Formal Night - Carnival

[Vicki-Ben]

I am taking my first cruise in March and was wondering if this dress is appropriate for formal night. It will be a 6 night sailing on the Carnival Liberty.

 

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[dayna84]

Personally, I would say its a little too casual, but I'm of the "traditional cruise" crowd who likes to see formal night kept very formal. Some people are trying to get the formal nights "dumbed down" to be semi-formal nights but I don't really like that (my personal opinion).

 

As adults we get very few chances to wear formal attire (long gowns with matching shoes and silk purses and up-dos, men in tuxedos using manners they learned before Prom night). I feel like a cruise's formal night should be one of these occations. I feel like it should be kept sacredly formal. It makes everyone feel so special and glamerous when you are in a room full of people classed up. Its almost nostalgic...I could gon on and on...

 

But, others will argue that it is entirely up to the individual traveler and that is true.

[katie286]

I think your dress is absolutely fine for formal night!:)

 

You will see some dressed up more and some dressed down more. Your dress is the type of one that I would wear.

[Happy ks]

This is what I would consider to be semi-formal, but you would actually fit right in. There are so many interpretations of formal, all the way from Sunday best to ballgowns, you'll even see some office wear in there.

 

Your dress is lovely and if this is what you would love to wear, you'll look very pretty.

[caviargal]

About half the women wore floor length and the rest cocktail on my recent Carnival cruise.

 

I consider this semi formal but you would not be out of place.

[Buster27]

This dress will be absolutely perfect for formal night. Trust me, on Carnival you will be among the better dressed !!! I have seen everything under the sun on my Carnival cruises, including tank tops on guys with baseball hats on my most recent Dec. cruise and I'm talking FORMAL NIGHT. Of course, the guy stood out like a sore thumb.

 

I think your dress is beautiful and you will most likely have occasions at home to wear it again!

[BlueHerons]

It is not a formal dress but as others have said, will work on Carnival.

[Vicki-Ben]

Thanks for the responses. I would like to stay away from a floor length gown since I am short only 5' and have different leg lenths so a floor length gown usually requires alterations. If I knew I would enjoy cruising and would be able to wear the gown several times I would spend the money but to spend money on alterations for a dress that I am only going to wear once doesn't make sense to me. As it is, we will probably be buying my husband a suit that he will only wear once. He is protesting but I keep telling him that it is Carnival's dress code on formal night to have a suit jacket.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

The gorgeous red dress you show in your picture is what I would classify as a cocktail dress. The men are encouraged to wear tuxes but a dark suit is accepted. If a man can wear a dark suit, a woman can certainly wear the dress you show.

 

The rules of formal dress are stated by what the man is to wear. We women are expected to know that if a man wears a tux, we wear a gown. But those rules are loosening rather rapidly, most especially on ships and in some regions of the country. It is accepted in many places now for a woman to wear a cocktail-length dress when men are wearing tuxes.

 

The dress you show is certainly not casual. It is made with burnout velvet roses on some gossamer fabric, probably a chiffon. I would never wear such a dress to a casual affair.

 

I just sailed on the Liberty in November. On formal night I saw one group of people in what I would consider rodeo attire, plaid shirts, denim vests and pants, cowboy boots, carved leather belts, bolo ties,etc.

 

The lovely dress you show will be delightful on the Liberty. Have a great time.

[dayna84]

Yes, you can wear it...its your vacation so you can do what you want. They aren't going to kick you out of the diningroom. But, like I said...why try to semi-formalize an occation that has been set aside by the cruise to be extraordinarally special.

 

Ok, here is what I've noticed on cruises...if you are going on a 7 day cruise, they usually have 2 formal nights...the first one always seems to be a little more "formal" than the second...maybe wear it on the second formal night but try a floor length one the first night...you won't regret it. Try looking at a thrift store or consignment store for a formal dress, they usually have gobs of them in great condition because like you said people don't wear them very often. If you spend $12 on a dress maybe the $20 alteration won't seem so bad. Just a thought.

 

Whatever you decide to do will be fine.

[bjboothman]

As it is, we will probably be buying my husband a suit that he will only wear once. He is protesting but I keep telling him that it is Carnival's dress code on formal night to have a suit jacket.

 

Couple of thoughts: 1) If he doesn't own a suit, it would probably be a good investment - someday he'll have to attend a wedding or funeral, and it would be nice to have the suit. 2) Tuxedo rentals on the ship are not terribly expensive and another option to buying a suit. 3) On my Carnival cruise in September, my husband was the only one of the 4 men at the table wearing a suit - or any type of jacket for that matter. It may be the dress code, but it isn't widely observed, unfortunately.

 

Your dress is GORGEOUS, you will look great in it, I'm sure.

[TobysFriend]

I agree that the dress is lovely and you will fit right in. I see it with some strappy black shoes and a pair of pearls.

 

I'm not much for floor length gowns myself and I personally don't define formal/informal strictly by the skirt length.

 

Floor length dresses make me feel like a 17 year old girl dressing up for Prom.

[dayna84]

well, only if you choose the wrong type of dress that doesn't fit your age...I prefer to feel like I'm the first lady or Princess Diana or something more formal like that. Besides, even if you did feel like you were at Prom, wasn't that fun!

[BlueHerons]

II'm not much for floor length gowns myself and I personally don't define formal/informal strictly by the skirt length.

 

Floor length dresses make me feel like a 17 year old girl dressing up for Prom.

 

Actually, formal is floor length and semi formal is cocktail length/floor length optional.

[momofmeg]

Couple of thoughts: 1) If he doesn't own a suit, it would probably be a good investment - someday he'll have to attend a wedding or funeral, and it would be nice to have the suit. 2) Tuxedo rentals on the ship are not terribly expensive and another option to buying a suit. 3) On my Carnival cruise in September, my husband was the only one of the 4 men at the table wearing a suit - or any type of jacket for that matter. It may be the dress code, but it isn't widely observed, unfortunately.

 

Your dress is GORGEOUS, you will look great in it, I'm sure.

 

I agree and after seeing some bummy looking people at a recent funneral-which I just thought was very sad-that these people did not know how to dress for such an occassion or that they had nothing to wear for such an occassion-not sure-but they stuck out like a sore thumb at that funneral.

[momofmeg]

Actually, formal is floor length and semi formal is cocktail length/floor length optional.

 

That is true but back in the 80's the coctail dresses became very popular for teen "prom night". Remember the Molly Ringwald movie "Pretty in Pink?"

 

It seems every since then that has been accepted as "formal wear."

 

I don't know though-I no longer have any idea what "formal wear" is for today.

 

I know 20 years ago when hubby and I went to be symphony-we would be under-dressed-him in a suit and me in a church dresss-as we would see many women in formal evening gowns with mink stoles and their men in tuxes.

Last time we went to the symphony-we were the over dressed ones as many were in khakis and jeans-men and women both. I did not see one tux or evening gown that night.

[BlueHerons]

It seems every since then that has been accepted as "formal wear."

 

I don't know though-I no longer have any idea what "formal wear" is for today.

 

.

 

I am a part time image consultant/stylist and my main clientèle are men and I am currently working with a couple of local politicians.

 

While tea length is indeed accepted as formal, it really isn't formal. I base my parameters on what is and isn't acceptable as to what my clients would wear and should not wear to official functions on several barometers of social manners; the State Department for one. Because they must be impeccably correct, they can't under dress or overdress.

 

The State Department has a guide for those entering diplomatic positions. I'll see if I can find the site and post.

[momofmeg]

I am a part time image consultant/stylist and my main clientèle are men and I am currently working with a couple of local politicians.

 

While tea length is indeed accepted as formal, it really isn't formal. I base my parameters on what is and isn't acceptable as to what my clients would wear and should not wear to official functions on several barometers of social manners; the State Department for one. Because they must be impeccably correct, they can't under dress or overdress.

 

The State Department has a guide for those entering diplomatic positions. I'll see if I can find the site and post.

 

blue Herons I was being sarcastic. I know what formal is-my POINT was most don't bother to dress formal anymore and more and more people do not want to even dress up for any occasion-many never wear anything but jeans and the neasrest they come to dressing up is a pair of khakis.

 

Yes I am one of the FEW that loves to dress up but I am finding more and more that I am the one that is "over dressed" in what is supposed to be a formal or semi formal occasion.

[Jun27]

We were on the inaugural cruise in July. Most people were dressed very well for the formal nights. There were lots of men in tuxes and many women were wearing full length gowns.

 

I have tried to include a picture of what we wore (hope it works).

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[Happy ks]

Jun27, that is a lovely picture, thanks for sharing it!

[Laurab23]

That dress will be perfect for formanl night on Carnival.On our cruise this past May there were many men with just a dress shirt and dress pants,no tie or jacket. The couple we sat with didn't even dress up that much,but we didn't care. They were nice people we enjoyed sitting with and getting to know,which is all that mattered to us! Our first cruise we were seated with people that dressed to "the nines" every evening with him in a tux and her in a very sparkly fancy and obviously expensive formal and they were the rudest people I had ever met. Some nights we even skipped dinner just to avoid them!So clothes do not make the man. We should have asked to have our table changed but we were too nice and didn't.

Laura

[Jun27]

Thanks Kathy,

 

My wife would kill me if she knew I had posted it - but I think she looks great. :)

[mrsred]

Jun27, lovely pic! You are a beautiful couple!

 

Happy to see a man wearing his kilt!

 

My father was Scottish, and I wish more men would wear their kilts for formal occasions. A little bit of the old country :)

 

And your wife is stunning! Beautiful dress. I love the way the front drapes.

 

~e