18 yo/17 yo/and 'shorts only' DH question???

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Hi! We are falling in love with the idea of 7-day Western for 2003.

1. DH and DS really don't enjoy anything more than shorts/jeans when vacationing. Can we do dinner somewhere really casual a few nights?

2. Would be travelling with 18 and 17 yr olds. Both very civilized and INSEPARABLE;) ! Could we still do adult pool or Paolo (where 18 seems to be minimum)? AND...could they both go to teen activities (or is 18 yr old out of luck?). Should we just wait til both are over 18 (My LEAST favorite option!!!;) !

Thanks for any input!

[D A P & I]

We saw people in nice shorts every night at dinner and even on formal night. My four year old wore them everynight. Even after being told on the boards he need to wear pants to dinner. Be comfortable and you will enjoy your cruise. No body really paid any attention to what we had on.:)

[Dave_from_Marietta]

18-year-olds are occasionally allowed to participate in the Common Grounds age group. But when this is the case, they are asked to "be a teen" and not also take advantage of the "adults-only" areas of the ship during the cruise.

[wovenwonder]

On the 7 day there is a casual dining option at Topsiders in the evening. In the dining rooms you WILL see some people in shorts. And shorts are even encouraged during the island night. BUT a request from DCL that shorts and jeans NOT be worn in the dining room is present on the navigator each evening. Your boys migh feel more appropriate in khaki's or even cargo pants and a nice shirt for the dining room. (Except on the two more formal evenings).
:D

[ducklite]

Originally posted by D A P & I
We saw people in nice shorts every night at dinner and even on formal night. My four year old wore them everynight. Even after being told on the boards he need to wear pants to dinner. Be comfortable and you will enjoy your cruise. No body really paid any attention to what we had on.:)

Not to be rude but...

That might be your perception, but I'll bet a lot of people noticed.

Of course with a four year old it's a lot different than a grown man, and a four year old in a nice dressy shorts set would be fine. :) I've seen some REALLY cute "nautical" themed dressy shorts sets for preschoolers taht IMHO would have been great for even the dressier dinners.

But, that said, a grown man who wears shorts to dinner every night, especially on formal night, is IMHO being quite rude to those that took the time to dress appropriately as their host requsted.

I think the OP is being quite polite in asking about other dining options as they know their spouse isn't going to want to dress up.

Anne

[ducklite]

Originally posted by Mai Ku Tiki
Would be travelling with 18 and 17 yr olds. Both very civilized and INSEPARABLE;) ! Could we still do adult pool or Paolo (where 18 seems to be minimum)? AND...could they both go to teen activities (or is 18 yr old out of luck?).

Your 17 YO is just that, 17, and should not impose himself in the adult areas (adult pool, adult beach, Palo). The 18YO will have to choose--either staying with his brother in the teen areas, or being an adult in tehadult areas. Regretfully it's not really right for him to "have his cake and eat it to".

If you prefer to stay together as a family, you are all welcome at the family pool, family beach and in the dining rooms.

Anne

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Well, we are very happy to hear about the 'Topside' option!

We appreciate that there is a preferred dresscode on cruises. We also believe it is important to respect the 'host's' wishes, not to mention preserving the ambiance for other cruisers. That's why we haven't cruised in 12 years!;) DS is ready to dress up more if he has to...it is my forever young DH that is resisting!!!LOL!!
But the lure of DCL is just sooo strong!:D

Now for the real nitty-gritty...As a family with a 17 AND 18 yo, do we get to participate in adult activities? Or do we just do family/teen stuff?????
:confused: ;)

[TnRobin]

One night we just realy did not feel like dressing up after a long day of shore excursions. We just donned our bathing suits/shorts, enjoyed the deserted pools and had dinner at Pluto's Dog house. (Just wasn't that hungry after a day in the sun) We had the entire deck practically to ourselves. It was so cool to have such peace and quiet on a ship. (We were a nearly sold out cruise).

[ducklite]

Originally posted by Mai Ku Tiki
Now for the real nitty-gritty...As a family with a 17 AND 18 yo, do we get to participate in adult activities? Or do we just do family/teen stuff?????
:confused: ;)

You and your DH are of course welcome to participate in the adult activities. You 18 YO will be asked to choose between adult or teen activities for the entire cruise. Your 17 YO will be in the teen group activities.

Anne

[4cruisin]

Here we go again with the dress code police.

First, you are paying for the cruise. It is your vacation and as long as you aren't showing up in dirty clothes, or with smelly armpits at a common dinner table, I think that most people are not very judgemental about what you are wearing. The main concern should be showing respect for fellow cruisers.

Secondly, if your young adult children are well mannered and well behaved, I would love to have them in the adult areas. I bet they are better behaved than some of the so called "adults" that insist on saving deck chairs etc.

This topic of dress really burns:mad: me up. I plan on dressing as DCL recommends in their infomational booklets but I am not going on a cruise to write a book about fashion or lack of it. If more people would just worry about their own behavior and not everyone else's, we would all be a lot better off.

(Read the post about Poundcake's untimely passing). There are more important issues to worry about in this world than appropriate dress on vacation.

You can all beat me up now, but I am tired of some people taking on the role of Fashion Police. Lighten up.

:rolleyes:

[cyndilou01]

We were on the Magic last year and had the same problem on youth 18 one under 18.... they did allow my 18 yr old in common grounds and she really felt out of place because most people were younger .... she went any way and had a good time for the most part she did what she wanted did not stay with the plans of common ground.... I would just play it buy ear ... they may get there and only have 13 and 14 yr olds in common ground so they may want to hang out at the basket ball court on top... plenty to do.... ( plenty of girl watching) LOL...
As far as the shorts .... pack so kakki's they will enjoy dressing you'll see.... and if they dont.... then they dont...
Just have a good time....

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Sorry!:(
Was not my intention to start a debate...
My young adults ARE much more considerate and respectful than MANY adults we encounter because, IMHO, they have been taught to follow the rules and recognize that it is NOT all about THEM (or even US!)
Therefore, I think we will wait til both are 18 so that they can join us in as many activities as possible and we will dine only at those places we are dressed appropriately for...so that EVERYONE can enjoy the cruise experience! It is nice that DCL offers so many great options.

Robin- That almost empty deck and Pluto's sounds like heaven to us!!!!!

Yikes! This sounds so stuffy and arrogant! We are all far from that! In fact DH/DS are both Springsteen maniacs and are following The Boss around as we speak;) !

:D

[goofysgirl]

Not to worry, formal dressing always starts a flame war here! Please remember that this is your vacation as well as the guy next to you in the tux. This is a Disney cruise, so you will see many families from all walks of life and from all dresses of life as well. Wear what you feel comfortable in, let your teens choose for themselves what they want to do. Hakuna Matata!!!!!!

[ducklite]

Originally posted by 4cruisin
Here we go again with the dress code police.

I look at it this way. If someone is rude enough to do whatever they feel like doing because they are on vacation and to hell with the rest of us, they are NOT people I want to dine with. If they have no manners as far as following a dress code, I'd hate to know what else they have no manners about.

Anne

[TnRobin]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Just a reminder to keep it civil. Do not let this get personal. If you have any questions, please refer to the DIS Board Posting Guidelines.

[danbarbara]

It is not what a person is wearing for two hours at dinner that makes the person...let's all remember that. But I agree this is a vacation and people should feel comfortable. Nice shorts and a shirt are fine with me...that is what my 14 yr. old will be wearing at dinner. He doesn't own a pair of dockers or dress shoes...

[ducklite]

The way people dress add or take away from the overall atmosphere. I am comfortable dressing up, as are many people. This is why I chose to take a cruise. Dressing for dinner is something I ENJOY! I'm not the only person who feels this way. A couple recent polls here on the DIS showed that more than 75% of people ENJOYED having formal nights and a dress code. So those who don't want to dress are very much in the minority. I chose DCL because they have a dress code. If I didn't want to dress for dinner I would have chosen one of the more casual lines.

I don't enjoy sleeping in a tent, riding hundreds of miles on a bike, or wearing hiking boots, so I don't choose to take "Ecotour" type vacations. I also don't want to dress formally every night, so I avoid some of the other cruise lines that require that.

When you plan a vacation, you should take into consideration a variety of things, such as your preferences for activities, service, cost, and expected dress. If you aren't a good match for that vacation, then you should look at other options. If you want to feel comfortable on vacation, that's great. We all have different ideas of what comfortable is. But you should take your cue from the guidelines provided by the vacation provider. And if you and the provider aren't a good match, then perhaps it's time to look at other options.

Anne

[4cruisin]

Mai Ku Tiki,

I am so sorry that you feel you should postpone your DCL cruise because of age or dress restrictions. Please reconsider, as my motto "is tomorrow may never come". I have seen enough sadness in my life that I look to the future but I definetly live for today.

The fact that your boys are so close and at an age where they still want to do "family" trips would be enough for me to call a travel agent today and book that cruise. I just know that you would have a wonderful time.

Please do not let my opinions or the opinions of anyone else on this board sway you. You need to decide for yourself.

The topic of dress always starts a major debate on this board, but I believe that most people respect DCL's guidelines and dress appropriately while on board and those who don't have their reasons. I would never want to walk a mile in someone else's shoes nor would I ever judge a person by how they dress. A person's inner soul is what is important to me. It is there where you will discover the real truth about people.

Good luck with whatever you decide!:D

[peg2001]

I agree with 4cruisin! Don't wait, book your cruise! Please do not be offended or put off by any of the posts about dress. This is an OLD argument on these boards and it is often the same people who post responses. They are not necessarily even responding to YOUR post but rather, continuing their arguments from older posts. In other words, it is just a sore subject with them.

If it ever comes down to a choice to cruise and dine in nice jeans or shorts or to not cruise at all, I say CRUISE and just have plenty of extra sweet smiles to pass along to anyone who glares or rolls their eyes . Unless you are extra sensitive, I bet you won't even notice any of those.

Peg

[4cruisin]

Peg2001

Amen, well said.:D

[aseafish]

Ducklite makes some very good points.

In addition, thumbing our noses at rules and guidelines may sound cool, but it is not what most of us want our children to do.

[Carol RN]

I agree with Peg2001............life's too short..........book the cruise and enjoy it however you wish!

[mouseclick1]

Mai Ku Tiki-
I am under the impression that the main reason you are considering holding off on the cruise is so that you can all participate in the same activities together, not so much because of the shorts issue. Is that correct?

If so, I understand your dilemma. While there will be plenty of things you WILL be able to do together, there are other activities that he would be excluded from. Depending on what you are looking for in this vacation, that could be no big deal, or it could really take away from the experience.

We have cruised twice and plan on booking again in the future. I also have two boys, though they are younger than yours. My oldest will be 13 in December, and my youngest just turned 11. We decided to wait until my youngest turns 13 to go on our next cruise. I think it would be more fun for them if they could both participate in the teen activities together. I really can't see my older son going to Common Grounds by himself, and my younger son never cared much for the Oceaneers Lab on either of our past cruises.

I know that this isn't exactly the same as your situation, but I understand why you would want to wait. If you think that this will be your only cruise as a family, and you think you will all get more out of it if both boys are with you for most of the things you choose to do, then by all means wait another year. But if you think that they would still have fun spending part of the time together, and part of the time doing their own thing, then go ahead as planned and have a great time!

BTW, how far away is your younger son from 18? Would you really have to wait a whole year, or would it just be a matter of months?

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Thanks to all for your help and concern....

I think I can put you all at ease when I tell you that I just checked how many DVC pts it would take for all of us to do the 7 day Western!!!!:crazy: :crazy: :crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

Now I have to convince DH that cash for cruise makes more sense....so we may have to wait a year to save anyway!!!

But when we do cruise, we'll follow dress code guidelines and just go to the casual eateries when we dress casually. I'm glad DCL offers so many choices!

I'm a former TA and took many groups of seniors on cruises. I learned that for many (of all ages), cruising remains one of the few vacations where people get to dress-up and THEY like it! It is tradition on most cruises. I respect that...they are paying just as much for their cruise as me. If we want sandals and shorts ONLY, we'll stick to our Poly or BCV vacations....such a sacrifice;) !!!