I was recently invited by Saga to join them on a Danube river cruise. We cruised from Budapest to Bucharest onboard the Filia Rheni and had an amazing time. Despite doing my research prior to the cruise I found very little information in regards to dress codes. In this post, I will be sharing some examples of what I wore during the cruise.
What Is The Dress Code On Saga River Cruises?
Most guests on Saga cruises dress in ‘smart casual’ attire for evenings. This includes dresses, skirts or trouser/blouse combinations for women and usually a shirt and trousers for men. There is no dress code during the day and guests on excursions are encouraged to dress comfortably.
Saga’s website has very little information about dress codes and non were explicitly mentioned to us during the cruise. Despite this, most guests seemed to dress well. Some made a lot of effort with their outfits.
What is the Day Time Dress Code?
There is no specific dress code for Saga river cruises during the day, guests wore a variety of things. We cruised on the Danube in August and as a result it was hot the majority of the time. Most guests were wearing shorts/T-shirts during the day.
Pool wear wouldn’t be appropriate inside the ship but on the top deck, this is totally fine. They do have a pool after all! We had long sailing days on the Danube which meant that a lot of guests spent their time sunbathing on the top deck.
Guests have to wear shoes at all times, this isn’t exactly surprising but any kind of shoes are fine. Most guests on our cruise were wearing flip flops or sandals.
What is the Dress Code for Dinner?
Saga river cruises don’t have ‘formal’ nights in the traditional sense. Their evening dress code is quite relaxed and I doubt that anybody would be challenged if they didn’t comply. The dress code is the same every day. Saga has the following to say in regards to dress codes:
Leave the ballgown at home. People tend to wear comfortable clothing for sightseeing during the day, while evenings are a little bit more dressy, although men certainly don’t need ties or jackets. – source.
As long as you are comfortable and smart, you’ll be appropriately dressed.
Captains Welcome and Farewell
If guests do want to dress up the captain hosts ‘welcome’ and ‘farewell’ drinks/dinners at the start and end of the cruise where most guests wore their favourite outfits. We attended both of these and enjoyed our free glass of bubbly!
The dinner is ‘extra special’ on Welcome and Farewell evenings and has about 5 courses. All of which are great. To learn more about the food on Saga cruises check out this post which goes into detail about all meals: Saga River Cruises: 7 Things You Should Know Before Booking.
I took the above photo before the captains farewell drinks. I’m not too sure why I’m on one leg like a flamingo!
Dress Code For Men: Most men onboard wore a shirt and trousers. Chino’s would be appropriate. Some wore ‘traditional’ shirts and some wore polo shirts. The shirts would often be checkered or have some sort of pattern or design. Don’t be afraid to express yourself through your shirt!
I don’t remember seeing any men wearing jackets or ties although there may have been a few. You certainly wouldn’t look out of place if you wanted to do this but it isn’t expected. The lack of jackets may have been to do with us cruising on the Danube in August!
Dress Code For Women: Most women onboard wore a skirt, dress or trousers/blouse. The dress code really isn’t too strict so as long as you are clean and presentable you won’t have any problems.
On a few occasions, I wore maxi dresses and on others, I wore a dress just above the knee. I wouldn’t wear anything particularly short but apart from this pretty much anything goes.
Some passengers really made an effort with their dress and wore lovely outfits. Others didn’t make as much effort but regardless of how much effort you had made, we were all made to feel special at dinner.
The relaxed atmosphere was one of my favourite things about my Saga cruise. To learn more about the cruise make sure you read my daily cruise diary which takes you through everything we did, everywhere we went and everything we ate: Saga Danube River Cruise – Daily Diary and Review.
What Should I Wear On Excursions?
Clothes:
You don’t have to wear anything specific for excursions with Saga. If an excursion requires a certain type of clothing you will be told about this at the time of booking at reminded of this before the trip. Saga really do look after you!
Shoes:
We took an excursion on the Danube Delta which involved getting into boats and we were advised to wear closed-toe shoes for this and comfortable clothing. On some river cruises, you’ll find yourself walking a lot so comfortable shoes are a must.
Exercise Wear
I didn’t pack any exercise clothes for my cruise with Saga. I have to admit, I didn’t think that they would have any exercises classes onboard but I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were.
A couple of times during the cruise we took part in a ‘light stretch’ and ‘light Zumba’ which was a lot of fun. We hadn’t bought any workout clothes so we just wore a pair of light shorts and a t-shirt.
The exercise classes sometimes happened on the top deck and sometimes in the main lounge. It was really warm during our cruise so even ‘light’ Zumba had me sweating! All of the guests that took part had a great time and I’d definitely recommend doing so if you are taking a Saga river cruise. There were guests of all fitness levels taking part and exercises were modified for different levels of ability.
To learn more about my cruise make sure you check out my daily cruise diary, it details everything we did and everywhere we went. Saga River Cruise Review, Danube.
Above is a photo of my Zumba outfit. We passed through a lock before our Zumba class which was really cool. I’ve been through locks on river cruises before but never one quite like this. If you’d like to learn more about river cruising, check out the video below:
Splendours of The Danube
The river cruise that I took with Saga was called ‘Splendours of the Danube’.
I learnt a lot from my cruise with Saga. There were quite a few things that surprised me about the cruise but overall we had a positive week and really enjoyed our time onboard.
In the video below you’ll have a quick tour of the ship and experience embarkation day with me. Make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel, I bring you a new video every week. Emma Cruises, YouTube Channel.
To learn more:
Visit Saga’s website here: https://bit.ly/2JvsHmp
(affiliate link)
Where To Next?
If you’re considering your first cruise, or would just like to learn a little more about cruising, this post is a brilliant place to start: 67 Cruise Tips From 67 Cruisers.
The post shares tips from 67 real cruisers and takes you through from embarkation to disembarkation. By reading this guide you’ll be better prepared for your cruise than 99% of other cruisers!
If you have any cruise questions or stories/photos you’d like to share, please join us in our Facebook group!
