Does your stomach growl for travel? Does the idea of catching salmon with your bare hands put a smile on your face? Do you have a hunger to see the world from the inside out? Do you like to prepare food and work as a team? If you are a dedicated professional and have an intense passion for cooking for a large quantity of people a variety of foods, the job for you just might be a culinary position on a cruise ship.
While people are perusing cruise packages to Alaska, your creative dishes could be pictured on the ship’s website. Maybe even one day you too could be recognized by the James Beard Foundation as a featured chef like Celebrity cruise director of culinary operations Chef John Suley. Ships set sail every day, so if you have the passion, the drive and the adventure in you, follow these steps to freedom.
Pay and Position
Oceangoing ships can carry as many as 3,000 or as few as 500 passengers. There are also smaller river cruise lines that traverse the major rivers of the Earth. In the kitchen, there are different galleries (hot and cold) and a large number of culinary needs from Sous Chef to Crew Cook to Pastry Chef. Dozens of positions are required as cruisers get hungry at all hours of the day. Cruiselinejob.com spells out each and every position available, their requirements as well as possible salary ranges. Supervisors can make anywhere from $1900-$5000/month while bakers and cooks can make $1200-$2200/month, depending on experience.
Getting the Gig
Where to start? First, get a culinary arts degree from an accredited culinary school. Be sure your health is good (being on sea can pose serious risk if illnesses get out of hand). Do your research. If you want to go to certain areas of the globe, call and ask which ships are hiring. You may or may not get what you wanted but once you get going in the system, chances are you can get year-round gigs. You may need to begin as an assistant but internal promotions often happen.
Prepare and send a solid resume highlighting your education, skills and previous employment that might help you stand out. Even if it’s not kitchen-related but is customer service, add it. Being on a ship for weeks or months at a time requires good people skills and team work.
Have your passport and a “go bag” ready so when the cruise ship does call, you are ready to roll. You can move up the ladder fast if you focus.
What It’s Like Aboard
Get ready for long hours and separation from family and friends. Some crew report working 84 hours or more per week. The crew, ranging from ages 20-40 or older, will come from all over the globe. Most don’t have kids, spouses or mortgages. Be ready for a revolving door; workers are coming and going all the time as contracts end and begin. And because most crew members are fun-loving and free-spirited (most…some are bat crazy), there is a lot of socializing happening. There are often crew-only parties to enjoy after a very long 10-hour day.
“Work hard, play hard” might be the best motto to describe working on a cruise ship.
