How Much Clothes Do You Need For A 7 Day Cruise

[cruisingbajan]

Being a first time cruiser. I was wondering how much clothes do you really need. Do you need 2 suits? How many casual/resort type clothes do you need.

 

I believe in travelling light but this may not be possible from what I am hearing.

 

 

Please let me know :confused:

[Nitemare]

Depends on the cruiseline and itinerary, somewhat. Some lines are more formal than others. Also depends on you, I don't have a problem wearing the same suit twice in a one week cruise, do you?

[cruisingbajan]

No I don't have a problem with wearingthe same suit twice

 

We are sailing on a seven day cruise of the wester caribbean. Any more tips are welcomed

[Happy ks]

Take less than you need for the week. It's true you can wear the same thing twice, there is even laundry service onboard if you need it. Sea days you will primarily be in swim suits, we usually take at least 3 each (some people argue you only need one, we use 2, one may be wet at times, plus a sacrificial suit for the hot tub). We wear the same clothes to disembark that we did to embark. We both take 1 pair of nice pants for casual nights and several tops/shirts to go with the pants. The only thing I pack plenty of is underwear, unless you are the size of an elephant, you will not save room by cutting down on this item. Underwear are expensive to have laundered and I hate having them hang to dry in the bathroom, just not enough room.

 

One suit will be fine. Some men wear a sportscoat for informal night, some do not. Take a look at your brochure, it usually gives you the answer to type of clothing and how many nights to dress in whatever style of the evening.

 

Happy planning, try not to spend as much on your cloting as you did your cruise!

[snowy owl]

Less then we have pack in the past. :D Packed way to much. I say I'am cutting back. :)

[DFritz]

Pack items like your swimwear and undergarments in ziplocs. It will save space. I also pack tshirts and shorts this way by rolling the outfit together, place in ziploc, squeeze the air out, toss into the suitcase. The ziplocs come in handy later for soiled clothing. For kids clothes I pack the same way and put the childs name and day of week for each outfit on the ziploc so they aren't hollering about what they are suppose to wear. Saves precious cruise time when you are on vacation.

[kitty9]

To answer your question fully, we need to know the cruise line you're on. Some lines, like Celebrity, are more dressy and have three types of clothing required for evening dress---formal, informal and casual. Some lines, like Carnival and RCCI only have formal and casual, while others are casual only.

 

For daytime, you only need a couple of bathing suits and coverups, shorts and t-shirts for shore excursions, and maybe one pair of lightweight pants. At night, again depending on the cruise line, you need a dark suit for formal nights, dress slacks and sport jacket for informal, and casual slacks (not jeans) and collared shirts for casual (this is for the men), and for the ladies, it's long gown, evening pants or sparkly cocktail dress for formal, nice dress or pantsuit for informal (think what you'd wear to a more formal wedding or the best restaurant in your town) and slacks/top/sweaterset, capris or sundresses for casual nights.

[cruisingbajan]

To answer your question fully, we need to know the cruise line you're on.

 

 

We ar travelling on RCCL... first cruise. From what I have been reading it seems you may have to pack quite a bit? What is smart casual? Is there a no jeans policy? Help!!! :confused:

[Paracroz]

From the RCCL website FAQ:

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.

 

3 to 4-night cruises include one formal night and two or three casual nights.

5 - nights include one formal, one smart casual and three casual nights.

7-night cruises include two formal nights, one smart casual night and four casual nights.

10, 11, and 12-night cruises include two formal nights and three smart casual nights, all other nights are casual.

14 and 15-night cruises include three formal nights and four smart casual nights. All other nights are casual.

 

We appreciate your usual parental guidance and cooperation in observing these easy guidelines with your children.

 

This would suggest that jeans are not acceptable during dinner times in the dining room (I'm fairly sure that they would be acceptable anywhere else on board).

[Happy ks]

Than other types of vacation, due to the evening dress. I don't pack any different for an RCI cruise than I would a Celebrity, but I like to dress nicely in the evening, no matter what the dress "code" states.

 

Jeans are fine during the day, they may be too hot for a warm weather cruise, though. Most cruise lines politely ask that you do not wear jeans, shorts, T-shirts or tank tops in the dining room at night.

 

You can cut down on packing if you coordinate tops and pants, as others as well as myself have stated above.

 

Smart casual is another way of saying informal, such as a sportcoat and slacks, perhaps with no tie. Ladies can wear more casual dresses or pantsuits. Casual is Docker/chino type of pants with a collared shirt, such as a Polo shirt or Hawaiian type of shirt, ladies in pants outfits, sundresses, capris etc... Casual does not mean come as you are in any old thing, or jeans or shorts. The first night is more relaxed because some may not have had their luggage delivered. The last night is casual because people have started to pack for disembarkment the following morning.

 

The dining rooms on ships are lovely, elegant rooms and the service warrants the formality of dressing for dinner. There are other choices if you don't care to dress in the requested attire, such as the buffet or room service. We enjoy the evening in the dining room so much we have never opted out, but we do understand it is not the choice for all passengers. It is actually a lot of fun to be with all the others on your cruise and the servers can be quite entertaining.

 

After saying all this, don't be intimidated by the words "dress code" (it kind of reminds me of high school). The people you will meet onboard are average, everyday people, such as yourself. Don't go out and purchase a new wardrobe trying to "fit in" with the crowd, you will be fine. It is not a fashion show and unless you wear something very bizaare no one will even notice you.

 

Have fun planning!

[kitty9]

Believe me, if you're going on a warm weather cruise like the Caribbean, you don't want to bring jeans. They are just too heavy and hot for Caribbean weather. You can wear jeans during the day, but all ships have a no jeans in the dining room policy at night.

 

Don't fuss about the terms these cruise lines use for their evening wear. Smart casual is the same as just plain casual or resort casual. For men it means dockers-type slacks with a collared shirt---think golf shirt or Hawaiian print shirt. You don't have to worry about informal on RCCI because they don't have that. For formal nights you can get away with dress slacks, dress shirt, jacket and tie, but most men will be wearing dark suits or tuxes. If you want to cut down on packing, you can rent a tux on board the ship. When you get your documents, there will be information on renting/ordering the tux and it will be waiting for you in your cabin when you arrive. By doing that, you don't have to bring the jacket and tie.

[cruisingbajan]

Thanks guys you have all been very helpful and have certainly given me a very good idea of what to expect. You have also save me a bundle on the new wardrobe I was thinking about. :D

 

I am certainly looking forward to the cruise. Its great to have a site like this one for us firstimers where we can benefit from the expertise and helpfulness of the more experience cruisers.

 

Thanks alot.

 

p.s. keep the suggestions/info coming. Any more questions I will be sure to post :)