Wow what a Ship!

[Charlie Brown]

If any of you are into cruising like myself, or you have just never thought about it take a look at the all new Oasis of the seas being launched by Royal Caribbean. The ship will weigh a massive 220,000 GRT and will hold 5,400 guests along with 4,500 staff, and will be 16 decks high!

Take a look at the videos on the website, and you can how magnificent this ship will be!

http://www.oasisoftheseas.com/video.php

[jamesh]

ahhhh the good old days :P When i worked for Royal Caribbean they were just launching the Freedom of the seas and Liberty of the seas... At the time the biggest ever cruise ship.. or so the world thought... we got an insider look at the ships being developed.. Who would have thought you could sail 10,000 people around in the open seas... :D

Some of the features the new ships have are incredible... No chance for anyone to get bored - young and old... Long gone are the days where cruise ships are just for the old and wrinkley...

[Adam_F]

Let's see if you can get thrown off this one James :D

[jamesh]

lol na too many hiding holes :D - The bigger the ship the easier to get lost a and hide :P - and thrown off is a bit harsh ... my contract was ended after being caught in a compromising position with a female guest! :D

Mind you i wouldn't work for them again... (well probably not) Great life (although very long hours!) and fantastic people with one of the best atmospheres to work in... but with the $ the way it is compared to the £ it's just not worth the amount of hours for the amount of money... Yes you don't have to pay rent and all you food and drinks are included - but you still have bar bills (which grow and grow the longer you are on the ship) and then "land days" and shopping sprees...

Do miss the attention from the ladies though it has to be said :D - yes even with a face like mine they couldn't resist the romance of the cruise...

[DJWilson]

I saw a RC cruise when i was in cowes one evening last week. Huge thing it was, pretty boring to watch IMO when the winds quite strong.


Are you going on that cruise?

[Charlie Brown]

ahhhh the good old days :P When i worked for Royal Caribbean they were just launching the Freedom of the seas and Liberty of the seas... At the time the biggest ever cruise ship.. or so the world thought... we got an insider look at the ships being developed.. Who would have thought you could sail 10,000 people around in the open seas... :D

Some of the features the new ships have are incredible... No chance for anyone to get bored - young and old... Long gone are the days where cruise ships are just for the old and wrinkley...

Wow that is amazing, you used to work for them!!!!! They are just outstanding ships, have you been on the Freedom of seas? Somthing we want to do next year! We have been quite found of Ocean Village and Island Cruisers too although they lack the class, and formality of cruises.

Ohh you have got mw going now!! What was your role on the ship, how long for, what were the living spaces like also what ship did you work on!!:D :D :D

[Charlie Brown]

I saw a RC cruise when i was in cowes one evening last week. Huge thing it was, pretty boring to watch IMO when the winds quite strong.


Are you going on that cruise?

Hmm cant say I have heard of the RC company....

well it launches in December 2009, so if I'm, super lucky July/August 2010. But I would have to be very very lucky, as it is a tad pricey!!

[DJWilson]

Hmm cant say I have heard of the RC company....

well it launches in December 2009, so if I'm, super lucky July/August 2010. But I would have to be very very lucky, as it is a tad pricey!!


I meant royal carabiean by RC.


I think it was St. Mary or something like that :)

[Charlie Brown]

I meant royal carabiean by RC.


I think it was St. Mary or something like that :)

Ahh I see cool, yeh well they do a lot of 3-4 day cruises around England, Wales and Scotalnd. Not very good for weather though!!

[Penfold42]

Wow what a Ship!

Didn't they say that about R.M.S Titanic!

:sofa:

[Charlie Brown]

Didn't they say that about R.M.S Titanic!

:sofa:

Yep they did....god, imagine if it happend, all down to fate because you said that!!

But it wont, I'm sure

[DJWilson]

Stonger ships and more warnings of a ice berk makes the chances lower thankfully

[Charlie Brown]

Stonger ships and more warnings of a ice berk makes the chances lower thankfully

Lol yes your right....:)

[Corabar Steve]

Stonger ships and more warnings of a ice berk makes the chances lower thankfully
:lol: but not at what you think

[rob1963]

will hold 5,400 guests along with 4,500 staff

Wow.....that's almost one staff member for every guest.

Isn't that a bit over the top?

:confused:

[Corabar Steve]

what I was thinking.

[Penfold42]

Stonger ships and more warnings of a ice berk makes the chances lower thankfully


:lol: but not at what you think

LMFAO......:D

[Charlie Brown]

Wow.....that's almost one staff member for every guest.

Isn't that a bit over the top?

:confused:

Haha nope it sure isnt....you imagine cooking for over 5,000 people 24 hours a day. Maybe if it was a 9 to 5 there would be a lot less...but the ship is running 24 hours a day! Who is going to look after and clean twice a day the 2,700 cabins?

ANOTHER INTERESTING FACT!!!

To run this ship, it will cost £800,000 a day! On electricty and water alone (not including staff wages)

[jamesh]

Wow that is amazing, you used to work for them!!!!! They are just outstanding ships, have you been on the Freedom of seas? Somthing we want to do next year! We have been quite found of Ocean Village and Island Cruisers too although they lack the class, and formality of cruises.

Ohh you have got mw going now!! What was your role on the ship, how long for, what were the living spaces like also what ship did you work on!!:D :D :D

Yeah - the 2 best companies to work for cruiseship wise are Royal Caribbean and Carnival... They really do try and be a cut above the rest... Classy and formal but at the same time not stuck up... You have your formal dressy up night (where tux's and evening dress are prefered) and at dinner if you eat in the main restaurant you have to dress smart BUT at the same time if you dont want all that dressy stuff you can eat in one of the other restaurants and drink in what ever you feel comfortable in throughout the rest of the ship... It's the perfect ballance in my opinion.

Sadly i've not been on the freedom so far - although still know shed loads of staff that have... Must get around to going as can go as a "staff Friend" again now :D SO as long as there is a room on the ship or in the crew area...

I was on the Enchantment of the Seas... One of Royal Caribbean smaller ships... People may have heard of it as it's one of the only ships in the world to have been cut down the middle and a section added to make it bigger and then it put back together... It was recently in one of the UK newspapers - quite funny really as they did it around 5 years ago yet it's only been in the new papers in the last few weeks... Must have been a slow news day.

Crew cabins are basic - generally 2 bukbeds and a tolilet and bathroom but you don't need anymore than that as you only generally use it to get changed and sleep... But the guest cabins are very nice and depending on what you opt for or how much you pay they can be VERY VERY VERY nice!

On board my primary role was DJ in the club but as "djing" isn't seen as a main job i was also classed as a member of the Cruise Staff responsible for making sure guests had a good time and running activities, games, karaoke, theme nights, pool activities and meet and greet - basically be the friendly face of the ship and be there to help the guests with anything they wanted.


Stonger ships and more warnings of a ice berk makes the chances lower thankfully

The biggest problem on a cruiseship isn't ice bergs or weather as the technology is around now to help solve that... the biggest and most serious risk on the whole entire ship (and one that scares the living day lights out of all crew!!!) is FIRE. You get a fire on the ship while you're on the middle of nowhere unless you act very quickly you're in BIG do doo!!! the only people that can help you are you! Luckily there are lots of mesures in place that make it unlikely... although i was one of the very unlucky and our ship had a fire while i was staff... Luckily we were at port when it happened and all the training and weekly drills paid off and it was controlled but it could have been LOTS worse! I;ll have to dig out the pics!


Wow.....that's almost one staff member for every guest.

Isn't that a bit over the top?

:confused:

No way if anything it isn't enough. It's not till you work on the ship you realise what hard work it actually is... As has been pointed out the ship is running 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days a year.... the amount of cooking, cleaning, entertaining, retail and everything else on the ship warrants the amount of crew... If anything it should be the other way around and there should be more staff than guests.... I know during my contract i was on call 24 hours a day 7 days a week and more often than not i would have loved to have just done 8 hours in a day... but sadly that doesn't happen - no where near!

For anyone thinking it was an easy life and easy money - i suggest you try it - If you really do want an easy life on the ship be in one of the lounge bands - they have (or had) the least amount of work throughout the day and have full guest privileges...

[Charlie Brown]

Yeah - the 2 best companies

Brilliant..thank you very much for filling me in, found it rather interesting...

So what is they pay like? Would you recomend it? How long were you on for? How long was the contract for?

Sorry it may seem like 21 questions but if you can botherd please tell....:) :)

Thanks, Charlie

[jamesh]

hey no problem charlie i can always be bothered!

Cruise ships are mystical and magical at the same time and there is a part of me that will always love to go back and work on a ship as "ship life" gets into the blood - likewise when i worked out in Mallorca - in previous visits back i have been offered work and it's been very, very tempting as both have a special place in my heart (ugggg pass the bucket as it's getting mushy!!! but it is true).

I suppose in a way it's easy to look back and love (as we all do in life) - remembering the good times but there were quite a few bad times too but they do get pushed to the back of the memory and generally glossed over. The thing to remember about cruise life is that as with most staff onboard - you live for the people and your friends not for your job. On board you will soon learn that your ship mates are all you have and for your 6 month contract they are your family... you will support each other, you will get heavily drunk on many occasions (in fact most nights!!!!), you will get your manager on your case as you did 12 hours and couldnt get up the next day or was late for some other shift - but at the same time on the next shore day you'll be given the time off to go drink ashore with said manager and have a bloomin good day and have a few beers before going back and getting down to work again! that's all part of the experience... Also be aware there are also lots of so called friends on the ship that will quite happily stab you in the back without you knowing - the best rule i can offer in that case is keep things that you dony want people to find out to yourself as no matter how friendly your mate can seem it's not always the case...

anyway before i rattle on and on and on basically if you follow the rules and do your jo you'll be fine.... it's when you go into the grey areas (which quite a few if not all staff do at some point!) that's where the problems can happen. But Meh... i'll move on now or i'll be talking myself back onto ships... Well i'll never say never but allot would have to change with the currency and pay packet right now for me to consider it...

As you can probably guess pay wise these days it's not that great. Royal Caribbean being a U.S company will most likely pay in $ and the $ v £ isn't great really these days... you'll find allot of other countries kill to work on the ships and it can be 2,3,4 times what they could earn in their own countries but with UK and US people there isn't a big gain other than experience. It's why generally you wont find an american citizen working on board but every other nation.

It really is something to be tried if you are young and have no ties... Yes it really is hard work and long hours BUT it is such a great experience it really will be worth it. I really do look back and miss some points...

each contract will generally be 6 months unless they extend your contract due to lack of staff (as happens all to frequently in the cruise staff and DJ roles) and your pay generally varies between hours, experience and job roles within the ship. One thing i really advise is seriously think about whether you really want to be a DJ on a cruiseship.... YES it's a great thing to say you've done but a few things that they wont tell you in the recruitment is...

You'll miss most crew parties as they happen while you are working...
You'll have to do boat drills weekly at stupid o clock in the morning - even though you may not finish untill 4 or 5 am
You'll have to work the next day doing activities even if you finish late - although the activities manager will generally make it later for you if they like you...

And finally and the biggest one that you WILL fail on (it's just a case if you get caught or not...)

The girls love you... especially if you are a brit on an american ship - you WILL get them around the DJ area loving everything you do no matter how bad it is... But with the likes of royal caribbean it is strictly forbidden to do anything with a guest... Staff and staff is fine staff and guest is a big NO NO! It does happen on ships (and all the time!!!) BUT it's a case of don't get caught. - Sadly that's easier said than done and sometime you get caught up in the moment (as you can do anywhere in the world) and occasionally especially where a bit of drink is involved you can (and was) at a captains hearing for inappropriate actions and caught in a compromising position with a female guest. :P and before you know it you'll be in a hotel waiting for a flight to take you home...

Anyway i've just realise the length of post and should really stop writing now as i've probably gone really off topic but hopefully it's given you an insight to the world of cruise ship work...

[djsteve10]

I recently applied to carribean cruises to work on their cruise ships as a DJ as I thought it would be something else for the CV and only something that you can experience by doing it.
Thank you for the insite James it seems like you had a good laugh but also got through the bad times.

If i was to work on the cruise ships now would be the time for me to do it as i have no family commitments i am just a young lad running a business over hear which i could easily get my best mate to run for me while i was away.

[jamesh]

Yeah i agree it's the best time to do it - young and no ties is ideal! - although can you trust your mate to run your business while you are away..?

Also a couple of things to bear in mind if you are looking for jobs on cruiseships... You should never have to pay an agent to find you a job... The truth of the matter is there is only a very very very small chance the "paid" agents will find you a job - mainly as most of the reputable cruise companies wont touch them with a barge pole as they are ripping people off by charging you to look for a job on your behalf...

Real agents wont charge you to find you a job as they receive a commission for every member of staff they place on a cruiseship (once you are aboard that is)...

Oh and even before you get aboard it's quite expensive as you have to have a full medical by a ship approved doctors practice ... - although on some occasions they may accept your own doctor (although not always - For mine i had to go to a doctors practice on harley street) not to mention the possibility of needing an American visa depending on where you'll be based. (and that's a barrel of laughs trying to get that too!)

Who did you apply to? Was it Wendy H by any chance?

[djsteve10]

Yeah i agree it's the best time to do it - young and no ties is ideal! - although can you trust your mate to run your business while you are away..?

Also a couple of things to bear in mind if you are looking for jobs on cruiseships... You should never have to pay an agent to find you a job... The truth of the matter is there is only a very very very small chance the "paid" agents will find you a job - mainly as most of the reputable cruise companies wont touch them with a barge pole as they are ripping people off by charging you to look for a job on your behalf...

Real agents wont charge you to find you a job as they receive a commission for every member of staff they place on a cruiseship (once you are aboard that is)...

Oh and even before you get aboard it's quite expensive as you have to have a full medical by a ship approved doctors practice ... - although on some occasions they may accept your own doctor (although not always - For mine i had to go to a doctors practice on harley street) not to mention the possibility of needing an American visa depending on where you'll be based. (and that's a barrel of laughs trying to get that too!)

Who did you apply to? Was it Wendy H by any chance?

I do trust my best mate because he will be under guidenace from my Dad too so its all good in a way,

If i remember rightly it was Wendy H, I will have to dig the email out that i sent my CV and application for to.
As for medicals there is nothing new there really just the same old story really, I suppose once you have had the medical, Got the American Visa and all the other bits you don't have to worry about it and just get to work.

[jamesh]

Yep pretty much... All your medicals from then on in are sorted by the ship doctors anyway so all is dandy... if anything it only proves you really do want to work on a ship by going through it all.... Just was a bit of a pain for me as everything was london based and i couldn't get the visa and medical on the same day so all in all it was 3 trips to london on top of the other costs...

Oh and forgot to mention too - you will probably have to stump up for your first flight out to the ship (if it's not sailing from the UK that is) - all flights after that will generally be covered by the cruise companies...

[djsteve10]

Yep pretty much... All your medicals from then on in are sorted by the ship doctors anyway so all is dandy... if anything it only proves you really do want to work on a ship by going through it all.... Just was a bit of a pain for me as everything was london based and i couldn't get the visa and medical on the same day so all in all it was 3 trips to london on top of the other costs...

Oh and forgot to mention too - you will probably have to stump up for your first flight out to the ship (if it's not sailing from the UK that is) - all flights after that will generally be covered by the cruise companies...

Thanks for all the info James,
I am definatley still looking into cruise ships but I am not going to push for the cruise ship work too much but I stil want to see what comes of it and it would be a nice experience if I did get the chance to do it.

[Dragonfly]

If any of you are into cruising like myself, or you have just never thought about it take a look at the all new Oasis of the seas being launched by Royal Caribbean. The ship will weigh a massive 220,000 GRT and will hold 5,400 guests along with 4,500 staff, and will be 16 decks high!

Take a look at the videos on the website, and you can how magnificent this ship will be!

http://www.oasisoftheseas.com/video.php

those balconies are going to make vomitting over the balcony after a night out ten times more fun :D :D :D :D :D

[Steve the DJ]

If any of you are into cruising like myself...

Are you sure you are 15? :eek:

[Charlie Brown]

The girls love you... especially if you are a brit on an american ship - you WILL get them around the DJ area loving everything you do no matter how bad it is...


When can I start?

Haha thank you very much, I do find it really interesting hearing from the other side! Everything seems fine and dandy as a guest but its nice to know how the other half cope!

Thanks for answering all my questions, much appreciated!

Many thanks, Charlie