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Working on Cruise Ships

The route onto cruise ships: legitimate recruiters, STCW and medical certificates, crew visas, the contract, life and money on board, and moving up to supervisor, officer or a shore role.

Free · Mac (Apple silicon) and Windows · v1.0.0 · Other platforms

Then open the Marketplace in the app, search for Working on Cruise Ships, and click Install. It goes into your own files, and works offline from then on.

What it installs.

1

Pillar

1

Area

50

Projects

200

Starter tasks

🧰 Professions & Trades

Working on Cruise Ships

Working on cruise ships: finding legitimate recruiters, contracts, medical and safety certificates, life on board, saving money and career progression.

  1. Testing whether ship life suits you
  2. Choosing a shipboard department and entry role
  3. School leaver route into cruise ship work
  4. Spotting cruise job scams and fake recruiters
  5. Shortlisting legitimate cruise lines and hiring partners
  6. Building hotel or restaurant experience before applying
  7. Cruise-style CV, photo and reference pack
  8. English level and guest communication check
  9. Funding pre-joining costs without borrowing
  10. Cruise job applications and interview tracker
  11. Video interview with a cruise line or hiring partner
  12. Reading your seafarer employment agreement before signing
  13. Passport, seafarer's book and identity documents
  14. STCW basic safety training course
  15. Passenger ship crowd and crisis management courses
  16. Pre-employment medical and vaccinations
  17. Crew visa application and interview
  18. Police certificate and background check
  19. Packing list for a long ship contract
  20. Joining day, sign-on and first 72 hours on board
  21. Muster station and emergency duty readiness
  22. Work and rest hours record
  23. Pay slip, service charge and gratuity check
  24. Sending money home safely
  25. Contract savings target
  26. Household bills and responsibilities while at sea
  27. Calling home across ports and time zones
  28. Cabin, uniform and laundry routine
  29. Sleep, food and fitness on long contracts
  30. Shore leave and port day plan
  31. Homesickness, stress and mental health plan
  32. Certificate and document expiry calendar
  33. Public health and sanitation standards on board
  34. Guest comment scores and service recovery
  35. Shipboard rank, conduct rules and alcohol policy
  36. Living and working in a multinational crew
  37. Dining room and bar service at sea
  38. Stateroom attendant standards and section management
  39. Raising a complaint, injury or contract dispute
  40. Seafarer tax position at home
  41. Vacation plan between contracts
  42. Renewing your contract or changing cruise lines
  43. Promotion plan to supervisor or head of section
  44. End of first contract and sign-off
  45. Parents working at sea with children at home
  46. Coming home for good after ship life
  47. Auditioning for cruise entertainment and music roles
  48. Spa, retail, photo and casino concession roles
  49. Expedition, river and small luxury ship work
  50. Hotel officer and management path at sea

Where it starts.

Each project arrives with its purpose, milestones and first tasks written out. Here is how the first three read.

Testing whether ship life suits you

Six to nine months away, ten or more hours of work most days with few full days off, a shared cabin below the waterline and the same few hundred colleagues for every meal: that is the deal behind the photos of ports. Finding out honestly, before you spend money on certificates and medicals, saves you from signing off early and paying your own flight home.

First tasks

  • Write down what you expect to love and to struggle with on a ship
  • Ask friends, church or community groups to connect you with former crew
  • Ask each former crew member what made their hardest week hard
  • Record your decision and the date you made it

Choosing a shipboard department and entry role

A cruise ship is a floating town with a hotel, restaurants, bars, a spa, shops, a theatre, a medical centre and a marine crew, and each department hires differently. Picking the entry role that matches your experience, such as assistant waiter, stateroom attendant, bar utility, galley steward or guest services, keeps your applications focused and tells you which skills to build first.

First tasks

  • List the departments shown on two or three cruise lines' careers pages
  • Note the entry roles and stated experience for each department
  • Compare your work history with the requirements for three roles
  • Choose a first-choice role and a fallback and write down why

School leaver route into cruise ship work

Most cruise lines set a minimum age and ask for hospitality experience, so a student finishing CSEC, CAPE, A levels or high school usually cannot walk straight on board. Planning the two or three years in between, with the right subjects, a hospitality certificate such as a CVQ or college diploma and a part-time job in a hotel or restaurant, turns the wait into a head start.

First tasks

  • Look up the minimum hiring age on three cruise lines' careers pages
  • Ask your guidance counsellor which hospitality courses your school or college offers
  • Apply for a weekend or holiday job in a hotel or restaurant
  • Write the earliest date you could apply and what you need by then

Make it yours.

Install Working on Cruise Ships, then tell Aurum the date you're aiming for. It checks whether the plan fits the weeks you actually have.

Free · Mac (Apple silicon) and Windows · v1.0.0 · Other platforms

Blueprints are general information to help you organise your own work. They are not medical, financial, legal or other professional advice. See the Terms.