How "dressy" are Ventura cruises??

[Britiscruizin]

I'm really hoping that I haven't made a massive mistake!!!:o We have booked for 7 nights on Ventura to the Fjords & were really looking forward to it until a person in our travel agents told us that P&O are very "formal ships" :eek:& even on smart casual nights most people dress to the nines!:confused: We are not "dressing up" people (not football shirt types either!!!) & prefer to dress smart-casual although we are happy to put on the glad-rags for 2 nights ,it would spoil our holiday to be suited & booted every night. Help please from anyone who has been on Ventura:)

[andyc567]

You tend to get 2 formal nights per week on Ventura in the main restuarants..

 

Having said that, there are other places to eat, I think the freedom dining don't enfource such nights and smart casual is absolutly fine.

 

Don't worry, you will be fine, especially on Ventura as it is no where as formal as some of the older ships.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[u2cruiser]

I was very surprised how smart Ventura was on formal nights after being on the American ships. There was a very large percentage of men in dinner suits and the rest in normal suits. It's quite nice for a couple of evenings.

 

The rest of the time smart casual or resort type clothes are fine. Don't worry about clothes. Instead look forward to a great cruise :)

 

ETA Freedom diners have the same dress code as Club diners. I think the above poster may mean formal wear isn't required in the buffet.

[tom_uk]

In Europe Ventura follows a policy of having formal and smart-casual nights only; there are no 'informal' (which means 'semi-formal') nights.

 

So two nights of serious dress-up, and five nights of much more casual. Trousers and top will be fine for you, or trousers and shirt for you husband. Jacket & tie not necessary. I tended to wear chino-type trousers + open-necked shirt.; once I wore a casual linen suit.

 

Also the first and last nights tend to be even more casual, the first night especially. I might even have seen some jeans being worn on that first night last time on Ventura.

[Quercus]

I find it very confusing, the "rules" say one thing but in practise it is different, who on earth do you ask? ask P&O they just give the official line as in the brochure, so all you can do is ask on forums, hardly ideal is it? I am completely happy to respect any dress code that is requested, but I find it annoying that others do not, I know it should not annoy me but I am sorry to say it does. What I don't understand is why people book up a cruise that clearly states that certain standards of dress are required, then ask if it's really true, I part blame the cruise lines for this as they are not consistent by saying one thing but doing another.

[davecttr]

I find it very confusing, the "rules" say one thing but in practise it is different, who on earth do you ask? ask P&O they just give the official line as in the brochure, so all you can do is ask on forums, hardly ideal is it? I am completely happy to respect any dress code that is requested, but I find it annoying that others do not, I know it should not annoy me but I am sorry to say it does. What I don't understand is why people book up a cruise that clearly states that certain standards of dress are required, then ask if it's really true, I part blame the cruise lines for this as they are not consistent by saying one thing but doing another.

They ask because other people have told them they would have to dress up on smart casual nights. Know they know they will be fine with smart casual on those nights and are happy to dress up on formal nights, no problem?

[Quercus]

They ask because other people have told them they would have to dress up on smart casual nights. Know they know they will be fine with smart casual on those nights and are happy to dress up on formal nights, no problem?

Yes I thought we knew that, I didn't make myself clear enough, I was moving on a bit to the general problem of dress codes, hence the title of my post

''Ships in general''

[Thejuggler]

Smart casual for me means chinos/trousers and either a shirt (no tie) or a polo shirt - no need for a jacket.

 

This is perfectly acceptable and there's no requirement for anything more, but some gents do wear shirt and tie every smart casual night, each to their own.

[SeaSickGill]

Here's me - I thought that dressing up was part of the attraction. I'm not a dressing up person, but you should see my cruise attire:D

[u2cruiser]

Here's me - I thought that dressing up was part of the attraction. I'm not a dressing up person, but you should she my cruise attire:D

 

*waiting patiently for pics :D*

[Rum Rat]

All this confusion

 

Who is to blame on some people not understanding just what is what?

 

It is either the brochures not explaining it, or people not reading right.

 

Would it not be sensible for PandO to designate 'a ship', such as Ventura to be the 'Butlin at Sea' and no ties or smart attire is required and torn tee/football shirts and cut off jeans is deemed satisfactory for 24/7?

 

and the rest of the PandO fleet respectable with Formal, Semi Formal and very Smart Casual for those who appreciate this kind of dress code?

 

The cruising market has changed. At the wrong time too. When it was on the rapid rise, they built more 'blocks of flats', there is now a cut back in people's spending power. Look at all the bargains being pushed out. Leave it to the last minute 'and they will pay you to cruise to put bums in berths' and THAT is the problem, they have 'lowered the standards' to get the too few bums in far too many berths :rolleyes:

 

.

[ROSEBASKETS]

Would it not be sensible for PandO to designate 'a ship', such as Ventura to be the 'Butlin at Sea' and no ties or smart attire is required and torn tee/football shirts and cut off jeans is deemed satisfactory for 24/7? /quote]

 

Roll on the day! Perhaps they could have it as a reverse Saga ship only allowing UNDER 50's on board :confused:

 

Ah we can only dare to dream :o

[andyc567]

ETA Freedom diners have the same dress code as Club diners. I think the above poster may mean formal wear isn't required in the buffet.

 

 

Thanks for the correction, that is actually what I meant, but just got the name wrong.

 

Sorry if I mislead anyone..

[u2cruiser]

Thanks for the correction, that is actually what I meant, but just got the name wrong.

 

Sorry if I mislead anyone..

 

Hey, it's all so confusing so don't apologise. I am now totally confused about freedom dining if it's any consolation :D

[Host Sharon]

Hey, it's all so confusing so don't apologise. I am now totally confused about freedom dining if it's any consolation :D

 

Freedom dining only means that you do not have a set time to eat and a set table to go to. The same dress codes apply but you can turn up anytime within reason, although you may have to wait to be seated if it is a popular time slot. You choose whether to have set dining or freedom dining when you book. You cannot mix and match the two.

[abomination]

I thought the dress codes were quite clear:

 

Formal Nights- Black tie or a dark suit for men, posh frocks or trouser suits for the ladies.

 

Smart casual- Casual seperates or dresses for ladies, shirt or polo shirt with trousers or dark jeans for men- no jacket required. Banned items are tracksuits, trainers and football kit/sportswear.

 

That was one of the benefits of Ventura for us- I love to dress up a bit- but a jacket and trousers every night would be too much like work- being able to wear smart jeans and a shirt will feel a lot more comfortable,and at the end of the day it's my holiday and I'll relax how I damn well like ;)

[ROSEBASKETS]

Freedom dining only means that you do not have a set time to eat and a set table to go to. The same dress codes apply but you can turn up anytime within reason, although you may have to wait to be seated if it is a popular time slot. You choose whether to have set dining or freedom dining when you book. You cannot mix and match the two.

 

So if you on Club Dining you can't go to the Beach House? Is this right? I'm now as confused as u2cruiser!

[jocap]

So if you on Club Dining you can't go to the Beach House? Is this right? I'm now as confused as u2cruiser!

Yes, you can....our last Ventura cruise was booked so late that we had to accept 2nd sitting...a no-no for us. We ate there once, to give the waiters their tips, and ate in every other venue the rest of the time.

Jo.

[lancashire_cruisers]

So if you on Club Dining you can't go to the Beach House? Is this right? I'm now as confused as u2cruiser!

 

Rosie

 

The Beach House is a separate restaurant and is open to all passengers on the ship regardless of whether they are Club or Freedom diners.

 

Debbie:)

[u2cruiser]

so if you on club dining you can't go to the beach house? Is this right? I'm now as confused as u2cruiser!

 

lol! :d

[barneymag]

I'm really hoping that I haven't made a massive mistake!!!:o We have booked for 7 nights on Ventura to the Fjords & were really looking forward to it until a person in our travel agents told us that P&O are very "formal ships" :eek:& even on smart casual nights most people dress to the nines!:confused: We are not "dressing up" people (not football shirt types either!!!) & prefer to dress smart-casual although we are happy to put on the glad-rags for 2 nights ,it would spoil our holiday to be suited & booted every night. Help please from anyone who has been on Ventura:)

 

We did a 14 night cruise on Ventura last summer ........... 1st time on P&O and we had read brochure but thought we would cover all options for evening wear. Took DJs, smart trousers, casual trousers, smart jeans, casual jeans, jackets, smart shirts, casual shirts, polo shirts ............. that was just me and our two teenage boys. In addition to this my wife took 14 different dresses including formal, long, cocktail plus skirts and trousers and smart shorts etc etc ....... good job we were out of Southampton and no weight limits.

 

Didn't need to worry - Ventura seemed to enjoy at least a 90% take up on the 4 formal nights and even my lads didn't complain on dressing up as most of the other 700 kids were doing the same and we all enjoyed this part of the cruise. However on the other 10 nights we pretty much dressed in all types of outfits from shirt and trousers (no tie or jacket needed) to smart jeans with a nice smart shirt or chinos/casual trousers with a smart polo shirt. Other passengers would wear ties and jackets and some would wear casual jeans/light denim (which personally I didn't like as it did look out of place in the smarter bars or restaurants but not a big deal to me) most of the ladies dressed up from formal gowns to cocktail dresses and trousers, skirts, smart shorts and blouses.

 

We felt the balance was about right and on the smart casual evenings it felt like what we would expect in a smart European 4 or 5 star hotel. There were a handful that were a little too casual for the dress code but out of 3000+ passengers they were in the minority.

 

We never felt under or over dressed on any evening so as long as your're not aiming to dress to shock or offend don't worry.

[Quercus]

I have met people who thought they weren't allowed in the MDR for some reason but never someone who thought they weren't allowed in the other restaurants!!

Dress codes are simple until you get on the ship & discover that nobody actually enforces them, & those who know that take advantage of this & disrespect the codes as well as their fellow diners. This is where the confusion comes in, people get involved!

[Single Cruiser]

I thought it was shocking, several days without a dress code thread! ;)

 

Bottom line, two types of cruisers, trad who dress up and live to eat and those who just like to relax and be comfortable and eat to live.

 

P&O spent large amounts on two big ships and have an excess berths to passenger ratio. They (Carnival UK) tried to recover the situation by killing off their other UK based line OV and tried to move pax onto Ventura and Oceana.

 

It's clear from all literature that a majority ship dress code is requested twice a week but that some people have dressed less formal and not been turned away. This gets posted in forums and travel agents push the oh yes casual not a problem, can eat at buffet to get the sales.

 

The majority of new passengers don't want the hassle of dressing up. Other lines like RCI and carnival have adopted more liberal dress codes.

 

You can look on any of the sub forums on here for the other lines and see similar discussions.

 

Everyone has different standards of smart casual. Some include jeans, some chinos, some cargo pants (like they sell at M&S) with polo shirts. Some include sandals, some dark trainers.

[Quercus]

People may well have different standards of what smart casual means but all that matters is what the cruise line specify. Same for other codes.

As far as trad. cruisers & others go, some do prefer to have dinner & see it as a social event whilst others just want something to eat & view eating as an interruption.

[Denarius]

In Europe Ventura follows a policy of having formal and smart-casual nights only; there are no 'informal' (which means 'semi-formal') nights.

 

So two nights of serious dress-up, and five nights of much more casual. Trousers and top will be fine for you, or trousers and shirt for you husband. Jacket & tie not necessary. I tended to wear chino-type trousers + open-necked shirt.; once I wore a casual linen suit.

 

Also the first and last nights tend to be even more casual, the first night especially. I might even have seen some jeans being worn on that first night last time on Ventura.

On Ventura peak season cruises jeans are quite common on casual nights.