I know they dont have 'formal' nights.. but how many dressup nights in a 11 day Med cruise..

[SWACK]

I know they dont have 'formal' nights.. but how many dressup nights in a 11 day Med

cruise..

Edited September 28, 2022 by SWACK

[www3traveler]

15 minutes ago, SWACK said:

I know they dont have 'formal' nights.. but how many dressup nights in a 11 day Med

cruise..

Freestyle-- you can dress up as much or as little as you wish.  Might be a "Dress Up" the night after you sail.  Captains used to be available that night for pictures.  Might be up to individual Captain if he wants to pose for pictures or not.

[MotownVoice]

21 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

Freestyle-- you can dress up as much or as little as you wish.  Might be a "Dress Up" the night after you sail.  Captains used to be available that night for pictures.  Might be up to individual Captain if he wants to pose for pictures or not.

The cruiselines that still have formal nights generally shoot for one of the sea days each week.  For 11 I’m guessing 2.   If you’re looking for a traditional guideline, there you go. 

[Twocoasts]

There were no "dress up" nights on our Med cruise this year, which I totally appreciated! 

[njhorseman]

14 hours ago, MotownVoice said:

The cruiselines that still have formal nights generally shoot for one of the sea days each week.  For 11 I’m guessing 2.   If you’re looking for a traditional guideline, there you go. 

Except that NCL has traditionally only had one...even on much longer cruises of three weeks that I've taken.

[Markanddonna]

I don't recall any dress up nights when we last sailed before the pandemic in 2019. The visibility of the officers has decreased on almost all cruise sailings. You may find an occasional one who offers to have photos taken with him, but most officers are specialized and them getting sick creates a real headache for the crew.

[KeithJenner]

I may just not have noticed them (I'm that uninterested), but I didn't see any "Norwegian Night Out" or "Dress Up Or Not" nights on either of our cruises this year.

 

If they do still happen then they are even more low key than they were pre pandemic.

 

Edit - Just flicked through the dailies. No mention that I can see.

Edited September 28, 2022 by KeithJenner

[YVRteacher]

For me? Zero!

[ChiefMateJRK]

2 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

For me? Zero!

Amen!!!  For me, putting on pants is "dressing up." 🤣

[wil e coyote]

We've cruised a few times post-COVID shutdown, and I don't remember any of the nights being announced in the dailies as dress-up/formal. It seems like there are some people dressed up each night, but I have never paid attention to whether those are the same people or different ones.

You do you...

[KeithJenner]

9 minutes ago, wil e coyote said:

We've cruised a few times post-COVID shutdown, and I don't remember any of the nights being announced in the dailies as dress-up/formal. It seems like there are some people dressed up each night, but I have never paid attention to whether those are the same people or different ones.

You do you...

That is the way that it should be, in my opinion.

 

It has always seemed a bit odd to me that freestyle is all about you deciding when to do things, and then they announce a night that you should "dress up or not". If that is what someone want to do then they can choose when.

[BenDover]

In my experience, if you want to really dress up for the evening do so in one of the finer speciality restaurants (Le Bistro, Cagney’s, Ocean Blue) and follow with a show in the main theatre - you will not look out of place.

[BirdTravels]

On 9/27/2022 at 8:32 PM, SWACK said:

I know they dont have 'formal' nights.. but how many dressup nights in a 11 day Med

cruise..

Some people will dress up every night. They look great and they feel great. There are those who never dress up and are elated. We normally are in between. 
 

NCL embraces Freestyle cruising. You are on vacation…. Be on vacation. Dress up Or Not is the tag line. 
 

11 nights is a long time. I would pack casual clothes. 

[MotownVoice]

23 hours ago, njhorseman said:

Except that NCL has traditionally only had one...even on much longer cruises of three weeks that I've taken.

We've established that NCL doesn't have formal nights since they instituted Freestyle cruising.  So, I'm not sure what you mean. 

I wasn't saying that there was anything ever engraved in stone, on any cruise line, at any time.

I was merely giving the OP one possible guideline to go by to help decide when to dress formally, if that's what their party chose to do.

One could also flip a coin, throw dice, or ask a Ouija board.  All methods would be equally valid.

[njhorseman]

2 minutes ago, MotownVoice said:

We've established that NCL doesn't have formal nights since they instituted Freestyle cruising.  So, I'm not sure what you mean. 

I wasn't saying that there was anything ever engraved in stone, on any cruise line, at any time.

I was merely giving the OP one possible guideline to go by to help decide when to dress formally, if that's what their party chose to do.

One could also flip a coin, throw dice, or ask a Ouija board.  All methods would be equally valid.

While not having a formal night for many years, NCL has had a night where dressing up was highlighted in the Freestyle Daily and included (at one time) an opportunity for taking a photo with the captain. It had a variety of names over the years including "Dress Up or Not" and "Norwegian's Night Out". It was traditionally held on the night of the first full day of the cruise. 

 

My point was that there was exactly one of these nights on a cruise regardless of the length of the cruise.  Even three week cruises that I've taken have had only one "Dress Up or Not" night.

 

Personally we never dressed up on that night.

 

[SeaShark]

All of which begs the question:

 

What exactly is different about the dress code on a night designated as "Dress Up or Not" as opposed to a night that does not have this designation? Which specific venues on the ship have a different dress code based on whether the night is "Dress Up or Not" or "Norwegian's Night Out"?

[cruiseny4life]

On 9/28/2022 at 5:47 PM, BenDover said:

In my experience, if you want to really dress up for the evening do so in one of the finer speciality restaurants (Le Bistro, Cagney’s, Ocean Blue) and follow with a show in the main theatre - you will not look out of place.

On both of my sailings, anyone with a tie and/or jacket looked very out of place. Mainly due to the fact they were the only person dressed up. Now, I won't judge them. Have fun. Dress up, if that's your thing. Please, though, do not call Cagney's a "finer specialty restaurant." It is no such thing - it's just slightly more upscale than my local "YEEEEEEHAW" Texas Roadhouse. 

[complawyer]

as many or as little as you wish. since there are no "dress up" nights per se, you may  really feel out of place.

 

there is one night set aside if to want to dress up and have your photograph taken by the ship's photographer, but that's entirely up to you.

 

regardless, of how many days a cruise is, im with chief mate on this one. jeans and tees

[MotownVoice]

Just now, complawyer said:

as many or as little as you wish. since there are no "dress up" nights per se, you may  really feel out of place.

 

 

 

I personally would not care how every single other person on the ship was dressed if I decided that a particular night was going to be a formal night out for my husband and me.

I don't gaze across the room and compare how well I match everyone else.  It's a fairly personal experience for us. 

But I get what you mean, if someone is given to worrying about such things.

[complawyer]

as i said, it's totally up to you if you want to dress up or not, i wasnt trying put anyone down for dressing up. if youve been on any ncl cruise before, you should have noticed, that men wearing suits, sport coats and ties, (much less tuxedos)and women in dresses (formal or otherwise) are clearly in the minority (if not  non-existent).

 

ok, so you dont/wont gaze across the room comparing what other are wearing, but if you dont really care, im sure that other passengers (if not outright saying anything) will be looking at you two questionably. you will "Definitely" be in the minority, and possibly even a minority of 2.

 

it's totally up to you.

 

by the way, if you and i happen to be on the same cruise, and i see a couple dressed to the "9"s, i'll stop by and say hi! i might even buy you a drink.

 

whatever, have a great cruise/time

[MotownVoice]

13 minutes ago, complawyer said:

you will "Definitely" be in the minority, and possibly even a minority of 2.

 

 

Let me restate, in case you missed it.

We're already a minority as soon as we walk on to the ship.  A minority of two.

There could be a mob of passengers banging on my stateroom door demanding that I stop dressing better than them.  I couldn't care less.  It's none of my business what other people think of me.

My job is to be well within my own space.

Edited September 30, 2022 by MotownVoice

[TrumpyNor]

I have been on many cruises with NCL over the years, and my personally experience is that cruises in the Mediterranean with a more "international mix" of European passengers and not always a majority of American passengers on board, you often may see more people dressing socalled "smart casual" instead of "just casual" in the evenings. It may be due to a cultural difference - that Europeans often dress up a little more than the average American when "going out with friends" (even if it is not "required")....

Edited September 30, 2022 by TrumpyNor

[MotownVoice]

21 minutes ago, TrumpyNor said:

I have been on many cruises with NCL over the years, and my personally experience is that cruises in the Mediterranean with a more "international mix" of European passengers and not always a majority of American passengers on board, you often may see more people dressing socalled "smart casual" instead of "just casual" in the evenings. It may be due to a cultural difference - that Europeans often dress up a little more than the average American when "going out with friends" (even if it is not "required")....

Or, more succinctly, Europeans tend to "get dressed".

Americans are happy to show up at work in dance leotards and flip flops.