't want to participate in dressing to the nines it is A-OK with us and we understand. If you take joy in making it a special moment all dolled out, I think that is wonderful. But if you are just out to enjoy a relaxing vacation and dress neat and clean, I think that's great too. I'll remember if you were a nice person, or particularly funny, or even if you were acting like a mean old shrew. I'll never in a million years remember your outfit.

 

We try not to judge all books by their covers. It's a cruise vacation and nothing to get the blood pressure soaring over.

[iancal]

loveyHowell...that is exactly how we both feel.

 

Life is far too short to fret about something like formal night on a cruise filled with people who do not know you and who you will probably never see again.

 

At the end of the day it is just a cruise vacation....

[babyher]

I believe in dressing nicely, being clean, having good table manners and a friendly attitude.

 

That said, the service has gone downhill, and the food has definitely gone downhill, so if anyone doesn't want to participate in dressing to the nines it is A-OK with us and we understand. If you take joy in making it a special moment all dolled out, I think that is wonderful. But if you are just out to enjoy a relaxing vacation and dress neat and clean, I think that's great too. I'll remember if you were a nice person, or particularly funny, or even if you were acting like a mean old shrew. I'll never in a million years remember your outfit.

 

We try not to judge all books by their covers. It's a cruise vacation and nothing to get the blood pressure soaring over.

 

 

 

Agree.

 

I always laugh that some people think the minute someone says they don't want to "dress up" , that they intend to wear ripped jeans, a t shirt with flip flops and they don't intend to shower.

 

I wasn't brought up with what fork goes with what course , what wine goes with what dish, wear a hat don't wear a hat , wear a suit here , wear a sport jacket here. tip your hat to a lady.

 

We were brought up to be respectful to people with your actions and what you say to them , not your clothing choice.

[IndyDenise]

Well, I do. No shorts or tattered jeans on a formal night. Also they should not allow hats on men in the dining room. If a man wore a hat in my home I would ask him to remove it or leave. I was brought up to believe to wear a hat indoors is ignorant.:(

 

I was brought up that to ask a guest that wore a hat into my home to leave would be ignorant on my part.

 

Seriously, it is not 1950. I am not so young that I can not remember Emily Post but not so old that I can't change with the times.

[babyher]

I was brought up that to ask a guest that wore a hat into my home to leave would be ignorant on my part.

 

Seriously, it is not 1950. I am not so young that I can not remember Emily Post but not so old that I can't change with the times.

 

 

 

 

 

I grew up in a house that the only way to insult the host/hostess was not to eat *LOL*

[Tante Amalie]

Why can't we all agree to disagree?

 

Both sides in this discussion have a valid point. They simply are looking for a different cruise experience. What's wrong with that?

 

I do get frustrated with the people who insist on forcing others to behave they want things. Intolerance is never good manners. It's selfish to insist that others have to behave according to your agenda. When you sign up for a cruise, you become part of a group. You have to accept that some others are looking for a different experience.

 

It seems to me that the de facto Holland policy is:

 

1. To have formal nights in order to give people an opportunity to dress up.

 

2. To encourage everyone to participate by dressing up.

 

3. To allow those who don't wish to dress up to eat in the MDR.

 

Give HAL a break. They're trying to please everybody. A quick read of these threads will show that this is impossible. The hard liners who want things "my way or the Highway" are being selfish and unrealistic.

[Brad1185]

I wish HAL ( and other cruise lines) would just clearly add a statement to the cruise contract that states that shorts, t shirts, sandals, ball caps, tank tops (or other inappropriate attire) are NOT allowed in the main dining room AND main showroom and anyone not adhering to this rule will NOT be given admittance. This should be strongly ENFORCED.

 

Or make shorts, t shirts, flip flops mandatory and if your caught not wearing shorts, t shirts, flip flops you will be disembarked at the next port. That way your comfortable on your vacation.

[bshow]

I think the current non-enforced suggested dress is fine. I have no interest in bending people to my will. The presence of somebody dressed inappropriately will, at the worst, provide some table conversation.

 

Frankly, I would be personally uncomfortable were HAL to conduct the kind of "enforcement" some seem to be asking for.

[babyher]

I think the current non-enforced suggested dress is fine. I have no interest in bending people to my will. The presence of somebody dressed inappropriately will, at the worst, provide some table conversation.

 

Frankly, I would be personally uncomfortable were HAL to conduct the kind of "enforcement" some seem to be asking for.

 

 

 

What would bother me more about using that kind of enforcement is that you suddenly promote a lot of the fashion cops to detective :)

[RuthC]

Or make shorts, t shirts, flip flops mandatory and if your caught not wearing shorts, t shirts, flip flops you will be disembarked at the next port. That way your comfortable on your vacation.

There are people who wouldn't be "comfortable" in shorts, t shirts, or flip flops under any circumstances, including alone in the privacy of their own home. :rolleyes:

[LMaxwell]

There are people who wouldn't be "comfortable" in shorts, t shirts, or flip flops under any circumstances, including alone in the privacy of their own home. :rolleyes:

And there are people uncomfortable in formal wear too. Different strokes to different folks. [emoji106]

[kazu]

There are people who wouldn't be "comfortable" in shorts, t shirts, or flip flops under any circumstances, including alone in the privacy of their own home. :rolleyes:

 

I don't own flip flops - unless Birkenstock's are flip flops:confused::D

[Tarpeian Rock]

Holland America definitely needs to hire more Tony like Maitre d's ...

 

 

Excellent! I'm going to have to practice my Tony Soprano "stare."

[IndyDenise]

I grew up in a house that the only way to insult the host/hostess was not to eat *LOL*

 

 

Me too!! I am the most unadventurous eater. Now I am comfortable enough to politely say no to certain foods. Growing up I didn't have that luxury.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[chrispb]

I don't own flip flops - unless Birkenstock's are flip flops:confused::D

 

Yes, they count. Mostly, we regard anything without a strap on the back heel as a flip-flop, although purists may say flip-flops must have toe-posts.;)

[IndyDenise]

I dress per the cruise requirements out of respect for the diners and the cruise line itself. I want my fellow shipmates to know that I value them, and truthfully I value myself.

 

However I don't care what others wear . Shorts, hats, flip flops etc they are not going to take away from my meal. I will assume they don't think the same way I do.

 

 

 

 

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[Lizzie68]

Yes, they count. Mostly, we regard anything without a strap on the back heel as a flip-flop, although purists may say flip-flops must have toe-posts.;)

 

Is there some kind of guide as to what constitutes acceptable flipflop type sandals? Or does someone check at the MDR door?:rolleyes:

[iaa]

My only experience on HAL was not a very pleasant one, and a part of that was the requirement of having to dress up in formal attire to eat their (at best, acceptable; at worst inedible) food. It might just be me, but I felt foolish wearing an embellished dress to what was effectively a cafeteria quality dinner. The MDR food on my recent NCL cruise was only very slightly better overall (more evenly mediocre, I should say), but I have to say I enjoyed them more because they weren't trying to fake any sense of sophistication, which neither line has.

 

And I should add that I am not a slob. I still wore dresses to dinner every night on NCL, but they were more casual, jersey maxi dresses, not gowns.

Edited January 10, 2015 by iaa

[Swelldame]

Most people still have enough common sense to dress appropriately for the venue and the occasion. And, most of us feel uncomfortable when we're not dressed appropriately.

 

I think a big part of the problem with HAL's dress code now is that the venue, and the occasion (i.e.: "formal night"), has been eroded to the point that formal wear is a bit ridiculous. HAL is no longer like The Ritz, but more of a Holiday Inn. Stringy meat, slow service, and all the other cut-backs we've seen come in over the years have reduced the left-over Rosenthal china and the odd tuxedo to being nothing more than putting lipstick on a pig. It all looks classy in the brochures to add refinement, but it's only marketing. HAL is mainstream now, and just can't pull off a formal atmosphere.

 

Regent's dress code is always "smart casual". Jackets and/or ties are never required, but you see them all the time because the venue and atmosphere can support it. HAL wants to give the impression they're still providing a high-end product by continuing their formal night sham while delivering low-end goods. If the target market really was the type of person you see in the brochures, the maitre d' wouldn't need a supply of loaner jackets.

[Host Walt]

Because this thread has devolved to personal shots and the like, several posts have been deleted and this thread is now locked.