How did formal nights start?

There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

I have mixed feelings on formal nights. We "dress up" each day for work,
but when at home, we live in shorts or jeans or sweats.

We have been to some formal functions in D.C., which have been very nice,
especially because they have been international military functions and there
is nothing like a man in a sharp uniform(!). At these functions, some of
the women wear their international formal dress which are just beautiful.

On the other hand, cruising is a vacation and I have found formal dressing
to be a headache. It is hard enough to pack for a week without having to
worry about how dressed up I need to be. We prefer to relax as much as
possible, and dressing up for us seems to be a chore (especially after
wearing suits to work).

Just my thoughts on a foggy Friday night!
Celeste

Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

Bingo!

~ Patty

Celeste wrote:
There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?


I believe it to be a holdover from the days when ocean liners were
transportation, not recreation. IIRC, on the transatlantic run, every
night was formal with the exception of first night out, last night out
and Sundays.

Then consider NCL. They have options on the ship where you can go
casual every night. On formal night, some restaurants are designated
formal, while others are designated casual. And it's not just the
buffet where you can go casual... at least not on the Norwegian Dawn.

--Tom

Celeste wrote:

There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

I have mixed feelings on formal nights. We "dress up" each day for work,
but when at home, we live in shorts or jeans or sweats.

We have been to some formal functions in D.C., which have been very nice,
especially because they have been international military functions and there
is nothing like a man in a sharp uniform(!). At these functions, some of
the women wear their international formal dress which are just beautiful.

On the other hand, cruising is a vacation and I have found formal dressing
to be a headache. It is hard enough to pack for a week without having to
worry about how dressed up I need to be. We prefer to relax as much as
possible, and dressing up for us seems to be a chore (especially after
wearing suits to work).

Just my thoughts on a foggy Friday night!
Celeste

On Fri, 10 Oct 2003 20:56:13 -0400, "Celeste"
wrote:

There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

First class travellers during the heyday of ocean travel dressed for
dinner almost every night. AFAIK they had real "formal" nights, too
-- i.e. white tie.

I have mixed feelings on formal nights.

They are fun!

But it's your vacation. If you really don't want to dress up 2 nights
out of 7, or three nights out of 14, by all means find a cruise that
has an informal dress code.

Mason Barge

"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
-- Abraham Lincoln

From: Tom & Linda

Then consider NCL. They have options on the ship where you can go
casual every night. On formal night, some restaurants are designated
formal, while others are designated casual. And it's not just the
buffet where you can go casual... at least not on the Norwegian Dawn.

The Sea also have the formal dining room and the "comfortable...:-)"dining room
....

Be seeing you
In the Village
Number 6

CupCaked wrote:

"Celeste" wrote:

Formal wear for dinners and evenings was a given for transatlantic
crossings and general ocean travel. This is just generally how people
dressed.

Right on Karen. Just take a look at all those old movies from the 30's
and 40's. The well to do always dressed formally for dinner, away and
at home.

Howard

"CupCaked" wrote in message
...
Actually, not just the "well to do," Howard. Back in the '30s and
'40s, even folks who had little money still took pride in their
appearance enough to dress up in their nicest clothes when going out,
even to shop or do errands. Life was a lot more gracious back then
sigh

Karen


I remember wearing dress clothes to fly in an airplane....

Chris

On Sat, 11 Oct 2003 12:54:27 GMT, (CupCaked)
wrote:

"Celeste" wrote:

There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

Formal wear for dinners and evenings was a given for transatlantic
crossings and general ocean travel. This is just generally how people
dressed. You would never see a man in jeans unless he was tilling the
fields of his farm. You wouldn't see a woman out shopping in the
afternoons without her hat and gloves. People just had more respect
for the way they looked. The idea of dressing for dinner was
extrapolated when ships began to carry people as cruisers rather than
passengers en route.

I have to point out that this applied to first class, and did not
start until the 20th century. The Mauritania and the Lusitania, both
owned by the Cunard Line of England, started the tradition of dressing
for dinner and advertised the romance of the voyage. Dress in second
class was still the modern-day equivalent of coat and tie, but not
generally formal. Dress in steerage -- more than half the passengers
even on the White Star's big luxury ships -- was often indeed the
equivalent of "jeans", although men would wear coats and hats.

The original Rotterdam had 8 first class and 128 steerage berths.

Really, though, you have to remember that ocean travel was still
dangerous until after WWI. The Empress sank in 1914 (not war related)
in the St. Lawrence River, and 1000 people died. People were happy
just to arrive alive.

As you can see from a 1947 Canadian Pacific ad, first class passengers
also dressed well while on deck.

http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/adac...415-72dpi.jpeg

Here is an interesting article on third class experiences in the early
20th century:

http://cruisemates.com/articles/onboard/steerage.cfm

In 1920, with the passage of the Immigration Limitation Act,
"steerage" was replaced by an improved "third class" -- a standard
"tourist" fare got you a cabin with only two bunk beds, and a sink.

http://www.travelwithattitude.com/qe2.html

If you want an idea of what these cabins were like, you can still book
a 70 square foot cabin on the Norway. The France did not have third
class, so this would have been a low-priced second class cabin at the
time.


Mason Barge

"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
-- Abraham Lincoln

"Celeste" wrote in message ...

There is always so much debate over formal nights I was wondering where did
formal nights start? Or was this a tradition from the beginning of
cruising?

On "Point-to-Point" ocean crossings, formal attire was de rigour, in
the First Class Saloon, for every dinner. When ever the liners went
cruising in the winter months and the ships became one class, suite
and tie and/or dinner jacket was a requirement every night. When
"popular" cruising became established, just two night's were set
aside, for formality, on each 7 day cruise. Now it is just one night
and on some cruise lines even that is optional.