Formal night question

[jd99]

As someone who has had to wear a suit and tie for most of my adult life, I have a real aversion to doing so when I'm on vacation - ever. And yeah it would be cool to wear a tux on formal night, however, the amount of other stuff that I have to pack to wear a suit or a tux makes me break out in hives. So to my question, how casual can I get away with on formal night without looking like an unpolished inbred. I don't want to embarrass my wife and girls by being the only guy there not in a suit, but... We normally go to places like Maui or St. John or the Caymans or Aruba on our "BIG" vacations and this year decided to try the cruise instead of Maui. When I do the comparison, I would never wear a tie in Maui or any of those other places so I have a hard time getting to a mental place that allows me to do so on a cruise -- no matter the tradition, etc. etc. My wife thinks I'm crazy and that I ought to just wear whatever makes me comfortable...but really, I don't want to be the only guy there in dress khaki's, dress shirt and a sportcoat. Should we just skip formal night? Please don't flame me as this is a real dilemma for me right now.

 

[poconoboatniks]

You will see the spectrum of attire. Most are somewhere in between. A jacket and collar shirt should be fine. If you feel uncomfortable, you can skip the dining room and go to Topsiders for the buffet. MY dh wears a dark suit on formal night and blue blazer (no tie) on semiformal night. Sunday best is good for formal night. Last year's formal night on the Wonder had a guy in Triton's with shorts and tank top. That man was the exception. I hope this helps

Pocono

 

[cotomom]

You can absolutely skip it if you desire, and just dine in Topsiders. Dress casual but still have an enjoyable dinner and awesome views. Or be even more casual and stay swimming while everyone is dining. Then order room service!

You're on vacation and shouldn't feel like you HAVE to do it if you'd rather not. You will have just as much fun doing it a bit differently!

good luck!

 

[webray]

The easiest thing for you to do would be to rent a tux and have it deliverd to your stateroom. Disney does this, now if they would only rent gowns for women we would be all set..lol.

 

[jd99]

I'd feel like i was wasting a lot of cash since i own a tux at home... the dilemma continues...

 

[kellib36]

And yeah it would be cool to wear a tux on formal night, however, the amount of other stuff that I have to pack to wear a suit or a tux makes me break out in hives.

I know I'm not addressing your actual question, but......

Guys have it easy!!! You can order a tux complete with shoes and all the extras for about $100, depending on how many days you're cruising and which package you get. It's VERY easy!! You can have it delivered to your stateroom, and leave it there when you leave. All you need to bring is undies and black socks!!

I'd have a heart to heart and see if formal pictures would enhance your trip, or distract from it! Really!!!

Let us know what you decide!!!

 

[Anthony1971]

You can wear anything you want and you will not feel out of place wearing what you said....
I saw people weaing jeans on this and other cruises
I wear jeans almost everyday as I work in the fshion industry in NY so I do not mind a suit at all
Most people will not be wearing suits and some that wear suits are better off not

so enjoy your dinner as it will not make much of difference
By the way they served us Ribs on formal night on the magic?????
and lobster on the last come as you are night?????
yes we asked.....
they were good ribs
I took my jacket off and rolled up my sleaves

 

[grimley1968]

I will never, ever, ever, ever wear a tux on my vacation. I find wearing them to be objectionable, and will only do it on special occasions, such as weddings, etc. I wear what I want on vacation. I don't even plan to wear a tie. I hate ties as much as tuxes, to be honest, and only wear those if I'm paid to do so or for respectful gatherings such as church, etc. A cruise, to me, is all about a vacation for my family and me.

I may have to skip formal night. I know people say on here that you can wear what you want, but realistically, if someone else is wearing a tux, I will feel like I'm under-dressed, and I just can't enjoy something if I feel self-conscious about it. Anytime there is a "de facto" minimum standard of dress for something, yet people are told they can wear what they want, the people who do not adhere to the de facto standard are made to feel inferior. Whether that is a valid feeling or not, it exists. I've been on both sides of this, as I've been WAY underdressed at some events and sometimes overdressed at others.

I really wish cruises wouldn't do this, especially DCL. I'm sorry, but the idea of "formal night" smacks of elitism to me. I wore tuxes to formals in high school and in college, and even then I always thought it was a silly tradition. I think people can look elegant and smart without tuxes. I find this "formal night" idea about as objectionable as I find all the casinos on all the other cruise lines. I refuse to pack this kind of stuff, and I refuse to pay extra money to rent one on the boat. I wish DCL would put the kybosh on this.

Wearing formal clothes does not make me feel in any way special or that it's a special event. It just makes me feel like I'm being choked by the tight collar, and that there's a noose around my neck with the tie, and I'm constantly trying to pull the collar away to get rid of that nasty chafing feeling.

I think I'll be dining at Topsiders for at least one night.

 

[jgalecpa]

dress khaki's, dress shirt and a sportcoat. Should we just skip formal night? Please don't flame me as this is a real dilemma for me right now.

I offer this as one who always wears a tux on formal night, and often semi-formal night. I am one who gets to wear a polo shirt at work.

You will look just fine.

You will take great pictures and have the time of your life.

Go.

Enjoy.

Make some memories.

Jim

 

[mattmommy]

The last two cruises we did Palo on formal night so we didn't have to worry about a formal, semi-formal and Palo. DH did bring a sports jacket and a nice shirt though.

 

[new2cruise]

I think that as long as you are neat and clean you should wear whatever you are comfortable in. You are paying enough for this cruise and you should enjoy it.

 

[captaincrash]

No flames...

... just pack nice casual and resort wear. Don't go in shorts and a t-shirt to formal nite - but even if you did so I'm not sure anyone would raise a stink.

Now... having said that .... I pack 2 tuxes (white and black), pirate costumes and since our next sailing is a Halloween sailing I'll also have Halloween costumes too! Makes you wonder whether we'll have any regular clothes, eh? Well... maybe we're just a bit crazy - as we are also packing extra gear for our DIS events as wll as regular clothes...

So - leave the tux and ties at home. Plan on doing just about what-ever you want to do at the meals! And have a great voyage!!!!

 

[WiscBill]

As someone who wore a tux on formal night( also Palo dinner night for us), I can assure you that you will be just fine with the blazer and khakis as you would like to do. My rough estimate for the men was about 30% tuxes (including a fair amount of military in dress uniforms), 30% suits, 30 %blazers, 10%casual. Just have a good time and enjoy the free drinks.

 

[D-Daddy]

I will never, ever, ever, ever wear a tux on my vacation. I find wearing them to be objectionable, and will only do it on special occasions, such as weddings, etc. I wear what I want on vacation. I don't even plan to wear a tie. I hate ties as much as tuxes, to be honest, and only wear those if I'm paid to do so or for respectful gatherings such as church, etc. A cruise, to me, is all about a vacation for my family and me.

Amen to my suit-hating brothers!

I wore a suit and tie (not a tux) for formal night on the Magic-Eastern back in Feb. My DW had gone to a lot of trouble to book the cruise (with no help from me) and I didn't want to cause any problems. (It was our first cruise and I didn't really know what to expect.)

I took a good look around the formal night dining room and I bet no more than 20% of the guys there had tuxes on. In fact, I noticed more guys with slacks and collared shirts -- but no ties -- than guys WITH ties.

My DW suggested that in the future, I would be fine skipping the noose around the neck. Packing that extra "dress up" clothing nearly DOUBLES my luggage and that's a problem for her!

My point: If you hate wearing ties, don't wear it for formal night. Slacks and a collared shirt (even a golf shirt) are just fine and no one will drop dead mid-meal because you didn't wear a penguin outfit.

-Jeff

 

[jd99]

Yep... I too wear a suit when appropriate (work, church, weddings and funerals) and a tux when I'm at a black tie event. Truly, my mental state just says...vacation....tropics...ocean...beach....and suit tie or tux does NOT mesh with that in my head.

So thanks for all the advice, especially my non-suit wearing brothers. YOU ARE ALL the men. Happy cruising.