The lonely formal night on the Star....

[johnql]

That's why I always wear these on formal nights!

 

 

Honestly, it wouldn't bother me. Just as with the faux tux t-shirts, it would get a few chuckles from anybody who happened to see it, but once you sat down, most people would just forget about it and go about enjoying their meal.

 

Oh, P.S., I've only seen the faux tux t-shirts on my traditional cruises.

[Zlasmcruising]

Hi...I'll be going on the NCL Star next month and this thread seems to be the right one to ask this question. It's not about wearing jeans on formal night, but about other nights. I got a copy of the Freestyle Daily from a cruise taken last year on the Star. It states, and I quote "Jeans, shorts and tank tops are not permitted after 5:00 in the restaurants except La Trattoria, Market Cafe and Blue Lagoon" . Can anyone tell me if this is enforced? I would really like to know before I start packing. Thanks:)

[just4now]

That's why I always wear these on formal nights!

 

 

Oh, man! You know what those would be perfect with? SHORTS! :D

[KeystoneCruiser]

Yes, it's true that technically, you do not "have" to dress up for "dress up" night. However.. the vast majority of men wear suits and the vast majority of women wear cocktail dresses, dressy pants or skirts, and dressy tops. We also so a few men wearing tuxes and a few women wearing gowns.

 

So, to answer your question.. no, you would not feel out of place dressing up as most people do. And, no.. there really isn't any other time that you would need to dress up-- unless you like to dress up for the nightclub as many people do.

 

We all know how you want everyone to dress up and love to mislead and twist the facts to suit your own personal interest.

 

As others on here have said: on all of my NCL cruises I have NEVER seen more than about 40% of the people dress up EVEN on the Formal night. That 40% ranges from tuxes all the way down to shirt/tie. There has always been MORE THAN HALF the people in the dining rooms in resort casual (or less in some cases).

 

The bottom line: Feel free to DRESS AS YOU LIKE on NCL. If you want to get dressed up, then by all means, GO FOR IT! If you don't like to dress up and would prefer to simply go resort casual, then GO FOR IT! On NCL you will not be out of place EITHER WAY! It is your personal choice......besides who really cares what you wear anyhow besides you and your significant other....

[BLONDIE35]

thanks everyone for your help! I wish blue jeans were allowed at least on night! I have a pair of comfy dressy shoes I will try to coordinate!

No, I don' want to eat at the buffet.. we paid over $1,000 a piece for the cruise so I would like to eat nice!:D

[Surfgirl]

We all know how you want everyone to dress up and love to mislead and twist the facts to suit your own personal interest.

 

My goodness, I seem to have hit a nerve! :D Don't burst a blood vessel!!

Let's stop putting words in my mouth.. shall we? I don't want "everyone to dress up"-- I'm absolutely fine with anyone who wears nice pants-- like dockers or khakis and a nice shirt to dinner. But your ilk seems to want to break the rules all in the name of ".. whatever!"

 

As far as misleading.. I think we know who is doing that.. and it isn't me. As I stated in my review, and on numerous other posts, after reading this forum, I had fully expected to see people coming to dinner wearing ripped jeans and "I'm with Stupid" t-shirts. However, I was PLEASANTLY surprised to see that people were dressed very well.

 

You and your ilk are misleading first time cruisers here. Why else would the OP ask if she would feel "out of place" if she dressed up for Formal night???!! Where would she get that idea???? This forum.. perhaps? ;)

 

As others on here have said: on all of my NCL cruises I have NEVER seen more than about 40% of the people dress up EVEN on the Formal night. That 40% ranges from tuxes all the way down to shirt/tie. There has always been MORE THAN HALF the people in the dining rooms in resort casual (or less in some cases).

 

And... others have seen what I have seen...and have posted that here. As I stated, some cruises seem to be more dress-down than others. My Dawn cruise down the eastern US was extremely relaxed. A smaller percentage dressed up, but most looked decent. My Crown trip to Bermuda was extremely dressed up, and my recent Spirit trip was dressy as well.

 

The bottom line: Feel free to DRESS AS YOU LIKE on NCL. If you want to get dressed up, then by all means, GO FOR IT! If you don't like to dress up and would prefer to simply go resort casual, then GO FOR IT! On NCL you will not be out of place EITHER WAY! It is your personal choice......besides who really cares what you wear anyhow besides you and your significant other....

 

No.. the bottom line is that you follow the rules. If you're not allowed to wear jeans on a particular ship's dining room, you don't. And.. nobody said you can't wear resort casual. Calm down and re-read my posts.

[Cosmopolitan]

This certainly wasn't the case on any of my 6 Freestyle cruises. While there were certainly some passengers dressed up, it was definitely not a "vast majority". I would estimate that 30-40% of the pax dressed up, less on my cruise to Alaska.

 

That said, the OP should dress however she likes, as long as it meets the minimum standard of resort casual.

 

I agree. Sept., '04, the passengers that were "dressed up" were mostly families having portraits taken. Perhaps 30-40%.

 

Our 4 NCL cruises since then, have had less and less passengers "dressing up".

 

I, personally, do not care what other passengers wear. I dress how I like each evening and others are "free" to do the same.

The beauty of freestyle:)

[Cosmopolitan]

Quick question:

 

I have seen a couple of places that flip flops are not allowed in the dining room. I am going to Bermuda in July on the Majesty with my two teen age daughters who basically wear flip flops unless there is snow on the ground. Are they required to were some type of shoe or sandal? Are "dressier" flip flops OK?

 

I have seen flip flops on passengers waiting to be seated in the dining room. They did not have a problem.

 

Have a great cruise:)

[Cosmopolitan]

thanks everyone for your help! I wish blue jeans were allowed at least on night! I have a pair of comfy dressy shoes I will try to coordinate!

No, I don' want to eat at the buffet.. we paid over $1,000 a piece for the cruise so I would like to eat nice!:D

 

Blue jeans are a strange issue.

I have seen them at dinner...may depend on staff/ship/restaurant.

I wouldn't try it in a "pay" restaurant.

 

I agree, NO buffet...I'm on vacation!!!! Serve me my meals;)

Enjoy your cruise:)

[JohnL1935]

On my last NCL cruise on the Dawn out of NYC I wore my tux on formal night and while in line to enter the main dinning room the man in front of me was dressed like he just came from the gym. His wife looked like she was going to McDonald's. She seemed uncomfortable at how "out of place" her attire was. He couldn't care less. I would prefer to be casual, however, my wife enjoys wearing an evening gown and some of her jewelry. We don't dress up at home and I personally enjoy seeing some of the formal outfits and the families lined for their formal picture. If I don't wear my tux I at least respect the forum and wear a sports coat and a tie. I think the grand days of cruising are over and we're in a Wal Mart world.

 

John L.

[Surfgirl]

On my last NCL cruise on the Dawn out of NYC I wore my tux on formal night and while in line to enter the main dinning room the man in front of me was dressed like he just came from the gym. His wife looked like she was going to McDonald's. She seemed uncomfortable at how "out of place" her attire was. He couldn't care less. I would prefer to be casual, however, my wife enjoys wearing an evening gown and some of her jewelry. We don't dress up at home and I personally enjoy seeing some of the formal outfits and the families lined for their formal picture. If I don't wear my tux I at least respect the forum and wear a sports coat and a tie. I think the grand days of cruising are over and we're in a Wal Mart world.

 

John L.

 

Fortunately, John... the grand old days of cruising are not gone. Try the Fred Olsen line. That's where the NCL Crown is going. Here is a thread about the dress code:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=384801

 

You can also try Regent Cruises. Here is a thread about their dress code:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=487705

 

And the Cunard Line:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=535988

 

I'm sure there are others.

[JohnL1935]

Surfgirl: No, I don't need to go on Cunard or some of the other lines you mentioned to get my "fix" of formality. I was on the Carnival Liberty last fall in the Med and even with the luggage weight problems there was a majority of the passengers dressed at dinner appropriately. My favorite line is Princess but I'm less inclined to book with NCL in the future. After reading many of the negative NCL reviews on the Hawaiian ships, the indiscriminate bumping of passengers for the likes and money of Rosie, and the "informality" of the dress-wear of NCL, I prefer some of the other lines. I thought it was very rude of passengers to attend formal night in the beautiful dinning room of the Dawn in less than street clothes when there are numerous other smaller less formal restaurants where they could have gone and with the same menu. They could have gone to the buffet and would not have been out of place. When NCL doesn't enforce their schedule, why even designate a "formal" night? It probably won't be long before they allow swim suits and clogs at dinner.

 

John L

[flowerchild]

Again, why is it rude for others to choose to dress down instead of up on a cruiseline that pushes versatility? If you want to dress up, I'm happy for you, I love to see all the pretty dresses and such. Reminds me of prom.

 

Do I want to dress up? No.

 

Why would that bother you? Why do you care what I wear?

 

BTW, recent posters have noticed that the "NO JEANS" rule on the signs posted at the dining rooms has been dropped since the begining of the year. The new rule may not be officially posted on NCL's website, but many agree that it is in the future. I personally am happy about it.

 

Plus, what is the hangup with denim? I have seen plenty of women in "legging type" crops with sandals and long decorated tshirts in the dining room. I never thought them rude, even though I may have been dressed to the nines that particular evening (I used to like to dress up, now I'd rather be comfy, must have happened when I hit 40and became a soccer mom)

 

Jeans can be dressed up or down. My husband works on Wall Street in NYC and even THEY have a casual day when he wears nice jeans, nice semi casual shoes and a nice sweater or shirt. The norm is going to casual across the board...10 yrs ago my husband had to wear suits to work everyday, now it's dockers and a long sleeved button down shirt.

 

I plan on wearing jeans at least one evening, probably the first nite of the cruise, which I find usually to be the most casual. The darker the jean, the more dressed up it looks, pair that with a nice top, nice boots...smart, easy, chic.

[hotspur]

I thought it was very rude of passengers to attend formal night in the beautiful dinning room of the Dawn in less than street clothes when there are numerous other smaller less formal restaurants where they could have gone and with the same menu.

What's "rude" is criticizing others for their dress when they are appropriately dressed according to the cruise line's dress code. If you require others to dress a certain way to satisfy your inflated self-importance, please choose another cruise line that caters to people like you. We don't need "rude" passengers on NCL.

[Surfgirl]

Again, why is it rude for others to choose to dress down instead of up on a cruiseline that pushes versatility? If you want to dress up, I'm happy for you, I love to see all the pretty dresses and such. Reminds me of prom.

 

Nobody says you have to wear a ball gown. What people are objecting to are those VERY FEW people who show up looking like slobs and make it a game to try to "get away" with breaking the dress code.

 

The restaurants on the ships are very fine restaurants with an elegent atmousphere. You don't want to go into Four Seasons, Jean Georges, Masa or per se and dine next to someone looking like they crawled in from a homeless shelter.

 

Do I want to dress up? No.

 

Then don't. Nobody is making you. Just dress nicely, not "up."

 

Why would that bother you? Why do you care what I wear?

Yes.. for the above reasons. If you look like a slob, you're being selfish and ruining the ambience for everyone else.

 

Jeans can be dressed up or down. My husband works on Wall Street in NYC and even THEY have a casual day when he wears nice jeans, nice semi casual shoes and a nice sweater or shirt. The norm is going to casual across the board...10 yrs ago my husband had to wear suits to work everyday, now it's dockers and a long sleeved button down shirt.

 

Actually, you're incorrect. Business casual is passe.

 

"Business casual out

Judith Bowman, author of "Don't Take the Last Donut: New Rules of Business Etiquette," speaks to companies about how workers should dress.

Cowboy boots and jeans that were acceptable during the dot-com era have no place in today's business world, she said.

"Business casual is definitely a thing of the past in this most highly competitive business arena," Bowman said. "Lackadaisical attire looks like lackadaisical work performance."

 

http://www.postbulletin.com/newsmanager/templates/localnews_story.asp?a=291036&z=31

 

 

I plan on wearing jeans at least one evening, probably the first nite of the cruise, which I find usually to be the most casual. The darker the jean, the more dressed up it looks, pair that with a nice top, nice boots...smart, easy, chic.

 

Fine... as long as you do it in a dining room that doesn't have a "no jeans" sign posted.

[hotspur]

Nobody says you have to wear a ball gown. What people are objecting to are those VERY FEW people who show up looking like slobs and make it a game to try to "get away" with breaking the dress code.

 

The restaurants on the ships are very fine restaurants with an elegent atmousphere. You don't want to go into Four Seasons, Jean Georges, Masa or per se and dine next to someone looking like they crawled in from a homeless shelter.

Leave it to the inimitable Surfgirl to give us another over-the-top, obnoxious posting.

 

The original posting asked about wearing formal attire or a suit. After you incorrectly told everyone that "a vast majority" of passengers wore such. others posted a more realistic assessment of actual dining room dress on NCL ships. No one ever talked about "homeless shelters" or "breaking the dress code" or the like, until you once again chimed in with your usual nastiness on this subject.

 

Sorry you are unable to regard those who dress in resort casual as being acceptable in NCL dining rooms. Let me assure you that acceptable they are, and if you don't like it, the rest of us don't care one whit. Cruise elsewhere. Please.

 

Lastly, why is it that you can't respond to such questions in an honest way without trying to browbeat or intimidate others into dressing as you--for some bizarre, unexplainable reason--would like them to dress? NCL makes it very clear that resort casual attire is perfectly fine in their dining rooms--as it should be in all mass-market cruise line dining rooms, in my opinion. No mass-market cruise ship offers a dining experience like Four Seasons (in the Seagram Building, not an NCL ship) or the like, so your comparison, like everything you write on this subject, is simply irrelevant.

[dwrist]

:rolleyes: Maybe we should post the entire paragraph...

 

Business casual out

Judith Bowman, author of "Don't Take the Last Donut: New Rules of Business Etiquette," speaks to companies about how workers should dress.

Cowboy boots and jeans that were acceptable during the dot-com era have no place in today's business world, she said.

"Business casual is definitely a thing of the past in this most highly competitive business arena," Bowman said. "Lackadaisical attire looks like lackadaisical work performance."

More companies are going that route, reversing the relaxed dress codes of the 1990s, when khakis overtook suits in the workplace.

In 2005, 41 percent of U.S. companies allowed casual dress, down from 51 percent in 2001, according to a survey by the Society for Human Resource Management.

This is good news for those who felt dress codes had gotten too lax -- and bad news for the people who dislike dealing with ties and nylons. "Not only did people become more casual in their clothing, but they also became casual in their work," said Sherry Day, immediate past president of National Association of Women Business Owners.

"The first impact you have is that message you send when you are first seen. Then you have to either live up to it or overcome it," Day said.

 

I think the idea in the business world is the workers became too casual in their work ethics! :) Try again!

 

On NCL we want to be casual and leave work behind. I have to ask what makes relaxing the clothing requirements so maddening to you surfgirl? All you have to do is dress the way you want and allow others the same.:)

[CathyCanada]

Just got off the Star on Sunday and thought I would share this quote from the Freestyle Daily for the second sea day

 

"Tip of the Day...

Tonight is our Dress up (or not) night. Feel like dressing up? Great! Don't feel like dressing up? That's great too!"

 

There was a variety of manners of dress for this night, some very formal, some not so formal. I'm sure you will be fine in whatever YOU are comfortable wearing. The dinner that night was WONDERFUL, so enjoy!