I spent over a year working as a youth staff on multiple cruise ships for two different companies. I started with Norwegian Cruise Lines and worked with them as full-time youth staff before moving over to work with Princess Cruises as a seasonal youth staff. I really enjoyed working with both companies and was able to visit over 14 countries while working on 5 different ships. To give you an idea of what shiplife is really like, this post is all about my experience working as a youth staff on a cruise ship.
Table of Contents
How I Got a Job as a Youth Staff on a Cruise Ship
Applying
I applied to multiple companies via their online career page. It was mostly just uploading my resume (that I formatted to a cruise staff resume) and then filling out all of my information. It took a couple of weeks to get any response, and only two of the six companies I applied to responded. I had interviews with each company and spoke to a corporate staff member who I would never actually meet.
Onboarding
I accepted a job with one company and started the onboarding process. The paperwork took almost two months to complete due to having to make doctors appoints that included getting blood work done, completing a chest X-ray, and obtaining a yellow fever shot. I also had to submit criminal background checks and finger printing.
Getting my Assignment
Finally, once paperwork was complete they assigned me to a ship that was set to sail in 8 days. I had no say in where I was heading, because they assign you where they need you. For my first 6-month contract I would be in the Caribbean, sailing around Cuba and the Bahamas!
Boarding for my First Contract
Arriving to the Port of Call
My first ship boarded in Miami and the company paid for my flight, gave me meal vouchers, and put me up in a hotel for the night. I was rooming with one other crew member who was working in Casino. I had the chance to explore Miami after I checked into the hotel. The next morning I was up really early to get ready and meet the rest of the crew who would also be joining the ship that day. We met in the lobby and all loaded into a shuttle that took us to port.
Boarding the Ship
We were brought to crew check in; a folding table set up in a back room. We checked in, dropped off our luggage, went through security and passport collection, and headed up the crew gangway. It was a surprise to me that they hold onto crew member passports, but they do this so that no one “jumps ship”.
The rest of the day was training and signing paperwork. Around 4:30pm, I was finally picked up by a fellow youth staff. I got to collect my luggage, drop it off in my cabin, and was taken to laundry to collect my uniform. Then I got a short tour of the ship. At dinner in the crew mess, I met the other staff members that I would be working with.
Onboard Training
Training
My first cruise (which was 7 days) was packed with training about how things are run. I sat in tons of meetings learning about the company, employee expectations, policies, etc… It took 4 days till I was allowed to get off at port because I could not leave the ship until I was “trained to do so”.
What I did not know was there would be plenty more training ahead. It took several weeks to complete my crew safety training where we learn CPR, fire drills, pirate drills, how to survive at sea, etc… It was a really cool training overall. Even after that training was complete, for the rest of my time working on ships I (and all other crew members) would constantly be called to take new trainings and refresher trainings when needed.
Guest & Crew Drills
One of my least favorite things was having to participant in all the drills. As a crew member, I was one of the people who would demonstrate how to properly wear a lifejacket during the guest drills at the start of every cruise (so about once a week). We also had crew drills every week or two that consisted of standing at our safety stations and waiting to be cleared by the higher ups, who would sometimes come around and quiz us on ship safety practices.
Getting Around
My first few weeks on board were very confusing and I got lost more than once. Even smaller vessels are huge, especially when you account for the hidden crew areas that the guests don’t see. Every time I boarded a new ship, it would take me a little while to figure out how to get around.
Cabin Life
Living Arrangements
My room was very small, which is what I expected. I had a cupboard and some shelves, a shared desk with a television, and a bathroom. The bathroom was super small with a sink, toilet, and shower with a curtain that sticks to you while you try and shower. The walls were metal (of course), there were no windows, and I got the top bunk.
Roommates
The person on the bottom bunk is the roommate that has been there the longest. My roommate was really sweet. She was in the lighting and tech department and from Thailand. We had no problems communicating because everyone on board speaks English. Since the ship was with an American company (and the majority of guests speak English) the official language on board is English.
Housekeeping
One thing that I especially did not love was that on every ship I have ever been on, we had housekeeping that we could not opt out of. Housekeepers would come frequently and we were meant to tip them one a week. It felt weird having other crew members come into my room to clean when I worked with them and could do it on my own.
Nap Time
I spent a lot of time taking naps in my cabin, which is something I had never previously done. When you don’t have days off and work long hours, you need nap time to keep your energy up. Of course, it didn’t help that I was up late with friends enjoying conversation at the crew bar.
Laundry
The first time I did laundry on the ship I had to ask for help because all of the machines were in Celsius. I learned quickly though. I had to lug my laundry basket across the ship to the crew laundry machines. They were often full, so I spent a lot of time waiting for a washer or dryer to open up. I had the option of sending my work uniform to the professional laundry but opted to do it on my own.
Food
The Crew Mess
At the start of my first contract (and every time I would board a new ship) the food in the crew mess never seemed that bad… but it seems to get worse the longer you are on the ship. It’s usually tons of soups, rice dishes, and pastas. There were never many healthy options and the fruit is not always ripe. I skipped eating at the mess a lot of the time.
Eating at the Guest Buffet
A huge perk of my job was getting access to guest buffets. The food there is really good but very rich and does not offer many healthy options either… but getting sautéed veggies, cuts of steak, stuffed peppers, and the flourless chocolate cake all the time, was a lot of fun.
My co-workers and I would often eat at odd times because there were set times that we were allowed access to the buffet. We would head down to the buffet once we closed the kids center for the day, so dinner around 9:00pm became the norm.
Crew Convenience Store
On a lot of ships there is a crew convenience store where I could purchase snacks. We would usually stop by before movie nights to get treats. During my first contract, I would also frequent the store to stock up on Maria cookies, which I quickly became addicted to.
I was not able to bring fresh fruit on board the ships, so if I purchased snacks while at port, I usually got pretzels or popcorn to hold myself over during the times the crew mess did not suffice. However, I also took apples from the crew mess (which we were not allowed to do).
Working as a Youth Staff
My Job
Working as a youth staff on cruise ships means working at the kids center. Now and then I would help run the teen center, but the majority of the time I was working with ages 6-13. I facilitated games and crafts, set up movie nights, and basically spent my time entertaining kids. In the off season we would get as little as 2-5 kids a day, but in the high seasons we would be entertaining up to 30 or 40 kids at a time. It took a lot of energy, but I loved it.
An Average Day
While at port, an average day meant either having the day shift or the evening shift. During the day shift, it would be me and one or two other youth staff working in the kids center. The more kids we had on board, the more of us there were scheduled for the day shift, but we also had higher staff numbers during the high season.
The day shift meant setting up the kids center and getting it ready to open, usually by 9:00am. We had a set schedule of the activities and/or themes of the day, so families knew what to expect when they joined us. If parents were off at port during lunch time, then we would take the kids to the buffet and eat lunch with them. That shift wrapped up around 5:00pm.
If you have the evening shift, work did not start until around 4:00pm (meaning you could get off at port for the day). The evening shift would swap out with the day shift staff and run activities throughout the evening. If requested, we also offered babysitting hours that lasted till midnight or 1:00am (but parents needed to sign up in advance for this). We closed around 9:00pm or 10:00pm depending on the cruise.
Sea Days
Sea days were the days we clocked the most hours. During a sea day, the kids center is open practically the whole day. It was all hands on deck and we would open from 8:00am – 9/10:00pm and close for an hour during lunch and dinner so that we could eat. I easily worked 12-14 hours those days.
Holidays
The holidays are part of the high season, so the ships were packed during Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. As youth staff, our team would run a lot of family events in the atrium, such as; decorating Easter cookies, photos with Santa, Halloween mask making, and more. I only worked once on New Years Eve and got paid double for it: another staff member and I had a New Year’s Eve party for a group of kids in the kids center.
Other Responsibilities
There were some other responsibilities I did not know I had until I started my first contract. During embarkment day and all aboard, they had staff members stationed at the entry points to welcome guests back on the ship.
On a couple of ships I worked on, youth staff were expected to send one or two members to help with Sail Away during embarkment days. That meant on the first day of each cruise, we would greet the guest on the main deck and participate in a dance number. It was one of my very least favorite parts and I would often swap with another youth staff for their Island Duty.
Island Duty
When we docked at the private islands, 2-3 youth staff were assigned to Island Duty. This meant running family games (like sand volleyball, water balloon fights, etc..) on the island. Our shift would start at 6:30/7:00am and we would gather equipment, take the tender boat to the island, and set up the games. If no one showed up or wanted to participate, we would basically stand around and dance to music all morning.
I was the only staff member who loved Island Duty. At 1:30pm our shift would end and we got to eat lunch on the island. This meant the guest food; burgers, BBQ chicken, watermelon, and things we did not usually eat on board. Then we could go back to the ship and have the rest of the day off or stay on the island and enjoy our time. I spent a lot of time snorkeling and it was beautiful.
The Pros of the Job
There are lots of pros and cons when it comes to working on a cruise ship, but in this case I am only considering the pros and cons at it relates to being a youth staff.
As a youth staff, I loved getting to work with kids from all around the world. Even when we had kids that did not speak English, it was easier to communicate with them than you would think. It was also so much fun getting to make their cruise memorable. Playing games all day is a great job. I also usually loved the staff and managers I worked with.
As youth staff, I had tons of time off at port because most days I did not work until 4:00pm. I had access to lots of guest amenities and could see a show, eat at the restaurants, and join in on shore excursions.
The Cons of the Job
While I loved the kids, the parents could be very frustrating. There were too many times when parents would yell or get mad at us because their child could not just do whatever they wanted at the kids zone, but had to participate in the activities that were on the schedule. The amount of times I heard; “well, the captain told me” or “let me talk to the captain” or “I’ll talk to the captain about this”…. trust me, the captain could not care less about how the kids zone is run.
I also felt really bad for a lot of the kids because their families would drop them off for the day while they went and enjoyed the country we were docked in. Some kids would be waiting in line at 8:30am while we set up the kids center and would stay with us until babysitting hours at midnight. It was sad.
Pay
We got paid on an Ocean Pay card that was like a debit card that our paychecks were sent to. I made $1,500 USD per month for my first 6-month contract. This would have increased for my second if I stayed with the same company. However, I switched to working with another company as a seasonal youth staff, so my pay would fluctuate depending on my contract.
Getting off at Port
Getting off at Port
Getting off at each port is a bit different, but the biggest thing I had to be aware of was the crew all aboard time because it was not always the same as the guests. I got the chance to explore cities all over the world while I worked on ships. Sometimes, during low season, our managers would give us full days off so we could stay at port longer or ask us if there was a specific port we really wanted to see so they could arrange our work schedule.
A lot of the times I would get off just to sit in a coffee shop and connect to wifi so I could talk with friends back home. Or, I would find a good restaurant to have a decent meal or just eat a bunch of fresh fruits.
Staying on the Ship
On my first contract I never believed I would stay on the ship if I had the chance to get off at port, but it did not take too long before I preferred to stay on board at some locations. There is only so much you can do in Nassau or the Grand Cayman and after being there for months, a nap in my cabin or lunch at the guest buffet sounded more appealing.
Excursions
One of my absolute favorite perks of this job was getting to participate in the guest excursions. If you were not working during the day, you could sign up to participate in guest tours. Now, this did not mean you were guaranteed a spot, but if they had room on a tour and you did not mind sending a review to shore ex at the end, you could join a tour for free.
I had the opportunity to take a canal boat tour in Russia, chocolate tasting in Mexico, a fall highlights tour in Canada, walking tour in Estonia, and a few more. This was all for free! It was not available on every ship, but for the ones that it was… I took full advantage!
The End of an Era
Why I Stopped Working on Ships
After completing my last contract, I decided not to do another one for a number of reasons. I was tired of getting cabin fever and feeling like I was trapped on a ship, I was longing for another type of job, I missed choosing what I ate and exercising the way I liked, and if I continued I would have had to complete another long safety training before I could board again. Thus, I decided to move onto the next thing.
Would I Go Back to Shiplife
I remember when someone finished their contract and it was time to say good bye, we would always say, “see you somewhere at sea”. The weight of that statement alone brings back lots of great memories and a pull to get back out there. While I really enjoyed my time on ships, I am not sure I will find myself out at sea again. I am at the point in my life where the cons outweigh the pros of shiplife, and there are so many other opportunities out there. But… never say never.
Conclusion
I loved my time working as a youth staff on cruise ships. I hope that sharing my experience gave you an idea of what your contract may be like if you are thinking about working on a cruise ship. Have you worked on ships? What was your job on board? Please feel free to share in the comments below.
