What attire do people wear for RC's formal nights?

[EGCruisers]

We have never been on Royal Caribbean and are wondering what is appropriate attire for formal and semi-formal nights.  Our group will include adults, teens, and younger kids, so would appreciate information for all age groups.

We will be doing an Alaska cruise.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

[joeyancho]

Some people participate in formal night and some don't.  People tend to dress up a little more on Alaskan cruises as compared to a Caribbean cruise. You will see anyting from slacks  and a polo shirt to tuxedos.  You may even see some shorts and a tee shirt.   Its the same for women.   Personally I like to dress up.  It's your choice.  No one is going to say anything regardless of your attire.

Edited May 22, 2022 by joeyancho

[kateg]

What I've seen is anything from a tuxedo and ball gown to a tank top and ripped denim shorts.  But those are the two extremes.  You are more likely to see women in shorter (not full-length dresses) and guys in collared shirt and slacks.

[rudeney]

Mostly you will see "business casual" but there will be some in true all-out formal wear, and of course the contrarians who will push the envelope in the other direction and wear shorts and t-shirts.  My wife and I generally dress business casual for dinner every night, so on formal night, we step it up a bit, but not dress truly "formal".  I'll wear a coat and tie and my wife will wear a dress or a dressier outfit.       

[Ptroxx]

Here we go again Lolol.  
 

I’m retired.   I wear what I want.  
I always get the guys saying man wish I could wear that.  
But my wife would kill me. Lololol 
but I do enjoy seeing others dress up.  

Pic from my alaska cruise. Lol 

 

 

Edited May 22, 2022 by Ptroxx

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, EGCruisers said:

We have never been on Royal Caribbean and are wondering what is appropriate attire for formal and semi-formal nights.  Our group will include adults, teens, and younger kids, so would appreciate information for all age groups. We will be doing an Alaska cruise. Thanks in advance for your help.

The days of "Formal Nights" are long gone. 

 

It is easier to pick out men's attire. On our last cruise on the Wonder of the Seas in the Caribbean, on "formal night", our section of the MDR had no tuxes. A couple of suit and tie. A couple of sports coats. Mostly cruise casual (polo shirt, dockers/jeans). And a handful of people in shorts.

 

That being said, I would expect fewer/no shorts in Alaska due to the weather. 

 

Formal Night

 

[Markmom18]

We’re on the Navigator right now. We had dinner at 5:30pm today. No one in this small section dressed up for the occasion.
 

Probably about 10 tables in our immediate area. Lots of 2 tops. we were seated in one of the rows.
 

After we finished with dinner (in the MDR — 1 hour basically). We ordered our desserts to take back up to our cabin. That might have shaved some time in the dining room 🤷🏻‍♀️
 

Our MDR Team is super nice, as always. I didn’t feel anything was missing.  We have received a basket of bread & had table clothes both nights. Attentive service, & our entree selections were quite tasty. 
 

🛳🛳

Bobbi
 

 

[ReneeFLL]

We still wear gowns and tuxedos. 

[Cherries Jubilee]

I usually wear the kind of dress you’d wear to be just a guest at a wedding or what you’d wear to the holiday party at work. It’s never really a gown but it is a spiffier dress than floral daytime summer dresses. I would wear anything I wanted to though. You’ll blend in either way nowadays.

[Jo42]

18 minutes ago, Cherries Jubilee said:

I usually wear the kind of dress you’d wear to be just a guest at a wedding or what you’d wear to the holiday party at work. It’s never really a gown but it is a spiffier dress than floral daytime summer dresses. I would wear anything I wanted to though. You’ll blend in either way nowadays.

I think that’s a really great description and what I would wear to formal nights myself these days. 

[FamilyCruiserUK]

For us we dress up. We dont cruise that often, maybe once every 18 months but when we do we like to make an effort. 

 

But as others have said its up too you. I also think it depends on the ship, and other clientele. 

[CatLadyFemme]

From our Allure cruise last month, from both formal nights.

 

we are doing Alaska in August and plan to do it up a little more. I have a few full length dresses I ordered on sale early on in the pandemic and look forward to debuting them.

[nelblu]

In all of my cruises, I've never worn a tux.  Simply wore a business suit and when our dinner and photos session was over, we rushed to our cabin and transferred to shorts and tees/polos and head to a show or casino.  Now as a solo, I simply wear kakis and polo.  Sometimes, I bring a sport jacket and I seem overdressed as compared to others.

[OCSC Mike]

No dressing up for us. I wear pants/khakis & a polo or short sleeve button down all 7 nights in the Caribbean. Wife usually wears a cute casual dress.

 

After 10 days on land in Alaska (and doing laundry in a very interesting laundromat in Girdwood), we wore nothing but jeans on the ship.

 

Doesn’t matter to me what anyone else wears as long as they’re comfortable.

Edited May 22, 2022 by OCSC Mike

[alfaeric]

We use the occasion to wear something neat, whatever that might be. Considering the best work wear I had for the last two years was a tshirt and jeans, this was a big step up. 

[shippmates]

We always dressed for formal nights.  My husband in a tux and me in a cocktail dress or fancy pant suit.  I will still dress up for formal nights even if I am traveling solo.  Dress up is what we enjoyed about cruising as we did not get to do that in our normal lifel.

[VernRDH]

When we started cruising in 2003,we dressed up. Suits, long gowns, etc.  When we took DD we all dressed. After a while, we decided that taking all the extra stuff was just too much of a hassle. So DH has Dockers and polo shirts or Hawaiian shirts. I might wear a sundress or Capri pants and a nice top.  

I have never cared what anyone else is wearing, as I really don't care so long as all your private bits are covered up.

[mek]

18 hours ago, EGCruisers said:

We have never been on Royal Caribbean and are wondering what is appropriate attire for formal and semi-formal nights.  Our group will include adults, teens, and younger kids, so would appreciate information for all age groups.

We will be doing an Alaska cruise.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

It has been my experience on the Alaska cruises we have taken,(except for the first one in 1990), that most people are very casual, even on "Formal' Nights and there isn't anything I've experienced as a semi-formal night on any cruise in the past 20 years.

Remember that with the exception of the formal night, most people in Alaska will be out sightseeing and many times will only have time to make it to the dining room wearing what they had on during the day.  You will see a lot of jeans, sweatshirts, and sweaters at dinner on any night.

If you and your group like dressing up, by all means do so, but don't worry about being out of place if you don't.

[BND]

We were just on EN in April and HOTS this past Nov/Dec.  People were definitely dressing up less, but those that did went all out.  Tuxes and formal gowns.  Most women wear cocktail dresses or  dress pants with dressy tops and men wear suits/sport coats with ties.  Then, there's the "I don't care crowd" who try to dress down as far as possible.  So, you will see it all.  We stay middle of the road-cocktail attire.

[Computer Nerd]

18 hours ago, EGCruisers said:

We have never been on Royal Caribbean and are wondering what is appropriate attire for formal and semi-formal nights.  Our group will include adults, teens, and younger kids, so would appreciate information for all age groups.

We will be doing an Alaska cruise.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

Slacks, collared shirt, tie, nice shoes (loafers to be exact).

Edited May 22, 2022 by Computer Nerd

[Computer Nerd]

17 hours ago, Ptroxx said:

I’m retired.   I wear what I want.  
 

While you may get away with wearing what you want, there is a dress code on Royal. From the Royal website...... 

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/generic-onboard-dress-code
 

What is the dress code onboard all ships?

 

 

When you’re onboard, the right look will vary by venue. But here are a few types of suggested attire you’ll see, grouped by item.

• Casual: You’re on vacation – relax! Jeans, polos, sundresses and blouses are all the right amount of laid back. Please keep swimwear to the Pool Deck. Shorts are welcomed for breakfast and lunch.

• Smart Casual: Think of this as a step up from your typical dinner wear. Dress to impress with collared shirts, dresses, skirts and blouses, or pantsuits. Jackets, sports coats and blazers are snazzy and welcomed. 

• Formal: Make it a night out in your best black-tie look – suits and ties, tuxedos, cocktail dresses or evening gowns. There can be 1-3 formal nights during a sailing and is at the ship’s discretion.

Formal nights

Think of our formal dress code as a night out in your best black-tie look — suits and ties, tuxedos, cocktail dresses or evening gowns are all acceptable options. There can be 1 to 4 formal nights during a sailing and is at the ship’s discretion. Our Chef’s Table dining experience also enforces a formal dress code policy.

• 3/4/5 night cruises - 1 formal night*
• 6 and 7 night cruises - 2 formal nights*
• 8 to 10 night cruises - 2 formal nights*
• 11 to 14 night cruises - 3 formal nights*
• 15 + night cruises - 3 or 4 formal nights*

*The number of formal nights is at the ship's discretion and can vary by itinerary.

 

Main Dining Room/Specialty Dining Venues

Main Dining Room/Specialty Dining Venues

• Bare feet are not allowed at any time in any venue and tank tops are not permitted in the Main Dining Room or Specialty Dining venues for dinner.

Casino Dress Code

• Shirt and shoes are always required. Cover-ups should be worn over bathing attire

Edited May 22, 2022 by Computer Nerd

[OCSC Mike]

No one follows that unless they choose to & it is not enforced, short of needing to wear shirt & shoes & other common sense rules.

 

The actual “dress code” has become nothing more than a recommendation.

 

Even the wording stays away from terms like “required” or “mandatory.”

 

Dressing casually on formal night is not “getting away with anything” it’s a personal choice.

Edited May 22, 2022 by OCSC Mike

[BND]

They have never explained what "Dress your best" actually means.  Does it mean dress the best you own, or dress the best you brought with you?  If it's the latter, then there is no dress code of any kind.

[Ptroxx]

1 hour ago, Computer Nerd said:

While you may get away with wearing what you want, there is a dress code on Royal. From the Royal website...... 

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/generic-onboard-dress-code
 

What is the dress code onboard all ships?

 

 

When you’re onboard, the right look will vary by venue. But here are a few types of suggested attire you’ll see, grouped by item.

• Casual: You’re on vacation – relax! Jeans, polos, sundresses and blouses are all the right amount of laid back. Please keep swimwear to the Pool Deck. Shorts are welcomed for breakfast and lunch.

• Smart Casual: Think of this as a step up from your typical dinner wear. Dress to impress with collared shirts, dresses, skirts and blouses, or pantsuits. Jackets, sports coats and blazers are snazzy and welcomed. 

• Formal: Make it a night out in your best black-tie look – suits and ties, tuxedos, cocktail dresses or evening gowns. There can be 1-3 formal nights during a sailing and is at the ship’s discretion.

Formal nights

Think of our formal dress code as a night out in your best black-tie look — suits and ties, tuxedos, cocktail dresses or evening gowns are all acceptable options. There can be 1 to 4 formal nights during a sailing and is at the ship’s discretion. Our Chef’s Table dining experience also enforces a formal dress code policy.

• 3/4/5 night cruises - 1 formal night*
• 6 and 7 night cruises - 2 formal nights*
• 8 to 10 night cruises - 2 formal nights*
• 11 to 14 night cruises - 3 formal nights*
• 15 + night cruises - 3 or 4 formal nights*

*The number of formal nights is at the ship's discretion and can vary by itinerary.

 

Main Dining Room/Specialty Dining Venues

Main Dining Room/Specialty Dining Venues

• Bare feet are not allowed at any time in any venue and tank tops are not permitted in the Main Dining Room or Specialty Dining venues for dinner.

Casino Dress Code

• Shirt and shoes are always required. Cover-ups should be worn over bathing attire

 

I have been on “many” Royal cruises and not once had an issue wearing shorts regular seating or formal seating.  Same with NCL & CCL
Thats all I wear on all my cruises. 
Thats all I wear every day.  
Never wear pants.  

Never an issue.  
 

#retiredUPSdriver 

 

 

[Ptroxx]

1 hour ago, BND said:

They have never explained what "Dress your best" actually means.  Does it mean dress the best you own, or dress the best you brought with you?  If it's the latter, then there is no dress code of any kind.

That dress code is there for people trying to wear swim attire on formal night  that’s about it.