Dress for dinner etc.

[ron46936]

Seems odd but I cannot find recommendations on the MSC website. We cruise a lot but not on MSC recently. Our usual dress for dinner is a polo or Hawiian  shirt for most dinners and a guayabera shirt for dressier nights. All with long slacks. I can bring a sport coat or even a tux if that would be more appropriate. Wife usually brings nice outfits buy nothing formal. Can we get by with that?

[shipgeeks]

Caribbean?  Mediterranean?

We've only sailed MSC in the Carib, but noticed that people did dress up more than on some other lines, probably due to there being many Europeans, South Americans, and UK passengers on board.

DH does wear a tux on the gala nights, and I wear a cocktail dress or gown.  A number of others did, as well, but certainly not all.  Many suits, many more casual shirts.

MSC has a White Night, which many passengers follow, with white shirts/dresses/slacks/etc.

[ron46936]

13 hours ago, shipgeeks said:

Caribbean?  Mediterranean?

We've only sailed MSC in the Carib, but noticed that people did dress up more than on some other lines, probably due to there being many Europeans, South Americans, and UK passengers on board.

DH does wear a tux on the gala nights, and I wear a cocktail dress or gown.  A number of others did, as well, but certainly not all.  Many suits, many more casual shirts.

MSC has a White Night, which many passengers follow, with white shirts/dresses/slacks/etc.

Good to know. We are hooked for 18 nights in the Caribbean. Fortunately we can drive to the port and take luggage than if we flew.

[walters–mor]

I hope it’s up to us what to put on.  We are going YC next year, but no chance IH that I will put gala on. I can have a maxi dress on, that’s it. We normal have T-shirt and normal pants on. 

[Debde]

We stayed in the YC and noticed that people do tend to dress a bit more. We never bring formal clothes, no suit jackets or any fancy dresses. We were never turned away and quite a few were dressed the same as we were. Nice shirts, long pants and capri pants. We did check out the buffet on formal night for dinner just to be safe. Actually-we enjoyed dinner very much that night and were surprised how many people were on the same page with us on that.

[tony s]

We took YC in Nov 2019. We noticed some men wore blazers but no one had jeans and t shirts in the evening. Best way to describe dress, country club casual.

[rkacruiser]

46 minutes ago, tony s said:

We took YC in Nov 2019. We noticed some men wore blazers but no one had jeans and t shirts in the evening. Best way to describe dress, country club casual.

 

That is what I observed in YC on Meraviglia in January, 2020.  There were many gentlemen wearing jackets with or without ties.  On a 7 day Caribbean cruise, I wore my tux once and did not feel over dressed; there were others so attired.  The other formal night, I wore blue blazer/gray slacks and did not feel under dressed.  

 

Walking around outside YC during those evenings, I saw no one that was inappropriately dressed in my opinion.  

 

The most concerning view I have had was a couple of guests being under dressed on a formal night was on Star Princess.  A couple arrived at the ship's theater wearing basically bathing attire and flip-flops:  t-shirts/shorts.  They sat next to me, dressed in my tux.  They seemed not to care.  But, I did!  

[CGTNORMANDIE]

11 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

That is what I observed in YC on Meraviglia in January, 2020.  There were many gentlemen wearing jackets with or without ties.  On a 7 day Caribbean cruise, I wore my tux once and did not feel over dressed; there were others so attired.  The other formal night, I wore blue blazer/gray slacks and did not feel under dressed.  

 

Walking around outside YC during those evenings, I saw no one that was inappropriately dressed in my opinion.  

 

The most concerning view I have had was a couple of guests being under dressed on a formal night was on Star Princess.  A couple arrived at the ship's theater wearing basically bathing attire and flip-flops:  t-shirts/shorts.  They sat next to me, dressed in my tux.  They seemed not to care.  But, I did!  

These days one never knows what to expect.  We (DW and I) have always enjoyed formal nights.  I have always believed that when the waiters and stewards put on their formal wear it’s time for the pax to do likewise.  This being said does not mean that everyone should be dressed in tuxes and ball gowns.  It means making an effort to look presentable at the very least.  For some that could be country club casual...totally acceptable on formal nights.  Not everyone has a tux, etc.  Some people even shed their more formal attire after dinner to relax.  A lot of it has to do with the amount of luggage one can carry.  On our last cruise we had some next door neighbors in a cabin near ours who were from Mexico.  On formal night the gentleman donned his best dungarees with fancy suspenders and a button up shirt.  The two kids were in pressed pants and shirts while wife had on a nice dress.  They were all spiffed up, hair combed, and they looked adorable.  I was humbled.  I realized that it was not what they were wearing.  It was a matter of making the effort.  We enjoyed MSC because of the range of dress on formal nights.  Not everyone was dressed to the nines but most, if not all, made an effort and this added to the festive atmosphere.  

[rkacruiser]

13 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

  Some people even shed their more formal attire after dinner to relax

 

I have noticed that as well and have never quite understood it.  For me, as a solo cruiser, the effort to get formally dressed with a tux, formal shirt with studs, and a bow tie that often is reluctant to cooperate in getting the hook into the clasp--and I have no one around to help me do this--well, it's a lot of effort.  To then after dinner to return to one's stateroom and re-dress before the evening's entertainment, that's not for me.  

 

I have been perfectly comfortable in my tux while dancing to the music of ABBA or Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive, or etc.  

[CGTNORMANDIE]

16 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I have noticed that as well and have never quite understood it.  For me, as a solo cruiser, the effort to get formally dressed with a tux, formal shirt with studs, and a bow tie that often is reluctant to cooperate in getting the hook into the clasp--and I have no one around to help me do this--well, it's a lot of effort.  To then after dinner to return to one's stateroom and re-dress before the evening's entertainment, that's not for me.  

 

I have been perfectly comfortable in my tux while dancing to the music of ABBA or Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive, or etc.  

 

Even I relax after dinner.  Sure I’ll stay in uniform while attending a performance or meeting friends for a drink but the jacket and tie come off when I start playing in the casino.  To every rule there is an exception.  

[CruisingFox27]

26 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I have noticed that as well and have never quite understood it.  For me, as a solo cruiser, the effort to get formally dressed with a tux, formal shirt with studs, and a bow tie that often is reluctant to cooperate in getting the hook into the clasp--and I have no one around to help me do this--well, it's a lot of effort.  To then after dinner to return to one's stateroom and re-dress before the evening's entertainment, that's not for me.  

 

I have been perfectly comfortable in my tux while dancing to the music of ABBA or Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive, or etc.  

 

I've never really understood this one either. I too love formal evening. I look forward to dressing up, wearing a lovely evening gown and maximise the opportunity to do so. 

 

I understand that people don't and understand some don't wish to dress for it and are happy just in a summer dress or trousers and a shirt. The half and half approach does confuse me somewhat.

[Av8tor]

On 3/31/2021 at 2:22 PM, rkacruiser said:

...  

 

The most concerning view I have had was a couple of guests being under dressed on a formal night was on Star Princess.  A couple arrived at the ship's theater wearing basically bathing attire and flip-flops:  t-shirts/shorts.  They sat next to me, dressed in my tux.  They seemed not to care.  But, I did!  

 

Why would you care?  Princess states that formal night sttire is for the main dining rooms only.  So I've often seen such casual dress in other venues on formal nights and it never bothered me in my tux even if they sat right next to me.  Perhaps they didn't even own formal wear, couldn't fit in their luggage, or just didn't want to bother.  If they didn't dress up, they could've eaten in the buffet or had room service or they changed out of formal clothes after dinner.  Let them enjoy THEIR cruise and don't let it bother you while you enjoy YOURS!

[Nunagoras]

Hi!...

 

Short and easy answer: Yeah!... You'll be fine!... At least it's your holiday!...

 

That said; here from the Mediterranean side of the pond, me thinks, we should consider the always more limited luggage weight on planes to be the real culprit for the ongoing dress degradation on cruises... But again: I have never seen someone badly dressed for dinner on MSC, even on non formal nights!... Long pants and a jacket or simply good collared shirt suffixes. A dark suit with or without a tie suffixes for the gala nights. Girls go usually with some nice long pants and dressy shirts for regular days and nice cocktail dresses for gala night... From 2019 onward they were reducing formal nights to just one per week. Such a very welcoming measure... But again; not such a big of a deal, really. I like to enjoy my nice meals with a nice outfit. It's like going to a nice restaurant on land. After the meal I tend to go to the cabin and relax the dressing a little bit for the evening!... Have a nice day!...

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, Av8tor said:

Why would you care? 

 

Respectfully written in response to your post, it is my right to "care".  

 

The couple may have thought me to be "a cruising dinosaur" to be dressed as I was.  They may have not cared for how I was attired just as I did not care for how they were attired.  

 

Which thinking is incorrect?  

[shipgeeks]

I have to agree with RK that it detracts from the festive atmosphere of a Gala night.

On our last X cruise, second Gala night, a couple arrived at our dinner table in rumpled t-shirts. Lest you think they were young innocents, or unable to afford a business shirt, their introductions began with "I'm a doctor; what do you do?"   Their conversations, and table manners, were similarly casual and "all about me".

 We later learned that they told the Head Waiter we had invited them; we didn't even know them.

The upside is that it led us to trying MSC, which we now prefer.