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What nationality is the crew on NCL ships?

Sophie

By Sophie,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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Shellbelle28

Shellbelle28

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What nationality is the crew on NCL ships? In particular, the SEA? 4_12_6.gif
The crews on NCL's non-US flagged ships is very international. The ships I've been on, the Captain and many of his officers have been Norwegian and British. A great number of bar and dining staff were from Eastern Europe, the Phillipines, and India. A lot of the room stewards seemed to be from the Caribbean. The Cruise Director and staff were British, Australian and American.
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Sophie

Sophie

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I thought I had read on the message boards somewhere that the Norwegian Sea was being sold and will sail for an Asian clientele.
You're right. When we sailed her the week of 11-26-00, some of the crew changed hands right in the middle of our cruise. We overheard many complaints of those crew members who would be out of a job. Went to bed the night we left Roatan and woke up to a mostly Asian crew. Never found out what happened to the ones we had got to know the first few days. Our cabin steward was the only one who remained with us throughout the cruise. Great guy!

 

I posted the original question because I was wondering if the crew was still mostly Asian. Thanks everyone for all the answers!

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fromfloridatoalaska

fromfloridatoalaska

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most major cruise lines utilize a heavy asian and filipino staff.. otherwise they are from india, mexico, honduras, hungary, romania, russia, czech, greece, italy, england, canada, and the U.S... it all depends on the position..... For the most part, at least 40 nations are represented....

some of the crew changed hands right in the middle of our cruise. We overheard many complaints of those crew members who would be out of a job. Went to bed the night we left Roatan and woke up to a mostly Asian crew. Never found out what happened to the ones we had got to know the first few days.

this situation is extremely far fetched.......the only LEGAL time a crew member can get on or off the ship for staffing needs is in the HOME PORT - just like passengers, otherwise they face serious fines.... Crew changing hands in the middle of the night might be best explained as.... shifting staff around because of a problem...... never losing a job in the middle of a cruise and leaving mid cruise! Usually if someone is fired, if that is the case, they don't know about it until the night before the morning arrival in the Home Port - that keeps them doing the job and keeps them from acting up during the cruise...... If someone is schedule to leave, however, i.e. for a vacation/work break, they know about it ahead of time and they are usually "happy and sad" to go. I would recommend to all cruisers: spend some quality time with one of your favorite crew members and you'll maybe get to see some of the beauty of working and living on a cruise ship. Ask them questions. Get to know them. They would REALLY appreciate your interest in them as a person!!

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Smooth Sailing

Smooth Sailing

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The NCL Sea will be transfered to the parent Star Cruise Line in May of 2005 and be based in Singapore - Will be replaced by the NCL Dream in Oct. 2005 for itinerary out of Houston. We were on the Sea last week - most of the crew is Fillipino and Romanian with a mix of everything else - the Cruise Directors staff is mostly Canadian.

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kalamari

kalamari

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What ship were you on, by the way?? Can explain later why I want to know...Menina

 

 

 

QUOTE=fromfloridatoalaska]most major cruise lines utilize a heavy asian and filipino staff.. otherwise they are from india, mexico, honduras, hungary, romania, russia, czech, greece, italy, england, canada, and the U.S... it all depends on the position..... For the most part, at least 40 nations are represented....

 

this situation is extremely far fetched.......the only LEGAL time a crew member can get on or off the ship for staffing needs is in the HOME PORT - just like passengers, otherwise they face serious fines.... Crew changing hands in the middle of the night might be best explained as.... shifting staff around because of a problem...... never losing a job in the middle of a cruise and leaving mid cruise! Usually if someone is fired, if that is the case, they don't know about it until the night before the morning arrival in the Home Port - that keeps them doing the job and keeps them from acting up during the cruise...... If someone is schedule to leave, however, i.e. for a vacation/work break, they know about it ahead of time and they are usually "happy and sad" to go. I would recommend to all cruisers: spend some quality time with one of your favorite crew members and you'll maybe get to see some of the beauty of working and living on a cruise ship. Ask them questions. Get to know them. They would REALLY appreciate your interest in them as a person!!

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Sophie

Sophie

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this situation is extremely far fetched.......the only LEGAL time a crew member can get on or off the ship for staffing needs is in the HOME PORT - just like passengers, otherwise they face serious fines.... Crew changing hands in the middle of the night might be best explained as.... shifting staff around because of a problem...... never losing a job in the middle of a cruise and leaving mid cruise!

It may sound "far fetched" to you, but I was there. You are free to disagree with my post, but whatever was happening on the SEA that week upset more than a few crew members. And as I stated before, the replacement of many of the crew took place in mid-week. And legal or not, it happened.
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Laura4cruise

Laura4cruise

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I thought I had read on the message boards somewhere that the Norwegian Sea was being sold and will sail for an Asian clientele.

 

Believe NCL is owned by Star..which is based in the orient. They move ships back and forth every now and again.

 

Star Cruise is based in Malaysia. It owns NCL and thus all the ships in the NCL fleet. The Sea will be joining the Star Cruises fleet, but it hasn't been sold, it's merely being swapped for the Spirit (fka SuperStar Leo). Also, the Norwegian Star was built for Star Cruises--it was to be called SuperStar Libra--but they sent it to NCL instead.

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Sophie

Sophie

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Star Cruise is based in Malaysia. It owns NCL and thus all the ships in the NCL fleet. The Sea will be joining the Star Cruises fleet, but it hasn't been sold, it's merely being swapped for the Spirit (fka SuperStar Leo). Also, the Norwegian Star was built for Star Cruises--it was to be called SuperStar Libra--but they sent it to NCL instead.
The SEA was sold 4 years ago. That was when Star Cruise bought NCL. As I've stated before, we were on the SEA during the changeover. 10_1_11.gif
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Laura4cruise

Laura4cruise

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The SEA was sold 4 years ago. That was when Star Cruise bought NCL. As I've stated before, we were on the SEA during the changeover. 10_1_11.gif

 

Right, Star Cruises bought all of NCL in 2000 (the sale didn't happen during your cruise), not just the Sea. I'm just trying to clear up misconceptions about the ships switching lines this year and next. Saying that the Sea was sold makes things confusing. People are thinking that the Sea has been bought by Star Cruises when the company already owns it. :D

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  • 2 weeks later...
fromfloridatoalaska

fromfloridatoalaska

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It may sound "far fetched" to you, but I was there. You are free to disagree with my post, but whatever was happening on the SEA that week upset more than a few crew members. And as I stated before, the replacement of many of the crew took place in mid-week. And legal or not, it happened.

 

I flat out challenge you to prove this. To "remove" crew mid-week is illegal. What you might have experienced is a shifting of crew perhaps due to the need for re-training or something else. (Discipline problems are rarely moved mid-cruise; discipline problems are usually given a reprimand and/or moved to a different area; sometimes for a second chance. Serious discipline problems are removed immediately, when the ship reaches the next port.) On a very rare occasion does crew get replaced mid-week. I joined a ship once in Cozumel because of car problems. I flew to Cozumel to join the ship on day 3 instead of day 1. I think I know more than you on this matter, so, you can believe what you erroneously want. I have company handbooks on the matter, too, so, I can print here word for word the discipline procedures. Never does a "crew" change mid-cruise unless it is for a discipline problem. If that's the case and it's your room steward who gets moved, oh well, you have to deal with it. Just want to let everyone know: THIS IS EXTREMELY RARE. Legally, there are STRICT rules and regulations for crew, just as there are for passengers, and changeovers occur on the homeport just as they get new passengers in the home port.

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fromfloridatoalaska

fromfloridatoalaska

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Hmm..I'm wondering about how crew would have time to spend any "quality time" with passengers..I must have been misled about the real life of crew on a ship..they must have worked less than 76 hours a week on your ship.

 

My comment was for the PASSENGER to spend quality time with the crew member, not the other way around. It IS possible. Sit at a barstool and TALK to the bartender. Sit on a chair in your room when the steward comes to clean. TALK to him. Start a conversation with a waitress in a showlounge while you are waiting for the show to start. Chat with the casino dealer before the game starts.

 

Working hours on cruise ships vary from position to position. Think about the job and you'll be able to figure out who is needed for more hours. Food and beverage and housekeeping work the most (if you were judging on what you SEE). Entertainment works the least (if you were judging on what you SEE). The art auctioneer probably works the least, really. Yes we take ship jobs for the money and the travel but we also like to meet new people.

 

And contrary to popular belief, we do get time off!!!! We do not ALL work 80-hour weeks; that amounts to an average 11-hour day seven days a week. While that is the norm on a sea day or on embarkation day, days in port are more relaxed for many of the crew. Sit next to a crew member in a restaurant when you see him or her shoreside.

 

What I meant by "spending quality time with a crew member" means not just good morning/good afternoon and giving orders when you leave the cabin - spend a few minutes talking!!!

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kalamari

kalamari

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I understood your comments entirely. My beloved is employed by of your ships and has been for many, many, years so believe me I have heard all, seen all, and know a LOT about the lifestyle. In his experience he does NOT want to reveal a lot of himself to passengers because many times it causes him to think of home and other places he wishes he were at. It can also LOOK like fraternization with passengers which as you know, is a huge no no. And I also know that things can be very "political" in different departments and the management styles vary and are not the same across the board for every department. Some are run very well, others have many issues with personnel which is true in any buisness. I can explain in an email, not in this forum. I found the book "Cruise Blues" by Dr. Klein to collaborate with what he and his friends have told me and from what I have experiencded first hand...Dr.Menina

 

 

 

My comment was for the PASSENGER to spend quality time with the crew member, not the other way around. It IS possible. Sit at a barstool and TALK to the bartender. Sit on a chair in your room when the steward comes to clean. TALK to him. Start a conversation with a waitress in a showlounge while you are waiting for the show to start. Chat with the casino dealer before the game starts.

 

Working hours on cruise ships vary from position to position. Think about the job and you'll be able to figure out who is needed for more hours. Food and beverage and housekeeping work the most (if you were judging on what you SEE). Entertainment works the least (if you were judging on what you SEE). The art auctioneer probably works the least, really. Yes we take ship jobs for the money and the travel but we also like to meet new people.

 

And contrary to popular belief, we do get time off!!!! We do not ALL work 80-hour weeks; that amounts to an average 11-hour day seven days a week. While that is the norm on a sea day or on embarkation day, days in port are more relaxed for many of the crew. Sit next to a crew member in a restaurant when you see him or her shoreside.

 

What I meant by "spending quality time with a crew member" means not just good morning/good afternoon and giving orders when you leave the cabin - spend a few minutes talking!!!

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fromfloridatoalaska

fromfloridatoalaska

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I understood your comments entirely. My beloved is employed by of your ships and has been for many, many, years so believe me I have heard all, seen all, and know a LOT about the lifestyle. In his experience he does NOT want to reveal a lot of himself to passengers because many times it causes him to think of home and other places he wishes he were at. It can also LOOK like fraternization with passengers which as you know, is a huge no no. And I also know that things can be very "political" in different departments and the management styles vary and are not the same across the board for every department. Some are run very well, others have many issues with personnel which is true in any buisness. I can explain in an email, not in this forum. I found the book "Cruise Blues" by Dr. Klein to collaborate with what he and his friends have told me and from what I have experiencded first hand...Dr.Menina

 

yes, you are correct. There are wide variances of how management handles their crew members. I'm curious, did you ever work on a ship, too? and how can I email you? Did you buy the book from Dr. Klein? Did you enjoy it?

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kalamari

kalamari

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Yes, I bought the book and have had extensive personal contact with the author. My own opinion of the book is that it is a good book for those that may be ignorant or otherwise unaware of what really goes on . I've only encountered one person that scoffed at it, but that person wasted their energy on trying to "prove" that the author falsified his research, etc. despite extensive documentation from many sources substantiating what he wrote. The guy felt he was duped by the author when in reality he was duped by the indsutry. email: meninadechea@aol.com

 

 

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ColoradoLad

ColoradoLad

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We (The Lady and I) cruise a lot I guess.

 

Last cruise was Rhapsody of the Seas, next Norwegian Sea in a couple weeks then Celebrity out of Galveston early next year.

 

In the "old days" crew and passengers could socialize onboard after say 9 pm or later. Commodore Lines was the best as I could drink for hours with folks from England, Scotland and Wales and exotic lands. That was a long time ago.

 

Anymore: I sometimes meet a crewmember I know say from my second cruise on that ship in port.

 

As a career military guy., been everywhere and speak a little of evetything and know cultures. Last cruise hit a Royal Flush twice! What are the odds? Tipped the Ukrainian towel guy on the pool deck $50, he almost cried, also took care of all the Croatians I could.

 

Tipping descretly the Pool Bar crew the second day made me and my group popular not just for the $ but the respect we gave them.

 

Overall, a great cross cultural experience; I was actually proud that some of the Eastern Europeans did not want to live in America but go home with the money and what they learned. Be one Bosnian or Croatian or Polish: advantage going home speaking "American English".

 

Just some good memories, unndestand the rules, etc..

 

Colorado

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