Appropriate dress on HAL ships

[Cruisin Suzin]

Thank you!!! I'm taking my first cruise ever in June - Alaska, southbound. After years of wearing suits and heels to work and having to dress up for corporate functions, I just don't do it anymore and have been silently planning to just skip anything requiring "formal" attire. I've got a black cocktail dress with dress flats and that will just have to be good enough.

 

 

This will be perfect..it is exactly what I am doing as well. On my last cruise I saw all different styles of dress, formal, semi formal, but one lady walked into the MDR, in her little black dress, a sparkly necklace, and flat shoes, and I thought she stole the night away..:D

[agabbymama]

Reading this thread, I now worry to be overdressed!

 

I am planning long gowns for formal nights and dressy casual dresses or skirt and nice tops for other nights. They are not over the top but still, they are much dressier than slacks and blouse.

 

But I don't think I'll change my plans (unless you all agree that I should change them) because I like cruise dinners to be special and if I wear pants + blouse, I'll just feel like I am at work.

 

 

Never fear, there will be plenty of long gowns, palazzo pants with sparkly tops, cocktail dresses all mixed in. I usually take one long gown and a pair of palazzo pants for the 2nd formal night. And while I do wear pants during the day for excrusions, I too usually change to a skirt or gauchos for evening attire.

 

I wouldn't change your plans. I'm on Norwegian for my next cruise (price was great!) and even though they call themselves freestyle and have what they call "formal or not" night, I will be dressed formal.

 

I am one that hates to see the TRADITIONS associated with cruising falling by the wayside for the modern "do what you want" attitude. But we are becoming fewer and fewer and I fear will eventually lose the battle. That's when I will stop cruising.

 

Have a great cruise!

[RuthC]

Reading this thread, I now worry to be overdressed!

 

I am planning long gowns for formal nights and dressy casual dresses or skirt and nice tops for other nights. They are not over the top but still, they are much dressier than slacks and blouse.

 

But I don't think I'll change my plans (unless you all agree that I should change them) because I like cruise dinners to be special and if I wear pants + blouse, I'll just feel like I am at work.

Worry not; you will be dressed precisely to code on both types of nights. There are still many of us who take care about how we look, and dress for the evening. It should never be a race to the lowest common denominator.

[kamfan]

I am some what a "newbie" on here but i am sure i am one of those who hit that last nerve for some people. I in no way intend to anger anyone and am always looking for the true debate and reasons. It is frustrating when all people can say is "tradition". One persons ideas of what is right and wrong always scratches a last nerve with me if it is put the way it is around here. I have always preached "live and let live" on here and for some reason that becomes looked at as change everything. I seem to be hearing on here that change is coming, like it or not, so let it, enjoy it, go with it. Just don't sneer at me while i am doing just that. :cool:

 

I agree totally with your comments. Some people are so afraid of change that they will do almost anything to hold onto the old and familiar, and wrap the argument in "tradition". I won't be sneering at you, but sitting along side you although not necessarily in flip flops. ;)

[Opinions]

Worry not; you will be dressed precisely to code on both types of nights. There are still many of us who take care about how we look, and dress for the evening. It should never be a race to the lowest common denominator.

 

On formal nights my wife now wears dress pants and a nice top...Do you feel she is racing toward "the lowest common denominator"?

[JABTPS]

The cruising experience is not only being on a ship in the middle of the ocean, but experiencing fine food, wonderful accomodations, nicely decorated ship, I could on. So when we start to dress down the 2 nice evenings of formal ( Sunday best) attire, what incentive is there for the chefs to prepare food that is appealling to the eyes as well as the stomach? Why not make the rooms look like Motel 6? Isn't that the same thing? My personal opinion is it's not asking much for 2 evenings to put on your best, have fun with it, pretend your somewhere else than at home.

There will alway be someone who will disagree with this philosophy, but I believe that if you settle for something less, it will trend in that direction, including the other nice benefits of a cruise.

HAL is one of the lines that I enjoy dressing up for the evening and having fun with it. Probably it is the reason I will avoid the others ( Carnival, NCL). It just doesn't meet my expectations of what a cruise is all about.

[kazu]

Reading this thread, I now worry to be overdressed!

 

I am planning long gowns for formal nights and dressy casual dresses or skirt and nice tops for other nights. They are not over the top but still, they are much dressier than slacks and blouse.

 

But I don't think I'll change my plans (unless you all agree that I should change them) because I like cruise dinners to be special and if I wear pants + blouse, I'll just feel like I am at work.

 

You won't be overdressed at all - trust me. wear what makes you feel good. I, like you enjoy wearing long dresses. I never wear pants to the MDR (or rarely) - I'm usually in long casual dresses or long skirts. It's just my choice. and formal night, I like long skirts so it's a gown. I know - it takes more room but that's what I like:)

 

I never feel out of place - there are always lots - no worries - you will be fine - just pack what you like and gives you joy to wear. That's what it is all about ;)

[Opinions]

So when we start to dress down the 2 nice evenings of formal ( Sunday best) attire, what incentive is there for the chefs to prepare food that is appealling to the eyes as well as the stomach?

 

I doubt that the chefs check out how we are dressed in order to have a incentive to prepare appealing food...If so then they must have had a problem on the HAL cruise where we had a Optional Formal night...Some dressed formal while others casual...I didn't see any difference in the food served to those dressed casual compared to those in formal.

[Nelie]

If your job requires you to wear a uniform then you wear one.No questions asked no matter how stupid it looks.

 

Well there are certain cruise lines that require you to wear "a uniform" for dinner. Thats the way it is.

 

I myself am a little unsure what will be appropriate so ill ask a thousand questions and post pictures of my entire wardrobe if i have to.:D

[Hobbsey]

I just signed into Cruise Critic about 30 minutes ago and according to the return message it's the first time I've been here since 2008!!! I guess life has been full of other things than this the last three years. It does comfort me to know however that this topic is alive and well now 14 years since I first signed on to Cruise Critic. Amazing!! I will note that there seems to be less and less of the old style hardliners posting than there used to be - at least in this thread.

 

Some observations:

 

1. It's your vacation that you paid for with your money. The same holds true for the other 2000 guests aboard ship. Follow the general guidelines, use common sense and that should avoid any embarrassing situations. I note that HAL only has two dress catagories now, not the 3 from 15 years ago. I also note that as the ships get larger and have more diverse services and venues it is natural that there will be options - that's the point. I am considering Eurodam this Fall and will not be attending formal night, it Lido, Italian or room service I guess. I wear a tie every day and will avoid wearing one on vacation. I love HAL and I love that HAL has made it easier for me to continue being their guest.

 

2. Traditions are funny things. At one time they were something new that people decided to stick to and require others to embrace. But, change is inevitable. If the traditionalists really want to go back to the grand old days then most of the ship would be below decks at night having fun parties in their evey-day clothing while the priviledged few would be in their tight starched finery for a 5 hour dining event and then cigars in the lounge - and no changing those clothes - keep those heels on for the duration.

 

3. A word of warning about feeling too "Free Style". When Becky and I did our first NCL free style cruise (Westdam, 2002, 10 day Hawaii and Fanning Island) I decided to go with no ties and just my blue blazer. I did pack one or two nice pair of slacks. Well, the first night out we met the CD at a bar and became very friendly (and tipsy) with him. The next day we found an invitation to the captains table on our door. Ugggg, I had not tie for the formal dining room. I wound up buying one in the gift shop (the one loaned to me from the CD was awful) and we survived the evening just fine. Still, I am one that would rather be prepared the next time so I always pack a tie, a pair of nicer shoes and a jacket no matter where I am going and no which line it might be on.

 

4. Seriously, it's vacation, don't take it all SO SERIOUSLY.

 

Oh, and add two to my signature:

 

2009 Norwegian Star (NCL)

2010 Imagination (Carnival)

[Plnrboy]

Nice post Hobsey!!! I concur with your entire post... as i said earlier it is hard when people don't debate the reasons but turn to slippery slope arguments... "if we don't dress up the food and rooms will be dumbed down"... or stanch rule providers - "it is like a job and you are required to wear a uniform" ... really??? I still like the one guy who bought the brightest and flashiest Tux in the world and went to formal night... Maybe i should get a baby blue tux?? sounds like fun. :eek:

[Hobbsey]

I have seen some real horrors on formal nights myself. On some cruises the women look like they had no alternative but to get out the old prom gown. It gets silly. I was a chat host on another cruise web site for a while and one of the paid reviewers over there is known for wearing slippers every were on board - and yes, he has formal night fuzzy slippers to go along with his tux and her gown.

 

Just go relaxed and have fun. As long as you are decent and respectful then appropriate should follow.

[mexico5]

HAL was the least formal cruise that we have sailed on. We found Princess and NCL to be much nicer as far as formal nights...not sure if it was just the Oosterdam (out of San Diego) or not but we thought people were very badly dressed...Dh brought his suit and tie and I wore a dress and we were in the minority on formal nights! Wouldn't sail her again...too casual and not enough glitz!

[Hobbsey]

Mex: Apparently our opinions of NCL vs HAL are reversed. In which case I guess you'd do better there or with Princess (which I have never cruised - unbelievable though it may seem to some). But that's not the topic of this thread.

 

For me, with 18 cruises across a variety of line, I have always found HAL to be the more refined. Allot of that has to do with it's reputation as an "old persons cruise line" I think. Enjoy the glitz.

[mexico5]

Thanks...I will! We found the lounges on HAL (Oosterdam) to be even more boring...sometimes there were people sitting in there but we weren't really sure if they were alive:eek: People just sleeping I guess instead of having a martini!

 

There is a cruiseline for everyone!

[Hobbsey]

Yeah, if you are looking for a hot night life then HAL is not the CL for you. We enjoy quiet evenings so it suits us well. A scotch, a cigar and a competetive game of scrabble.... Followed of course by a stroll on deck.

[Ontario Cruiser]

Just home from the Veendam and was dismayed to see people men and women in shorts most nights all around the ship except in the dining room I thought that dockers or long pants at least were the acceptable attire.

Ontario Cruiser

[Hobbsey]

What was the itinerary of that one.

[Ontario Cruiser]

Amazon 28 day cruise from Rio to Fort Lauderdale

Ontario Cruiser.

[ibfishing2]

Okay, so I have to add my thoughts to this thread with me being a "newbie" and all. :p

 

The appropriate dress attire almost did turn us away from HAL. We are going on our first cruise this June to Alaska and after reading so many threads about what to wear--we got really nervous!

 

We did go out and buy DH a nice black suit, a couple of ties, dress shirts, dress pants, and new shoes. We bought me 2 cocktail dresses and some fancy tops.

 

We are looking forward to dressing up, don't get us wrong. But at some point it seemed that all the focus was on what to wear for only a couple of hours each night. It no longer was about the fact that we are celebrating our anniversary, his sobriety, our first vacation, and seeing Alaska. It was only about what to wear! :eek:

Thank you RudyBC

 

I too was concerned about HAL because of the dress code. I don't mind Formal Nights, but I want my focus the other days and evenings to be on just enjoying the cruise.

[Thoth]

Someday the whole cruise industry will adapt the convenience store dress code..."no shirt, no shoes, no service !"

[Chivalrygirl]

I am so puzzled, I thoought on HAL it was OK to where jeans and shorts on formal night?

[kazu]

I am so puzzled, I thoought on HAL it was OK to where jeans and shorts on formal night?

 

LOL - he he he :D:D

[madelinerose]

Seriously, it's vacation, don't take it all SO SERIOUSLY.

 

Amen and bravo! :D

[agabbymama]

madelinerose

 

You're right, it is a vacation, but for me I want it to be an upscale vacation, and that's a little difficult to do when other passengers are in jeans, shorts and flip flops. It just kind of spoils the atmosphere a little.

 

I don't let it get to me, as long as I can wear my long dress & heels, everyone else can dress the way the cruiseline lets them.

 

HAL and Celebrity were both very nice on formal night. Almost everyone that came to the MDR were dressed appropriately.