Has anyone been denied admittance to the dinning room because of their attire?

[L2J]

OH FTLOG....

[tef43]

$.50 will get you a coke out of the machine in my teachers workroom!

I'm in the wrong state. They're $1.25 here. :mad:

[bh2359]

Hi. I think some type of mention should be made on the type of jeans in the dining room. I know that "blue" jeans are simply not allowed on formal night and many other nights.

 

I wear black Wrangler jeans all the time at home an have about 20 pair of them. I also wear these on all casual nights.

 

On my last cruise, I tore the zipper on my good black trousers and they couldn't repair it in time on the ship. I went to the head waiter and asked if I wore my black jeans along with my shirt, tie, and jacket, would it be acceptable for formal night? He said it would be okay.

 

I really hate dressing up at any time but do bring my suit and tie on cruises. If formal night is when lobster or prime rib is being served, we dress up and go. If not, it's off to the buffet restaurant. We do try and abide by the rules.

 

We've had people come to our own table on formal night with guys wearing an open sports shirt and ladies in dress and sweater. Never were they told to go change.

 

My caveat is, I hate formal night and really can not understand why this leftover from the trans-Atlantic days is still being used, BUT, as long as it is in place, then we should abide by it.

[Sailfish]

I don't understand why cruise attire would be any different than what you see in Las Vegas or any city where one could go out to a nice restaurant and to a show? Look around. As a rule, people today do NOT get dressed up in a suit and tie or dressy clothes to go out to dinner. They did a while back, but NOT anymore. Why would a cruise be any different?

 

I realize there are exceptions, and yes, people do dress up formally to go to an evening cocktail party around the holidays especially but they do that on the ship as well on Formal night. The way people dress on a ship mirrors the way people dress elsewhere. That is how our society's dress has evolved. It's not a bad thing!

[tef43]

Why would a cruise be any different?

Because the cruiseline requests it?

 

The *real* difference is, at a land-based restaurant with a dress code, you *WILL* be denied seating if you do not comply.

[GoinCruisin]

I don't understand why cruise attire would be any different than what you see in Las Vegas or any city where one could go out to a nice restaurant and to a show? Look around. As a rule, people today do NOT get dressed up in a suit and tie or dressy clothes to go out to dinner. They did a while back, but NOT anymore. Why would a cruise be any different?

 

I realize there are exceptions, and yes, people do dress up formally to go to an evening cocktail party around the holidays especially but they do that on the ship as well on Formal night. The way people dress on a ship mirrors the way people dress elsewhere. That is how our society's dress has evolved. It's not a bad thing!

You dress for the occasion... depends on the show or restaurant. Most of the nice restaurants I go to, would not even ALLOW someone with jeans in. There are dress codes. No, people don't get dressed up to go to a regular restaurant... but for FINE DINING, most people will try to dress appropriately. I would certainly not say "AS A RULE", because that is simply not true. I travel across the United States and Canada and that is simply not the case. Our society has certainly not evolved to wearing very casual clothes to fine dining establishments.... give us a little credit. I would say that the majority of people I see ANYWHERE, cruise ship or nice restaurant, are dressed appropriately... And I think, and hope, it will stay that way.

[kfgarrow]

I know this won't solve anything, but I just have to throw my 2 cents in here. While I do not waste my time on vacation stewing about how others are dressed, it really fries my fritters when people use lame excuses to ignore the clearly stated dress code policies. My personal pet peeves are as follows:

 

"I can't stand to get dressed up because I hate to be uncomfortable all night"

My husband's tux has a waistband that adjusts up to 2". We also buy clothes and shoes in our correct sizes so that they do not pinch or bind. People, if your clothes are uncomfortable, buy a bigger size.

 

"I can't afford to buy all those fancy clothes."

My hubby paid $99 for his tux on Ebay. He has already worn it 4 times and will get many more uses out of it. My one formal dress was purchased on clearance from Dillard's for $32. I just bought a cocktail dress on Ebay for $42. It is not expensive to dress appropriately.

 

I'm sure I will be flamed by the "It's my vacation, I'll do as I please" crowd but I do feel better getting that off my chest!

[GoinCruisin]

Don't forget the classic one:

 

"I dress in a suit all week, I'm not about to do it on vacation" :eek:

[Sailfish]

Do you consider the dining room on a Carnival Cruise to be a "fine dining" establishment? I do not! The alternative restaurants that many ships now have is closer to my definition of "fine dining". While I believe the food to be good in the main dining room, the atmosphere and cuisine are more on par with a mid-range $20/entre restaurant where I would feel comfortable wearing nice casual clothes, including jeans. I know of very few people who would dress up to go out to one of these types of restaurants.

 

I have been to some rather pricey places that indeed do have a dress code. But I can't compare them to the main dining room on a cruise ship. Maybe long ago you could. But not today.

[GoinCruisin]

Do you consider the dining room on a Carnival Cruise to be a "fine dining" establishment? I do not! The alternative restaurants that many ships now have is closer to my definition of "fine dining". While I believe the food to be good in the main dining room, the atmosphere and cuisine are more on par with a mid-range $20/entre restaurant where I would feel comfortable wearing nice casual clothes, including jeans. I know of very few people who would dress up to go out to one of these types of restaurants.

 

I have been to some rather pricey places that indeed do have a dress code. But I can't compare them to the main dining room on a cruise ship. Maybe long ago you could. But not today.

When in Rome... They ARE Carnival's FINE DINING. No, they are not close to what we have here in the States... does that entitle us NOT to follow the guidelines? When you are in someone else's "house" you respect their guidelines, whether it is what you are accustomed to or not... it's respect. They obviously consider it fine dining... 5 course gourmet (to their standards, not ours) meals, white linen tablecloths, servers in tuxes, full table settings. You can't compare a restaurant here to a restaurant on a ship, but you CAN respect their guidelines and adhere to them. I'm not familiar with too many restaurants here that serve 2000 people either, so why even bother trying to compare :rolleyes: All you can do is have respect for the "host" and what they request... regardless of where you are.

[Sailfish]

The only "guidelines" I am aware of refer to formal night, and I believe most if not all people adhere to those. The rest of the time, isn't casual attire the name of the game in the main dining room?

[tef43]

The rest of the time, isn't casual attire the name of the game in the main dining room?

As defined by Carnival here:

 

Is there a dress code for the dining room? Depending on the length of the cruise, either formal dress or casual resort wear is required in the Dining Room. The dress requirement for children is the same. For those not wanting to dress up, the Lido restaurants are open nightly (with the exception of the last evening of the cruise), and have a casual dress code. Formal Wear: tuxedo (optional); suit and tie; sport coat, tie and slacks; evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit Casual Resort Wear: sport shirts and slacks; dresses; skirts; pantsuit NOTE: Shorts, t-shirts and bathing attire are not permitted in the Dining Room during dinner.

[GoinCruisin]

Notice they do have an option "for those not wanting to dress up"

 

Is there a dress code for the dining room? Depending on the length of the cruise, either formal dress or casual resort wear is required in the Dining Room. The dress requirement for children is the same. For those not wanting to dress up, the Lido restaurants are open nightly (with the exception of the last evening of the cruise), and have a casual dress code.

 

Formal Wear: tuxedo (optional); suit and tie; sport coat, tie and slacks; evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit

 

Casual Resort Wear: sport shirts and slacks; dresses; skirts; pantsuit NOTE: Shorts, t-shirts and bathing attire are not permitted in the Dining Room during dinner.

[Starz723]

My table mates on the first formal night wore appropriate attire..BUT on the 2nd night the lady wore farmer grey suspender pants, her hubby jeans & T but their daughter dressed formal. I wondered if they felt a bit self concious as they were the only two at the table that stuck out like sore thumbs.

[Z'Loth]

Geeezzzzz... it's not like the dining room is the only place to grab a bite to eat on board ship. Just head up to the Lido deck for the buffet, and let us people who follow the rules enjoy some fine meals for the week.

[neverenufcruising]

It seems that many people lump the dress code into 2 categories: Formal or Non-Formal. Meaning that we've got formal nights and whatever-you-want nights. That's simply not true. There's formal, casual and sometimes smart casual. I'm not going to let what people wear to the dining room ruin my cruise, but I do wish people would adhere to the guidelines.

BTW, 12oz cans of Coke in my office building $0.55:D

[luv2cruise99]

I know that GoinCruisin's quote below is supposed to prove that jeans are against Carnival's guidelines, but in my opinion it proves the exact opposite - that jeans are in keeping with Carnival's guidelines on CASUAL nights.

Carnival went through the trouble of listing specifically what items are prohibited. Since jeans are a very popular clothing choice and since Carnival certainly must know of this controversy, it seems likely that if they intended jeans to be prohibited they would have listed them along with shorts, bathing suits and t-shirts (as other cruiselines have done) to avoid any confusion.

I know many will point out that jeans are also not specifically listed as acceptable Casual Resort Wear, but neither are capris or dockers and we all know how popular they are on casual nights. Like capris and dockers, jeans fall within the definition of the term "slacks". I know alot of people will say that they don't consider jeans to be "slacks", but then alot of people will also say that they don't consider capris to be "slacks". The word leaves alot of room for interpretation.

It just seem likely to me that if Carnival had intended to prohibit one of the most popular forms of American attire, they would have specifically stated so.

[quote name='GoinCruisin']Notice they do have an option "for those not wanting to dress up"

Is there a dress code for the dining room? [img]http://www.carnival.com/Images/spacer.gif[/img] Depending on the length of the cruise, either formal dress or casual resort wear is required in the Dining Room. The dress requirement for children is the same. [b][color=red]For those not wanting to dress up, the Lido restaurants are open nightly (with the exception of the last evening of the cruise), and have a casual dress code.[/color][/b]

Formal Wear: tuxedo (optional); suit and tie; sport coat, tie and slacks; evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit

Casual Resort Wear: sport shirts and slacks; dresses; skirts; pantsuit NOTE: Shorts, t-shirts and bathing attire are not permitted in the Dining Room during dinner.[/QUOTE]

[EKELLEY]

I just got off the Conquest & our capers had "casual dress" for all nights except the 2 formal nights. It just stated no shorts or t-shirts. I say if you want to wear a nice pair of jeans wear them.


Eileen

[Sailfish]

This is just my opinion, but I think people here miss the days of old (not sure when that was, though) when you had to dress up for dinner every night. I never cruised back then, so I don't have the same reference point.

I have never taken a cruise where people dressed up every night for dinner. With the exception of two formal nights, everyone for the most part was nicely dressed in cassual attire. I see more people wearing jeans in the dining room now, but I for one see no poblems with that. I first cruised in the early 90's, so I'm guessing dinner was more of an "event" prior to me coming onto the scene.

As it is, I like the casual atmophere on casual nights, but I also enjoy dressing up on formal night. I just don't understand why this is such a big deal. We chose Carnival because we wanted a more casual atmosphere. That is after all how the travel agent sold the cruise to the rest of my family!

We cruise more with Royal Caribbean, as I think they have the best past guest perks. Our cruise last year aboard the Navigator was excellent; casual attire all around (including jeans) except for two formal nights. Same aboard the Star Princess the year before that in Alaska.

I'm not overly concerned, but someone new to cruising may get the feeling, after reading the information posted on this message board, that you have to dress up every night for dinner on a Carnival cruise. I know some members of my family came away thinking that after coming to Cruise Critic.

I spoke with several friends who went on the Pride; when asked about the dress code, they said with the exception of two formal nights, dress was casual.

[colette5479]

On our SOS cruise last month, we saw two young women being told they could not wear their bathing suits in the Windjammer. That was the first time I had ever seen that code enforced in the buffet! But then, we saw lots of people in faded jeans that night in the dining room. Go figure!:p

[rl2thnurse]

[quote name='Gingee']I wish they would inforce no jeans or shorts. It's fun to dress up. There aren't many places where you can dress up anymore.[/QUOTE]
I totally agree with you!

[GoinCruisin]

Thank goodness that on the cruises I have been on, the more "casual wear" has been the minority.... most people were dressed up... actually very dressed up on "resort casual" nights... hopefully I will never cruise on the ship the poster stated as "more people in jeans"... I have yet to hear about that one, but please let me know which one it is, LOL :D

I'm sorry, jeans are NOT "slacks" in my opinion....then again, everyone has their own definition. AND, I never said jeans were prohibited... I guess I will need to read my posts again, but I was not pointing out that they were... I was pointing out what was suggested... and jeans are NOT suggested. Then again, wearing a bustier to dinner, or a teddy, is not prohibited either... but you just let someone try! LOL! :eek:

[hstrybuf]

What ever happened to common sense, courtesy, respect and tradition? I could write volumes on why jeans don't belong in the dining room, but if people don't understand the above concepts, they just won't get it. :rolleyes:

[GoinCruisin]

[quote name='hstrybuf']What ever happened to common sense, courtesy, respect and tradition? I could write volumes on why jeans don't belong in the dining room, but if people don't understand the above concepts, they just won't get it. :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]
Ain't that the truth!!!!!! LOL!

[neverenufcruising]

You said it, Hstrybuf!