Your Essential Guide on What to Wear on a Cruise

If you have never cruised before and have no idea on what to wear on a cruise, or are venturing on board a new cruise line, it can be bewildering to know what is best to pack. We don’t want you filling your suitcase with lots of unnecessary clothes, shoes and accessories, so we have decided to give you our Cruise Attire 101. Hopefully it will be a helping hand to simplify planning all your outfits and make the preparation for your cruise as stress-free as possible.

Traditionally, cruisers were required to pack more relaxed, casual wear for daytime activities onboard their cruise ship, as well as a wardrobe for any onshore excursions - and this was all before they had even begun to consider what evening wear was required. Evenings on a cruise ship would, as a matter of course, have required a particularly high standard of dress code. Picture hugely elegant restaurants and lounges filled with men dressed to the nines in their dinner jackets and suits, alongside ladies draped in evening gowns and glittering with glamour. These enchanting, charismatic, yet formal dining must-dos are soon to be a thing of the past for many major cruise lines, who are introducing a more informal, wear what you like dress code.

Cruise companies such as Carnival Cruises, Hurtigruten, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International and MSC Cruises all promote the more relaxed way of cruising, allowing passengers to dress the way the are most comfortable. This new, more flexible approach to cruise wear gives guests the option to feel comfortable in casual clothes for dining at night or, if they wish, to dress to impress for a more formal evening onboard. So whether you’re looking to just grab a quick bite to eat at night on your cruise, or a have a much more sophisticated experience in mind, the choice really is yours!

For more information on dress code policies, as well as dining options onboard your next cruise, contact our cruising experts on Freephone 0800 484 0370.