Formal Night/Specialty restaurants

[Heather1973]

I have a question about the formal nights. Do they tell you when you get on board, when the formal nights will be? I will be cruising over x-mas and would like to make a reservation to a specialty restaurant on Christmas Eve or Night, unless it will be a formal night? However, how will I know if it’s a formal night?

 

 

Also, what are these 2 for 1 deal in the specialty restaurants? Do they advertise them? Do the specialty restaurants get booked up right away, should I what for the 2 for 1 deal?

[Goldryder]

I am sailing over Christmas/New Year and am thinking that Christmas Day and New Year's Eve will be the formal nights, but if there are any others, I guess it will be a case of wait and see. Unless anyone has done Crown at this time of year before and can enlighten me a little :)

 

I am going to make reservations for Le Bistro for the evening of the 25th Dec and 31st Dec.

[immargaret]

You can usually look at menus for the entire week at the front desk when you get on board. You can ask at the desk which night will be formal night, or check the menus.......Most likely Lobster will be on the formal night menu.

[electricron]

As for when, formal nights usually occur on the at sea days. Most cruisers coming back from shore excursions are to tired to go through the effort to dress up.

 

With that general statement, everything you will need to know, and everything NCL wants to inform you of, is printed in the ships "Daily", which is delieverd to your stateroom the night before. If you read it, you will not miss anything.

[KeystoneCruiser]

The thing to remember is that formal nights in all restuarants, including specialty restaurants on NCL ships are OPTIONAL. You do not have to dress up. You can wear resort casual to every restaurant EVERY night if you so choose. I have never worn anything but polo shirts and kahkis to dinner on any NCL cruise that I have been on. My wife has never taken a dress. We have eaten in specialty restaurants as well as the main restaurants.

 

You wil find that it is about 50-50 between those who dress up and those that don't even on formal nights. I have seen people in tuxes sitting at tables next to people in polo shirts. Freestyle dress and dining times are why I love NCL

[DJ Dale]

What percentage actually wear tux's?

 

I've heard everything from only a dozen to 40%.

 

I hate to be one of a few.....

[KeystoneCruiser]

What percentage actually wear tux's?

 

I've heard everything from only a dozen to 40%.

 

I hate to be one of a few.....

 

 

I have been on several NCL cruises. When I say 50-50 on the dress up, I mean 50% wear resort casual and 50% wear dress clothing. The 50% in dress clothing runs the entire line from tuxes to suits to just shirts and ties.

 

As far as tuxes are concerned, I have actually seen VERY few men in tuxes on the cruises I have taken. Mostly nice suits. A dozen might be a bit high even.

 

With that said, I have to qualify that and say that I have never sailed on Christmas or New Years. My guess is that you may find a few more dressed up on those nights.

[KAYEF]

Just returned from the Dream and I am here to tell you that very few dressed for optional Formal Night. If dressed, it seemed to be a dark suit for the men and a nice top for the ladies.

Many on our ship were amazed to see grubbies in the nice diningrooms on Formal Night and I mean grubbies. A man sitting across from us had on a dirty (yes!) t-shirt, sweat pants, tennies AND a baseball hat.

We had to look at him as we dined.

No one enforced dress codes with the exception of "no blue jeans allowed." I'd prefer nice jeans to the baseball hats being worn so much by older men, NOT kids, in the diningrooms.

What ever happened to men removing their hats while inside? These men walked right by the people at the entrance and were allowed in with hats on their heads.

We are NOT cruise snobs, but like to look nice and also clean. We were really surprised at how people dressed on the Dream; casual is one thing but grubby is quite another.

[papadave]

I have a question about the formal nights. Do they tell you when you get on board, when the formal nights will be? I will be cruising over x-mas and would like to make a reservation to a specialty restaurant on Christmas Eve or Night, unless it will be a formal night? However, how will I know if it’s a formal night?

 

 

Also, what are these 2 for 1 deal in the specialty restaurants? Do they advertise them? Do the specialty restaurants get booked up right away, should I what for the 2 for 1 deal?

 

1. They should be able to tell you which nights are formal nights when you get on board. They're not winging it, so if you ask you should be able to find out.

 

2. You are never forced to dress up beyond a very minimal restriction (no shorts in dining rooms). The people sitting at the table next to me in Le Bistro both wore jeans, not even some fancy dress jeans, and were seated without problem.

 

3. On the Dawn, and this may hold true for most NCL cruises, the first night was 2 for 1 in specialty restaurants with limitations, i.e., 2 for 1 on the cover charge; a la carte items such as surf and turf, the flamed meats in Le Bistro, about 1/2 of Cagney's steakhouse menu, sushi, teppanyaki were all regular price. There was a 2 for 1 special from 5:30-6:30 on the second day of the cruise.

 

4. Some specialty restaurants don't have an additional charge, but do require reservations. On the Dawn these were Salsa's (Tex Mex) and La Trattoria (Italian). You may want to make these reservations early on.

 

5. Demand for reservations varies from cruise to cruise. We had no problem getting reservations on the 9/4/05 sailing of the Dawn, but that is the start of their off season from New York. Holiday sailings may be more crowded and people may want to make Christmas or New Year's more special by dining in the fanciest place available. It is easier to make reservations and then cancel when contrasted with waiting until there may not be any reservations available.