Formal Attire

[Reina del Mar]

Returned from South American cruise on Sapphire Princess last Friday. Majority wore suits on Formal Nights (two Formal and one Dress to Impress)

 

A light weight suit takes much less weight and space than a pair of jeans or a sports coat. Dress shoes may be an extra.

 

We manage to pack formal clothing within our 23kg International flight allowance, helped by taking travel sized versions of toiletries.

 

Smart Casual Nights in MDR saw a variety of styles…some not very smart and rather more casual. We also saw the occasional pair of shorts being allowed in.

[Diamondring]

Our last several cruises, we left the suit at home.  We fly to the port as well.  We take black long sleeve dress shirt, slacks, shoes and belt.  Top it off with a tie that matches my dress, or at least is neutral color.  He looked really nice.  The black looks great in pictures too if you are so inclined to have some taken. Whatever you choose will be fine.  Comfort is also important to enjoying an evening.  Although, pushing the casual attire on 'formal night' and getting turned away at the door would be a bummer.  

[Princessfan20]

1 hour ago, Lady Arwen said:

Yes, there are definitely some men who choose to dress more casually, even in Europe.  However, these gentlemen are more likely to be Americans, as Europeans seldom dress down.  It’s just the difference in culture.  The more Europeans onboard the dressier the attire.  If your cruise takes you to Europe or the Med, you might want to pack a tie at the very least, just in case.

 

Well Europe involves a lot of area and many different countries and cultures.  It is not monolithic.  My family is European and my two brothers dress more casually than I do.  

 

I think it may be somewhat true (?) if there are a lot of passengers from GB on the cruise.  I wish people would post pictures of the MDR's on formal nights on their cruises so we could see what is being talked about and actually have some factual evidence instead of constant hearsay.

 

We are part of the"elegant night" crowd which will not be wearing tuxes or ball gowns and have never been turned away from a MDR on any cruise.

[Lady Arwen]

@Princessfan20Hearsay is when someone says that someone else told them something.  Fact is when someone actually witnesses an action.  I have been on many, many European cruises and the fact is gentlemen wear dressier attire.  I don’t need to share photos as proof because honestly, believe it or don’t believe it, I really don’t care.  

Edited April 10, 2023 by Lady Arwen

[MissP22]

If you read the Princess web site it will indicate that on formal nights people do dress up but that was only true for years past. Perhaps on a European trip many people do choose to follow those suggestions but elsewhere most people these days prefer to be more relaxed on vacation.

Forget the suit or jacket. You can just wear a pair of Dockers & a dress shirt or Polo if you wish and no one will say a word.

They'll be plenty of guys doing likewise.

Although my husband doesn't wear them, even shorts are now common on casual evenings in the DR.

[Torfamm]

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

I would say nearer 90%.

There’s no doubt that the vast majority of men on European sailings wear the requested dark suit, tuxedo, or dinner jacket. A very different story than North America itineraries.
 

Studies report that fewer than half of American men own a suit of any kind much less a tuxedo. Unless the cruise lines go back to offering tuxedo rental, it is probably impossible to expect to see everyone comply with the requested dress code on formal nights.

[JimmyVWine]

56 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

I wish people would post pictures of the MDR's on formal nights on their cruises so we could see what is being talked about and actually have some factual evidence instead of constant hearsay.

Here you go.  Posted (not by me) here on Cruise Critic on March 4 in a thread called "Champagne Waterfall". You can all use your photo processing capabilities to enlarge the photo to see who is wearing what.  I won't add a single syllable of editorializing.  See for yourself.

 

[JimmyVWine]

Aw, heck.  I couldn't resist.  Here is an enlargement.

[JimmyVWine]

.

 

Edited April 10, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[Princessfan20]

56 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

Here you go.  Posted (not by me) here on Cruise Critic on March 4 in a thread called "Champagne Waterfall". You can all use your photo processing capabilities to enlarge the photo to see who is wearing what.  I won't add a single syllable of editorializing.  See for yourself.

 

 

Thanks for the photo but I want to see ones of the actual dinning rooms of formal nights.   Maybe a hundred at the Champagne Waterfall which is often a photo opportunity which some people dress up for.  

[MissP22]

10 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

 

Thanks for the photo but I want to see ones of the actual dinning rooms of formal nights.   Maybe a hundred at the Champagne Waterfall which is often a photo opportunity which some people dress up for.  

Of course there are more suits in the photo. I doubt there would be many there for a picture pouring champagne dressed in shorts. 😄

The casual dressers are in the show lounge getting good seats for the production show. 😉

Edited April 10, 2023 by MissP22
suits

[david63]

I do wish that people would stop trying to change the narrative to suit their own ideas.

[trbarton]

Here’s something easy to wear on a Formal Night.  It’s from the Philippines & this is what a man wears on a formal night & the cruise staff love to see it plus I enjoy wearing it.
 

Here’s what the Princess web site says for my next cruise. They still use the term “Formal Night” but in over 35 cruises on Princess it was never enforced. 
 

“Your itinerary includes 2 formal nights and 5 smart casual nights. Formal nights tend to occur on sea days. However, since exceptions can happen, it's always a good idea to check your Patter for details.”

 

Tom😀

Edited April 10, 2023 by trbarton

[Paula_MacFan]

9 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

 

Thanks for the photo but I want to see ones of the actual dinning rooms of formal nights.   Maybe a hundred at the Champagne Waterfall which is often a photo opportunity which some people dress up for.  

My thoughts exactly -- this is a photo op for which people dress up.  If this is the entirety of the formal dress passengers then that's not a huge contingent.   

[MissP22]

2 minutes ago, trbarton said:

Here’s something easy to wear on a Formal Night.  It’s from the Philippines & this is what a man wears on a formal night. 
 

 

Tom😀

I like it. 

[JimmyVWine]

8 minutes ago, Princessfan20 said:

 

Thanks for the photo but I want to see ones of the actual dinning rooms of formal nights.   Maybe a hundred at the Champagne Waterfall which is often a photo opportunity which some people dress up for.  

Do you think that these people were NOT headed to the dining room to eat?  I'm not at all certain how moving these 100 people 150 feet further to the aft to place them in a dining room could change what you are seeing.  Or maybe you think that after this photo was taken, they all headed back to their cabins to change into their shorts and t-shirts.  Or do you think that the photo was staged?  You asked for a photo and I found one from a month ago on Emerald Princess.  Sorry that it does not support your agenda.  But from my perspective, it portrays an atmosphere very much in line with what I have observed at 7:30 in the MDR on pretty much all of my cruises.  Maybe early diners dress more casually.  But I know what I see.  And it looks very much like the photo. 

[trbarton]

7 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

I like it. 

Thank you very much. It’s easy to wear & I’m amazed as to how many compliments I get. 
 

Tom😀

[JimmyVWine]

4 minutes ago, Paula_MacFan said:

this is a photo op for which people dress up.

The people in this photo had no idea that they were being photographed by a fellow passenger.  This wasn't staged or created, and it isn't a publicity photo.  It is a bunch of people who gathered at the railing in the Piazza on their way to or from dinner.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.  The idea that there is a strong correlation between people who dress for Formal Night and people who stand at a railing to watch the Champagne Waterfall is unprovable.  The photo is the photo.  There are none so blind as those who will not see.  

[JimmyVWine]

10 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

I like it. 

Me too!  

[stevenr597]

In the old days we used to have to pack an extra suitcase for my Tuxedo and my wife's long evening gown which we worse once or perhaps twice.  Not a real problem when we could drive to the port, but in today's world with limitation on how many piece of luggage you can take without the "surcharge" I simple take a Blazer with a nice pair of pants to wear.  My wife packs a stylish dress. 

[MissP22]

1 minute ago, JimmyVWine said:

The people in this photo had no idea that they were being photographed by a fellow passenger.  This wasn't staged or created, and it isn't a publicity photo.  It is a bunch of people who gathered at the railing in the Piazza on their way to or from dinner.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.  The idea that there is a strong correlation between people who dress for Formal Night and people who stand at a railing to watch the Champagne Waterfall is unprovable.  The photo is the photo.  There are none so blind as those who will not see.  

To be fair about it, a photo of the DR should be shown the same night since that's where people want to be casual, not a photo opportunity which attracts people dressed up.

[mom says]

All this blather about European cruises. OP will be on Emerald in May. It's a West Coast cruise. The percentage of guests in true formal wear would be relatively low. He can get by easily in dress slacks and collared shirt. Other than Cunard, DH has ditched his tux for cruises and instead wears a blazer. But even then, he opted not to wear it on our last formal night on our RT Tahiti sailing. And he certainly didn't feel out of place in the MDR.

[Guardsy]

Just off the Caribbean Princess to the Caribbean.  40% is my guess of the men who wore a jacket and tie or more.  Still lots of tuxedos, including mine.

How tough is it to pack a suit or a jacket and nice shirt?  Oh, wait.  I just did it, twice,  It was as easy as it has always been.

 

I wish Princess and HAL would adopt the Cunard policy.  If you show up without a coat and tie on formal night, you are politely directed to the buffet.  Easy.

[JimmyVWine]

8 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

To be fair about it, a photo of the DR should be shown the same night since that's where people want to be casual, not a photo opportunity which attracts people dressed up.

OK.  So I found a blog where the poster was trying to capture "just how formal is formal night".  So the author appears to have staked out a spot outside of Explorer's Lounge as best as I can tell, taking candid photos of unsuspecting people as they walked by, probably to the theater.  It is reported that this was on an Princess cruise to Alaska.  These are not my photos, and the hiding of the faces is from the originals posted.  This blog is from 2019, just before the pause, but I cannot date the photos. They could be earlier.  So yes, all of that can be taken into account.  I cannot vouch for these photos as they aren't mine.  But since the author was trying to capture the "true atmosphere" of the evening, I suspect that the photos are not heavily weighted to prove one side or the other.    

 

[Paula_MacFan]

20 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

The people in this photo had no idea that they were being photographed by a fellow passenger.  This wasn't staged or created, and it isn't a publicity photo.  It is a bunch of people who gathered at the railing in the Piazza on their way to or from dinner.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.  The idea that there is a strong correlation between people who dress for Formal Night and people who stand at a railing to watch the Champagne Waterfall is unprovable.  The photo is the photo.  There are none so blind as those who will not see.  

I think you misunderstood my comment. I was referring to the champagne waterfall photo op for which people like to get their picture taken with cruise staff. Nobody said the passengers standing around watching were staged 😆