Spain, Italy, France Cruise attire

Curious to know whether people on a Med cruise dress up a little bit more. I am thinking of taking a few more dresses this trip, nothing really formal, for in ports and on ship at night.

I’d say so. You’ll be in the heart of high fashion country and many of the passengers will be European.

I’ll add that on my Princess Cruise in the Med, there was very good participation in formal nights and on smart casual nights people were still very well dressed, which contributed to a very nice atmosphere

I agree. More evening dressing up onboard. And ashore, the locals typically dressed well.

My experience is that they do dress up more.

Keith

Definitely. We have done one Mediterranean cruise and found that the dress was kicked up a few notches. For one thing, there will be Europeans on the cruise and they tend to dress up more than the typical American.

We have been on several land trips to Europe and I always wear a skirt or dress when out and about, both day and evening.

Annie, your comment about land trips brought back some memories. We observed that European women often wear skirts or sundresses during the day even in warm weather.Many from U.S. seemed more inclined to wear shorts or pants.

Thanks for the input. I am looking forward to the opportunity to dress up more. Now I just need to figure out a stylish yet comfy walking shoe to go with both a skirt and pants.

Thanks for the input. I am looking forward to the opportunity to dress up more. Now I just need to figure out a stylish yet comfy walking shoe to go with both a skirt and pants.

You will be fine in capri pants if you'd rather wear trousers. But no adult European woman would wear shorts unless she was on her way to take part in some sort of sporting activity!:)

I have a pair of Skechers GOWalk canvas boat/deck shoes which are extremely comfortable, lightweight and look OK with trousers or skirts/dresses. I wore them all over outback Australia.

Are you referring to evenings? Or during the day? I sailed from Barcelona to Rome in August. During the day I wore crops/capris, tops with walking shoes AND socks for touring.

Evenings, I wore slacks and nicer tops, black sandals with most all my outfits and some jewelry. This was on SIlversea and I felt totally appropriate.

We were on Royal, sailing from Italy and included Spain and France. We didn't find that the dress was much different. You didn't see a lot of tank tops or flip flops but we saw capris, thin slacks, some skirts and flats or the slip on sketchers type shoes AND plenty of sneakers on most...including the Europeans. Dinner was capris, slacks, sundresses and on formal night some sparkly tops. We have done two Med cruises. We didn't see many shorts or sleeveless shirts, but mostly because if you visit the Vatican or some of the churches you have to have something on to your knees and something covering your shoulders. Some wore sleeveless and carried a wrap to put over their shoulders.

You will be fine in capri pants if you'd rather wear trousers. But no adult European woman would wear shorts unless she was on her way to take part in some sort of sporting activity!:)

I have a pair of Skechers GOWalk canvas boat/deck shoes which are extremely comfortable, lightweight and look OK with trousers or skirts/dresses. I wore them all over outback Australia.

The only shorts this trip, I will be bringing will be for onboard the ship. I too own go walks, but they are well worn. They are on my possibility list. :)

Are you referring to evenings? Or during the day? I sailed from Barcelona to Rome in August. During the day I wore crops/capris, tops with walking shoes AND socks for touring.

 

Evenings, I wore slacks and nicer tops, black sandals with most all my outfits and some jewelry. This was on SIlversea and I felt totally appropriate.

For days...night time attire all taken care of. For day, I am planning on a mix of casual dresses/skirts/pants/capris (depending on the weather--I need to wait until closer to trip time (May) to check the forecast before final packing. Because of the skirt option as well, I want a shoe that looks good with them, but also has good support. Maybe it's just an excuse in my mind to buy new shoes.....

We were on Royal, sailing from Italy and included Spain and France. We didn't find that the dress was much different. You didn't see a lot of tank tops or flip flops but we saw capris, thin slacks, some skirts and flats or the slip on sketchers type shoes AND plenty of sneakers on most...including the Europeans. Dinner was capris, slacks, sundresses and on formal night some sparkly tops. We have done two Med cruises. We didn't see many shorts or sleeveless shirts, but mostly because if you visit the Vatican or some of the churches you have to have something on to your knees and something covering your shoulders. Some wore sleeveless and carried a wrap to put over their shoulders.

Thanks for the info. Getting into the Vatican and other churches is my main concern. I am a born worrier. I am going to different countries, so I don't want to offend anyone. It's funny really because I am a conservative dresser all the time.

Thanks for the info. Getting into the Vatican and other churches is my main concern. I am a born worrier. I am going to different countries, so I don't want to offend anyone. It's funny really because I am a conservative dresser all the time.

Almost all European religious venues require the respectful dressing of covered shoulders and knees.

Carry a large scarf if your wearing sleeveless.

Annie, your comment about land trips brought back some memories. We observed that European women often wear skirts or sundresses during the day even in warm weather.Many from U.S. seemed more inclined to wear shorts or pants.

Yes, true. In July we were in Krakow, Prague, Vienna and London. I wore dresses or skirts every day and felt quite comfortable.

Hi2you,

My husband and I are taking this same cruise a few weeks before you! I am taking a mixture of casual and dressy clothes. We will be traveling for 3 weeks so I want enough variety to have choices. During the day I want to be comfy and in the evening I will dress a little more dressy. Nice tee tops and capris or khakis with my Birkenstock's during the days and dress slacks and nicer tops for evenings and maybe a dress or skirt. One of the reasons I chose NCL is because I do not wish to do any formal wear, as we are trying to pack light and our snorkel equipment gets top priority over clothes or shoes!

Cissy

Hi2you,

My husband and I are taking this same cruise a few weeks before you! I am taking a mixture of casual and dressy clothes. We will be traveling for 3 weeks so I want enough variety to have choices. During the day I want to be comfy and in the evening I will dress a little more dressy. Nice tee tops and capris or khakis with my Birkenstock's during the days and dress slacks and nicer tops for evenings and maybe a dress or skirt. One of the reasons I chose NCL is because I do not wish to do any formal wear, as we are trying to pack light and our snorkel equipment gets top priority over clothes or shoes!

Cissy

Have a terrific trip.

You won't see capri's on European women, only on tourists. Crops are a better choice, in my opinion. They are more in style and readily available.

You won't see capri's on European women, only on tourists. Crops are a better choice, in my opinion. They are more in style and readily available.

Capri vs crop vs a lot of other terms - it's all semantics and we all see different things in our head when we envison what those articles of clothing are. For instance, I personally don't think "crops" are "more in style and readily available" but - could be a regional thing.

I personally prefer a slim fit ankle length pant, or I wear a dress. I wear a lot of knit dresses, year round, for work & casual wear, knee length or maxi (but not a full maxi, only a slim tank style, which is easier to find some years.....)

Capri vs crop vs a lot of other terms - it's all semantics and we all see different things in our head when we envison what those articles of clothing are. For instance, I personally don't think "crops" are "more in style and readily available" but - could be a regional thing.

Yes I agree about the semantics!

To me crops/ capris means any pair of trousers which ends below the knee and above the ankle.

I don't know where the OP lives to be able to say capris aren't worn in Europe, I wear nothing else in the summer months.:)

Yes I agree about the semantics!

To me crops/ capris means any pair of trousers which ends below the knee and above the ankle.

I don't know where the OP lives to be able to say capris aren't worn in Europe, I wear nothing else in the summer months.:)

Just above the ankle is fine, but the style (you name it) that ends mid-calf is not flattering to many women. Ankle pants, yes! Just above the ankle, yes! But as in most things YMMV, and that is quite ok.

What does this mean YMMV??

And I don't know what or where your comment of 'not flattering to many women' is based on.Where I live it's quite common in warmer weather and none of my neighbours looks wrong in what you would refer to as non-full length trousers. But perhaps you are only referring to non-Europeans ?:)

What does this mean YMMV??

And I don't know what or where your comment of 'not flattering to many women' is based on.Where I live it's quite common in warmer weather and none of my neighbours looks wrong in what you would refer to as non-full length trousers. But perhaps you are only referring to non-Europeans ?:)

YMMV means "your mileage may vary" (it's a way of saying that actual experiences tend to differ...)

I believe about a decade ago some fashion person decreed that these types of pants (capris/crops whatever we call them) were universally unflattering. At that time, though, the prevailing style of these was a rather loose leg that was cropped about mid-calf.

Personally, I find the slimmer fitted capris and crops are certainly more flattering on me than an equivalent length or longer skirt, which are the other practical options when touring in Europe when it is a) very hot and b) you want to be appropriately dressed.

There is a large difference between this:

and something like these:

Exactly!:D