What to wear?

We are taking our first river cruise in August. I am getting some mixed messages about appropriate clothing. Do the men need shirts, ties and jackets? Do the women get really dressy for dinner, or are pants/capris okay? Do the men wear jeans...women shorts? How casual during the day? The tauck website makes it sound like a lot of the trip is dressy casual, but I've always heard that riverboat cruised are casual. I really appreciate some direction so we don't feel out of place!! Thanks!

Comments

  • If you put in key words like what to wear in the search box, you will find literally hundreds of opinions on this subject. But you will be going in August, so check for the months too.
  • mjhandle wrote:
    We are taking our first river cruise in August. I am getting some mixed messages about appropriate clothing. Do the men need shirts, ties and jackets? Do the women get really dressy for dinner, or are pants/capris okay? Do the men wear jeans...women shorts? How casual during the day? The tauck website makes it sound like a lot of the trip is dressy casual, but I've always heard that riverboat cruised are casual. I really appreciate some direction so we don't feel out of place!! Thanks!

    I have been on two river cruises with Tauck. For the welcome and farewell dinners, people wear something a little dressier. Some men do wear ties and jackets while others may only have a tie. The women usually have a dress or slacks and a nice blouse. The other dinners are basically casual. People don't normally wear shorts and jeans but some do. There have been days when we finished touring and sat talking in the lounge before going straight to dinner in the clothes we had on. Some people on the Forum will disagree and say that one should get dressed every evening, but I found that was not the case on the river boats. Everyone on the boat is a Tauck traveler so you will be with the people with whom you have spent the day.

    Do check the Before You Go section to see if there is a required dressy evening. On the Danube cruise, we had dinner at a palace and it was required that one dressed up. I am not sure if that is something necessary on this cruise.

    During the day dress for your comfort. The most important thing is comfortable shoes that will make it easier to walk on cobblestones as there are many of those in Europe.

    Enjoy the cruise and try to meet as many people as you can.
  • Like Kathy we've done 2 cruises and have a 3rd booked. One cruise was in the summer and the other in Oct with cool/cold weather. Because of the difference in temps, wardrobes were somewhat different. Be sure to check the weather on the Before You Go tab and do a last minute weather check a day or so before you leave.

    On the summer cruise I wore capris with a casual but nice top and either sandals or lace up walking shoes. On most nights I went direct to dinner with maybe a change of shoes and the addition of a wrap if I went up on deck where it can be chilly. My husband wore a collared knit golf shirt and cotton slacks (khakis). For the special dinners, we did dress up a bit - dress slacks, dress shirt, sport coat & tie for him. I wore a dress, hose, etc for dinner in Paris but on the ship I wore a dressy-ish top, skirt, and sandals. Could have worn a pair of dress slacks and nice top. This was pretty much consistent with what everyone else wore. The last night especially people tend to make an effort to dress up.

    On the fall cruise things were a bit more casual - way fewer sport coats and dresses even on the last night. People dressed for warmth more - long sleeve shirts, sweaters, long pants. My husband had a nice long sleeve dress shirt, tie and sweater for dress up and I had 1 pair of black dress pants with a couple of dress tops, wraps, bit of bling.

    Tauck updated their guidance this past year to clearly state that "For dinner and throughout the evening, guests should refrain from wearing shorts, t-shirts, jeans, sandals, flip-flops or sneakers. " No one is going to deny you entrance to the restaurant.

    You can either dress very casual during the day then bring a couple of nicer outfits to change into before dinner every night. Or I find it more convenient to dress a little nicer during the day (still casual and comfortable) then go direct to happy hour & dinner with minimal change (shoes, wrap, scarf). On the special nights you only really need one dressy outfit for the 2-3 times its needed. No one cares if you repeat the same outfit.

    One thing for women, scarves are your friend. They're light weight and can dress up a plain top. Both cruises we had how to tie a scarf workshops and the shipboard boutique had plenty to buy if you didn't bring your own.

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