Greetings,
We have some time so I am going to offer you up the 5 basic types of vessels you can work on.
1) Traditional BIG ships
2) Smaller, more exlusive ships, higher end of the market
3) River cruising, primarily in Asia, Europe
4) Independant cruise lines, (mainly Europe) with maybe 2-5 ships each
5) Casino ships which operate day cruises in some US states
The traditional BIG ships are the major cruise ship brands we all hear about...most are brand spanking new, 3000 plus passengers, 1500 plus crew, 50 bars, 20 pools, 9 discos, 30 restaurants, 300 shops ad naseuam. These are alot of work. I enjoy them because of the sheer volume of people onboard. And, I will admit this here only once, I like meeting all the hot single women -ok, I said it! But, you are always running to get things done. You need to have a high degree of energy, organization, patience as well as be able to find some peace and quiet - somewhere, in order to carry you through a 6 month contract - otherwise you end up like most crew...drinking yourself to sleep every night.
To learn more about these ships visit the folowing website, http://www.cruising.org/. Don't get distracted by all the links. Pay attention to the link at the bottom of the page which states Shipboard Employment. This will provide you with information about each of the major cruise lines. Read through and decide the which cruise line is suited for what you want your experience to be. Some lines cater to a party crowd - some lines are most refined and attract a more affluent guest. If you want to know what passengers think about various line and ships, go to http://www.cruisecritic.com/. Once again, don't get carried away with all the other info, you are here only to find out what people think of the various companies and their respective cruise ships. click the link at the top right called Reviews...this is the only link you need.
