Do you have to dress up every night on a cruise?

Dress codes might vary from one cruise line to another. Here is the list of dress codes of different cruise lines that travelers have to follow. 

1 - Carnival Cruise Line

The dress code for the Carnival cruise line is generally casual where guests can wear jeans, T-shirts, tank tops, and shorts. It organizes a formal night which is also known as “cruise elegant” night, where male guests can wear a formal suit or a dress with a sports coat, whereas female guests can wear elegant skirts or gowns. There are two elegant nights, each 7-night cruise trip, and there is one on shorter cruises. On cruise casual nights, the dress code is collared sports shirts, sports slacks, khakis, jeans, casual skirts or pants, summer dresses, and capri pants. 

2 - Celebrity Cruises

The dress code for Celebrity Cruise can be defined as chic casual, where khaki shorts are very common. For dinner in restaurants and the main dining area, guests are suggested to wear smart casual such as sports shirts, slacks, skirts, and pants. Every sailing that lasts a 6-night cruise or less on a Celebrity Cruise features a formal night, where guests have to be in formal attire. Passengers are encouraged to dress up for "evening chic" nights by wearing tuxedos and evening gowns.

3 - Disney Cruise Line

There are four types of nights on the Disney cruise line that includes formal, semi formal, dress-up, and casual nights. Men may wear tuxedos or suits to formal nights, and women may wear gowns, while semi formal and dress-up nights have similar dress codes of jackets and pantsuits. In cruise casual night all other casual wear is permitted except swimwear and tank tops. 7-night cruises have a formal and a semi-formal night, while dress-up night is available in three and 4-night cruises.

4 - Holland America Cruise Line

Holland America cruise line has both formal and casual nights. Formal nights in this cruise line are called "Gala Nights," and the dress code is "Gala Attire." This formal attire is mainly for dinner at all fine dining restaurants where men have to wear collared shirts or slacks and women have to wear skirts. On voyages of less than one week, there is just one formal night, but voyages of 8 nights to 13 nights have two formal nights. It also includes restaurants where guests can dress casually for dinner.

5 - MSC Cruises

The main dress code of the MSC cruise line is ‘casual resort wear,’ but for the formal nights, guests are required to wear suits, ties, jackets, and cocktail dresses. Even though it is not a formal night, for dinner, guests are required to dress up much more elegantly. MSC cruises also host theme nights, with dress codes based on the specific theme, such as tropical night and white night. Casual attire, such as t-shirts and shorts, is only permitted at buffet dinners. Number of formal nights can vary depending on the duration of the voyage.

6 - Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian cruise lines do not follow a proper formal dress code; instead, most of the time cruise casual wear is accepted, such as skirts, capri pants, jeans, shorts, and khakis. At night for dinner, guests can go for casual or smart casual clothes at most of the restaurants. However, for specialty restaurants on cruise ships, a formal dress code is suggested. The cruise line does not have any kind of formal night, but ‘Norwegian's Night Out’ can be considered as a formal night.