No Formal in Blu ?

[lion1956]

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

[jomf]

It was accurate when we dined in Blu, however, there were many people who did dress up in formal. So if you wish to dress above smart casual you will not be alone.

[varoo]

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

Yes it is.

 

Formal attire is also optional at all the specialty restaurants on formal nights.

 

The main dining room is the only place on the ship where formal attire is required on formal nights.

 

[Iamthesea]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lion1956 View Post

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

 

 

Yes it is.

 

Formal attire is also optional at all the specialty restaurants on formal nights.

 

The main dining room is the only place on the ship where formal attire is required on formal nights.

 

And gowns and suits are not required in the MDR, although a jacket is - or used to be required.

Edited November 4, 2013 by Iamthesea

[aquaclass]

from the Celebrity Website

 

Smart Casual and Above

 

 

Ladies: Skirt or pants/trousers (no holes, rips or tears) complemented by sweater or blouse.

Gentlemen: Pant/trousers (no holes, rips or tears) with collared sports shirt or sweater. Shirts must have sleeves.

 

Note: T-shirts, swimsuits, robes, bare feet, tank tops, baseball caps and pool wear are not allowed in the main restaurant or specialty restaurant at any time. Shorts and flip flops are not allowed in the evening hours. As a courtesy to our guests, we respectfully require and enforce compliance with dress code at the entrance of your restaurant of choice. Additionally, guests are asked to follow the 'Smart Casual and Above: dress code in the Celebrity Theater for all evening performances.

 

 

 

Formal

 

Ladies: Cocktail dress, gown or dressy pantsuit

Gentlemen: Tuxedo, suit or dinner jacket with slacks.

Specialty Restaurants (Including Blu for our AquaClass Guests)

The dress code at Celebrity's Specialty Restaurants is 'Smart Casual and Above' for every night of your cruise. Formal attire is only required in the main dining room on your formal evenings.

[Trend]

Yes some people still dress up more on formal nights even in Blu but it is not a requirement and you will not feel out of placed dressed elegantly casual some people just aren't smart!

[4774Papa]

We were Aqua on Infinity and told that formal nights applied in BLU.

[bighairtexan]

In BLU you can either dress to the nines on formal night and not feel out of place, or dress smart casual and not feel underdressed. You'll see the gamut on formal night in Blu w/ perhaps in my experience seeing people a bit more dressed up then in general, than on other nights.

 

Papa, I don't know when you were on Infinity, as the Blu dress code used to be formal on formal nights but changed a while ago to smart casual every day.

[dkjretired]

In BLU you can either dress to the nines on formal night and not feel out of place, or dress smart casual and not feel underdressed. You'll see the gamut on formal night in Blu w/ perhaps in my experience seeing people a bit more dressed up then in general, than on other nights.

 

Papa, I don't know when you were on Infinity, as the Blu dress code used to be formal on formal nights but changed a while ago to smart casual every day.

 

Correct, if you notice the dress code says "smart casual and above". You should not feel out of place in a suit, tux or just pants and a shirt.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

In BLU you can either dress to the nines on formal night and not feel out of place, or dress smart casual and not feel underdressed. You'll see the gamut on formal night in Blu w/ perhaps in my experience seeing people a bit more dressed up then in general, than on other nights.

 

Papa, I don't know when you were on Infinity, as the Blu dress code used to be formal on formal nights but changed a while ago to smart casual every day.

 

We were on the Infinity with Papa this spring and I can confirm that the Daily stated that formal dress was required in all the restaurants. We had formal wear with us as we were not in Blu all three legs, so it wasn't a problem for us. If I hadn't been prepared with formal wear, I would have gone to the mat with the maitre d' as it is definitely contrary to what Celebrity posts on its famous, always correct website.

[Gonzo70]

We were Aqua on Infinity and told that formal nights applied in BLU.

 

You were told wrong; for a while now company policy has been that formal nights ONLY apply to the main dining room and nowhere else.

[bighairtexan]

Yeah but when you're told wrong…. whatcha gonna do? I don't relish the idea of going to dinner and having to fight my way in. That's annoying to say the least.

About 2 months after RCI started allowing 2 bottles of wine/stateroom, I had my wine confiscated from my carry on and had to argue to get it back. It wasn't a brand new policy but they still confiscated it until I argued w/ security and then had the check in agent go and retrieve it. Not a fun way to start a cruise and it could have been avoided if policy changes actually reach the staff as well as the passenger.

 

(I've still got my knickers in a twist over that, can you tell?)

[dkjretired]

We were on the Infinity with Papa this spring and I can confirm that the Daily stated that formal dress was required in all the restaurants. We had formal wear with us as we were not in Blu all three legs, so it wasn't a problem for us. If I hadn't been prepared with formal wear, I would have gone to the mat with the maitre d' as it is definitely contrary to what Celebrity posts on its famous, always correct website.

 

The problem was that some of the ships went rogue and decided to change Celebrity's policy. This would not have been a problem if they lessened the requirements but in this case they made them stricter. Cruisers who did not clothes for the more stringent code were not happy and rightfully so. It was basically akin to changing the rules of the game after it started. This board had a lot of discussion about it and apparently the message went to Miami who passed it on to the ships loud and clear. The Celebrity Cruises poster on this board confirmed the dress code as smart casual in all restaurants other than the MDR

 

Since those incidents, no one has reported back recently that any of the ships have gone rogue.

[Cruise a holic]

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

 

On formal nights, when we sailed in Aqua Class, people did dress up. The same as in the main dining room. Of course some people didn't dress up, but the majority did.

[Cruise a holic]

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

 

On formal nights, when we sailed in Aqua Class, people did dress up. The same as in the main dining room. Of course some people didn't dress up, but the majority did. Every other night- people did dress in smart casual and above.

[bigbenboys]

I've read one poster who said that when staying in Aqua cabins and dining in Blu that you don't have to wear formal attire such as suits and gowns and that every night is "smart casual" Is this accurate information?

 

Our last cruise I wore dress grey jeans on formal night to Blu. Formal attire is only asked of in the MDR on formal night. If you eat in Blu, and any of the specially restaurants on formal nights only smart casual is required. Buffet you can wear shorts and flip flops if you wish on formal night. Richard

[varoo]

We were seated pretty close to the entrance in Blu and did not see anyone being turned away on formal night or hear any complaints.

 

Most passengers there were dressed much the same way they dressed on other nights. Only a small minority were formally dressed, even fewer on the second formal night than on the first formal night.

 

But we were there early, around 7. It could be that more of the later diners were the ones who dressed formally in Blu.

 

[Honeybearhollow]

We always dress formally on formal nights in Blu or in Specialty Restaurants. Many others were also dressed formally, as well. Those who were not formal, were dressed very nicely.

[ozark74]

In the spring we did 6 weeks on the Solstice in Blu so I did not want to pack a suit. There were some that dressed in tuxs but it was not most, maybe 50/50.

[Cruise a holic]

We were seated pretty close to the entrance in Blu and did not see anyone being turned away on formal night or hear any complaints.

 

Most passengers there were dressed much the same way they dressed on other nights. Only a small minority were formally dressed, even fewer on the second formal night than on the first formal night.

 

But we were there early, around 7. It could be that more of the later diners were the ones who dressed formally in Blu.

 

I would imagine dress varies. On our last Summit cruise to Bermuda, 80-85% of guest dressed formally. Last winter, on our Reflection cruise, more. When I say formally, the men wore jackets and ties and ladies cocktail or evening dress.

 

On Royal Caribbean, a lower percent of guests dressed up. I believe you should wear what you are comfortable in. We enjoy dressing up on a cruise as we seldom do at home. Makes the evening more special and we enjoy the pictures that we take reminding us of a very special celebration. But to each his own. Enjoy your cruise.

Edited November 7, 2013 by Cruise a holic

[thephillykid]

I can't believe that the matre'd would turn someone away from the mdr or blu if they in their opinion were not dressed formal on formal night. They work on tips and are not going to risk upsetting a guest, who in then will cut their tips. I have been on 8 cruises and I have never seen it happen. In fact, I remember on a few cruises back on X that a whole group of men wore the black t shirts that look like a tuxedo and no chased them from the mdr, but rather everyone commented to them about how nice and comfortable they looked while dressed up.

Howard

[Cruise a holic]

I can't believe that the matre'd would turn someone away from the mdr or blu if they in their opinion were not dressed formal on formal night. They work on tips and are not going to risk upsetting a guest, who in then will cut their tips. I have been on 8 cruises and I have never seen it happen. In fact, I remember on a few cruises back on X that a whole group of men wore the black t shirts that look like a tuxedo and no chased them from the mdr, but rather everyone commented to them about how nice and comfortable they looked while dressed up.

Howard

 

 

I never witnessed it either- but I assume anything can happen. I wouldn't penalize the waiters who work so hard and reduce the tip however. I also saw a man wearing that silly t-shirt- good if you are under ten- but not so if you are middle aged

[TheWren]

Buffet you can wear shorts and flip flops if you wish on formal night. Richard

 

I have the Welcome Aboard Celebrity Today from the cruise I was on last week. They have noted the dress code for "evening attire" for each night on the front page (and specified what that entails);

 

and, in addition inside have a paragraph titled "Proper Dining Attire" - extracts from it :

"....................................

See front page for dress code details.

...............

Shorts and flip flops are not permitted in the evening hours.

...........

Additionally, guests are asked to follow the "Smart Casual and Above" dress code in the Equinox Theatre for all evening performances".

[ghstudio]

The disconnect:

 

Celebrity's dress code policy, agree with it or not, is that formal dress is required in the Main Dining Room on formal nights and the specialty restaurants and blu are smart casual and above on ALL night of your cruise. Again, while their are agreements or disagreements on the appropriateness of the policy, that is the policy.

 

Except, apparently, on the infinity where the hotel director feels that on formal night, the entire ship, with the exception of the buffet should be formal. The statement in the daily is that tonight's dress is formal....with the following additional statement:

 

"In order to maintain the elegance of our ship's ambience, Celebrity Cruises requests that all guests adhere to the evening dress code in all Dining rooms. If you are more comfortable in casual attire, you are welcome to dine in our Oceanview Cafe on deck 10. Thank you for your understanding and consideration."

 

So I called guest relations to verify the dress code in blu. The response was that it is formal attire. I suggested she check on that, she called blu and blu indicated that the dress code is, as expected, smart casual. The next day, prior to the formal night, I found myself in an elevator with the head of the hotel and we stepped off to talk privately. His view, which I can understand, is that he has has guests who feel that formal night is special and seeing folks not following the formal attire have complained...and after all, it's only for three nights of the cruise, so he is trying to get everyone to follow the formal dress code in all restaurants. He mentioned that they have jackets to loan to those who don't have them, but it wasn't clear if they were going to use them this evening. (They didn't, in blu...I don't know about the mdr)

 

On my part, I stressed that whatever celebrity's policy is, it needs to be consistent across all of Celebrity. Those who would prefer a different policy should ask celebrity to change their fleet policy, but an individual ship shouldn't unilaterally change policy because people packed clothes, booked aqua class or specialty restaurants based on Celebrity's policies...the ones you find on the web.

 

We agreed to disagree and parted friends. He is going to look at the celebrity policy on their web page and perhaps change and soften the statement in 'celebrity today' to indicate that smart casual is acceptable on formal nights (except in the MDR) and this is just a request.

 

Note: there have been discussions of this on other threads with some, including me, by the way, interpreting the statement as 'follow the dress code appropriate to where you are dining tonight...however, after my discussion with the hotel director, his goal is to have everyone follow the formal dress code in all restaurants...so end of ambiguity.

 

Note 2: I don't envy him. He said he has had a number of calls from passengers eating in the MDR asking if they would be admitted in only smart casual (no jacket)....and he has had requests from others dining in the United States restaurant and Qsine tonight that those restaurants should be formal dress code tonight. My view is that he should follow celebrity policy and not decide to change it himself. He indicated that the vast majority of passengers did follow the policy on the first formal night (at least wore sports jackets) so he felt that he was pleasing the most passengers by trying to get better compliance with the policy in the mdr and expanding the policy to other venues. Personally, I would expect that 99%+ of the folks that brought a tux or suit would wear it....so I'm not sure he is trying to convince.

 

I would love to see response to this thread from Celebrity cruise's spokesman here on this topic.

 

There really is no need to once again hash out whether formal should be enforced across the ships or not. The issue here is consistency of what is written as policy and ship's deciding to change (non safety related) policy once you are on board...at which point you really don't have many options.

 

Btw...I am just off the infinity TA and the statement which appeared for formal night 2 was not repeated on formal night 3, perhaps due to my discussion.

 

The restaurants know the real policy...the issue is the ambiguous statement that everyone reads and then is confused because it seems like an unexpected change in policy.

Edited November 8, 2013 by ghstudio

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

The disconnect:

 

Celebrity's dress code policy, agree with it or not, is that formal dress is required in the Main Dining Room on formal nights and the specialty restaurants and blu are smart casual and above on ALL night of your cruise. Again, while their are agreements or disagreements on the appropriateness of the policy, that is the policy.

 

Except, apparently, on the infinity where the hotel director feels that on formal night, the entire ship, with the exception of the buffet should be formal.

 

 

Interesting that the Infinity is still trying to buck corporate on this. Why they think they should be different from all the other ships is beyond me. Also interesting that the dining rooms know what the policy is and the HD doesn't!