Formal Night

Question for the CC membership.

Is wearing a Tux "out of style" on formal night? Trying to decide to take my tux on a 4 nighter or not - on my 1st cruise it seemed less than 1/3 of the late dinner where in tux's (I was) and far less than 1/2 where "dressed" - is it just me ....

Question for the CC membership.

 

Is wearing a Tux "out of style" on formal night? Trying to decide to take my tux on a 4 nighter or not - on my 1st cruise it seemed less than 1/3 of the late dinner where in tux's an far less than 1/2 where "dressed" - is it just me ....

I can not honestly answer you from recent experience. We are going on Sept. 10th. However, from what I have read in MANY, MANY post online...many men take/rent tux for formal nights for a 7 day cruise. And....MANY, MANY men do not, but wear a dark suit. My hubby is wearing his dark suit as well as our DF who will be joining us with his DW.

:) Happy Cruising!:)

Personally I don't believe the tux is out of style although the number being worn is dropping. I wore a tux in the '90s however my last 2 cruises ('05 & '06) I wore a dark suit and did not feel out of place at all. The number of tuxes were less than 30% on both RCI cruises, both 7 nighters in the Caribbean. I must admit I was nervous about the '05 cruise as it had been 12 years since the previous cruise. You'll be fine with the tux or the dark suit. Have a good one :)

Thanks - guess I'll take it as I an comfortable in it...

I know I'll get 'FLAMED' by some, but GENTLEMEN wear a Tuxedo for formal night - anything else is not 'formal'. Sure, some men do wear dark business suits with tie - but that is not 'FORMAL' - at least not by my understanding of the term. OH, and for those VERY few - a turtle neck sweater is also NOT formal!!

I know I'll get 'FLAMED' by some, but GENTLEMEN wear a Tuxedo for formal night - anything else is not 'formal'. Sure, some men do wear dark business suits with tie - but that is not 'FORMAL' - at least not by my understanding of the term. OH, and for those VERY few - a turtle neck sweater is also NOT formal!!

No flames but the cruiseline suggests a tux OR a dark suit. If Black Tie was required, a tux would be the dress of choice. BTW, I have always considered myself a gentleman and those who know me do as well :). It would appear you are the flamethrower by capitalizing the word "gentlemen". :D

Unless it's one of the prestigious "formal" cruises, a dark suit OR a tux will be equally fine. On my last cruise it was about half and half, so I don't think you'll feel out of place with either

Thanks to all – remember that clothing may make the man but a gentleman is a gentleman no matter what!

Please - I certainly did not intend to provide any affront to anyone - at any time!! Yes, the dress instructions include Tuxedo or Business suit - BUT - 'Formal' dress does not include business suit!! So perhaps the title 'Formal Night' is not correct. But please, there are gentlemen and there are males - all of the former are part of the latter, but the opposite is not necessarily true. (and YES, I do understand that GENTLEMEN do wear business suits - and also many other types of attire.)

I hope it's not out of style. I still plan on wearing my tux. In fact I just bought a new vest/tie combination and a new tie cumberbund (sp?) combination. I'm planning on purchasing one or two different colored tux shirts, just to mix things up a bit. While I enjoy wearing my tux on formal nights, I want a little varity also so it doesn't look like I'm just wearing the same thing two or three times on a cruise.

As for the shorter cruises, it seems to me that there are fewer tuxes on the formal nights than on the longer cruises. When we sailed Enchantment for our 4 night cruise, it was just easier to pack my suit and be done with it rather than packing the tux and all the extra's that go along with it. Formal night was on a port day and wearing a suit and tie was just a little easier than putting on the tux. Apparently, most of men on that short cruise agreed as there were far more suits than tuxes.

We sail Vision to Alaska this coming Friday. I'll be wearing my tux and not worrying about how anyone else is dressed.

Please - I certainly did not intend to provide any affront to anyone - at any time!! Yes, the dress instructions include Tuxedo or Business suit - BUT - 'Formal' dress does not include business suit!! So perhaps the title 'Formal Night' is not correct. But please, there are gentlemen and there are males - all of the former are part of the latter, but the opposite is not necessarily true. (and YES, I do understand that GENTLEMEN do wear business suits - and also many other types of attire.)

No offense taken....that is why I put a :D at the end of my post instead of a :(. BTW, I read your post on dancing onboard, how nice is that. Very charming in this day and age. :)

many men wear tuxes on board.. probably not as many on a short sailing as opposed to a longer sailing, but there are plenty with tux rental available as well. Happy sailing no matter how you choose to dress.

Out of style? Never!

Turn the heads? Absolutely!

Always bring mine - as it Fits and I prefer shaw stye. Thanks for the input - off to the cleaner for me ...

BobBC,

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. And if we should meet on a ship someday and you (and your partner) are so inclined, join us for a lovely afternoon dancing on the seas!!

We sail Vision to Alaska this coming Friday. I'll be wearing my tux and not worrying about how anyone else is dressed.

Doug, I think you summed it up perfectly!! :D

In the past, RCCL may have offered 5 star food/service and tuxes were pretty much the norm. However they now offer 3 star (JMO) food/service and therefore Tuxes are worn less and less. That is why their prices haven't increased over the past several years.

So, while Doug will be looking great in his tux, his vacation won't be ruined if some are dressed more casually. If others had the same attitude as Doug, we wouldn't see a huge "war" every time someone asks a question about dress codes.

Also, it is obvious that Doug is comfortable wearing a tux (sorry Doug, I hope you don't get upset with me using you in my examples :D ), others are not comfortable dressing up to that extent. Doug takes several cruises a year, others take one in their entire adult life.

To end my diatribe, I think people should dress in what they are comfortable in as long as they meet the "suggested dress code". :)

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GENTLEMEN wear a Tuxedo for formal night - anything else is not 'formal'. Sure, some men do wear dark business suits with tie - but that is not 'FORMAL' - at least not by my understanding of the term.

The ONLY thing that even clearly dictates to me a tux is REQUIRED is an invitation that says BLACK TIE.

You are never out of style wearing a tux..........however..........cruises ARE becoming less and less formal. On the Mariner in April less than 20% of the men wore tuxes........the previous October on the Vision for the Mexican Riviera less than 10% wore tuxes.

This is not pro or con........but an evaluation that formal is getting less and less with each passing year..........

In case folks haven't noticed, the entire world is getting less and less formal.

Years ago there was an invention called Casual Friday. Now most businesses have Casual Mon-Fri.

Years ago no one would be caught dead with jeans or sneakers in church. These days regardless of which service, you'll find some.

This is not a vote for or against, just an observation that the rules are becoming more relaxed as time goes on.

all the guys at work were given the option to were tux's to our xmas do last year and they were like little kids knowing they could dress up. I love seeing a man in a tux and personally am a casual dresser however formal night is the one chance you get to play Bond :p

In case folks haven't noticed, the entire world is getting less and less formal.

The entire world?

My husband rented a tux on our last cruise together and he looked wonderful and in place. Reminded me of our wedding day.

I think a tux looks great on a guy...and so what if few people are wearing them...don't let others make decissions for you! A tux is a lot of work to put on...but in the long run it is really worth it...I'm glad that so many do still care enough about themselves and others to look nice for the formal event.

My husband rented a tux on our last cruise together and he looked wonderful and in place. Reminded me of our wedding day.

For some guys, this could be a reason NOT to wear a tux. ;)

For some guys, this could be a reason NOT to wear a tux. ;)

Exactly! :D :D