HAL no longer requires formal dress

[paganwoman]

Our first few cruises we too went with very "formal" dress. It was fun and unique. Then I found myself slowly changing my formal attire to still sparkly but maybe just black pants and formal top. My husband of course kept to the tie and jacket (he has never owned a tux). As we expanded our travels and would tie in a land portion before or after our cruise, I found myself complaining about having to bring that jacket of his. My formal attire would roll flat and pack easily. But the jacket was the issue. And with the airlines clamping down on what you can bring without charging, it has become a real issue. So while I really do enjoy still "dressing up" this new change will help a little in packing. I never felt I was underdressed on formal nights with a sparkly top and black pants. There were many women dressed like me. But of course there were many in fancy dresses. My husband by the way did a little dance when I told him our cruise next year would not require him to bring a jacket. He will wear a tie on "gala" nights but he won't miss the jacket which usually ended up on his chair as soon as he sat down anyway :)

[dakrewser]

That's odd about the dining room. I do open and every cruise I've been on is packed on formal night. I'm not making this up. I've stated it many times. Perhaps it's different on a transatlantic. I've heard that those cruise are often quite a deal so maybe that played into it.

 

What does the price of a cruise have to do with the number of people in the MDR???

[taxmantoo]

Not in attack mode. We aren't at a loss for what to wear on Gala nights; DH will have his tux and I will have my sparklies and we will stay that way all evening. If anyone asks, we will simply tell them it is Gala night and this is how we dress for it. For the other evenings, DH will wear a shirt and slacks (sometimes topped with a sport coat), and I will have either a nice blouse/slacks combo or a dress to wear for the night. That's the way we roll.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

 

You will not be the only ones :D

[iancal]

Not certain why anyone would be at a loss to pack.

 

HAL's guidelines are clear for so called gala evenings.....for men anyway. shirt, tie,jacket. But if you do not like that, a collared shirt and casual slacks are also acceptable. Packing as usual for us and I assume for most others.

 

DW says that from her perspective nothing has changed for women because in practice HAL has always been mostly casual/smart casual for women on formal nights...notwithstanding what the guidelines are/were.

[Fouremco]

Not certain why anyone would be at a loss to pack.

 

HAL's guidelines are clear for so called gala evenings.....for men anyway. shirt, tie,jacket. But if you do not like that, a collared shirt and casual slacks are also acceptable. Packing as usual for us and I assume for most others.

 

DW says that from her perspective nothing has changed for women because in practice HAL has always been mostly casual/smart casual for women on formal nights...notwithstanding what the guidelines are/were.

I agree. For men, the only real decision is whether to meet the gala night requirements or throw in a jacket and tie (or suit or tux) as well to up the level to "appropriate". In my case, suitcase weight will probably be the final determinant, although I'll be looking closely at reports of what's happening on the ships over the next few weeks. No change for DW that I can foresee.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Fouremco

[Tennessee Titan]

IMHO (I always start with that!):

Some comments about transatlantic being "some kind of (sic:big)deal). They aren't. Just a slightly different daily routine on all the sea days. After all, a TA on HAL is just a lower cost repositioning cruise.

The "dress code". My experience on 9 TA on the NA (and lots of others), formal wear in the MDR is less than 25%. We eat early, open seating (table for 2). It is even less then. Most of the dress up crowd eat late.

We personally could care less what others wear. That is their preference.

But, if you are one who gets your panties in a wad over what everyone around you is wearing, this may not be the cruise line for you....

Edited August 23, 2015 by Tennessee Titan

[avian777]

... But, if you are one who gets your panties in a wad over what everyone around you is wearing, this may not be the cruise line for you....

 

IMHO you have hit the proverbial nail squarely on the head!!! Thanks for calling it as it is - much ado about nothing important!

[Chrome Diva]

Jus getting off Oosterdam. 7 Day Alaska. Gala night was mush more casual ladies in dresses or slacks men in jus sport jacket button shirt some ties. No Tuxs or Formals. Suite guest received flowers and corsages on first Gala Night. No more use of Formal Night wording.

 

I eat early and I too don't care what anyone else wears. As long as they wash there hands at the door. Oosterdam was very laxed on hygiene and that was my biggest surprise.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Chrome Diva
Spelling

[3rdGenCunarder]

Jus getting off Oosterdam. 7 Day Alaska. Gala night was mush more casual ladies in dresses or slacks men in jus sport jacket button shirt some ties. No Tuxs or Formals. Suite guest received flowers and corsages on first Gala Night. No more use of Formal Night wording.

 

I eat early and I too don't care what anyone else wears. As long as they wash there hands at the door. Oosterdam was very laxed on hygiene and that was my biggest surprise.

 

Did you see many guests wearing their flowers?

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Did you see many guests wearing their flowers?

 

I seldom see guests wearing these flowers and I have long thought this is one "perk" that could be eliminated.

[CowPrincess]

What does the price of a cruise have to do with the number of people in the MDR???

 

IMHO one has nothing to do with the other. But it is not unusual to see derisive comments about low-cost cruises..... even if there is no apparent correlation between the thread topic and cruise pricing :)

[CowPrincess]

I seldom see guests wearing these flowers and I have long thought this is one "perk" that could be eliminated.

 

When we are in a NS (not very often, unfortunately :D ) I tell the cabin steward "no corsage, no boutonniere". I see nothing attractive about them at all :)

[3rdGenCunarder]

I seldom see guests wearing these flowers and I have long thought this is one "perk" that could be eliminated.

 

I just realized that we didn't get our flowers on Westerdam this winter. Obviously not a big perk to me, since I didn't even notice until now.

 

And there wasn't a flower arrangement in the room, either. When we sailed on Zuiderdam in a Neptune, there was a glass bowl with flowers in it sitting on the coffee table.

[caladezi]

NEW HAL RULE: Wear whatever you want, but please not food fights in MDR. Those will be allowed only on Lido deck.

[AncientWanderer]

What does the price of a cruise have to do with the number of people in the MDR???

 

Maybe on the steeply discounted cruises there are more folks who just want to throw a few things in a suitcase, have a getaway, and casually chow down. Having done high-end cruises and last minute "deal" cruises, I will state categorically that the vibe on the ship differs. We anticipate and accept that going in.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Maybe on the steeply discounted cruises there are more folks who just want to throw a few things in a suitcase, have a getaway, and casually chow down. Having done high-end cruises and last minute "deal" cruises, I will state categorically that the vibe on the ship differs. We anticipate and accept that going in.

 

I've seen it, too. I remember when Cunard did a targeted market discount offer in one or two cities, even included a bus ride to the pier in NYC. The response was more than they expected, so there was a large group of people who had no idea that life on the QE2 was not a combination of "all you can eat night" at the Golden Corral and a booze cruise.

[Lizzie68]

I just realized that we didn't get our flowers on Westerdam this winter. Obviously not a big perk to me, since I didn't even notice until now.

 

And there wasn't a flower arrangement in the room, either. When we sailed on Zuiderdam in a Neptune, there was a glass bowl with flowers in it sitting on the coffee table.

 

It had changed slightly when we did our cruise in April - there was a note in the cabin to say place your order with the concierge if you wished to have the corsage and boutonniere for formal night. They were not automatically provided. We passed. We did have a flower arrangement, though, which was refreshed during the cruise.

Edited August 23, 2015 by Lizzie68

[3rdGenCunarder]

It had changed slightly when we did our cruise in April - there was a note in the cabin to say place your order with the concierge if you wished to have the corsage and boutonniere for formal night. They were not automatically provided. We passed. We did have a flower arrangement, though, which was refreshed during the cruise.

 

I think placing the order is a good idea. I must have missed that note. The time we did get flowers, I took mine apart and pinned them in my hair.

[cruz chic]

Maybe on the steeply discounted cruises there are more folks who just want to throw a few things in a suitcase, have a getaway, and casually chow down. Having done high-end cruises and last minute "deal" cruises, I will state categorically that the vibe on the ship differs. We anticipate and accept that going in.

 

I've seen it, too. I remember when Cunard did a targeted market discount offer in one or two cities, even included a bus ride to the pier in NYC. The response was more than they expected, so there was a large group of people who had no idea that life on the QE2 was not a combination of "all you can eat night" at the Golden Corral and a booze cruise.

 

For some people no explanation is required. Thank you. For others no explanation will ever be enough.

[Viv0828]

We did a transatlantic this April. We had anytime dining and we ate between 6:30 and 7:30 every night. On regular nights the MDR was pretty full with only a few empty tables. On formal nights - even when there was lobster - there were a bunch of empty tables - maybe 25% of the room.

 

What message does that send to HAL?

Edited August 23, 2015 by Viv0828

[avian777]

IMHO one has nothing to do with the other. But it is not unusual to see derisive comments about low-cost cruises..... even if there is no apparent correlation between the thread topic and cruise pricing :) (Bolding added by me.)

 

CP, you are right on (as usual) on both counts! Thanks.

[dakrewser]

Maybe on the steeply discounted cruises there are more folks who just want to throw a few things in a suitcase, have a getaway, and casually chow down. Having done high-end cruises and last minute "deal" cruises, I will state categorically that the vibe on the ship differs. We anticipate and accept that going in.

 

But we were talking about Transatlantic cruises, and the "vibe" is that of very seasoned cruisers.

[RocketMan275]

We did a transatlantic this April. We had anytime dining and we ate between 6:30 and 7:30 every night. On regular nights the MDR was pretty full with only a few empty tables. On formal nights - even when there was lobster - there were a bunch of empty tables - maybe 25% of the room.

 

What message does that send to HAL?

 

It sounds like the message HAL received was formal nights are not popular. For this to happen on a transatlantic cruises which one would expect to attract a higher percentage of passengers who enjoy formal dress has significant implications.

[Traveling Dot]

I noticed in one of the posts about there may be more dressing up on longer cruises. We are going to do a 30 day cruise next April and was wondering if I should pack my husbands suit or not? Or would him just wearing a nice dress shirt and slacks be enough? :confused: I don't want to pack more than I have to but I also don't want to be the only couple not dressed as every one else.

 

Also on smart casual nights have there been many not dressed correctly on most of the cruises so far? :eek:

 

We always enjoy dressing differently for dinner than what we have worn during the day to tour, so I really want to be prepared. :D

[iancal]

We did a Princess cruise in Feb. it was booked two months in advance. We did a last minute, booked two weeks prior, RCI cruise in March.. We had the same clothing on both cruises.

 

Price and how far in advance we book has zero impact on the clothes we pack. The biggest factors for us are itinerary and what, if any, pre and post cruise travel we have planned.