kids clothes at dinner? cruise casual for them?

mikewdw

wdw coach
Joined
Jan 1, 2002
planning first cruise ever in few weeks. what is appropriate for kids to wear at dinner? daughter 10, boys 8. are nice t shirts and khaki shorts ok for boys or should it be pants and pullovers?
mikewdw
 
planning first cruise ever in few weeks. what is appropriate for kids to wear at dinner? daughter 10, boys 8. are nice t shirts and khaki shorts ok for boys or should it be pants and pullovers?
mikewdw

The only dress code (and I use that term loosely) in the main dining rooms is "no tank tops or swimwear for dinner". You'll see pretty much everything else. Even on formal nights.
 
My son (9) wears khakis and a button down shirt on casual nights and a suit on formal night. My daughter usually wears a princess dress or more formal dress on formal night.

You will definitely see everything from formal wear to jean shorts and maybe even a swimsuit:) My advice is to choose something that your family would feel comfortable wearing to a nice restaurant.
 
My son (11) wore nice shorts and a golf shirt (I did make him tuck his shirt in and put on a belt, lol) on casual nights and dress pants and shirt for formal night. Daughter (8) wore nice dresses on casual nights and a black dress for formal night. They looked fine.
 


The only dress code (and I use that term loosely) in the main dining rooms is "no tank tops or swimwear for dinner". You'll see pretty much everything else. Even on formal nights.

Exactly. Just have then wear what's comfortable.
 
Wear whatever you feel comfortable in - and that goes for your kids too. However, I really love when I see other families dressed up a bit like ours (nothing fancy, but not a t-shirt and shorts) and it makes everything more festive! Woo! Disney cruise, going fun places, getting dressed up in sun dresses and polos!

My inner thought on the subject (no offense meant): I grew up in the midwest and "t-shirt and shorts" was the norm for vacations...but now living on the east coast, where I live now, people would never, ever wear a t-shirt and shorts in public, ever, and certainly not without a belt and/or collar. So, I think some of this is cultural and not something to be taken personally. I don't think the midwesterners (for instance) are being rude, that's just their dress code for casual.
 
My inner thought on the subject (no offense meant): I grew up in the midwest and "t-shirt and shorts" was the norm for vacations...but now living on the east coast, where I live now, people would never, ever wear a t-shirt and shorts in public, ever, and certainly not without a belt and/or collar. So, I think some of this is cultural and not something to be taken personally. I don't think the midwesterners (for instance) are being rude, that's just their dress code for casual.

Which is why I would hate to live on the east coast!

Really, no shorts in public? That is just very odd to me. People there wear collared shirts in the middle of summer going to the grocery store, even with all the heat and humidity?

You are very right, it is regional and cultural. I grew up in a beach town near Los Angeles, where it is 80 in the summer and 75 in the dead of winter. Now I am a teacher and wear a t-shirt and shorts almost everyday. I teach special ed, so I have to be read to run after a child / get puked on / restrain a kid on the floor if needed!

To the OP, wear what your family is comfortable in. In my humble opinion, the fight of getting us younger and older boys to dress to someones standards is just getting the meal off to a rough start. I have seen many nasty dress code threads, but never seen anyone complain about a kid wearing shorts.
 


Must be north east. Florida is very laid back with shorts. You have to be or you'd roast to death lol.

We dressed up for dinner, probably to get a break from shorts all the time. But even after all the research and countless threads on the formalities at dinner, I don't think I noticed what a single person wore. I was too busy having fun.

I'd say the MDRs are the equivalent of a typical chain dinner restaurant (Olive Garden, Fridays, Cheesecake Factory, etc) . Wear what you'd wear to those.
 
We dressed nicely but not "dressed up" on cruise casual nights. My DH and DS usually wore polo shirts and khaki type pants. I think especially for kids, khaki shorts would be fine! Either way you fit in, because there's a mix of everything. :thumbsup2
 
Wear whatever you feel comfortable in - and that goes for your kids too. However, I really love when I see other families dressed up a bit like ours (nothing fancy, but not a t-shirt and shorts) and it makes everything more festive! Woo! Disney cruise, going fun places, getting dressed up in sun dresses and polos!

My inner thought on the subject (no offense meant): I grew up in the midwest and "t-shirt and shorts" was the norm for vacations...but now living on the east coast, where I live now, people would never, ever wear a t-shirt and shorts in public, ever, and certainly not without a belt and/or collar. So, I think some of this is cultural and not something to be taken personally. I don't think the midwesterners (for instance) are being rude, that's just their dress code for casual.

I live in Pa and almost always wear shorts and a t-shirt to all but the very best restaurants.
 
Twindaddy: People here wear diamonds and pearls to the grocery store! It took some serious getting used to and some inner peace about why what I wore didn't matter. lol. Fwiw, my oldest LO (4) will likely wear her princess dress from Target ever. single night. She loves that thing.
 
Wear whatever you feel comfortable in - and that goes for your kids too. However, I really love when I see other families dressed up a bit like ours (nothing fancy, but not a t-shirt and shorts) and it makes everything more festive! Woo! Disney cruise, going fun places, getting dressed up in sun dresses and polos!

My inner thought on the subject (no offense meant): I grew up in the midwest and "t-shirt and shorts" was the norm for vacations...but now living on the east coast, where I live now, people would never, ever wear a t-shirt and shorts in public, ever, and certainly not without a belt and/or collar. So, I think some of this is cultural and not something to be taken personally. I don't think the midwesterners (for instance) are being rude, that's just their dress code for casual.

I live in MA and people everywhere wear shorts and t-shirts, including places like Lexington and Arlington.

Anyway, we followed the "rules" for the first half of our cruise then said to heck with it. We had main seating which I found to be much more casual compared to people I saw heading toward the restaurants at second seating. I thought what my family wore and what other people wore would matter, but it really doesn't. There is more to life than clothing at dinner. My food still tasted the same and my husband and son were much happier. My husband lives in suits, dress shirts, ties and dress shoes daily. Last thing he likes to do is get dressed up for dinner. Our next cruise we are not bothering with formal, semi-formal or any type of dressy clothes. If any other diners don't like it they don't have to look at us.
 
My inner thought on the subject (no offense meant): I grew up in the midwest and "t-shirt and shorts" was the norm for vacations...but now living on the east coast, where I live now, people would never, ever wear a t-shirt and shorts in public, ever, and certainly not without a belt and/or collar. So, I think some of this is cultural and not something to be taken personally. I don't think the midwesterners (for instance) are being rude, that's just their dress code for casual.

We live in CT too and regularly wear shorts and t-shirts in public. Even in Fairfield and Litchfield counties we regularly see people dressed casually. It may be that shorts and t-shirts are frowned upon in your social circle, but they are definitely acceptable and prevalent throughout the state.
 
I live in MA and people everywhere wear shorts and t-shirts, including places like Lexington and Arlington.

Anyway, we followed the "rules" for the first half of our cruise then said to heck with it. We had main seating which I found to be much more casual compared to people I saw heading toward the restaurants at second seating. I thought what my family wore and what other people wore would matter, but it really doesn't. There is more to life than clothing at dinner. My food still tasted the same and my husband and son were much happier. My husband lives in suits, dress shirts, ties and dress shoes daily. Last thing he likes to do is get dressed up for dinner. Our next cruise we are not bothering with formal, semi-formal or any type of dressy clothes. If any other diners don't like it they don't have to look at us.

We never dressed up. Khaki shorts and a collared shirt for DH, just shorts and shirts for the boys. I usually wore khaki capris and a nicer top.

Whatever your family is comfortable with.
 
Twindaddy: People here wear diamonds and pearls to the grocery store!

If ya got 'em, why wouldn't you wear them to the store? I used to wear my grandma's pearls with a white button-up shirt and jeans...I loved that outfit. Oh and I was a teen and am from California. (though my mom was born in CT and grew up in Schenectady, maybe that's why I liked doing that?)



OP we're pretty casual at home so we are dressy on cruises. DS wear nice khakis and generally a polo-style shirt for dinners. We haven't done a Disney cruise with a formal night, but he was absolutely over the moon to wear his brand new suit on the two formal nights on Royal a few months ago. He looked fabulous! Of course we made sure it was properly fitted to him so it was comfortable, and we make sure to get COMFORTABLE dress shoes for him. (Famous Footwear had Buster Brown brand in his size and he really likes them)

For DS and DH we try to get their fancy clothes as comfy as casual clothes are, and it makes all the difference.

For me, once I give up on the heels and buy some pretty flats, I'll have the same sort of comfort level, because I like wearing dresses. :)
 
planning first cruise ever in few weeks. what is appropriate for kids to wear at dinner? daughter 10, boys 8. are nice t shirts and khaki shorts ok for boys or should it be pants and pullovers?
mikewdw

They will be fine wearing that, but they will fit in more in the MDRs wearing a polo shirt or other type of collared shirt.
 
Sorry to steal someone else's thread but I am a first time Disney cruiser and hadn't realised there would be a formal night! Is this even on 4 night cruises?
X
 
DS has always gone to dinner in either khakis or nice cargo shorts and a polo. DD wears a nice, light sundress with a short cardigan. It's pretty much the same for the adults too. I don't want to lug a bunch of formal clothes on vacation for a 2 hour meal :-/. I dress up every day for work, vacation is a time to relax. Not to mention luggage space is precious and limited.
 
Sorry to steal someone else's thread but I am a first time Disney cruiser and hadn't realised there would be a formal night! Is this even on 4 night cruises?
X

No, 4 night cruises have an optional dress up night.

In GA we wear shorts most everywhere with the exception of the office, weddings, funerals, and super nice restaurants. ;)

My boys wore shorts and a polo or button down every night.
 

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