"Come As You Are" Cruise?

[legaljen1969]

No, I don't think so. I don't wish to sit at dinner with a hairy set of man boobs staring at me. That's just all kinds of wrong.

 

Well, it would certainly reduce the tendency to overindulge at dinner. In fact, it would probably reduce the urge to eat altogether. That is quite a nauseating thought. Even worse are the "hair sweaters" that might be shown off. LOL :cool:

Edited November 13, 2015 by legaljen1969

[legaljen1969]

Just a thought. I am not opposed to the premise of a very relaxed cruise. That said, almost every cruise is "come as you are." You just have to choose which venues allow you to experience the cruise in the way you want to do so.

 

It seems that the bigger the ships get, you have more and more alternatives for dining. There are plenty of places to eat with super casual attire. I am not saying anyone should be prohibited from eating in the dining room just because they prefer shorts and a tee shirt.

 

Even within my own family, I find that vacation expectations are very different. I enjoy the elegant/formal nights on a cruise. Some don't. My husband would prefer to wear shorts and a tee shirt or golf shirt every evening for dinner. I enjoy dressing up a little bit on a couple of nights. My husband was a career Marine. We went to the birthday Ball every year. I loved that one night of dressing up and feeling elegant. Since he retired, no more ball. I enjoy getting a really nice picture taken. So now, we at least dress nicely for dinner one night and get our picture. It means a lot to me to have a nice picture and an elegant night. It's only for a couple of hours, and then he gets back into his casual wear.

 

That is one of the great parts of cruising. You can dine in a place

that "requires" you dress up, or in a place where dressing up is not important.

 

A cruise with such relaxed standards of "no shirt, no shoes, no problem" wouldn't be my thing. I like the attitude (carefree, easy breezy) but have concerns about the execution and how far it would be taken.

[calliopecruiser]

Not "pot-stirring", an honest inquiry. The "no shirt, no shoes..." thing is more figurative.

 

The most likely destination for such a cruise might be something like the Caribbean. I'm thinking attire would be more like you'd see at a vacation resort, Hawaii, etc. but w/o "guidelines" or "recommendations."

 

Like anywhere else, you'll get your share of fashion "outliers." We already do. But I'm thinking most people will just look like tourists and vacationers... just free from feeling any need to play dress up.

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

I think it's already attire like one would see at a vacation resort or Hawaii. With the exception of some ships in the dining room, there's already lots of shorts, t-shirts, sandals, bathing suits, caftans, capri pants, baseball caps, etc.

[NMLady]

Would this cruise interest anyone? No need to pack formal wear, or smart casual, for that matter. No "recommended" attire. Where the theme in the MDR each night is "No shirt? No shoes? No problem!"

 

Of course, any pax are welcome to wear a suit, cocktail dress, etc. if that's their preference. But really, anything goes. Would you book this?

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

NO! I like NCL's casual dress style but am glad it does not allow tank tops in dining rooms. I'd hate it if "no shirt, no shoes" was allowed. I don't want to have to see hairy armpits, hairy chests while I'm eating.

[rvsullivan]

What do you mean by "dress code" and "mostly enforced"? If you mean some sort of body and foot covering - yes, NCL has a dress code, and will not accomodate naked people in the dining room. But there is no such thing as a NCL "dress code" in the sense that the term has any real meaning.

 

To answer OP - no; the sort of cruise he described is likely to attract a critical mass of slobs for whom even "smart casual" is too demanding - with the likely result that "stupid slovenly" will reign supreme.

 

I'm sure from your tag line that you have some NCL experience, so I'm sure you already know this. But for those that count on the experience of other cruisers, the real facts of dining on NCL:

"Dress cruise casual anytime during the day, in the buffet and in most specialty restaurants. For women, it includes summer and casual dresses, skirts, regular or capri pants, shorts, jeans and tops. Khakis, jeans, shorts and casual shirts are fine for men. Swimwear is acceptable at the buffet and outdoor restaurant, but a shirt or a cover-up and footwear are required. Cruise casual is also allowed day and night on embarkation day. Wear smart casual if you are eating dinner in the aft main dining room (our more formal dining room) and in Le Bistro on cruises longer than five days. For women, it includes slacks or jeans, dresses, skirts and tops. For men, it’s jeans or slacks with a collared shirt and closed-toed shoes. Traditional Bermuda shorts along with long socks, loafers and a blazer are all acceptable on a Bermuda cruise. We want you to be comfortable, but tank tops for men, flip flops, baseball caps, visors and jeans that are overly faded, with holes or tears and worn below the hips are not permitted in main dining rooms or specialty restaurants". And we all know that in general they enforce the shorts ban where stated.

[slidergirl]

I just have to laugh again. Everytime a thread like this is started, the same things are brought out. Some believe every cruise will turn into a "People of Walmart" cruise. Some believe that only those who "dress up" are the only nice people. Some believe that seeing someone not in a ball gown or tux for 3 hours on Formal Night will ruin their entire cruise. Some believe that anyone in shorts after 5PM is dirty, unhygienic, and slovenly. Some believe that anyone in a ball gown or tux for 3 hours have a stick up her/his a**. Some believe that, if no "requirements" are set, everyone on the planet on their cruise will suddenly run amok in Daisy Dukes, torn jeans, wife beaters.

 

Personally, I do not care what someone is wearing at anytime on a cruise. I do not do the whole Formal thing - I have never cared to do it. I stay out of the MDR most of the time, anyway (I cruise solo and do not like being stuck with random strangers at a dinner table), so no one needs to avert their eyes.

 

As for the cruise proposed by pseudoware, if the price was right and the ports were right, I wouldn't have a issue with booking.

[calliopecruiser]

Something about being on a ship makes some people overly concerned about what others wear, for some reason.

 

In part because you are more limited in options (at least options that don't incur an extra fee), unless you want to stay in your 120 square foot room.

[sail7seas]

I just have to laugh again. Everytime a thread like this is started, the same things are brought out. Some believe every cruise will turn into a "People of Walmart" cruise. Some believe that only those who "dress up" are the only nice people. Some believe that seeing someone not in a ball gown or tux for 3 hours on Formal Night will ruin their entire cruise. Some believe that anyone in shorts after 5PM is dirty, unhygienic, and slovenly. Some believe that anyone in a ball gown or tux for 3 hours have a stick up her/his a**. Some believe that, if no "requirements" are set, everyone on the planet on their cruise will suddenly run amok in Daisy Dukes, torn jeans, wife beaters.

 

Personally, I do not care what someone is wearing at anytime on a cruise. I do not do the whole Formal thing - I have never cared to do it. I stay out of the MDR most of the time, anyway (I cruise solo and do not like being stuck with random strangers at a dinner table), so no one needs to avert their eyes.

 

As for the cruise proposed by pseudoware, if the price was right and the ports were right, I wouldn't have a issue with booking.

 

 

 

The way the OP expressed the question gave the impetus for firm yes or no responses.

 

I don't care if you wear a cocktail dress on 'gala night' or choose slacks and clean, presentable top. I don't care if the men wear neat polo jerseys and dockers or opt for a suit or tuxedo but that is not the way OP worded the question.......

 

 

What was expressed was 'no shirt, no shoes, no problem'. That is quite different. THAT is a problem for me.

 

Edited November 13, 2015 by sail7seas

[marco]

I agree with the above poster. Other than the "no shirt, no shoes", (which I don't think ANY line will every opt for, anyway) I really don't care what you wear. Some lines are pretty much there, already!

[cruznjan]

No, I would not. I like to see people looking nice at dinner in a beautiful restaurant.

 

Me too!

[cruznjan]

I don't understand why one would want to dine in an elegant dining room and not be dressed appropriately. I know it your vacation, but your attire should fit the surroundings.

[calliopecruiser]

I don't understand why one would want to dine in an elegant dining room and not be dressed appropriately. I know it your vacation, but your attire should fit the surroundings.

 

Main Dining Rooms on cruise ships are not "elegant dining rooms" - they are well-dressed large banquet halls. There's nothing elegant about a room for 500-1000+, filled with multiple large tables of 6, 8, or 10 people.

[Husky61]

I don't understand why one would want to dine in an elegant dining room and not be dressed appropriately. I know it your vacation, but your attire should fit the surroundings.

 

Why so?

[slidergirl]

I don't understand why one would want to dine in an elegant dining room and not be dressed appropriately. I know it your vacation, but your attire should fit the surroundings.

 

The MDRs are NOT "elegant" dining rooms. If they were, there would not be a different dress code for breakfast, lunch, or dinner or different days. The MDRs are merely large dining halls that serve commodity banquet food to a captive group who do not want to eat at a buffet or in a small specialty restaurant. The decor of the room is "lipstick on a pig" on most mass-market cruises. Maybe back a few decades in the Golden Age of cruising where only those in the upper echelons of society cruised were the MDRs truly elegant. I say the cruise lines could always take one of the MDRs and make it a "Golden Age" theme room, where guests would be required to be scrutinized for fashion faux pas before being allowed in; formal night = tuxes and ball gowns only, elegant night = suits and only cocktail dresses, cruise casual = khakis & polos and only sundresses… That way, those who wanted to stay with the rigid dress codes for all meals and only want to be with those liked-dressed could not have to worry about having to look at anyone else ;)

[DirtyDawg]

So what have we discovered in this thread? Some people would go on a "come as you are" cruise and others would not. As long as you know what type of cruise you are signing up for what's the big deal? We have sailed on Celebrity, which was more formal, and we have sailed on NCL depending on what type of cruise we wanted at the time. The only issue might be if we were going on X and packed for NCL.

[tingyyy]

i would. or to be more specific, if it's an itinerary that interests me and if the price is decent, the dress code (or lack thereof) wouldnt stop me from booking. what people wear doesn't bother me at all! aren't we all just there to have fun and make the most of our holiday in the way we want to?

 

besides it's not as if 'lowering the bar' will suddenly cause people to think "yes! being in a state of undress is a great idea!!" resulting in the ship being overrun by hordes of unruly stampeding barefooted chest-beating savages right? just like day-to-day we don't see people walking around dressed just above the 'indecent exposure' limit.

 

anyway, i still believe that people are incurably vain and most of us will want to look nice and presentable and will wear some decent looking things! :p

[sgb]

Not interested in that type of cruise.

[candycaramel]

My hubby and I enjoy dressing up but some folks really go on cruises to unwind from very stressful lives and "dressing to impress" isn't their thing.

 

My brother and his family came back from their first cruise (on Carnival) and one of the first things he said to me was that they were underdressed for the main dining room. All he and his family had packed was shorts and polo shirts etcetera. He hadn't even brought any khaki pants.

 

My brother wears a uniform every day to work and works so hard as a first responder stuff most of us don't even want to think about. He just wanted a vacation with his family somewhere warm and tropical and didn't realize.

 

Everybody that is on the ship paid their money and we need to stop making judgments about them. That sloppy looking guy in the dining room might be the person that saves your life at home one day.

[BlueRiband]

...

Everybody that is on the ship paid their money and we need to stop making judgments about them. That sloppy looking guy in the dining room might be the person that saves your life at home one day.

 

Yep, that's often the argument - somebody paid their money so the requested cruise line dress and decorum be damned. "What I do is special so that doesn't apply to me".

[navybankerteacher]

Main Dining Rooms on cruise ships are not "elegant dining rooms" - they are well-dressed large banquet halls. There's nothing elegant about a room for 500-1000+, filled with multiple large tables of 6, 8, or 10 people.

 

"Elegant" should be seen as a relative term. To the extent a cruise ship MDR is furnished with linen table clothes and napkins, that water and wine glasses are set out, along with place plates, butter plates, etc. they ARE a whole lot more elegant than Olive Garden, Ponderosa, Burger King, etc. -- or most peoples' home dining rooms (more likely, kitchen or dinette tables) -- where most posters on these sites do eat their dinners.

[pris993]

Would this cruise interest anyone? No need to pack formal wear, or smart casual, for that matter. No "recommended" attire. Where the theme in the MDR each night is "No shirt? No shoes? No problem!"

 

Of course, any pax are welcome to wear a suit, cocktail dress, etc. if that's their preference. But really, anything goes. Would you book this?

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

Even after more than 50 cruises... cruising is a special experience, comes as you are unfortunately, makes cruising nothing special, so absoluately NO.

[cheezyl]

Lmarie6 your reply is the best. My hubby just wants to be able to kick back now that he's got cancer and is being made to travel "for the memories " (by me). He's not happy that he's expected to pack a suit for one evening's wear. We weren't aware that happened. Should he be denied the pleasure of cruising and visiting places he's always wanted to based on the clothes he wants to pack? Do they offer an alternative or will he miss dinner that night? I don't know.

[ger_77]

Lmarie6 your reply is the best. My hubby just wants to be able to kick back now that he's got cancer and is being made to travel "for the memories " (by me). He's not happy that he's expected to pack a suit for one evening's wear. We weren't aware that happened. Should he be denied the pleasure of cruising and visiting places he's always wanted to based on the clothes he wants to pack? Do they offer an alternative or will he miss dinner that night? I don't know.

 

I'm sorry to hear your husband has cancer; hopefully treatments will help make him well again soon. If he doesn't want to bring a suit, he doesn't need to - recently Holland America Lines has relaxed the dress code to include a shirt and tie. Is that too much for him? If so, you can opt to order in room service from the dining room menu, or you can eat in the Lido. Alternatively, he can wear a sports jacket with jeans or khakis for the flight and add a shirt and tie for the elegant nights onboard.

 

Continue making memories, and take pictures that will be with you both long after the cruise is over.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

[Lily815]

Would this cruise interest anyone? No need to pack formal wear, or smart casual, for that matter. No "recommended" attire. Where the theme in the MDR each night is "No shirt? No shoes? No problem!"

 

Of course, any pax are welcome to wear a suit, cocktail dress, etc. if that's their preference. But really, anything goes. Would you book this?

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

 

Yuck -no. On my recent NCL Escape cruise, someone wore baggy gym shorts and a t-shirt to a 9pm dinner show. That was bad enough. I can only imagine what people would wear, or not wear, on a cruise like this!

[slidergirl]

Yuck -no. On my recent NCL Escape cruise, someone wore baggy gym shorts and a t-shirt to a 9pm dinner show. That was bad enough. I can only imagine what people would wear, or not wear, on a cruise like this!

 

Does NCL have a dress requirement for the shows not, not just the MDR???