Jeans

Jeans have been acceptable in Europe (and the world) for donkey's years. Where have you been?

I am absolutely a donkey... but even in the early part of the millenium ran into some who had problems...Thank you!

Where I come from jeans are work pants. You might wear a new pair to town or to go boogieng. They are not acceptable in church or anywhere else.

You're saying one can't visit a church in jeans?????? Done it a zillions times-no problem. I wouldn't attend a service, wedding, or funeral in them; but that's a different question.

Yes jeans are fine, but I would think a light pair of chinos would be more comfortable - remember we don't really do air conditioning over here :-)

On the other hand, if he's on his way to Amsterdam anytime soon, jeans will be perfect as far as comfort is concerned. You can wear jeans anywhere...it's 2013 after all. As for Amsterdam, I was just there in Sept, and jeans were as ubiquitous there as they are here. But don't just take my word for it...even the great Norse god RS himself now swears by his jeans. Check out the newest edition of his travel skills special, where he specifically includes jeans as his go to pants of choice. Funny it took him a few decades to figure what everyone else has been doing forever.

People who suddenly become single tend to dress differently than when the were married;)

Good point. Maybe it's like the guy who just shaved off his huge mustache after 20 years...and is now thinking, "God, I looked like a mix between a cowboy and Freddy Mercury, but nobody ever said anything that whole time!" Should have been updated years ago.

Hah! That is a great point about a huge 'stache. Now our beloved leader RS just has to lose those AWFUL Beaver Cleaver short-sleeved gingham shirts, and he'll have joined us in the 21st century! :-) George - to your question. Yes. Revel in the comfort of jeans. One thing you might notice, though, is that European men tend toward (I said "tend" - this isn't universal) a more fashion forward style of jean. The "mom jean" faded-wash high-waisted peg-legged thing is not as popular there as it is here in mid-America.

Michael, I saw RS on a PBS special on travel skills. When he talked about jeans I almost fell off the couch!

I wear jeans everywhere, including Europe. And yes Monte, I also wear them to work, so I guess they could be considered work clothes. Of course I work in an office in a city, not a ranch. I see jeans everywhere in Europe.

Wearing jeans in Europe is perfectly fine. However, travelling with jeans poses a different problem. Jeans take forever to dry once they are wet. So if they get wet by accident (e.g. in the rain) or because you need to wash them, you might not be able to dry them before you have to leave for your next place ... chinos and similar fabrics are easier to travel with for that reason.

I wouldn't attempt to wash my jeans in the sink, but I have machine washed them and hung them to dry. They have always been dry within 24 hours. I wear them on the plane and have even...gasp...packed a 2nd pair too.

Turning the tables a bit, is it okay for a Frenchman to wear his "form-fitting" Speedo on vacation in California? I've seen it in Del Mar and Laguna Beach the last couple of years, and it isn't a pretty sight. Who knows, in France they may have their own Frenchy version of the Helpline, where a bunch of American-loving vacationers from France post all kinds of crap about how to fit in like a local American.

Maichael fat old men in board shorts with their bellies hanging over the waist are not any prettier then Europeon men in Speedos, so really, lets not go there. lets face it, its not what you wear but how you wear it... and your figure to be blunt.This applies to women too, 300 lbs in bikini,, not so nice, 130 lbs in bikini, can be very nice. We aren't suppose to judge by appearance but anyone who says they don't even notice is just lying. Speedos are worn by all Olympic swim teams,, and I can assure you some of them do in fact "look a pretty site"...

George, nice well fitted jeans are acceptable anywhere in Europe.. farmer jeans, while acceptable are certainly not considered fashionable . Faded ripped etc, not cool either. In Paris a women may wear jeans out to most restaurants, and DO, with a nice blouse, a blazer, and some heels they are perfectly acceptable. Men would also wear them with a button up shirt and a blazer ( not if roasting hot of course) . Jeans are however as some have wisely pointed out, not the best for longer trips unless you have rented accomadation with a washer and dryer .. they can be worn without washing for quite awhile, but eventually must be washed, as also if you spill something on them. I would however never recommend jeans for Italy in july or august as that to me would be pure torture, its HOT AS HADES then ,, lightweight chinos or khakis make way more sense hands down. You may not wear shorts in any church in Italy. In France you may ( France is a secular country, but Italy is most definately not)

Thank you all...yes or no would have sufficed but often the fun on this helpline is tracking the unusual direction the discussion follows...we are off to tilt with some other windmills and an occasional tulip-Good travelling one and all...

Our first trip to Europe in 08 (Italy/UK), I made my husband pack a pair of black khaki pants...he lives in jeans here at home, and guess what? Those pants never came out of the bag. I also had grand thoughts in my head of doing wash, but not having a plan in place to stay at hotels or whatnot along the way that offered laundry facilities...needless to say, our plan to find laundromats along the way went out the door (never had the time!) and after about 16 days we finally get to my sister's in the UK and were able to wash. The great thing about jeans - they hide most stains (we had a few pair each)...but now I make sure that if we are going away for 3 weeks to stay somewhere with laundry facilities at least 7 and 14 days in. Or to make sure I know where the local laundromat is and block a few hours to go there and use it. As others said, wear what's comfortable and don't take something you never wear at home cuz you probably won't wear it there (or is that just my husband? lol)

"As others said, wear what's comfortable and don't take something you never wear at home cuz you probably won't wear it there (or is that just my husband? lol)" I think that applies to most people!

But what about shorts?

And running shoes?

White tennis shoes?

With black socks?

Hmmmmm...I guess us guys better not even think about trying a thong, regardless of what side of the pond we're on...lol

Lol Glenn!! That reminds me of something that happened years ago. My mother-in-law was visiting from Houston and we spent a week in Santa Cruz. One day we were at the beach and 2 men were walking down the beach, in what we thought were speedos, holding hands. If that wasn't enough to make her head spin, as they walked by, lo and behold they were wearing thongs. And I'm not talking about flip flops. She was flabbergasted and I was laughing so hard at her reaction I had tears rolling down my face.

"is it okay for a Frenchman to wear his "form-fitting" Speedo on vacation in California?" No! Not okay anywhere! Except the Olympics, like Pat said. Andrea, omg... what a sight that must have been. Thank goodness you didn't take her to the Castro in SF... totally naked guys hanging out in the plaza on Market St.

I have worn Jeans in 12 European countries without one glance or stare from a local. I have worn them in the biggest and greatest churches and museums, no problems at all. I was wondering how this one girl got in, she was wearing a skimpy mini skirt, fishnet tanktop with her whole bra exposed and thong sandals in Notre Dame. If she csn get in, you can get in.

We find that wearing dark trouser jeans are acceptable anywhere in Europe. The dark denim. is a lot dressier than light denimn. We have been to Europe four years in a row for a total of three months. We saw a lot of dark blue jeans or black denim.

Brenden, remember France is alot different then Italy, in France , being technically and offically a secular country they basically don't care what you wear in a church( well some may care but they won't stop you from visiting ) in Italy they can ve VERY strict on their decency clauses and they do post people at the doors of many churches to stop people who are not appropriately dressed.

I wore jeans all over London, Paris, and southwest England for the last three years and fit right in with the natives. Never had a problem. Tommy Bahama makes a lightweight kind of jeans that are comfy even on hot days. And, as someone who lives at the beach in California, I can tell you that wearing Speedos will make you the constant subject of jokes.

If you want to see what people are wearing in any city you are going to visit, check some webcams for that city, or a Google Street view. Honestly though, the whole thing with jeans being a rarity, stopped about 40 years ago. Everyone wears the same things today with only minor differences in styles, thanks to the big chain stores, like H&M, Zara, Benetton, Ed Hardy, Hollisters, Abercrombie & Fitch, etc. Same thing with shoes. Everyone wears Nikes, Adidas, and Puma shoes. Foot Lockers are everywhere.

You can wear your jeans to St Peter's Basilica in Rome.
And if you can wear them there, you can wear them anywhere! It's up to you...

The original question was whether jeans are now "acceptable," which I understand to mean "can I get away with it without anybody throwing me out?" The answer is "Yes you can get away with it. No need to show respect to your hosts." America has set the standard for slovenly and disrespectful behavior, and RS has succumbed.

This is an ancient thread on a desupported section of the helpline, FYI.

Ancient thread and the person who revived it doesn't know what they are talking about. Europeans wear jeans. Why is it disrespectful for Americans to wear them?