Paid to Travel

     Recently, a post came up on my facebook that summed up ship-life pretty succinctly:

     “Cruise life has such a glam look to the outside world. Pictures posted are of beautiful places we are privilege to see, or the parties we get to ‘unwind’ in after work.

     Reality is, cruise life really is great, but it can also be hard and lonely at times. You work every day for months on end with long hours and no days off.

     You party hard because there’s nowhere else to go after work, no home or family to go back to. Your ship friends become your family- you create great friendships for months on end to maybe never be able to see that person again after that contract ends. Only once you’ve worked at sea can you truly understand the notions of ‘ship-life’.”

     If this post had come to me before, I probably would’ve included them in an earlier post. Bear in mind that I do not know who originally wrote these words. If I did, I would share because the O.P. truly hits the nail on the head when it comes to the work-life balance when living and working on a cruise ship. This is something I always try to make painfully clear to everyone I talk to: when living on a cruise ship, work comes first. That being said, it does provide crew with unique opportunities for exploration.

Do We Get to Go Out in Port?

     This question is presented to me more than I ever expected it would. Of course we have the opportunity to leave the ship! If we didn’t, we would be living on a floating prison/work-camp, and far fewer people would opt to live this life. 

     Let me reassure you, as long as we have no work to do in port, you are welcome to leave the ship... with some stipulations.

When, Where, and How?

     Like I already mentioned, the biggest determining factor for whether we can or can not go out is if we do or do not work. Some people have set schedules while in port that greatly limit their ability to get off the ship and explore the port. The reverse is also true, some people have schedules free during time in port; so whether or not they choose to go out in port is up to them.

     However, not all ports are the same. Some ports only allow crew to explore with the right type of documentation [eg. Certain types of visas (while rare, some crew members’ visas do not permit them to leave the ship in certain ports), passports (which are held by the crew purser during your contract and are only given out for this purpose), seaman’s/Panama books (a type of seaman’s passport), etc.]. Sometimes the ship will not allow crew to leave the ship in certain ports, or drills could be taking place, other times the ship may restrict the time we are allowed to leave the ship, as to make it easier for paying passengers.

     A few constants are that we must have our crew card, we can not take property of the ship with us and they highly discourage the use of name-tags and the wearing of uniforms while in port. One more constant is the “when?” Crew members are only allowed to leave the ship at a certain time and must be back on the ship at a certain time so as not to block the entrances for passengers as they come back on to the ship. Usually, the all-aboard time for crew is about 30 minutes-1 hour before passengers.

This Is the Life

     Just in case you have not caught on yet: this is a job! This is not a vacation; and rest time, as well as time to do the other necessities of everyday life (laundry and cleaning) is limited. Some crew choose to forgo the time in port in exchange for the opportunity to catch up on sleep or chores. As I wrote this, I have not left the ship in over a week. 

     The other major factor is money. Messing around these cities isn’t free, and most things you do in port will likely cost some amount of money. Sometimes it is easier to save the money and stay on the ship. Especially when taking into account the limited time we have to go out, it is sometimes not worth it to leave the ship just to eat lunch or go to the beach for a mere 30 minutes.

Walk-On/Walk-Off

     If you have ever taken a cruise as a passenger, you have gone through a process that is almost identical to what crew go through when leaving and entering a ship, with very little variation. We have to scan our card to get on and off the ship and we have to go through x-ray scanners getting back on the ship (in order to ensure no illegal substances are being smuggled onto the ship). The only slight variations for this procedure is that we must open our bags for search upon leaving the ship to ensure that we are not leaving with any of the ship's/company’s property and we have specific areas that we are designated to leave and reenter the ship (again, to keep most entrances clear for passengers).

Once Off the Ship

     When we leave the ship in port, the ship no longer provides for us. We are granted some amenities (such as the ability to take tender services or buses without having to pay for tickets) but there are limited to even those. We are not allowed to take seats away from paying guests. Which means we may be required to wait for a time to board these buses or tender boats, limiting the time we have to do what we want, or to get where we want to get. Some people opt for Taxi services, but these cost money. It is up to the crew member to get where they want to go; and where we can go is virtually limitless. As long as we show back up to the ship on time, are not drunk, and do not do anything illegal, we are able to go as far as we want to during our time off the ship. 

     Does that mean that everyone takes full advantage of this? No. Some people would rather run errands, go grocery shopping, find things they need, then go back to the ship to get some coveted rest. When in port, if you know where to look, you will easily be able to see the local haunts of the crew. 

Excursions

     The only exception to many of the rules above: shop-sponsored excursions are the only time that we are exempt from restrictions of time (we are allowed to come back after the curfew for crew, we are allowed to leave the ship during passenger times, etc.). Crew members do have to pay for ship-sponsored excursions, though with a discount, and some can be free. However, from my experiences, excursions through the ship are definitely worth it, for both passengers and crew… if there is time or availability. The ability to go on excursions is mostly dependent on the availability of slots not currently occupied by passengers, and we do not usually find out until the day before whether or not we are able to go. 

Miscellaneous

     I wanted to treat the information in the earlier parts of this post in an objective fact driven way. So, I figured I would keep the most personal aspects of this at the end by answering questions that have been posed to me regarding my experiences in the ports.

-Do you have the same ports over and over again?

     Yes. I do. However, I have found out very recently that it isn’t true about all itineraries. While a ship is traveling throughout a particular season, I believed they would stick with the same ports; this actually isn’t true. Some ships in some companies actually have the same ports but in a less structured order. Or they may even do one string of different ports. 

     One thing I kept out of the top (because, again, it is more opinion based) is that this can actually become slightly monotonous. Never, in a million years before taking this job, would I have thought that traveling around the world and having the opportunity to see places I had always dreamed of seeing would become monotonous. And yet… When you are limited in the amount of time you have off the ship, and you find yourself only getting snippets and glimpses of ports that require so much more time to explore, it is hard to truly grasp the wonder of some of these places. Pair that with the fact that these ports become a routine instead of a previously-far-off world, and unfortunately you become inured to the life of travel pretty quickly. This is one reason that many crew members choose to travel on their time off to revisit some places they experienced and would like to experience more, or go to places that are otherwise outside of the reach of ship-life.

     I am living on a ship that is working in Europe. Ask many people that live in the United States and they would tell you that the opportunity to travel around Europe sounds like a dream. I agree; but I have somehow lost the wonder that I first had when traveling to these incredible places. While I am constantly trying to remind myself how amazing it is to be able to visit multiple countries over the course of a single week, it is frequently overshadowed by the fact that work, and life, can often get in the way.

-Do you make friends in other countries?

     I have. Does everybody? I do not know. I do wish I could say that I have made more friends while I am in port; however, most of the international friends I have made are from my time on the ship, and not my time in the port. 

-What are the best places I have been?

     This is my first contract, which means that much of the time I have spent in different countries can be quite limited. Especially when it is the same ports every week. However, this contract did expose me to some incredible places I would’ve otherwise never taken the time to explore without this opportunity. Cities like Valletta, Malta and Palma de Mallorca, Spain, have become some of my favorite ports. And though while I write this one of these ports is no longer on my itinerary, it is a port that I miss going to and eagerly look forward to the opportunity to explore again. 

     This contract has given me the chance to explore one of the greatest cities in the world: Rome. I have had multiple opportunities over the months to go visit a city that is worth every moment that is spent there. Does it live up to the hype and expectations? I had very high expectations going in, and was slightly disappointed by how touristy the city can be, but the history, the art, and the architecture are some of the best in the world and are truly beyond compare to anything I had experienced in my life previously. 

     I also was able to reaffirm my love for the City of Barcelona, which is the first city I had ever (in my entire life) visited in Europe and is still one of my favorite ports. I would happily go there every day and spend time just wandering the streets. 

     Even smaller ports like Genova, Italy and Palermo, Sicily are have their own highlights and their own attractions that truly make visiting them worth it. 

     Two ports I enjoyed because it brought me closest to feeling at home, was wandering around Copenhagen, Denmark, and Helsinki, Finland. This is because, while port cities, they are more metropolitan; which, being from Chicago, meant I got to do the things I miss most about being at home: getting to wander and explore the different areas of the city at my leisure (similar to Barcelona).

     However, the port that impressed me the most with its sheer beauty (and is also a port I only had the opportunity to visit once) is Flam, Norway. Located in the Fjords, this incredible, picturesque valley is a place that I would happily visit again and sincerely hope for the opportunity to do so. While I mention above that I love the ability to wander and explore the city, this place is almost the exact opposite. While there is a small town, this port is almost exclusively nature, with trails leading up into the hills and the ability to just take in the breath-taking beauty of a port that many people have never had the good fortune to explore. 

     To round this post off, I will also mention that many crew members will wait until the end of their contract to visit a lot of the major attractions near their ports. Before this contract ends in three weeks, I am hoping to be able to visit Milan, Pisa, Cinque Terra, Monaco and Tuscany to end my contract by creating more memories that I can take with me. Though if the opportunity isn’t possible, I know what I will be doing in the future. 

     Because I am an American working for a European company on a European itinerary, guest interactions can sometimes be very different from what you are used to back at home. So, in my next post I want to discuss what it is like, as an American, working with an international clientele.