Dress code on Queen Victora

[shmuel]

Hi, as we are going to be first time cruisers on the Queen Victoria next year, can anybody tell me the dress code for dining if we are in an A3 balcony cabin. Is it formal in the evening, by formal I mean do the men wear tuxedos and the women evening dress or is it more casual.
Thanks a lot

[Ray66]

Originally Posted by shmuel

Hi, as we are going to be first time cruisers on the Queen Victoria next year, can anybody tell me the dress code for dining if we are in an A3 balcony cabin. Is it formal in the evening, by formal I mean do the men wear tuxedos and the women evening dress or is it more casual.
Thanks a lot

One of the great thrills of a Cunard cruise is the sheer glamour of the evenings. Generally, evening dress may be either formal, informal or casual when your ship is at sea, and informal or casual when your ship is in port. There will be a maximum of three formal nights in a week. Evening attire, effective from 6pm, will be specified in your ship’s Daily Programme, delivered to your stateroom each day. Dress codes are defined as follows:

Formal:
Black tie or formal dark suit for men. Evening dress or other formal attire for women.
Informal:
Jacket and tie for men. Cocktail dress or trouser suit for women. No jeans.
Elegant Casual:
Jacket, no tie required for men (no jeans or shorts). Dress, skirt or trousers for ladies

Lots of answers can be found here:

http://www.cunard.co.uk/FAQ/faq.asp?...B=&ArticleID=4

[ovccruiser]

You will be told of the evening dress codes in your pre cruise documents with dates. First night afaik is always casual, as is normally the last, this allows you to complete all your packing before dinner on the last night

[LDVinNC]

I understand the dress code in the restaurants. Since we will be traveling home by cross country train, we must try to minimize our luggage. And, my DH is not thrilled about wearing a jacket every night for 12 nights! Is it acceptable for a gentleman to dine in the Lido buffet at night without a jacket?

[capnpugwash]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

I understand the dress code in the restaurants. Since we will be traveling home by cross country train, we must try to minimize our luggage. And, my DH is not thrilled about wearing a jacket every night for 12 nights! Is it acceptable for a gentleman to dine in the Lido buffet at night without a jacket?

Yes it is, but the ambience and style of Cunard are best reflected in their requirement for passengers to dress for dinner. You will be shortchanging yourselves if you don't dress and will regret it. If you dine in the buffet you could be on any shipping line. And it is only 12 nights, why not leave him to eat where he wants and you dress up and enjoy all that there is on offer.

[Dorchester]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

I understand the dress code in the restaurants. Since we will be traveling home by cross country train, we must try to minimize our luggage. And, my DH is not thrilled about wearing a jacket every night for 12 nights! Is it acceptable for a gentleman to dine in the Lido buffet at night without a jacket?

Not according to Cunard. Taken from page 16 of the Cunard Voyage Guide that is sent to all passengers prior to their voyage: -

"Casual clothing is permitted each evening in the Kings Court on Queen Mary 2 and the Lido on Queen Victoria. Suitable clothing for these latter 2 Restaurants would include slacks, shirt and Jacket for men, and skirt or slacks with a sweater or blouse for women."

Regards,
David

[Norfolk Brit]

Originally Posted by Dorchester

would include slacks, shirt and Jacket for men, and skirt or slacks with a sweater or blouse for women."
David

The only solution is a quick spot of gender realignment.

Sir Martin

[LDVinNC]

Ask a question and get a lecture. Since he dressed in suit and tie daily for the 40 years of his career, I am inclined to cut DH a little slack if he may not feel like wearing a tie 12 nights in a row. That does not make us slobs, uncultured, or bad people, you know!

[capnpugwash]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

Ask a question and get a lecture. Since he dressed in suit and tie daily for the 40 years of his career, I am inclined to cut DH a little slack if he may not feel like wearing a tie 12 nights in a row. That does not make us slobs, uncultured, or bad people, you know!

No but asking for advice and then being rude when given accurate information is very rude, so you may not be slobs but I am not sure about the other two qualifications. Isn't 6pm too late for you Floridians to eat?

[avalon1025]

Cunard is not for everyone and there are many many ships sailing similar itineraries for all of us to choose from. Perhaps your husband would be more comfortable on another ship where the dress codes include a casual option that does not require a jacket for men each evening? Cunard is quite clear, and any good travel agent should (by now) know that Cunard adheres to a strict dress code policy.

From expereince with others at my dinning table, a matre'd can and will ask for a gentleman to return to their cabin and get a jacket.

Perhaps Celebrity and or Holland America would be a better choice?

[Dorchester]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

Ask a question and get a lecture. Since he dressed in suit and tie daily for the 40 years of his career, I am inclined to cut DH a little slack if he may not feel like wearing a tie 12 nights in a row. That does not make us slobs, uncultured, or bad people, you know!

With respect - you did NOT get a lecture. You asked a question, and received an accurate and concise answer to that question. All I did was to quote from the Cunard Voyage Guide in order to advise you accordingly!

No one mentioned a tie! Your DH does NOT have to wear a tie "12 nights in a row" - whether he feels like it or not. I am not sure where you gleaned this notion, as ties are not required on "Elegant Casual" nights.

No one is suggesting that "That does not make us slobs, uncultured, or bad people, you know!" It was you that used those words - not anyone else!

In our experience, QV is slightly more formal than QM2, and, in this respect, more akin to QE2.

Regards,
David

[LDVinNC]

I guess I did overreact...sorry...but then the remarks about gender reassignment and the Floridians having to eat by 6pm were not exactly nice, either.

As I said in my first post, we understand the Cunard dining room dress code. We have sailed on the QE2 three times, but the last time was about 10 years ago. All I wanted to know was is it okay to eat at the Lido Buffet a few evenings without a jacket.

We usually do sail Celebrity nowadays, but because this is a tour including a stay in San Franciso and then a train journey home, the QV is our only option.

Thanks to all who tried to help out.

[Norfolk Brit]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

I guess I did overreact...sorry...but then the remarks about gender reassignment and the Floridians having to eat by 6pm were not exactly nice, either.

Um, I do believe my cat thought he was being amusing: he is usually wrong.

Mary
Staff to Sir Martin

[Dorchester]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

I guess I did overreact...sorry...but then the remarks about gender reassignment and the Floridians having to eat by 6pm were not exactly nice, either.

Thanks to all who tried to help out.

No worries - apology accepted. I was only trying to point out exactly what Cunard stipulates for their various Dress Codes.

Whatever you decide to do/wear, I hope that you have a fantastic voyage - I'm sure that you will.

Regards,
David

[cheza]

My DH only took two suits with him, he wore the DJ on the 4 formal nights and the all other nights the other suit was worn, white shirts & ties on informal nights and coloured shirts & no tie on semi casual nights. He was not turned away on any night.

I was worried about the formality of the Cunard line, but the whole cruise was just great & would certainly consider them again. We thought Celebrity was at the top before but the dining experience in the Britannia was better, however the speciality restuaraunt on the Constellation was out of this world.

Have a great cruise.

Chez

[shazz56]

Originally Posted by LDVinNC

Ask a question and get a lecture. Since he dressed in suit and tie daily for the 40 years of his career, I am inclined to cut DH a little slack if he may not feel like wearing a tie 12 nights in a row. That does not make us slobs, uncultured, or bad people, you know!

hi there,

we sailed on QV for almost 30 nights, and like you, he also wears a suit every day for work. Most nights we did do the correct and proper dining rules...but there were nights when we just didnt feel like getting 'dressed up' for dinner. On those nights we ate in the buffett in the Lido restaurant, and whlst we were smartly dressed...he didnt wear the coat and we didnt feel out of place.
Compared to what we saw, we were even over dressed!
cheers

sharon

[Fleetwood15]

I must agree with you Shazz. On our last QV cruise in June we never used the main dining room, we ate every meal in the Lido. Even after 6.00pm we could eat relaxed in casual dress and then dress as required to go to the theatre etc. I have seen men in the theatre with their jackets off. I do follow the dress code when on the lower decks but my wife less so. She varies tops and skirts. I didn't have a problem with wearing a jacket -no tie - on casual nights as I found the air conditioning on QV to be over efficient on occasions. I'm not a fan of ties either and was glad to get out of them when I retired so who needs them on holidays. It seemed that there was much more attention to dress (formal) on the themed ball evenings but on other evenings there was noticeable appearance of light and other coloured suits and jackets. Don't worry about it. It's really not such an issue as some people on these threads make it out to be.

[PianoManNYC]

Originally Posted by shazz56

and like you, he also wears a suit every day for work.

I'm confused, but then again, I often am.

I thought the opening poster was a female.

Or is this the "quick spot of gender realignment" referred to above?

[LDVinNC]

Gender confusion notwithstanding, I was pleased to hear that people do dine in the Lido buffet without jackets. That was really all I wanted to know! Thanks a lot.

[mheslop]

LDVnNC - Cunard is not as strict as it used to be, all those answers notwithstanding. (If you doubt my creds, look at my signature) A man can wear suits instead of tuxedos and a woman can get by with cocktail dresses instead of gowns. One of my tablemates on my last cruise on the Vic wore strictly Eileen Fisher...hardly sparkly glitz. You can absolutely dine in the Lido in very informal wear....except if you do the alternative dining venues which take over only one end of the Lido on certain evenings. Your DH can leave both jackets and ties at home and never see the inside of a formal dining room. Or he can take one suit and one tie and you can both go to the dining room when you want. You can take a "little black dress" and dress it up or down - and roll it up. Don't know where you live, but in US we have Chico's travelers line which can literally be crunched up into a ball and tossed in any bag.

As for "missing out on the Cunard experience", there is much more to it that formal evenings in the dining rooms. Mind you, I, myself, love them, but am tending to dress down more and more - less ball gown-y. But, the Cunard experience is also the lectures, the shows, the bars, the cafes, the library, the pools, the spa.....and just being out on deck and staring out to sea.....plus, of course, the wonderful ports of call and excursions. And the people - both the crew and the friends you make.

So, don't worry about evening dress --- enjoy your cruise.