Magic Dress Code

[joyce&bob]

Have not been on Carnival in three years & looking for a bit of advise.  Since retiring to Florida husband does NOT want to dress for dinner.  I mean, he is willing to wear clothes (HA! HA!) but not long pants.  Is this going to be an issue?  Willing to wear dress shorts with button down shirt but that's as far as he is will go.  Hopefully, we will be able to eat dinner in the dinning room and not forced to eat in the buffet.

[sparks1093]

50 minutes ago, joyce&bob said:

Have not been on Carnival in three years & looking for a bit of advise.  Since retiring to Florida husband does NOT want to dress for dinner.  I mean, he is willing to wear clothes (HA! HA!) but not long pants.  Is this going to be an issue?  Willing to wear dress shorts with button down shirt but that's as far as he is will go.  Hopefully, we will be able to eat dinner in the dinning room and not forced to eat in the buffet.

Ah, normalcy, a dress code thread. Here are Carnival's guidelines and the way that I read it dress shorts are fine for non-elegant nights and should not be worn on elegant nights. I'm not sure if it's enforced but that's a different story.

“Cruise Casual” Dress Code

• Men: sports slacks, khakis, jeans, long dress shorts and collared polo shirts
• Women: summer dresses, casual skirts, pants, capris, dress shorts, jeans blouses and tops
• Not permitted: cut-off jeans, men’s sleeveless shirts, tee-shirts, gym or basketball shorts, baseball hats, flip-flops and bathing suit attire

 

Be sure to bring a red or blue outfit or a top for our Mega Deck Party.

 

“Cruise Elegant” Dress Code (formal evenings)

• 2-day to 5-day cruise: one “Cruise Elegant” evening
• 6-day or longer cruise: two “Cruise Elegant” evenings

The first “Cruise Elegant” evening is scheduled for the second or third evening of the cruise and the second “Cruise Elegant” evening is the second or third evening prior to the end of the cruise, itinerary schedule permitting. 

• Men: dress slacks, dress shirts, and we also suggest a sport coat; men may also wish to wear a suit and tie or tuxedo
• Women: cocktail dresses, pantsuits, elegant skirts and blouses; ladies may also wish to wear an evening gown

Not permitted: jeans, men’s sleeveless shirts, shorts, tee-shirts, sportswear, shorts, baseball hats, flip-flops and bathing suit attire

[funinthesun1964]

I've seen guys in wife beaters, cutoffs and baseball caps on formal night in the MDR.  No lie, and the amount of enforcement can and will vary by ship and management.  I will say as time goes on, the enforcement for formal night seems to be less and less.  

[teknoge3k]

I typically wear cargo shorts, a polo and sandals on casual nights and on the 2 elegant nights I wear jeans, a polo and tennis shoes. I'm dressed better than a lot of people. 

[BallFour4]

You've seen the dress suggestions above and I follow them by wearing pants and a polo or Tommy Bahama shirt on Cruise Elegant night(s) and shorts, sandals or boat shoes and a casual shirt on the other nights. Jeans are perfectly acceptable for all but Cruise Elegant, and some wear them every night. If anyone spends time looking under the table to see if I am wearing shorts or khakis I will most likely change tables after a night or two.

 The days of the entire dining room dressed up are gone. Number 37 is a few days away and the coat and tie haven't been in the suitcase for a decade. We've seen as many as half skip the main dining room for that evening.

 So, to your question; it depends. On the main entry to the dining room you will see a full compliment of staff greeting and often checking for attire. Some don't care, some do. If I were to do what you asked about I would enter on Deck 4 and walk to my table. Less chance of interruption so to speak. If my table was on Deck 3 I would enter on Deck 4 and go down the stairs inside the dining room. 

 Our first cruise back will give me more of the norm for now and we will see.

.

Edited November 3, 2021 by BallFour4

[satxdiver]

1 hour ago, teknoge3k said:

I typically wear cargo shorts, a polo and sandals on casual nights and on the 2 elegant nights I wear jeans, a polo and tennis shoes. I'm dressed better than a lot of people. 

I do the same except on elegant night I wear a short sleeved guayabera shirt. Like you I am better dressed than a lot of the pax I see in the MDR that night. 

[groundloop]

I've only ever worn nice slacks and a nice shirt for 'elegant' night.  I've NEVER seen cutoffs, baseball caps, etc. etc. on 'elegant night', and extremely rarely on the other nights.  

 

I'd suggest that nice shorts are good for normal nights in the MDR, but at least go with long pants on 'elegant night'.  

[ScottsSweetie]

Two times ago when I cruised on Carnival I did see enforcement on dress code issues.

 

On the Panorama in September, not so much. There was a guy who I saw coming out after dinner wearing a self-made tank-top (sleeves had been cut off). 

[ZoeyVictoria]

My SO was turned away from the steakhouse on the Horizon last month because he was wearing a buttoned shirt (tropical) and shorts. We were given the option of eating outside - it rained during our meal and we watched the puddles splash towards the outdoor tables.  We were 15 minutes early, so we just went back to the cabin and he changed to long pants..  He changed his shirt also because of the way she was looking at it 😂

[nlktx49]

My husband wears long pants - couldn't get into dress slacks anymore, went to Walmart and paid $12 for a pair of Docker-ish pants - and a polo shirt, and fits right in with most men in the MDR. I wear black slacks and a nice top, and fit in with most women. Long gone are the days of men in tuxedos and women in floor-length ball gowns, doubt you'd ever see that now. We cruise out of Galveston so I think dress is more casual, you'll see men in nice jeans with a nice shirt. Most women have on nice flip flops, the $50 ones, not the $1 ones. Nothing is said by staff. However, shorts, even nice ones, will probably not be allowed.

[Floriduh]

I am about to go on my 13th cruise and I don't own a pair of long pants. On regular nights I wear nice shorts and a button up short sleeve shirt. On elegant nights we eat somewhere else. Works for me.

[Guest BasicSailor]

14 minutes ago, Floriduh said:

I am about to go on my 13th cruise and I don't own a pair of long pants. On regular nights I wear nice shorts and a button up short sleeve shirt. On elegant nights we eat somewhere else. Works for me.

You mean you pass up on the award winning lobster ? 

[ScottsSweetie]

1 hour ago, nlktx49 said:

My husband wears long pants - couldn't get into dress slacks anymore, went to Walmart and paid $12 for a pair of Docker-ish pants - and a polo shirt, and fits right in with most men in the MDR. I wear black slacks and a nice top, and fit in with most women. Long gone are the days of men in tuxedos and women in floor-length ball gowns, doubt you'd ever see that now. We cruise out of Galveston so I think dress is more casual, you'll see men in nice jeans with a nice shirt. Most women have on nice flip flops, the $50 ones, not the $1 ones. Nothing is said by staff. However, shorts, even nice ones, will probably not be allowed.

I saw no tuxedos, but was actually taken aback by the number of women in long dresses on my September Panorama cruise.

[cruisinpips]

I pack one pair of “dress khakis” and wear them to the steakhouse with a polo shirt on elegant nights. They do not allow shorts in the steakhouse. We opted out of dress up many cruises ago, I wear nice shorts to dinner every other night if we go. We were on Horizon in September and never went to the dining room once. Too many other options. We were on Horizon in July also, wore the same pants to dining room one night and steakhouse on the second elegant night. We always book the steakhouse on elegant nights because we do not particularly like dressing up for dinner. After dinner I go back and change into comfortable shorts and nicer flip flops to enjoy the rest of the evening around the ship. The Magic out of Galveston is one of our favorites because most people are very casual. Enjoy your cruise and don’t let other people’s opinions about your dress worry you. 

[sparks1093]

When we sailed on Glory to celebrate our 25th anniversary I brought my tux so we could get a nice photo taken to commemorate. I was surprised at the number of other guys wearing tuxes on that sailing. I tend to not pay too much attention to what others are wearing but the vast majority of the passengers comply with the minimums in the guidelines.