So, You Want to Work on a Cruise Ship? Read This!

Ah yes, the glamorous life. We all dream about it. Working on a cruise ship may be one of the most glamorous jobs you can possibly land. At least that’s what many people think. I mean after all, you’ve got the gambling and the girls and the parties and all that great food and…okay, hold the phone. News flash folks…it’s still a job. Last I looked up that word in the dictionary it didn’t come with a pretty picture attached to it.

Truth is, working on a cruise ship, depending on what job you have, may be one of the most stressful and demanding that you could possibly land…if you’re lucky(???) enough to get one. Think about it. You’re responsible, at least in part, for the happiness of a lot of people. Remember, these folks have paid good money to take one of these cruises and the last thing that want is for somebody to ruin their good time because they don’t take their job seriously…even if all you’re doing is serving drinks all day.

Sure, the scenery is beautiful and let’s face it, it’s still a lot better than working in a stuffy office. That is of course unless you’re stuck working in the galley all day. Then it can be as bad as working at the local diner. Except at the local diner, your customers don’t expect their meals to taste like they were prepared for the Queen of England. Or maybe they do. After all, some people can be pretty demanding. If you’ve worked any kind of job before in your life, you know it’s true.

The point is, and I hope I’m making it clear, working on a cruise ship, all the glamour aside, is a big responsibility. And don’t think the pay is anything out of Donald Trump land. Trust me, there are plenty of jobs that pay a lot more and come with a lot less stress.

In part two, I’m going to go over a few jobs that you can expect to find on a cruise ship. In the meantime, check out the link in my signature for a review of a great resource that will greatly help you land that job of your dreams.

Or nightmares, whichever they may be.

In part one I wrote on this subject, I discussed the reality of working on a cruise ship…how it’s not all fun and games. Well, if you’re still with me, this article is going to go over just a few of the many jobs that you’ll find available to work on any standard cruise line. Hopefully, you’ll find something that is just right for you.

Let’s start with one that very few guys know about, and yes…it is a real cruise ship job. I am talking about a gentleman dance host. No, this isn’t some guy who grabs a mic and tries to get people out on the dance floor. This person takes ladies who are there, unescorted, and takes them onto the dance floor and dances with them. Now how is that for a made in heaven job? Obviously, the person who applies for this position has to be charming, polite and somebody who a woman wouldn’t mind being seen with. In other words guys, you can’t look like Quasi Moto.

Another great job, if you have some kind of skill, is an onboard instructor. These are people who teach anything from art to scuba diving. For most of these positions, you will have to show some kind of certification that you are qualified to teach. For others, like teaching passengers to play Texas Hold ‘Em, all you have to do is show a proficiency at the game. These are some of the most fun jobs on a cruise ship because they give you the chance to interact with a lot of people.

Of course, if you’re not the interacting kind, there are plenty of cruise ship jobs that don’t require you to mingle with the passengers. One such place is in the engine room. Naturally, to land a job as either the chief engineer, first, second or third engineer, motorman, fitter, wiper, chief electrician, air conditioning tech or any of the other jobs available in the engineering department, you have to have some skills and in most cases, show some kind of certification. But if you want to stay away from the passengers, this is the place to be. Nobody will even know you exist.

In my next article in this series, I’m going to go over a few more great jobs you can get on a cruise ship. In the meantime, check out my review below of a great resource that will show you HOW to get one of these great jobs.

See you next time with more.