Cruise Ship Jobs Blog

One of the biggest myths about cruise ship jobs is that you’ll have lots of time to travel and see the world. Although working on a cruise ship allows the crewmember the opportunity to see different parts of world, the time ashore is definitely limited. That being said, crewmembers learn to make the most of their off-duty time.

It’s important to know when applying for cruise ship jobs that you WILL be working seven days a week. You will also work an average of 11 hours per day. It’s up to the crewmember to decide if they want to rest on their break or go ashore.

Each cruise port has its pluses and challenges. Some cruise ports you can walk right off the ship and you’re within easy walking distance of town. On the other hand, some ports are located far from town and require a shuttle bus.  Also, consider that big cruise ships tend to dock in commercial container ports because of their size which adds to the lack of convenience.

Typically, there is a complimentary crew shuttle that will take crew from the ship to major shopping centers like Costco, Walmart or a mall. Some crewmembers plan activities together and go ashore as a group to the beach, for a hike, or to a local restaurant. Often times, tours are available to crewmembers at a discounted rate.

Each cruise ship job will have different hours to work and port day hours off are rotated within the department you work. Although one port day you may not be able to go ashore, your opportunity for hours off may be the next day. For more information about working on cruise ships, visit WorkOnCruiseShips.com.

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It’s no secret that one of the big reasons to work on a cruise ship is to travel. But, just how much traveling does a crew member get to do? Even the word travel means different things to different people.

When hired for a cruise ship job, you are usually placed on a particular ship for a specific amount of time. For example you may be hired by Princess Cruises and for your first contract you join the Diamond Princess in Vancouver in August.

If this is the case and your contract is for six months you will get to see Alaska for the rest of August and part of September. After that, the ship repositions to Asia and visits places such as Russia, Japan, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Hong Kong and Singapore. How exciting to visit so many countries in such a short time.

On the other hand if you are hired by a cruise line such as Disney Cruise Line, their itineraries are limited. You may spend a couple contracts or more on a ship that only cruises in the Bahamas or the Caribbean. This may be just perfect for someone that loves to stay in warm weather locales.

But, if your idea is to see the world, then make sure you apply for cruise ship jobs with companies that offer a wide range of itineraries. Unfortunately, once you get hired, you will not likely get to choose the ship you will work on.  Although the longer you work on cruise ships, the more you will experience.

For more information about working on cruise ships, visit the website, WorkOnCruiseShips.com.

Check out next week’s blog, Working on a Cruise Ship: Off Duty.

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Despite Europe’s economic crises, the Neptun Werft shipyard in Rostock, Germany continues to build river cruise ships for Viking River Cruises.  In fact Viking is launching six longships in 2012 and another six in 2013.

The Viking Njord and Viking Freya will debut on April 15 and 18 then the Viking Embla and Viking Aegir will launch on July 8 and August 15, respectively. Comparatively, Avalon Waterways will be adding four new ships by the end of 2013 as well. Avalon’s VP of Marketing, Steve Born told USA Today that they see “continued double-digit growth for the category in coming years.”

What does this mean for those looking to work on a cruise ship? Jobs! And, lots of them. WorkOnCruiseShips.com lists hundreds of jobs on cruise ships in their Latest Vacancies section, many of them are for river cruise ships.

Alternatively, if you want to be proactive, send your resume directly to the cruise line. Check out the A-Z Directories for updated contact information. Keep in mind that many of these cruise lines also use cruise agencies to assist with the recruitment process.

Get your resume and cover letter out too these employers as soon as possible. Summer is just around the corner and the European river cruising season is about to be in full swing. For more information about working on cruise ships, visit www.workoncruiseships.com.

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If you want to work on a cruise ship, sending your resume and cover letter to the head office of a cruise line is NOT the only way to get a cruise ship job. Applicants must understand that most major cruise lines work with a network of hiring partners to assist in recruitment around the world.

These hiring partners are approved agencies that act as third party service providers. Their responsibilities are to pre-screen and present qualified applicants to the cruise line recruiter for final approval. Keep in mind that the hiring partners do not have the authority to hire applicants or decide on an assignment for approved applicants.

At WorkOnCruiseShips.com we give you the resources to help you land a job on a cruise ship. Get to know where to send your resume and when recruitment events in your area are happening. Our A-Z Directories list cruise lines, agencies and concessionaires. These directories contain links to online applications and contact information.

Unfortunately, applicants must be aware of cruise job recruitment scams. There are bogus agencies out there that prey on people looking for jobs on cruise ships. They charge fees and then you are out cash and still don’t have a job.

Make sure you are working with a reputable agency. Understand that legitimate agencies should not charge for services such as uploading your resume, obtaining an interview or a ship assignment. In fact, cruise lines pay the hiring partners for their services and do not allow them to collect fees from the applicants (except for costs involved with joining the ship such as visas and medicals).

Often times an agency may work with more than one cruise line. Be careful when submitting multiple applications for the same cruise ship job, it could result in your disqualification as a candidate!

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To land a job working on a cruise ship, it takes more than an awesome resume. The fact is that if the right person doesn’t read your employment package, the chances of you getting called for an interview are slim to none.

There is plenty of advice on the cruise ship jobs forum about finding the contact information of appropriate hiring managers.  Some of our A-Z Directories also have contact names and email addresses for specific recruiters of cruise ship jobs. Unfortunately, some names and contact information are more difficult to track down than others.

But, just because you can’t find the exact name of the hiring manager it doesn’t mean that you can kiss working on a cruise ship good-bye. Cruise line recruiters are very busy people and their employment pages are set up in a way to filter the right candidates to the right hiring managers.

Getting back to that awesome resume, although having a name to send the application package to is the icing on the cake, the content of your application is paramount. Even if you have the right name to send your resume to, your resume must still shine over the next applicant.

Instead of concentrating on finding the name of the hiring manager, make sure your resume and cover letter will be the best one that reaches his/her desk. With a goal of working on a cruise ship, getting the name of a hiring manager takes skill and persistence. We’ll cover how it’s done in a blog later this month.

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What does it take to be a great employee, the kind of employee that cruise lines want to have? Beyond the right experience and skills, some additional qualities make potential candidates stand out when applying for jobs on cruise ships.

1.  Proactive and driven – Cruise employers want employees that will exceed expectations. This stems from the fact that cruise lines want their guests to have onboard experiences that exceed their expectations. These types of employees are adaptable, they think on their feet, and they show initiative without being asked.

2.  Extroverted personality – Someone that stands out in a crowd yet is easily approachable are great traits to have when working on cruise ships. Those who aren’t afraid to make work fun, tend to have an infectious personality. On the other hand employees also need to know when to stop expressing their individuality and be serious.

3.  Ability to lead and follow – Employees that can take direction but also have the ability to manage others is another quality that makes applicants successful at getting cruise ship jobs. The fact is that many applicants are overqualified for cruise jobs they are applying for. Being able to present yourself as a diligent worker gets your foot in the door. Being able to be a leader gets you promoted.

For more information about getting hired to work on a cruise ship, visit the website, www.workoncruiseships.com.

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