Jeans in England

It is normal. You can walk around as a tourist in jeans in England in September.

Same age as you and I always wear them during my Fall trips to London.

No rips or tears though. Just a faded comfortable look.

And wearing them does not identify you as a tourist. Locals wear them.

Honestly do a Google search for images of Parliament Or Trafalgar Square(s) London. Identify which individuals are the tourists and which are the locals.

Jeans are universal attire these days.

Enjoy your trip. Great city!

You will see a lot of people of all ages wearing jeans. I would suggest a dark denim for this time of year with a nice cut. I am in my 50's and I always take my jeans anytime I am in England.

I agree with the others. Jeans are fine. I usually take a pair of dark wash blue and a pair of black. You can wear jeans quite a while before having to wash them.

Will be in Bath and London next month, with dressy jeans and stylish jackets. I plan to wear them to tour the Palace as well. I will leave my ripped jeans and faded ones home. I am 59.5.

Yep, tipping toward the late 60s but wear jeans all the time in England (and France and Germany, etc, lol!!). My suggestion is to get jeans that are not all cotton. The more poly they have the better they will dry overnight. My current capsule wardrobe consists of dark wash blue jeans, black jeans and gray jeans.

I often travel for a month or more and I sink wash including my jeans. Yes, I will wear them 5-6 times before they need washing, then I want a blend that will dry overnight.

Also, dont take brand new jeans that are dark wash because the color may stain your towels if you sink wash.

The only place I have every been denied entrance in jeans is going for drinks at the Ritz. Other than that you will be fine. :)

Why would you even think jeans would be unsuitable in England? They are absolutely the most commonly worn garment worldwide!

There seems to be some sort of misapprehension that English people dress smartly.... we really don't. I wear jeans to work at a major and very respectable British company!

Or do you mean because of the weather? Most Brits wear jeans year-round. No one knows what the weather will hold but jeans work for all but the hottest or coldest days in our temperate climate!

I wear them every day. Very comfortable. And since it hasn't been hot at all, they seem to be perfect for the weather.

Contrary to popular belief, the people here don't dress like they do in Downton Abbey. :)

For some odd reason, a lot of the younger Brits are wearing them with rip holes through the knees.

You will see lots of advice not to wear jeans if you are venturing into the countryside and off the beaten track for any length of time. Reason for this is that if it rains hard (and it might) jeans have very little water resistance, don't retain heat when wet and take a fair while to dry. So not good to wear wet for any length of time outside the city. Around town, fine, you can take shelter if necessary, although I always take a pair of walking trousers with me even on London visits because the weather can't always be relied on and it's nice to have an alternative.

Otherwise, the only other reason you wouldn't want to wear jeans is if where you are going has a dress code, like the aforementioned Ritz, where they'd probably take exception to sneakers and might also want men to wear jacket and tie. So anywhere you plan to go like that would be best checked out beforehand.

Otherwise, yes, jeans are de rigeur in the UK! Typed wearing a pair of jeans!

Have a great trip.

Ian

I am always bemused with these kinds of question regarding appropriate clothing. It seems to be a concern for many Americans. It also shows the different stereotypes of British people that are out there; Americans seem to think that Brits dress like Colin Firth or Hugh Grant, whereas most Europeans tend to think of the Brits as a bunch of hooligans.

The obsession with clothing and not looking like a tourist seems constant and quite amusing to me. Focusing on being respectful of other people and cultures surely is more important.

whereas most Europeans tend to think of the Brits as a bunch of hooligans.

Strangely it seems most Europeans conveniently forget about their hooligan/ultra contingent which is arguably far worse than in Britain.

Perhaps Morten would like to watch this video..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHnfR_4R1gY

Jeans are a worldwide phenom and accepted everywhere, if they don't look grungy. Try for colors.

The reason I'm anti-jean when travelling is they are heavy to pack and wear, aren't good when it's hot and are murder when they get wet because they take days to dry. As noted above, at least try for some that have a cotton/poly mix to help speed up the drying (and stain resistance and removal). To me the easiest and best answer for travel pants is to get some chinos in various colors.

JC, I apologize if my comment caused offence, i did not intend to start a discussion on hooliganism. Chavs would be more accurate, but I used the term hooligans, since I assumed most Americans would be familiar with the term. To put it in another way, most Europeans probably think of the Brits as more Onslow than Mrs. Hyachint, since that's the type we usually run into at the beach on Costa del Sol etc.

"most Europeans probably think of the Brits as more Onslow than Hyacinth"

Morten that's perfect! We have both Onslows and Hyacinths on this forum - figuratively speaking!

"Oh, nice...." - I've taken Onslow as my role model in life. I'm succeeding at it, too!

Posted by JC
Portsmouth
08/11/17 04:46 PM
318 posts
These days it's impossible to do or say anything without somone being offended, much of it however is faux outrage and has more to do with virtue signalling than anything else.

Hmmm

Thanks for all the answers. I asked the question because on my previous trips to Europe I didn't see a lot of "older" women in jeans. Granted I am usually there in the warmer months when jeans would be too heavy - thus the question. I also don't necessarily want to look like a tourist.

Several years ago I went to Italy on a moment's notice - I decided to go at 2am and was on a plane to Venice at 5am (Son was in ICU in hospital in Pordonone Italy). I threw some jeans and tennis shoes into my bag. Well, after two weeks of glares and stares on the street I bought some slacks and leather shoes:) I think for the most part things have changed quite a bit even in Italy:) I still feel more comfortable in Jeans in England than in Italy however!

JC, I apologize if my comment caused offence, i did not intend to start a discussion on hooliganism. Chavs would be more accurate,

Don't worry Morten, I wasn't offended. Chavs would be more appropriate however they tend to be concentrated in particular resorts and can be easily avoided.

I also don't necessarily want to look like a tourist.

No matter what you wear, if you walk around holding a travel book or map, take pictures incessantly with your smartphone or camera, and stop in the middle of a sidewalk to look up in the air or out into the distance, you will look like a tourist.

Wear what you like to wear at home. No need for a separate wardrobe.

Yes, of course! It is the norm that people wear jeans as fashion, no matter what your age :)

I will note that London women tend to go for fairly tight pants, even if they're accessorizing with a hijab further up the body. So if you want to blend better, go for stretch jeans instead of boot cut.

Yes, you can wear jeans. Wear what fits your body. I wear wide leg boot cut jeans designed and sold by a British company (go figure), and I could care less if everyone else is wearing tight, skinny leg jeans because my legs aren't fitting into any skinny jeans.

We have no idea of your build so wear what you have now, and have a good time!

I'm off to Scotland next week, and am only packing blue jeans; I'm 63. I've warned friends and family there : "No fancy dinners out" I'm not dressing up!

@Keith: too funny.