Dress Code

[retiredbrit]

There is an earlier thread re Informal nights with pertinent comments from Rev22:17 who always explains the Dress code so well.

We have sailed twice with Celebrity and have recently returned from a Christmas / New Year cruise on Mercury through the Panama. Certainly on these two cruises the Dress code is slipping – The requirement for a tie on Informal evening had been dropped from the issued code.

I noticed that many men wore a jacket on Informal evenings, many of them without a tie – some having a polo shirt and jacket, others no jacket at all. A few Hawaiian shirts were seen

On Formal nights some men ignored the code – I saw at least one person in jeans and jacket, many light coloured suits, a few sports coats and at least one man without a jacket.

I queried this with Simon our assistant Maitre D and the Cruise Director Stuart; both regretted the lowering of standards. Stuart remembered the time when non complying guests were escorted back to their cabins to either change or so they could eat elsewhere, or they were served the complete menu in their cabin.

Both regretted the lowering of standards and said that the code is almost impossible to enforce, saying that Celebrity is worried that if they do they will lose customers, as many regular long time cruisers are also offenders.

It was also said that staff turned a blind eye to avoid hassle – passengers get very irate when questioned and have even spat at the official concerned.

For the record most women took the opportunity to “Dress up” every evening and looked great.

[lysolqn]

Unfortunate, but true. The dumbing down of the dress code is not unique to Celebrity or the specific cruises you've been on; it's industry-wide. Just a sign of the times, I guess - everyone seems to believe rules are for someone else to follow, while they're entitled to do or not do as they please.

[GORDONCHICK]

I don't think X realizes that they will lose many more loyal customers by lowering the dress codes and not even enforcing the new lower ones.

[Jarronwood]

I for one will be making sure hubby complies with the dress code. One of the reasons we chose X was because I "thought" that this particular line would enforce the code and was a little bit more upmarket than the other mass lines. I have to say that since booking last July I am a little concerned to find that as each month goes by and each poster posts their experience, more and more people are not enforcing the code.

 

I have yet to experience X, but in 4 weeks I shall be in the Summit for two weeks.

 

But if I do find that hubby and I stand out like a sore thumb on these special nights I for one would not be too pleased and if every we get the chance to cruise again, would def not be sailing with them.

 

We will just have to save like hard to go with those lines that do enforce the code.

 

Why can't X keep to its standards? Do they not realise that they will lose customers since from reading these boards the majority of cruisers want the dress code enforced?

[jmkoilers]

You'd better believe that on formal nights, I will be wearing my tux - how often can you wear it otherwise. So, I totally agree that when on a cruise, and when it is formal night, dressing to the hilt is something I thoroughly enjoy. Take advantage of the situation to see ladies in their finest attire and ponder the sailings that most people have seen in movies. I may be old fashioned (only 51), but respect the event. When invited to a black tie event, would you show up in jeans? I think not, so when it is formal night, treat it the same way. To those who feel the same way - THANK YOU! If you don't want to get dressed up - go to the casual dining or snack bars.

[lucky white heather]

You'd better believe that on formal nights, I will be wearing my tux - how often can you wear it otherwise. So, I totally agree that when on a cruise, and when it is formal night, dressing to the hilt is something I thoroughly enjoy. Take advantage of the situation to see ladies in their finest attire and ponder the sailings that most people have seen in movies. I may be old fashioned (only 51), but respect the event. When invited to a black tie event, would you show up in jeans? I think not, so when it is formal night, treat it the same way. To those who feel the same way - THANK YOU! If you don't want to get dressed up - go to the casual dining or snack bars.

 

 

We feel exactly the same..we make the effort to dress appropriately for the type of evening it is and coming from the UK we have less luggage to put the required outfits into as we always fly with the knowledge that 23 kgs per person means taking exactly what is needed and no more...... otherwise we pay expensively for any extra weight.

It never fails to surprise us that those cruisers who get the two x 50 pound bags each person allowance cannot seem to find room for the proper dress code articles..either that or they choose not to???? I know I'll get ticked off (slammed) for saying this..but it is an expensive holiday choice for us and probably is for many other cruisers , so why do some others insist on presenting themselves like it is a "holiday camp at sea" experience????

If the cruiseline insisted on the dress code for the evening being applied to those who flout it, perhaps they might not lose as many customers as they think they would!

[lucky white heather]

You'd better believe that on formal nights, I will be wearing my tux - how often can you wear it otherwise. So, I totally agree that when on a cruise, and when it is formal night, dressing to the hilt is something I thoroughly enjoy. Take advantage of the situation to see ladies in their finest attire and ponder the sailings that most people have seen in movies. I may be old fashioned (only 51), but respect the event. When invited to a black tie event, would you show up in jeans? I think not, so when it is formal night, treat it the same way. To those who feel the same way - THANK YOU! If you don't want to get dressed up - go to the casual dining or snack bars.

 

 

We feel exactly the same..we make the effort to dress appropriately for the type of evening it is and coming from the UK we have less luggage to put the required outfits into as we always fly with the knowledge that 23 kgs per person means taking exactly what is needed and no more...... otherwise we pay expensively for any extra weight.

It never fails to surprise us that those cruisers who get the two x 50 pound bags each person allowance cannot seem to find room for the proper dress code articles..either that or they choose not to???? I know I'll get ticked off (slammed) for saying this..but it is an expensive holiday choice for us and probably is for many other cruisers , so why do some others insist on presenting themselves like it is a "holiday camp at sea" experience????

If the cruiseline insisted on the dress code for the evening being applied to those who flout it, perhaps they might not lose as many customers as they think they would!

[caviargal]

This is a sad situation and I saw the same on Mercury 15 months ago and Century in November.

 

One of reasons I enjoy(ed) X in the past was the extra degree of formality and elegance. Dress standards are no longer enforeced and other elements are declining to become the same standard as the other mass market lines.

 

I am hoping that my HAL cruise this spring is as nice as the one last year but even on those boards, comments are being made about lower standards and no enforcement.

 

With the introduction of X's new and very large ships, I am certain that these standards will decline even more as they struggle to fill more cabins than ever.

 

It is a shame that soon there will be no cruise lines left (except for possibly Crystal) who will offer a traditional and formal dining and evening experience. IMO, the things that made cruising a special vacation are slowly dying off in an effort to appease the masses.

[scouse mouse]

I for one (and DH) will be getting our best bib and tucker out of mothballs for our forthcoming cruise. Getting dressed up is one of the high points of a Cruise, and we are really looking forward to it. I do not care what other people do, at least I know I will be properly attired.:)

[BILLP1]

I wonder if the people who like to make their own rules know that they can sail on Carnival and feel right at home in Jeans .

 

We live in a time where everything is about ME, ME ,ME .

 

 

The cruise lines build these beautiful ships, dress their restaurant staff and people show up like their ready to plow The North Forty...

[spearmint]

One of the reasons we chose X was because I "thought" that this particular line would enforce the code and was a little bit more upmarket than the other mass lines.

 

WE DID TOO.

 

I have to say that as each month goes by and each poster posts their experience, more and more people are not enforcing the code.

 

IT SEEMS THAT WAY.

 

 

But if I do find that hubby and I stand out like a sore thumb on these special nights

 

TRUST ME; YOU WILL NOT STAND OUT AND YOU WILL LOVE THE AMBIENCE CREATED BY SO MANY PEOPLE DRESSED TO THE NINES!

 

Why can't X keep to its standards? Do they not realise that they will lose customers since from reading these boards the majority of cruisers want the dress code enforced?

 

WE HAVE BEEN RELUCTANT TO TRY OTHER LINES AS WE HAVE BEEN SO ENAMOURED OF THE STYLE OF CELEBRITY'S CRUISES. WE HAVE ONLY BEEN ON 5 CRUISES, AND, LUCKILY, UNLIKE OTHER POSTERS, HAVE NOT SEEN MANY PEOPLE DISREGARDING THE FORMAL DRESS CODE. PERHAPS A FEW IGNORING THE INFORMAL, BUT NOT MANY. HOPE YOUR EXPERIENCE IS LIKE OURS BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE IT!:D

[suzeyQ]

We're cruising on Galaxy in March and we will be dressed appropriately, according to the guidelines X sets out on thier website. I'm hopeful that most other people will do the same. Part of the reason we booked X was because we wanted a more "formal" experience than we've had on our last couple of cruises. It's too bad that the cruise staff aren't enforcing the dress codes better - I agree that X may very well lose more people than they keep by failing to do anything about it.

[Pisces11]

I for one will beWhy can't X keep to its standards? Do they not realise that they will lose customers since from reading these boards the majority of cruisers want the dress code enforced?

 

From the numbers of people posting on these boards, it seems like posting cruise critic members are in the definite minority of cruisers. I have only cruised on Celebrity once. My observations for whatever they are worth were that people enjoyed dressing up for formal night. The informal and casual nights were so confusing that people dressed the same. I did not see any jeans or tshirts in the dining room and most of the women and men were dressed very nicely for both of them but without sports jackets. People are on vacation. They want to relax not try to figure out if they are following some arbitrary rules when it appears that the cruise ship is not even sure of its own rules. The age group on our Celebrity cruise was definitely empty nesters who had not yet retired. This age group usually dresses nicely even if the men aren't in sports jackets.

[Charles4515]

I don't think X realizes that they will lose many more loyal customers by lowering the dress codes and not even enforcing the new lower ones.

 

Lose them to whom? None of the cruise lines enforces a dress code.

 

They will lose more customers if they try to enforce a dress code. So they don't enforce it. How the customers dress at any time reflects the culture of the times. It would take our culture becoming more formal to change dress standards back to what they once were instead of more casual as has been the case.

[rosinryanz]

Lose them to whom? None of the cruise lines enforces a dress code.

 

They will lose more customers if they try to enforce a dress code. So they don't enforce it. How the customers dress at any time reflects the culture of the times. It would take our culture becoming more formal to change dress standards back to what they once were instead of more casual as has been the case.

 

And dining on cruises will continue to be a sad affair until that time.

 

That being said, I think we all need to realize that far too much of the world around us just doesn't care about the way they look, let alone following a dress code.

[Charles4515]

And dining on cruises will continue to be a sad affair until that time.

 

That being said, I think we all need to realize that far too much of the world around us just doesn't care about the way they look, let alone following a dress code.

 

Perhaps they do care and just don't care to look the way you want?

 

Fashion changes. For example what we call formal wear, tuxedos, used to be called semiformal. Formal was white tie, much more formal.

 

It is not that there is not a dress code, it is that the code changes.

 

It is really not something to obsess about, what other people are wearing to the dining room on cruises.

 

It is not the same as being invited to a black tie event and not wearing black tie. It is a bunch of middle class people who paid to vacation on a cruise ship that sells to ordinary middle class people. It doesn't really matter what they wear.

[sirgonealot]

I am just a little bit confused. My DH is retired military and swore that when he retired he would never wear another tux. When we cruise he wears a tasteful sportcoat and tie (and looks wonderful) and I wear the fanciest dress I can find. He tells me I look beautiful and I think he looks wonderful. Why should anyone care as long as we are comfortable with ourselves? I have never had anyone at our table ever object to his attire. He happens to be extremely handsome and I think they never look past his silver hair.

[Bengoshi]

Sirgonealot, let me suggest that your DH reconsider, and wear either his evening dress (in the Marine Corps, it is eveing formal dress) or civilian evening formal dress (aka Tuxedo), with miniature medals. He spent too much time to ignore that, and he owes it to his service, and to you, to bear witness to his service. Besides, like it or not, we are at war. And, it is my experience that if one wears one's miniature medals on evening wear on formal night, he will not have to buy a drink all night!

 

I am a Colonel of Marines, Retired.

[jasm8449]

With so many reporting that the Informal dress code is not enforced in the main dining room, I was wondering about the Specialty Restaurants. What has been your experience regarding dress code enforcement - especially the requirement that men wear jackets?

[DaveFr]

With so many reporting that the Informal dress code is not enforced in the main dining room, I was wondering about the Specialty Restaurants. What has been your experience regarding dress code enforcement - especially the requirement that men wear jackets?

On our recent TA on the Millennium, we ate in the specialty restaurant eight times. On non-formal nights, I don't ever remember seeing any men not wearing at least a sport jacket. On formal nights, every man I saw was wearing a tuxedo or a dark suit.

[thejanet]

I just returned from a short Caribbean cruise on the Century and my observations were thus:

 

Formal night: about 10% in tux or dinner jacket, about 80% in dark suit, the other 10% looked like sports jackets (a few with no tie) to me. no jeans seen.

 

Informal night: about 40% in suits, 30% in sports jackets, the other 30% in slacks and polo type shirts. Less than half with tie. No jeans seen.

 

Casual night: Sparsely scattered jackets, no ties seen. A few (maybe 10%) jeans but I saw two being sent back upstairs. Maybe 30% of females in slacks.

 

To be fair, the warmer climate rather encourages a more casual dress, and I wasn't overly upset at my observations.

 

For the "elegant tea" late afternoon, they did indeed enforce the dress code, sending every man upstairs to get a jacket. Although they didn't insist on ties. I didn't see any jeans on either gender.

[retiredbrit]

Lucky white heather wrote

we make the effort to dress appropriately for the type of evening it is and coming from the UK we have less luggage to put the required outfits into as we always fly with the knowledge that 23 kgs per person means taking exactly what is needed and no more...... otherwise we pay expensively for any extra weight

.

 

I don’t think the UK luggage allowance applies to flights to USA and Canada.

On our American Airlines flight for the 23 December sailing on Mercury from Miami through the Panama Canal to San Diego - the ailines web sites told us we were allowed us two cases each one not exceeding 50 pounds in weight plus our carry-ons. The same allowance applied to our BA flight home and to an earlier (July) flight to Vancouver for a Celebrity Alaska cruise.

We took 3 cases plus a large Garment carrier.

At the end of our Panama cruise we flew from San Diego to LA on a tiny American Eagle comuter plane which held about 20 passengers - there was no problem with our 4 bags

Glad to see most posters are sad that the code is not followed by more people.

[scouse mouse]

OK this is one for the gentlemen. My husband is ex Brit Military and he always ties his own Bow Tie (or gets me to do it if we're on the same continant!!!). It was frowned upon to own a made up Bow Tie, and woe betide anyone turning up for a dining in night in one. The question is 'self made ties are more proper?' Agree or disagree.

[lucky white heather]

Lucky white heather wrote

.

 

I don’t think the UK luggage allowance applies to flights to USA and Canada.

On our American Airlines flight for the 23 December sailing on Mercury from Miami through the Panama Canal to San Diego - the ailines web sites told us we were allowed us two cases each one not exceeding 50 pounds in weight plus our carry-ons. The same allowance applied to our BA flight home and to an earlier (July) flight to Vancouver for a Celebrity Alaska cruise.

 

We took 3 cases plus a large Garment carrier.

 

At the end of our Panama cruise we flew from San Diego to LA on a tiny American Eagle comuter plane which held about 20 passengers - there was no problem with our 4 bags

 

Glad to see most posters are sad that the code is not followed by more people.

 

 

 

Depends on if you need to fly somewhere to join the US flight and back within the European system...we are flying with BA out to Miami ( from EDI) soon but back from Southampton on BA connect..which will be FlyBE by the time we need to fly...their luggage demands are pay for your check in luggage so we need to bear luggage restraints in mind.On our last trip (to Venice and back from Barcelona)on Millenium Nov 06 we had 20 kgs pp as we flew with BMI. Maybe you are flying direct from LHR or LGW without domestic / connecting flights involved.

We know about the restrictions for 23 kgs on BA..got their email from BA Exec Club. and the fact that US an other areas are exempt but we seldom come home from the US.

[cruisin'mama]

I am one who enjoys dressing up. As a stay-at-home-mom I don't get many opportunities anymore to do so. My husband works construction, and when he's off work, wants to be comfortable. OK, I understand that so when I cruise with him, I choose a cruiseline where he can be comfortable. Otherwise, I choose Celebrity. In June, I took my 3 teenage boys on Mercury to Alaska and made sure I bought them new black suits to wear. ( even my son with Down Syndrome who is extremely hard to buy clothes for! ) They looked great and enjoyed the formal nights. I thought about getting them tuxes, but knew boys would be ok in suits. They preferred suits too.