RCCL - 7 night cruise - must hubby bring jacket? dress shorts for men in dining room?

[Cruise Junky]

I'm 30 something.. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] and completely agree, follow the damn dress code standards or eat elsewhere.

Some Ship, Some Itinerary, Somewhere in the Med.
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Mexican Riviera - Rhapsody of the Seas
11 Day Circle the Caribbean - Splendour of the Seas
Alaska - Dawn Princess
Coastal - Island Princess

[ducklite]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by allamricn:
Is anyone telling me that if Ben Affleck or Mel Gibson, wearing say a nice pair of jeans, nice shirt, and sportcoat, walked through the doors and sat down at a table next to you that you would be "appauled" at their choice of attire?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I do'nt know that I'd be appalled, but I wouldn't be pleased. And by the way, Mel was refused service at a restaurant I dine at now and then as he wasn't approrpiately attired.

Anne

[nosnobunny]

Good manners knows no age.

Beth

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Mariner of the Seas Reali-Tini Cruise Oct. 16/05

[ducklite]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by allamricn:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>
If you truly felt this way, why would you post in such an inflamatory manner? [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_confused.gif[/img]
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> It just goes to show the "old" way of thinking. I am sure if you asked a majority of people on this board from say 50 years and older, they would say something different that your 20, 30, possibily 40 somethings.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I"m a young 40 something, and find people who can't have the common courtesy to respect suggested dress codes to be rather rude, lacking in class, and not someone I want as dinner companions. Is it because I'm a snob? Certainly not. Simply put, I prefer to socialize with people who have the same manners as I do, which means that we "follow the rules", not make them up as we see fit.

Anne

[trish1c]

When I first read the original post in this thread my blood boiled & I really wanted to post a snide retort. Instead I held my fingers away from my key board.

Now that I have calmed down & poor Ocruise has practicially been flambed, I think she was simply asking a Q not making a policy statement.

Ocruise said <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> If my husband does not have to bring a jacket, he would prefer not to. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Read in a more calm environment, it translates to, if it is required, her DH will not only pack but wear said jacket. So, yes, Ocruise, he has to bring it. Look at it this way, when I'm cold I love to "steal" my man's jacket to drape over my shoulders. You now have extra defense against the meat locker AC temps.

Finally she asked <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> Do men ever wear a polo shirt and dress shorts in the main dining room? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I think she & her DH now understand that the answer is a resounding NO, men do not wear shorts in the dining room for dinner.

Getting dressed up used to be a treat. It was a sign of respect. It has nothing to do with money & everything to do with class.

As an aside to bensjamin3, there's a reason the saavy business people tell you to dress like your boss's boss. Appearance does say something about you. In a creative field, no I wouldn't hire a conservatively dressed person but I want my banker, lawyer, stockbroker & doctor to dress the part. As for your theory that people are more productive when they are dressed comfortably, studies have shown that the opposite to be true. People are more productive when they are dressed appropriately.

Wear whatever you want on a cruise but don't flagrantly violate the rules. Just as you may have the right to dress any way you want, don't I have an equal right to expect my fellow passangers to abide by the rules? Remember, one person's freedom ends where the next person's nose begins.

Happy sailing to all.

Trish

[hdawson]

Nosnobunny. So true.
Scarletine. Sounds like your parents did a good job teaching you manners.
Allam. It's not the clothes as much as the disrespect or lack of manners shown in not folloing the requested standard of dress. BTW.
With your line of reasoning, why no shorts or tee shirts. To some that may be dressing up. Where should the limits be set? Only to your choice? And why is it snobbery to suggest choosing a vacation that matches your comfort level or style? That's what most of us do.
As for the term "requested" or "suggested", most invitations to a formal event do use exactly these terms. It is the polite way of expressing what is expected. And it should't be a matter of what is accepted at home whether it be Ark, Tex, NY or WV. When in Rome, .......
Well, you all know the rest.
I agree, most posts have been civil.

[thefish]

There was a time when there were few cruise ships. Most of the ships were ocean liners meant for transport. The jet airplane soon spelled the demise of these grand ocean liners. At one time, as you know, passengers paid for tickets in the class that they could afford and the ship was divided into sections to match these classes and those in lower classes were forbidden in certain “upper class” areas. In the first class dining room you were expected to dress formally every evening and elegantly dined on fine china and silver. In the third class eating area you dressed as you were and ate what was offered.

When cruising became more popular it was relatively expensive and few could afford a vacation like this so the “upper class” customs were carried over to the cruise ships. As cruising became more affordable to the middle class many of the “upper class” customs and restrictions were relaxed. The formal dance hall and formal dining eventually gave way to the few formal nights and the dance lounges and disco’s we have now. Because of the big build up of the cruise industry a cruise is one of the cheapest vacations that one can take for a week or the most expensive, depending on what you want to spend and the itenarary and service you choose.

As you can see there has been an evolution of the cruise industry and I expect that it will continue. We can see this happening already. Eventually I see all formal nights going away on some cruise lines and dining becoming much less elegant. I suspect that there will still be specialty restaurants for those that are willing to pay for it. It could be that some point in the future that most of the dining areas might be contracted out to operations like TGIF and McDonald’s as they reach out to the masses to fill these mega ships. I even suspect the Pursers duties will be contracted out to international hotel chains.

There still will be premium cruise lines that will offer the old style services and elegance but at a price.

For myself I will still observe the requested dress for formal nights but I can see where the lax of enforcement and the cutback on services is going. Those wanting to wear jeans and shorts will soon get their wish but will be dining with the rest of us on hamburgers. For some this can't happen fast enough.

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[Let'sGo!]

I just had to chime in with my recent experience on Rhapsody.

I was traveling with two "newbies" and I firmly instilled in them the whole ideal of formal night. For one of the ladies, that even meant going out and buying a couple of nice outfits.

So imagine my surprise when a nearby table of 2 couples showed up on the 1st formal night wearing not only t-shirts (I believe Jimmy Buffet was the choice for this night) and shorts -- but the men also kept their baseball caps on the ENTIRE DINNER!

Yes - I'll say it - I was appalled! But I really think I was just as upset with the dining room staff for not saying something to them, as I was at them for the flagrant disregard for suggested attire.

In fact, they wore t-shirts and shorts every night at dinner... except for the last night where they didn't show up.

I'm all about relaxing on your vacation. And maybe it was their first cruise and they didn't know about formal night. But seriously - shouldn't someone from the staff at least "casually" have asked the gentlemen (term used loosely in this case) to remove their ballcaps?

No, it didn't ruin my trip. But it certainly gave our newly acquainted dinner table guests something to talk about!

Ann

'02 Enchantment of the Seas
'03 Rhapsody of the Seas
'04 Rhapsody of the Seas
'05 Navigator of the Seas

[MrNobody]

dafish...very intelligent and thoughtful comments...impressive for someone that doesnt know the difference between cookies and nookies [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

[allamricn]

The funniest thing about this whole retort back at me is that I totally intend to wear a suit for formal night. Why? Not because of the "suggested" dress code (as some of you say is basically a polite way of saying "wear this or else") but because of the fact that I could totally care less what everyone wears to the formal dining room. I don't look down upon people for their choice of attire, no matter what (well, except for the occasional 200+lb female slipping on a two-piece, but I digress). I am more looking forward to the conversation and getting to meet people from other places than worrying whether they are observing a "suggested" dress code. In my mind it is certainly not rude, its just a choice people make. That is not a sign of rudeness, its a sign of an individual. We should all be giving the choice to eat where we want on the ship, and wear what we want to that dinner. So, we all have our opinions...that's totally cool, but again, let's not sit there and call people rude or having lack of manners because of their choices (unless they are blantantly making a mockery of themselves). Guess I better hit the white gloves and party manners class before I hook up with anyone on the Splendour in March!

[allamricn]

Originally posted by allamricn:
The funniest thing about this whole retort back at me is that I totally intend to wear a suit for formal night. Why? Not because of the "suggested" dress code (as some of you say is basically a polite way of saying "wear this or else") but because I choose to do so and my hunny thinks I look very hot in a suit! Lol. I could totally care less what everyone wears to the formal dining room. I don't look down upon people for their choice of attire, no matter what (well, except for the occasional 200+lb female slipping on a two-piece, but I digress). I am more looking forward to the conversation and getting to meet people from other places than worrying whether they are observing a "suggested" dress code. In my mind it is certainly not rude, its just a choice people make. That is not a sign of rudeness, its a sign of an individual. We should all be giving the choice to eat where we want on the ship, and wear what we want to that dinner. And by the way, its a "suggestion" not a rule per se. I don't see in the RC materials I received that they will ask you to leave if you aren't wearing this or that.

So, we all have our opinions...that's totally cool, but again, let's not sit there and call people rude or having lack of manners because of their choices (unless they are blantantly making a mockery of themselves).

Guess I better hit the white gloves and party manners class before I hit the formal nights with anyone from this board when I make my maiden voyage on the Splendour in March!

[momofmeg]

cruisejunky I was giving the poor woman the benefit of the doubt- to the guy complaining about women wearing short skirts-get a kilt-and you can be like Prince charles who wears them for formal occasions( bad joke I know)

Hey I don't really worry about what others wear. I have seen the rebles on all the lines I have been on but the worse one WHICH I did resent was a table full of slobs across from us. They not only did not bother to "dress" any night- but on formal night they did not even bother to brush their hair and several looked like they needed a bath and were dressed in old worn out clothes like they had been doing spring cleaning or something. I did strongly feel the matri'd should have refused them admittance.

Carnival Tropicale 10/15/98 Western Caribbean
RCCL Sovereign of the Seas 11/22/99 Bahamas
Carnival Fascination 09/23/00 Southern caribbean
HAL Statendam 05/20/01 Alaska
RCCL Sovereign of the Seas 11/08/01 Bahamas
Pacific Princess 09/29/02 Bermuda
Carnival Inspiration 12/14/03 Western caribbean
Carnival Miracle 04/09/04 Bahamas

[MGilly]

I've been reading all these posts, and now I simply have to respond!

We are sailing on the Vision on June 18th. My DH and I fully intend to dress for formal nights. He will be wearing a very nice suit, and I have packed some lovely dresses. However! We are teachers. We spend entirely too much time on our feet during the week when we are in school, and we've decided that we will dress appropriately - down to our ankles. We've got very nice high-top Chuck Taylor sneakers that we are planning to wear in the dining room. Now, unless you plan on spending the entire evening with your heads under the tablecloth to see our comfortable footwear, I doubt that our attire will disturb you! Goodness! Even if we take the formal photographs - those sneakers won't show! So! Are we "acceptable?"

[Cruisin' Patty]

To abrid... there were shorts in the main dining room on the NCL Sea we we were on her. People were very casual then.

NCL Sea '02
NCL Norway '03
RCI Splendour '05

[cruisegirl1]

Merrylb

Is this a joke?

As teachers, surely you must own a pair of comfortable shoes or sandals that can be worn with your formal dress or suit. Why would you want to wear hi tops?

We all know that when students dress inappropriately or “out of the norm” it is usually for some sort of attention. I’ll ask the board, is the same true for adults?

We tend to dress for dinner on most vacations (land or cruise). We do not stay in shorts just because we’re on vacation; we put on a nicer outfit because we are going out to a restaurant. We view the ship dining room similar to any medium to upscale restaurant.

I’ll close by saying, “wear what you please.” I cruised last month and cannot tell you what the folks at the next table were wearing.

Maybe they were wearing hi tops.

Marci

Happy Cruising !

9 cruises - RCCL
3 cruises - Carnival

[Luna'sMom]

Having been on an RCCL cruise last year with a husband who refuses to wear a jacket on ANY night, but he will waer a nice blk shirt and pants but that is as far as he goes. He told me when we were going on our first cruise that he is on "VACATION" and you do not dress up on vacation, at least he doesn't. He did not look or feel out of place on the Serenade last year.

Celebrity Meridian 7/90
Premier SeaBreeze 6/99
Celebrity Horizon 7/00
NCL Sea 6/01
NCL Sea 6/02
NCL Dawn 6/03
RCCL Serenade of the Seas 9/03
NCL Dawn 2/04
Empress of the Seas 9/04

[DedeM]

I think it looks so nice when everyone gets dressed up. And if & when the guys wear tuxes, it's even more special. I really liked seeing everyone wear the proper clothes.

Would you go to a formal wedding in "nice/casual" attire? They ask you to dress up, you should dress up. It's only 2 nights!

I'm a slob all the time, but I "clean up nice" and it's nice to see others "clean up nice" too.

Navigator of the Seas 5/04

[abridalmaven]

Our friends were turned away on the Dawn. They were in T shirts and shorts.No one else was in shorts the whole week. But there wre some real slobs on formal night. And by that I mean nasty looking jeans, t shirts and turned around ball caps.

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[abridalmaven]

And I also think Hi tops are way to hot for a cruise, even Alaska. I bring sneakers, but the keds type for excursions.The others are way to hot to wear. And believe me no one is more concerned about foot comfort.I had surgery to correct painful bunions and vowed never to wear uncomfortable shoes again. I have evry stylish and comfortable sandals that are cooler and more comfortable than any pair of sneakers. But hey it is your feet. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

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[greeky]

we are going on the BOS in july and my husband is going to wear his kilt on the fancy nights as he calls them and shirt and no jacket or tie the rest of the cruise.

[jsargent34]

Several people have called RCI and the answer is in...

From the CS Rep.

[I][B]Our new policy indicates that "formal" is whatever you want it to be. All rules, and traditions are hereby waived on all future sailings.[/B][/I]

Boy that's great news...

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(Hey they're cruises too!!!)

[jezzdogg]

Is that a gag or what? Do not believe it for a minute, read the posts of people woming offo the cruisewhips. If you do not want a formal night experience, either sail Norwiegn that does not have them, or eat at the Windjammer as there it is come as you are( but still, no swim or birthdaysuits)

norm

[jezzdogg]

Is that a gag or what? Do not believe it for a minute, read the posts of people woming offo the cruisewhips. If you do not want a formal night experience, either sail Norwiegn that does not have them, or eat at the Windjammer as there it is come as you are( but still, no swim or birthdaysuits)
-----------------------

[abridalmaven]

Norwiegan does have one formal night.

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[greybear]

I have always thought that choice of clothing is a matter of expression, not a matter of politeness or lack thereof. If the clothing is clean and neatly put together, I, personally, do not have a problem with it.

I find that some people that dress exquisitely are at times much more rude than people that choose not to wear upscale attire. I am also of the opinion that people that make up their mind on adherence to dress code alone ARE being judgemental. Suit yourselves but rest assured that you are missing out on some very interesting and enjoyable life experiences...

And by the way, I bring at least one cocktail dress and one full length gown on a cruise. Although I enjoy dressing up, I would NEVER think less of a person wearing pressed pants and a nice shirt. It is not everybody's wish to be a lemming and it is not up to me to tell someone that they should limit their choice of vacation according to their attire preference. How nonsensical [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif[/img]

I apologize for the rant and I hope I have not offended anyone. My DH and I will be cruising on the Brilliance on Nov. 22, 2004. We will be part of the population that dress nice AND that can find it in their hearts to celebrate people's differences.