There are so many cruise packing lists for women, but men need cruise packing advice as well. If you’re looking for suggestions for cruise wear for men, along with a men’s packing list for a cruise, I’ve got you covered.
In my household, my husband often struggles with what to pack when we cruise. From casual wear for the day, to casual dinners and even formal nights, it can be overwhelming to know where to start.
These days, he uses a cruise packing list to keep organized and to make sure that nothing is forgotten at home. Yes, this has happened in the past – when he forgot dress shoes to go with his suit.
This was back in the day when a formal dress code was enforced on cruise formal nights. Thankfully, these days there’s less pressure on guys. However, when planning your cruise wardrobe you’ll still want to plan around your onboard activities and evening dress codes.
In this guide, I share what men can wear on a Caribbean or warm-weather cruise, plus some must-have cruise items to make packing and cruising easier. If it’s your first cruise, I’ve also included tips on cruise line dress codes so you’ll know what to expect and be ready to enjoy your trip.
In this guide, I share what to wear for men on a Caribbean or warm weather cruise, along with some that will make both packing and cruising easier.
For first time cruisers, I also share information on cruise line dress codes, so that you can know what to expect when it comes to clothing choices.
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What to Wear on a Cruise for Men
Cruises are resort casual during the day. However, depending on the dining venue, there are dress codes or suggestions that vary a bit on different cruise lines. These include one or two dressy nights, with the rest being casual or smart casual.
Evening Dress Codes and What to Expect
When planning what to wear on a cruise for men, consider your cruise line dress code as a starting point to help you plan what to wear in the evening. If you’re worried about formal dinners, don’t be. While people do still enjoy dressing up, black tie isn’t required and most men will be wearing less formal evening attire.
While there are some cruise lines that have remained traditional (ie. Cunard), other popular cruise lines have relaxed the expectations. “Gala” nights, “dressy” nights, and “Cruise Elegant” night on a Carnival cruise, have replaced the formal dinner.
Formal or Dressy Nights
For formal or elegant nights, there are a couple of options that are appropriate. You may want to pack a suit, along with dress pants and a long-sleeved shirt. However, another option is a sport coat or dinner jacket.
Make sure to pack dress shoes, dress socks and a belt.
In practice, some cruise lines are more or less strict. More casual cruise lines like Royal Caribbean, Carnival and MSC Cruises you might feel comfortable with a collared shirt and pair of pants.
Tip: Avoid ripped or cut off jeans, as well as shorts as this may not be permitted in the main dining room and nicer restaurants.
Smart Casual and Casual Evenings
The other evenings will be a casual or smart casual dress code. Most men will be wearing beige chinos, dark pants or nice jeans, with a polo style shirt. What you’d wear to a nice restaurant is perfect for dining rooms and restaurants on board.
Tip: Avoid pool or beach flip flops as pool attire isn’t allowed in restaurants.
Daytime Cruise Outfits
Caribbean and other warm weather cruises (Mexico, Bahamas, Bermuda) call for casual cruise wear during the day. When planning what to wear on a cruise, pack bathing suits for sea days and beach shore excursions, and shorts and t-shirts.
Remember comfortable walking shoes and sandals or flip flops for the pool.
Related: What to Pack for a Caribbean Cruise
Men’s Packing List for a Cruise
Here’s a men’s packing list for a 7 day cruise to use as a guide. Adjust to your own style and bring more or less, depending on if you plan to do laundry and how often you’ll change clothes.
- 3-4 pairs of shorts
- 5 t-shirts
- 2-3 bathing suits
- underwear
- sport & dress socks
- 2 pyjamas
- work-out clothes
- 1-2 pairs jeans
- 1-2 khakis
- 3-4 polo style shirts
- 1-2 buttoned or Hawaiian shirts
- 1 suit
- 1-2 dress shirts
- tie (optional)
- belt
- 1 sweatshirt or light jacket
- sandals or flip flops
- running or walking shoes
- dress shoes
- casual shoes
- baseball cap or hat
- sunglasses
Related: What Not to Wear on a Cruise
Cruise Wear for Men
Here are a few suggested men’s clothing items to pack for a cruise.
As we were getting ready for a recent cruise, my husband had a hard time finding resort wear and cruise attire for men in stores. We were pleasantly surprised at the stylish and affordable items we found on Amazon.
Classic Polo Shirt
Solid color classic polo shirts are perfect worn with shorts for sightseeing during the day in a cruise port. However, this is also great to wear for dinner in the evening with a pair of khakis or dark jeans.
Nautica is one of my husband and son’s favorite brands for casual men’s cruisewear for quality and comfort at a reasonable price.
Recommended: Nautica classic polo (dual tipped collar)
Classic Fit Shorts
Classic fit tan or beige shorts will go with t-shirts and polo shirts on a cruise, and always look nice.
Recommended: Dockers classic fit shorts (check price & style options on Amazon)
Comfortable Jersey Shorts
Lightweight casual jersey shorts with pockets are great to wear by the pool and around the cruise ship and ports. The material isn’t heavy and is great for warm weather cruises.
These men’s shorts are available in classic grey, navy blue, black and other colors.
Recommended: Champion jersey shorts (see price & over 40,000 Amazon reviews)
Sports t-shirts
Even if you aren’t working out, sports style short sleeve t-shirts will keep you cooler in the sun and heat on a Caribbean cruise. These shirts also look great when worn casually on a cruise.
Recommended: Underarmour sports t-shirt (see reviews & price on Amazon)
Men’s Hawaiian shirt
If you’re going on a Caribbean or any other tropical weather cruise, a Hawaiian shirt could come in handy for day and evening. Many cruise lines have a Caribbean deck party and Hawaiian shirts are perfect.
Men’s Hawaiian shirt (see other styles & reviews on Amazon here)
Men’s Swimsuit
Bring along at least 2 swim suits for a cruise. These men’s swim shorts are quick drying and comfortable, and great for beach and catamaran snorkeling excursions.
Recommended: Men’s swimsuit (quick dry & comfortable)
Classic Fit Men’s Khakis
Classic khakis are perfect for smart casual evenings on a cruise, especially worn in main dining rooms and restaurants. Pack one or two pairs of these classic pants and pair them with a buttoned shirt or polo.
Recommended: Docker’s mens khakis (available in standard & big & tall sizes)
Men’s Dress Shirt
If you’ll be participating in formal or chic night, a white men’s dress shirt is great to have. This Calvin Klein dress shirt is non-iron, making it a good choice to pack for cruising.
Recommended: Calvin Klein non-iron dress shirt (see price & amazon reviews here)
Men’s Suit
A dark well fitting suit is great to have if you plan on dressing for chic evenings (on Celebrity Cruises) or formal nights on any cruise line (even Cunard). If you’re packing a suit, dress shirt and any other items that are best kept wrinkle free, consider using a garment bag.
Recommended: Black or dark suit (sold as separates on Amazon)
Garment Bag for Travel
A rolling garment bag for travel is a good idea if you’re packing suits and other dressy clothes.
Recommended: Rolling garment bag (see Amazon reviews here)
Cruise Gear
Here are a few items that are useful to pack and bring on a cruise.
Men’s large hanging shaving/toiletry bag
Cruise power strip (Non-surge protected power bar with USBs)
Electronics and charger wire case
Waterproof phone case on lanyard
Electronic portable travel luggage scale
Video: What to Pack for Men on a Cruise
Related & Popular Posts:
- 50 Must-have Cruise Essentials from Amazon
- What to Pack for Alaska Cruises
- 21 Essential Things to Pack in Your Cruise Carry-On
- What to Pack for a Caribbean Cruise
- Cruise Wear over 50: Flattering Cruise Outfits for Women
- Best Travel Gadgets to Bring on a Cruise (tech items & electronics)
- 75 Genius Cruise Hacks and Tips: Get Organized, Save Money, Cruise Better
Final Thoughts on Cruise Wear for Men
I hope this men’s cruise packing list was helpful as you plan and get ready for your cruise. While this men’s packing list was geared for a Caribbean cruise, it can be adapted for Alaska cruises by adding warm clothes to layer, along with an outdoor waterproof jacket and waterproof shoes.
What items do you pack for a cruise that we can add to his list? Please let me know in the comments below.
Happy Cruising!
Ilana
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I enjoy this site. I am not sure when this packing list was developed, but I think it is somewhat unrealistic for today’s crusing. We have cruised many times on Celebrity, a fair amount on Princess and more recently HAL and Oceania. Basically, I think you could pare down this list significantly. One of my primary tenets for travel these days is as small and light at possible. In that light, modern fabrics and fashion have made that much easier. The world has trended toward a more casual dress style and there are some wonderful wrinkle free fabrics out there. Many of them are hand washable and dryable. I recently traveled to Europe for 15 days with a carryon size bag and a small daypack. Something to think about: NOBODY really notices (or cares) if you wear the same thing more than once. 🙂 – For the Caribbean the only formal place you will be is on the ship, and our experience is that what was described here for the “everynight” dining will also work perfectly well for “formal” (or equivalent) nights. Men: you only need a reasonalbly nice shirt, reasonably dressy pants and decent looking shoes. I would guess that I see less than 40% of men wearing jackets anymore. I have a blog in my qeue to post on this topic, which I will probably revise following this.
Author
Thanks for sharing your experience. Packing is very personal, with some people packing light and other people preferring options. A suit or jacket is always optional, and as you say, some people wear one and some don’t.
I have found that polo and tee shirts of polyester blends (I like 32Deg brand) take up less room and don’t wrinkle. I also wear my sport jacket when boarding rather than packing it and the extra pockets are handy.
Author
Good advice, thanks