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We are invited to a formal destination wedding in Barbados next month. They told us it will not be on the beach, but we’re not really sure if it’s outdoors or indoors. Does my husband have to wear a Jacket? And will a short-sleeved dress shirt pass? It’s hot and humid there and he is balking at long sleeves and a tie. I thought it was weird that the invitation didn’t say if it was outdoors or not.

–A.J.

A “formal destination wedding” means at the very least your husband should wear a summer suit or summer blazer or jacket with trousers, a collared-shirt and handsome tie. Out of respect for the bride on her wedding day, men will be wearing jackets and ties. It sounds as though the ceremony is not taking place on the beach, but in a hotel or a private home, where they have a tent with a wooden dance floor. On tropical islands such as Barbados there is an indoor-outdoor lifestyle where tiled and stone terraces with a wooden dance floor are used for dining and dancing.

Look at the invitation, if it specifies ‘Black Tie’ or ‘Formal Attire,’ your husband should dress accordingly. However, he can wear a white dinner jacket, because you’ll be in a tropical climate. It is not exactly a short-sleeved dress shirt, but cooler than a tuxedo jacket. At some point after the dancing begins the groom will take off his jacket, and that’s the cue for your husband to take off his jacket and fold his tie into one of the pockets and escort you onto the dance floor.

~Didi