REPORT: CUNARD RELAXING DRESS CODE

Pam, ready for an
evening out on the ship

The Telegraph is reporting that Cunard is relaxing their famous dress code. Quoting the article: "The British-American cruise line, known for its long-standing commitment to formal dress codes, has refined its evening wear options of ‘formal’, ‘semi-formal’, and ‘elegant casual’ to simply ‘formal’ and ‘informal’." They say the new relaxed measures will take effect in April. I can just hear Hugh Bonneville from Downton Abbey reacting to the news: "Has the world gone mad?"

Somehow I doubt you'll see many changes in attire aboard any of the three Queens. For the ladies, the formal nights are one of the main attractions. And yes, even us guys have to grudgingly admit it doesn't hurt us to dust off the tux and glam it up for a special evening or two. I may have to side with Hugh on this one. Here's more from the Cunard press release:


"Research with existing passengers and luxury travelers generally has led Cunard to strengthen the Line’s commitment to special occasion dressing three times a week on its Transatlantic crossings and twice each week on sailings to the Mediterranean, Scandinavia and beyond.

"However, in response to growing travel trends, Cunard is adjusting its advice on dress codes for other nights.  The result:  Along with two or three formal nights each week, there will be four or five 'informal' evenings where jackets are required but ties will now become optional.
"Passengers opting out of evening wear on formal nights will be welcome in the ships’ main buffet restaurants and in the adjoining Winter Garden or Garden Lounge bars, but not in other areas of the ship, out of respect for their fellow guests. By day, smart casual remains the style of choice among Cunard’s passengers, as in a five-star hotel ashore." -- Gerry