Can I wear nice, dressier shorts to dinner

[my3guys]

Maybe you have not been on a cruise lately.

The Cruise lines and employees do their best to keep it nice, however it is no longer a truly fancy, date-night restaurant with truly attentive servers and China.

 

Wow, great. Thanks!

[Lady Hudson]

Maybe you have not been on a cruise lately.

The Cruise lines and employees do their best to keep it nice, however it is no longer a truly fancy, date-night restaurant with truly attentive servers and China.

 

I don't agree with this statement. The dining rooms on RCI are elegant. I have found the tables settings to be very nice and the wait staff very attention.

[BGCruiser85]

Or lobby the cruise line to update their outdated rules. If you're not bothered by the action, then simply having the rule updated would remove your objection.

 

Correct. If the rules were changed, I'd be fine with it. I see too many people every cruise breaking rules with the attitude that it's my vacation and they can't tell me what to do. It gets old.

[Tunkhannock]

+1 on the bikini tops

 

I 2nd the bikini tops.

 

I third it.

 

And the motion is passed!

[barbon2]

There are two types of posters that ask this question.

 

1. Those who are new to cruising or who have not cruised in a while and are truly unsure what to do.

 

2. The second is the cruiser who wants/is going to do it anyway and is looking for reassurance from these boards.

 

And let me add a third.

 

3. They just post this question to get everyone in a heated argument on this subject at least every other week. 😇

[Clarea]

...3. They just post this question to get everyone in a heated argument on this subject at least every other week. 😇

My suspicion for many of these threads.

[markeb]

My suspicion for many of these threads.

 

Well, it could be a smoking thread. Those provoke no reaction...

[tampacruiser]

These threads always amuse me. Seems certain topics will cause a stir every time! I honestly could care less what people wear to dinner. I'm usually too busy enjoying my vacation and the people I am with to be concerned about any one else and what they are doing. I was on Oasis last July and I honestly couldn't tell you what people wore. I spent dinner enjoying my meal and talking to my wife. The world is changing and has been since it began....as the older generation fades a way, the new generations will do things their way and that includes dress. I have too much else going on in my life to worry about shorts.....and honestly a few years ago on the Celebrity Solstice I saw people wearing nice shorts and nice jeans in the MDR and I also saw some old guys with their Sanasabelt polyester slacks pulled up to their chest. They were within the "rules" but they looked terrible. The folks in the shorts and jeans looked better and where more well dressed. I think the whole dress battle goes on because a small percentage of people (most who spend time on these boards) keep the fire burning. I bet if you polled every single passenger on an Oasis Class ship the no shorts crowd would be a very small minority

[Sherri914]

... To me there's really no difference, except that some people want all the rules to be followed (no shorts), and some people only want some of the rules to be followed (shorts are fine, but no way for swimsuits).

 

In any event, to answer the question from the OP, 9 times out of 10, you can wear whatever you want in the MDR. ...

 

/\ /\ /\ This!

 

Seems quite logical to me that in the tropics, nice shorts and a button down or polo would be perfectly fine for dinner anywhere. But without a specific list of rules a mile long, "NICE" is just too subjective a word. What's nice to me may be horribly inappropriate to someone else. Here's an example. I write the policy for our office. Our dress code now includes the following prohibited items: baseball caps, swim suits (yes, someone actually came to work in a skirted swim suit), overalls, belly shirts, short-shorts.... and the list goes on and on. And all of those rules were added because someone came to work dressed in one of those items that would seem completely absurd to wear to work for most sane individuals.

 

I think this is why they say no shorts for dinner. Otherwise, what would be the wording for what is and isn't acceptable? "Nothing shorter than fingertip length"... "no daisy dukes"... "shorts must have buttons to be considered appropriate". Seriously - I know this is silly, but I think they're just trying to avoid more problems.

 

We don't like to dress up on vacation, so I totally get the shorts thing. I dress up every day for work. But I respect the rules, and when I don't want to wear what the MDR rules state I need to wear to enter, I go elsewhere for dinner. In a perfect world, everyone would use common sense and police themselves. I think RCI is trying to avoid a slippery slope to the day when everyone is wearing bath robes and swim suit cover ups as "formal wear".

[LMaxwell]

To be fair to OP, they did not specify what venue...

[nomoreknothead]

The big issue is not wearing shorts for me ..... It's following rules! If the cruise lines says "Please , No Shorts at Dinner." then Please don't wear shorts to dinner! Plain & Simple. When my parents told me to not wear shorts to church .... guess what I didn't wear shorts to church!

 

IF RCCL says "Dressy shorts are allowed at Dinner" then I'm ok with Dressy shorts!

 

What I did not like was the table of 10 coming in (loudly) every night , men & women, wearing Harley-Davidson T-Shirts & Camo Cargo Shorts !! Every night was a scene of how they could wear whatever they wanted to dinner, They paid for this cruise! WELL Mister & Mrs., So did I and I did not like the distraction and I really didn't appreciate RCCL allowing this to go on!

 

This is the type of dress I would like to keep out of the MDR! Just my 2 cents!

[Paul65]

To be fair to OP, they did not specify what venue...

 

True. You can certainly were shorts to dinner at a lot of different places (including several on Royal Caribbean cruise ships).

[Tunkhannock]

What I did not like was the table of 10 coming in (loudly) every night , men & women, wearing Harley-Davidson T-Shirts & Camo Cargo Shorts !!

 

If they came in and politely and quietly ate their meal, would you feel differently?

[Sherri914]

If they came in and politely and quietly ate their meal, would you feel differently?

 

Which is exactly what I was saying above. Maybe to these folks what they were wearing is perfectly acceptable - or nice. Nice, dressy, fancy - all descriptive words that are totally up for interpretation. Too subjective. I maintain this may be why RCI just says "no shorts" across the board for dinner in specialty restaurants and MDR.

[m*u*g*]

Yes, MANY others do.

 

You could have researched this from the other 9,876 threads on this subject.

[bouhunter]

The big issue is not wearing shorts for me ..... It's following rules! If the cruise lines says "Please , No Shorts at Dinner." then Please don't wear shorts to dinner! Plain & Simple. When my parents told me to not wear shorts to church .... guess what I didn't wear shorts to church!

 

IF RCCL says "Dressy shorts are allowed at Dinner" then I'm ok with Dressy shorts!

 

What I did not like was the table of 10 coming in (loudly) every night , men & women, wearing Harley-Davidson T-Shirts & Camo Cargo Shorts !! Every night was a scene of how they could wear whatever they wanted to dinner, They paid for this cruise! WELL Mister & Mrs., So did I and I did not like the distraction and I really didn't appreciate RCCL allowing this to go on!

 

This is the type of dress I would like to keep out of the MDR! Just my 2 cents!

I tend to stay out of the "dress code" posts for the most part but this is too funny. If you have ANY idea what RCCL MDR "dress code" policy is, get used to it. Either learn to ignore if it bothers you or move on to a different cruise line.:rolleyes: Oh, and the style of dress will have no impact on who is "coming in loud"........

Edited July 30, 2015 by bouhunter

[Paul65]

Oh, and the style of dress will have no impact on who is "coming in loud"........

 

Are you sure about that? I wouldn't be surprised if there were at least a little bit of a correlation between those who ignore the "no shorts" rule and other behaviors that ignore other social courtesies.

 

Certainly wouldn't be a perfect correlation, as I know you can have well-dressed people who are loud and/or rude, and you can have people in shorts and t-shirts be polite and respectful.

 

I'm not suggesting that style of dress would be the cause of loudness, but rather the same general attitudes could influence both dress and behavior.

[diggers dad]

I'll be glad when the pro-shorts crowd gets that silly rule changed about no men in shorts for dinner in the MDR.

 

After they get that changed, I'm going to start my campaign to get those other silly MDR rules changed so I can wear my tank top and baseball cap to dinner and be really comfortable while I kick back and have my after dinner cigar right there at the table.

[cjdixon4]

I love these threads. I either scroll past it if I'm not interested in engaging, or type "Yes", or type "No". Whatever applies...LOL

[CruiseTobey]

I'll be glad when the pro-shorts crowd gets that silly rule changed about no men in shorts for dinner in the MDR.

 

After they get that changed, I'm going to start my campaign to get those other silly MDR rules changed so I can wear my tank top and baseball cap to dinner and be really comfortable while I kick back and have my after dinner cigar right there at the table.

 

 

BIG difference between wearing shorts in the MDR and lighting up a cigar, don't you think? Leave the superlatives at the door please.

[Paul65]

BIG difference between wearing shorts in the MDR and lighting up a cigar, don't you think? Leave the superlatives at the door please.

 

Didn't seem like diggers dad claimed any sort of sameness - just expressed a desire to get rid of some other rules. ;)

 

(By the way, I don't think "superlative" is really the word you were going for there. Maybe exaggeration or hyperbole....)

[legaljen1969]

How does someone wearing shorts interfere with your enjoyment? Does it keep you from dressing as you like? Does it prevent your being pampered? You can't tell whether someone is wearing shorts or not once they're seated so how does the fact that they're wearing shorts affect the atmosphere of the MDR?

 

I feel like it cheapens the experience. It makes it less elegant and enjoyable. When I see some doofus in his shorts, flip flops and baseball cap, I feel like I might as well be at the Golden Corral rather than in a nice dining facility. Like it or not, the way you dress often dictates the way you behave and present yourself. If you are dressed up, you are likely to act "dressed up." If you are dressed like you popped in to grab a hot dog from the mini-mart, you are likely to act like you walked in the mini mart for your 99 cent hot dog.

 

I know that is not true of everyone. The most formal people can behave horribly and the ones in their coveralls can be the most decent folks.

 

It's just an ambience thing I guess. My husband and I go out for a nice anniversary dinner every year. The dress code has grown more and more casual every year. The behavior of patrons has gotten worse and worse every year too. This year some guy came in with a solid t-shirt, khaki shorts and deck shoes, wearing a baseball cap with a golf company logo. He looked respectable enough and probably would pass the "nice shorts" standard. About half way through dinner, he stood on the table with bare feet and yelled "This place rocks. Can I get a F*** yeah?" I couldn't even finish my dinner thinking about how unsanitary that was.

 

You certainly didn't see any of the guys wearing long pants and dinner jackets acting like that. I have never seen them act like that in this place. But the ones who walk in wearing casual clothes, always act really casual and pretty sloppy.

 

So yes, what someone is wearing CAN affect my experience. IF you are asked to wear long pants, just do it. If you don't want to do it, then either don't cruise or accept that you need to dine in the casual venues. Simple enough.

[legaljen1969]

Are you sure about that? I wouldn't be surprised if there were at least a little bit of a correlation between those who ignore the "no shorts" rule and other behaviors that ignore other social courtesies.

 

Certainly wouldn't be a perfect correlation, as I know you can have well-dressed people who are loud and/or rude, and you can have people in shorts and t-shirts be polite and respectful.

 

I'm not suggesting that style of dress would be the cause of loudness, but rather the same general attitudes could influence both dress and behavior.

 

I completely agree.

[PoppyandNana]

I feel like it cheapens the experience. It makes it less elegant and enjoyable. When I see some doofus in his shorts, flip flops and baseball cap, I feel like I might as well be at the Golden Corral rather than in a nice dining facility. Like it or not, the way you dress often dictates the way you behave and present yourself. If you are dressed up, you are likely to act "dressed up." If you are dressed like you popped in to grab a hot dog from the mini-mart, you are likely to act like you walked in the mini mart for your 99 cent hot dog.

 

I know that is not true of everyone. The most formal people can behave horribly and the ones in their coveralls can be the most decent folks.

 

It's just an ambience thing I guess. My husband and I go out for a nice anniversary dinner every year. The dress code has grown more and more casual every year. The behavior of patrons has gotten worse and worse every year too. This year some guy came in with a solid t-shirt, khaki shorts and deck shoes, wearing a baseball cap with a golf company logo. He looked respectable enough and probably would pass the "nice shorts" standard. About half way through dinner, he stood on the table with bare feet and yelled "This place rocks. Can I get a F*** yeah?" I couldn't even finish my dinner thinking about how unsanitary that was.

 

You certainly didn't see any of the guys wearing long pants and dinner jackets acting like that. I have never seen them act like that in this place. But the ones who walk in wearing casual clothes, always act really casual and pretty sloppy.

 

So yes, what someone is wearing CAN affect my experience. IF you are asked to wear long pants, just do it. If you don't want to do it, then either don't cruise or accept that you need to dine in the casual venues. Simple enough.

 

To the person originally asking the question:

 

Oh no, say it isn't so, please say we don't have another "nice" shorts discussion. When will people understand that regardless if they are nice, ratty, holes, no holes, short, long, purple pink or they ARE STILL SHORTS. Are you looking for validation or permission to wear shorts? Why are you asking us? Ask the MDR manager.

 

If 100% of the people on this board said fine, go ahead and you are turned away from the dining room are you going to say: but, but the people on cruise critic said it would be ok.

[richsea]

I am mostly on the Celebrity boards, where the moderators smartly made a sticky for the dress code questions, mostly I think to know where to go to edit out the posts that are against the rules. However, I saw this thread, & because we are just off the Liberty, thought I'd check it out.

 

The daily clearly asks that no shorts be worn in the MDR. However, i would say that perhaps 30% of men wore shorts on Casual nights; almost none on formal nights. I did not see one man in shorts get turned away. It is up to the cruise line to enforce the dress code, & if they don't, then they just don't put much credence in it, so why bother with the code at all.