Dressing for a river cruise

I think that would be fine. Everybody's in the same boat, so to speak, and tourists tend to be more casual due to your reasons above. I took the Danube cruise a couple years ago (GC) and don't remember packing anything too cumbersome to get me into the captain's dinner! Bon Voyage!

The slacks and nice sweater will work fine. We did a river cruise 2 years ago and some of the men wore jackets, but many just wore nice shirts and slacks. Our clothes were a little fancier than we wore on our RS tour, but not as fancy as you hear on most cruises. We were on a Viking cruise. We each carried one 24" bag.

The slacks and nice sweater will work fine. We did a river cruise 2 years ago and some of the men wore jackets, but many just wore nice shirts and slacks. Our clothes were a little fancier than we wore on our RS tour, but not as fancy as you hear on most cruises. We were on a Viking cruise. We each carried one 24" bag.

We took a river cruise two years ago and I took used nice slacks and a blazer. One of my shirts was a white one with stripes on it that could be worn with or without a tie. Rather than pack the blazer I wore it in transit a although it spent the flight loosely folded in the overhead bin which stored it but didn't wrinkle it.

I was on an Avalon river cruise last fall. Most men wore a button down shirt to the captains dinner, very few ties. A few sports coats. Some ladies really dressed up, more had a blouse, maybe a scarf and a sweater or lighter blazer like topper. Enjoy.

Tom the cruiseline likely is pretty clear on dress expectations for their line, but from what I have heard ( I have only sea cruised) river cruising is a lot more casual on most lines. Suggest also you ask this on cruisecritics.com forums that is actually the best forum on the internet for all things cruising.

Avalon: "Dress aboard and on shore is casual. Please bring comfortable walking shoes for sightseeing. Dinner attire is casualopen-neck shirts, slacks, dresses. Coats and ties may be worn. The Captain's Welcome and Farewell Dinners are dressy, but not formal. On the Mekong coats and ties are not recommended due to the warm humid climate." Uniworld: "The dress code on the ship is best described as country club casual/business casual. While at dinner some prefer to wear nice slacks and a button down dress shirt, you are not required. You certainly do not have to wear a tie, sport jacket, or dress coat. A pair of nice jeans or khakis and a polo shirt or similar, would be perfectly acceptable for dinner. There is no strict dress code enforcement and we encourage you to be as comfortably dressed as you would like." Viking: "Dress is casual and comfortable, both on board and ashore. Because the weather can be unpredictable, it is best to bring layershave a sweater or light jacket for spring and summer, and a heavier jacket for chillier months. Rain can happen at any time, so a collapsible umbrella is a "must." You are likely to do a good deal of walking during shore excursions, so you will definitely want sturdy, comfortable walking shoes; but, since our ships are much smaller than ocean cruising vessels, you do not have to worry about too much walking on board. "There are no "formal nights" on board, but there is usually a Captain's Welcome Dinner and/or Farewell Dinner; on many itineraries, you will attend a concert, ballet performance or other dressier event. For these evenings, you might like to bring "dressy casual" wear."

Hi I'm on Avalon cruise right now, casual dress is the order of the evening, first night I wore a tie and quickly removed it I was the only on wearing one.
Don't stress, be comfortable.. regards

THANK YOU . . . one and all . . . I guess the "fancy" stuff stays home . . . thank goodness . . . more room in my suitcase!

Yes, the large cruise ships are more formal than the river cruises. You'll be fine bringing what you proposed.

We have taken 2 Viking Cruises....Danube and Eastern Europe. Not that many men wore sport jackets - don't think I saw a suit. Unless you are the type of man that only feels comfortable in a sport jacket I would leave it at home and use the space for something else!

We got back from our Danube River cruise with 3 days in Prague just a day or two before the European flooding took place that probably cancelled or disrupted many river cruises. Anywho, to answer my own question, No, you do not have to "dress up" for the captain's dinner. There were a few guys wearing ties and jackets, but most went without. I wore my travel jacket, khakis and a dressy shirt and felt right in place. We went on an AmaWaterways cruise on their new Amaprima and ENJOYED IT TO THE MAX. Very nice accommodations and staff. Highly recommend it! Most of the excursions and entertainment were "free". We paid for only 2 optionals - a concert in Vienna and a folk dinner and show in Prague. When we got back I was complaining that out of 14 days, we had 12 1/2 days of rain or threatening rain. Then we heard about the flooding and I was thankful we missed that.

On Avalon, many gentlemen wore a dress shirt, most with no tie. Some had a sweater or blazer type. The clothing varied greatly at the dinners. It did not seem to be a big deal to be more casual. I saw very few suits, but did see dressier pants with button down shirt or sweater. I loved the Rhine cruise. Enjoy.