Carnival recently revised their suggested dress codes and "formal nights" are now "cruise elegant". We have an existing thread on this subject which also has a link to the new dress code, and that thread can be found here .
You can also read a first hand account of the new dress codes here .
From what I have seen on my last cruise some couples would show up wearing sweats. I asked our waiter if they enforced the dress code and he even commented that it was getting pretty bad but they were afraid to say anything because passengers would write negatives or bad service on the comment card.
I guess I just don't understand. We really look forward to Formal Nights. We LOVE getting dressed up. If we go on a weeklong cruise where there's 2 formal nights, we may only do tux and gown for Captain's night, and suit and dress for the other. Come on...you're on an elegant cruise line!! Dress up!
Elegant cruising has gone the way of the dinosaurs....Dress up if you want but don't expect many of the others to do the same....plus with the charge for extra luggage now, one bag is what most people will bring...formal clothes take up too much room...Formal nights were great while they lasted.....Happy crusing...
There are great choices still out there for those of you who want to be formal. Try Cunard or HAL for your next cruise. Even Celebrity is a little more of a line where they still dress for dinner. I welcome the more casual approach but a sweat suit in the dining room is taking things a little too far. I don't really want to see guys hairy legs, so no shorts is a good rule for evening meals. No ball caps and a shirt with a collar works too. I can live without the jacket and tie on vacation but can live with it too if that's what's expected. I do like my jeans though, wifey wouldn't approve or I'd wear 'em with the jacket and tie to dinner.
I am going to stick to my regular sport coat, tie, and dress shirt/pants for the elegant nights. Not exactly a suit, and not casual either. I actually enjoy seeing all the folks that dress to the nines getting their pictures taken.
We still do the tux and formal gown for formal nights. We don't get dressed up too often, so that's fun for us. We also get a great picture and we don't have to get an appointment at a photographer to get it either.
I certainly understand the extra luggage side of this and how it may push more people into not bringing the formal attire. But if we can manage it we will. Except for the Cruise Chat cruise. A 4 day cruise may not be long enough to want to bring the extra luggage. I'll probably do a smart casual night instead and make it through on a single carry on bag!
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Cruise Happy you're 100% right. I also agree with Dwayne, as always, and Jim. I still happen to think that going to a nice dining room and eating nice food you ought to dress up...and on formal night you have the opportunity to look nice, get pictures taken, and feel like royalty! And there has NEVER been a time when we were walking to dinner on formal night that people didn't stop and comment on how we were dressed. I like that too.
I couldn't agree more! We always wear at least shirt and slax with a tie to dinner, and special on formal nights. I guess to each his own. It's like choosing where to eat dinner. I never quite understand why people go on a cruise and eat at the buffet for dinner. Why pay for Outback and eat at Golden Corral?
And by the way...sorry you caught George on a bad night...he was great with us.
I have a client who had called numerous times to investigate cruising and wanted to badly. Her hubby is a farmer and said he's not gettin out of his overalls, cruise or no cruise! She didn't want to miss the formal night and didn't want to be embarrassed by her hubby who is a little set in his ways. Her daughter could sew well so she bought some worsted wool like you'd make a suit from and used a pair of his existing overalls as a patern to fashion pair and got him a sport coat that complimented the color. The poor lady was still not crazy about the compromise and thought he looked silly in bib overalls no matter what they were made of. But she wrote me after her cruise and said they were a hit at the dinner table and all the guys wanted some dress up overalls for themselves. He had such a good time he agreed to wear real slacks and let her plan another cruise. They'll be going on their second next month. I've never had a more excited client than this woman. I don't know if it's more because of her cruise or that hubby will give in and wear a real suit for her for the first time since their wedding day 46 years ago.
I just wish I were going, I'd really like to meet farmer Jack and the Mrs. After the hard life you can just hear in her voice how much they're both finally enjoying their new found cruise relaxation time. She's as giddy as a teenaged girl planning for her prom.
I'm with Cruisehappy, when you are sitting at a table with nice linen/silverware/glasses/cups/cloth napkins, why would you "want" to dress down?
We dress up every night, and for formal nights, we dress "elegant." I don't think too many people get to do that very often, and we "take advantage" of it.
Let us know how many people you see dressed to the max after ALL the airlines start to charge extra for any checked luggage. The days of formal attire will soon be a think of the past except for a few die-hards.
