Dress code for Queen Elizabeth

[Megabear2]

34 minutes ago, Desert Cruisers said:

What would you wear to a Saturday evening wedding with "black tie optional" on the invitation?  [Not sure what the equivalent terminology would be in the UK.]

We do not have black tie optional for weddings in most cases. Invites will specify formal where required rather than leaving an open option.  Most UK weddings nowadays are either "formal" ie top hat/tails or morning suit or if not stated normal suits/ties, smart attire.  Young people in particular love the sense of occasion and dress smartly

 

[exlondoner]

36 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

 

WantedOnVoyage

 

The advice given to judydoc has been fine. What some aspire to and the reality are totally different these days.

Pre Covid, my husband would no more go tie less, than fly to the moon. In his own rebellious way, he's ditched them and that's from an 'old style' dresser. Still got the jackey tho' but that's his choice.

 

Like it or not, times have changed and when asked for advice, objective replies should be given and the reality is, 'Smart attire' is def. more casual  than it used to be.

 

Give incorrect info and lovely folk who would be the future of Cunard, might be put off and as I hope we have another 20 yrs of cruising in us, I hope Cunard survives. Tie less but with the option for us to scrub up if we want to.

Always remembering the variable ferocity of the air conditioning.

[Victoria2]

18 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Always remembering the variable ferocity of the air conditioning.

Absolutely, but chaps' neckwear will have little effect on inner core temperature if jackets are worn!!😀

 

Indeed, [and possibly TMI here] where air con fails or isn't sufficient, the lack of ties will help to lessen the dripping sweat we have seen in QV's QG on hot faces in the Indian and Pacific Oceans!

[NE John]

4 hours ago, judydoc said:

Our first time with Cunard

To (thankfully) veer away from the original dress code question, I also believe first time Cunard passengers should be prepared to enjoy more of a British experience onboard vs other lines: afternoon tea, a wonderful British pub, many portraits of British royalty along with artwork of Cunard’s past ocean liners, some UK sourced food (healthier than our stuff!), and great ales and gins we can’t find here. 
Add complementary room service, self-serve laundry with detergent, many included pastries and nibbles in Cafe Carinthia, very few onboard announcements/distractions from the bridge or entertainment team, and except for Spa promos, zero upselling. All this leads to a relaxed and calm environment. 
Please remember that, while important, sailing on Cunard is more than the dress code. It’s not perfect but I very much like the difference that Cunard offers from many other land and sea vacation/holiday/gettaway options. 

[mking8288]

2 hours ago, NE John said:

To (thankfully) veer away from the original dress code question, I also believe first time Cunard passengers should be prepared to enjoy more of a British experience onboard vs other lines ... 

 

Add complementary room service, self-serve laundry with detergent, many included pastries and nibbles in Cafe Carinthia, very few onboard announcements/distractions from the bridge or entertainment team, and except for Spa promos, zero upselling. All this leads to a relaxed and calm environment ... sailing on Cunard is more than the dress code.

 

It’s not perfect but I very much like the difference that Cunard offers from many other ... 

John, you help summarized and give depth & perspective for us ... hello or hi, @judydoc  we are 6, among others, sailing on Cunard and the QE for the first time  @Desert Cruisers from Nevada (I think) also ... roll call isn't lively & aside from an informal gathering, not sure if you checked it out. 

 

We are giving Cunard a spin to experience and see for myself, what's different and also what's similar, with an open mind and to make the most out of the Alaska cruise - a better itinerary than what NCL offered for similar 10 days.  

 

Your DW shouldn't sweat the dress code, we dusted off our dark suit, out of early retirement & brought 3 new white dress shirts and other things off Amazon in a hurry.  Still remember how to put on a tie as it was Mon-Fri, 9 to 6 or 10 to 7 in those younger days.  I am pretty sure collar shirts from Land's End, LL Beans and Eddie Bauer, etc. will be just fine for after-6 wear when dress code isn't themed or white & black-tie ... in the online guide for US itineraries.  Dockers & similarly clean, neat and business casual pants that we comfortably wear daily should do.  Never worn jeans with holes or torn anywhere, no kilts to bring along but given the weather forecast, needs for a pair of Bermuda shorts isn't there.  

 

Bermuda being one of our favorite destinations from the East Coast, we have a pretty good idea of the UK or British thing ... complimentary afternoon tea, included in our fares paid, just what we look forward to.  

 

Maybe, maybe our paths won't cross onboard but cheers.  

[david63]

6 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

or white & black-tie

It is many years since white tie was worn on any cruise ship.

[NE John]

8 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

John, you help summarized and give depth & perspective for us ... hello or hi, @judydoc  we are 6, among others, sailing on Cunard and the QE for the first time  @Desert Cruisers from Nevada (I think) also ... roll call isn't lively & aside from an informal gathering, not sure if you checked it out. 

 

We are giving Cunard a spin to experience and see for myself, what's different and also what's similar, with an open mind and to make the most out of the Alaska cruise - a better itinerary than what NCL offered for similar 10 days.  

 

Your DW shouldn't sweat the dress code, we dusted off our dark suit, out of early retirement & brought 3 new white dress shirts and other things off Amazon in a hurry.  Still remember how to put on a tie as it was Mon-Fri, 9 to 6 or 10 to 7 in those younger days.  I am pretty sure collar shirts from Land's End, LL Beans and Eddie Bauer, etc. will be just fine for after-6 wear when dress code isn't themed or white & black-tie ... in the online guide for US itineraries.  Dockers & similarly clean, neat and business casual pants that we comfortably wear daily should do.  Never worn jeans with holes or torn anywhere, no kilts to bring along but given the weather forecast, needs for a pair of Bermuda shorts isn't there.  

 

Bermuda being one of our favorite destinations from the East Coast, we have a pretty good idea of the UK or British thing ... complimentary afternoon tea, included in our fares paid, just what we look forward to.  

 

Maybe, maybe our paths won't cross onboard but cheers.  

I’m still on my Alaska high so pardon my over reaching out…

[judydoc]

Thankyou for all the helpful comments.  Appreciate all the info!  Looking forward to our Cruise.  We have been in Alaska several times and finding people dressing down since covid.  We dress formal when on a Caribbean cruise and in fact have left that down south.  Cunard is going to be a new experience for us.   Thankyou all again!! 

[Masticon]

Just got off the QE on the 20th of August for Alaska. Here's my commentary on the dress code:

 

Considering this is Cunard and everyone talks about the dress code on Cunard we went out of our way to be sure we would be up to snuff. I had spent months putting together a tuxedo set with vests to match my wife’s gowns she had picked up. Considering I was in a Tux and my wife in a gown, we were by far among the best dressed on the ship. I would actually have considered us to be overdressed. Numerous people in the MDR were in button up shirts and jeans. The average man wore a light colored sports jacket or blazer and probably didn’t have a tie, the average lady had pants and a blouse. Tuxes and dresses were by far in the minority and gowns were essentially absent. While we would have been perfectly happy to just wear a button up shirt or blouse, this was not what we expected on Cunard. There were a small handful of people in tuxes and a few very nice dresses which were largely absent on HAL. I feel that if I were to travel on Cunard I most likely wouldn’t bring more than a vest or blazer and button up shirt and my wife would have been fine in any of her nice knee length dresses. The evening didn’t really feel in any way more elevated than the formal nights on HAL.

[Sojurn]

That's interesting. We traveled from Vancouver to Barcelona on the Queen Elizabeth last year. Formal nights were definitely formal. Perhaps it was because we were on a long cruise?

[Desert Cruisers]

I'm also somewhat mystified.  I'm wondering if the poster thought that the formal dress code applied every night.  A sports jacket without a tie is appropriate attire on a smart casual night. 

 

Have been on the QE in Alaska twice for a total of 30 days. For Cunard, dress was more casual in Alaska than on a QM2 transatlantic.  There was a minority of passengers who didn't dress up on formal nights but they were not in the dining room. Yes, there were some passengers who pushed the envelope when it came to formalwear.  However, every man that I saw in the dining room on formal night wore a tie.  

[david,Mississauga]

On 8/25/2024 at 5:32 PM, david63 said:

It is many years since white tie was worn on any cruise ship.

 

Of course it hasn't been customary for a very long time (even Emily Post in the 1930s edition of her famous book recommended against it).  On two crossings on the QM2 - not too many years ago - I have seen one man in white tie and tails.  The gent in QG even had a top hat and cane, which he handed to the maître d' Osman on entering the restaurant. On the other crossing a much younger man was in white tie in Britannia.