To some people, working on a Carnival cruise ship might sound like fun.
Although many cruise ship crew members say that the opportunity to travel the world and meet many wonderful people along the way is a rewarding experience, most cruise ship jobs require long hours of demanding work with no days off for months at a time.
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Cruise passengers often share stories about the fun, friendly crew members who delivered exceptional service and made their vacations special, but there’s a lot of hard work that goes into creating those memorable moments at sea.
From housekeeping and dining staff to deck officers and technicians, crew members make the cruise vacations we love possible and they all deserve to be recognized for their tireless efforts.
Carnival Cruise Line Brand Ambassador John Heald recently gave passengers an opportunity to recognize the many crew members working diligently in all areas of the cruise line’s ships as he asked fans on his popular Facebook page for their opinions on Carnival cruise ship jobs.
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Cruise ship crew members work very long hours.
Image source: Carnival Corp.
Carnival brand ambassador asks passengers about tough cruise jobs
“What do you think is the hardest most challenging job on board our ships?” Heald asked in a post.
More than 1,600 passengers commented on the post to share their thoughts on the work Carnival crew members do every day.
While a number of people noted that behind-the-scenes jobs like technical, foodservice and laundry positions are extremely taxing, many passengers said that they think Carnival’s cabin stewards have especially difficult jobs since they work hard to keep staterooms clean and tidy while also interacting with passengers.
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“The cabin stewards. My steward last week told me he had 35 rooms, now that’s a lot of cleaning, bathrooms, beds, garbage… and if you ever look in some of those rooms when doors are open,” wrote Nancy Cusumano. “Plus they remember your names, I still want to know how they do that every week?”
Many passengers agreed that they’ve been shocked by the state of the rooms that cabin stewards have to clean day in and day out.
“Cabin steward for sure,” wrote April Foley. “When I am walking in the halls in the morning I look in and see the mess as people leave behind in their cabins. Some people live like pigs!”
Many passengers think guest services is mentally tough
A number of other passengers pointed out how exhausting it must be to deal with complaints at the guest services desk all day every day.
“Physically hard probably the behind the scenes people. But let me tell you, anything in Guest Service may not be physically hard, but mentally hard,” wrote Tanya Korman. “People can be so mean to Guest Service workers.”
“Guest Services must be extremely challenging,” agreed Jessica Murray. “I would be relieved from my job within the first hour of duty and put on toilet cleaning. Nope, I don’t have the patience required to deal with people.”
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Some passengers think brand ambassador John Heald has a hard job for similar reasons.
“He’s not always onboard, but I think the Brand Ambassador has the hardest job. It never ceases to amaze me how people “speak” to you! It’s horrifying,” wrote Barbara Morrison Schwarz. “At least at the Customer Service desk they are face to face and unlikely to be as offensive as some of the things written to you.”
Some Carnival passengers use Heald’s Facebook page as a place to complain and attack the cruise line with aggressive, entitled and impolite comments.
“I agree, if I were Brand Ambassador, and had the power, it would be STUNNING how many lifetime bans I’d hand out,” noted Jay Damron.
While some passengers just want to complain, many others appreciate Heald’s posts and respect him for his patience and ability to deal with rude comments in a courteous way, while always keeping the Carnival “fun ship” vibe alive on his page.
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