dining room dress for Alaska

[ImperialLady]

We will be going to Alaska on the Crown the last week of August. How do most people dress to eat in the dining room on regular nights and on the dressier ones?  We are hoping to pack as light as possible with jeans, tops and tennies. Would nice, dressy jeans, sparkly blouse and flats be acceptable on the dressier nights?  thanks

[Steelers36]

[atobols]

 

19 minutes ago, ImperialLady said:

We will be going to Alaska on the Crown the last week of August. How do most people dress to eat in the dining room on regular nights and on the dressier ones?  We are hoping to pack as light as possible with jeans, tops and tennies. Would nice, dressy jeans, sparkly blouse and flats be acceptable on the dressier nights?  thanks

 

That will be fine for Alaska.  Alaskan cruises are more hiker chic than business casual.

[Jammu2]

28 minutes ago, atobols said:

 

 

That will be fine for Alaska.  Alaskan cruises are more hiker chic than business casual.

 

I would call it expedition chic but yes, this is the way.

[wcflats]

53 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

That’s what we dress for!😁

[1025cruise]

I wasn't aware the dress code for Alaska was different than other cruises.

[ImperialLady]

1 hour ago, atobols said:

 

 

That will be fine for Alaska.  Alaskan cruises are more hiker chic than business casual.

Thanks I was hoping that was the case.  We went about 5 yrs ago but ate in the buffet/room service or other casual dining for all meals.  We ate early and enjoyed our balcony and later room service.

 

[partybarbie]

We'll be on the Ruby next month to Alaska.  We like dressing up, but to each his own.  

Edited April 23, 2022 by partybarbie

[arizonaperson]

This is what is posted on Princess website. But.......

Topic is very subjective.The dress code has never changed according to the itinerary that you go on. It’s pretty much the same. But with that being said you will see all sorts of “dress” happening in the main dining room(s)for dinner. But honestly don’t worry too much about it . It is a recommendation for dinner in the main DR. Sometimes the dress “ code/ suggestion”  is enforced,sometimes not.

 If you want to wear jeans & sparkly tops on an Alaskan cruise, go for it. If you wish to dress up , go for it. If you want to dress smart casual every night go for it. Only applies to evenings in the main Dining rooms,not buffet or specialty . Does not apply to theater or wandering around the ship.

Dress Code 

During your cruise, you should dress the same way you would do ashore. Leisure wear such as shorts and t-shirts is appropriate on board and on shore excursions in a warm climate. Depending on your itinerary, we advise you to bring sweaters and jackets for chilly evenings.

Keep in mind that it could rain and that you need correct clothing for visits to religious sites. On deck, sandals with rubber soles and sneakers are ideal.

There are two recommendations for evenings and dinners:

• Smart casual:
  Dress the same way you would do for a visit to a restaurant at home. Skirts, dresses or trousers with t-shirt or blouse for ladies, trousers and shirt or poloshirt for gentlemen. Shorts and swimwear are not allowed in the restaurant.

• Formal:
  Evening gown, cocktail dress or pantsuits for ladies, suit, combination or dinner jackets for gentlemen.

Edited April 23, 2022 by arizonaperson

[Kansas Gal]

What a great idea!  Someone can start a topic for dress in each of Princess destinations!

 

[karatemom2]

3 hours ago, atobols said:

 

 

That will be fine for Alaska.  Alaskan cruises are more hiker chic than business casual.

Hiker chic! This is the best description ever. Having been on many Alaska cruises on Princess now I totally agree. These cruises generally have long port days where you are often rolling in from a very nature oriented excursion. You are blissfully tired and usually starving. You will see a lot of nice fleece, jeans and boots in the DR and will not care at all because you are in Alaska and are too busy recounting the glorious day you just had over a nice meal. We still dress up on formal nights, but probably not to the extent of some of our other cruises. There is definitely a more casual, warm and comfy vibe. 

[VibeGuy]

Polarfleece is the vicuña of Alaska. 

[deliver42]

In a word, yes!!!

[Potstech]

7 hours ago, arizonaperson said:

This is what is posted on Princess website. But.......

Topic is very subjective.The dress code has never changed according to the itinerary that you go on. It’s pretty much the same. But with that being said you will see all sorts of “dress” happening in the main dining room(s)for dinner. But honestly don’t worry too much about it . It is a recommendation for dinner in the main DR. Sometimes the dress “ code/ suggestion”  is enforced,sometimes not.

 If you want to wear jeans & sparkly tops on an Alaskan cruise, go for it. If you wish to dress up , go for it. If you want to dress smart casual every night go for it. Only applies to evenings in the main Dining rooms,not buffet or specialty . Does not apply to theater or wandering around the ship.

Dress Code 

During your cruise, you should dress the same way you would do ashore. Leisure wear such as shorts and t-shirts is appropriate on board and on shore excursions in a warm climate. Depending on your itinerary, we advise you to bring sweaters and jackets for chilly evenings.

Keep in mind that it could rain and that you need correct clothing for visits to religious sites. On deck, sandals with rubber soles and sneakers are ideal.

There are two recommendations for evenings and dinners:

• Smart casual:
  Dress the same way you would do for a visit to a restaurant at home. Skirts, dresses or trousers with t-shirt or blouse for ladies, trousers and shirt or poloshirt for gentlemen. Shorts and swimwear are not allowed in the restaurant.

• Formal:
  Evening gown, cocktail dress or pantsuits for ladies, suit, combination or dinner jackets for gentlemen.

Many times posted but rarely enforced and largely ignored.

[pris993]

lol, I my add,  "biker chic".

[Eaglecw]

We just wear smart or business causal in the MDR. On formal night I wear a tie. 18 Alaska cruises ago I dragged a nice suit on the Alaska cruise, I only did that once.   

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, Potstech said:

Many times posted but rarely enforced and largely ignored.

And she left out the other part.  Many do.

[MissP22]

Based upon our Caribbean cruise lately you'll be fine with just about anything. Princess hardly even mentions any dress code & will accept what even people decide to wear for either casual or formal nights.

The only place it is mentioned is at the top of the patter.

The signs at the DR door describing what should be wore are long gone.

There are still many that dress up for formal nights but it's far from being enforced. My husband wore his blue jeans & Polo for formal nights and just jeans & a T shirt for all other nights. 

They welcomed everyone.

[Reina del Mar]

On an Alaskan cruise, we found it much less formal than other destinations.

 

Most recently (April 2022) on 14 night Caribbean Circle, while it was casual most nights, with shorts allowed in the MDR, we found about 70% of people dressed formally on each of the three formal nights

[MissP22]

While I couldn't argue percentages, I was very surprised to see that shorts are now allowed in the DR at dinner. This is a big change from pre covid days when they were only occasionally seen on certain ships.

Of course the DR on the Enchanted was very cool to actually be comfortable, but it was nice to see that Princess is getting in line with the other mass market cruise lines even though their advertising still hasn't changed to reflect what the ships are actually allowing.

[Potstech]

7 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

And she left out the other part.  Many do.

And no one complains about them.

[Mikewa]

Is there a difference with cruise lines?  Going to Alaska on RCL Ovation of the Seas in August.  Really hard to find guidelines from the RCL website on how to dress - seems very subjective.  Don't mind dressing up but don't want to feel out of place if everyone is casual.  Also, how many formal nights can we expect, and is there really a difference in dress codes on formal night?

[mtnesterz]

8 minutes ago, Mikewa said:

Is there a difference with cruise lines?  Going to Alaska on RCL Ovation of the Seas in August.  Really hard to find guidelines from the RCL website on how to dress - seems very subjective.  Don't mind dressing up but don't want to feel out of place if everyone is casual.  Also, how many formal nights can we expect, and is there really a difference in dress codes on formal night?

Welcome to Cruise Critic. The best place to ask this would be to ask it of your shipmates in your roll call section. They are likely seasoned cruisers with RCL. Is there a difference in cruise lines you ask? Seemingly less and less so, which is one reason you are reading so much dissent on the Princess boards about what to wear. Enjoy your cruise.

 

[MissP22]

13 hours ago, Mikewa said:

Don't mind dressing up but don't want to feel out of place if everyone is casual. 

Why don't you pack for any occasion and then see for yourself how the other people are dressed. They'll still be many who still dress for formal nights so you won't feel completely out of place. 

You can then decide for yourself what to wear for any other nights.

[cruzin4us]

Dress nicely like you would if you are going out to dinner at home and you will be fine.