What does it take to work on a cruise ship?

I wanna work on a cruise ship in my gap year?

• I've just started my final year at 6th form and after this I wanna take a gap year and work on a cruise ship then go to Uni. I wondered how I'd get into this and whether it is ...show more

• Answer:

  That may not work out for you, and the odds are very slim, but you might check with Cunard. Generally, cruise companies hire crew who are at least age 21 and have 2 years of fulltime experience in the job duties to be performed on board. Contracts run from 6 months to about 10 months, with no days off during the contract, very long hours, and split shifts. If you have a very special skill such as being a performer, you might be able to get a contract where the cruise companies fly you to meet a ship in port, have you perform, and then fly you from a port to meet another ship -- or fly you home to wait for the next gig. The money and the working conditions are really very, very good! As I said, check with Cunard, which has offices in London and which hires more crew from the UK than most. In the meantime, I suggest you to to the Cunard web site, follow the links to "employment", and see what if anything might be available. If anybody will understand "gap year", they will. By the way, do NOT deal with any business that expects you to pay money for their "help" in getting a job on a cruise ship! They are very good at taking your money, but don't do anything that you cannot do for yourself for free. Also, the cruise companies do not deal with them! If your goal is actually to go to sea, I would think your chances would be better working as a hand on a cargo ship. I don't know the names of the companies or anything else of much value, but the Harbor Masters at the major ports certainly know who they are! Can you go spend a day or two at Southampton to talk to people? Or another port that is closer to you? Personally, if I were in the UK, I would see about perhaps working for the royal family in one of the residences. I met a fellow who spent a year as a footman at Clarence House for the Queen Mother, and he had a wonderful adventure. I'm not sure how to go about getting that sort of job, but there are listings of job openings on the internet at the web sites for the various residences and other historic sites. Best of luck to you!