How dressed up is "Smart Casual"??

[maclac]

Hi all; We are taking our first RCI cruise on the Legend in January. It will only be our second cruise overall. We sailed Celebrity Zenith last Christmas. We are trying to remember how many extra clothes we packed the first time. Would like to know if the Smart Casual nights are as formal as they say in the documentation? They say "Smart Casual: Jackets and ties for men, dresses or pantsuits for women", but Celebrity said the same, but very few men wore jackets & ties. Actually very few men even wore jackets those nights. Is RCI the same? Can I pack more swim suits & shorts and leave my extra jackets & shirts at home??
Thanks, Bill & Keran

[DMorris]

On nights that are not formal nights I have seen nice polos and slacks. Have also seen dress shirts and slacks. You don't need a tie and jacket on smart casual.

[RichardK]

On RCL, my experience was that Smart Casual night was in reality another Casual night -- i.e., for the very, very most part, men wore Dockers and a collared shirt, and not the Jacket & Tie.

[hstrybuf]

On the Navigator this past week, smart casual looked just like casual.

[Cruising89143]

[quote name='hstrybuf']On the Navigator this past week, smart casual looked just like casual.[/QUOTE]
Looking forward to your comments on the Navigator. I am done to less than four weeks now before my sail date.

[melissa76]

I was on the Navigator in June and there was really only formal and casual.

Now, I hope no one starts in about how people do what they want and don't follow the policies.

1) People were VERY dressed up on formal nights (long gowns/sparkles/prom dresses). I saw no shorts, jeans, etc that we hear about on these boards :) Everyone followed the guideleines.

But...

2) People honestly didn't know there was a "smart casual" night. It was a tiny (and I mean tiny) sentence in the daily compass which many people don't read cover to cover.

It's kind of funny, though. My husband was debating between 1) tie and no jacket OR 2) jacket and no tie. He was a little paranoid about "needing" a jacket so he wound up wearing it. He was the only person I saw wearing one, and then we felt a little silly. But it worked out great, because apparently they also take photos on this night!! Ours came out GREAT! They wound up being our favorite photos. So, in the end, I'm glad we dressed up a little more. It was our honeymoon (we were married on the ship).

Melissa :)

[megr1125]

On AOS a couple weeks ago most people were in polos and khakis. Very few ties, maybe some dress shirts and ties, few jackets. Then of course there were the people who were glitzy every night for whatever reason. These were definitely a minority of pax, but there are always a few who want to outshine J. Lo. lol

[xke_uk]

[font=Times New Roman][size=3]I have been told it depends on the cruise route.[/size][/font]

[font=Times New Roman][size=3]A Caribbean cruise is less formal (no jackets and ties) on smart casual nights than say Mexico and the Panama Canal route.[/size][/font]

[font=Times New Roman][size=3]Is this so?[/size][/font]


Regards


[img]http://www.icnuk.net/royhand.gif[/img]

[JanetMarie]

Unfortunately, cruise fashion is not what it used to be years ago. Most folks stick to the dress code, but you will still see the ones that simply cannot get out of that tee shirt.:cool:

[maclac]

Thanks all for the info. Looks like I will pack more swim suits, golf shirts and my Tommy Bahama's.
BTW, congratulations on the on board wedding. A couple at our table got married during our last cruise.
Bill

[savva0122]

[quote name='melissa76']

It's kind of funny, though. My husband was debating between 1) tie and no jacket OR 2) jacket and no tie. He was a little paranoid about "needing" a jacket so he wound up wearing it. He was the only person I saw wearing one, and then we felt a little silly. But it worked out great, because apparently they also take photos on this night!! Ours came out GREAT! They wound up being our favorite photos. So, in the end, I'm glad we dressed up a little more. It was our honeymoon (we were married on the ship).

Melissa :)[/QUOTE]
Congratulations, and he did the right thinG!!!