Is there any dress code at all in the dining room?

[ChiefMateJRK]

16 minutes ago, Peachypooh said:

The last time I cruised was in Dec. of 2019 right before the shutdown.NCL really didn't have

much of a dress code.When we cruise  I just adjust where I am sitting if within my eyesight there is something really un appetizing  to look at. LOL Like someone using a steak knife as a toothpick or really hideous looking feet that the person decides to take their sandals off and cross their legs so they are more or less at table top level. 

Well, it comes down to the old "lipstick on a pig" reference.  I could don the nicest suit and still not be nice to look at.  The younger, hip, attractive crowd would probably look better in rags.  That's what makes "dress code" so ludicrous.  It's a remnant of an older, darker time when societal norms overran common sense.  Can't we all just be comfortable and enjoy our vacations?  (I'm asking you NCL!!!!!)

[cruiseny4life]

45 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Well, it comes down to the old "lipstick on a pig" reference.  I could don the nicest suit and still not be nice to look at.  The younger, hip, attractive crowd would probably look better in rags.  That's what makes "dress code" so ludicrous.  It's a remnant of an older, darker time when societal norms overran common sense.  Can't we all just be comfortable and enjoy our vacations?  (I'm asking you NCL!!!!!)

Omgosh...I follow (but rarely say anything) on the Cunard boards. They're always talking about how everyone looks so wonderful in their tuxes and ball gowns. Come on folks, there's only so much lipstick a tux can do for a guy...if you look bad in sweats, you're going to look bad (or ridiculous) in formalwear. 

 

I know I'd much rather see the hip crowd in rags than in formalwear, especially the ones that my eyes might possibly wander toward. I swear I'm not the creepy old guy, really, I'm not! 

[DCGuy64]

On 12/14/2022 at 2:40 PM, cruiseny4life said:

I've never tried to dine in Le Bistro, Ocean Blue, or the fancy MDR, because they have rules about shirts, pants and shoes. Blech!

 

My idea of a dress code is a t-shirt, pair of flippie floppies, and shorts (typically athletic-style, sometimes chino-style). I've never been denied access. You'll be fine with that tie dye shirt. 

True story: the last night of our recent cruise (NCL Epic Dec 7-16), we ate dinner in Le Bistro and my wife and I got all fancied up (suit and tie for me, glamourous dress for her). A gentleman at a nearby table paused before leaving and said "It's nice to see people making the effort to dress up." I'm not gonna lie, I felt a bit proud of myself. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

8 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

True story: the last night of our recent cruise (NCL Epic Dec 7-16), we ate dinner in Le Bistro and my wife and I got all fancied up (suit and tie for me, glamourous dress for her). A gentleman at a nearby table paused before leaving and said "It's nice to see people making the effort to dress up." I'm not gonna lie, I felt a bit proud of myself. 

That's an interesting story.  Thanks for sharing.  That said, a lot of us have outgrown that rush of "feeling proud of ourselves," but that's a different discussion.  I like feeling proud of my kids when they do things better than me.  That's all I want.....  (and I don't care how they dress either)

[DCGuy64]

On 12/15/2022 at 8:27 AM, cruiseny4life said:

Thankfully we're no longer in the 1960's, 70's, or 80's, which judging from a plethora of your comments is where you'd like the country to still be.

 

We're blessed to make our own decisions about how to dress, act, etc. now without caring about judgment from others who wish for the culture of another era. 

 

And, yet, we're also further blessed that you can wear your long pants and collared shirt to get on a ship, while my husband and I can wear our Adidas shorts, flippie floppies, and t-shirts to get onboard (and do nearly anything else on the ship - looking at you Le Bistro). 

 

Finally, it's not about difficulty. It's about paying several thousand dollars for a vacation and wanting to be comfortable while onboard. I wear the penguin suit enough in my every day life. Why on earth would I want to wear anything but comfy when I'm paying for vacation? 

 

Yay for 2022!

For some reason, I find this topic fascinating and irresistible. So here's my take: People who say "HEY, IT'S MY VACATION,  I PAID A LOT OF MONEY AND I SHOULD BE ABLE TO DO WHATEVER I WANT." That sounds like nothing so much as a bratty 5 year old pouting, with arms crossed saying "I DON'T WANNA GO TO SCHOOL!" Surely we are all adults on this forum and surely we should understand that EVEN BEING ON VACATION doesn't mean "it's all about me." I have witnessed firsthand, or seen others write about it here: 

1. People loudly farting at dinner

2. Women wearing thong bikinis in the dining room (or attempting to)

3. People clipping their toenails at adjacent loungers right by the pool (eewww!)

4. Someone grabbing the last 5 pieces of bacon right in front of me

5. Thermal spa running out of robes because people take the ones in the dressing room and walk back to their cabins with them on.

6. People leaving their things on loungers and never coming back for them

 

You get the idea. It's always easy to say "well it's freestyle, people should just be able to do/wear whatever they want." Trouble is, "whatever they want" means ANYTHING GOES, no matter how gross or tacky or entitled, selfish or rude. And whether or not you have to wear a "penguin suit," as you call it (Do you really have to wear a tuxedo all the time? Because that's what a penguin suit is, given that it's a black and white outfit.), there are standards of behavior that cruise lines can and do enforce. And I'm fine with them. Be careful what you wish for, because your definition of crossing the line may be VERY different from others'. 

Edited December 22, 2022 by DCGuy64
more examples

[DCGuy64]

2 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

That's an interesting story.  Thanks for sharing.  That said, a lot of us have outgrown that rush of "feeling proud of ourselves," but that's a different discussion.  I like feeling proud of my kids when they do things better than me.  That's all I want.....  (and I don't care how they dress either)

Good for you. Isn't it nice that we can have different views and still get along? 

[DCGuy64]

On 12/15/2022 at 12:40 PM, New2cruise2022 said:

We are in a much better era.

That depends on your definition of "better." 

 

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

That's what makes "dress code" so ludicrous.  It's a remnant of an older, darker time when societal norms overran common sense.  Can't we all just be comfortable and enjoy our vacations?  (I'm asking you NCL!!!!!)

I think this is why @SeaSharkhas been on your case. You appear to believe in a "live and let live"  approach when it comes to cruise attire, but comments like the one I just posted indicate that you VERY MUCH have an opinion about dress codes. You see them as linked to an "older, darker time." It would appear that, inasmuch as you claim not to care what others wear, you in fact are dressing as casually as possible in order to "stick it to" the rulemakers. That belies a different intent than the "live and let live" attitude you espouse. Confusing, to say the least. 

[SunshineGal2022]

1 hour ago, DCGuy64 said:

True story: the last night of our recent cruise (NCL Epic Dec 7-16), we ate dinner in Le Bistro and my wife and I got all fancied up (suit and tie for me, glamourous dress for her). A gentleman at a nearby table paused before leaving and said "It's nice to see people making the effort to dress up." I'm not gonna lie, I felt a bit proud of myself. 

I like seeing people that are all dressed up too.

 

I prefer not to dress too fancy, especially with airline luggage and storage space in the room being such a premium thing.  

[DCGuy64]

9 minutes ago, SunshineGal2022 said:

I like seeing people that are all dressed up too.

 

I prefer not to dress too fancy, especially with airline luggage and storage space in the room being such a premium thing.  

Yeah, I only brought one suit with me and two ties and dress shirts, my wife just the one dress. We didn't get gussied up every night, but I always wore trousers and a collared shirt with closed toe shoes. Doesn't seem like much of an effort, even on vacation. That's how I dress most of the time, anyway. 

[SeaShark]

49 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

I think this is why @SeaSharkhas been on your case. You appear to believe in a "live and let live"  approach when it comes to cruise attire, but comments like the one I just posted indicate that you VERY MUCH have an opinion about dress codes. You see them as linked to an "older, darker time." It would appear that, inasmuch as you claim not to care what others wear, you in fact are dressing as casually as possible in order to "stick it to" the rulemakers. That belies a different intent than the "live and let live" attitude you espouse. Confusing, to say the least. 

 

Hold your cards....we have a BINGO!

 

You are correct...it was nothing to do with the dress code, but with the hypocrisy of claiming to "never pay attention" while reading & commenting...which is obviously some level of "attention".

 

 

Or, put another way, a lesson in why one shouldn't speak in absolutes. 

[complawyer]

before any more of you try and pile on my good buddy chiefmatejrk, (and especially you sea shark)

 

we have gone very far afield from the original question "is there a dress code"

 

other than Le Bistro, which insists men have collared shirts (and  ive never been on ocean blue so i cant comment)

 

the answer  is NO! there is not a specified dress code on ncl ships.

 

while i dont expect to see sting bikinis or micro mini skirts on women, or tattered jeans and ratty t-shirts on men, in any dining room, after 20+ cruises on ncl ships, the true answer to thin question is use a little common sense. if you wouldnt wear something in a restaurant on land, it's probably inappropriate to wear at a restaurant on the ship.

 

sure, if you want to wear a suit or a tux for dinner and you wife/girlfriend/ significant other wants to wear a gown, go for it. doing so however, might make you feel slightly out of place, as most others will probably be a whole lot more casually dressed and certainly, i whole lot more comfortable.

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, DCGuy64 said:

I think this is why @SeaSharkhas been on your case. You appear to believe in a "live and let live"  approach when it comes to cruise attire, but comments like the one I just posted indicate that you VERY MUCH have an opinion about dress codes. You see them as linked to an "older, darker time." It would appear that, inasmuch as you claim not to care what others wear, you in fact are dressing as casually as possible in order to "stick it to" the rulemakers. That belies a different intent than the "live and let live" attitude you espouse. Confusing, to say the least. 

I think we all know why he has been on my (and many others) case.  How is my suggesting that I'm not a fan of dress codes suggesting that I don't have an opinion about dress codes?  Yikes.  Help me out with the logic here.  I don't dress casually to "stick it to the rulemakers."  As I've consistently stated, I do it to be comfortable and enjoy my vacation.  What's wrong with that?  I don't live to "stick it to" anybody.  That doesn't sound like living.  If this confuses you, then you may wish to reread my posts.  They're quite self explanatory. 😎

 

ETA: I maintain my position that I have always complied to the letter of the law (if not the spirit) with how I dress in LeBistro and Ocean Blue.  I wear "pants and closed toe footwear."  If you think I'm in violation of anything, then sue me!  🤣

 

This thread just continues to amuse.....  Thanks guys!

Edited December 22, 2022 by ChiefMateJRK

[ChiefMateJRK]

46 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

You are correct...it was nothing to do with the dress code, but with the hypocrisy of claiming to "never pay attention" while reading & commenting...which is obviously some level of "attention".

I said I never pay attention to what others are wearing on the ship.  This has always been and remains true.  I do pay attention to these threads because they amuse me (for reasons previously stated).

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, DCGuy64 said:

We didn't get gussied up every night, but I always wore trousers

Gussied up?

Trousers?

I don't even know what these mean.

Edited December 22, 2022 by ChiefMateJRK

[eileeshb]

Just an example on the women’s footwear leniency… these are the sort of flip flops I wore in the evening on at least one cruise when dining in le bistro. These are definitely dressy flip flops as the insole gets ridiculously slick if it gets wet. 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

17 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

For some reason, I find this topic fascinating and irresistible. So here's my take: People who say "HEY, IT'S MY VACATION,  I PAID A LOT OF MONEY AND I SHOULD BE ABLE TO DO WHATEVER I WANT." That sounds like nothing so much as a bratty 5 year old pouting, with arms crossed saying "I DON'T WANNA GO TO SCHOOL!" Surely we are all adults on this forum and surely we should understand that EVEN BEING ON VACATION doesn't mean "it's all about me." I have witnessed firsthand, or seen others write about it here: 

1. People loudly farting at dinner

2. Women wearing thong bikinis in the dining room (or attempting to)

3. People clipping their toenails at adjacent loungers right by the pool (eewww!)

4. Someone grabbing the last 5 pieces of bacon right in front of me

5. Thermal spa running out of robes because people take the ones in the dressing room and walk back to their cabins with them on.

6. People leaving their things on loungers and never coming back for them

 

You get the idea. It's always easy to say "well it's freestyle, people should just be able to do/wear whatever they want." Trouble is, "whatever they want" means ANYTHING GOES, no matter how gross or tacky or entitled, selfish or rude. And whether or not you have to wear a "penguin suit," as you call it (Do you really have to wear a tuxedo all the time? Because that's what a penguin suit is, given that it's a black and white outfit.), there are standards of behavior that cruise lines can and do enforce. And I'm fine with them. Be careful what you wish for, because your definition of crossing the line may be VERY different from others'. 

I will admit, I did fart loudly at a table in a restaurant once. I didn't expect it to be so loud, but that little whisper exited like a rip roaring hurricane hitting Florida!

 

The bacon theft is just merciless. I'm guessing it was a buffet so staff had more once they had a chance to fill the chafing dish. Or, were you cruising Carnival with their endless bacon shortage? 

 

I don't use the thermal spa robes. I'm too fat for them so everyone gets to see my fat rolls and hairiness whilst I walk around whistling the latest Rihanna tune.

 

To be fair, nothing you mentioned above would trouble me. I'm on vacation. I'll make do taking care of myself. 

 

So, there is actually a code of conduct guests must adhere to, or risk having some sort of penalty levied - maybe a tongue lashing from the captain or a meek "please, sir, don't do that" from a poor employee that has to deal with despicable guest behavior. I think a lot of this "crossing the line" you speak of happens in these Cruise Critic conversations, but not in real life. Sure, there are exceptions, but for the most part people are on vacation to enjoy themselves. 

 

17 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

True story: the last night of our recent cruise (NCL Epic Dec 7-16), we ate dinner in Le Bistro and my wife and I got all fancied up (suit and tie for me, glamourous dress for her). A gentleman at a nearby table paused before leaving and said "It's nice to see people making the effort to dress up." I'm not gonna lie, I felt a bit proud of myself. 

Good for you, and for him. I'm glad you two were able to make each other's evenings. That's what vacation is for! Not my vacation, but your vacation. Freestyle at its' finest!

 

17 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

You see them as linked to an "older, darker time." It would appear that, inasmuch as you claim not to care what others wear, you in fact are dressing as casually as possible in order to "stick it to" the rulemakers.

I can't speak to @ChiefMateJRK's intentions. I can't get in his head and I'm not sure I'd want to haha...but I do know that I'm personally not trying "'stick it to' the rulemakers." I simply want to be comfortable. 

 

16 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

Yeah, I only brought one suit with me and two ties and dress shirts, my wife just the one dress. We didn't get gussied up every night, but I always wore trousers and a collared shirt with closed toe shoes. Doesn't seem like much of an effort, even on vacation. That's how I dress most of the time, anyway. 

Honestly, I am very happy NCL allows you the opportunity to get all "gussied up" when you want. Like you, I dress in suits and ties all the time. I've worn the occasional penguin suit too. This is exactly why I do not want to wear them while on the ship. First of all I'd have to pack the brown shoes, the black shoes, maybe the white and black shoes. Then, the socks. Ugh, so many socks for each style of belt I wear. Trousers? Argh, they get so sweaty, so quickly and wrinkly. I'm not into ironing. We have a fancy steam closet at home for this. 

 

If you're interested: https://www.samsung.com/us/home-appliances/air-dresser/air-dresser/airdresser-grand-clothing-care-system-with-steam-refresh-and-sanitize-in-mirror-finish-df10a9500cg-a1/?cid=sem-mktg-pfs-hacc-us-google-na-04072022-140992-&ds_e=GOOGLE-cr:0-pl:271869495-&ds_c=FF~Airdresser_CN~laundry_PH~on_MK~us_BS~da_PR~aird_SB~damul_PK~acquisition_FS~lo_CA~kew_MD~h_KS~bap_MT~exa-&ds_ag=AG~Airdresser_MK~us_AT~ta_MD~h_SD~44027_AI~yes-&ds_k=Samsung+dry+clean&gclid=Cj0KCQiAwJWdBhCYARIsAJc4idDRVc2mBUQwG0pnhzht4IS6wkuNZ6etPuqtn7e-HQc4dV9lvW9C6ucaAmYuEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

And then, shirts. Oh my! Do I take the paisley? The dotted ones? The pin stripes? The plain broadcloth? What about collars? Am I wearing a tie? No tie? Eeek, no thank you! I'll leave all that for my day-to-day life. 

 

BUT, having said that, you do you. Will I judge? If I'm being honest, I will, a little bit. Not a lot. And I certainly would have a conversation with you. I'll also assume dressing up isn't the norm for you since you decided to do so on vacation. Sounds like my assumption would be wrong with you. But hey, you're one of those rare DC breeds! 

 

I'll be sure to add a photo of my comfy vacation wear to my live when we get on the boat and I'm enjoying the life in my flippie floppies, t-shirt, and shorts that double as a bathing suit sometimes. 

[cruiseny4life]

 

17 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

That depends on your definition of "better." 

 

 

I won't get too far into this conversation as it could quickly expand out of cruising. I do appreciate the current era. You know why?

 

Last night when I saw my husband, I gave him a kiss...in public. And, no one cared. 

 

My grandparents (grandpa is gone now, since 2004, or was it 2006...anyway), were an inter racial couple raising a gay grandkid in their household. Maybe things were said behind our back, but they were also leaders in our community, voted in by fellow residents. I'd say that's pretty good for a dairy/horse farm town with 1,500 in Central NY. 

 

My mom, my grandma, my aunts...they can vote and run for office. I like that. 

 

When I cruise, I appreciate seeing so many different nationalities, ethnicities, etc. on the cruise ship. We all have a common purpose. To have a lovely, wonderful time on vacation. And, in every case I've ever seen (except my milk man story shared a few months ago), we all co-existed in small spaces, enjoying ourselves. 

 

Internet, air conditioning, cars, affordable airplane travel, the list goes on....

 

So yea, I'll take this "better era." I'm also 100% sure you were referring to NCL's freestyle mantra, but the original post about this that I responded to....that poster is referring to what I just mentioned (his posts are oftentimes mean spirited, classist, and stuck in the norms of the 40's, 50's, and 60's). 

[cruiseny4life]

12 hours ago, eileeshb said:

Just an example on the women’s footwear leniency… these are the sort of flip flops I wore in the evening on at least one cruise when dining in le bistro. These are definitely dressy flip flops as the insole gets ridiculously slick if it gets wet. 

 

 

Them be sparkly! Of course they're dressy! 🙂

[YangtzeCruiser]

On 12/20/2022 at 1:52 PM, New2cruise2022 said:

You have to wear underwear?

If it doesn't show, no one will know🤠

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

I can't speak to @ChiefMateJRK's intentions. I can't get in his head and I'm not sure I'd want to haha...but I do know that I'm personally not trying "'stick it to' the rulemakers." I simply want to be comfortable. 

It sounds like you were "in my head," because that is exactly what I posted. 😎   I don't break the rules so I don't understand why it was suggested that I did.  

[DCGuy64]

4 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

 

 

I won't get too far into this conversation as it could quickly expand out of cruising. I do appreciate the current era. You know why?

 

Last night when I saw my husband, I gave him a kiss...in public. And, no one cared. 

 

My grandparents (grandpa is gone now, since 2004, or was it 2006...anyway), were an inter racial couple raising a gay grandkid in their household. Maybe things were said behind our back, but they were also leaders in our community, voted in by fellow residents. I'd say that's pretty good for a dairy/horse farm town with 1,500 in Central NY. 

 

My mom, my grandma, my aunts...they can vote and run for office. I like that. 

 

When I cruise, I appreciate seeing so many different nationalities, ethnicities, etc. on the cruise ship. We all have a common purpose. To have a lovely, wonderful time on vacation. And, in every case I've ever seen (except my milk man story shared a few months ago), we all co-existed in small spaces, enjoying ourselves. 

 

Internet, air conditioning, cars, affordable airplane travel, the list goes on....

 

So yea, I'll take this "better era." I'm also 100% sure you were referring to NCL's freestyle mantra, but the original post about this that I responded to....that poster is referring to what I just mentioned (his posts are oftentimes mean spirited, classist, and stuck in the norms of the 40's, 50's, and 60's). 

What I would say is that society changes. Whether the changes are good or bad is very much in the eye of the beholder. Change doesn't = improvement. Some things you mentioned above I would agree are better than they used to be. But other things you haven't mentioned, aren't. For example, now that marijuana has been legalized, you can't walk down the street in DC or NYC (where my wife and I spent last weekend after our cruise) without smelling weed EVERYWHERE. Even my wife, who is the most non-judgemental person I know, couldn't stop complaining about it. I think people are ruder and snarkier online than they ever were before the internet and social media. So no, I don't agree that we're in a better era, just a different one. But you may have a different POV and that's fine.

[complawyer]

also remember it's a whole lot easier to be rude, snarky and even down right obnoxious, when you're on line and dont have to talk to anyone face to face

[asmit4]

On a 7 night there is generally a night where the daily states people might dress up if they want to right? --like 1 night where more people will dress up than others? I'm a loser that wants my family to dress up one night. I'm bringing a Kate Winslet type dress for that night- yes I'm totally lame and I know it. Wear what makes you happy right! 

[complawyer]

dress to the 9's if that will make your cruise and you feel better. you will note, however, that most of your fellow passengers will still be freestyle casual. 

but, dont let that deter you and enjoy the dress up night