Cruise Attire (best, vacation, itinerary, Greek)

[Rapture]

We just booked our cruise and haven't been on one in twenty years. I know we are supposed to get dressed up for dinner but is nice shorts and shirt for a guy ok these days? My guy does not want to bring dress pants and I don't blame him. It's easy for me, I can just where a summer dress and nice shoes. He is not a "dress up" kind of guy but he does dress neatly.

[Jude1948]

Can't you talk him into a suit or at least a sport coat and tie? There are so many opportunities to have your picture taken, it would be nice to have just one photo of the two of you dressed up. If you have dinner at one of the two seatings there is always a formal nite. You may feel out of place if you have shorts on. That is not to say it is not done. No one will turn you away if you don't dress up.

Have a great time. We are taking our kids and grandkids at Christmas time.

[Chilkoot]

The only cruise I remember being on that allowed shorts in the main dining room was a Windjammer Cruise about 25 years ago. Even the more casual cruises like WindStar require pants. Could certainly get away with jeans, if necessary, but I think shorts in the main dining room are a no no.

[j_k_k]

On our cruise it just depended where you wanted to eat. If you wanted to eat at Denny's, which was our term for the 24-hour buffet, no one much cared what you wore. Some nights the dress code was smart casual and a couple nights it was formal. The more formal the dining environment the more they expected you to dress up. I only went for one of the fancy dinners and I got away with a polo shirt and slacks, but it wasn't a glamor night.

Personally, if I have to take a suit on a cruise and wear it, I simply am not going. Suits are stupid and annoying enough when you aren't on a cruise. If I pay all that money I think I should wear at least moderately relaxing, comfortable clothing. Long as that only locks me out of a few events I wouldn't attend at gunpoint anyway, I'm okay with it. I'll wear a polo shirt and slacks like I did on the Alaska cruise, a time or two, but that's the limit.

The women, of course, ate up all that fancy dress stuff. Which is fine. If they think it's fun, have a wonderful time, enjoy. But I used to have to wear a suit to work and it was just about the most ridiculous bunch of crap I ever dealt with. Anything that has to be dry-cleaned just does not interest me.

[SXMGirl]

My husband doesn't dress us either. He just took a nice shirt, no tie, and a nice pair of slacks. None of the men at our table dressed up. You might want to take a dressy sweater with your summer dress as it can get chilly in the dining room. While I looked nice, some of the women looked like they were wearing their prom/bride's maid dresses.

[Rapture]

Thanks for all the comments. I guess he will have to bring a pair or two of dress pants but I doubt he would wear a tie. I don't like ties on men anyway so it doesn't bother me if he doesn't wear one.

[j_k_k]

Rapture, I also got by on a cruise in the Aegean without a suit--and this was a Greek cruise line, and it didn't have a Denny's--reserved, fixed-time seating only. As long as I wore a decent pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, they were fine with it. I wouldn't have gotten into one of the glam events, but as you can probably gather from my style, being excluded from those bothered me about as much as being excluded from waterboarding.

[Rapture]

Originally Posted by j_k_k

Rapture, I also got by on a cruise in the Aegean without a suit--and this was a Greek cruise line, and it didn't have a Denny's--reserved, fixed-time seating only. As long as I wore a decent pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, they were fine with it. I wouldn't have gotten into one of the glam events, but as you can probably gather from my style, being excluded from those bothered me about as much as being excluded from waterboarding.

LOL, thanks. Yes he is a T-shirt and jeans kind of guy but like I said he does dress neatly so it shouldn't matter. I don't know why they make you dress up? It's your vacation and you should be able to wear what you want. I'm not wearing a gown or anything really dressy either, just a summer dress. He has some nice button down shirts but he doesn't wear polo shirts. So one pair of nice jeans and one pair of dress pants are going with us.

[STT Resident]

Cruise attire is entirely dependent on the ship/cruise line. Some ships are very casual, some very formal, some have formal (dinner jacket) nights and some don't - it's a very broad spectrum which is almost impossible to answer on a general basis. Best to check with the ship personnel, a knowledgeable travel agent or name the ship and the itinerary for feedback from recent travelers. Cheers!

[Jaggy001]

Originally Posted by STT Resident

Cruise attire is entirely dependent on the ship/cruise line. Some ships are very casual, some very formal, some have formal (dinner jacket) nights and some don't - it's a very broad spectrum which is almost impossible to answer on a general basis. Best to check with the ship personnel, a knowledgeable travel agent or name the ship and the itinerary for feedback from recent travelers. Cheers!

This is a great comment and spot on.

Even so, even the more upmarket and "stuffy" cruise lines offer a choice of dinner venue where the one will be more casual than the other.

Also have a look at the relevant Cruise Critic messageboard (they have a board for every cruise line) and use that to ask more specific questions.