Teen Boys/Formal night

[SunshineCruise]

We are going on our first cruise. It will be myself, my dh, my dd (18) and my two ds (16) and (13). We are always in casual clothes and jeans and I did not want to buy suits for my boys for one night on a cruise. I took them both to a local thrift store and they each found a suit jacket that they like and that fits them. They want to wear the suit jacket with a plain black t-shirt underneath and a pair of nice jeans. Would this be OK for them to wear to formal night? We are going on a 4 night RCI cruise to the Bahamas in June.

Thank you

Kathleen

[RoofingPrincess]

There are those who frown on jeans in the dining room at all, much less on formal night. Do the boys have khakis that they could pair with their jacket? And maybe some kind of shirt with a collar? Even a polo shirt would be better than a t-shirt, IMO.

[Cuizer2]

We are going on our first cruise. It will be myself, my dh, my dd (18) and my two ds (16) and (13). We are always in casual clothes and jeans and I did not want to buy suits for my boys for one night on a cruise. I took them both to a local thrift store and they each found a suit jacket that they like and that fits them. They want to wear the suit jacket with a plain black t-shirt underneath and a pair of nice jeans. Would this be OK for them to wear to formal night? We are going on a 4 night RCI cruise to the Bahamas in June.

Thank you

Kathleen

 

What cruise line are you going on? For Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean, you will be fine. For HAL or Celebrity, you might run into a problem. However, if you can get them to wear something other than jeans, you might be okay even on HAL or Celebrity.

[SunshineCruise]

<<<What cruise line are you going on? For Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean, you will be fine. For HAL or Celebrity, you might run into a problem. However, if you can get them to wear something other than jeans, you might be okay even on HAL or Celebrity. >>>>

 

We are going on Royal Caribbean. They could wear black khakis. I was going to have them wear polo style shirts with their jeans on the other nights.

[Cuizer2]

<<<What cruise line are you going on? For Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean, you will be fine. For HAL or Celebrity, you might run into a problem. However, if you can get them to wear something other than jeans, you might be okay even on HAL or Celebrity. >>>>

 

We are going on Royal Caribbean. They could wear black khakis. I was going to have them wear polo style shirts with their jeans on the other nights.

 

Here is Royal Caribbean's dress code ...

 

Q: What are the dress codes onboard?

 

A: There are three distinct types of evenings onboard: casual, smart casual and formal. Suggested guidelines for these nights are:

Casual: Sport shirts and slacks for men, sundresses or pants for women

Smart Casual: Jackets and ties for men, dresses or pantsuits for women

Formal: Suits and ties or tuxedos for men, cocktail dresses for women

 

Note that the above is the suggested attire. On casual nights you can wear jeans. However, you might feel out of place if you wear jeans on formal night. Royal Caribbean has pretty much eliminated "Smart Casual." On my cruise two weeks ago we had five casual nights and two formal nights (no smart casual nights).

[cb at sea]

Get a button shirt and something other than jeans to wear on Formal night. Jeans and tees are in NO WAY "formal" attire---even with a jacket (that's not "formal", either!)

 

Just know that the teen girls will be dressed to the nines....in gowns and sexy cocktail dresses. Most guys will want to look good for those females!

[Curt Jerome Wild]

We are going on our first cruise. It will be myself, my dh, my dd (18) and my two ds (16) and (13). We are always in casual clothes and jeans and I did not want to buy suits for my boys for one night on a cruise. I took them both to a local thrift store and they each found a suit jacket that they like and that fits them. They want to wear the suit jacket with a plain black t-shirt underneath and a pair of nice jeans. Would this be OK for them to wear to formal night? We are going on a 4 night RCI cruise to the Bahamas in June.

Thank you

Kathleen

Kathleen - you might want to take a peek at my Young Men's Fashion Thread here for some ideas on dressing up that suit jacket in ways that will still be cool for your sons:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=773735

I think that the idea is good, but still needs more dressing up for the formal night.

 

I am totally agreeing with cb at sea, that for RCCL's Formal Night - a T-Shirt and Jeans are just not formal enough to dress up that jacket.

(especially since their Dress Guidelines specifically state Suits and Ties).

To me, the shirt/tie is what dresses it up.

A shirt with buttons especially and a tie, are going to be much more towards "formal" (and much hipper at their age anyway), even with jeans...

A T-Shirt even with khaki's is going to look far, far less "formal", and not even formal at all in the end result.

 

Again, check out my thread to see what I'm talking about.

Most cool teens these days are wearing ties a lot now, even slightly loosened.

You can get some very cool inexpensive shirts and ties now at not only Thrift Stores - but stores like Target and H & M.

 

If they were sailing on Carnival - I'd give you different ideas or recommendations, as their dress code is different; but you are on RCCL.

So, they need to step it up a bit more with a shirt and tie for that.

 

You'll get nicer family pictures out of it anyway!

Enjoy your cruise, and let us know if you have any more questions or need more help!

:D

[keylimepie]

Two years ago for our first cruise we took our 16-yr old son to Jos. A. Banks for a basic suit. You can get a nice "introductory" suit for about $200. You'd be surprised how often in the next couple of years he may have an occasion to wear it...homecomings, banquets, weddings and maybe even a future cruise. The tailor just added some extra hem in for growing room for the next couple of years.

 

I realize that may not be in the budget but just wanted to give you a friendly suggestion for an inexpensive suit. It is a chore trying to outfit the whole family without spending a fortune I know! :)

[Curt Jerome Wild]

Two years ago for our first cruise we took our 16-yr old son to Jos. A. Banks for a basic suit. You can get a nice "introductory" suit for about $200.

I realize that may not be in the budget but just wanted to give you a friendly suggestion for an inexpensive suit. It is a chore trying to outfit the whole family without spending a fortune I know! :)

You should check out my thread for lots more (and less expensive) places to get nice but budget suits...;)

[SunshineCruise]

Kathleen - you might want to take a peek at my Young Men's Fashion Thread here for some ideas on dressing up that suit jacket in ways that will still be cool for your sons:http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=773735

I think that the idea is good, but still needs more dressing up for the formal night.

 

 

Thank you for this link. I think that the pictures will help a lot. There are a lot of good looks there that I think they will like.

My 16 year old has a skater/surfer style, and my 13 year old has a rock/punk style.

Thanks again, this should help to inspire us.

Kathleen

[wdw1972]

Why not rent a tux & the shoes for your sons?? That's what I always did. Like your boys, he had no use for a suit other than on the cruise, and he was growing so he wasn't the same size from year to year. But, I always respected the dress code and he looked great for the photos. Jeans & t-shirts are totally inappropriate in the evening on a cruise ship. Throwing a jacket over them does not make it formal attire ;-) That's not even informal.

 

Sue/WDW1972

Eurodam 11/07/09