Do I need to dress up for dinner on a cruise?

For evenings, the recommended onboard dress is elegant casual for most ship venues. Suggested attire for men includes trousers and collared shirts (ties and jackets are optional but not required). For women, dresses, or skirts or slacks with sweaters or blouses are recommended.



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If you're wondering what to wear on a cruise during dinner in the main dining room, meals at specialty restaurants, or shows in the theater, the Celebrity Cruises dress code for these occasions is usually “smart casual”. This means a dress or skirt, stylish pants, smart jeans, a stylish top or button-down.

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The rest of the week, proper dress in the evening was a polo shirt or any shirt with buttons, and long pants. And shoes. There is usually one formal dress night in the main dining room. On some cruises I've been on I can go in jeans and a pull over shirt in some of the other dining options.

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Today, most cruise lines have relaxed their dress codes slightly—almost none of them require black-tie attire (even on “formal nights”), but the notion that cruises are dressy is still something of a damper on interest in cruises.

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Guests don't have to dress up at any point on a Royal Caribbean cruise if they don't want to. Royal Caribbean does have formal and smart casual nights where there is a dress code in the main dining room but cruisers are able to eat in the buffet or other dining venues without adhering to the dress code.

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Carnival cruise dress code Carnival is one line where casual is the name of the game. Passengers will be just fine in jeans, T-shirts, tank tops, shorts and bathing suits for their days on board or ashore. At night, nice jeans and nice tops are perfect for eating in the main dining rooms.

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For evenings, the recommended onboard dress is elegant casual for most ship venues. Suggested attire for men includes trousers and collared shirts (ties and jackets are optional but not required). For women, dresses, or skirts or slacks with sweaters or blouses are recommended.

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The main dining room and cruise ship buffet will always be included in your cruise fare, though a few specialty items might cost extra. Most upscale or sit-down specialty restaurants incur an extra fee, either a flat cover charge or a la carte pricing per item.

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On formal nights, proper attire includes tuxedos, suits or slacks (jackets required) for men and evening gowns, cocktail dresses or dressy pantsuits for women. Jeans are welcome in all dining venues during the day, but they're not appropriate in any public venues for dinner or cocktail hour.

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After breakfast service ends in the late morning, all major cruise lines offer an all-day room service menu of salads, sandwiches, snacks and desserts. Most cruise lines have special in-room dining menus, separate from what you'd find that day on the buffet or in the main dining room.

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There is no special dress code for My Time Dining – it has the same dress code as traditional dining. Aside from formal nights, there is no enforced dress code except that bare feet and tank tops are not allowed in the Main Dining Room.

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What kind of shoes should you wear on a cruise?
  • Flip flops, sandals, or waterproof slides. These shoes will take you back and forth from your stateroom to the pool and vice versa. ...
  • Sneakers or comfortable walking shoes. ...
  • Boots. ...
  • Shoes or sandals for dinner.


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Casual Dining: If your guests do not want to dress up formally for the dinner, they have the choice of casual dining. Most of the cruise lines offer casual dining which is buffet style dinner and also set up to order from the menu with table service (in the evening).

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For women, the dress code may ask for sundresses, skirts and blouses, dress shorts and capri pants are acceptable. Don't wear sleeveless shirts (for men), cut-off jeans, T-shirts or gym shorts. If you want to attend a “cruise elegant” evening, bring a fancier, more formal outfit.

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Getting on your ship means a lot of choices on how to begin your vacation, but many guests elect to start things off with lunch. Embarkation usually begins in the late morning to early afternoon, so lunch is the first opportunity to sit down for a bite to eat.

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If you like to have dinner on the table the minute you get home from work, stick to your regular routine. Choose the early dinner seating—it usually starts around 6 p.m. But if you like to lounge around a while or hit the gym after work, you might prefer a later setting, which typically starts at 8:30 p.m.

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T-shirts, swimsuits, robes, bare feet, tank tops, baseball caps, and pool wear are not allowed in the main restaurant or specialty restaurants at any time. In addition, shorts and flip-flops are not permitted during the evening hours.

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Most cruise lines permit wearing clean, nice jeans in the main dining room and specialty restaurant on “casual” and “smart casual” evenings. On cruise lines where there is a formal night, jeans are not permitted in the main dining room. However, you can always eat in the casual restaurants and the buffet.

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Most people scale things back to four to six pairs of footwear for seven to 14-night cruises. Some can get away with only three pairs if packing light. However, more options will give you flexibility and allow you to pair different styles with your outfits.

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Not permitted in the dining room during the Cruise Casual dinner for ladies and gentlemen: shorts, gym shorts, basketball shorts, beach flip-flops, bathing suit attire, cut-off jeans, sleeveless shirts for men and baseball hats. Cruise Elegant Dining Dress Code: Gentlemen - dress trousers, dress shirts.

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