Do kids dress in costume at dinner, etc.?

[MAmama78]

Hi all. My family has booked our first DCL cruise for Feb 2020. I have two daughters who will be 8 & 11 when we cruise. What is the norm with dressing in costumes? They are too old for princesses, but my quirky older daughter asked for a Mary Poppins costume. Is this kind of dress up common? (I am picturing a dining room full of girls in cute sun dresses and my kiddo decked out in blue tweed)

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hi all. My family has booked our first DCL cruise for Feb 2020. I have two daughters who will be 8 & 11 when we cruise. What is the norm with dressing in costumes? They are too old for princesses, but my quirky older daughter asked for a Mary Poppins costume. Is this kind of dress up common? (I am picturing a dining room full of girls in cute sun dresses and my kiddo decked out in blue tweed)

While I'm not sure what the age for "too old" for costumes would be, I think, if they want to, why not?

 

[DCLCrazy64622]

Yep! Kids can wear whatever they want with the exception of bathing suits.

 

[ajgardner]

She absolutely can dress up, no problem. If you’re asking is it the norm to see kids dressed up in costume, not really. The very few I’ve noticed are the young ones in princess attire. Most often it’s just regular cruise casual clothes (except on theme nights). She would likely be one of the only in her age group dressed up - But, that does not mean she can’t! If she wants to and is comfortable with it, then it’s perfectly fine! I think it’s important that she makes the choice based on knowing this ahead of time and doing whatever makes her comfortable.

 

[lanejudy]

I don't see anything wrong with it, kinda cute. But I will say that I don't think "costumes" are all that common at dinner -- princess dresses, yes; other costumes not so much. Since this is your 11-yr-old, I would chat with her just so she understands others may not be wearing costumes; she is welcome to wear Mary Poppins if that's what she loves, and you say she's "quirky" so maybe it won't bother her, but a lot of girls that age don't want to stick out and might prefer to wear just a regular sun dress.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[Travel60]

Why not use the cruise to teach them about dressing for nicer occasions? We taught our kids "white tablecloth" manners and dress when they were tweens. Costumes on theme nights, nicer clothes on others, especially formal and semi-formal.

 

[Cruising Engineer]

Why not. Mary Poppins one night, pirate costume another night, and dress up for formal night. Have fun, it's your vacation with your family.

 

[lspst8]

Let your daughter wear what she wants. At dinner, you will see everything from shorts and t-shirts to tuxedos on both kids and adults. A Mary Poppins costume certainly will not look out of place at dinner.

Your daughter may want to look into Disney Bounding if she wants to dress in a Disney style but not in total princess dresses or costumes. It’s really fun to make Disney inspired outfits out of your everyday clothes.

 

[Chemist]

Definitely you don't see kids in costumes, beyond LITTLE girls wearing princess costumes.
My older child likes the "idea" of costumes, etc. But when out in public he responds to social norms VERY quickly and would be uncomfortable in that situation in reality.
Though he'd be very in favor of dressing up in theory.

 

[Donna M]

If she is the kind of kid who enjoys the attention and won't feel awkward, or self conscious if she is the only one dressed up then go for it. I have seen a couple of older girls dressed as princesses, but there's nothing wrong with going as Mary Poppins.

 

[tlprice]

My DD11 wore her formal pageant dress on formal night on our last cruise. Not necessarily a costume, but much more formal than most kids get. She got a TON of compliments and she LOVED it. She is also a little quirky and doesn't really care what everybody else is wearing or what other people think.

 

[MAmama78]

Thanks, everyone. This was all very helpful!

 

[MAmama78]

Let your daughter wear what she wants. At dinner, you will see everything from shorts and t-shirts to tuxedos on both kids and adults. A Mary Poppins costume certainly will not look out of place at dinner.

Your daughter may want to look into Disney Bounding if she wants to dress in a Disney style but not in total princess dresses or costumes. It’s really fun to make Disney inspired outfits out of your everyday clothes.

This is a great direction to explore. DD is already 5' 3" so she can't wear kiddie costumes anyway. She was eyeing a Mary Poppins returns ensemble from Hot Topic. This is not a store we normally shop in, but I have to admit that it was darn cute!

 

[DisneyPiPhi]

DD wore costumes all over the ship on our cruise, including to the dining rooms for dinner. This included pirate night (she was Zarina the Pirate Fairy from the Disney Fairies movies) and other nights (I definitely remember the Merida and Moana costumes making dinner appearances.)

Tell your DD to go for it!