Cunard does formal mean jacket every night?

[lilacsam]

We are on Alaska cruise with Cunard Queen Elizabeth in June with a Rocky Mountaineer and land tour including 3 days in Vancouver.

we just wondered if the “jacket every night” still applies to our cruise, thanks in advance

[Host Kat]

2 hours ago, lilacsam said:

We are on Alaska cruise with Cunard Queen Elizabeth in June with a Rocky Mountaineer and land tour including 3 days in Vancouver.

we just wondered if the “jacket every night” still applies to our cruise, thanks in advance

 

@lilacsam

 

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[exlondoner]

2 hours ago, lilacsam said:

We are on Alaska cruise with Cunard Queen Elizabeth in June with a Rocky Mountaineer and land tour including 3 days in Vancouver.

we just wondered if the “jacket every night” still applies to our cruise, thanks in advance

I don’t think jacket every night applies to any cruises, but most people do in fact wear them, and, depending on the ferocity of the air conditioning, you may wish to, for reasons of warmth rather than style.

[majortom10]

No only on formal nights do you have to wear a dark suit or tuxedo. The remainder of the nights are now classified as smart attire where a collared shirt and trousers will suffice.

[Desert Cruisers]

Have been on the QE in Alaska.  Jacket and tie only required on formal nights.  The Alaskan sailings tend to be less dressy. Fewer tuxedos/dinner jackets & gowns on formal night.  More casual wear ship-wide compared with QM2 transatlantic crossings.

[majortom10]

13 hours ago, Desert Cruisers said:

Have been on the QE in Alaska.  Jacket and tie only required on formal nights.  The Alaskan sailings tend to be less dressy. Fewer tuxedos/dinner jackets & gowns on formal night.  More casual wear ship-wide compared with QM2 transatlantic crossings.

Doesn't matter where you are in the world the dress code for Cunard now is black tie with dinner suit or dark suit and tie on formal nights. The rest is classed as smart attire where collared shirt and trousers and no jacket is required.

[seasickphil]

1 hour ago, majortom10 said:

Doesn't matter where you are in the world the dress code for Cunard now is black tie with dinner suit or dark suit and tie on formal nights. The rest is classed as smart attire where collared shirt and trousers and no jacket is required.

That is not strictly true, you can of course avoid this if you just wish to go in the Lido/ Golden Lion/ Cafe Carinthia/ Casino or the Casino. Of course, why you would want to do that when sailing on Cunard i don't know but that option is available.

[majortom10]

2 hours ago, seasickphil said:

That is not strictly true, you can of course avoid this if you just wish to go in the Lido/ Golden Lion/ Cafe Carinthia/ Casino or the Casino. Of course, why you would want to do that when sailing on Cunard i don't know but that option is available.

That is just splitting hairs. I was talking generally there is always somewhere to go if you don't want to adhere to the dress codes Andrew that has always been the case. I was talking about the official Cunard dress code where they have changed to Smart Attire and jackets are not required where in the past jackets were required every night if eating in MDR.

 

[seasickphil]

3 hours ago, majortom10 said:

That is just splitting hairs. I was talking generally there is always somewhere to go if you don't want to adhere to the dress codes Andrew that has always been the case. I was talking about the official Cunard dress code where they have changed to Smart Attire and jackets are not required where in the past jackets were required every night if eating in MDR.

 

Maybe i was ( although not intending to ) but not everyone know the dress code that's why the op asked a question. So many threads on Cunards dress code proves that not everyone know them, i was just giving  places where they could go if not wishing to dress up. I have no intention of starting an argument on the subject, after all we know there has been a great many of those over the years on here. 

[majortom10]

If anyone wants to know the dress code and what is acceptable it is easy enough to go on Cunard's website where it can clearly be found. The last place and expect a definitive answer is to ask on here because you get so many differing views that it just ends up being more confusing than when you started.

Edited February 27, 2023 by majortom10

[foodsvcmgr]

There are actually example photos of models dressed in various attire for daytime and evening on the Personaliser now for additional clarity.

[Desert Cruisers]

14 hours ago, majortom10 said:

Doesn't matter where you are in the world the dress code for Cunard now is black tie with dinner suit or dark suit and tie on formal nights. The rest is classed as smart attire where collared shirt and trousers and no jacket is required.

I do know the official dress code and understand the ship rules regarding where someone casually dressed can go or not go. However, the West Coast USA and Alaska sailings attract passengers who tend to "push the envelope" on the dress code.  This is true across all cruise lines.  Dark trousers with a sports jacket (not sure what this is called in the UK) will likely get you into the dining room on a formal evening.  It did for other passengers on a Panama Canal sailing last year.  So will a nice non-collared shirt for a man on a casual evening.  While there are official rules, there were passengers casually dressed at shows in the main theatre.

Bottomline...what happens on the ship, especially in different parts of the world, may be different than the official rules.  

[majortom10]

11 hours ago, Desert Cruisers said:

I do know the official dress code and understand the ship rules regarding where someone casually dressed can go or not go. However, the West Coast USA and Alaska sailings attract passengers who tend to "push the envelope" on the dress code.  This is true across all cruise lines.  Dark trousers with a sports jacket (not sure what this is called in the UK) will likely get you into the dining room on a formal evening.  It did for other passengers on a Panama Canal sailing last year.  So will a nice non-collared shirt for a man on a casual evening.  While there are official rules, there were passengers casually dressed at shows in the main theatre.

Bottomline...what and whereverhappens on the ship, especially in different parts of the world, may be different than the official rules.  

I can understand what you are saying but Cunard make the rules for the dress code and like I say is clearly stated on website and should make sure all staff enforce this in areas of the ship wherever dress code applies. I know when I first started cruising with Cunard it was dinner suit/tuxedo on formal nights and every other evenings were suit and tie. If you tried to get into MDR in the evening withoput a tie on they Restaurant Managers would stop you from entering and either ask you to return to your cabin to get one or they would lend you one from a draw at the entrance. If Restaurant Managers  enforced Cunard's dress code and staff refused to serve anyone in a bar or lounge if not adhering to dress code then I dont see a problem wherever in the world you are cruising. There are well known areas around the ship if you dont want to adhere to dress code for the evening and there are well known areas around the ship where they can dress casually.

[lissie]

On 2/27/2023 at 11:38 PM, majortom10 said:

Doesn't matter where you are in the world the dress code for Cunard now is black tie with dinner suit or dark suit and tie on formal nights. The rest is classed as smart attire where collared shirt and trousers and no jacket is required.

Not anymore Our packing guide - Ship dress code - Cunard cruises

[majortom10]

6 hours ago, lissie said:

Not anymore Our packing guide - Ship dress code - Cunard cruises

That is nothing new if you want to eat in buffet and only relax in certain areas of the ship which has always been the case. But if you want to dine in MDR and relax in Commodore Club or Queens Room then you have to adhere to dress code of the evening. This will be smart attire which is collared shirt and trousers and on Gala nights there wil be an elevated dress code which you will have to adhere to if you want to go to certain areas of the ship. This is nothing new it has been like that for some time they have just changed the wording to a oid confusion. There will still be Gala nights where you will be expected to adhere to dress code if dining in MDR.

Edited March 1, 2023 by majortom10

[Victoria2]

11 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

That is nothing new if you want to eat in buffet and only relax in certain areas of the ship which has always been the case. But if you want to dine in MDR and relax in Commodore Club or Queens Room then you have to adhere to dress code of the evening. This will be smart attire which is collared shirt and trousers and on Gala nights there wil be an elevated dress code which you will have to adhere to if you want to go to certain areas of the ship. This is nothing new it has been like that for some time they have just changed the wording to a oid confusion. There will still be Gala nights where you will be expected to adhere to dress code if dining in MDR.

I would dearly like to agree with you but devil's advocate here, the term 'elevated' depends on the base line before hand. A jacket, to add to the collared shirt and trousers could be construed as 'elevated' and to be perfectly frank, unless clearer guidance is given, the jacket would theoretically, 'elevate' a shirt and trouser outfit.

 

Semantics, I know but I have to agree with those who say the word is misleading and leaves the door wide open to interpretation.

[buchanan101]

On 2/26/2023 at 8:05 PM, majortom10 said:

No only on formal nights do you have to wear a dark suit or tuxedo. The remainder of the nights are now classified as smart attire where a collared shirt and trousers will suffice.

There is some debate about the collared shirt though.

At one stage last year the guidance was just collared shirt (so a polo shirt sufficed on my crossing last October).  Then the guidance apparently changed back to dress shirt

I do think trousers have always been required though!

[exlondoner]

1 hour ago, buchanan101 said:

There is some debate about the collared shirt though.

At one stage last year the guidance was just collared shirt (so a polo shirt sufficed on my crossing last October).  Then the guidance apparently changed back to dress shirt

I do think trousers have always been required though!

Not for Scots. 😀

[ballroom-cruisers]

There are clearly going to be some who continue to love the Gala night dress code, and will dress to that set of traditions irrespective of whether Cunard has a dress code or not, and equally there are strong minded folk who will demonstrably make sure that they dress to avoid any traditional formal evening dress standards. Time will tell whether there will be more, or less, people in either category as time passes.  I have been to quite a few ballroom dance land based weekend or midweek breaks in the UK, and although there is no dress code at all, there is always one of the evenings that 'becomes' a Gala night, where the majority of men wear dinner jacket with bow-tie, and the ladies an elegant evening dress.  First timers sometimes are not aware of that 'tradition' but most then make sure they bring some elegant evening wear if they go on similar short dance holidays in the future.  It is a bit like that with cruises on Cunard - there is a significant number of people who do love the elegance of a Gala evening and join like-minded passengers in making it a 'dress-up' evening.  People who like dressing up for the evening really are not that  bothered, for the most part, that there will be some who are determined to dress down rather than  up.  So it will be interesting to see if that continues through the next few years.

Edited March 1, 2023 by ballroom-cruisers
typo

[buchanan101]

1 hour ago, exlondoner said:

Not for Scots. 😀

Oh yes, of course. I should know, given that I'm 25% Scots and one of my names is Buchanan...

 

 

[buchanan101]

44 minutes ago, ballroom-cruisers said:

There are clearly going to be some who continue to love the Gala night dress code, and will dress to that set of traditions irrespective of whether Cunard has a dress code or not, and equally there are strong minded folk who will demonstrably make sure that they dress to avoid any traditional formal evening dress standards. Time will tell whether there will be more, or less, people in either category as time passes.  I have been to quite a few ballroom dance land based weekend or midweek breaks in the UK, and although there is no dress code at all, there is always one of the evenings that 'becomes' a Gala night, where the majority of men wear dinner jacket with bow-tie, and the ladies an elegant evening dress.  First timers sometimes are not aware of that 'tradition' but most then make sure they bring some elegant evening wear if they go on similar short dance holidays in the future.  It is a bit like that with cruises on Cunard - there is a significant number of people who do love the elegance of a Gala evening and join like-minded passengers in making it a 'dress-up' evening.  People who like dressing up for the evening really are not that  bothered, for the most part, that there will be some who are determined to dress down rather than  up.  So it will be interesting to see if that continues through the next few years.

I liked the dressing up for the two eves - even bought a dinner suit (and not just off the peg) for the crossing - with that investment we are having to go again next year on a QA cruise...

 

I think it'll continue

 

[exlondoner]

10 minutes ago, buchanan101 said:

Oh yes, of course. I should know, given that I'm 25% Scots and one of my names is Buchanan...

 

 

And other forms of formal national dress. 

[Solent Richard]

3 hours ago, exlondoner said:

And other forms of formal national dress. 

Ah yes...

 

[NE John]

This is an extension of a recent post about changes to dress code.
 

The dress code confusion may also affect staff trying to determine what is “elevated” or not. Said staff will use this vague guidance to potentially deny access to Gala Night areas. I would imagine staff would feel bad denying access. 
So…this new wording puts added pressure on MdrD’s in Queens Room, MDR, etc to make on the spot subjective decisions. 

Edited March 1, 2023 by NE John

[Crown Vic]

On one QM2 transAtlantic crossing, men entered the dining room wearing a jacket but were not stopped from removing the jacket and placing it on the back of the chair.