Dressing for dinner..........

[jnmrlk]

I'm a brand new cruiser - so I am looking for all the help I can get!!! Going on the NCL Dawn so we have the option to eat when we want - I am hoping this was a good idea for our first cruise!!! I do not mind dressing up but my BF HATES it!!! NCL has a little easier dress code from what I have read but I still have questions so can you help please!!!!!

He is going to get dress pants that are on the casual side is that ok - he doesn't want to wear a tie:( is a collared polo shirt okay???? Does he have to tuck it in???? Can he wear a baseball cap to eat - yeah I know that sounds weird but he rarely goes without one and buys a new one just about every week so they always look brand new. Are dresses okay if they are sleeveless as long as they are dressy looking??? Spagetti straps???

[johnql]

Dress pants (or Dockers even) with a polo shirt are perfectly fine on NCL. But please, talk your BF out of wearing the baseball cap while dining. To me, it's inappropriate even in the buffet, let alone the main dining rooms or specialty restaurants. The shirt should be tucked in. A tie is not necessary. For women, dresses are always acceptable; pants other than jeans are fine for women.

[dzboss1]

Hi Jn ~~~~ We meet again!! I am gonna agree with John. NCL is a casual ship BUTTTTTTTTTTTTT....NO HAT in dining room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

polos are fine

shirts should be tucked in when in the dining room

dresses can be anything you want them to be...most woman wear sleeveless or spaghetti straps. Many people complain the ships are cold (though I think every ship I have been on is hot!!) so make sure you have a wrap or sweater or jacket.

[Jane110]

I've never been on NCL but my friends took their first cruise on the Dawn and loved it. They knew that they would have the opportinity of alternative dining and therefore opted out of formal night. My friend wore nice pants with silky tank-tops or simple dresses and her husband wore new, freshly pressed Docker type casual pants some nights and tropical weight wool gabardine on the others with casual shirts - generally cotton or linen button down long sleeved shirts. They said they fit right in wearing this attire and they've signed up for another cruise on the same ship.

 

I agree with the others. Men wearing hats indoors (unless by the pool during the day) is really rude and innappropriate. Tell him to leave the hat in the room in the evenings.

[tumeroll]

Leave the hat in the cabin when inside the ship. Unless he has a really ugly head that needs to be hidden. Only religious caps are considered appropriate indoors. Any thing else just shows are poorly one has been raised by wolves.

[tumeroll]

I'm a brand new cruiser - so I am looking for all the help I can get!!! Going on the NCL Dawn so we have the option to eat when we want - I am hoping this was a good idea for our first cruise!!! I do not mind dressing up but my BF HATES it!!! NCL has a little easier dress code from what I have read but I still have questions so can you help please!!!!!

He is going to get dress pants that are on the casual side is that ok - he doesn't want to wear a tie:( is a collared polo shirt okay???? Does he have to tuck it in???? Can he wear a baseball cap to eat - yeah I know that sounds weird but he rarely goes without one and buys a new one just about every week so they always look brand new. Are dresses okay if they are sleeveless as long as they are dressy looking??? Spagetti straps???

 

Yes an other comment. Having lived over sixty years and having observed how men and women dress, I have yet to understand why when ladies dress up their men (not gentlemen) still look like they have just come off the tractor. Do they have no respect for their ladies? and I wonder why the ladies put up with this type of behavior as it is a very obvious insult to them that the men do not think suficiently high enough of their lady to dress at the same level of style. And I am a male. Just wondering if anyone would care to step into this thought process and explain just why such behavior is acceptable?

[dzboss1]

Tum ~~~ Whoaaa and wow!! I agree that the husband shouldn't wear his hat in the dining room, but because he wanted to doesn't mean he needs to be compared to a wild animal. I would be terribly insulted if that was directed to my husband!!

[BasenjiMom]

Tum ~~~ Whoaaa and wow!! I agree that the husband shouldn't wear his hat in the dining room, but because he wanted to doesn't mean he needs to be compared to a wild animal. I would be terribly insulted if that was directed to my husband!!

 

LOL

My husband would take it as a compliment!

 

As for the husband not dressing as nicely as his wife: it happens here sometimes, but then he changes to match me. I think it's a lack of communication mostly. Also, he has always been a midwest blue collar worker, and is his sexiest in jeans, flannel shirt and pick up truck. He told me once it's kind of like pairs ice skating. The man is basically there to showcase the woman. He has no artistic capabilities, which I do think you need for finer dressing.

Admittedly he owns one suit, and wears it maybe 3 times a year. It's just not something we are exposed to, but we do our best.

If we look out of place in the dining room, please don't consider it rude, chalk it up to ignorance!

[tumeroll]

LOL

My husband would take it as a compliment!

 

As for the husband not dressing as nicely as his wife: it happens here sometimes, but then he changes to match me. I think it's a lack of communication mostly. Also, he has always been a midwest blue collar worker, and is his sexiest in jeans, flannel shirt and pick up truck. He told me once it's kind of like pairs ice skating. The man is basically there to showcase the woman. He has no artistic capabilities, which I do think you need for finer dressing.

Admittedly he owns one suit, and wears it maybe 3 times a year. It's just not something we are exposed to, but we do our best.

If we look out of place in the dining room, please don't consider it rude, chalk it up to ignorance!

 

Well I do have to give your husband credit for sliding that past you. Do they call him "Slick" and does he sell used cars. Bacause if not he has missed his calling with that line a gab.

[BasenjiMom]

lol

No, he is an operator at an oil refinery. He looks absolutely stunning in blue Nomex!

I cannot see him in a bad light really. Love will do that to ya.

Glad to see so many flying and cruising. It takes a lot of oil refining to do so.

[dzboss1]

Base ~~~ You go girl!!!!

[jnmrlk]

Wow!!!!! He certainly would not mean to insult any-one by what he wears - he is a "working man" but that does not mean that he dresses in old worn out jeans and a scruffy hat!!!! He always looks presentable and his clothes are always clean, pressed and 9 times out of 10 his jeans are new! He is just not the type that feels comfortable on vacation dressed in suits and ties - this being our first cruise I was trying to find what was acceptable and what was not - I certainly meant no disrespect for my fellow cruisers - having said that I am now uncertain whether we will "fit in". I have no problem putting on a dress and high heels and he has no problem putting on dockers and a shirt - he would rather forgo the tie and he feels comfortable in a hat - sorry!!!!

[dzboss1]

Jn ~~~ Do not listen to tumeroll....you and your wonderful hubby will fit in fine!!! Your asking if he could wear at hat, was not disrespectful at all. My hubby and I are very laid back ourselves so I understand how you two feel. I think if he just loses the hat in the dining room, everything else you do will be fine. Some people, if you read the fashion threads, draw a fine line when it comes to "dressing" in the dining room.

[judyzoo]

Have him ditch the hat inside and especially at dinner. It's disrespectful to everyone, including you; and unnecessary.

Then, enjoy your cruise!

[KamloopsCruisers]

Docker type pants and polo shirts sound perfect for the dining room on NCL. A hat - absolutely not. Not just for a dining room on board a ship, but in any dining room - casual or elegant.

 

Casual sun-dresses for you - yes, with spaghetti straps - would be appropriate too.

 

Relax, and enjoy your first cruise. We found our first cruise to be magical, I hope that yours is the same.

 

Please post back and let us know how you enjoyed it.

 

Happy sails,

[Kat_in_Texas]

jnmlrk -

 

Don't stress too much! You've gotten some good advice here, but the best advice I read on these boards regarding what to wear is "no matter how you are dressed, there will be some people dressed better than you are and some people dressed worse than you are" ... very good to know!

 

I worried so much about what to wear in the evenings and in the dining rooms, but I found that every evening ran the full gamut of capris and tanks for women, polo shirts and Dockers for men to dressy dresses with high heels for women, suits and ties for men. For all evenings except formal nights, I wore casual cotton slacks (Dockers-style) with a nice blouse or lightweight sweater and loafers and felt very appropriately dressed. You will see lots of jeans in the evening too, although we personally did not wear jeans at night.

 

Have a wonderful first cruise, you will love it I'm sure!!! We did, and can't wait to go on our next one!