Cruise Ship Jobs Blog

The Costa Concordia was indeed a tragic accident, but the fact remains that working on a cruise ship is still a safe environment.

In 2011, over 16 million passengers cruised according to Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). Between 2005 and 2010, cruise lines carried almost 100 million passengers with a total of 16 deaths related to marine casualties. This compares with 30 deaths per 100 million for airline industry fatalities over the same period as documented by GP Wild News.

Other interesting stats, as pointed out by the Travel Editor’s Blog, are that you have a greater chance of being eaten by a shark or drowning in a bathtub than you have by dying on a cruise ship.

The CLIA website further explains that accidents such as the Costa Concordia are an extremely rare occurrence in the cruise industry, and cruising continues to be one of safest means of travel among all types of vacationing.

It is unfortunate that the few times the cruise industry is in the mainstream media, it’s for negative stories such as the Costa Concordia accident or when passengers/crew go “missing”. Fortunately, today’s technology has led to additional clarification when it comes to these types of investigations.

Closed circuit television (CCTV) systems and Voice Data Recorders (aka: black box) give investigators better knowledge about the circumstances surrounding accidents and incidents. Add in cell phone cameras and there’s a good chance that the real facts will emerge proving that cruising and working on cruise ships is safe.

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A common perception of crew life onboard is that it is one big party below decks every night. Crewmembers that work onboard cruise ships TODAY will disagree with this false perception.

Yes, there was a time (about ten years ago) when crew parties were the norm. But, today crew life is far less of a party. Code of conduct on cruise ships has changed dramatically in the last ten years with a no tolerance for crew drunkenness. Crew members are breathalized and terminated if and when they are caught.

This doesn’t mean that crew members don’t have fun it just means that crew must be extra aware of how much they drink. In fact, crew discos are usually held once a cruise. But, it’s not like a land-based job where you can go to the bar or a club after work and your employer doesn’t know how much you drink. On a cruise ship your employer can see how much you drink and how you behave.

Unfortunately there are YouTube videos, books and interviews that are out there that depict that crew life is one big party. It is important to note that many of these crew members are ex-crewmembers that worked onboard during the days that crew partying was acceptable. They are out of touch with today’s crew environment.

Since today’s crewmembers have worked hard to gain their positions onboard, most of them fully understand the consequences of complying with the cruise lines’ code of conduct and take their jobs seriously. If they don’t, then their days are numbered before they are sent home without a job.

For more info, WorkOnCruiseShips.com members can read Cruise Lines Code of Conduct.

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After the Costa Concordia ran aground on Friday, January 13, 2012, it wasn’t a shock that various cruise line stock prices would drop as a result. Yet, analyzing the current stock prices and history, the stock prices are not as low as one may think and they are already increasing.

When the NYSE opened on Tuesday, January 17, the Carnival Corporation (CCL) stock had dropped to just below $30 after trading at above $34 on Friday. Since Tuesday, the stock prices have been quietly climbing and have already reached $32.  It’s interesting to note that the 52-week low was actually $28.52 which occurred in February 2011.

Looking into the history of CCL stocks, Carnival Corporation enjoyed stock prices of higher than $50 in 2007. Yet after the stock crash in 2009, stock prices fell to below $20.

Looking at another major cruise corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCL), there is a similar pattern of stock price decreases and increases. Highs were reported in 2007 with dramatic lows of less than $10 reported in 2009 as the market crashed. Their 52-week low was $18.70 which was experienced in September 2011. Their stocks are currently trading at around $28.

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Although much has been said about the actions of the Captain of the Costa Concordia, the real heroes of this disaster were the crewmembers.

For starters, ship’s purser Manrico Giampedroni, helped load passengers into lifeboats before setting off to search the decks for more passengers around midnight. Unfortunately, Giampedroni slipped, broke a leg and became trapped. Giampedroni was rescued 36 hours later.

Crewmember Erika Soria from Peru was not so lucky and is still one of the missing crewmembers.  According to another crewmember, Erika had boarded a lifeboat after helping evacuate passengers. But the small, overcrowded craft flipped and everyone aboard fell into the sea. Read full story here.

Another crewmember, Rose Metcalf shared her experiences on the BBC Breakfast news show. The dancer from the UK explained how she helped the passengers evacuate. “If you are on a ship, you have a responsibility or duty to help fellow crewmembers and passengers…when events like this happen.”

She explained, “Because of the listing we knew they wouldn’t be able to deploy all of the life rafts on the port side…We were literally throwing each other… We were creating human chains to try and pass people over gaps that if they dropped down there was no recovery from.”  Read full story here.

In another interview, James Thomas, a crewmember from the UK, explained how he used his six-foot frame as a human ladder. Mr Thomas said crew members assembled at emergency points as per their training but the ship’s extreme tilt made it virtually impossible to follow the normal evacuation procedures.

He said, “Once it became too much of a tilt to evacuate the ship that’s when it went into chaos…That’s when the port side had to go starboard side and that’s when it became a fight for your life.”  Read full story here.

If it weren’t for the actions of many of the crew, the outcome may have been worse.

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A common question that arises from potential applicants looking for a job on a cruise ship is, what is it really like to live onboard? Understanding what a crew cabin looks like could break the decision to even work on ships for some applicants.

Keep in mind, though, that crew cabins vary between cruise line, cruise ship and rank/position of a crew member. To start at the high end of the spectrum, it’s not a surprise that the Captain has the biggest cabin. But, even a Captain’s cabin on one ship, such as the Oasis of the Seas, would be quite different from the Captain’s cabin on the Ocean Princess (an older ship). Each ship is designed differently in space and amenities.

Taking that scenario into consideration, all other ranks also have significant differences, too. Depending on rank, will determine how big your cabin is. The lowest ranks often share a cabin with another crew member of the same sex, along with sharing a bathroom with the adjoining cabin. The next rank of crewmember still shares a cabin with another crew member, but they don’t have to share a bathroom with another cabin.

Within each cabin space, the amenities are also limited. There is usually a double wardrobe that is shared. And, in the bathroom, the vanity space must also be shared.

Ranks such as supervisors, managers, and one-striped officers don’t have to share with another crewmember. Their cabin is usually the same size with the same amenities as the other lowering ranking crew, but there’s only one bed.

Here’s an excellent example of what to expect in crew cabins by a video posted by Disney Cruise Line Crew Cabin.

For more information about Life Onboard, visit the website, WorkOnCruiseShips.com.

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Many people dream of traveling to exotic destinations around the world. But, the cost of airfare, hotels and cruises make the opportunities few for most of us. This could be the reason why so many dreamers make it a goal to get a cruise job.

Yes, there’s the reality that you have to actually work and that you aren’t onboard as a guest. Yet, getting to visit these destinations if only for a few hours of our free time per day is a great taste to satisfy our travel bug.

Unfortunately you don’t get to choose which ship to work or the itinerary you are sent to. Although, the longer you work for a company and the more contracts you do, you may be sent to your dream destination. Or, you could be lucky and end up in your dream destination on your first contract!

Cruise ships travel to practically every destination that you can think of. But, there are some cruise lines that only concentrate on a select number of itineraries. For example, Disney Cruise Line currently concentrates only on the Caribbean, Bahamas, Alaska and the Mexican Riviera.

So, if you want to see more than just the Caribbean, Mexico and Alaska, you’d need to work for a cruise line that offers more exotic itineraries. For example, cruise lines such as Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean and Holland America offer cruises to Asia, Australia, South America, Europe, Hawaii.

For more information about which cruise lines to work for and how to get a job with them, visit WorkOnCruiseShips.com.

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Earlier this week, I discussed the new ships that are on the horizon for 2012 which equate to new jobs created within the cruise industry. But, do you know how many shipboard employees there are in total?

If we combine the two largest cruise corporations, Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, their combined total of shipboard employees is more than 120,000 crew and officers.

Carnival Corporation includes the cruise lines Carnival Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Cunard Line, P&O Cruises, and a few others. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. and London, England, the company operates a fleet of more than 100 ships, with another 10 ships scheduled for delivery between now and March 2016. They have approximately 70,000 shipboard employees.

On the other hand Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) includes the cruise lines Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara Club Cruises and a couple others. In total, those cruise lines employ approximately 52,000 shipboard employees.

Consider that a cruise ship is like a giant floating hotel, each carrying between 100 and 2,000 crew and officers at any given time. Apart from the technical jobs (deck and engineering officers), the jobs on a cruise ship are very similar to jobs in five star hotels and resorts.

And, there are always cruise job vacancies. Although some people do make a career out of a cruise job, others do it for a few years then move back to a career on land. In short, this means that opportunities to work on cruise ships are always available. To find out more about getting a job on a cruise ship, visit the site, WorkOnCruiseShips.com.

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When many of us think of cruising we only think of big ocean-going cruise ships. But, if you limit your search for a cruise job to only the major cruise lines, you may be missing out on other opportunities. River cruising is a growing segment of the cruising industry and with that growth is a demand for crewmembers.

River cruise ships are quite different from the ocean-going ships, though. Not only are they smaller which means fewer passengers, but the life onboard offers its own distinct cruise experience. River cruising is offered through Europe, Russia, Egypt, and China. Most boats carry between 100 and 300 passengers and require between 20 and 100 crewmembers.

River cruise companies include Viking River Cruises, Avalon Waterways, AMA Waterways, Tauck River Cruising, Oberoi Cruises, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, Grand Circle Small Ship Cruises, and a few others. In 2012, Viking River Cruises will be launching six new Longship-class river vessels, each carrying around 200 passengers. AMA Waterways will also debut a new 164-passenger vessel this year.

Here’s an interesting article about Viking River Cruises moving into the ocean cruising market.

In addition, WorkOnCruiseShips.com members can read the article, Do You Want to Work for a River Cruise Line? The article discusses each of the river cruise companies’ fleets and how to apply for their job vacancies.

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Just as a cruise job is a unique career choice, Christmas on a cruise ship is definitely an unconventional way to spend the holidays, even for crewmembers.

A cruise vacation for passengers at Christmas is a way to relax and possibly get together with extended family members. On the other hand, for crewmembers, it’s just another cruise (aka: work week) with a few exceptions.

It certainly feels like Christmas on board. Santa (a dressed up crewmember) visits the ship. Turkey is served. And, decorations adorn the public spaces. But, just like any other cruise…passengers will complain about lost luggage, their cabin being too small, and not being able to find a deck chair on a sea day.

Thankfully, your new friends and colleagues will make Christmas feel special. There will be departmental Christmas parties, secret Santa gift exchanges and opportunities to spend Christmas in some exotic locale.

Imagine your email to your friends back home…’It’s Christmas today and the ship’s in Aruba. I had four hours off during the afternoon and I went to the beach with some friends. So, how’s the snow back home?’

Although it may feel strange to be away from home for Christmas when you work on a cruise ship, it’s definitely a memorable experience.

WorkOnCruiseShips.com members can read, “Christmas Cruises – Life Onboard“.

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