How to Get a Job on a Cruise Ship with No Experience

Table Of Content

• The 1-item upgrade you need for a better cruise ship cabin experience (it’s already in your house)
• You can find job listings directly through cruise lines and agencies/contractors
• How Much Money Does Cruise Ship Crew Make?
• How has the global pause in cruising impacted job availability on cruise ships?
• FAQs About Getting a Job on a Cruise Ship

This blog helps over a million people to plan their cruises each month. Cruise ship workers do tend to work long hours and will generally work seven days a week with no days off. However, many workers talk about the camaraderie amongst the crew and how it helps to create a fun atmosphere.

The 1-item upgrade you need for a better cruise ship cabin experience (it’s already in your house)

You’ll also want to narrow your choice of cruise lines to the one you want to work for. This is another area where, if you have training but no cruise ship experience, you may be able to secure a job. Adventure and water sport jobs on cruise ships include lifeguards, swimming instructors, and diving instructors. Cabin steward is another entry-level position that does not require cruise ship experience. Your duties, if hired, include daily cleaning and tidying of the passenger cabins.

You can find job listings directly through cruise lines and agencies/contractors

Your task, if hired, is general cleaning of the ship, which includes maintenance and cleaning the deck areas. You can earn from $1,300 to $2,200 per month if hired in this position. The best way to get a job on a cruise ship with no experience is to emphasize your transferable skills in your resume. When you get the interview, focus on how you can transfer your present skills to the job’s requirements. Depending on the cruise ship position, employment contracts might vary in length, although they normally run for four to ten months.

How Much Money Does Cruise Ship Crew Make?

Retail and guest services offer some of the best jobs on cruise ships without experience. This is because you get to interact with guests every day, helping them with their needs and solving problems. Each of these fields includes jobs on cruise ships with no experience necessary.

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2. Research about the hiring cruise company and prepare for interview

Crew members have the option to fly home and resume their normal lives before the start of their next contract while they are in between contracts. Speaking with a former employee of a cruise ship, she shared that despite her modest wage, she managed to pay off her $30,000 student debt in just two years. Cruise lines tend to hire younger workers more, but that doesn’t mean they never hire older people to work on-board. Cruise ship work is demanding and crew are expected to maintain a positive and welcoming atmosphere, and so it needs high energy levels. This category often includes crew in the largest departments onboard.

All in all, pursuing a career in the cruise line, especially without any experience requires a strategic and diligent approach. Cruise ship workers can expect to earn a steady income while gaining valuable experience working in the cruise industry. For RCG, their jobs are divided into three different sectors — hotel, marine, and private destination — each of which has numerous sub-categories. Jobs like cabin stewards, deckhands, and servers are going to be more attainable. Cruise ships aren't just engineering marvels; they're also the home to the thousands of crew members who work onboard the ship to ensure that you have a memorable vacation. Having a past employer, teacher or coach write a letter of reference for you is another way to prove to your prospective recruiter that you are capable of certain skills and experience.

A job on a cruise ship is largely similar to a job of a similar nature on land. While not necessary, having a degree in tourism and hospitality is also beneficial. Additional online courses are available to train cruise line employees in pertinent skills.

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If you can make it the first 30 days, you WILL start to see and experience the benefits of working on a cruise ship. It’s important to note that any pre-existing medical conditions may affect your eligibility for certain positions, so it’s important to be upfront and honest about your medical history. Passing the marine medical exam is essential for landing a job on a cruise ship, and it’s important to take the exam seriously and prepare accordingly. Having these documents in order not only helps speed up the application process, but it also shows that you are organized, responsible, and serious about working on a cruise ship. Make sure to keep them safe and easily accessible during your contract period, as you may need to present them to authorities at various ports of call.

From chef to waiter, cleaner to entertainer and a director, they provides positions for all. How you prove your experience goes beyond your past and current employment. They’ve acquired them through volunteering, travelling, extracurricular activities, hobbies, school projects, internships, workshops and seminars. First you need to identify the skills that a recruiter is looking for as detailed in their job advert. Next, you want to draw attention to how your skills are transferable to that desired cruise ship job. You want to be able to prove that you have both the skills and personality that are required to do the job that you are applying for.

The easiest way to get your dream cruise ship job is to take an entry-level job to get your foot through the door and then you can work your way up to the job that you aspire to do. Working on board a cruise ship not only fully funds your travels but also allows you to save almost everything you make while working in a unique and multicultural environment. On top of that, you’ll have the opportunity to visit ports around the globe that passengers honestly save up for YEARS to experience. To give you an idea, I started my 10 years at sea as a youth activities staff member in the $1,200 USD a month range. Five years later, my salary tripled when I was promoted to Crew Training Officer.

If you find a job you like, you’ll need to submit a cover letter and resume. Depending on the cruise line and position, you may need to submit additional documentation. And crew members working in the most demanding positions may get one day off each week. If a crew member gets a day off when the cruise ship is in port, they are free to explore the port or take a shore excursion just like guests. If you want a job on a cruise that requires no experience, you better like cleaning. Most of the entry-level positions are cleaning, maintenance, or serving roles.

You have transferable skills if you have worked hard as a student or in an office, factory, or manufacturing plant. You have already developed many transferable skills, which are very useful to cruise ships. When starting a new contract, new cruise ship personnel frequently overlook the cost of transportation to and from the ship. Cruise lines provide flights to the assigned ships for the workers. Additionally, they pay among the lowest of all cruise ship occupations.

They often spend their 8-10 weeks off in between contracts traveling or visiting/staying with family. In the early eighties, my family got off cargo ships, and my father went on to become a Marine Lawyer in the UK. My mother started her own Marine Recruitment firm in Vancouver, BC, Canada. Cruise lines often have geographical preferences when hiring workers, with many coming from Southeast Asia. Language requirements are also important, as fluency in English is typically necessary for most positions.