Carnival Cruise Line won’t enforce this cruise dining rule
Some cruisers say this outdated rule should be eliminated while others desperately want the cruise line to hold passengers to it.
If you’re a stickler for etiquette rules and old-school cruise traditions, you might be disappointed with certain aspects of the Carnival cruise experience — especially when it comes to the main dining room dress.
Although Carnival Cruise Line still maintains the cruise formal night tradition, many passengers choose not to follow the Cruise Elegant dress code guidelines for the evening. In reality, the dress code is really just a suggestion.
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Even though the cruise line says on its website that jeans are not permitted in the main dining room on Cruise Elegant night, crew members will not inspect passengers’ attire before granting them entry.
But for passengers who adhere to etiquette, the cruise line’s failure to enforce its dress code for formal nights is completely unacceptable.
According to one passenger who recently wrote to Carnival Cruise Line Brand Ambassador John Heald on his popular Facebook page, the cruise line risks losing loyal passengers to other cruise lines if it doesn’t step up in this area.
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Carnival passenger demands cruise line crackdown on jeans
“Jeans are denim, doesn't really matter about the color. They should not be worn on formal nights. No way is denim of any color a formal material. This is why Carnival has the reputation it does,” the unidentified passenger wrote to the brand ambassador.
The passenger went on to explain that they observed a number of passengers breaking the “no jeans” rule on formal night during their cruise.
“We are onboard Spirit on the transatlantic. Last night I counted at least half a dozen men and women in jeans for formal night.”
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According to this passenger, the cruise line should turn passengers away from the main dining room if they show up in jeans on formal night.
“Passengers who do not respect the rules should be forced out of the main dining hall and sent to the buffets,” the passenger asserted. “If the crew refuses to do this then you will lose more and more passengers to [other cruise lines].”
Carnival doesn’t care whether passengers wear jeans on formal night
As the brand ambassador shared the passenger’s message in a post on his Facebook page, Heald made it clear that the cruise line doesn’t care whether you wear jeans on formal night. Most passengers don’t either. A number of passengers confirmed that in comments on the post and in a poll that Heald conducted on his Facebook page.
“Jeans, wear them, don’t wear them, just enjoy your meal, enjoy the company of your family and friends and the service from our brilliant crew. Simple,” the brand ambassador suggested.
Despite some of its passengers’ passionate pleas, Carnival Cruise Line isn’t likely to enforce formal dress code rules. Heald has noted in past posts on his Facebook page that it just isn’t practical for the cruise line.
More Carnival cruise news:
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- Carnival Cruise Line shares big main dining room plan
- Carnival Cruise Line passengers ask for key smoking change
To end the ongoing debate once and for all, perhaps it’s time for the cruise line to do away with some of its Cruise Elegant rules, as one passenger suggested.
“Maybe it’s time that Carnival dropped some of the ‘rules’ that never get enforced?” Andrew Nutter commented. “Personally, what other people wear does not bother me but the dress code has been debated on here relentlessly — the same as wearing hats in the dining room and smoking in the casino. There will never be total agreement on what is acceptable to some yet offensive to others and I’m sure that John Heald has far more important things to worry about.”
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