What cruise line is the most formal?

I miss the old days of tuxedos and gowns! Which in your opinion is the most "dressed-up" cruise line? Thinking Cunard, but there may be others.

You're probably right, but on ships with "formal" nights, you can dress up to your heart's content! Just because others don't, doesn't mean you can't!

Hubby and I were in Vegas, and decided to take in a show and we dressed to the NINES for it! Were we the only ones? Well, we were in the minority, but who cares? We looked great and had a blast!

On TA crossings there are usually three formal nights on Cunard. On informal nights men are still expected to wear a jacket though ties are not required.

When it comes to adherence to formal dress code on Cunard, it is at least 95%. Those who do not wish to participate have the option of the Lido/Kings Court and the Garden/Winter Garden Lounge.

I have not found any cruise line more formal than Cunard and that is one of the things that make the line special to many of us.

I miss the old days of tuxedos and gowns! Which in your opinion is the most "dressed-up" cruise line? Thinking Cunard, but there may be others.

I have not sailed with them, but I've heard Cunard is the most formal. Crystal no longer has formal (black tie) nights and instead has made them "black tie optional", but they do enforce an evening dress code of no shorts/caps/pool attire every night across the ship (i.e. not just in the dining room).

Cunard is the most formal of all of the cruise lines that we have taken. That is one of the reasons that we are sailing with them in April on our next cruise. I am one of those men (seemingly in the minority now) that likes to dress up occasionally. I pack 2 tuxedos when I cruise. There have been long cruises when I actually packed 3 tuxes. We never have a chance to dress up at home and Lady Kathryn has some spectacular long gowns. I love seeing her in those gowns so I dress appropriately. I also look much better in a tux than I do in my black suit. My tuxes are no more uncomfortable than any of my sport coats, so it doesn't bother me at all.

I really appreciate the ambiance of the formal nights on cunard ships.

Enjoy your cruising, Jerry of Jerry and Lady Kathryn

Cunard is the most formal for me too. It is one of the reasons we only did it once. We enjoy a more relaxed cruise and not dragging formal clothes across the globe for formal nights. It is very nice on Cunard and I did enjoy seeing everyone dressed up -- just didn't want to do it every night myself.:p

I was happy with both HAL and Celebrity.

You see many threads about people complaining about the dress code violators, but I just let others do what they want. We enjoy dressing up and so do our kids.

Yes, there are less tuxedos and gowns compared to 10 years ago, but I think the majority of the cruisers still put in the extra effort, at least on formal night.

Cunard is the most formal. P&O are probably not far behind. They have two formal (ie black tie) nights per week, and the rest a mix of semi-formal and casual. And its not 'formal if you want' the dress code is enforced ship wide after 6pm, apart from the places set aside for those that want to go casual

One of the formal nights usually has a cocktail reception beforehand, and one is a Black and White theme. I love these, its so nice to see :)

The passenger demographic, location of departure port, and length of cruise influence the "formal night" formal attire nearly as much as the choice of cruise line. For example, longer cruises out of Southhampton have a majority of gowns and tuxes for formal nights and dressier attire most other nights. We have found that the longer cruises out of northern European and British ports are decidedly more formal. We primarily cruise Royal Caribbean and Celebrity but have also cruised with other lines.