When is a dress code not a dress code? On Silversea!

First off, let me be clear that I don't like dress codes. I think if people want to dress up, than they should be able to and look beautiful and if not....so be it. I have frequently sat with older people on SS who were dressed in outdated 20+ year old suits and dresses and yet they loved the almighty dress code. They looked ridiculous, and I think Dress codes are a thing of the past. Last year on Formal night on the Silver Spirit I was forced to wear the dining rooms tie to enter as the dress code was fully enforced and it was Silversea's policy. My bad, I accept and wore my badge of shame proudly. I learned and this year came prepared to dress up.

Lo and behold, I was on the Silver Spirit September 26-October 3rd for the Black sea cruise. Upon boarding, it was clear that this cruise was to be a Venezuelan cruise. Silversea had sold a group of "top performers" from an insurance company 100+ cabins onboard the spirit. Formal night on night two, I break out my new jacket and YES, my tie and I walk into a dining room where 1/2 of the men have no ties and many have no jackets? I was incredulous? So I spoke to the restaurant director Deborah and she said it was a large group and they were trying to inform them and doing their best. So the dress code is the dress code unless there is a large group present? Why didn't Silversea notify us that this was going to be a casual cruise? I LOVE casual cruises. Next night informal, counted at least 20 men without sport jackets and then stopped counting.....dress code fail. I spoke to hotel Director Paolo and he said "I have notified corporate" but these people were sold the cruise....What can we do? And I ask my Cruise Critic members....What can we do?

So, am I wrong for being upset that I was not allowed in the dining room last year for not wearing a tie and our entire cruise suddenly became dress down for the group onboard? Why was I, a full fare passenger last year penalized? To hell with the rest of us? Can I throw a couple $$$ more at SS and not have to dress up anymore? Amen! Silversea sold cabins and sold the loyal SS travelers onboard up the river.

Am I the only one who finds this ridiculous? I am very disappointed with Silversea's handling of this. If they have a dress code, then they need to enforce it bar none. Otherwise, end this madness, and save us all a lot of time and packing weight.

Seabourn and Regent Country club casual is starting to look good.....

Safe travels to all!

If you don't pay your mortgage, it's your problem. If the bank's biggest customer doesn't pay their mortgage, it's the bank's problem. Pretty much the same deal here, rightly or wrongly.

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Well put. Perhaps unfair but there is a certain safety in numbers, as it were. I'm quite sure that they didn't have that many extra "ties of shame" to hand out. But I probably would have let my displeasure known also.

I agree with Cruiseerf. It's disheartening to see large incentive groups on these small ships, because they can easily affect the cruise experience in many ways, and this is one example.

I'm sorry, but their reply of "What can we do?" just doesn't cut it. I'm not passing judgment on the dress code itself, but if it's their policy to enforce it, they need to communicate that clearly to corporate event planners, not simply take the money and hope for the best.

The 'paying passengers' shouldn't have to feel that their own experience is being diminished in any way by the behavior of a large group.

Yes, I understand that you were upset and disappointed.

With that said, with such a large group I don't see that the cruise line had any other choice but to sit the people. While you can turn a couple of people away to turn half the dining room away is really not possible and not practical to do.

If this bothers you, I would send a letter to Silversea expressing your displeasure. Maybe a suggestion to them that when a large group books to remind them about things such as dress attire might be in order.

I hope in spite of this you still enjoyed the cruise.

Keith

I have frequently sat with older people on SS who were dressed in outdated 20+ year old suits and dresses and yet they loved the almighty dress code. They looked ridiculous, and I think Dress codes are a thing of the past.

What a sad comment! I'm just glad that I can still fit in 20 year old clothing.

AMEN, emtbsam! If folks don't like the dress code then cruise with another line.

Obviously the almighty dollar is more important to SS than the dress code. That being the case they need to do away with the dress code in order to treat all its passengers equally.

Obviously the almighty dollar is more important to SS than the dress code. That being the case they need to do away with the dress code in order to treat all its passengers equally.

Henry, do you mean that dress code specifically or no dress code at all. You know what no dress code could mean. :D:eek:

Keith

OK, now that you have had your little hissy fit.....what did you think of the food and the cruise in general? Sorry for the bad luck in having to sail with a large group.

One of the things the Hotel Director could have done was flip the dress code and make La Terrazza formal on formal nights and the dining room casual/informal. And offered the dining room menu in LT as well as the regular menu.

As one of those who wore a 30 year old dress on her first cruise (and 10 - 20 year old ones the rest of the time since I buy used clothing) I would have been upset at the dining room atmosphere being disrupted by the large group.

Don't know how to protect myself from that except by continuing to book long repositioning cruises and praying they are broken into multiple segments.

On our first SilverSea cruise, they refused to serve a man in the bar if he did not have a coat on. The problem was, it was hot in the bar. By the third night, we had a revolution and every man took his coat off. Everyone was served.

For what it is worth- this same complaint seems to be ubiquitos across all cruise lines, in restaurants, and on the streets pretty much world wide. Standards of dress have changed dramatically over the past few years and it looks unlikely that they will ever go back. I mean, you see people wandering the shops in their pajamas and fuzzy slippers.

Keith,

Obviously, there is already no dress code if you are part of a large, lucrative group. I'm just saying they need to make it the same for everybody.

Keith, Imo this is unacceptable and I am very surprised by SS performance. You and I have communicated in the past, talking about what works and what doesn't. A refusal by corporate to enforce their rules, and this happens in many places, helps clients proceed to behavior that changes the experience for all. If the shoe fits, wear it!

New London I very much understand what you are saying and if it was isolated to a handful of people my response would have been that they should have enforced the dress code.

However, I am thinking the problem might have been that these folks did not have the proper attire with them on the ship. And rather than a handful of people it sounds like they are talking about somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 people and if they didn't have the right attire I could understand where the enforcement of that rules was just not doable. I am not sure that it would be possible to send all of them to say their room and tell them to order room service. I doubt room service could handle all of this.

Yes I am a big believer in people being respectful of one another and to me that includes so many things and one of them is dressing appropriately. And I am a believer of enforcing rules.

With that said, I am not sure if there was a good option for dealing with this situation.

Keith

You are right, Keith, of course about the practicality of enforcement on the spot. Why, however, in my mind didn't they warn the group ahead of time as to what was acceptable and what was not?

In addition the booking group is perfectly capable of reading on the web site that there is a dress code--live with it and don't offend the other passengers any more than you already are.

Common courtesy!

You are right, Keith, of course about the practicality of enforcement on the spot. Why, however, in my mind didn't they warn the group ahead of time as to what was acceptable and what was not?

In addition the booking group is perfectly capable of reading on the web site that there is a dress code--live with it and don't offend the other passengers any more than you already are.

Common courtesy!

newlondon, as usual, excellent point on your part. There is probably a good lesson learned here and that is when a group is booked to provide the POC with some key items to be reviewed with everyone including the evening dress.

Keith

I'm going out on a bit of a limb here, but I'd say this group was probably informed in advance they could relax the dress code. If this group of passengers were known to each other prior to the cruise, they could have been told by thier organizer/host that formal attire wasn't applicable to them.

The OP mentioned the group was from Venezuela and perhaps because of the airline baggage restrictions they made a decision not to pack addtional formalwear?

I can understand that it is disappointing when you make an effort to follow the published guidlines and there are others or groups who just ignore it. The idea that rule apply to just some people is totally abserd

Newlondon and Keith have cut to the heart of the matter, in my opinion. Since Silversea is enforcing the dress code, it's essential to communicate their clear expectation that a group's participants will comply. Of course, they may have done this, in good faith; and the pre-cruise package must have contained the same informational booklet we all receive.

But members of any large group probably don't have the same level of interest in these details as we, paying passengers who select our own cruise lines, do. Do they comb these boards or Silversea's website to learn about the dress code? Unlikely, especially if they're not accustomed to luxury cruises. Or if their corporate lifestyle is decidedly casual. Or if previous corporate junkets were held in less formal surroundings. All the more reason for Silversea to be quite firm in their communications about their special onboard ambience.

As a last-ditch effort, I suppose Silversea could always implement a pre-boarding baggage check for these groups, to ensure they've brought the right duds!:D

AMEN, emtbsam! If folks don't like the dress code then cruise with another line.

I concur:mad:

 

As a last-ditch effort, I suppose Silversea could always implement a pre-boarding baggage check for these groups, to ensure they've brought the right duds!:D

Good idea!! Other cruise lines scan luggage for alcohol, then remove it. SS could just check for unacceptable clothing(polyester) and then remove it.

Bruce

Newlondon and Keith have cut to the heart of the matter, in my opinion. Since Silversea is enforcing the dress code, it's essential to communicate their clear expectation that a group's participants will comply. Of course, they may have done this, in good faith; and the pre-cruise package must have contained the same informational booklet we all receive.

 

But members of any large group probably don't have the same level of interest in these details as we, paying passengers who select our own cruise lines, do. Do they comb these boards or Silversea's website to learn about the dress code? Unlikely, especially if they're not accustomed to luxury cruises. Or if their corporate lifestyle is decidedly casual. Or if previous corporate junkets were held in less formal surroundings. All the more reason for Silversea to be quite firm in their communications about their special onboard ambience.

 

As a last-ditch effort, I suppose Silversea could always implement a pre-boarding baggage check for these groups, to ensure they've brought the right duds!:D

I think the issue is a touch more complex than it first seems ...

It is most unlikely that the company ever had direct contact with SS.

Most of these trips are organised through specialist incentive agencies. These agencies often have a travel arm in a larger angency specialising in designing and running in-house incentive schemes. Those agenices will be making a set of different promises to their clients than what may be mandated in the stuff they receive (and often pretty much ignore) from travel companies including SS.

They will be preparing glossy winners packs and arranging all the air travel and recognition events alongside the actual "competition" and competition glossies themselves. They will not be telling people during the competition period that the prize is to dress up for a couple of nights on SS. They won't be telling the winners that either. Also, the client will feel that they can do largely what they want because they have "taken over" a ship. On board staff have no intention of irritating a large and important client - in fact they see two clients - the agency and the corporation - that has bought 100 cabins so they will say one thing to non-group customers to placate them and show sympathy and be compliant with the group.

I have real sympathies with the OP - commercial pressures will always win ... but I do hope he comes back to confirm that the Martini came back unmolested ....

:D

I was on the Cloud or the wind 2 or three years ago and I ordered a Martini. I KNEW right away the vodka was not grey goose. I said this doesn't taste like grey goose and the waiter sad "let me make you another one".....out came a new bottle of grey goose which I watched them open and not just the one sitting at the bar. The drink was then perfect.

 

Most people don't know if it's the good stuff or not....most people cannot tell by flavour and the reinforcement of just "seeing" the greygoose bottle is good enough for them.

 

imo opinion the fault still lies with SS. If they are not willing to have EVERY PASSENGER adhere to their dress code they have two options.

1. Do not sell suites to incentive groups

2. change the dress code so it's equal for everyone.

I agree with Wripro that the ultimate responsibility for conveying the information lies with Silversea. Even if a third-party agency is involved, as UKCruiseJeff suggests is possible, they know when a big block of suites is being held. And in the interest of maintaining their luxury reputation, one would assume that at some point they really do manage these arrangements directly with the corporate client, to maintain a level of control.

As Silversea continues to expand its fleet, it will have to rely on corporate incentive groups to bring dozens or hundreds of folks who aren't paying for their own cruise, and this will in many cases have an effect. Paying passengers who expect the elegant ambience Silversea advertises can find themselves in the middle of a different experience, which can range from the relatively mild issue of dress code to noisy, rowdy crowds that basically take over the ship, people who otherwise wouldn't (or couldn't) sail on an expensive line like Silversea. A good business plan? I really don't think so. Over time, it may very well devalue the Silversea brand.

This probably isn't as much of an issue on larger ships, which have more venues and better absorb a large group into their passenger mix. But on Silversea a group of 40 or more can make a very real difference.