Dress Code & Good Manners

[Ma Bell]

Well if you must know....

 

We travelled with friends who were not in Aqua class and we ate with them on one formal night in the MDR. They are seasoned Celebrity travellers and advised me that I would not need a jacket and they were right (on that occasion). In addition to that I have other friends who cruise regularly and have been on Celebrity ships multiple times.

 

I'll admit I am new to Celebrity but I prefer it to every other cruise line I have been on. The stricter dress code is perhaps the one thing I don't like.

 

It's true that they don't "always" ask people to leave the dining room, however that is not really the test of whether you need to wear a jacket on Formal Night. That's called getting away with something.;)

[DirtyDawg]

What exactly is a smart Casual jacket? I know what suite jackets, blazers, sports jackets and dinner jackets are but I have never heard the term smart casual jacket. Are you referring to the Miami Vice linen jackets with rolled up sleeves from the 80's? Also jeans that are $20 or $200 dollars are still jeans. Having been part of the generation who started the fad of over priced designer jeans I can tell you that they are both the same and don't make you any more important because you over paid for cotton canvas denim. It just makes you a fashion victim.

 

Ok, I'll have to take some photos for you when I'm out next time. Of course, that might be considered bad manners. ;)

[DirtyDawg]

Would either of these outfits be acceptable on formal Night? The first one seems to meet X's dress code but is it formal?

[gek]

It's true that they don't "always" ask people to leave the dining room, however that is not really the test of whether you need to wear a jacket on Formal Night. That's called getting away with something.;)

 

Also called "flying under the radar". You should try it it's fun :)

[Ma Bell]

Strange, I thought flying under the radar was when no one noticed you were there.

[MicCanberra]

strange, i thought flying under the radar was when no one noticed you were there.

lol. :d

[knowehead]

If I wear a tux do I still have to wear my false teeth is that in rules too? :) :)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[MicCanberra]

If I wear a tux do I still have to wear my false teeth is that in rules too? :) :)

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

 

Thanks for that comment,I just snorted my drink:eek:.

 

 

 

Sent from my old PC at home using a qwerty keyboard.

[ScotsTravelady]

Interesting observation from the current cruise I'm on - on the one formal night so far the buffet was very busy as lots of passengers didn't want to dress formal. This is getting more common, so I expect at some point a relaxation of the code.

[Iamcruzin]

If I wear a tux do I still have to wear my false teeth is that in rules too? :) :)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

The service on X is so good that I am sure you can ask the assistant waiter to chew your food for you. You should tip him for his service but that's a topic for another discussion.:D

[Iamcruzin]

Would either of these outfits be acceptable on formal Night? The first one seems to meet X's dress code but is it formal?

My guess is that if they are allowing someone in the MDR without shoes either look would be fine. I have seen the tux jean thing at the Opera but in Manhattan there are far stanger things to be seen.

[lysolqn]

Almost everyone interprets formal in their own way.

 

There are parameters beyond which formal is no longer formal, regardless of one's interpretation.

[Ma Bell]

Well if you must know....

 

We travelled with friends who were not in Aqua class and we ate with them on one formal night in the MDR. They are seasoned Celebrity travellers and advised me that I would not need a jacket and they were right (on that occasion). In addition to that I have other friends who cruise regularly and have been on Celebrity ships multiple times.

 

I'll admit I am new to Celebrity but I prefer it to every other cruise line I have been on. The stricter dress code is perhaps the one thing I don't like.

 

 

Did you write this? I thought you said you were traveling with your teen-aged daughters.

 

I promised to report back on my experience on the Solstice cruising Australia and New Zealand. The full review will be up soon but here are some brief comments.

 

Overall - brilliant. I love the Solstice and the crew were wonderful. Entertainment was very professional although occasionally tacky, but also some of the best I have ever seen on a cruise ship.

 

As for my favourite subject - formal nights and dress codes - I have nothing bad to report, at least not from my perspective. Most people dressed up on formal nights but there was never any sense that it was being overtly enforced. The diners in Blu were dressed in everything from Tuxedos to polo shirts (and one person dressed in what I will term Bogan-formal - Australians should have an idea what this means).

 

I didn't check out the MDR on formal nights but saw plenty of people around the ship dressed casually. There was a definite sense of elegance on all the formal nights but never did it feel stuffy. In my opinion the ship's atmosphere was the perfect balance between elegant luxury and a casual holiday. I loved it.

 

:confused::confused::confused::confused::confused::confused::confused

[DirtyDawg]

There are parameters beyond which formal is no longer formal, regardless of one's interpretation.

 

But at X what are those parameters? Is a Dinner Jacket and slacks really formal?

[SeagoingMom]

... smart casual to one person is totally different to another. BTW, I don't think it has anything to do with good or bad manners.

 

Following dress codes is a way of showing respect for the people around you (in this case, on board ship), which, of course, has everything to do with manners. It may not have to do with one's innate value as a human being, but that does not mean it is socially insignificant.

 

And I really don't think there is such a wide divergence in the definition of "smart casual," which not only is provided by the cruise line itself, but can also easily be found with an internet search. Those who want to dress as they please, thumbing their noses at ship-defined standards, are most likely dressing in what might be called "smart-a** casual." :p

[Ma Bell]

But at X what are those parameters? Is a Dinner Jacket and slacks really formal?

 

This is a dinner jacket.

[NLH Arizona]

Following dress codes is a way of showing respect for the people around you (in this case, on board ship), which, of course, has everything to do with manners. It may not have to do with one's innate value as a human being, but that does not mean it is socially insignificant.

 

And I really don't think there is such a wide divergence in the definition of "smart casual," which not only is provided by the cruise line itself, but can also easily be found with an internet search. Those who want to dress as they please, thumbing their noses at ship-defined standards, are most likely dressing in what might be called "smart-a** casual." :p

Have to disagree, there is a huge difference in what people consider smart casual. If someone asks me, I would say nice pants, blouse or dress/skirt with heels, if you ask my friends 24 year old daughter, she would say skinny jeans, t-shirt and sneakers. It is just like on formal night. I would say that 30 to 50 percent or more of women don't dress formally, as far as I define it. You see a lot of daytime dresses, pants with shirts or tees, maxi dresses, etc., it just depends on how that person defines formal. To me formal is either long evening dress or a cocktail dress or evening slacks with evening blouse, but that is not how many women define it and that is okay with me. It's funny that everyone picks on the men and their formal wear, but no one ever says a thing about the women's.

 

I don't worry about what someone else wears (I don't have enough time to worry about their clothes, because I'm usually worrying about what I'm going to wear), as long as their clothes are clean and just because they don't agree with me on what smart casual or formal is has nothing to do with having good or bad manners.

[HeatherC430]

This thread has become daily entertainment for me. I can't wait for my first X cruise to see what all the excitement is about!

[NLH Arizona]

This thread has become daily entertainment for me. I can't wait for my first X cruise to see what all the excitement is about!

There is really no excitement, everyone on your cruise will look great no matter what they are wearing.

[SeagoingMom]

The problem, as I see it, is with those ... who think that the formal nights should cover the whole ship.

I am NOT being argumentative AT ALL here when I ask whether or not the dress code, according to my recollection of the statement in the daily newspaper, includes the "public areas" of the ship, from dinner hour onwards? OK, so I have just gone and looked up my copies of Celebrity Today! from 2006. "This evening's dress code: Formal " (a specific definition of "formal" is then printed.) Below this, regarding the "Casual Dining Boulevard," it reads "The dress code is casual every day. Although in all other areas the dress code of the evening applies. We kindly ask for your cooperation and consideration for your fellow guests."

 

Now that I think of it, if that is the expectation, people could get a feeling that they had to hide away on formal nights not to be seen unless dressed up -- but then again, people dressed casually who intend to eat in the casual eatery have to travel through the public parts of the ship!

 

So in the end, formal night is great for those who want to dress up and stroll around the ship looking spiffy. Their expectation (and that of the cruise line) is that those desiring to dress casually would not hide themselves away, but would certainly not eat in the dining room, and would perhaps refrain from lingering in the social areas of the ship where more formal dress was the norm? Ultimately, the ship is probably not much different from a large city, where people in formal dress might walk down the street on their way to a nice dinner, passing many people in sweats and tank tops who were heading for the grocery store or the gym. The formally dressed people would not expect to see everyone else on the sidewalk dressed to the nines just because they themselves were, but would also not expect to see the sweats and tees at the restaurant they intended to eat at, the opera house they visited afterward, or the cocktail lounge where they enjoyed a nightcap.

 

I am one who LOVES formal night, and cruises those lines which maintain it, if I can. My husband wears a suit or jacket and a tie, and I, a cocktail dress, as described in the code. We don't own true "formal wear."

[DirtyDawg]

This is a dinner jacket.

 

Thanks Ma Bell.

 

A picture is really worth 1,000 words. Why Can't X just put up photos of "Formal" on the web site? That would make things so much easier for the average traveller. But, of course, these threads wouldn't be as much fun!;)

[SeagoingMom]

Have to disagree, there is a huge difference in what people consider smart casual. If someone asks me, I would say nice pants, blouse or dress/skirt with heels, if you ask my friends 24 year old daughter, she would say skinny jeans, t-shirt and sneakers. It is just like on formal night. I would say that 30 to 50 percent or more of women don't dress formally, as far as I define it. You see a lot of daytime dresses, pants with shirts or tees, maxi dresses, etc., it just depends on how that person defines formal. To me formal is either long evening dress or a cocktail dress or evening slacks with evening blouse, but that is not how many women define it and that is okay with me. It's funny that everyone picks on the men and their formal wear, but no one ever says a thing about the women's.

 

I don't worry about what someone else wears (I don't have enough time to worry about their clothes, because I'm usually worrying about what I'm going to wear), as long as their clothes are clean and just because they don't agree with me on what smart casual or formal is has nothing to do with having good or bad manners.

Yes, you have convinced me that definitions vary-- I did not think about generational differences. But in the end, the cruise line explains its own very specific definition, so at least there should b no question about that...

I still think you consider manners in your thinking, or you would not mention that clothes should be "clean." I would add, "not ripped and shredded." We all have standards, and when they are not met, we are inclined to think that lack of manners (or some similar concept) is at least somewhat involved.

 

Good point, though. We are basically "on the same page."

[SeagoingMom]

This thread has become daily entertainment for me. I can't wait for my first X cruise to see what all the excitement is about!

The excitement for you will be dressing up, if you choose to, as it is for a lot of us. There aren't many places here in the suburbs where I could put on a cocktail dress, great heels, nice jewelry, and my well-dressed husband : ) and spend an evening out without getting some pretty inquiring looks. On formal night on board ship, the looks are rather more "admiring" (as mine are toward others) than "inquiring," (as in, "Who does she think she is?" or "What prom were they chaperones at?") Formal night is not an "excuse" to dress up (don't really need that, per se) but an opportunity!

[NLH Arizona]

Yes, you have convinced me that definitions vary-- I did not think about generational differences. But in the end, the cruise line explains its own very specific definition, so at least there should b no question about that...

I still think you consider manners in your thinking, or you would not mention that clothes should be "clean." I would add, "not ripped and shredded." We all have standards, and when they are not met, we are inclined to think that lack of manners (or some similar concept) is at least somewhat involved.

 

Good point, though. We are basically "on the same page."

I just said clean, because I wouldn't want to sit next to someone with stinky clothes. As far as ripped/shredded, I saw a couple of women wear them to the MDR on my last cruise and no one batted an eye at them.

 

I really enjoy dressing up, especially on formal night, but on my last cruise after the first formal night, I felt a little out of place dressed formally (my definition), this was even after having both outfits shortened to 3/4 lenght.

 

I remember when I did an adventure cruise and on the Captain's dinner a man (won't call him a gentleman), came to dinner in shorts and bare footed. Now, I could have cared less about the shorts, but not wearing shoes is really gross. When the staff member told the man he had to wear shoes he made such a hissy fit saying how rich he was, how much he spent on the vacation for him and his family and that it was his vacation and he would do what he pleases. Well, bottom line is that the Captain had to talk with him and told him that he either put shoes on when in public rooms or they would deliver his meals to his room. That is what I call bad manners and I'm sure an embarrassment to his wife and family members.

[SeagoingMom]

Question. If airlines lose my luggage with all my clothing, do I have to spend the

cruise in my stateroom? We are both ++size so replacement from ships stores is

probably not an option.

 

Ummm, you might have to walk around in the ship bathrobe :rolleyes: ... or maybe one of the pool towels? (The problem would be getting to the pool to nab the towel :eek: ...)

 

What follows is predicated on the assumption that your post was not simply a joke. If it was, I'm done now....:D

 

I do not know what the cruise line might do regarding money to replace your wardrobe (maybe nothing?) but I imagine finding something in the ship shops would not be impossible. Many beautiful garments can be created out of a sarong, pareo, muumuu or beach cover-up. Oddly enough, losing your luggage might pain you less on formal night than at any other time -- on at least some ships, I have heard, formal wear is available for rent (but not bathing suits, sportswear, etc.) :mad: And in any event, I believe as soon as your luggage is found by the airline, they will send it to the next port to meet the ship. Meanwhile, you may have found some lovely things while shopping ashore. Best to carry something on (not check all your luggage), of course. When my husband and I pack to fly to a cruise, we split our stuff between our checked bags, so if one bag goes missing, we still both have something to put on!