dinner & formal night (kids and Grandma)

[vesw01]

What should we pack for the kids for these occassions? There is no way my son will wear a suit (he is 11) and my daughter is 2 and never wears a dress.

 

Also my Grandmother is 84 and will be cruising with us - she always wears a t-shirt with a skirt (sometimes a jean skirt) and tennis shoes- do you think we will get hassled?

[hstrybuf]

I'm not sure that they would get hassled but they might (big might) be denied entrance to the dining room. Best to prepare them now because Grandma's tee shirt with anything is not considered appropriate for the dining room in the evening. Personally, I don't think anything made of denim is appropriate either, but you might get a little leeway on the skirt for something other than formal night. A nice dress or slacks would work fine for her. My MIL, bless her, is also 84. She wears slacks outfits when she cruises with comfy shoes.

 

As for your son, how about slacks, shirt and tie for formal night? Long pants and a nice shirt for other nights. Your little one, hmmmm. Could you get her into cute slacks or maybe a dress just this once? The dining rooms can be chilly so you need to also take that into consideration.

 

Check the Carnival website for a complete description of the dress suggestions. Shorts are not supposed to be permitted in the evening and you'll get arguments about anything denim. The dress suggestions apply to children as well. Hope you can find something that will suit everyone!

[VentureMan_2000]

Yes. You will definitely look out of place during the formal nights.

 

The dinning room requires casual resort wear during dinner. T-Shirts and shorts are not permitted in the dinning room during dinner.

[GoinCruisin]

For formal night, I would suggest you put the children in "church" clothes... and for Grandma, she's going to need to spiff it up a bit... a tshirt will not work in the dining room (see below from Carnival). This is a FORMAL night, so you should dress accordingly or you can always dine on the lido deck... tshirt and tennis shoes are not going to work in the dining room. If your family does not like to dress up, that may be a good option. Or, Maybe grandma can eat with the kids on the Lido and you can eat in the dining room.

 

Is there a dress code for the dining room?Depending on the length of the cruise, either formal dress or casual resort wear is required in the Dining Room. The dress requirement for children is the same. For those not wanting to dress up, the Lido restaurants are open nightly (with the exception of the last evening of the cruise), and have a casual dress code. Formal Wear: tuxedo (optional); suit and tie; sport coat, tie and slacks; evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit Casual Resort Wear: sport shirts and slacks; dresses; skirts; pantsuit NOTE: Shorts, t-shirts and bathing attire are not permitted in the Dining Room during dinner.

[DebBrown]

What should we pack for the kids for these occassions? There is no way my son will wear a suit (he is 11) and my daughter is 2 and never wears a dress.

 

Also my Grandmother is 84 and will be cruising with us - she always wears a t-shirt with a skirt (sometimes a jean skirt) and tennis shoes- do you think we will get hassled?

In a word - YES

[SoccerMom#3]

My 13 DS wore Dockers and a Hawaiian shirt on casual nights and Dockers and a button down shirt on Formal nights. On the last night I did let him wear shorts after seeing so many kids wear shorts.

 

What about capris for Grandma?

[tef43]

What should we pack for the kids for these occassions? There is no way my son will wear a suit (he is 11) and my daughter is 2 and never wears a dress.

Who is in charge in your household?

 

Also my Grandmother is 84 and will be cruising with us - she always wears a t-shirt with a skirt (sometimes a jean skirt) and tennis shoes- do you think we will get hassled?

Might could.

 

How about Grandma and the kids eat dinner at the lido buffet on formal night?

[DeckCadet]

My dang computer goes back a page every now and then and erased my whole reply. Here we go again.

Your family will HAVE to dress up for formal night's dinner if you go to the main dining room. You may be more comfortable choosing to dine in the buffet, but the formal night experience is quite a tradition in cruising. It is the best time to take pictures too.

Now I'll go member by member:

Your son is certainly mature enough to know that if you say he has to wear a suit he will. I've been wearing suits and tuxes for much of my life and I enjoy looking nice at dinner. Sit down and talk to him. Start with tuxedo, that way he'll talk you down to suit. Explain that he has to dress up if he wants to eat in the dining room, which I might add has the very best food on the formal nights and you cannot get the special dishes up there in the lido buffet. If he insists on not dressing up so much you may let him wear a jacket and slacks. He must have a nice shirt as well. It can be collared with tie or one of the kinds without a collar. That is accpetable and very stylish nowadays. Remind him that he only needs to dress up for the dinner and photos (don't hesitate, they don't charge for the photos you have taken unless you want to keep them) , he can remove the jacket if he wants while eating, and he can change right after.

The point i'm getting at is a jacket and slacks is the minimum acceptable attire on formal night according to the line for the dining room for men.

The 2 year old doesn't have a choice in the matter. Make her wear something nice for the dinner at least. What is up to you.

Now, grandma will have to eat in the lido buffet every night unless she changes.

Formal night for women means an acceptable attire of 'evening gown; cocktail dress; pantsuit' and on casual night, dresses; skirts; pantsuit; Capri pants

Carnival puts it quite plainly. Shorts and T-shirts are NOT ACCEPTABLE in the dining room for dinner on ANY night. If she will refuse to wear a nice blouse or shirt for dinner, and wear something nice on formal night, she should eat in the lido buffet.

Like I said it's your choice. You might want to have some really nice pictures to show off. I won't go any further. I think your family can and should be able to dress up and enjoy the cruise to the fullest.

[hstrybuf]

Dressing within the acceptable limits is something that many first time cruisers are not prepared for since they don't dress up much at home. Consider it another expense of taking a cruise vacation just like tips. Check Ebay, the Salvation Army, or stores that resell gently used clothes. You can find things cheap, cheap, cheap that look great and you won't be out a lot of money, especially considering how fast kids grow!

[elvisillusions]

we only went to the first formal night (there were 2 on our cruise). The second formal night we had just come in from a excursion day in port and decided to just eat on the lido deck and go to karaoke. I wore nice shorts and a blouse that evening, but still felt uncomfortable walking around the ship and in the karaoke bar because it seemed like everyone else was in tuxes and gowns... you might want to plan a dress up date night for you guys and go to formal night... sounds like everyone might enjoy it...

[GoinCruisin]

LOL Kim, I can see how that would be... I ended up dressing up very nice each night... even on regular dining nights, people really put forward a good effort to look nice. I was impressed!

 

I agree with Hstry, there are alot of ways to get some nice clothing for not a lot of money.... for the kids and grandma!!!!

[dbcruzin]

Ves......is this your first cruise?

[MrNobody]

Ves......is this your first cruise?

If she takes a 2yr old and an 84 yr old granny (God bless her)...it may not be her first cruise, but will definitely be her last:p

[hdawson]

To the OP. Suggest you look through your cruiseline catalogue to get an idea of what is expected and is the norm. Both pictures and print.

[Douglase]

On the Trumiph 6/03, anything goes in the dining room.....Formal night or not.

Several people were not dressed appropriately and walked right past the matre de without a second glance. This ship didn't enforce it. :confused:

[hstrybuf]

If she takes a 2yr old and an 84 yr old granny (God bless her)...it may not be her first cruise, but will definitely be her last:p

ROFLMAO!!! :D

[klfrodo]

I'm a little disappointed by the comment that there is no way your 11 yo son will wear a suit.

 

My son didn't want to wear one either. That was fine by me, his decision. It was also my decision as the parent and the one paying for the cruise that he had a choice to make; go on the cruise and wear a suit on formal nights or stay home. HE decided that maybe wearing a suit on formal nights wasn't so bad.

 

In the end he enjoyed it. The young ladies his age kinda liked the cleaned up version.

[basketsiam]

Ves,

I must say that I'm a little confused..... I wholeheartedly defended you in taking your 2 year old on a cruise on another thread initiated by you. After looking at the number of threads that you've started in the past 2 days (14???) and the fact that you just registered 2 days ago, I'm wondering if you are simply beginning threads to start an argument. Dressing down in the dining room is always a controversial subject.......Dress according to the dress code recommended by Carnival, and expect other members of your party to do so also.

[dewhit6959]

Jumpsuits are just the thing. Wear them all over the ship, then after three days, turn them inside out and go for another three. Don't bother with shoes as the flip flops can be stored in the pockets. To dress up the jump suits, coordinate them with hats with silly sayings. Just be careful at port calls, as you may be mistaken for the tender crew.

 

Greyhound: see the country for $49.00 anywhere ( no dress code either)

[triplelutz]

They will need to dress up. Your son can wear khaki pants and a button down shirt for formal night, the same pants with a polo shirt for the other nights. Your little girl is just the perfect age for all of the darling dresses! I had more fun dressing up my toddler and she loved all of the attention she got!

 

Right now is a good time to pick up summer clothing on markdown. I've gotten some great dresses for less than $20 at Nordstrom - we're going on another cruise in April, so I bought bigger sizes.

 

Good luck - I've got 2 girls, so dressing up isn't an issue, I can't get my 9 year old to dress down! :)

[ali38]

my dh and i are taking our kids on our cruise, they are 9 and 7. i don't think will will be denied entrance to dinner with only dress slacks and a shirt and tie with us being being dressed in a suit and dress.they are only children,why force a child to wear more than they have to? as long as they look presentable and are comfortable it will make dinner more enjoyable for everyone.

[MrPete]

they are only children,why force a child to wear more than they have to? as long as they look presentable and are comfortable it will make dinner more enjoyable for everyone.

And how will I explain that to my child who will be dressed according to the rules when she sees you, if you're allowed in underdressed??

[ali38]

i'm not saying have them underdressed, a cute dress for girls and shirt and tie for boys would be acceptable.

[MrPete]

It's your "why force a child to wear more than they have to" statement I have a problem with. I have a nephew that likes to walk around shirtless!

[ali38]

did you get up on the wrong side of the bed?you are taking what i said and turning it into something else!