How formal are formal nights?

[Lucca30]

We have sailed almost a dozen times on all three Crystal ships including the retired Harmony and since then will be taking our third voyage on Regent in September (interrupted by one voyage on Silversea that was nice but not as good as the other two lines). Crystal has better food and service than Regent, but one is talking superb rather than excellent. Regent has much larger and better laid out cabins that tend to vibrate, which does not bother us - we prefer the larger cabin than totally smooth sailing.

 

It was six of one and half dozen of the other between the two lines except for having the option of going to dinner any time we wanted on Regent and dressing informally. There were no formal nights on our previous Regent cruises. Even on short cruises Crystal had formal nights. I was distressed to find that on the 11 day Regent cruise that we are taking from Istanbul to Piraeus, departing September 9 there are three nights where men are requested to wear black tie. I believe that is most unreasonable. We are departing early in September for Madrid where we will spend a couple of days, then to Istanbul, for a few days before we get on the ship. When we dock we will spend a few days in Athens, then on to London, then to Oxford and back to the US in early October.

 

We are going to some pretty "high end" events and places, including dinner at an embassy, staying at one of the top London clubs and the Madrid Ritz, and going to the wedding of the daughter of one of my old school friends at Claridge's. I have been assured by the people in charge of the dress code at all these places that I if wear a blazer and tie I will be appropriately dressed. I am puzzled that I am being asked, traveling for almost a month with current baggage limitations, to bring a suit or tuxedo that I will not otherwise wear, particularly when on another evening I will be told that if I appear in the dining room in a collered shirt and trousers I will be appropriately dressed. The variable dinner dress code on ships seems silly to me. Just say like all the top restaurants do jacket or jacket and tie required.

 

Will I get kicked out if I do not wear black tie? I don't think so.

[Dolebludger]

I have seen a number of men of various Regent cruises dressed in blazer and tie on formal nights. I don't think you will be kicked out for this. The majority of men, however, wore a suit and tie or a tux (about evenly divided). As you know, on Crystal and Silversea, the majority of men have generally worn tuxes.

 

That said, you bring up airline luggage limitations. These have literally been getting worse every day. As a result, I think we can be fairly confident that we will be seeing many more men with blazer and tie on formal nights

[wripro]

Why are you distressed that Regent is asking you to adhere to its dress policy? You have an option. Book with another line that does not have formal nights.

[Host Dan]

A dark suit and tie will be more than appropriate. I found Regent much less formal than lets say Silversea, Seabourn and Crystal. Don't worry, have fun!

 

Host Dan

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Good grief, 3 formal nights on an 11 day cruise? That does sound excessive. But considering that you can plan to wear pretty much the same attire on all three nights, it should not be seen as a burden. Dark suit and tie for the gentleman, something slightly glitzy for the lady. No problemo. I'd rather they did away with the formal night altogether, but... My experience is that they *do* enforce the dress code on board ship.

 

I see one of your ports is Napflion. A delightful little city, whether you see some of the ancient ruins nearby, or just wander the town.

[BILLP1]

There are no airline baggage limitations. You just have to pay extra. Heck with all the cruises on Crystal and Regent what's a few hundred extra dollars?

[Travelcat2]

There are no airline baggage limitations. You just have to pay extra. Heck with all the cruises on Crystal and Regent what's a few hundred extra dollars?

 

I'm not trying to flame you, or be disrepectful .. just have to comment that extra weight on airlines causes more fuel consumption. No matter how much we can afford to pay, it may be wiser to be a bit conservative:o

[Paint Horse]

I think I will go weigh the tuxedo so we can put an end to this silly discussion that occurs over and over again.

[jhp]

We are going to some pretty "high end" events and places, including dinner at an embassy, staying at one of the top London clubs and the Madrid Ritz, and going to the wedding of the daughter of one of my old school friends at Claridge's.

 

Editing here, sorry, I don't know how to get that "quote" thing down yet.

 

If you are going to "high end" events and places where you have said, I hardly think that packing for a Regent cruise would cause you any inconvenience! I can't imagine that any of those events in Europe, you won't find the others at least in dark suits, if not black tie. Perhaps they will tolerate your blazer! As will Regent, if you insist!

[Paint Horse]

This is great sport. As I am sure this subject will come up again and again, let's arm ourselves with some facts for this and future discussions on this vital topic. Here are the weights for the items in question. A dark suit weighs as follows. The coat - 7.39 lb and pants - 3.70 lb. The evil three part tuxedo weighs as follows. The coat - 7.65 lb, pants - 4.88 lb, and vest - 2.30 lb. So indeed we could all save 3.74 lb by ditching the tuxedo. Hum, I wonder if we just ripped the stripes off, if that would help? :D

[larry1365]

If I were going to "high end" events at embassies and such, it would be more appropriate to wear a dark suit than a sport coat. Europeans still dress up more and are more conservative than Americans. Then you would be covered on Regent for those nights when a tux or coat is recommended.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Paint, that's funny. But I suspect the issue for some is that they need the suit *and* the tuxedo, right? And a sport's jacket.

 

My husband has solved this by bringing a dark blue suit, the top of which was tailored to be worn also as a blazer, with gray pants. That way he is covered for informal nights as well as formal. And on informal nights he eschews the tie, and usually wears a patterned shirt instead of white or blue.

 

Maybe we should weigh the ties!!

[RachelG]

I agree with Larry. A blazer is not appropriate attire for a dinner at an embassy or for a nice wedding. Take one dark suit, and you will be set for all those events plus the formal night. Problem solved!

[NHBob]

I think I will go weigh the tuxedo so we can put an end to this silly discussion that occurs over and over again.

 

Right, but if you want to see real silliness about this subject see the mass market boards. A recent HAL thread titled "I'm not sure I get formal night" has already generated over 120 responses, and it's just one of many threads on the subject!

 

I've recently booked my first Regent cruise and look forward, hopefully, to the level of formality I regularly experience on on Crystal. I've given up on HAL and Cunard.

 

Also, having lived and worked overseas for 18 years and attended many official functions, I wouldn't think of going to an evening embassy function in anything less formal than a dark suit, or a tux if the invitation said "formal".

 

By the way, the various references to baggage restrictions are largely red herrings when it comes to international travel - as far as I know, the major international airlines still allow two 50 lb checked bags plus a carry-on, up to 40 pounds on many airlines (but don't try this on Virgin Atlantic with it's 13 lb carry-on limit). They day I can't travel indefinitely with 140 lb of baggage I guess I'll stay home and watch the travel channel!

 

The real problem with baggage weights is travel within Europe if it is not part of a transatlantic ticket - I believe limit is still 20kg total weight in economy. I think there are still similar limits for internal flights in Australia, New Zealand. Now there's a challenge, but somehow my European and Australian friends manage to deal with it!

 

Looking forward to my first Regent experience, although it's still a year and a half away.

[Travelcat2]

I think I will go weigh the tuxedo so we can put an end to this silly discussion that occurs over and over again.

 

I am sorry that you find this a silly discussion. Many of us do have a concern for fuel costs,

 

While mathematics are not my forte, I did a quick calculation based on you "weights". Although there are over 100,000 people cruising at one time.... I took the amount of ships/people that will be in Barcelona on the same day we will -- 14,000.

 

If 60% of men wear a tux on formal night (just about all ships have formal nights) that would be 8,400. About half are women so let's say 4,200 male passengers wear a tux rather than a suit. Your suit, weights 3.70 lbs. more than your tux. So, 4,200 passengers x 3.70 lbs. of extra weight = 15,540 pounds.

 

Wendy brought up a good point -- you'll need at least a sport jacket -- in addition to the tux -- add another 31,838 pounds for the 4,200 passengers.

 

The point I'm trying to make is simply to look at what we really need to pack. A friend of ours takes a minimum of two tuxedo's on a 2 week cruise. Many women pack 15-20 pairs of shoes for a 11 night cruise.

 

The question on this thread was about the necessity of wearing a tux. Most believe that a tux is not required.

 

This isn't only about how much the airlines will charge or what they allow. . . it is also about how long they can continue to fly with current fuel costs. The heavier the plane -- the more fuel it burns. . . In another couple of months we will, unfortunately, see threads about how the airlines are cutting flights and no longer fly in and out of many airports.

 

Sorry for the rant. . . I'm usually the last person to notice prices. The last couple of months has been quite a wake-up call.

[wripro]

I am as interested in conservation and carbon footprints as the nest person but I find the discussion of whether to take a tuxedo on a cruise a bit disingenuous when it comes to that issue. If that is really one's concern don't book a cruise which causes you to fly. Or better yet, don't cruise at all --- take a staycation! One has to put everything into perspective and when one spends thousands and thousands of dollars on a vacation if wearing a tux makes one feel better I say go for it. Leave an extra pair of shoes home instead. Or heavy guide books! Or ------- fill in the blank!!!!!!

[Travelcat2]

I am as interested in conservation and carbon footprints as the nest person but I find the discussion of whether to take a tuxedo on a cruise a bit disingenuous when it comes to that issue. If that is really one's concern don't book a cruise which causes you to fly. Or better yet, don't cruise at all --- take a staycation! One has to put everything into perspective and when one spends thousands and thousands of dollars on a vacation if wearing a tux makes one feel better I say go for it. Leave an extra pair of shoes home instead. Or heavy guide books! Or ------- fill in the blank!!!!!!

 

If it makes someone feel better (a different issue), I'd say go for it!

[Host Dan]

Let me tell you all what I "did" in regard to the tux issue. Afew years back I was traveling in the med on Seabourn for 3 weeks. This meant roughly 6 formal nights. My tux jacket had been lost by the cleaners, and I was in the middle of getting a new one taylored. So, I brought a nice pair of wool black slacks, a tuxedo shirt and tie, and a european style black jacket. I had so many compliments on my "tux"! Other nights I used the same jacket with light pants, or the black pants with a colorful shirt for casual night , and so on. My suitcase was light, and I was able to mix and match that "tux" into several other looks!

 

Host Dan

[Travelcat2]

Great idea, Host Dan. . . thanks!:)

[wripro]

I give the whole "formal" thing another five years at best. Just like no smoking the trend is moving away form formal wear on cruises. There are now alternative dining venues on all the luxury lines on formal nights and one can go into the bars dressed informally whereas ten years ago you were not permitted in any public rooms after six PM if not properly attired. (I know, I was thrown out of the bar on Silversea at two minutes past six one night when I wanted a drink on my way to the suite to change.) That said, the dress code that now exists should be adhered to and one can be very creative as Host Dan was and still look great.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Well, it was 2 years ago when my husband was thrown out of the Observation Lounge on Voyager for not wearing a jacket. This after having an informal dinner in La Veranda. He just went back and threw on a jacket, no problem, but just to underline the point that the ship-wide dress code can and is frequently adhered to on Regent.

[Paint Horse]

Y'all are too funny.

[Dolebludger]

I solved the part of the "too much to pack" problem as regarding formal nights when I found a very light, tropical weight tux at a local formal wear store. I got the tux at a great price, as this store had acquired them from a major department store chain that had discontinued selling formal wear. I didn't buy special shoes to wear with it, but just wore well-shined black shoes. Nobody really looks at your shoes on formal nights anyway. The whole tux outfit weighs under 5 lbs, and is therefore very comfortable. Cost was super reasonable, too. About $100 as I recall.

[fPetrarca]

They discontinued selling formal wear for a reason--no one wears it anymore except on a cruise ship.

[jhp]

That's a pretty blanket statement. May not be used much anymore, but formal wear is not gone yet, even at weddings. And who could forget that there are still PROMSl!