Is it OK for my 3 year old to wear shorts?

[sarafs]

I will be traveling with my family and I was wondering if it was OK for my 3 year old to wear shorts in the dining room?:confused:

[Seago2]

I can tell you right now that you are going to get a bunch of responses that tell you NO. I have heard people say things like "No Shorts means no shorts, no matter the age." Then there will be the posters who say that when they were kids they had to follow the rules, blah blah blah. The truth is that OF COURSE a three year old can wear shorts in the dining room. Just take a look at half of the non-short wearing adults and you will see how appropriate your kid looks by comparison. But then, you will probably elect to eat in the buffet restaurant more as it is easier on the child.

[voyageur]

I would say, of course it's o.k. for a child of that age to wear shorts. I wouldn't give it a second thought. Enjoy your trip!

[herecomesthesun]

At three, I think it is more than fine. Some people will say no, but for a child that young no one on your cruise will notice or care, and shorts are much more comfortable for youngsters! However, I would say that he needs long pants for formal nights.

[NASCAR Bubba]

:D surely you jest

[hajekfam]

Actually have seen very dressy little boys shorts outfits - plain shorts are shown as dress wear for little boys.

But my daughter is planning on dressing her little girls - age 2 and 7 - in dresses for dinner on their cruise this November. There are such cute little girl dresses not all that dressy and are just as comfortable as shorts! And even the two year old loves to wear dresses - it might be because she wants to be like big sister who is already a clothes and shoe hound.

[Hootsie]

Dressy shorts are still shorts. Carnival clearly states NO SHORTS. Sorry!

[tequilamockingbird]

It's ok with me! :D

[Nliedel]

Ifnyou have your three year old in one of those formal toddler outfits with shorts then that is something that is historically acceptable. They are very formal outfits for little ones with jackets. Jeans shorts? no.

[tequilamockingbird]

:rolleyes: the kid is 3. Give the OP a break. It's hard enough vacationing with the little ones.............why does everyone have to dress to the 9's just to eat dinner??? (:) before you get your tiaras in a bunch I am not talking "formal Night")

 

IMHO, family vacations, especially with the little ones, shouldn't have to be more hectic than staying home!!!

 

...I respectfully agree to disagree

[hajekfam]

Dressy shorts are still shorts. Carnival clearly states NO SHORTS. Sorry!

 

I guess you have never looked at children's clothing catalogs like Wooden Soldier. They show little boys suits in toddler sizes with short pants (shorts) not long. Ring bearer suits traditionally come with short pants.

[joycemh]

Shorts for a 3 yr. old are more than O.K.

 

Joyce

[Hootsie]

:rolleyes: the kid is 3. Give the OP a break. It's hard enough vacationing with the little ones.............why does everyone have to dress to the 9's just to eat dinner??? (:) before you get your tiaras in a bunch I am not talking "formal Night")

 

 

 

...I respectfully agree to disagree

 

Dressing a 3 year old is easier than dressing teens. Trust me on that one. I don't believe in dressing to the 9's to eat dinner, but I do follow the dress code and so do my girls.

[cruisinqt]

We fixed this problem with our 2 young daughters by dressing them in "skorts". They look in every way just like little skirts except they are shorts underneath.;) If you pair up the "skorts" with pretty little blouses and a nice pair of sandals it looks very dressy but is quite comfortable.

 

Also, if you have a boy and decide to dress him up for dinner, bring an extra set of "playclothes" for after dinner. I saw many parents taking their kids to the bathroom outside of the kids area (there's always one near the kids area for obvious reasons) and quickly changing them into "playclothes" so they would be more comfortable.:)

[yeshli2nuts]

my last cruise i was on was RCCL and i was 16 at the time and i wore shorts to the dining room. no one said anything about it and it didnt seem like anyone cared.

[johnql]

Shorts on a 3-yr-old are perfectly acceptable. At least to me.

[caviargal]

Dressy shorts are still shorts. Carnival clearly states NO SHORTS. Sorry!

 

What they say and reality are wildly divergent.

 

On every night of my recent Glory cruise, including formal nights, there were pax in the formal dining room with shorts, tanks, ball caps. The policy was clearly documented in Capers every day and just as clearly ignored as if it did not exist.

 

I have never seen so many pax blatantly disregard a published dress code and was quite disappointed that CCL did nothing to enforce it.

[CaptData]

Does the term "short pants" mean anything. Shorts have been recongnized by all for children under 5 as beening proper clothing in the summer for anything. Not jean shorts and they should be dark coloured.

[samsara]

I can't believe your even debating this issue THE CHILD IS 3!Who on earth would get offended by a 3 year old in shorts?

[herecomesthesun]

Not jean shorts and they should be dark coloured.

 

I respectfully disagree with you on this. On a three year old child, I honestly don't think the color or type of short matters. No one will care or notice. Its a toddler! What the cruiseline dictates in relation to dress and what is actually common and allowed are two different things. While some of you may not like that, I personally do not think it is nessecary to tell this mother to dress her child more formally than most of the other children his age will be dressed just because the cruiseline says no shorts. Anyway, the nice formal shorts outfits that have been referred to on this thread are often in pastel colors like light blue or yellow. The shorts are not dark colored but I think it would not only be appropriate for the dining room in general, but very sweet and perfect for formal night.

 

I agree its silly to argue over this but I just had to respond to that one post because I would hate for the OP to become worried about the whole situation, and go buy new clothes for her son that he probably won't wear much again, and then find that it was all quite unnessecary. :cool:

[Tmeister]

When I was three my good outfit ONLY had shorts!

[Seago2]

Okay, OP: I told you so! People are weighing in on both sides of the coin- even though my grandfather, who was of the manor born, so to speak, used to refer to his younger self as "not even in long pants yet."

 

 

I promise you this: when I get back from my cruise I will list a minimum of ten major clothing gaffes in the main dining room and you can put your munchkin in shorts into perspective.

 

Carla

[hajekfam]

As long as the three year old is nicely dressed - clean and neat and like one poster said not jeans shorts, there should be no problem.

Personally, I dressed my child for the occasion - at least while I still had control - once they were in their teens, I somehow became an antiquated relic. I also believed it was never too early to start learning that there are differences between casual dining and fancy dining, playing with friends and being around adults, that certain situations required different codes of conduct. But those are my beliefs about child rearing and as long as a child is behaved or the parents take care of the misbehaving or overstimulated child even if it means removing him/her from the situation and therefore the parent missing dinner for example, I have no problem.