Info re formal nights please

[baw53]

If there is a Roaring 20’s formal night is it compulsory or will standard formal attire be fine.( black tie for hubby and something sparkly for me) ? Black &White won’t be a problem but I am definitely not into flapper dresses..Not sailed with Cunard before and wondered if umbrellas are provided .

I will take my own folding brollies but have sometimes found the large golf brollies provided by other lines useful….Tia. 

[LadyL1]

You will be abs fine in normal formal evening wear, especially if “sparkly “.

Umbrellas certainly provided in the QG suites, but cannot remember if so, in Princess Grill.

[WestonOne]

By and large, theme nights on every line I have been on are largely ignored.  Standard formal wear will be perfectly acceptable.  It is better thought of - again on every line - as permission to wear something else on a particular theme, not as an instruction of any kind to do so.

Edited August 18, 2022 by WestonOne

[elmsliebev]

standard formal wear is fine, as said.  I added a long string of pearls and a headband for 1 20s night and didn't the second time. 

I did notice a few umbrellas in a stand by the gangway as we were getting back on one day, don't know if they were there on the way out though. 

[PORT ROYAL]

3 hours ago, LadyL1 said:

You will be abs fine in normal formal evening wear, especially if “sparkly “.

Umbrellas certainly provided in the QG suites, but cannot remember if so, in Princess Grill.

Umbrellas for below Grills are available from a stand at exit and collected on return.  Sometimes the Grill Steward will forget, so a gentle reminder.  The gate police will not let an umbrella be retained on return.

Obviously, the availability is small, so best to bring a couple of umbrellas with.  Also, a supply of cheap disposable hooded ponchos are easy to carry and store. If not used, then one has them for next cruise.

 

[techteach]

Ah, another term not used in the U.S. - brollies and thank you to @LadyL1 for interpreting.

[TheOldBear]

I never noticed a supply of umbrellas when leaving - I will need to look next time.

I do bring a small travel umbrella in the top of my camera bag - even for excursions that start on a sunny day.

[elmsliebev]

8 hours ago, PORT ROYAL said:

Umbrellas for below Grills are available from a stand at exit and collected on return.  Sometimes the Grill Steward will forget, so a gentle reminder.  The gate police will not let an umbrella be retained on return.

Obviously, the availability is small, so best to bring a couple of umbrellas with.  Also, a supply of cheap disposable hooded ponchos are easy to carry and store. If not used, then one has them for next cruise.

 

we were given ponchos in the cabin (inside cabin, Britannia restaurant), and asked the steward for more when we needed them. Brought the unused ones home for next time! 

[tonyd285]

Question:  Is a dark gray suit acceptable for formal evenings?  I am in my eighties and not inclined to purchase another suit.  The last time I wore a tux was at my daughter's wedding 35 years ago.  We are looking forward to our QM2 cruise but I'm not sure how formal I need to be.

[WestonOne]

As I explained on another thread, I accidentally left all my white shirts at home so had to wear a blue one for the formal.

No-one batted an eyelid.

I am sure a dark gray suit will be fine.   I would certainly be quite comfortable wearing one in your situation.

[exlondoner]

18 minutes ago, tonyd285 said:

Question:  Is a dark gray suit acceptable for formal evenings?  I am in my eighties and not inclined to purchase another suit.  The last time I wore a tux was at my daughter's wedding 35 years ago.  We are looking forward to our QM2 cruise but I'm not sure how formal I need to be.

I should imagine it depends how dark it is. Charcoal would be OK, gunmetal probably not. I'm off to count angels on pinheads next. 😀

[BigMac1953]

You will definitely not be out of place in a dark suit, but you might want to consider  also wearing a white shirt.

[lissie]

On 8/18/2022 at 10:49 AM, LadyL1 said:

You will be abs fine in normal formal evening wear, especially if “sparkly “.

Umbrellas certainly provided in the QG suites, but cannot remember if so, in Princess Grill.

Provided on disembarkation for steerage and all  classes 

[Underwatr]

On 8/18/2022 at 4:51 AM, WestonOne said:

By and large, theme nights on every line I have been on are largely ignored.

The one exception of which I'm aware is Black and White night (usually the first formal night on an itinerary). It's easy for men since the standard tuxedo is pretty much automatically compliant to the "theme", but in my experience the women also tend to wear black/white outfits on that night. 
If it's changed to Red and White (my itinerary's schedule says Black and White) night the only thing I can do (and probably would) is to wear a red tie and cummerbund with my tuxedo.

But you're right - aside from Black and White the themes for the night are largely ignored, and few if any of the participants who do participate actually wear their masks etc at dinner.

Edited August 22, 2022 by Underwatr

[WestonOne]

4 hours ago, Underwatr said:

The one exception of which I'm aware is Black and White night (usually the first formal night on an itinerary). It's easy for men since the standard tuxedo is pretty much automatically compliant to the "theme", but in my experience the women also tend to wear black/white outfits on that night. 

I agree, very many women go for a black & white or black and silver outfit on that night.   I suppose mentally I did not think of that as a 'theme', though of course it is.

[exlondoner]

On my last two cruises, a lot of the women had made an effort with the red and gold theme: not too difficult as many have a red dress and a gold necklace. Perhaps prudently, the men tended to eschew this, and stick with normal dinner jackets, etc.

[Canuker]

On 8/18/2022 at 4:51 AM, WestonOne said:

By and large, theme nights on every line I have been on are largely ignored....

Not so on Cunard's Queen Elizabeth recently on the NAm Pacific coast.

Those not in formal wear were a minority.

Tip for the ladies: if you want to stand out on the "Red & Gold" formal night, do not wear a bright post office red dress...

[WestonOne]

5 hours ago, Canuker said:

Not so on Cunard's Queen Elizabeth recently on the NAm Pacific coast.

Those not in formal wear were a minority.

Tip for the ladies: if you want to stand out on the "Red & Gold" formal night, do not wear a bright post office red dress...

 

[WestonOne]

I need to clarify what I said about theme nights being largely ignored on most lines I have been on.

The "black and white" nights are always followed by the majority of passengers on the lines I have been on.  I think I don't mentally class that as a theme night, as I said, though of course it is.

Most other men on the lines I have been on treat the other themes as if they were black and white rather than following the specific theme. Indeed, even Cunard's suggestions for men are rather minimalistic:

For Roaring 20s, a simple hint towards the theme is all that’s required – a pocket square in an art deco print or a feathered slide in your hair

Or for 'red and gold'
From a red bow tie and sparkling gold accents ....

So the men very frequently stick to the same as they would wear on on the black and white formal.  Very many do not even have the nod towards the theme Cunard suggested. 

Women are in a different position, because they may well specifically choose a red dress on the red and gold night, for example.  But when I have travelled relatively few have gone to the bother of getting a 'flapper' style dress for the twenties, and the weight restrictions if they had to fly to the cruise may well lead them only bringing a small number of 'multi-occasion' dresses.  I admit my wife is a sample of one, but if she buys new clothes for a cruise, she always thinks of it for the dozen or so trips, not to match the fact there is a specific theme on the next cruise,

The only theme night I have seen where a significant number of the men also took it into account was on P&O, where a '60s' event did lead to quite a lot hiring "Sgt Pepper' or hippie wear.  But even then, we are only talking about 5% of the men.

Edited August 25, 2022 by WestonOne