dreading dressing up

[Judgekw]

I know I am in the minority on this board but both my husband and I are not looking forward to dressing up on board the ship. We live in Dallas, which is a very dressy city. We both have to wear very formal wear to work and we go to many events that are black tie etc.

When I am on vacation, I like to relax and not get all dressed up. Does any one else think like we do? In addition, what a pain to have to pack all the stuff. We travel a lot so we like to pack light, but it is almost impossible when you are dressing up.

Having said my opinion, don't worry formal fans, we may not be in sequins and a tux but we won't show up in shorts. I also know some of you will say, skip the meals and eat elsewhere if you don't want to dress up, but I want a sit down meal, not a buffet or fast food.

 

[Michelle]

Actually there really isn't all that much dressing up to be done. If you're on the 7-night cruise, yes, there is a formal and semi-formal night, but you can really get by with a simple dress on both nights...even the same dress if you want.

The rest of the nights are casual, no jackets or dressy clothes required. If you eat at Palo you'll want to dress up a bit, but that's it.

I happen to agree with you, I also don't particularly enjoy having to lug along formal clothes and dressing up on a cruise. We did eat at Topsider's one night (it is a sit-down meal, actually, and it was VERY good) just because we didn't want to change out of shorts for dinner (and quite frankly, our regular dining room server was a bit overbearing and brought us WAY more food than we asked for, so it was nice to escape him for an evening too). So don't discount this option if the thought of dressing up for dinner one night just doesn't appeal to you.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[Judgekw]

Thanks for the tip about topsiders, we might try that option one night. I am really not all that into huge amounts of food either. I am sure we will find something to wear that isn't too burdensome. There is just something about going on vacation and only packing shorts that is just really appealing.

 

[we3luvdisney]

I agree.

I don't wear a suit and tie to work but I'm dressed nicely, with the exception of the nights I forget to ask my wife to help me match my clothes (BTW, I'm color blind. There are days when my DW cringes when I get home).

We are making our first cruise in 2 weeks and then spending three days at the parks after the cruise. We plan to eat at Palo's, so I will have to bring a suit. I really don't mind, my DW is a stay-at-home mother so this is a special treat for her. The only thing I don't like is bringing the extra clothing for one night.

 

[Parrotheader]

I'm right there with you Judgekw.

We just got back from a 3-day cruise (which is admittedly the most casual of all of them) and I never once wore a tie. We were originally going to go to Palos and I brought a tie for that, but I wasn't even sure I'd bother wearing it to that either. I brought some nice dress pants, dress shoes, and a camel hair jacket for my coat. I wore that (with no tie) to Triton's and felt like I was dressed sharper than 95% of the people there, including the ones wearing suits.

I see suits everyday and to me wearing a suit doesn't make a guy look all that unique for a special occasion. If you can dress slightly less formal, yet still look nice THAT really stands out to me personally. In other words, I think the GQ look looks a heck of a lot better than the IBM look.

 

[4nana]

Having members of our family group in the Military, Sheriff's Dept. and government, I am hearing the same story. They wear uniforms or have to dress up daily and feel vacation is a time to relax, unwind, have fun and leave the dress clothes/uniforms at home. Be that as it may, before I am bombarded w/ the other options such as Topsider's, room service, another cruise line or stay at home.....LOL....we are guests and will respectfully comply with Mickey's code and have a great time doing so. Can't wait!!!

 

[lespaul55]

Disney is a lot less formal than other cruise lines. With that in mind, I went shopping for a long but casual dress to wear for the formal dinner. I like long since that eliminates the need for nylons. I found the cutest one, turquoise blue with small fish printed on it. It looked sooo cruisey. As I wore it into the dining room, my teenage daughter looked up and said:

"Mom, I can't believe it, you are wearing a swimsuit cover up on formal night."

Now when I look at the dress, I think she was right, it was a swimsuit coverup. I wore a swimsuit coverup for a formal. Oh, well, but I still looked better than some people in that dining room. And guess what, I'm wearing it again on the June 29th Magic. It's comfy, fits well and no nylons are needed!

Really, I would still change out of shorts to dine in the evening since Disney asks us to. But if I were you, I would eat where I want in my slacks.

Leslie

PS I also answered a question about shoes, someone stated they need 7 pairs of shoes/sandals for the 7 day cruise. I bring 3 pairs which shows how casual I am.

 

[izzinmac]

I think way too much emphasis is given on this site to attire at dinner. We just got off the Western cruise, and practically everything was worn at every dinner, formal or not. I certainly never saw any Disney CM show any concern over attire. At the semi formal, we walked out with a couple I had seen several times. He stated the same thing as you about dressing up - he did it all the time, and didn't want to on his vacation. He was wearing Dockers, Golf shirt and sandals. The only way I noticed is because he mentioned the sandals! He certainly was not out of place. My son in law wore shorts, nice shirt and sandals several nights without a glance from CM's. I think the real reason that Disney has any guidelines is to prevent dinner from turning into cutoffs and t-shirts. Look decent and you will be fine!

 

[Judgekw]

Thanks so much for all the great information. I'm glad casual is okay. I really got nervous when I read the one post about a child wearing a suit to formal night. My son is nine, has never owned a suit and probably won't for a while. I thought, gosh if the kids are all wearing suits, wow! Not to mention HOT. I am sure we will find something appropriate, but not to dressy. I am definetly leaving my nylons at home!

 

[wovenwonder]

I even have a pic on our website of the teen girls in our group wearing slippers to dinner at Animators Palate! Of course one of them were DCL Ship slippers!

I feel too much attention is given to dress here on the boards (blast me later ). But once on board -- you will realize what I mean. As long as you are dressed neatly and in good taste and you feel comfortable with yourself -- then that is all that matters.