Formal Attire

[Lady Arwen]

2 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

So, so, so true.  Ten years ago, as we were preparing for our Alaska cruise, my then-teenager told me that this was the dress she was going to wear on Formal Night...

 

 

...so, yeah.  I packed my tuxedo!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh my, your daughter is stunning!  You better wear your tux with this lady!

[PrincessLuver]

1 hour ago, david63 said:

I can believe it.

 

I am guessing that you may not have done a cruise out of/into the UK - if that is true then you would be in for a big surprise at the standard of dress.

 

We have done at least 5 Princess cruises out of UK and pretty much the same as the rest of the cruises we have done.  I would say it was 50/50 every time.  And those are my facts!!

 

[Torfamm]

5 hours ago, MissP22 said:

That in itself explains a lot. 

Cruising in that part of the world seems to be a completely different experience. 

People who enjoy that style of cruising should be quite satisfied. 

The formal night dress code isn’t necessarily observed only by the British and on cruises out of Southampton. It’s easy to forget that there are many places where Princess cruises beyond North America. It could be that the cruises from North America are the outliers. We don’t hear as much on this site about Asia, South America, or even Australia, New Zealand, and Europe as we do the Caribbean and Alaska. That doesn’t mean we should assume they are the norm. Maybe they are just completely different from the rest of the world?

Edited April 11, 2023 by Torfamm

[JimmyVWine]

1 minute ago, Torfamm said:

It could be that the cruises from North America are the outliers. We don’t hear as much on this site about Asia, South America, or even Australia, New Zealand, and Europe as we do the Caribbean and Alaska. That doesn’t mean we should assume they are the norm. Maybe they are completely different from the rest of the world?

Good point.  I just did a quick check.  Of all the departures in 2024, just over one-third depart from North American ports.  

[no1racefan1]

WHO CARES--wear whatever you want!

 

We dress up because we never get a chance to dress up in our regular daily routine and I think it's fun. Our dressing up is not as formal as some people and may be more formal than others.

 

I have never, ever seen anybody wearing anything that negatively impacted my vacation experience in any way, whatsoever. 

[MissP22]

36 minutes ago, david63 said:

I can believe it.

 

I am guessing that you may not have done a cruise out of/into the UK - if that is true then you would be in for a big surprise at the standard of dress.

Perhaps. Although I don't plan on a cruise there anytime soon, it's still good to know. 

We like the laid back, relaxing trips to the Caribbean, Alaska or Mexico . 

[MissP22]

13 minutes ago, PrincessLuver said:

 

We have done at least 5 Princess cruises out of UK and pretty much the same as the rest of the cruises we have done.  I would say it was 50/50 every time.  And those are my facts!!

 

And they almost had me convinced that everyone was dressing formally. 😄

 

[Sunwanabe]

On 4/10/2023 at 2:35 AM, lion1956 said:

We have not been on a cruise for many years but we are takiing a Emerald Princess cruise in May, my question, is it absolutely required to wear a suit or sportcoat on formal nights?  I ask because we flying internationality and it is such a pain to pack and carry a suit.  What is the percentage of people in your estimate who go to a formal night without wearing a suit?

We along with 6 others were on Discovery in March. Men, slacks and a polo shirt or long sleeve shirt. No ties, no suits. Woman, casual dresses or blouse and pants. From memory I would say no more than 20% with suit and ties. Personally, I like the dressed down casual look for dinner. Personal preference.  

[wowzz]

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

So you're saying that there were no guys without a least a suit jacket?

Hard to believe. 

I would say just a couple out of hundreds.

[Ombud]

On 4/10/2023 at 5:03 AM, lion1956 said:

Well,  really the advice above is conflicting and I am no clearer on what to do, any more comments pls.

Where are you cruising to?

Alaska - dress to impress = best flannel shirt & jeans w/o holes for men & women. Women might add a sweater with sequins but in no way formal

Caribbean - button down shirt & slacks. Skirt for most women

Europe - suit & tie, women dress up

Asia - formal attire

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by Ombud

[Steelers36]

16 minutes ago, Ombud said:

Where are you cruising to?

Alaska - dress to impress = best flannel shirt & jeans w/o holes for men & women. Women might add a sweater with sequins but in no way formal

Caribbean - button down shirt & slacks. Skirt for most women

Europe - suit & tie, women dress up

Asia - formal attire

 

You forgot Hawaii.  Emerald going to HI in May.

[Ombud]

5 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

You forgot Hawaii.  Emerald going to HI in May.

Can't say for Hawaii or Mexico. Haven't been to those (yet) after the restart. Can state Mexico in 2 weeks, Hawaii in June

 

(Asia was 2019-2020)

Edited April 11, 2023 by Ombud

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, PrincessLuver said:

 

We have done at least 5 Princess cruises out of UK and pretty much the same as the rest of the cruises we have done.  I would say it was 50/50 every time.  And those are my facts!!

 

Yes, but the 50% dressing up are the Brits

 

[wowzz]

46 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

And they almost had me convinced that everyone was dressing formally. 😄

 

But you don't know which nationality wasn't dressing formally !

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, Sunwanabe said:

We along with 6 others were on Discovery in March. Men, slacks and a polo shirt or long sleeve shirt. No ties, no suits. Woman, casual dresses or blouse and pants. From memory I would say no more than 20% with suit and ties. Personally, I like the dressed down casual look for dinner. Personal preference.  

No problem with that, but you were not on a European cruise out of Southampton, when you would have been in a minority. 

[MissP22]

4 hours ago, wowzz said:

I would say just a couple out of hundreds.

That's fine.  As long as they're permitted. 

 

 

 

3 hours ago, wowzz said:

But you don't know which nationality wasn't dressing formally !

Who cares. The most important thing is they're given the choice. 

[Potstech]

Again see post #6 for the answer to OP question.

[SiliconCruiser]

6 hours ago, Lady Arwen said:

One pair of long lightweight pants is too heavy?

But packing my tuxedo, the appropriate accompaniments, along with the shoes and jewelry ... just so that I can stand out like the proverbial sore thumb made think twice.

 

[FrankieJayIII]

I have always been able to either- bring a garment bag or fold into the suit case.

 

I have (3) suit options.     Alaska cruise- 10 days, 2 formal nights.    There is a gold and white party. (is this tan?)

 

I have these options-    Black suit, blue/white searsucker suit, tan suit. 

 

Which (2) should I bring?   

[brisalta]

On 4/10/2023 at 5:18 AM, curious_st said:

I’m also very interested in responses.  We sail to Hawaii on Emerald in June.  This will be my first Princess, but I have sailed other lines. It’s hard enough to pack for a 16 day cruise already.  Then, when you factor in flying, it gets more complicated.  My husband would rather leave the sports coat at home if he would not look out of place without it. 

 

Remember Princess ships do have self service laundromats so it is not necessary to take a complete change of clothes for a 16 day cruise.

[Ombud]

22 minutes ago, brisalta said:

On 4/10/2023 at 5:18 AM, curious_st said:

I’m also very interested in responses.  We sail to Hawaii on Emerald in June.  This will be my first Princess, but I have sailed other lines. It’s hard enough to pack for a 16 day cruise already.  Then, when you factor in flying, it gets more complicated.  My husband would rather leave the sports coat at home if he would not look out of place without it. 

Expand  

 

Remember Princess ships do have self service laundromats so it is not necessary to take a complete change of clothes for a 16 day cruise.

Not even 1 change??

[curious_st]

8 hours ago, brisalta said:

 

Remember Princess ships do have self service laundromats so it is not necessary to take a complete change of clothes for a 16 day cruise.

I am aware of the laundromats, and had intended to only pack enough for about a week.  But, I am getting paranoid because of all of the reports that I’m reading on here  and in my Facebook groups about the laundromats being closed due to Norovirus and/or Covid.

[Lady Arwen]

11 hours ago, SiliconCruiser said:

But packing my tuxedo, the appropriate accompaniments, along with the shoes and jewelry ... just so that I can stand out like the proverbial sore thumb made think twice.

 

Who said you had to wear a tux?  Just one pair of decent long pants and a collared shirt.  Is that so hard to do?  Leave the shorts in the cabin for only 1 hour while you eat in the MDR.  Please.

[JimmyVWine]

32 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

Just one pair of decent long pants and a collared shirt.

And:  "I just can't seem to find any room in my luggage for this one, silk tie!"...said no one ever. 🤣

[Lady Arwen]

8 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

And:  "I just can't seem to find any room in my luggage for this one, silk tie!"...said no one ever. 🤣

Jimmy, you read my mind!