Expert Exchange: Cruise Ship Workers

[OuttaInc]

Has anybody here ever worked on a cruise ship?

My mc is a female human who worked on a cruise ship.

I'm looking for an expert (current or former cruise ship worker) who could answer these questions: Where do cruise personnel relax off the clock? Are they allowed to sun themselves at the pool alongside guests when they aren't working? Are they allowed to hang out at the bar onboard when not working? Or must they stay below deck until reaching port? Does it matter what their job is, eg, band member versus housekeeping?

Thanks to anyone who might be in a position to respond!

 

[Toby Frost]

I personally know nothing about this, but Jon Ronson wrote a long article in which he investigated the disappearance of Rebecca Coriam, a worker who disappeared from a Disney cruise ship. I think it's in his book Lost At Sea. It's about one person on one ship, but it might be worth looking up.

Disappearance of Rebecca Coriam - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[tinkerdan]

I don't have direct experience.
However back in the mid 80"s my second wife was hosts, waitress and manager at a number of local hotel restaurants and many of her co-workers did have experience with cruise ships. I wish I could remember everything they talked about when we entertained,.
However there is a site on line that seems to hit some of the bullet points as I do remember them.

I've worked on cruise ships for over 6 years. Here's an inside look at what it's like living on board.

From sharing 120-square-foot cabins to partying at the crew bar, here's what it's really like living on a cruise ship, per a longtime employee.

www.insider.com

Ex-Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Line workers reveal what it's really like to live at sea

Business Insider spoke with 39 current and former cruise line employees who described what it's like to live and work on a cruise ship.

www.businessinsider.com

The site does have some annoying adverts, just FYI.

 

[sknox]

There are also some YouTube videos by cruise ship workers.

 

[JS Wiig]

If there’s a cruise ship worker forum somewhere on the interwebs that could be a source of useful information.

BTW great idea with the Expert Exchange!

 

[Lex E. Darion]

Hi, I worked as a nurse on Princess Cruises for 14 months back in 2013.

A lot does depend on what job you do. As a nurse I had 'officer' status, so I had more freedoms than most.

Off the clock, most would hang out at either the crew bar, or the officers' mess (officers were allowed in both, non-officers only in crew bar). Lots and lots of parties and themed nights.

On Princess ships, there was a crew pool and (IIRC) we were only allowed in the passengers' area when in port (and most of the passengers were off ship).

I could go to the shows, the passenger bars and restaurants but had to pay full price for drinks - the 'below decks' bars were subsidised and therefore more popular! If we did go on deck then we had to be dressed in our formal uniforms - again, making the crew/mess bars a better option. It was nice to go on deck sometimes for a special occasion but not to just chill out.

Let me know if you have any other questions I can help with

 

[OuttaInc]

Hi, I worked as a nurse on Princess Cruises for 14 months back in 2013….
…

Let me know if you have any other questions I can help with

This is AWESOME! Thank you so much!

I’m in the midst of putting out a few small domestic fires at the moment but as soon as things settle here I will reread this more carefully and ask one or two more questions.

Again, thank you so much!