Past Celebrity Employee - Answering Your Questions

[Pincus]

Thanks...you are very helpful. Appreciate your answering our questions...

 

Happy holidays!

[Mary Louise]

Thank you for everyone's response. I really appreciate it.

[Zigster]

I've been reading these boards for quite some time, but have never replied. I find this topic to be quite interesting. We have recently cruised on the Century and had a few issues with the Captain's Club "lack of benefits". As a result, I sent a letter to the President of Celebrity with a copy to Customer Service and the Captain's Club. It's been 2 weeks, and as yet, I have not received a response. Was this the wrong way to go???

[MBMiner]

Based on one expression you use, I believe you're from Canada!

[CruiserJen]

Do the staff every party with the guests on board the ship? Or is there a policy that prohibits "fraternizing" with guests? I have friends who claim they partied with the crew after hours, but anytime I was on a cruise, the staff were friendly but never invited us to join them during or after hours.

 

Last year, two of my single friends were interested in dating the staff, who were very friendly to them during the week, but they could never connect. Since my friends are both really attractive, we figured that there must be some policy against partying with the guests. Is this true? Were you allowed to correspond with someone you met on board? Did the staff all date one another!? Seems like you are at sea for so long that that would make sense.

 

You probably can't tell that I'm a single 27 year old!

 

Jenna

[wieslaw]

Hi, and thank you for sharing some of your 'cruising life' with us.

It seems that you are a very young person (especially comparing with me) and I remember when I was young and far away from home (service) there were days that I was very lonely and homesick and often with no one to turn to for advice or a helping 'hand' ........how did you and many of your friends cope with this ?

I realize that military service can not be compared with life on a cruise ship but you are young and away from home, and there are moments that you could be lonely especially when holidays like Christmas come around........is there someone that you can trust and look for helping hand or words ? or are you on your own with your problems ? Do some of the young people (working in similar to your positions) develop and have problems with drinking, since it is easily available and not expensive ? How do 'you' (using that in a generic form) get along with other crew members especially the Greek officers ? Are there many friendships made easily, or is it 'just everyone for 'themselves'?

Wes

[4 cruisers]

Can I guess you're from Australia, New Zealand, or S. Africa?!!! We met staff from each of these countries on our Celebrity cruise.

 

Great fun!

[Nitemare]

Good stuff, cruiseemployee, thanks!

 

And for the folks trying to narrow down this poster's identity, my guess is if you get too close s/he'll run away. If you're enjoying the information, don't make him/her uncomfortable. Remember the story about the goose and the golden eggs? It would suck if you figured out who this was only to have him/her disappear!

[tuggers]

Why do we care where this person is from? He/She has made it clear that

 

a) X reads these boards and

b) he/she has no desire to 'be known' because, see a above

 

So instead of being glad we have a person willing to answer some insider questions, we have people popping in with, I'll bet you are M/F and are from Canada, S Africa, etc! Don't you think it's rather rude to try to ferret out more personal info when this person has said, forcefully, they do not want to be known.

 

If you truly appreciate this opportunity, ask your questions, be glad for some inside info, and pass on the opportunity to be smarter than everyone else and keep what you think you've 'discovered' to yourself. If you must show off your

gleanings, do it off board. Don't be responsible for running this person off!

 

Cruiseemployee, thanks for being willing to answer our qustions. I, for one, will gladly abide by your rules and post no ideas I may have as to who you are and what ships you've been on. Let's hope others on the boards will see this and realize what their little 'mutterings' can do!

 

One question I have is for single cruisers. I travel alone and tip my Cabin Steward and his asst and the asst Head Housekeeper about one and a half times the standard. I realize they are losing by not having 2 people in the cabin. Have you ever heard them talk about this and does my tip seem adequate? I don't want to cheat anyone. I also sometimes give the CS an extra $20, outside of the envelope, if he has persinally done some things extra. That way I figure he can share it with his asst or not. is this good or bad? Your thoughts please!

[tofubeast]

Cruiseemployee...thanks so much for answering our nosey questions. What a great thread to read!!

 

I have some of my own questions for you:

 

1) What is one of the *funniest* things you have heard/seen from passengers (i.e. them compaining about something ridiculous etc...) You have to have a good juicy story. There are threads on here of what other passengers have seen/heard..and I laugh so hard when reading. As a crew member, you must have some seen some doosies! hehe

 

2) What is crew life like? Please paint a picture for us! Do you get your own cabin or share it? Does anyone ever swim in the crew pool in the front? What is a typical number of hours one will work in a day? What do you all do for fun onboard?

 

3) How do they really pick who will get invited to have dinner with the Captain?

 

 

Thanks!!

danielle

[4 cruisers]

Lighten up Tuggers....I come to these boards for fun and information. I'm a people person and to me that's part of the fun. I don't believe any info is being "devulged" that is threatening...IS this a PAST employee anyway. Gish. Try to have a Merry Christmas.

[Prewelli]

Hi,

 

We are from the Uk and find this most interesting - we cruise with Celebrity because we believe American lines give best service although inevitably the entertainment has a US slant when it comes to quizes and we found that the entertainment staff did not want to get to involved with Brits. However it is better than cruising with the now defunct Festival line who did everything in 7 languages. We also cruise with RC and found their service not to be quite as good as celebrity. My husband was a Chef in a well known hotel in England and found the comments re Galley interesting. We also were heavily involved business wise with an ex Cunard employee from the OLD Queen Mary and his standards were exacting.

 

How about the more recent practice of adding tips to the bill at the outset - do the staff get these - we still prefer to deal in cash to ensure that it actually gets to the person who has given the best service.

 

We are crusing on Summit 18.2.05 and hope that the service will be as good as ever - where have you moved on to?

[cruiseemployee]

I'd first like to say that I'm excited to see so many people interested in seeing what goes on behind the scenes of a cruise ship. Good to see that guests really do care...(not that I thought they didn't before..lol) I'm just as excited to answer your questions.

 

Zigster - Your question is very interesting because I've never personally liked the Captain's Club ever since they dropped the charges for it. What good is a benefit club when everyone has it??? You know what's funny, during some embarkation days, I've seen the Captain's Club line (which is supposed to be an express lane) longer than the normal check-in. I think that too many people complained about the fee to become a member and now it's not really a benefit anymore...Just my observation. Your method of complaint is not the wrong way to go, however, I gurarantee you that you're not the only one to have written these letters. It's a very general complaint for head office to receive.

 

CruiserJen - Yes the staff do party with the guests. And yes there is a policy for fraternizing with guests. You are allowed to have a drink with a guest (if you're a staff or officer), but it can't go any farther. Having said that, I know people who've worked on a ship and have quit to move to the guests city to try and start up something with them. I've also met an assistant cruise director who had married a guest. So it does happen. Many people who do work on ships are single, so it happens. The trick is to not get caught. Security is very strict about this and it comes straight from head office. If I was caught in a guest room, or kissing a guest, or making passes at a guest, I would be disembarked at the next port of call. I've seen it happen, they do it. Main reason for this tight move is because of liability issues with guest, crew lawsuits; rape etc. Yes the staff do date each other. I am currently off ships working in a sales job and living with a girl I worked with on board.

 

Wieslaw - Your response is very true and it also happens on cruise ships. Depression does set in for the crew. They are away from home for long periods of time and are always happy to head home. It's great to have email and MSN available now as an alternative. As far as coping with it; no pun intended, but we're all in the same ship. We're all away from home, so we're like a big family. You meet friends on board for life and can confide in them for comfort. Alcoholism is a major factor on board as well. You're right. But that does come from problems on land. Some people come to work on a ship to avoid things back home. I know of one employee who had a bar bill after two weeks larger than his salary. He owed money to the company!!! He was an alcoholic and was working on a ship to avoid a divorce back home. This is a very rare case though. Most people working are fairly mature enough to avoid binging. As far as getting along with other cultures, it is very hard sometimes but it's never really a big issue. More of a personal issue than a cultural one. A funny thing I saw was during Halloween. There's probably only about 8 or 9 countries that actually do dress up during this holiday. Was funny to see all the crew stare at the dressed up crew. Like, "what's going on???"

 

Tuggers - I've never heard them say anything about tips when 1 person is in a cabin, but my guess is that they are more than excited to receive that extra tip at the end. Honestly, I never knew that many housekeeping staff only because they are the hardest worked on the ship. They work for about 12 hours a day and then go to sleep at night. They're never around. They are also some of the best paid on the ship because of tips. So they get compensated for working hard. Your honesty is more than necessary tuggers. One thing I did hear a lot from housekeepers but more from dining staff is the amount of people who do avoid tipping. It's very disturbing... Especially when these people work almost entirely on tips, work hard for you and then don't get compensated. Sad really. I wish there were more people cruising on ships like you.

 

Tofubeast - Good question and I did have to think about that one. I remember going golfing with the golf pro one day and he had an older group golfing that were the most rude people in the world. They complained about having to walk to the taxi to get to the course (if you've ever been to St. Croix, you know the length of the pier), about the number of people in the cab, having to carry their rental clubs. It was sad. Other golfers started defending the pro and insulting these 4 people. When the day was finished, they left their clubs at the course and took a cab home. So here was the golf pro trying to carry about 7 bags back on to the cruise ship, swearing and muttering about these people...Wasn't funny at the time, but now it's hilarious. Just picturing him carrying these bags. Oh, and it was raining too!

Oh and by the way, at the end of the cruise when the CD usually tells you funny things guests have said during a cruise, those are so true!!! I've heard some doozies. A guest came into the library and asked me, "how do I choose a book?" No different than on land; find one you like, take it off the shelf!!! Too funny. Other things like a guest standing right in front of the elevator asking where is the elevator? They really look dumb for a few seconds.

 

Life on board a ship is rather interesting. For the most part, everyone has a roommate. Again it depends on the department you were in. Me being in the entertainment department, we were treated rather well. On the horizon class, our rooms were on the 5th floor at the front. On the Mill. class, they were on the 2nd floor. So we weren't exactly in the bowels of the ship. As far as swimming in the pool in the front, it's a hot tub so no swimming. But a lot of times the pool is shut down for maintenance. For long periods of time. And why go in the hot tub when the beaches are waiting!!!

 

3) This is a very good question!!!! They are picked by the Social Hostess obviously. First criteria is the people who have bought suites. They are looked at first. She tries to meet everyone in those suites and has to judge based on first impressions if they're suited to sit at the table. Other criteria is interest. Are you an interesting couple? A neat job worth talking about with the captain??? Honestly if you really wanna sit at the table, you do need to meet the SO HO and make a great first impression. They are always looking for people to sit at the table. This is a very stressing time for them because they have to find 5 appropriate couples and if they don't, their ass is on the line! The first formal night, I've seen it where they still haven't filled the table. So always find the social hostess and make a great first impression.

Kind of like an interview I guess.

 

Prewelli - That is true. The quizzes are US oriented. But it does depend on the percentage of cruisers. For instance, before a cruise we get a guest breakdown of demographics, country of residence and so forth. So we can adjust our quizzes and entertainment accordingly. We have had Brit trivia before, but honestly not one of mine went. Nobody showed up. I do understand your frustration, but it's just a matter of numbers. As far as tipping, the stewards don't mind them because they at least know that they're guaranteed to receive something. Like I said earlier, sadly many people don't tip. And yes, they do get them...lol In fact my guess is that very shortly you'll see the tip included in the ticket cost. Princess already does this. And if you feel like tipping extra at the end, you always have that option.

 

There's my novel for you,

Happy cruising and cheers,

[JUST ADD WATER]

Cruiseemployee: Thanks so much for your time and answers! :D

 

I feel better about cruising Celebrity knowing they are as good or better to their employees as the other lines. I would not feel right supporting a line which is not at least FAIR in their employment practices. Thanks for not reading offense in my asking where you are from. I meant it only as a frame of reference as what I consider "fair" or "good" might be a far cry from someone's opinion who hails from an underdeveloped area.

 

I'm glad you cleared up the passenger categorizing question. Now we know why everyone thinks it is our first cruise....such a relief! When we stumble in a room with a puzzled look on our faces it is due more to the drinks we have consumed than our lack of cruise experience :D LOL! They were actually doing us a favor by assuming "first time cruiser" rather than drunks :p ! Just kidding, we don't go that far. We have stressful jobs at home involving lots of staff to oversee, wearing your finest office attire daily, and never EVER doing something like drink too much or sing at the bar. It is a relief to go on a cruise, turn off the phones/pagers/Nextels, wear cotton shorts and flip flops (not to dinner ;), and generally have nobody know who you are or where you are. That's my kind of week!

 

I guess I'll keep posting and reviewing since the powers that be DO read my going on and on about the ships :o !

 

Thanks again for your time!

 

Rene

[kalamari]

A good resource book is by Dr. Ross Klein, "Cruise Blues, Behind the Scenes of the Cruise Industry". I shared it with my dh who is employed on a ship and he could vouche for the accuracy of it..it's a good resource although it will leave some in disbelief. Menina G.

[Jumbie]

A good resource book is by Dr. Ross Klein, "Cruise Blues, Behind the Scenes of the Cruise Industry". I shared it with my dh who is employed on a ship and he could vouche for the accuracy of it..it's a good resource although it will leave some in disbelief. Menina G.

Funny. Everything that I've heard about that book is that it's a bunch of unsubstantiated conjecture.

[kalamari]

Funny. Everything that I've heard about that book is that it's a bunch of unsubstantiated conjecture.

 

Well, read the book and see the extensive documentation from the right sources. My own experience is that the people who refuse to acknowledge the sources of information (you can also cross reference them yourself as well like I did) are people who do not know what critical thinking is.

 

I'm marrying a crew person so I can vouche for the content myself. If you want particulars I can explain in email not in this forum.

[Jumbie]

Well, read the book and see the extensive documentation from the right sources. My own experience is that the people who refuse to acknowledge the sources of information (you can also cross reference them yourself as well like I did) are people who do not know what critical thinking is.

 

I'm marrying a crew person so I can vouche for the content myself. If you want particulars I can explain in email not in this forum.

I'm just saying what I've heard. I've seen many people reference this book and rebuttals of the info contained therein (how many of the sources are unverified). I have no first-hand knowledge of it. And I have lots of experience with cross referencing and critical thinking, thank you very much - from scientific and medical journals, at least.

 

I'm dating (later to be marrying) a "crew person" myself and from what she's told me, info posted on sites like cruisejunkie.com (where I first saw that book referenced) is either outdated or completely false.

 

So, I guess that perhaps it does exist (according to your future husband) just not on all lines (according to my g/f).

 

Anyway don't want to take this off topic with further discussion of this book. Let's just say that it exists and people can read it for another perspective on the cruising industry.

[CruiserJen]

CruiseEmployee: Thank you for all the great info & insight into this industry. So if you meet a crew person that you are interested in, best to start a long-distance communication & get together during their vacation or they may get fired... Wow, those fellas took a big chance with my two friends... and now I can see why the other two who are so attractive were unable to connect.... the guys didn't want to lose those great jobs. Can't blame them for that. They will feel much better when I relay that info.

 

What kind of information do the Staff receive on the Guests? Do they receive a list of the guest with age, occupation, etc. Does the Social Hostess get more info on the guests to help make a decision on who to seat with the Captain? I'm just wondering how much privacy we guests actually have once we provide our vital statistics to the booking department?!

 

So if you really want to be seated at the Captain's table for dinner, you should put something "interesting" down for your occupation? Kind of embellish the title a bit... any suggestions for occupations that tend to work for those who might be interested in dining with the Captain?

 

I have read elsewhere on this board, that if you want to have dinner with the Captain, it helps to be an attractive, single woman on a cruise. If you read back a few weeks, there is a post complaining about the Captain being flanked by good looking blondes for dinner. Is this for real? Perhaps they were his daughters!?

 

Jen

[Ma Bell]

Thanks for taking the time to answer everyone's questions. It sounds as though you enjoyed your time and were wise enough to move on. Good luck to you in the future!:)

[gizmodog]

I love this topic and am enjoying reading all the questions, thank you for letting us ask and being so prompt to answer...here is my question.

I love the newlywed not so newlywed game, and in our 7 celebrity cruises my husband and I have tried each time to get up there and play. The entertainment staff takes names and then say they are going to draw names "in private" and will be back with who the contestants are...they then disappear into the back room and return with the names

"wHAT REALLY HAPPENS BACK THERE?" I am finding it hard to beleive that names are being drawn as I have seen on more then one occasion couples being called up along with their traveling companion friends.

Enquiring minds want to know.

Thanks so much!!!!

[bales]

xxxxx

[bales]

Well, I'm going to try this again it doesnt seem like my questions posted -

 

1. How long does the typical member of the Cruise Activity Staff stay working for the cruise lines? How many would you say make it a career? Is it possible for the Cruise Activity Staff to become a Cruise Director? When does the cruise staff know their next assignment? Do they know before they leave their current assignment or do they find out when they are on break? How often do they get assigned to the same ship? How much input do they have with where their next assignment will be? What would you say is the average age of a Cruise Activity Staff member? How much "down" time during the day do they have?

[fireguy091]

I wanna know if critical thinking is live threating?.. :cool:

[Shirley and Les]

I wanna know if critical thinking is live threating?.. :cool:

After retiring, I now realize that just plain old "thinking" is life threating!;)