My good friend Kerrie from Family, Food and Travel is guest posting today. I met her at a conference last year and was delighted to find out that not only is she a travel blogger, she also used to worked on a cruise ship! She shares a bit about her time on working on the ship and why she loves cruising.
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In July 2006 I set off from my rural Ontario town to work on a Princess cruise ship. I had a job working in their Youth Centre and was super excited to embark on a whole new adventure. I flew to Seattle and boarded the biggest ship I have ever seen.
I was in awe. I soaked it all in. The grand rooms, the beautiful decks and the mountains of food – a vacationer’s dream.
I was amazed by the crew area, a series of well-designed corridors and rooms. The crew buzzed around like bees, running from one area to another while the crew above deck in the passenger areas smiled, served and exuded calm customer service.
We were trained for almost two whole days upon boarding the ship in everything from safety drills to the environmental practices of the ship. We learned about the Youth Centre’s safety practices, children’s activities and our work schedule. I loved working with crew members from all over the world.
Our ship, was cruising Alaska for the summer. Our home port was Seattle with stops in Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway and Victoria, B.C. It was a dream trip.
I saw bald eagles, humpback whales, a mama bear and her cubs, and more salmon than I imagined possible. I visited a glacier, saw icebergs, went to lumberjack show and learned more about the aboriginal peoples who live in Alaska.
I loved it. I loved my small cabin, the sometimes bizarre crew food and the amazing people I met.
The best part of the whole experience is that I met my husband on the first day I came to the ship. At the time, he certainly wasn’t my husband.
But, we fell in love that first day, and now almost seven years later we are taking our boys on a cruise. While they are too young to hear our love story, I can’t wait to tell them about Mom and Dad’s experience on the “Love Boat.”
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Have you cruised before or have you considered cruising with your family?
Awww…the ‘Love Boat’.
It is my dream to visit Alaska one day. I’d sell a kidney to have the opportunity to see a Mama Bear and her cubs. LOL 🙂
I’d love to see Alaska too one day. Everyone that has visited says it is breathtaking!
I would love to take a cruise to Alaska one day, but with money being tight it isn’t going to happen for awhile
I’ve never been on a cruise but I’ve heard great things about them. I hadn’t thought about the opportunities for jobs for young people on cruise ships. My son would probably love working in the Youth Centre of a cruise ship – I’ll have to suggest it to him. Thanks for sharing your experience.