Formal nights on Marella Cruises are described as Dress to Impress nights. You can expect one dress to impress night on a 7 day cruise and two on a 14 night cruise. They normally occur on a sea day and coincides with the Captain’s Welcome. During Captain’s Welcome he will tell you all about himself and how he got to where he is in the company and also introduce you to key members of his staff. We always find these types of events really interesting and if you are lucky you might get the opportunity to get snapped with the main man too!

Now if you like to dress up as lots of people do you are more than welcome to do so and there are definitely no rules against being the belle of the ball. Some people dressed in dinner suits and gowns but they were definitely in the minority.

We never pack our tuxedo and sparkly dresses when we cruise with Marella, we just pack smart casual clothes such as shirts, chinos, dresses, or black trousers and tops. Paul normally packs his blue jacket for the Dress to Impress night but the majority of passengers just wore a collared shirt with trousers and ladies smart casual in dresses or trousers and tops.

In the photo you will see what we wore for our Dress to Impress night when we bumped into the Captain on Marella Voyager!

There is a smart dress code in the dining room and speciality restaurants Surf and Turf, Kora La and Silver Fork.

This means smart tailored shorts, chinos or trousers, a skirt or dress, a shirt or polo shirt and smart shoes, no casual slippers or flip flops and definitely no swimwear. They state if you have had a long day ashore you can take a more casual approach to dinner in The Kitchens (Marella Voyager) or the Islands buffet (all other Marella ships) there are also other restaurants such as Nonnas and Abuelas to choose from where you are welcome to dress more casually.

Pictured below is what we wore to the speciality restaurant Kora La, this picture was taken during the meet and greet with Boyzone, you can find out all about Marella Voyager entertainment here.

The dress code is very casual on Marella, jeans t-shirts, shorts etc are acceptable around the ship, in fact we would say Marella is one of the most casual cruise lines we have ever sailed on.

Dining in the main dining for lunch is a casual affair too but remember swimwear, especially anything wet is still a no no but shorts and t-shirts are perfectly acceptable.

Pictured below is an example of what we would wear during the daytime on a Marella cruise.

Sometimes when cruising there are other items you may need that might not necessarily fall into the dress code category.

One of the things that passengers consistently forget is what they will need for excursions. Do the excursions you have pre booked involve a lot of walking? Then obviously the sparkly strappy sandals you’ve packed might not be ideal so always pack shoes that you are happy to walk long distances in. We did a Petra excursion while cruising on the Marella Discovery and walked over 10 miles!

Will you be visiting any religious sites? Some religious sites insist on head and shoulder coverings.

Will you be walking through any tropical areas such as rain forests or jungles or spending time near still water? Then mosquito and bug repellents are an absolute must.

And of course don’t forget to pack sun hats and sunscreen, most of the items listed you may be able to get during you cruise but if you have them at home throw them in your case.

If you are worried about suitcase space do remember that all your towels, both bathroom and beach, soap, shampoo and conditioner are provided by Marella.

If you found this post useful find out more about Marella cruises here –

Marella Cruises Drinks Prices and Packages

Marella Cruises Spa Prices

Marella Cruises Celebration Packages

Marella Cruises Repositioning Cruises

Marella Cruises Winter Cruises

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