Darling, what are you wearing?

Okay, I'm very late to this party but have been agonizing over these threads.

 

I have no idea what country club casual or elegant casual actually mean. I don't belong to a country club. I work in tech. Elegance does not apply. Shoes are pretty much the minimum standard of civilization.

 

I have three kinds of clothes:

 

* Don't wear it out of the house

* Wear it to work

* Wear it to conferences

 

you will be fine with your

wear it to work or conference dress

no need to stress go & enjoy

I feel as if I know you Mura, having read so many wonderfully balanced, humourous, intelligent, well thought out replies to many postings on this board. I just wish you were on our upcoming cruise on the Riviera in July (Lisbon to Venice) as I would love to meet you. We have sailed on HAL, MSC, plus Tauck river boats, and the dress code varies in all of them. Sadly it has never put me off my food or drink. ;)

Thank you for the input and don't ever change!

I will second this! Thanks Mura!

The office wear is either Capris and sandals with a good pedicure (summer) or jeans and plain closed leather shoes (winter), with the same plain tops.

 

I know the jeans are out for dinner, but still have no idea about what I'm supposed to wear. Is business casual okay for women? West coast business casual, because apparently that's a thing, too.

 

I'm about at the point where I just plan to have dinner delivered every night because it's stressing me the heck out.

Your business casual/conference clothing should be a safe base for dinners, but this is a cruise/vacation, a chance to have some fun with your wardrobe and add some pieces and colors that are out of your work comfort zone. Who knows, maybe you expand your wardrobe to 4 kinds of clothes:

I have three kinds of clothes:

* Don't wear it out of the house

* Wear it to work

* Wear it to conferences

* Wear it for a special occasion or a night on the town

Your office wear sounds like it would be fine for excursions or daytime casual wear, but again, don't be afraid to spice it up a bit!

I think being underdressed or inappropriately dressed tends to stress people out, but no need to fret over it, everyone will end up wearing what they are comfortable wearing within a specific dress code anyways and you've probably given more thought and preparation than most. :)

Okay, I'm very late to this party but have been agonizing over these threads.

 

I have no idea what country club casual or elegant casual actually mean. I don't belong to a country club. I work in tech. Elegance does not apply. Shoes are pretty much the minimum standard of civilization.

 

I have three kinds of clothes:

 

* Don't wear it out of the house

* Wear it to work

* Wear it to conferences

 

The conference wear is slightly dressy slacks with plain tops (not T-shirts) and plain closed leather shoes (not pumps). Black wool Banana Republic slacks with a white Gap bateau neck knit top and black leather shoes, for example. Where I live, this would pass muster in any restaurant I can think of.

 

The office wear is either Capris and sandals with a good pedicure (summer) or jeans and plain closed leather shoes (winter), with the same plain tops.

 

I know the jeans are out for dinner, but still have no idea about what I'm supposed to wear. Is business casual okay for women? West coast business casual, because apparently that's a thing, too.

 

I'm about at the point where I just plan to have dinner delivered every night because it's stressing me the heck out.

It'll be okay!

Sounds like your work wear would be fine for during the day and at Terraces for dinner, and your conference wear would be fine for GDR and specialties. Capris (as long as not sloppy, and you don't sound like those would make it out of the house) with a "nice" top would work for all venues imo. Bring 2 scarves and no one would even know if you're wearing the same conference outfit every night ;)

Depending on your itinerary, you could always plan on shopping at your first port and not even pack restaurant wear ;) That's a suggestion mostly in jest, but no reason it couldn't work!

"smart casual" might be another way to describe the dress code (if that helps)

Even though it may not reflect total reality, anyone confused about country club casual could always look at the models on O's constant barrage of brochures and get a feel for country club casual. For the total clueless, that could be a hint. The vast majority of O cruisers dress appropriately without comment or questioning for dinner. Saying that, I have never been on an O cruise where I haven't seen fellow cruisers turned away from a venue because of dress. By chance, I saw one gentleman turned away two straight nights in a roll. There was no question, with him being in shorts, he was improperly dressed, he was just pushing the lower limits to see if he could get in. I believe that is the same with all I've seen turned away, they know they are underdressed, they just want to undercut the system. Viking River cruises has a stated dress code for dinner. They don't enforce it, so a percentage of their passengers quickly go grunge. If O quit enforcing its dress code, we'd have just as many going grunge for dinner on O. You will always have that percentage of passengers that don't care what the dress codes are, or what customary dress is, they will attempt to undercut it. The codes only survive as long as Oceania enforces them. What is the allowed dress in the GDR and Specialty restaurants? Whatever the Maitre De permits is the true answer.

Personally, I can't comfortably sit in a formally decorated dining room with well dressed staff in super casual clothes - not anywhere, anytime. I at least go with the dress pants and top, as others have recommended. Dress sandals or leather shoes. (DH always overdresses and is comfortable) Breakfast and lunch in the GDR, what to do?

Breakfast and lunch in the GDR, what to do?

as long as you are not in PJ's, bathrobes, swimwear & cover up you should be fine :halo:

plus some sort of footwear ..no bare feet

Personally, I can't comfortably sit in a formally decorated dining room with well dressed staff in super casual clothes - not anywhere, anytime. I at least go with the dress pants and top, as others have recommended. Dress sandals or leather shoes. (DH always overdresses and is comfortable) Breakfast and lunch in the GDR, what to do?

You have expressed it perfectly. J

Two suggestions for those who are dress code stressed.

1) Ask the person in charge first - Maitre "D or dining staff supervisor

I once wanted to wear my FC Barcelona tie shirt to the 4:00 pm tea. I asked the man in charge and explained, and described, as accurately as possible. The next day, after the OK, I wore it. He saw me enter, and as I pointed to it, he gave my a big smile and came over to talk with me. As luck would have it, the table next to ours had gentlemen, dressed less casual than me, that were from Spain. One was a Real Madrid fan and another was a FC Barcelona fan. Tea was great fun.

I also, after clearing with the Maitre 'D, on a fall cruise leaving Venice, wore a mask into the main dining room of the Riviera.

2) Check out the crowd. If you have a later reservation, check out the people going in and then dress as you wish being somewhat informed. If you have an early reservation, overdress a little and tone it down for later in the cruise appearances. I once excused myself and came back without the tie.

Good god this is crazy. It's starting to look like the Cunard board with their obsession on dress.

If people really can't figure out what to wear in a nice but casual environment then how do they figure out how to get to the airport, board a flight, and get to the cabin?

It's amazing that there are people in the world who are performing brain surgery while others are trying to figure out what to wear on a cruise.

I know what I would like to wear. But I have to decide what to pack. When driving to a cruise, I have no problem. Flying is the issue, then touring for a week, and yes I know how to pack light (one carryon to fit in the overhead) but it still means limiting items. Plus just like to think about and plan my vacation.

Glad to be amazing... :)

I know what I would like to wear. But I have to decide what to pack. When driving to a cruise, I have no problem. Flying is the issue, then touring for a week, and yes I know how to pack light (one carryon to fit in the overhead) but it still means limiting items. Plus just like to think about and plan my vacation.

 

Glad to be amazing... :)

One thing that makes my life easier is that I always budget for sending clothes to be laundered.

I know it will be expensive but as long as I budget for it ahead of time it greatly reduces the stress of packing.

Good god this is crazy. It's starting to look like the Cunard board with their obsession on dress.

If people really can't figure out what to wear in a nice but casual environment then how do they figure out how to get to the airport, board a flight, and get to the cabin?

 

It's amazing that there are people in the world who are performing brain surgery while others are trying to figure out what to wear on a cruise.

It doesn't look like folks on Cunard are coming back with comments about how disappointed they are in the state of dress on that cruise line though, maybe the fact they have a pretty clear cut dress code and attract cruisers that "obsess" over what they wear has something to do with it!

In any case, this thread has drawn quite a few views and lots of great opinions stated, I know I looked for similar when we finally decided on Oceania (for the itinerary, food, and overall value) and was trying to research the dress code.

Anyways, from what most people have said about O's dress code I've gathered:

• 1) No shorts, no flip-flops/slides, preferably no jeans, no t-shirts/tanktops (on men), no sloppy attire of any kind please in the formal dining rooms and specialties.
  
• 2) Suits, ties, jackets are never required for men. Cocktail dresses for women aren't either. But hey, feel free to class the place up if you like!
  
• 3) Wear what you're comfortable wearing to a nice dinner or restaurant in your home city/town. Business casual is a good place to start, but feel free to add some cruise/vacation flair to those baselines.
  
• 4) When in doubt, take a look at O's marketing material for "aspirational guidance" on what they consider "Country Club Casual" and go down from there!
  

It doesn't look like folks on Cunard are coming back with comments about how disappointed they are in the state of dress on that cruise line though, maybe the fact they have a pretty clear cut dress code and attract cruisers that "obsess" over what they wear has something to do with it!

 

In any case, this thread has drawn quite a few views and lots of great opinions stated, I know I looked for similar when we finally decided on Oceania (for the itinerary, food, and overall value) and was trying to research the dress code.

 

Anyways, from what most people have said about O's dress code I've gathered:

 

• 1) No shorts, no flip-flops/slides, preferably no jeans, no t-shirts/tanktops (on men), no sloppy attire of any kind please in the formal dining rooms and specialties.
  
• 2) Suits, ties, jackets are never required for men. Cocktail dresses for women aren't either. But hey, feel free to class the place up if you like!
  
• 3) Wear what you're comfortable wearing to a nice dinner or restaurant in your home city/town. Business casual is a good place to start, but feel free to add some cruise/vacation flair to those baselines.
  
• 4) When in doubt, take a look at O's marketing material for "aspirational guidance" on what they consider "Country Club Casual" and go down from there!
  

One of the delightful things about Oceania is that it's casual and easy. People will be drawn to your personality more than your clothes!

From the FAQ on O's website:

Is there a dress code?

Recommended onboard clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM.

Doesn't meet the preferences listed by many. Doesn't meet what I would be comfortable wearing. Avoids the dreaded Flip Flops; seems tennis shoes are more an issue after 6pm.

Anyway, I enjoyed the discussion and seeing many points of view. Thanks.

You forgot #5 - don't worry.

One of the delightful things about Oceania is that it's casual and easy. People will be drawn to your personality more than your clothes!

Unless you're the guy who is so laid back, you try and wear shorts, crocs and a t-shirt and aren't allowed into the dining room to wow everyone with your personality! :D

It doesn't look like folks on Cunard are coming back with comments about how disappointed they are in the state of dress on that cruise line though, maybe the fact they have a pretty clear cut dress code and attract cruisers that "obsess" over what they wear has something to do with it!

 

In any case, this thread has drawn quite a few views and lots of great opinions stated, I know I looked for similar when we finally decided on Oceania (for the itinerary, food, and overall value) and was trying to research the dress code.

 

Anyways, from what most people have said about O's dress code I've gathered:

 

• 1) No shorts, no flip-flops/slides, preferably no jeans, no t-shirts/tanktops (on men), no sloppy attire of any kind please in the formal dining rooms and specialties.
  
• 2) Suits, ties, jackets are never required for men. Cocktail dresses for women aren't either. But hey, feel free to class the place up if you like!
  
• 3) Wear what you're comfortable wearing to a nice dinner or restaurant in your home city/town. Business casual is a good place to start, but feel free to add some cruise/vacation flair to those baselines.
  
• 4) When in doubt, take a look at O's marketing material for "aspirational guidance" on what they consider "Country Club Casual" and go down from there!
  

As for #1 - one could wear nice shorts/jeans to the MDR for breakfast and lunch but not for dinner.

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

Wow, you are a survivor! I put at least one change of clothes, shoes, and underwear in my carryon. You just reminded me why I do that.

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

No shops open anywhere in 10 days???

Nothing in the OB shops ?

I never seen crocs for sale on O is this new ?

I would never survive in the clothes on my back :eek:

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

Our friends had a similar thing happen to them on a TA from Barcelona to Miami. O provided free laundry for them as their wardrobe was very limited (I shared some of my shirts with the friend as we are similar size).

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

OMG! :eek: I'm so sorry this happened to you!! That is my one of my travel nightmares. Yes, I plan to take a few changes of clothes and my dress shoes with me in my carryon. That way we can check less bags. I'm still worried about our luggage getting lost.

No shops open anywhere in 10 days???

Nothing in the OB shops ?

I never seen crocs for sale on O is this new ?

 

I would never survive in the clothes on my back :eek:

This was about 8 years ago, and we were able to buy crocs and swimwear in the cruise shop, and not much else. We had a couple of sea days, then stopped at island that only had lumber store open because of hurricane damage, then Christmas, and Boxing day stops, all shops closed. Then sea day again, then finally I was able to buy shoes and a couple of wrap dresses, and hubby bought shorts, undies and a couple of shirts. We had laundry done free every night and ready early next morning, along with complete toiletry bags and shaving gear. We managed, and it was fun on a small ship where everyone asked "any luggage yet?" We learned our lesson and always take a couple of days clothes in our carry on. Nicole

Nicole, I learned a similar lesson way back around 1982 when my luggage disappeared on a flight to Madeira, Mexico (in the Yucatan). But at least for me my luggage arrived the next day!

On that trip I was going to meet my husband in Madeira ... he'd been on a business trip and was flying from L.A. on the first DC10 that was in service after some big disaster back then. They ended up being diverted to Mexico City so he didn't join me until the next day.

But I was there overnight with no underwear or other unmentionables. I learned my lesson too ... now some of those items are in my carry-on! (And the suspicious looks I got from other diners in the hotel restaurant was another high point. Of course they didn't know my husband had been delayed OR that my luggage was missing.)

I can't imagine doing the whole cruise in one outfit, however! I'm glad it worked out for you. I have occasionally met other passengers on the ship who had similar problems, but usually the luggage caught up to them sooner than yours did!

Good for making lemonade out of lemons ... which we've done as well! Travelers need to be able to do that!

Mura

Crocs to the rescue!!! Unfortunate situation, but that's why one of our carryons is a garment bag with everything even a few pairs of underwear!!!