What to Wear on a European River Cruise

Maybe you have just booked your first European river cruise and are looking forward to traveling down the beautiful Rhine or Danube. Undoubtedly you are excited at all the sites you will see. But are you confused about what to wear? You have also probably heard that river cruises tend to be much more casual than the typical ocean cruise. So, how casual is ‘casual’ and what should you pack?

We hope that this post will help you have a complete understanding of the types of clothing you need to pack so that you are not just comfortable, but also confident that your clothing will be completely appropriate for every activity.

Dressing for Each Activity

Let’s take a look at the kinds of activities that you will likely participate in as part of your cruise. There are daily site seeing excursions, cocktail hour, dinner, special evening events both aboard the ship and onshore, some active pursuits such as biking, hiking, canoeing or even workouts and swimming onboard your ship.

• Daily Wear Onboard the Ship – Outside of the dining room during meals and the lounge areas in the evening, you can feel free moving about the ship in just about anything. It is not uncommon to see a few folks in their pajamas grabbing a cup of coffee to take back to their stateroom early in the morning. Although I would not recommend staying in your PJ’s all day, typical lounge wear like yoga pants, shorts, etc. are just fine for hanging out during the day.

A lot of the river ships do not even have fitness centers or swimming pools. However, if your ship does and you wish to participate, then it’s very easy to dress for these activities. Pretty much anything you would ordinarily wear to the gym or to a resort pool will be just fine for your cruise.

• Active Pursuits – If you are participating in some outdoor activities like hiking or biking, you are going to want to dress in clothes that work for your level of physical activity and the weather. Technical clothes such as hiking pants or shorts, shirts, shoes or biking shorts are appropriate for any of these types of activities.

• Daily Site Seeing Excursions – First, regardless of the time of year, dressing in layers is always recommended. Obviously in cool temperatures, you will want to bring along a layer or two so that you can adjust to changing weather conditions. Even in warmer times of the year, you will want to be sure to have a layer to protect you from rain or the cooler temperatures inside of air-conditioned buildings. (Although frankly, we’ve rarely encountered super cold air conditioning anywhere in Europe.)

It’s kind of humorous, but if you research what to wear in Europe, you will read articles that tell you that you should dress like Europeans so that you do not stand out as a tourist. I have news for you, unless you are really experienced with the nuances of the local dress, you are going to look like a tourist. You will also hear that Europeans don’t wear jeans or shorts or sneakers, and that is simply not true anymore.

That said, you should not consider all of Europe as one monolithic culture. For example, eastern Europe tends to be a bit more conservative than western Europe, and southern Europe tends to be more relaxed than northern areas. Overall though, Europeans tend to be a bit more put together, even when dressed casually. So, what does this all mean for your day wear while you are on the cruise? Basically, it means you should dress casually and comfortably, but not sloppily.

Men can wear any type of well-fitting slacks, jeans or even shorts in warm weather. Personally, I recommend staying away from graphic tee shirts or shirts with sports team logos. These types of shirts are not that common in Europe. But there is certainly no rule against it, and there will inevitably be other folks on your excursions wearing these types of shirts.

Women can wear pants, jeans, casual dresses and skirts just about anywhere. I have noticed that although more European women are wearing shorts these days, they are typically the younger set. Older women still tend to wear slacks or capris. However, if the weather is warm and you want to wear tasteful shorts, there will very likely be other women on your excursions who opt to wear them too.  Simple tops, including sleeveless ones are generally fine as long as they are not too revealing. Just keep in mind that there are some churches and holy sites that require knees and shoulders to be covered. So be sure you understand your itinerary for the day, so that your shorts or shirts do not present a problem for entry into these sites.

For both men and women, your footwear needs to be comfortable since you will be doing a fair amount of walking. In summer, sandals, sneakers and walking shoes are all appropriate anywhere you will be touring. In cooler weather, comfortable boots or booties can be added to the list.

Don’t forget to bring along a hat and sunglasses. While Europeans have not fully embraced the baseball hat, you do see a few.  A lot of folks on your tour will be wearing them, so you will definitely not feel out of place.

For women, I recommend carrying an anti-theft purse while you are out and about touring.  Although crime is not a huge issue in most places, there are always some opportunists that are looking to take advantage of the tourist crowd.  So play it safe and leave expensive purses on the ship – or even at home.

Tip: Be sure you carefully review and understand all the details of your itinerary and excursions before you leave home. That way you will be sure you are packing the right clothes for all of the activities in which you will be participating.

• Cocktails, Dinner and Onboard Evening Activities – During breakfast and lunch, most everyone is dressed pretty casually. Usually you are having these meals either right before or right after your daily excursion, so most folks are dressed in their daily excursion wear. On most days you will have sufficient time after returning from your excursion to shower and change before cocktails and dinner, and most folks make an effort to dress up, even if just a bit.

If you read some of the online forums devoted to the topic of ‘what to wear to dinner’, you will find all sorts of opinions ranging from ‘who cares what I wear’ to ‘you should dress like they are going to a 5-star restaurant’. Most river cruise lines publish their dress code and some are stricter than others in their enforcement. But the truth of the matter is, with the possible exception of a Farewell or Captain’s Dinner, river cruises are intended to be more casual than ocean cruises. So, what to wear?

For gentlemen, dress slacks, khakis or chinos, paired with a collared shirt (including polo shirts) are all acceptable. Shorts and blue jeans are generally not part of the dress code. I have to say though, I have seen a few men wearing jeans at dinner and nothing was said. But jeans are in opposition to most dress codes, so I would recommend not even trying.

Although a few river cruise lines will ask gentlemen to wear a jacket for special events such as a Captain’s Dinner, in most cases you can leave the sports coats, suits and ties at home.

Women have a lot of clothing options, although jeans are not normally worn by the ladies either. Unless specified by your cruise line, cocktail dresses or gowns are not necessary. For cocktails and dinner, most women will wear a casual dress, slacks, capris or skirts paired with a dressy top.

You may be tempted to bring along some of your nicer jewelry for dressing up your outfits, but frankly most women do not bring many, if any, expensive pieces. However, there are typically safes in each stateroom, if you really want to bring some nice pieces.

In addition, a lot of women do not carry purses to dinner. Considering that river cruise ships are relatively small, you are never very far from your stateroom, so you can easily walk back to your stateroom if you need something.

UPDATE (August, 2022): Having just completed a European river cruise last month, there has been a notable change in the habits of travelers.  It seems like most everything is much more casual now, most notably during the dinner service.  While there has not been a change in the documented dress code, on our cruise jeans and shorts now seemed to be acceptable for both men and women during dinner on the ship.  So, you may want to keep that in mind if you are packing for an upcoming cruise.

Now that you know what is ‘acceptable’ dress, understand that there will be some people who really want to get dressed up in jackets and cocktail dresses. They enjoy dressing up and are more comfortable dressed that way. However, the vast majority of folks will be dressed nicely, but casually.

TIP: You may think that you have to have unique outfits for every day and evening. Consider creating a capsule wardrobe, so that you can mix and match pieces and reduce the overall amount of clothes you need to pack. For more tips on packing light, check out our blog post on this topic.

• Onshore Evening Activities – One possible exception to the casual nature of the river cruise could be some optional onshore activities such as a formal concert or a ballet performance. Certain performances may require suits and dresses. So, if you are participating in any of these activities, you may want to ask for some guidance from your cruise line regarding appropriate clothing.

Final Thoughts

Let me just conclude by saying that everyone has a different idea about what is appropriate. You may feel differently about the types of clothing suggested in this post – and that is fine. Other than the dress code guidelines that are particular to each cruise line, there are no rules. If you are happy with your choices – then go for it!