Formal nights

[CalgaryMac]

We are pretty casual people and in fact neither of us own a jacket (our careers never required a jacket). I spoke with an advisor on the Princess Cruise Line website today and it sounds like we will be expected to wear a jacket on formal night (no tie required, long pants etc. The casual nights don't require a jacket from what I could gather.

 

We don't want to restrict our dining options but we also don't need a jacket in our normal lives.

 

What were peoples' experiences and observations about the dress requirements?

[Colo Cruiser]

We are pretty casual people and in fact neither of us own a jacket (our careers never required a jacket). I spoke with an advisor on the Princess Cruise Line website today and it sounds like we will be expected to wear a jacket on formal night (no tie required, long pants etc. The casual nights don't require a jacket from what I could gather.

 

We don't want to restrict our dining options but we also don't need a jacket in our normal lives.

 

What were peoples' experiences and observations about the dress requirements?

 

 

 

This is a contentious subject here on CC and can quickly deteriorate if you know what I mean.

A shirt and tie would suffice on most ships on formal night.

That said the specialty restaurants are always smart casual as well as the buffet.

[Orlando Vic]

Simply go to one of the specialty restaurants and enjoy your meal without dressing up.

 

 

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[skynight]

If you show up at the DR on formal nights with a shirt and tie you will be allowed in. You probably will also be let in if you wear just a sport shirt with a collar. There may be others dressed that way. Shorts are not allowed in the DR any nights. The specialty restaurants are smart casual every night, and the balance of the ship is casual every night. You may wish to book one of the specialty restaurants for formal nights. The buffet is also an option as is the Trident Grill by the Lido Pool. If you are on the Royal or Regal you can also dine at Alfredo's it is no charge.

[MrSchwump]

My sense is, there are written rules, but the enforcement of those is not always by the book.

Last Feb. on the Regal, I went to formal night with just a collared, short sleeved shirt. (And pants. I was wearing pants!

)The guy in charge looked very chagrined and asked if I had a jacket or sweater, which I didn't. He reluctantly seated us. Next formal night we went to the buffet.

This year I'm bringing a navy blazer which should get me by. I know it's not formal but it meets the minimum requirements.

[JF - retired RRT]

DH was in the same situation before our first cruise...didn't own a suit. We bought 2. He started out bringing a suit and shirt and tie. Then switched to a suit with a turtleneck sweater. For our last 4 cruises he's just worn the turtleneck with one of the suit pants. No one has ever even looked at him strange.

 

We've seen t-shirts with jeans get seated (one man wore these every night for a 17 day cruise - 3 formal nights).

 

Wear what you're comfortable wearing as long as it looks nice.

[OCruisers]

My husband no longer takes his tuxedo. He does take his navy sports coat which he wears with a while golf shirt, and gray pants on formal nights.

Recently off Princess for 22 days. There were some men with long sleeve dress shirts (with/without tie) and long pants ... no jacket ... on formal nights in the main dining room.

Formal nights on Princess in the MDR are way less formal than they once were. ;)

[Potstech]

Simply go to one of the specialty restaurants and enjoy your meal without dressing up.

 

 

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Dress nicely and go to the MDR and do not let anyone tell you differently other than the person assigning you to a table at the entrance.

[floridalover5623]

Yes, Princess does have written rules and if people would take a few minutes to dig through them you would find that a suit & tie are not a true requirement on formal night in the dining room. Even the tie has not been a requirement in at least 15 years.

On casual evenings a decent pair of jeans & a polo will work although I've worn a T shirt for years and never been turned away.

 

http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/bring.jsp

 

"On the informal side of things, both men and women may want to pack away

breezy shirts, comfortable sandals and shorts for the day, while they can opt

for a sweatshirt or windbreaker to help them stay warm if temperatures drop.

In addition, bringing along a rain jacket, an umbrella and galoshes may be a good idea if rainy weather interrupts any scheduled shore excursions. For more

formal settings, men should bring a suit and a nice pair of shoes

(or, at the very least, a shirt, tie and slacks), while women may want to bring

an evening dress or a skirt with a good blouse."

[indyrocks]

When we were relative newbies to cruising, I would rent a tuxedo for each cruise. It was delivered to your stateroom on embarkation day. I'm 6'5"/260 lbs and surprisingly the clothes fit pretty well. Except for the shoes, which were long enough but not wide enough. But it was only for a couple of hours on formal nights. I don't know if tuxes can be rented in this manner any longer.

 

More recently, and especially since the airlines started charging for baggage, we've cut down quite a bit on the amount of clothing we take. The free laundry perk for Elite members is also a key factor. My airline credit card allows for us to take one bag each without a fee. For really laid-back cruises in the Caribbean or the Transatlantic cruise we took last fall, we don't dress up. I don't take anything more than a couple of pairs of khaki trousers and 3 or 4 collared shirts. No tie, no jacket. A pair of brown shoes and a pair of tennis shoes. My wife takes similarly casual attire. Although the dress policy is rarely enforced in the main dining rooms, we're not interested in stretching any rules so we go to the buffet on those nights. We've met many couples up in Horizon Court with similar ideas.

 

On other cruises or when we're celebrating a special occasion (or just need updated formal photos), I take a black suit, white shirt, a couple of ties, and a pair of black shoes. My wife usually buys a couple of new items. A garment bag holds all the extra clothing for both of us. Either we pay the extra airline fee, or we upgrade to first/business class and the additional bag is free. (Upgrading is surprisingly reasonable on some domestic routes. For our upcoming trip, a first class seat on Delta from IND to FLL cost just $162 more per person round trip than a premium economy seat with all of the fees added in! And flying in a premium cabin is an unbeatable way to start a cruise.)

[Potstech]

$162.00 to be able to wear a suit of any kind for just 2 or 3 nights seems a little expensive. By the way how do you carry the shoes for the suit in a garment bag?

[roks]

Hi, I was a bundle of nerves when we cruised on the Ruby in December as none of us had formal dress (as in traditional formal). We had absolutely no issues with anyone, staff or other cruisers, and I was relieved to find that a/ no one seemed to care what anyone else was doing and b/ there were people dressed in all sorts - long and short gowns, blazers, tux, ties and long sleeve shirts, no ties etc etc. There was no way I was buying a suit for my teen or tween and even less way I was going to cart all the extra 'cruise only' clothing around on our 6 week trip. Whatever you wear will be fine. Have a great cruise!

[Hawka]

i wore slacks often on normal dining nighs on the Golden and my waiter told me i would be ok in them for formal my slacks were nice ones that were something i could wear for work if only they had pockets , but i had bought two dresses [was going to buy only one but got carried away ] i decided to take both those dresses with me i had 2 formal nights so wore one one night and the other the next formal night

[satxdiver]

We are pretty casual people and in fact neither of us own a jacket (our careers never required a jacket). I spoke with an advisor on the Princess Cruise Line website today and it sounds like we will be expected to wear a jacket on formal night (no tie required, long pants etc. The casual nights don't require a jacket from what I could gather.

 

We don't want to restrict our dining options but we also don't need a jacket in our normal lives.

 

What were peoples' experiences and observations about the dress requirements?

 

You don't need a jacket on formal night. I have not worn one in years and always have dinner in the MDR on all nights. Formal nights of late I have been wearing my short sleeved guayabera shirt with khaki (dockers) pants without any problems. I always wear my athletic shoes these days and leave the leather shoes at home which being retired I no longer wear. It certainly cuts down on luggage. Happy cruising.

[floridalover5623]

You don't need a jacket on formal night. I have not worn one in years and always have dinner in the MDR on all nights. Formal nights of late I have been wearing my short sleeved guayabera shirt with khaki (dockers) pants without any problems. I always wear my athletic shoes these days and leave the leather shoes at home which being retired I no longer wear. It certainly cuts down on luggage. Happy cruising.

 

Thanks again for the guayabera tip. It's worked out great on the last Royal cruise.

My wife even want's me to buy another color on our next Cozumel stop. :D