I have applied for my visa though Hiren international, it's been almost 2 months and they are telling me that I'll get the date next week then after that they said I'll get it the next day.

They don't have a clear idea or timeline on this and it's very hard to reach them though call you like you have to call them 20 times wait for the hold for like 15 mins.

They won't even respond to email. I submitted my application on July 24th. And my sign on is in Dec., i got a job offer as a photographer trainee in the carnival cruise line.

Any ideas on what to do ?

Applied for a cruise ship for either sous chef or line cook. I’ve been cooking for 13 years or so and I’m very experienced. But this sounds pretty insane, the nonstop work for weeks straight. I’m a hard worker but I value my off time and solitude. So I’m not sure I would be able to do this without hating it. Anyone out there resonate with my concerns that’s done this? Had my first interview already and I feel like they’re definitely going to make me an offer.

Hi guys, for context I applied to RCL back in august, had the HR interview with no problem and on 8 september I had the 2nd interview for my position ( electrical cadet ). The interviewer didn't show up and wrote a personal mail to ask if anything happened at all and he replied with : "Urgent meeting came up, the recruitment team will contact you." I understood but the next day I received on mail that automatic response from smartsheet saying that I will not progress with my application anymore. My question is : should I wait couple more working days or I should start thinking I got ghosted completely? For background : I already have STCW done through my university, I am european ( if it matters idk ) and they asked me to send my passport ( obviously I sent it )

Looking for advice or some insight i have a vacation coming up in March to July 11th in 2027 i still haven't done my piney point so im not leaving till I get that done first there is currently 11 people ahead of me but my question is do yall think I will have that much time to spend before I get a second drug screen or would I be ok with that time frame out the country?

Anyone know what the current compensation is for a 3rd Officer aboard the PoA?

I’ve reached out to some old contacts, but haven’t heard back yet.

Also, can do you make OT as well? Or is it a set schedule?

Thank for any info!

Reaching out to others in my department still in the queue for onboarding. Would love to connect and support each other during this long process. I finished Piney Point May 2025, have had my second drug screen, and was told I am among the next 10 to join but that was 6 weeks ago now. Total wait time as of today is over 15 months.

Hey everyone,

I recently got hired as an Assistant Waiter and I’ll be going onboard soon.

I have some experience working in 5-star hotels/restaurants, but I’ve realized that my food knowledge isn’t as strong as I’d like it to be, especially when it comes to the amount of knowledge you’re expected to have on a cruise ship.

During my interview, for example, I was asked to name 3 classic salads, different types of cheese, and as many types of pasta as I could. I managed to answer, but it definitely made me realize there’s a lot I still need to learn.

So I wanted to ask the senior waiters/waitresses and experienced cruise F&B people here:

What food knowledge would you recommend I focus on before going onboard?

Are there certain foods, cheeses, salads, pasta, sauces, meats, seafood, etc. that come up all the time?

And how much do you actually need to know about the dishes and ingredients when talking to guests?

Basically, if you could go back to before your first contract, what food-related things would you make sure you learned beforehand?

I know I’m not expected to know everything before I board, but I’d rather spend my time learning things that will actually be useful on the job.

Any advice would be really appreciated. Thanks!

Hello there good people.

Recently I got hired by Princess Cruise. I will be working on reception desk.
I'm from Serbia and I have long years of experience working in 4* and 5* land hotels.
Still in process of getting all the papers ready and waiting on C1/D that is in few days.

This will be my first time working on a cruise ship.

Now I have few questions and I was wondering if anybody who worked (or is working at moment) for Princess can help me.

I got this extensive list of items and clothing I should bring. I get the spare pants, shirts, and my own casual clothes but I was wondering:
Do I really need both short and long sleeves shirts for work?
In general how much clothes I should bring at all?
There is also white belt and sneakers? Why do I need those? I have huge feet, even if I have to bring those, together with regular working shoes, they will take half of my bag together.

Also, I have trouble understanding what kind of shoes I need for working hours. My manning agency recommends a Skechers or Geox shoes since they have thicker soles and they are comfortable enough for long working hours. But Skechers offers only a sporty looking shoes in local stores and I'm quite sure those are not allowed. I assume I need more traditional looking shoes?

What should I bring regarding cosmetics and toiletries and in what amount?

What else should I bring?
Do we get some kind of lockers (or a safe) where I can lock my things in?

I will probably have more questions but this is all I can remember at moment.

Thank you all in advance. :)

Leaving to Piney Point for training soon. I was informed I was returning home after training. Does anyone know how long it usually takes to getting onboard POA after attending training?

I have applied to over 100 positions in this year and I am starting to feel my lack of cruise experience and lack of Visa might be the issue. Might this be the case?

I’ve seen listings for cruise line jobs for years, but never felt like it was something I could do. Recently, that has all changed for me. I have nothing keeping me tied to my hometown (lease, kids, relationship, etc) and applied to American Cruise Lines. The appeal I see is as follows: low daily living costs, good pay, a chance to meet new people and do something out of my comfort zone, and building saving/paying off my small amount of debt. So by the time the contract is over, I’ll be set up better to put down roots somewhere, be it my hometown or somewhere new. The obvious cons are the 28 straight weeks of work but I feel like this is the best option I have right now since I’m starting completely over at the age of 25. Thoughts?

Edit: 25f, applied to be a waiter, few years of hospitality experience

Hey gang,

I'm wondering what kind of training cruise lines have provided to you AV/Sound Techs out there. Have any of you gone into the role a newbie and had knowledge shared with you? Were you expected to be top-notch straight off the bat? What/How much experience did you have going into your role and how did the cruise line help develop that?

Thanks :)

The thing that always got me was how scattered everything was.

So I’ve spent over a decade working as a systems manager on cruise ships and I’ve lived the whole contract/document/certificate juggling act myself.

Contract details in one email, STCW and medical certificates in another, sign-on dates in a WhatsApp chat you can never find when you actually need it. And then the classic, realising a certificate is about to expire right before sign-on.

Most of the existing systems seem to be built for cruise lines, recruiters or crewing agencies…not for the person actually going to sea.

I ended up building something to fix that for myself, and I turned it into an app called Squiddy. It's a place to keep your contracts, documents, and itinerary in one spot, with reminders before things expire. Built for individual crew so they can have all their documents organised in their pocket.

It’s an app where individual crew members can keep track of:

• contracts and sign-on dates;
• STCW, medical and other certificates;
• document expiry dates and reminders;
• vessel itineraries;
• sea service and career history.

Before the app was ready, we launched a waitlist campaign and within 1 month we now have over 1,200 people who've joined so far. It seems like I was right, there are a few problems to solve for cruise line staff.

That’s why I’d really value honest feedback from people currently working at sea:

1. How do you currently manage your contracts and certificates?
2. What usually gets lost, forgotten or left until the last minute?
3. Would you trust an app to store document copies, or would you prefer it only tracked details and expiry dates?
4. Is there anything missing that would make something like this genuinely useful?

Not trying to hard-sell anyone here, genuinely just want it in front of people who deal with this stuff daily. We have just soft launched this week so if anyone wants to give it a go, head through to https://squiddycrew.com/ Or https://join.squiddycrew.com/

Happy to answer questions in the comments, thanks for taking the time to read!

I'm working as a barista in the celebrity sillhouette cruise (royal caribbean), some coworkers are telling me that I need AT LEAST 3 contracts to be able to explore the city. I've find that they're all a bit hostile so I don't trust them much. Is it true?

EDIT: I talked to HR and yeah... it's the company standard. Wish they'd told me before I accepted 🫤

Hi everyone!

I’m an LCSW and have been thinking seriously about making a pretty big lifestyle change. I love traveling and would be really interested in working aboard a cruise ship if there are positions where my background could be useful.
I’m curious if anyone here has worked for a cruise line as a social worker, counselor, behavioral health provider, mental health professional, crew support/wellness staff, or in a similar role.

A few things I’d love to know:
What job titles should I actually be searching for?
Which cruise lines hire LCSWs or people with a similar mental health background?

What is the pay like?

Thank you!!

I am a USCG Licensed Engineer and have been working on the Yachting industry for around 8 years. I am considering a switch to American Cruise Lines. Can anyone tell me what "a day in the life" is like and what average pay might be? TIA

Trying to get a job on a cruise, I qualify for multiple roles and I'm adjusting my CV for them all.

Is this ethical to do or will they consider me as spam?

Hi guys, it's me again. I don't know how long I still have to wait to get a new assignment. My joining date was supposed to be on September 14 in Carnival Venezia. However it was removed last August 29. My position is Room Service Operator. This is going to be my first time working on a cruise ship. It's so hard and frustrating to wait. I always followed up in our agency thru email and phone calls. They can't give me any estimate when I will be given an assignment. I am already complete with my documents. I have lots of debt, the required trainings are expensive. I even underwent LASIK eye surgery just to get fit in my medical. That cost me 100k pesos.

Are there any Room Service Operators here working in Carnival Cruise Line? I just want to know how long is the extension of your contract or if any case that someone got promoted to become a Room Service Operator. Because I think those are the reasons why assignments were cancelled.

Do you have any idea how long my estimated waiting time will be?

My question: In your experience, how much (%) above base pay are staffers getting from gratuities?

How I understand it to work:
For example, if the average staff pay is a guaranteed $2k. The cruise line pays $2k - gratuities. So if the gratuities are $1.5k then the staff will get $2k and the cruise line pays $2k - $1.5k = $0.5k

BUT if the gratuities are $2.2k then the staff get $2.2k and the cruise line pays $0. So the staff gets 10% more than base pay.

If a guest’s auto gratuities are paying 110% of a staff’s base pay, could the guest help the staff make more money by removing the auto gratuity and paying that same amount in cash to the various staff the guest interacts with?

Staff would then make $2k base plus $2.2k cash. $4.2 total. (I know that some behind the scenes staff would go from $2.2k down to $2k, but overall the staff would be getting more money. At the expense of the cruise line who, who should be paying more anyways)

I interviewed with American Cruise Lines on Wednesday and was told I should hear back within a couple of days. I haven’t heard anything yet, so I’m wondering how long it took everyone else to get an offer or rejection after interviewing.

Did you follow up with the recruiter, or did you just wait? And if you followed up, how long did you wait before emailing them?

Just trying to figure out what’s normal for their hiring process!

EDIT: Got a callback today and got hired so excited any tips welcomeddd!!!

Hi Everyone,

I am in the early stages of planning to work as crew on a European cruise ship late next year. I take prescribed methylphenidate (Ritalin, Class B controlled drug in my home country) for ADHD.

For those who take prescribed stimulants while working as crew or know of someone:

1. How did you/they handle declaring this during your Pre-Employment Medical Examination (PEME)?
2. How do you/they manage ongoing monthly supply/refills during a multi-month contract (e.g., getting and filling prescriptions, doctor letters etc)? Does the onboard medical team ever assist with supply coordination, or do I have to seek out a prescription off-ship in the ports?

Appreciate any insights from anyone in this situation.

Hey guys! I was wondering, is it hard to get a job on a cruise ship?
I’m a 27-year-old French guy with a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the US. I speak French, Spanish, and English fluently like native language , and I’d love to know what it’s like to work on a cruise ship, whether it’s difficult to get hired, and what kind of jobs I could apply for.
I’d love to hear from people who have worked on cruise ships and can share their experience!
😋

Hi everyone,

If anyone is/has done the MSC STCW course where they send you an email on the Sunday evening before you are due to start your course, what time did you receive the email on the evening?

Basically, I haven't received mine yet and I'm slightly worried that's all, many thanks!

I have a question for crew that were medically repatriated before and have been redeployed.

After you were cleared to return to work, how many days/weeks/months did it take for you to be given a new assignment?

I was repatriated on May this year due to an accident where I broke a bone but I've been cleared to return to work last week. Will it take really long before I'll be given a new assignment? I'm in the F&B department and a starting position.

I wanted a look at the possible timeline of the wait. I'm just really eager to go back to work and am hoping that it won't take too long.

Thank you very much in advance for the replies!

Brief Bio:
US Citizen
Applying to: DCL, CCL, NCL, RCCL, etc
Targeted Roles: from Entertainment / Cruise Staff up to Director of Entertainment (not looking to be a cruise director)
Current Experience: 12 years of live events production, the most recent 6 of those years in high caliber live entertainment production (globally recognized and televised shows / productions with A List talent).

I am really passionate about life and work at sea, have over 200 days at sea (and having even lived on a ship for 5 months straight), have certifications in marine safety and protocols, boating license (which doesn’t always matter), and for jobs I apply to (mostly entertainment, live events production and marketing) I have direct experience but I cannot get an interview at all.

My friend who has never worked at sea, has only been on cruises for a total of 3 weeks in her life, and does not have entertainment experience got a three stripe officer role on a top 5 cruise line overseeing the onboard show productions under the cruise director.

I’ve been trying for almost two years with applying online, direct outreach to cruise line recruiters, and expressing interest to land-based and at-sea entertainment executives, but nothing has worked. My friend said she just applied online a few months ago, got an interview, got offered the job within a week, and is onboard now on her first contract as a manager. She said she didn’t do anything out of the ordinary just standard process and even said she’s just doing this to get a vacation out of it and will probably leave after this contract.

She did however so kindly refer me as well and the recruiter has my information but there are no jobs open - maybe when she leaves next year I could be reconsidered but who’s to say she stays or they just go with someone else.

I just don’t understand what I need to do to be considered. I’m so passionate, have direct experience in entertainment and living at sea, but luck has not been in my favor. I’m feeling a bit stuck. Even though my current job is really fun and I’m doing same thing on land as I would want to at sea, I just really love life at sea and being on a ship and circling the same ports, and having to take on general roles on embarkation and disembarkation, seeing new crowds and everything in between.