Which line to choose?

This doesn't make any sense. You can NOT care what others think and not be a slob. I can see someone dressed according to the dress code yet find the outfit horrible and objectionable. Do they care what I think? I hope not!

You are really making me laugh today - thank you. I do pretty much agree with you but there are some cruise line passengers that purposely go against the dress code to see if they can get away with it. Not sure how this became a dress code thread - it was more fun being a "Which line to choose" thread - even though there will be some posters that will bring up non-luxury cruise lines (guess I've learned to live with it but do speak up when Oceania, Azamara and other non-luxury lines are brought up.

Also agree with you and Cyber Kat about how some people act when their cruise line is mentioned in anything other than a positive way. Cruise line passengers of one luxury cruise line (that will remain anonymous) sound like "Stepford Wives" (assuming you remember that old movie). Their cruise line can do nothing wrong -- it is the best -- they go to other boards to put their competition down, etc.

We have cruised mostly mass market lines, Celebrity being our go to. We are now wanting to try luxury lines but are having trouble deciding which line after lots of research. We are in our late 40's no children. Great food is really important as well as drinks (we are willing to pay for both). Would really love a cruise that has food based on location. Don't care about entertainment at all. Don't care if excursions are included. Don't want to have to dress up all the time. I would love all suggestions and photos would be fantastic because it seems to be difficult to find photos of food and drinks for the luxury lines on cruise critic.

I have to admit I have not read all of the posts. ;p

Just some thoughts.

Do check out the luxury cruise line websites. They will each note wha their attire is in the evening and most will note if they do have dress up evenings how many based on the length of the cruise. I have sailed some of the luxury lines but not all of them. Based on all I know and have experienced Silversea probably is the most formal at night and I only say that based on the number of formal nights and the options to get around that. Some lines don't have any dress up nights and others have alternatives.

When it comes to local food most of the luxury lines load up food, and beverages at the port of embarkation. Most serve the same cuisine no matter where you sail. Some food is local and other items are not and some can be stocked way ahead such as beef and poultry. With that said you might see local fish but in some cases it's just the name of the fish and in another location it's the same fish with a local name. In some cases there might be a few local dishes. My experience is due to the economics when it comes to included wine at times they will take advantage of where they are sailing. For example, while you will like see some California wines that are included on all the lines when a ship is sailing South America expect to see some wine from Chile and Argentina or while in Europe wine from various countries such as France, Italy and Spain and when sailing Australia/New Zealand expect to see wine from one or both countries.

At dinner the food will vary. In a large restaurant the look of it will vary from banquet (just depends how many people they are cooking for) to what you would find at a higher end restaurant. Specialty restaurants will be higher end as they are cooking for far fewer people.

I do a blog which you are welcome to look at. You will see photos of food for our Crystal and Silversea cruises. Even one from Queens Grill on Cunard. We did sail Seabourn but didn't do blogs back then.

https://www.followourtrips.com

In the end, you just have to try the lines out for yourself. I have my favorite lines. Others have them. No different than other products. Some prefer Four Seasons, Some Ritz Carlton. Some other Hotel Chains. Some more than one. Same for cars; Lexus, BMW, Mercedes come to mind. Are they all luxury? Yes. Does the drive and feel vary? Yes. And like cars many lines have a wide range of ships so one ship on one line might be very different from another ship on that line.

I would do the following.

As I said there is a lot to be learned from the cruise line websites. They have a lot of information. Also, study, study, study the deck plans. What is offered varies on line and even within a line based on factors including the size of each ship and their age.

Pick up the Annual Cruising book written by Douglas Ward and published by Berlitz. It really is very useful and has a nice writeup on most ships. This is 2018 and in a few months he will have 2019 published.

https://www.amazon.com/Berlitz-Cruising-Cruise-Ships-Guide/dp/1780049781/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1533465743&sr=8-1&keywords=douglas+ward

Talk to friends who you know who have sailed the luxury lines. Talk to a knowledgeable TA who has not only sold the cruises across luxury lines but have sailed them Finally, read reviews and go with what I call the 80/20 rule. If 80% of the people say something good or bad or indifferent I take that as fact until I experience it myself.

With each passing year there is less formality when it comes to cruising such as both daytime and evening clothing. Even the most formal line (Cunard is one of them) has reduced the number of formal nights. This trend should continue because many people in places such as the USA no longer dress up for work and don't want to buy a lot of clothing just to wear on a cruise. And there is more flexibility than ever before on dress.

Each luxury line has some similarities such as offering a luxury product and things such as including several items in the cruise fare and have a high ratio of crew to guests and carrying far less passengers compared to mass market lines. With that said there are differences between the luxury cruise lines. Thankfully there are since we all are not clones of each other.

But in the end you do have to try them out for yourself and if you are like me as you get older your own tastes might change. I know ours have and to some extent still do.

Also remember that each line continues to change. Celebrity used to be our go to line in the 1990's but they changed as did everyone else. We also revisited Celebrity after eight years and saw more changes. Some we liked. Other we did not.

As to whether or not people care how they dress.........;p Well people who cruise are not much different than people who are on land. Some care. Some don't. Some go with the guidelines. Some don't. Some love to dress up. Some don't. Some agree on items. Some don't. This is part of what makes the world go round.

Keith

I don’t there is much convincing involved. I have been listening to men complain about having to wear ties since the Eisenhower administration in the US

 

Can’t say as I blame them much. We women have traded girdles and stockings for pantyhose and now most women have jettisoned the pantyhose as well. When it’s hot we have the option of a sleeveless top and a lovely sundress, while the men are still strangling themselves with a tie, a long sleeved shirt and a heavy jacket or even a light weight one. I certainly wouldn’t want to dress that way. I say Bravo to the rebels! Men’s fashions have stagnated for decades while we women long ago dumped all our burdensome clothing in a trash bin 🤣

 

I think your comment “dressed like a prole” says a lot about you. Sounds like you are setting yourself above simply because of a choice of clothing options.

Actually what my statement says is that I think it’s poor form to dress like a slob. I am setting an ideal above a lack of caring.

There’s an awful American habit of confusing a person and the ideas he expresses. I’d hate to think you would make that mistake seeming as though you are mature enough to have been hearing complaints about ties since the beginning of the Queen’s reign.

Actually what my statement says is that I think it’s poor form to dress like a slob. I am setting an ideal above a lack of caring. .

That's fair, but "slob" is a subjective determination, affected not just by personal opinion but by cultural norms. So, don't expect other people to necessarily know what you believe is dressing like "a slob", let alone expect them to agree with you.

What do you mean by "lack of caring".......Lack of caring about how one dresses? Lack of caring about how other people will think about how one dresses? Lack of caring all the time, or just some of the time? It's pretty complicated. For instance, I care about what I wear in that I want it to match my priorities for the day, which are some combination of comfort and flattering (in various proportions of priority). I also care about what is important to the people I care about, so my clothing choice for a time or event that they consider important will be different, to match their expectations regardless of my opinion of the event. I don't care about what strangers think about what I choose to wear.....usually. But sometimes I do care, for instance when I'm on a job interview, a date, or asking for a bank loan - occasions when that stranger's opinion of my appearance is important to me.

I think it means lack of caring for what dress standards were forty years ago,

I think it means lack of caring for what dress standards were forty years ago,

Forty years ago some people were still in flairs. :eek: Thank God for Johnny Rotten and the return to straight leg trousers

That's fair, but "slob" is a subjective determination, affected not just by personal opinion but by cultural norms. So, don't expect other people to necessarily know what you believe is dressing like "a slob", let alone expect them to agree with you.

 

Like many things it’s not a matter of strict definition, but amateur of judgement. I suspect we would all know when someone has dressed like a slob. They have made no effort and look unkempt and not clean.

 

 

What do you mean by "lack of caring".......Lack of caring about how one dresses? Lack of caring about how other people will think about how one dresses? Lack of caring all the time, or just some of the time? It's pretty complicated. For instance, I care about what I wear in that I want it to match my priorities for the day, which are some combination of comfort and flattering (in various proportions of priority). I also care about what is important to the people I care about, so my clothing choice for a time or event that they consider important will be different, to match their expectations regardless of my opinion of the event. I don't care about what strangers think about what I choose to wear.....usually. But sometimes I do care, for instance when I'm on a job interview, a date, or asking for a bank loan - occasions when that stranger's opinion of my appearance is important to me.

Lack of caring in this case means about how one dresses on the occasion in question, in this case in a restaurant on an upmarket cruise ship.

And you Dre’s nicely because it makes you feel good, as you stated. But I think you should also think of others. After all, one of the things we look forward to in a top restaurant is a good ambience with a pleasing aesthetic. What we see is an important part of how we enjoy ourselves, which is why we holiday in a tropical island and not next to a slag heap.

Imagine if you turned up to dinner and everyone was wearing, creased, faded, torn t shirts and shorts. It would ruin the aesthetic.

As I have said often in this thread this doesn’t mean slavishly following a code. The code is there so you can easily look aesthetically pleasing without too much effort. A few years ago we were staying in the same hotel in Ravello as Sir Bob Geldof, the former rock star, now philanthropist and media entrepreneur. This was a very posh place where everyone wore reasonably formal clobber at dinner, not because the hotel required it, but because people just understood that was the right thing to do. Sir Bob came in the first night in a white silk, beautifully cut shirt with a Nehru collar. He wore this untucked over a pair of loose fitted white silk trousers with monogrammed loafers. This ensemble obeyed none of the “rules” of formal dress, but it was clearly more than appropriate and very elegant.

So it’s not about wearing coats and/or ties, but about being pleasing on the eye so as to make the whole experience an aesthetic pleasure for everyone.

It always surprises me how quickly a thread can be turned into a "formal wear" thread. I (the OP) do like to dress up on occasion and usually overdress for many occasions. However, I don't want to be forced to dress up every night on the ship (formal nights ok) and don't want to be told how to dress on the rest of the ship (Such as Regent having a dress code for the entire ship after 6 pm). In places such as Alaska I expect to have a much less formal dress code. So in other words, I want to be the one to decide based on my day what I will wear. It is my cruise after all. I can't fathom how my attire at a bar would degrade another persons experience.

Could we also talk about service, food, special events, etc? Please?

It always surprises me how quickly a thread can be turned into a "formal wear" thread. I (the OP) do like to dress up on occasion and usually overdress for many occasions. However, I don't want to be forced to dress up every night on the ship (formal nights ok) and don't want to be told how to dress on the rest of the ship (Such as Regent having a dress code for the entire ship after 6 pm). In places such as Alaska I expect to have a much less formal dress code. So in other words, I want to be the one to decide based on my day what I will wear. It is my cruise after all. I can't fathom how my attire at a bar would degrade another persons experience.

Could we also talk about service, food, special events, etc? Please?

You have hit on one of the main quirks of CC....some people wanting to tell others what to wear under the guise of a dress code. You have the perfect solution....as long as you're not being offensive wear what you want when you want. I, for one, trust my fellow passengers to make the best choices.

I will go out on a limb and ask advice! We are spending, the month of March traveling. Our primary focus is Egypt. We will be in the Sanctuary river boat  which has one night at dinner where a jacket is required. Since we are doing back to back (both ways , up and down the Nile), this would mean two nights out of the entire month. Otherwise we are touring or at the beach. 

We then have an additional week in Botswana in game camps (going RT through Cairo to Botswana and back).

 I am really hesitant to have my other half pack up something so combersome, that we will be dragging all over the place. This man is a clothes horse. He is getting shoes custom made in Vienna and flying back for a fitting. He enjoys his sartorial splendor.

I am hoping to find a place to stash our stuff in Cairo but there is no storage at the airport.  

Is it so awful if he wears a dress shirt to dinner without a jacket on an Egyptian river cruise?

3 hours ago, Jacqueline said:

I will go out on a limb and ask advice! We are spending, the month of March traveling. Our primary focus is Egypt. We will be in the Sanctuary river boat  which has one night at dinner where a jacket is required. Since we are doing back to back (both ways , up and down the Nile), this would mean two nights out of the entire month. Otherwise we are touring or at the beach. 

We then have an additional week in Botswana in game camps (going RT through Cairo to Botswana and back).

 I am really hesitant to have my other half pack up something so combersome, that we will be dragging all over the place. This man is a clothes horse. He is getting shoes custom made in Vienna and flying back for a fitting. He enjoys his sartorial splendor.

I am hoping to find a place to stash our stuff in Cairo but there is no storage at the airport.  

Is it so awful if he wears a dress shirt to dinner without a jacket on an Egyptian river cruise?

 

In my opinion, it isn't bad at all to wear a dress shirt but you did mention that a jacket was "required".  I cannot imagine what they are thinking ....... it is so hot in Egypt and wearing a jacket would be so uncomfortable.  I would contact the boat company and discuss this with them.  Hopefully the jacket will not be required.

20 hours ago, Jacqueline said:

I will go out on a limb and ask advice! We are spending, the month of March traveling. Our primary focus is Egypt. We will be in the Sanctuary river boat  which has one night at dinner where a jacket is required. Since we are doing back to back (both ways , up and down the Nile), this would mean two nights out of the entire month. Otherwise we are touring or at the beach. 

We then have an additional week in Botswana in game camps (going RT through Cairo to Botswana and back).

 I am really hesitant to have my other half pack up something so combersome, that we will be dragging all over the place. This man is a clothes horse. He is getting shoes custom made in Vienna and flying back for a fitting. He enjoys his sartorial splendor.

I am hoping to find a place to stash our stuff in Cairo but there is no storage at the airport.  

Is it so awful if he wears a dress shirt to dinner without a jacket on an Egyptian river cruise?

 

It is my understanding that the Sanctuary boats are fully air conditioned, so heat in the boat's interiors should not be a problem.

How much space would be taken up by a light weight linen jacket?

As for hand made shoes---- John Lobb!

My brother was a shoe maker with them for over 40 years.

Still don't know what is wrong with simply respecting a cruise line's dress code.  It isn't about you or me or anyone else - it is about respect.  With the exception of Silversea, "true" luxury cruise lines are quite casual (slacks and a collared shirt for men and women can wear pants, skirts, dresses ....... anything but jeans and shorts at night.)   Why is this such a problem?  Seriously, if you want to dress in ways described above, go on a cruise line with a compatible dress code - although it will not be on a luxury cruise line.

5 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

Still don't know what is wrong with simply respecting a cruise line's dress code.  It isn't about you or me or anyone else - it is about respect.  With the exception of Silversea, "true" luxury cruise lines are quite casual (slacks and a collared shirt for men and women can wear pants, skirts, dresses ....... anything but jeans and shorts at night.)   Why is this such a problem?  Seriously, if you want to dress in ways described above, go on a cruise line with a compatible dress code - although it will not be on a luxury cruise line.

I agree -- you know the rules before signing up.  So, if you do sign up - do it with the expectation and intention of following those rules.  They're really not onerous, but if you think they are, choose a different line with a different dress code.

Problem solved. We will store our luggage in Cairo and take small dufffles to Botswana for the week. 

I am a dress code person and respect that. I actually bring multiple gowns in the QM. I will give them feedback on my opinion. There actually are very few “luxury”choices in Egypt as tourism plummeted. It’s not like regular river cruising. Not a lot of options for what we wanted to do which was not be on a group tour with 30 other people for the land portion of the trip. Many lines bundle it.  With Abercrombie and Kent we could do an a la cart option. Anyhow, I will give them my feedback on their forms.

We will be taking our first ocean cruise next year (now!) to Alaska. I chose Silversea because it does a 7 day trip and was half the price of the same itinerary on Regent - and though we will be paying extra for excursions, some of ours are with local 6 passenger whale boats anyway, so the "free" excursions with Regent would not be worth the extra £3,000 each for the 7 day cruise. I quite liked the idea of Viking and Oceania and Seabourn, but didn't want to do 11 days for the cruise part of what will be a 3 week holiday to Vancouver and Alaska.. So that was what made up my mind for me - I don't think Crystal or other luxury lines do Alaska, but maybe I just missed that?

I sincerely hope we will love it. Are we "formal" people - no (it's a 3 week trip to Alaska! so why would we drag a dinner suit for one night?) but I like to wear a nice dress and DH is fine in a jacket over a shirt, though if it is hot (optimism) he trusts that everyone would put their jacket over the back of their chair? He doesn't intend to take a tie, and on the one (I believe) formal night we will eat in La Terrazza and be fine I hope. I don't think people look down on others who dress simply, but maybe I am wrong?

So I think re choosing your line it is the itinerary which is most important and the length of the cruise. I was only considering luxury lines because DH hates crowds and I hate queuing - ergh! - so having a ship with thousands of people getting on and off it put me off mainstream lines. Also we just went on a nice but not special (apart from the excellent food) Amadeus river cruise and I hated the "Hi-di-Hi" announcements all the time and I trust there will be no announcements on our Silversea cruise?

I also am keen on good wine, and again really hope that the included wines are good quality? (on Amadeus on the Danube they were appalling).

18 minutes ago, worldtraveller99 said:

We will be taking our first ocean cruise next year (now!) to Alaska. I chose Silversea because it does a 7 day trip and was half the price of the same itinerary on Regent - and though we will be paying extra for excursions, some of ours are with local 6 passenger whale boats anyway, so the "free" excursions with Regent would not be worth the extra £3,000 each for the 7 day cruise. I quite liked the idea of Viking and Oceania and Seabourn, but didn't want to do 11 days for the cruise part of what will be a 3 week holiday to Vancouver and Alaska.. So that was what made up my mind for me - I don't think Crystal or other luxury lines do Alaska, but maybe I just missed that?

 

I sincerely hope we will love it. Are we "formal" people - no (it's a 3 week trip to Alaska! so why would we drag a dinner suit for one night?) but I like to wear a nice dress and DH is fine in a jacket over a shirt, though if it is hot (optimism) he trusts that everyone would put their jacket over the back of their chair? He doesn't intend to take a tie, and on the one (I believe) formal night we will eat in La Terrazza and be fine I hope. I don't think people look down on others who dress simply, but maybe I am wrong?

 

So I think re choosing your line it is the itinerary which is most important and the length of the cruise. I was only considering luxury lines because DH hates crowds and I hate queuing - ergh! - so having a ship with thousands of people getting on and off it put me off mainstream lines. Also we just went on a nice but not special (apart from the excellent food) Amadeus river cruise and I hated the "Hi-di-Hi" announcements all the time and I trust there will be no announcements on our Silversea cruise?

 

I also am keen on good wine, and again really hope that the included wines are good quality? (on Amadeus on the Danube they were appalling).

 

 

 

 

Yes, you did miss Crystal. They are doing cruises in Alaska from June to September, 2019 with several 7 days. Sorry you didn't see that option. I have friends who cruise about half the time on Crystal and the other half on Silversea, so I am sure you will enjoy your cruise. I'll be on my 6th Alaska cruise (2nd with Crystal) in Sept. Alaska cruises are great.

1 hour ago, worldtraveller99 said:

We will be taking our first ocean cruise next year (now!) to Alaska. I chose Silversea because it does a 7 day trip and was half the price of the same itinerary on Regent - and though we will be paying extra for excursions, some of ours are with local 6 passenger whale boats anyway, so the "free" excursions with Regent would not be worth the extra £3,000 each for the 7 day cruise. I quite liked the idea of Viking and Oceania and Seabourn, but didn't want to do 11 days for the cruise part of what will be a 3 week holiday to Vancouver and Alaska.. So that was what made up my mind for me - I don't think Crystal or other luxury lines do Alaska, but maybe I just missed that?

 

Though Oceania is not a luxury line  it sounds like it may be a good fit for you   no jackets or ties required

Give them a try sometime & decide for yourself

Not sure  what type of wine  you had that were appalling  I am not a connoisseur  but O has some wines we enjoy  but  you may not

maybe for your next cruise give them a go

1 hour ago, LHT28 said:

Though Oceania is not a luxury line  it sounds like it may be a good fit for you   no jackets or ties required

Give them a try sometime & decide for yourself

Not sure  what type of wine  you had that were appalling  I am not a connoisseur  but O has some wines we enjoy  but  you may not

maybe for your next cruise give them a go

Unfortunately, Oceania goes too far in the other direction (IMHO). On one Oceania cruise, we were in the elevator at 9:30 p.m. with a man wearing the type of overalls that one wears on a farm.  Shorts and other such clothing is fine to wear in one of their dining venues at night.  One of the reasons that we sail on Regent is that it is neither too formal nor too casual (no shorts, jeans, t-shirts after 6:00 p.m.......... yet many find this to be a burden ......... go figure.)

Thank you both. I think that Crystal isn't going to Alaska in 2020 when we wanted to go. And yes in the future I am happy to use Oceania. Interestingly after I asked for brochures I get inundated with leaflets posted to me from Oceania and Regent. Is this a good use of their money, and would my cruise be more expensive than it should be to cover this?

3 minutes ago, worldtraveller99 said:

Thank you both. I think that Crystal isn't going to Alaska in 2020 when we wanted to go. And yes in the future I am happy to use Oceania. Interestingly after I asked for brochures I get inundated with leaflets posted to me from Oceania and Regent. Is this a good use of their money, and would my cruise be more expensive than it should be to cover this?

 

LOL

yes  the dread overload  of brochures

 See if you can get off the mailing list

I usually pick up a brochure at a TA shop or look at the cruises online

It seems to get the attention of some cruisers  that may not have given Oceania  a try so I guess it is good use of their money 😉

PS As I had said previously this will be our 1st ocean cruise. It just occurred to me for the future to start having a look at the tone and content of the other CC Boards as well as our own very friendly SS one. Maybe the things they like to talk about are interesting to you - or not? That would perhaps give an idea of how much at home you will be on those ships?

PPS Am researching at the moment for a future trip to Australia. I see that Oceania has a circumnavigation 30 days ono for about £10K in a window cabin, whereas Regent is £30K for the same cruise length and cabin. I am still not convinced that a few free excursions - not always the ones you would want to take - is worth the Regent mark-up?

As a quick aside, I would only take information and tips from the cc boards.

Disregard tone which is typically set by a very few posters and the cc world is a but  tiny fraction of who you will meet onboard. There few people who are very active on a cc board with strong opinions but they are a sample size of one. I wouldn’t write off a cruise line because of an overzealous cheerleader OR critic.

51 minutes ago, Jacqueline said:

As a quick aside, I would only take information and tips from the cc boards.

Disregard tone which is typically set by a very few posters and the cc world is a but  tiny fraction of who you will meet onboard. There few people who are very active on a cc board with strong opinions but they are a sample size of one. I wouldn’t write off a cruise line because of an overzealous cheerleader OR critic.

Completely agree. Everything posted on CC is nothing more than an opinion.

On 1/4/2019 at 7:33 AM, worldtraveller99 said:

PPS Am researching at the moment for a future trip to Australia. I see that Oceania has a circumnavigation 30 days ono for about £10K in a window cabin, whereas Regent is £30K for the same cruise length and cabin. I am still not convinced that a few free excursions - not always the ones you would want to take - is worth the Regent mark-up?

In addition to the complimentary excursions on Regent, how do the other inclusions compare - do they both provide First/Business flights, luggage shipping, etc.