Formal night attire

[dutrie]

We haven't been on Princess for 3 years. We are cruising on the Coral Princess in January. Do they still have formal night and how many in the course of 10 days? We love to dress up and dance but don't want to be overdressed either. Do they have a 50s night or any other theme nights? Looking forward to your response.

[cruiseron36]

We haven't been on Princess for 3 years. We are cruising on the Coral Princess in January. Do they still have formal night and how many in the course of 10 days? We love to dress up and dance but don't want to be overdressed either. Do they have a 50s night or any other theme nights? Looking forward to your response.

 

There will probably be two formal nights. Some tuxes but mostly a dark business suit and tie for men. You can download the answer book from the Princess website which well defines formal dress for men and women.

[Pam in CA]

We haven't been on Princess for 3 years. We are cruising on the Coral Princess in January. Do they still have formal night and how many in the course of 10 days? We love to dress up and dance but don't want to be overdressed either. Do they have a 50s night or any other theme nights? Looking forward to your response.

Per the Princess FAQs on the Princess website (which is a fount of helpful information):

 

Smart Casual

Passenger attire should be in keeping with what they would wear to a nice restaurant at home.

• Skirts/dresses, slacks, and sweaters for ladies
  
• Pants and open-neck shirts for men
  

Inappropriate dinner wear such as pool or beach attire, shorts, ball caps and casual jeans (with fraying and/or holes) are not permitted in the dining rooms. Shoes must be worn.

 

Formal

When formal nights are held, please observe the dress code in the Traditional Dining and Anytime Dining venues for the enjoyment of all our guests.

• Evening gown, cocktail dress, or elegant pant suit for women
  
• Tuxedo, dark suit or dinner jacket and slacks for men
  

There will be two formal nights for a 10-day cruise.

[paul929207]

Princess does still fave formal nights although not everyone dresses for them. There will be two on a ten day cruise.

[hansi]

Princess does still fave formal nights although not everyone dresses for them. There will be two on a ten day cruise.

 

More's the pity!

[1 HappyCruiser]

They do have their suggested dress recommendations but can be worked around very easily without any problems if you wish to dress down somewhat. Comfort is the key. ;)

[O2B@Cagain]

I think that a lot of people must consider McDonald's drive-through to be a "nice restaurant" at home.

[Pam in CA]

They do have their suggested dress recommendations but can be worked around very easily without any problems if you wish to dress down somewhat. Comfort is the key. ;)

I agree that comfort is the key. I bring my long, black dress and am very comfortable without having to "dress down." I like to feel "special" when I'm dressed up for formal nights and I think I succeed. After all, it's a special evening with special events and a special dinner menu.

[Mom33]

Princess requests:

 

When formal nights are held, please observe the dress code in the Traditional Dining and Anytime Dining venues for the enjoyment of all our guests.

 

Evening gown, cocktail dress, or elegant pant suit for women

Tuxedo, dark suit or dinner jacket and slacks for men

There will be two formal nights for a 10-day cruise.

[commodoredave]

I think that a lot of people must consider McDonald's drive-through to be a "nice restaurant" at home.

 

"Nice" for what? Can't be the food!

[Astro Flyer]

I agree that comfort is the key. I bring my long, black dress and am very comfortable without having to "dress down." I like to feel "special" when I'm dressed up for formal nights and I think I succeed. After all, it's a special evening with special events and a special dinner menu.

I agree with you that it can be both at the same time.

 

WOW...this may be a record length for a dress code thread without it turning into any personal attacks with only as Sgt Joe Friday would say...just the facts.

 

It must be the holiday spirit? lol ;)

[Roses2]

We take 3 or 4 Princess cruises wach year and believe that a trend may be developing that indicates a higher percentage of compliance with the published guidelines.

 

We believe, from observation only, that more than 85% -90% of passengers on our most recent cruises followed the guidelies. The number of Tuxes are far out numbered by suits and ties. Most ladies appeared very tastefully dressed in all of the dining rooms.

 

Of those who prefered more casual attire, they appeared to have opted for the Buffet.

 

This certainly is not a scientific study, just an observation by frequent cruisers.

 

p&j

[Talisker92]

We just got off the Coral and were on the Diamond and Star this year. IMO, most people did dress up. I personally gave up on the tux years ago, but I wear a dark suit.

[stretchcruz]

I wear black "fancy" pants and a "sparkly" top.....my husband wears a navy sport coat and a tie and dress pants (he doesn't own a suit). We have always felt very comfortable and as though we "fit in".

[1 HappyCruiser]

We take 3 or 4 Princess cruises wach year and believe that a trend may be developing that indicates a higher percentage of compliance with the published guidelines.

 

We believe, from observation only, that more than 85% -90% of passengers on our most recent cruises followed the guidelies. The number of Tuxes are far out numbered by suits and ties. Most ladies appeared very tastefully dressed in all of the dining rooms.

 

Of those who prefered more casual attire, they appeared to have opted for the Buffet.

 

This certainly is not a scientific study, just an observation by frequent cruisers.

 

p&j

 

We also take the same number of cruise per year & have found that most people do dress on formal evenings but at the same time the strict enforcement of any dress codes is getting more relaxed than ever. I personally don't dress all that formally & enjoy the relaxed atmosphere I've experienced in the last few years. Those that wish to dress up can do so & those that don't can still be admitted to the DR's as long as they make half an effort.

On formal evenings (AT dining) there were at least 10 guys without jackets, ties & some with only short sleeved shirts with dress pants.

On casual nights even shorts with T shirts were being tolerated lately.

[hmh60]

On casual nights even shorts with T shirts were being tolerated lately. [/font]

 

Don't agree. We were on the Ruby in Nov. and shorts and T shirts were turned away in main dining rooms.

[commodoredave]

IMO, if a cruise line publishes a dress "code" instead of dress "suggestions" they should be enforced without exception.

[Pam in CA]

IMO, if a cruise line publishes a dress "code" instead of dress "suggestions" they should be enforced without exception.

It's a "request", not a requirement. Formal nights are a special occasion and Princess requests that passengers respect that. It doesn't mean that you will be thrown out of the dining room or not allowed to enter if you are not dressed according to the suggestion. It comes down to respecting the request and one's fellow passengers. Some choose not to. That's their option.

[commodoredave]

It's a "request", not a requirement. Formal nights are a special occasion and Princess requests that passengers respect that. It doesn't mean that you will be thrown out of the dining room or not allowed to enter if you are not dressed according to the suggestion. It comes down to respecting the request and one's fellow passengers. Some choose not to. That's their option.

 

If it's a request, it's not a code. Some lines have a code and enforce it, like Cunard. I prefer that approach because it ensures a minimum level of dress in the main dining room.

[Roses2]

It probably would be helpful if those who cruise on Princess would take the opportunity to read the guidance published by the cruise line. It appears to be realively straigh forward:

 

Quote:

Princess makes it easy to know what to pack and what to wear when you’re dining onboard our spectacular ships. There are two designations for dress codes:

Smart Casual and Formal.

 

Smart Casual

Passenger attire should be in keeping with what they would wear to a nice restaurant at home.

• Skirts/dresses, slacks, and sweaters for ladies
  
• Pants and open-neck shirts for men
  

Inappropriate dinner wear such as pool or beach attire, shorts, ball caps and casual jeans (with fraying and/or holes) are not permitted in the dining rooms. Shoes must be worn.

 

Formal

When formal nights are held, please observe the dress code in the Traditional Dining and Anytime Dining venues for the enjoyment of all our guests.

• Evening gown, cocktail dress, or elegant pant suit for women
  
• Tuxedo, dark suit or dinner jacket and slacks for men"
  

End quote.

[Pam in CA]

If it's a request, it's not a code. Some lines have a code and enforce it, like Cunard. I prefer that approach because it ensures a minimum level of dress in the main dining room.

Cunard also has a class system.

[satxdiver]

In my experience some men wear tux, many wear a suit (some dark and some not), some wear a sport coat and a few wear simply a long sleeved shirt and dark pants. Most who wear a suit/coat will wear a tie but some do not. Many wear a leather shoe but some wear sandals or athletic shoes. I have seen the usual open collared shirt and no coat, sport coat over a long sleeved tshirt and more. I have seen hats being worn in the MDR on both types of nights.

 

To the poster that can't stand men wearing hats at dinner, I suggest you not visit the US western states since many men do wear hats while eating. BTW they also wear jeans and boots. Both are common sights around here.

[1 HappyCruiser]

On casual nights even shorts with T shirts were being tolerated lately. [/font]

 

Don't agree. We were on the Ruby in Nov. and shorts and T shirts were turned away in main dining rooms.

 

I'm sure there as some ships that do enforce the "no shorts" rule consistently but on the Grand Princess last cruise they didn't say a word to anyone in shorts who wore baseball caps to dinner. I'm not sure if the few guys I saw in ball caps actually wore them when eating (I couldn't see across the DR) but this happened on almost all casual evenings.

[dutrie]

Thanks for all the responses!

 

I am happy to hear that many continue to wear formal attire on Princess. As I posted, we have been away from Princess for a few years trying out some other cruise lines and my wife was disappointed with them because she felt so out of place in her evening gowns. I had to ask on the Princess forum because a formal dress policy does not necessarily reflect reality on-board.

 

On our last Princess cruise, the majority of people did dress on formal nights. We did not find that to be true on some other lines.

 

What about theme nights? Any recent experience on the Coral or other Princess ships? Is there still a 50's and 70's night?

[commodoredave]

Cunard also has a class system.

 

Cunard does have a class system, but the published dress code is the same for all classes. The other luxury lines also enforce a dress code. While Regent has moved to an elegant casual code, they enforce their definition of that. So my point is if they have a code, enforce it. If they don't want to enforce it, don't call it a code. I don't really want to pack a jacket and tie for formal night if it's just a suggestion and 30% of the people show up in jeans and a T-shirt.