Prefer Carnival, But looking into RCI for a specific itinerary

[ngl116]

Hello fellow Carnival Cruisers,

DH and I have been very loyal to Carnival. We feel our dollars have been very well spent and we have been treated well by and love Carnival. (If it ain't broke don't fix it!)

That being said, we are scuba divers and love a variety of destinations while cruising. With Carnival we have pretty much been to every Caribbean island port they offer and would like to try new places to visit in the Caribbean.

Royal Caribbean has an awesome itinerary for a 14 day cruise with ports that we would just love to visit. But I have very important question about RCI.

Tell me about the dress code. DH and I are very casual. Don't get me wrong, we wear appropriate clothing for the occasion, cruise elegant or better. But he absolutely HATES wearing a coat and tie and literally jumped for joy when carnival slacked their "formal night" rules. Would he have to wear a coat and tie in the dining room for formal nights or regular nights? Or would a nice pair of slacks and a nice button up shirt and dress shoes be sufficient?

Yes, yes I know I could go to the RCI website and look that up, there there is usually a difference in what the sites say and what past cruisers will tell you. This will literally make or break us making that booking.

Thanks for your input!

[green eyed lady]

We've been on RCCL several times and while a lot of people go all out on formal night, there are still plenty that just wear a dress shirt, dress pants and shoes. They certainly won't keep you out of the dining room if DH isn't wearing a tie BTW...RCCL is our favorite line but Carnival has better food.

[April-in-NC]

He should be fine with just a button up dress shirt and slacks for formal nights. Also keep in mind that there are other dining options if you want to go very casual on a few nights.

[ngl116]

Ah, sigh of relief! We really love eating in the dining room on cruises. We just love the excellent service and the relaxation of being away from buffet lines. If we wouldn't be able to go to the dining room it just wouldn't feel like much of a cruise for us!

Thanks so much.

[patseacruiser]

I have not seen them ask people who weren't presentable to leave the dining room. I always see plenty of men who are dressed in a nice shirt and slacks and look fine even formal night. We don't bring coats and ties any more either. Just not my idea of a relaxing cruise.

[firefly333]

Iv been on RCL and they are pretty similar in dress to Carnival. Their dining room is more fancy looking imo, but some dressed in a new white shirt they bought in Cozumel with slacks for "formal" night. And the girls had their hair braided and in sun dresses, same as Iv seen on Carnival. On the other hand last time, we sat with an Irish family and the men wore suits.... both are seen.

[jazm2011]

We just got back from our 1st RCCL cruise last week. And only because of all the back and forth bickering on these boards, was I specifically looking at what folks were wearing on Formal night.

Absolutely no difference between Carnival and Royal...

As long as you are dressed "nice", you will be fine. We saw suits or less dressy. (black pants, black tee was one of the most casual we saw). Didn't notice a single man in a tux. (I'm sure there were, we just didn't see any). Dresses were mostly cocktail dresses. Saw a few long dresses (not what I would consider formal though). And several in causal dresses.

Enjoy your cruise!

[stargate fan]

Originally Posted by ngl116

Hello fellow Carnival Cruisers,

DH and I have been very loyal to Carnival. We feel our dollars have been very well spent and we have been treated well by and love Carnival. (If it ain't broke don't fix it!)

That being said, we are scuba divers and love a variety of destinations while cruising. With Carnival we have pretty much been to every Caribbean island port they offer and would like to try new places to visit in the Caribbean.

Royal Caribbean has an awesome itinerary for a 14 day cruise with ports that we would just love to visit. But I have very important question about RCI.

Tell me about the dress code. DH and I are very casual. Don't get me wrong, we wear appropriate clothing for the occasion, cruise elegant or better. But he absolutely HATES wearing a coat and tie and literally jumped for joy when carnival slacked their "formal night" rules. Would he have to wear a coat and tie in the dining room for formal nights or regular nights? Or would a nice pair of slacks and a nice button up shirt and dress shoes be sufficient?

Yes, yes I know I could go to the RCI website and look that up, there there is usually a difference in what the sites say and what past cruisers will tell you. This will literally make or break us making that booking.

Thanks for your input!

Just curious...which ship are you contemplating?

[mrpayroll]

Was on Navigator of the Seas in Jan 2009. A few tuxes. Lots of suits. Some sport coats and ties. Some sports coat NO ties. Some (the least) dress shirt NO tie. From what i've been reading Carnival is a LITTLE less dressy than RCCL. Will see for self in Jan 2010 as we cruise the DREAM...

[amistad]

I am Diamond on RCCL and although I have not taken a cruise on RCCL in the last two years, (took 2 on Carnival, 1 Princess and 1 NCL) I think you will be just fine. I have sat at a table for 8 on Sov of the Seas were a man was wearing a pair of shorts, a muscle shirt and flip flops and they did not ask him to change. I love all of the cruise lines and it seems like they are all getting to be a little more casual since the airlines have changed the luggage policies. The only time I have seen anyone asked to change on RCCL was for Chops, they did not allow shorts and they did ask the passenger to put on long pants. We are going on our 9th Carnival cruise this Saturday and I have packed more casually then normal, but still nice, we used to pack DH's white and black jackets with his tux slacks. Be sure to post and let us know how you liked Royal Caribbean when you get back.