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I am an extrovert, but more than 20 years ago I was a reserved introvert. I changed when I became a solo traveller in foreign countries. I had to converse with unknown people to survive. Now I will just talk to anyone and think nothing of it.
I hate tipping for someone just to do the job they are paid to do. It has gotten out of hand so much in the US. I was at an event and there was a self serve food area ( bottled drinks, prepackaged food) and you checked out yourself and the register asked for a tip. Who am I tipping, myself?
@planner722 I agree. I'm from New Zealand and it's not apart of our culture but know and respect it's apart of the US culture. Businesses need to pay their workers so that the workers salary don't fall on the paying customers. Tips are supposed to acknowledge someone going over and beyond, not doing their job.
I loved my time as a traveling Registered Nurse. My traveling career lasted for twenty-one years total, two of those years were on Cruise Ships. Those assignments were a high point in my life with great memories.
What else did you do? I’m at university to become a registered nurse. I work in aged care as a carer and have done for over 15 yrs. I live in Australia. What other travelling assignments did you have?
@@Toby3610 I have worked in twenty states within the US 48 lower states plus Alaska and Hawaii along with Saudi and Japan. It never felt as if I was really working, but on a continuous holiday, my 12 shifts were 8 days on and 6 days off. I used my 6 days off, depending where my assisgnment was located, to travel throughout Canada, Greenland, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and certain parts of the middle east. I love the outdoors so hiking, hunting and fishing are always on my schedule. Travel and enjoy the world!
As someone who recently got the Virgin Voyages bug, I love that she mentioned how much Virgin is fantastic for their employees. I witnessed some guy trying to get a ride out of our waitress and she put him in his place in a respectful way but I know that on any other cruise line, they would have made her apologize for things she was not responsible for. Virgin seems like they actually back and support their employees 1000%
@@simonet2144 Good to know. I refuse to do business with ANY business that treats its employees or customers like crap. We have a cruise booked on Carnival coming up this winter, but I will have to look into Virgin Cruise Lines.
I’m about to go on my first cruise as a passenger next week. I’ve been watching a lot of videos, so I think that is why I got this video in my recommendations on TH-cam. I was a U.S. Navy sailor for 9 years. This was very interesting to me. I’d like to see a video that explains more about the differences between I guess what would be ship staff and hotel staff. I also found it interesting how all of you talked about needing time to wind down- crew bar was mentioned. US Navy ships are dry, but we would be in port with UK, AUS and other country’s warships and they would have bars onboard. I got to visit a couple of them and it was quite the culture shock. I also agree with what you guys were talking about with American tipping culture. I hate it. Like she said, I paid you to do your job, I shouldn’t have to pay more for that. Great video, glad I found this!
Tipping back in the 90s was because servers made $2.50 per hour. Now they expect a tip for coffee & everything else. I agree it's ridiculous as an American. Great video lots of good info thanks!!
Don't do it then. The madness has to stop somewhere! Tip at restaurants where someone takes your order & delivers your food, tip your hairdresser and anyone else who does a personal care service for you (i.e., nails, eyebrow threading, massages) -- if they touch your body, tip them. And that's it. All these machines programmed to ask for tips for everything need to stop.
I don't know who gave you this idea. Some people feel important handing out money "not to be kind" but to "buy attention". It is neither expected nor required other than a "kind gesture" to your room attendant or your favorite waiter - once!.
@@realMacMadame why do you assume we tip for anything besides that? I don't know anyone who tips coffee shop employees for handing them a cup of coffee. Yes, the option to tip is presented but that doesn't mean most of us use it. This podcast completely exaggerated it. It's just false.
As an American I'll says tipping culture is confusing. At the grocer I gather, self scan and bag my groceries, run my card and get a popup on the register asking for a tip of like 25%.
i see it as corporate begging it's rude ( also hot takes a governmental letting exploitation/pay/safety's-ect to lower classes isn't sexy/a-plus if anything it shows a failing nation... ) pay your employees at the bottom before getting your Christmas bonus and yes she/video is right earn-it not expect-it it's extra for doing a great job( floor-levels and not meant for C-types/management ) and for me my ideally for cruising is 1890-1940's 1st class experience includes classics atmosphere for dinner ( think titanic/classic ballroom/captain's-room-bounty-looking back on sea or up on bow-waves vibe's as generally im not interested in minimalist or mid century modern vibe's ) and date-wife's and show's/comic not o were counting rerun-tv/bluster-movie as a proper showcase or casual-USA-styling/steakhouses-buffet as 4 or 5-start bow-tie/Victorian-dress-ect experience makes it cheapy-vibes as i can do/get that at home same for not having things like rock-wall's or skeet-sporting or proper-water-slide/park ect and i like having a mixture of sea-days with port-days and yes i know some like having all-port-days/night's but at that point i suggestion is flying+airport's/rentable-car my 2C's
I feel sorry for crew members who have to work long hours, away from home, for many months at a time, serving a contract and having to deal with quite a few, snobbish, bossy, sexist, racist and drunk passengers who expect everything at a click of a finger. Plus having to live in shared, cramp, accommodation with little privacy. I feel that many of the super rich cruise corporations, their directors and shareholders are financially abusing people from across the world, especially those from poor countries, but I know that everybody will immediately reply by saying it is their choice. I feel that working conditions and basic salaries should be much better, especially for those working behind the scenes in the laundry, kitchen etc. It’s good to know that not all cruise companies treat there staff badly, but the majority sadly do 😢
Compared to their life and opportunities back home? Jobs are scarce in many parts of the world, and the cruise industry offers pay above what they can earn at home.
Great choice of guest! I have no interest in being a crew member and I still watch her weekly vlogs. She has a way of making the topic somehow interesting to me.
I've been a customer on three cruises with three different lines. Disney is on another level in terms of customer service and overall experience. The staff was simply amazing.
Great interview all around. Lucy is right about how Americans versus Brits view tipping - $2K and spend it all (leave left over as tips) versus Brits putting the left over on their next cruise.
As an older gay man myself, this is one reason why I would not be inclined to go on an all-gay cruise, because of the increased possibility of male rape and male sexual assault at sea - apps like Grindr might not be available on a cruise ship (even though I don’t use any such apps) but I’d be even more worried about my personal safety on a cruise ship then I would be on land
Grindr does work on the cruise ship if you have an internet package. Also, all gay cruises are like life, you can always say no or yes. The only problem with all gay cruises, unless they are specifically for older gays, there is a lot of age discrimination.
Your testimony (and fear) suggest to me that all-gay cruises present a captured audience that promotes gay assault episodes ---which in turn, suggests that all gay men are NOT passive with sex and are harmless to other men.
I believe you. I used to work at a waffle house in a gay club area and one day one of the male customers got r*aped in the bathroom by other males. I felt so bad for him but it was soooo busy and loud after the clubs let out that I don't think anyone heard it
Fantastic interview! Thank you for having Lucy as your guest! You guys demystified some of the 'myths' onboard a ship. Listening from the Philippines! 😊
Great interview! Another thing to think about in regard to uniforms is to not worry about the polo, your increased pay is what really matters and why you go through the training.
Loved this lucy is very engaging! So many good stories. I agree the drinking is difficult one, she is right it’s very targeted! Wow those stories of people she shared with from god to handcuffs! Thanks for sharing and all I can say is so glad I have 3 massages booked for next cruise 😀
Thanks for watching guys! Sharing a cabin with someone is definitely the worst thing about working at sea, huge praise for Virgin who give their crew single occupancy cabins. Enjoy your massages :P
More than once I’ve seen an older man travelling with two much younger glamorous women, all in the same cabin. I’ve also seen these ladies travelling solo or in pairs hanging out in the bars every evening dressed up to the nines and on the prowl.
@@mehogandhenry7132 i currently( did as a teen/2000's ) don't have anything against topless/co-ed France/types of breaches and or sexual-work( not my types of entertainment but i believe in fee-will-ect ) and or therapy/therapist it's the tricky parts of international water/sea and or exploitation and enforcing otherwise id say it's better to have it in the adult-area's-only( casino+others-are already is like that ( and then there's sometimes a kids area's only, doesn't happen on nude/gay cruising to my knowledge but my experience is teen and grandparents friendly winks ) on ship and or my experienced/'s ) and open/window-models of law's so sub15~to19yo~minors/religious-types still have a choice/chances-of-inasaint-childhood USA has admitted to having a child-plant-manufacturing&farm's/sexual/slavery/pedometers problem's and that's with most-states having a fully ( failed by most standards and sexual/striping asstralia-all-fully-legal-type/uk/Germany's/swiss are doing a better job of the end-goals of lowering violence-ect, and being more realistic about not in forcing-Christian/religious beliefs as USA is forcing-puritan/Muslim law's on relationships/sexualisation ) ban and fully capable policing/justice systems
I always like hearing what Lucy has to say. That was a great interview. I am interested in hearing what it’s like working on a ship, any ship from a crew perspective. I enjoy cruising from time to time and always treat crew with respect as their jobs are difficult enough without a passenger being an arsehole. All the best from Sydney Australia 🇦🇺
As an American, I tip true service individuals like waitstaff, a hair stylist if she doesn't own the shop, and the like. I will not tip at Starbucks, fast-food places, and the like. Also, if the waiter gives crap service, then I will not tip, and if they were rude, then I will leave a penny. If they are awesome I like to tip higher than normal. I don't think that just because someone works in a job like that they deserve a tip if they didn't do their job fully. I have worked a lot of commission jobs, and if you don't do a good job you don't get paid for it. Tips are exactly that a commission that has to be earned. As far as crew on cruise ships, I don't have a problem paying the 18% gratuity, as I see it as just the cost of the cruise, and that tips even people that I can't see to tip. That said, I will also give the tips above for exceptional service. The first one is just part of their pay, and to remove that part of their pay is rude. If we didn't have a tip culture on the cruise ships the cruise lines would raise the cost of the cruise by that much or more. That is why I feel I should tip the service staff for good service on top of that, because the reality is that isn't a tip, it is part of their pay just separated out as gratuity which is kind of stupid. But you would still need to tip the service people for good service even if they were paid more by the cruise lines.
Interesting conversation regarding the “stripe system”. I, myself, have rarely had an enjoyable experience in dealing with officers on cruise ships. Having not sailed on Virgin (yet), I can’t speak to them but on other lines there is a definite class system in place and I largely find officers insufferable. And lower class workers are definitely afraid of officers. I’ll certainly respect the position of the officer’s role but I’ve witnessed officers look down upon passengers as if the passenger was something to be scraped off the bottom of their shoe. I don’t care how long you’ve trained for your stripes, you put on your pants the same way I do, and to act like you’re better than anyone else is off-putting. And to feel the need to wear your stripes to remind people of just who you are shows a level of insecurity that is off the charts.
It sounds as if your "insecurity" is off the charts. I've never heard of officers looking down their nose at passengers, ever. I'm not familiar with officers looking down at other departments either.
All the Officers, including the Captain, on Fred Olsen Cruise ships are very approachable, they all joined in to take part in the Initiation Ceremony for crossing the Arctic Circle, Iced water over the head, they were all very good sports, Captain went first !
@@sailawaymag i have( also was politeness-types ) on carnival( from memory as it's not my only time/vacation and it wouldn't put me completely off from booking somewhere else again or working on board in the engine room/electrician/maintenance/millwright, it's the home-port/flaging/law-parts that do~ because i don't want to be tricked into slavishly conditions-ect with a USA-rights to work aka green-card or better-wink and uk-blood-line ) line in USA HI around the billiard tables and my ( poor trucker/cdl at the time but polite/well-mannered for the most part )dad/gramp's ( fyi gramp's spent ~50+k/family's-reunion/grandparent's-9-adult-children that time or so i was told as a 13-17/teen he also was millionaires row to the point pepsin-LLc C's/board members had to listen to him as he owned enough to be a spoiler-shareholder at conventions, also quite-types after wife/may-RIP'd ) something about captain and his buddies and or ladies-friends wanted to throw a last minute( aka wasn't scheduled/booked ect ) champagne/sexual-party/blackjack-wale's$$$$ and wanted it private settings despite the space meant for public library+entertainment and guests-1st, anyways dad didn't fight/saying backwards and i after following him/later asked why be so coward to someone that's being snobby+rudeness ect, gramp's wasn't interested in paying-to-play( 21 yes wale's no as he putting it's my version of a video game and best not to put 1000 on the table every round so call me cheap but 1-5USD/round will suffice for a couple of hours, and to my knowledge was into 19-32~yo's/stipper's his/ww2-veteran type at the time would probably be 60's+ if at all and that's with my grandma-RIP at the time ) so also left and or didn't remind them of how many cabins( cabins and basic/economy-class airfares he covered but everything else wasn't like excursion's or taxis/bus's ect )/$$$ spent ect
I was 45 Years at Sea and I cannot recall any problems like this!.. Back in the day we just all mucked in and got on.. Why? Because we had to!.. We all took it for a fact that we were all Board of trade acquaintances... I finished up as 2nd Engineer..
A big YES 😊 my friend, have been in that same situation and there is a big TIP jar at the cashier. I hated that, the person behind the counter did nothing above and beyond service. Some don't even smile. So I should TIP them for what they are already getting paid for. It is so bad NOW with the TIP being asked on those new credit cards tap or slide check out for payment. I will always give the highest TIP if I get great service, but please it has to be just like you said, a person waiting on me at a table, coming back asking how it is going and do I need anything, especially when the restaurant is very full On the Princess cruise ship We went on. The Butler and cleaning staff were A+ plus. The Butler even let me take a picture of the two of us, with my personal work boat type CG certificate life jacket on. I always brought it on any vessel I went on.
lol the story of the handncuffs cracked me up that he left her there BUT on a serious note ...what the hell would have happened if Lucy handnt come back and therewas some sort of shipwide emergency in betwee the 3 hrs? such as going to muster staitions? her poor cabin mate would have been stuck there like Jack dawson in titanic as the ship sank!
Thank you for having this in depth behind the scenes talk about what is expected of a crew member WORKING on a cruise ship or working ships. I love how this female guest speaks so frankly and has a veru good outlook of especially the "SEX" part 😊 she speaks the way I wish others Especially Females at sea would deal with advances on the person. On cruise ships with so many cultures, sexual advancement is thought of differently than American cry Rape at any thing. I was taking a smoke break in the outside area of the after starboard side of a cruise ship, and a young crew member was out side with us. The topic of conversation between the smokers was your pets. I showed the young female cruise crew member my pet mini Australian Shepherd who we do agility training with. She started "RUBBING" against my side very smooth and sexually like. I then showed her pictures of me and my wife. She STOPPED rubbing on me and move away from me. My wife hates me smoking, so she was not present 😊 I thanked the female workers for looking at my dog picture, went back to my cabin. ( I tell my wife everything) Told her about the encounter with the crew member, she laughed about it. 😊 We never hide anything from each other, especially something like this. I have seen very old well dressed ladys who are way older that the young gentleman thay are with, on the dance floor on cruise ships, dancing very close. I didn't believe in my Humble opinion that this gentleman is a son or part of the family. Just calling it as I saw it
Gentlemen, thank you for a fun, insightful, and brilliant interview. As an American who doesn't sail on cruiseships, I was not aware of you all / your channel, but my late Mom and I have been big fans of Lucy for years now, so youtube pointed me here! (so thanks to youtube as well?) It's always nice to hear Lucy's insights and I love this long-format style, as well as your superb questions. Thanks again guys....Fair winds!
Tipping culture in the US is crazy. But we tolerate it and have been for decades, which is how we got here. Companies have been slow playing people for half a century. And we've also turned it into a competition and showing off how much money someone has, which is rooted in the selfish/self-centered culture that we've promoted for the last 40+ years.
I am an American, I absolutely and utterly hate our tip system . I especially hate how cruise lines tell you how much you are tipping and keep increasing that amount. We also very much enjoyed going on Virgin, so much we bought the hammocks they have on the balcony. This is the first video I've seen from you and I really enjoyed it.
I'm an American and I agree with the British tipping idea. Only Exemplary service deserves a tip! The tipping in America has gotten out of hand! Looking back ; I'm thinking the tipping for everything had gotten worse when COVID hit and people did not go out for their meals and businesses like UBER eats and Door Dash came into being,
Tipping in Canada is the same, the only thing people in Canada for an actual minimum wage. It seems as though we are expected to tip almost everybody now. Not only restaurants , but manicure ,pedicures, hairdresser, fast food joints. It gets to too much and the government says we should give 15% or more. Just maddening. I think tipping is for exceptional service,and believe me, it is hard to get that these days.
On that basis the wait staff are doing what, four tables an hour? And minimum wage is $10? So they are getting $2.50, not $50 because we happened to order the best steaks and an expensive bottle of wine. If tipping was to substitute for wages it wouldn't be tied to the value of my order. Should I pay more for my gas because I drive a Mercedes not a Nissan?
Sadly never found any extra mural activities available on any of the cruises I have been on. Even tanning topless was not allowed, except for the guys?
Hi, fascinating video, I worked on P&O Arcadia in the 70ies, loved every minute of it. I was a 3rd Baker in the dessert section. I worked in several different areas of that department. For me in my twenties to see the world and get paid it was a dream job. I managed to save enough money to put a deposit on a house
Long trips, away from home family and friends, shxx pay, shxx accomodations, special bar, cheap drinks , but ridiculously low BAL expectations. What a great job.
0.05 is like nothing. Same with 0.08 which is DUI level in FL. This policy just says that if youre not teetotaling the can get rid of you if they like.
American: I don’t tip at any counter service restaurant because they are getting paid at least minimum wage. At sit down restaurants the wait staff is barely paid and rely on tips.
I 100 percent agree. I don't tip people standing at a counter taking orders. I recently went to grocery store that had a tip option at check out on the credit card machine. I was like wtf is going on hear. I bit my lip. Paid my bill and left no tip.
Fantastic video love you guys and Lucy too😊quick question went on Ventura this year and going on Discovery 2 next will I find this ship quite different? Thanks x
Thanks for watching and for your kind comment. To be honest, I think you may prefer Discovery 2 more - in our opinion food, entertainment and the included drinks make for a better cruise overall compared to Ventura. Have you done Marella before?
You talk about having to adjust to different regimes on joining a new ship. I've been a freelance construction agent and put in charge of whole building sites ... i have a similar anxiety about ... is it going to be a sh*t hole when i get there and will i have to take people to task, is the build quality going to f**ked and I'll have to throw people off of site. Are they all going to be wearing their PPE properly or has a slack culture set in. Will I get overruled by the contracts manager for decisions i know are correct coz their mate is the roofing foreman, and they go on the sniff together, and things like that.
You don't need to tip at a take-out (take-away), they are paid minimum wage at least. Its the wait-staff in a sit-down restaurant, sky-caps (if they still existed) thats paid well below minimums as it is classed legally as a tipped job.
@@Savedcitytitan7118 Isn't this the comments section? I'm not saying don't tip at takeout, I often do a small tip. But most foreigners don't realize there is a large difference in the wage based on if the job is expected to be tipped.
The mention of sex on board really got her nervous, she contradicted herself a couple times she didn’t know what to say..interesting, I do know that assault on a cruise ship happens by crew and passengers.
I went for a trip and was in a cabin on the back of the boat, below sea level and woke up behind the curtain of the performance stage area at the upper deck (front of the boat) - quite a walk. I had been sleep walking 😂. Lucky there wasnt a show and the curtain drawn back🤣
The tipping culture in America is of course derived from the corporate control of American politics. Corporations seek the highest profits. To achieve this they have engineered the American economy and political environment to maximize profits. An important part of this involves control of the labor market and ensuring there is a large pool of potential workers - this gives employers more power than workers. In service positions, employers have established a culture where labor can be payed less because they can make earnings through tips. Fortunately, from the workers perspective, average Americans understand this and this has led to tipping being part of the culture, even for "normal" service. If you have worked as a waiter or bartender or barista etc, or if you have siblings or children or friends with this experience you put yourself in their place and know that tipping makes their lives better. Of course this has the disadvantage of reinforcing the notion that it is acceptable to pay service workers less, but, speaking as an American, we are doing what we can with the situation we have. I think its important to understand that this system also applies to service workers on cruise ships - many of them are not payed a good wage and rely on tips to generate a substantial portion of their income. So much so that many lines essentially require a certain amount of tipping as a base. When cruising, my wife and I understand this and look at what Europeans would consider tipping (tip for good to exceptional service - service beyond normal) as what we do if we want to tip above the base level. Since we usually do get very good or exceptional service, we do usually tip above the base level, usually in cash so we are sure the worker gets the full tip. I do wish the lines would pay their workers a good wage as a base, but concede that this would make the costs for cruising higher. But it would certainly make it less confusing. Nevertheless, ultimately, I think its important to consider the circumstances these workers are in and tip according to that vs. how we wish the world was. This was an outstanding video, very much enjoyed your content! Cheers, JW.
Came across this video purely by accident. Once I started watching, I couldn't stop. Great hosts and great guest. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the goings on on a cruise ship. PS American tipping is a joke. You get tips for delivering exceptional service not because your bosses are too stingy to you crews a proper wage.
Thank you very much for interesting insights into cruise ship life. I was offered the chance to work on a cruise ship doing theater tech several decades ago but passed; I'm sure the industry is radically different today. The prostitution discussion left out a 3rd aspect, cruise passengers plying their services to other passengers. I'm sure if caught doing this, the passenger would be set adrift in a lifeboat & banned for life...
Last year on a cruise I did see some strippers in the nightclub. They were wearing lingerie, dancing in some cages! This was a regular nightclub, and they just popped up out of nowhere....😂 The funny part, I didn't even notice the cages until they were dancing in there!! 😀
I totally agree I live in America and I think tipping should be gotten rid of I paid for my meal I’m not there to support the wait staff by tipping them it’s their job.
Well it’s an interesting takeaway. All these things happen everywhere. Drugs, prostitution etc…… go to any hotel or resort and you will find this out. It’s up to you whether you participate or not. Especially I see she’s worked on Virgin cruises and there are no rules at all
I would prefer cruise lines charged top whack fare, and no gratuities to pay, So you know up front what you can afford. At the same time I would at the end of the cruise tip for any great service I was given (If you were prepared to pay £2k for a cruise then £2200 would not stop people booking)
Similar to working seasonal hotels where you are all one big (happy?) family for eight months before you all you all disperse throughout the UK for the winter season. Next season it's game on again when it's almost like a death in the family when some staff don't return. Happy days........
Some Male Workers , sell their Ship Worker GF to other Shipworker guys on the ship. I know because I got to sleep with one of these crew members. The husband was charging , offering
The topics of conversation are uncensored, and we're willing to tackle topics which other podcasts aren't. However, TH-cam has strict policies on certain expletives which mean we can't monetise from a video if certain words aren't censored. Next question?
I saw girls standing around the casino all dressed up standing alone just waiting for old men to pick them up. I see this alot on Carnival. On RC not so much
The "no crusty feet" comment is totally inappropriate. Guests go to overpriced cruise ship spas believing they will benefit from whatever treatment they paid for not thinking staff will make innapropiate comments on their anatomy...it's good you are no longer there and you should never be allowed to work on any cruise ship period.
When it comes to TIPS, the Cruise Ship Industry has now adopted the "Customer Satisfaction Review Method," a digital software package that bombards customers with requests for feedback. It is a cheap trick to tell the customer that if they rate any question with not at least a 9 or a 10, they hurt hard-working people working behind the scenes. If a customer is really dissatisfied with the price/service offer of a cruise - that is a problem for which MANAGEMENT AND ultimately the Cruise ship Lines are responsible. Don't pass the problem on to the cleaners.
What! Americans don’t spend every penny on vacation. We just aren’t cheap and have budgeted for the vacation. Also, Americans don’t take vacations as often as Europeans do.
The problem with the USAian tipping culture is that the CEO's and what not can hide behind underpaying their workers salary instead of paying a proper and decent salary. The workers should have a proper wage so you only tip when it's deserved.
@@lennyj3300 should I include you? I'm talking about the cheapskates if you think you're a cheapskate that's on you. It was not directed on you. It was directed at cheapskates
What do you mean you can’t drink the tap water? Every cruise I have been on states it’s safe to drink. Do you mean the crew gets different water? Of course introverts can succeed there. I am one and was a performing musician when I was young, and now give training and presentations to peers and customers. I get my down time to recharge and so would they.
You shouldn’t be drinking tap water on a ship. The water they serve you in dining rooms is specifically filtered. Most cruise lines charge crew for bottle water, and don’t offer a filtered water facility.
She is beautiful and charming at the same time. Come to the Missouri for Holiday and I will show you around. Yeah I know, not gonna happen but I had to ask.
@@almabelhumeur6672 I agree it's way harder and more involved than people would ever think. My wife qualified to International standard. But it's not a degree.
Cruisers can drink 15 alcoholic drinks per day. I think that is ludacrous!! The same rules should apply to cruisers. They only allow it because they want to make money.
I don't understand having drinks being so cheap for the crew and then getting upset and firing them when they drink too much. Any alcohol impairs thus all crew should never drink. All crew will then be ready for any emergency. You state that if the crew drinks and have a good time then the experience for everyone will be better. I say if you need alcohol to have a good time and can not do it with out then something is terribly wrong with that person.
Damn, always knew the pay was awful, hence the reliance on cheap labour from abroad. But, would've thought they paid the brits/other countries the minimum wage equiv? Then again, I imagine there's no shortage of folks lining up to be paid even less to travel. Even still...£1k-£1.2k is criminal. Not like this is some charitable endeavour either...these are highly profitable multi billion £ industries. Anyhow, a good interview. Never been on a cruise, always give off the vibe of old folk dogging/fat yanks/annoying families, but it's an interesting industry nonetheless. I do like the idea of long term cabin with balcony rental sailing across the world. Perfect for wfh/remote workers like me who hop around Europe/the world in airbnbs...or the niche world of living out of all inclusive hotel resorts in off season for like £1k a month. I'd take a month long cheap cruise.
As someone that has worked on ships, and has inspected countless fresh water tanks, there is no way I’d drink that water. My car can go 100mph, but I wouldn’t do it on a country road. You are not supposed to drink water from cabins - will it kill you, no. But is there any chance it could make you ill, yes!
A great interview with Lucy Southerton ( i would even though she prob cat say) Ask what cruise lines she has worked for out of interest? TBH i have only ever done thompson / marella in all my cruising days ( pre pandemic) My partner allways called them butlins on sea (tbh i thought that was a bit unfair as the staff , food entertainment was and is allways top notch ) so they were older and smaller ships ..as you mentioned marella in the vid... Not done carnival, RCL, cunard etc as thompson / marella allways offered the all inclusive drinks as a pax as in drink alcohol from 10 am till 2 am (no limit) and NEVER once did i see a pax totaly pissed to the point of falling over / abusive through being drunk or crew either ! ( i suppose it just the way us crusing brits are we know when enough is enough!) where as the amenrican lines you get a drink package and liimted to so many drinks a day or up to a certain ammount! (back when they were thompson..marella as they are now branded ) if you booked early enough you got the AI free or had to pay for it ...these days marella are AI across the fleet .... .going back to what Lucy says about crew alcohol intake ...in the past on thompson / marella ship a LOT of the entertinments crew ..mailny those ( including the cruise director ) could be found in a lot of the public bars and would accept drinks purchaes by passengers (even though the had a crew bar) so they would have def been over that limit she mentioned! BUT also as A pax made some great friends on marella / thomson with the entertianments crew too ..and IF you cruised with them again on the various ships they had / have ( i know they crew change round even the resturant bar staff too from ship to ship IF you were a reg cruiser with them evein if it was over a year ago ALL the crew remembered you from the last time be they bar staff , resturant staff or entertainment staff! that is something you Dont get all the time! ) BUT i suppose they have tightend up those restrictions now ( last cruise i went on was 2013 ) BUT sometimes that out of hrs (as in not working) interaction with the pax made the cruise for myself as it showed they were not aloof and out of the way ( even though i know sometimes it was a total ball ache for them to do that interaction outside of working hrs if you get my drift?)"all part of the customer smiely smiley interaction the crew have to do and put on a good face of the cruise line ..i get it ....I used to work in pubs and clubs and part of an entertianments crew when i was in my 20s so had to do the same sort of thing so totaly get that! As for the sex thing lol .....OBV i dont know what went on crew wise BUT on a Thomson cruise round the med on board Destiny as a PAX (and i know crew /Pax sexual interaction can get you fired!) ONE of the entertainments crew sent a guy over (part of the entertinments crew BUT not shows) to sit with myself and my BF as they knew he was gay ..and he was flirting etc BUT I was cool about it and friendly BUT also said a firm NO to that as No 1 because i didnt want him to lose his job (and maybe was set up by the other crew memberber who sent him over ..you never know some crew are like that sadly!) NO 2 i was on the crusie with my partner even though we had open relationship and 3 we didnt want to get chucked off mid cruise ! ...he was a realy nice guy not my type BUT i didnt want o end his cruise career ..we sat had some drinks and a good old chat! thats were i left it so i CAN understand LUCY'S point of view on that topic ...as i know crew and pax interactions only go so far and crew aint allowed to have hook ups with pax! ( im sure it does happen but if found out it will cost the crew thier job! ) 😘 i did say to him though OUTSDE of work then we would be friends as thats different and your outside personal life! the cruise lines cant stop that as its personal and outside of work if you get my dift? met a few gay crew on thomson over the years ....sadly not trveled with them since the rebranding ...BUt still one of my fave lines to cruise with! even though tips are included with marella / thomson as they allways have been ... we ALWAYS tip our cabin steward, restuarnt staff who served us and the bar staff to the bars we went to all the time because they got to know you and gave outstanding service and got to know you! so we ALLWAYS left a tip on top to them even though we techinical did not have to as all tips were included in the price of the cruise! Sorry guys for my long comment by the way! 😉
It amazes me how cheap people are that they do not want to tip. I would not care if they made 100,000+ salary every worker on the cruise ship if they provide me with good service they're getting a tip since when, does a tip have to do with how much money they make?a tip is a form of reward for good service does not matter how much salary they make people are so damn cheap. tipping has nothing to do with how much the employees are paid. Get it through your heads you damn cheapskates!! It has to do with providing good service if they made $1 million a year I still would give them a tip if they provide a good service stop being cheap and pony up!
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I am an extrovert, but more than 20 years ago I was a reserved introvert. I changed when I became a solo traveller in foreign countries. I had to converse with unknown people to survive. Now I will just talk to anyone and think nothing of it.
I hate tipping for someone just to do the job they are paid to do. It has gotten out of hand so much in the US. I was at an event and there was a self serve food area ( bottled drinks, prepackaged food) and you checked out yourself and the register asked for a tip. Who am I tipping, myself?
@planner722 I agree. I'm from New Zealand and it's not apart of our culture but know and respect it's apart of the US culture. Businesses need to pay their workers so that the workers salary don't fall on the paying customers. Tips are supposed to acknowledge someone going over and beyond, not doing their job.
I loved my time as a traveling Registered Nurse. My traveling career lasted for twenty-one years total, two of those years were on Cruise Ships. Those assignments were a high point in my life with great memories.
What else did you do? I’m at university to become a registered nurse. I work in aged care as a carer and have done for over 15 yrs. I live in Australia. What other travelling assignments did you have?
@@Toby3610 I have worked in twenty states within the US 48 lower states plus Alaska and Hawaii along with Saudi and Japan. It never felt as if I was really working, but on a continuous holiday, my 12 shifts were 8 days on and 6 days off. I used my 6 days off, depending where my assisgnment was located, to travel throughout Canada, Greenland, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and certain parts of the middle east. I love the outdoors so hiking, hunting and fishing are always on my schedule. Travel and enjoy the world!
As someone who recently got the Virgin Voyages bug, I love that she mentioned how much Virgin is fantastic for their employees. I witnessed some guy trying to get a ride out of our waitress and she put him in his place in a respectful way but I know that on any other cruise line, they would have made her apologize for things she was not responsible for.
Virgin seems like they actually back and support their employees 1000%
I agree. It is VERY apparent that Virgin takes great care of their employees. I will not cruise with anyone but Virgin
@@simonet2144 Good to know. I refuse to do business with ANY business that treats its employees or customers like crap. We have a cruise booked on Carnival coming up this winter, but I will have to look into Virgin Cruise Lines.
I had the pleasure of sailing on a cruise while Lucy was with DCL for a short time. She is just as charming in person as she is on vlog posts.
Thanks for watching. She is a lovely, down to earth person and we hope to meet her again. Glad you got to catch up with her :)
I’m about to go on my first cruise as a passenger next week. I’ve been watching a lot of videos, so I think that is why I got this video in my recommendations on TH-cam. I was a U.S. Navy sailor for 9 years. This was very interesting to me. I’d like to see a video that explains more about the differences between I guess what would be ship staff and hotel staff. I also found it interesting how all of you talked about needing time to wind down- crew bar was mentioned. US Navy ships are dry, but we would be in port with UK, AUS and other country’s warships and they would have bars onboard. I got to visit a couple of them and it was quite the culture shock. I also agree with what you guys were talking about with American tipping culture. I hate it. Like she said, I paid you to do your job, I shouldn’t have to pay more for that. Great video, glad I found this!
Thanks for watching and sharing your story! We hope you enjoy your first cruise 😊
Compelling passengers to pay for simple drinking water on a cruise is practically criminal. It's one reason why I love cruising on VV.
Tipping back in the 90s was because servers made $2.50 per hour. Now they expect a tip for coffee & everything else. I agree it's ridiculous as an American. Great video lots of good info thanks!!
Don't do it then. The madness has to stop somewhere! Tip at restaurants where someone takes your order & delivers your food, tip your hairdresser and anyone else who does a personal care service for you (i.e., nails, eyebrow threading, massages) -- if they touch your body, tip them. And that's it. All these machines programmed to ask for tips for everything need to stop.
I don't know who gave you this idea. Some people feel important handing out money "not to be kind" but to "buy attention". It is neither expected nor required other than a "kind gesture" to your room attendant or your favorite waiter - once!.
@@realMacMadame Cheapskate!!
@@realMacMadame why do you assume we tip for anything besides that? I don't know anyone who tips coffee shop employees for handing them a cup of coffee. Yes, the option to tip is presented but that doesn't mean most of us use it. This podcast completely exaggerated it. It's just false.
@@bloodycrepe I know plenty of people that tip when the payment screen asks for one. But I live in a high COL area.
Fantastic interview with Lucy. Very entertaining, she is such a lovely person. Well done guys.
Thanks for watching James. It was a pleasure to chat with Lucy, she is a lovely, down to earth person.
As an American I'll says tipping culture is confusing. At the grocer I gather, self scan and bag my groceries, run my card and get a popup on the register asking for a tip of like 25%.
i see it as corporate begging it's rude ( also hot takes a governmental letting exploitation/pay/safety's-ect to lower classes isn't sexy/a-plus if anything it shows a failing nation... ) pay your employees at the bottom before getting your Christmas bonus and yes she/video is right earn-it not expect-it it's extra for doing a great job( floor-levels and not meant for C-types/management ) and for me my ideally for cruising is 1890-1940's 1st class experience includes classics atmosphere for dinner ( think titanic/classic ballroom/captain's-room-bounty-looking back on sea or up on bow-waves vibe's as generally im not interested in minimalist or mid century modern vibe's ) and date-wife's and show's/comic not o were counting rerun-tv/bluster-movie as a proper showcase or casual-USA-styling/steakhouses-buffet as 4 or 5-start bow-tie/Victorian-dress-ect experience makes it cheapy-vibes as i can do/get that at home same for not having things like rock-wall's or skeet-sporting or proper-water-slide/park ect and i like having a mixture of sea-days with port-days and yes i know some like having all-port-days/night's but at that point i suggestion is flying+airport's/rentable-car my 2C's
I feel sorry for crew members who have to work long hours, away from home, for many months at a time, serving a contract and having to deal with quite a few, snobbish, bossy, sexist, racist and drunk passengers who expect everything at a click of a finger. Plus having to live in shared, cramp, accommodation with little privacy.
I feel that many of the super rich cruise corporations, their directors and shareholders are financially abusing people from across the world, especially those from poor countries, but I know that everybody will immediately reply by saying it is their choice. I feel that working conditions and basic salaries should be much better, especially for those working behind the scenes in the laundry, kitchen etc.
It’s good to know that not all cruise companies treat there staff badly, but the majority sadly do 😢
@@PortsladeBySea it balances out for them in good tips from some good passengers who tip well and the standard now put on the state bill.
Compared to their life and opportunities back home? Jobs are scarce in many parts of the world, and the cruise industry offers pay above what they can earn at home.
Great choice of guest! I have no interest in being a crew member and I still watch her weekly vlogs. She has a way of making the topic somehow interesting to me.
Thanks for watching!
I've been a customer on three cruises with three different lines. Disney is on another level in terms of customer service and overall experience. The staff was simply amazing.
@@Sam-ss2lo What about special services? Is Minnie available for a private session?
@@Sam-ss2lo Disney gets none of my $
Great interview all around. Lucy is right about how Americans versus Brits view tipping - $2K and spend it all (leave left over as tips) versus Brits putting the left over on their next cruise.
As an older gay man myself, this is one reason why I would not be inclined to go on an all-gay cruise, because of the increased possibility of male rape and male sexual assault at sea - apps like Grindr might not be available on a cruise ship (even though I don’t use any such apps) but I’d be even more worried about my personal safety on a cruise ship then I would be on land
@@michaeljohndennis2231 Well that’s eye opening🤨🤔🙏🏻 🤦♀️😢
So you prefer to get your kicks shore side then🤣, not much of a seamen then!!!
Grindr does work on the cruise ship if you have an internet package. Also, all gay cruises are like life, you can always say no or yes. The only problem with all gay cruises, unless they are specifically for older gays, there is a lot of age discrimination.
Your testimony (and fear) suggest to me that all-gay cruises present a captured audience that promotes gay assault episodes ---which in turn, suggests that all gay men are NOT passive with sex and are harmless to other men.
I believe you. I used to work at a waffle house in a gay club area and one day one of the male customers got r*aped in the bathroom by other males. I felt so bad for him but it was soooo busy and loud after the clubs let out that I don't think anyone heard it
Fantastic interview! Thank you for having Lucy as your guest! You guys demystified some of the 'myths' onboard a ship. Listening from the Philippines! 😊
Great interview! Another thing to think about in regard to uniforms is to not worry about the polo, your increased pay is what really matters and why you go through the training.
Loved this lucy is very engaging!
So many good stories. I agree the drinking is difficult one, she is right it’s very targeted!
Wow those stories of people she shared with from god to handcuffs!
Thanks for sharing and all I can say is so glad I have 3 massages booked for next cruise 😀
Thanks for watching guys! Sharing a cabin with someone is definitely the worst thing about working at sea, huge praise for Virgin who give their crew single occupancy cabins. Enjoy your massages :P
More than once I’ve seen an older man travelling with two much younger glamorous women, all in the same cabin. I’ve also seen these ladies travelling solo or in pairs hanging out in the bars every evening dressed up to the nines and on the prowl.
Awesome my kinda cruise .....................a very expensive time for sure
@@mehogandhenry7132 i currently( did as a teen/2000's ) don't have anything against topless/co-ed France/types of breaches and or sexual-work( not my types of entertainment but i believe in fee-will-ect ) and or therapy/therapist it's the tricky parts of international water/sea and or exploitation and enforcing otherwise id say it's better to have it in the adult-area's-only( casino+others-are already is like that ( and then there's sometimes a kids area's only, doesn't happen on nude/gay cruising to my knowledge but my experience is teen and grandparents friendly winks ) on ship and or my experienced/'s ) and open/window-models of law's so sub15~to19yo~minors/religious-types still have a choice/chances-of-inasaint-childhood
USA has admitted to having a child-plant-manufacturing&farm's/sexual/slavery/pedometers problem's and that's with most-states having a fully ( failed by most standards and sexual/striping asstralia-all-fully-legal-type/uk/Germany's/swiss are doing a better job of the end-goals of lowering violence-ect, and being more realistic about not in forcing-Christian/religious beliefs as USA is forcing-puritan/Muslim law's on relationships/sexualisation ) ban and fully capable policing/justice systems
Last night I sat at a table with 5 beautiful ladies because of my sparkling personality and I had a large pizza.
I always like hearing what Lucy has to say. That was a great interview. I am interested in hearing what it’s like working on a ship, any ship from a crew perspective. I enjoy cruising from time to time and always treat crew with respect as their jobs are difficult enough without a passenger being an arsehole. All the best from Sydney Australia 🇦🇺
Really enjoyed this! Found Jay and Lucy’s stories of life on board very interesting!
As an American, I tip true service individuals like waitstaff, a hair stylist if she doesn't own the shop, and the like. I will not tip at Starbucks, fast-food places, and the like. Also, if the waiter gives crap service, then I will not tip, and if they were rude, then I will leave a penny. If they are awesome I like to tip higher than normal. I don't think that just because someone works in a job like that they deserve a tip if they didn't do their job fully. I have worked a lot of commission jobs, and if you don't do a good job you don't get paid for it. Tips are exactly that a commission that has to be earned.
As far as crew on cruise ships, I don't have a problem paying the 18% gratuity, as I see it as just the cost of the cruise, and that tips even people that I can't see to tip. That said, I will also give the tips above for exceptional service. The first one is just part of their pay, and to remove that part of their pay is rude. If we didn't have a tip culture on the cruise ships the cruise lines would raise the cost of the cruise by that much or more. That is why I feel I should tip the service staff for good service on top of that, because the reality is that isn't a tip, it is part of their pay just separated out as gratuity which is kind of stupid. But you would still need to tip the service people for good service even if they were paid more by the cruise lines.
Really great interview! We really enjoyed hearing stories from Lucy
Glad you enjoyed it guys, thanks for watching :)
Interesting conversation regarding the “stripe system”. I, myself, have rarely had an enjoyable experience in dealing with officers on cruise ships. Having not sailed on Virgin (yet), I can’t speak to them but on other lines there is a definite class system in place and I largely find officers insufferable. And lower class workers are definitely afraid of officers. I’ll certainly respect the position of the officer’s role but I’ve witnessed officers look down upon passengers as if the passenger was something to be scraped off the bottom of their shoe. I don’t care how long you’ve trained for your stripes, you put on your pants the same way I do, and to act like you’re better than anyone else is off-putting. And to feel the need to wear your stripes to remind people of just who you are shows a level of insecurity that is off the charts.
It sounds as if your "insecurity" is off the charts. I've never heard of officers looking down their nose at passengers, ever. I'm not familiar with officers looking down at other departments either.
All the Officers, including the Captain, on Fred Olsen Cruise ships are very approachable, they all joined in to take part in the Initiation Ceremony for crossing the Arctic Circle, Iced water over the head, they were all very good sports, Captain went first !
@@sailawaymag i have( also was politeness-types ) on carnival( from memory as it's not my only time/vacation and it wouldn't put me completely off from booking somewhere else again or working on board in the engine room/electrician/maintenance/millwright, it's the home-port/flaging/law-parts that do~ because i don't want to be tricked into slavishly conditions-ect with a USA-rights to work aka green-card or better-wink and uk-blood-line ) line in USA HI around the billiard tables and my ( poor trucker/cdl at the time but polite/well-mannered for the most part )dad/gramp's ( fyi gramp's spent ~50+k/family's-reunion/grandparent's-9-adult-children that time or so i was told as a 13-17/teen he also was millionaires row to the point pepsin-LLc C's/board members had to listen to him as he owned enough to be a spoiler-shareholder at conventions, also quite-types after wife/may-RIP'd )
something about captain and his buddies and or ladies-friends wanted to throw a last minute( aka wasn't scheduled/booked ect ) champagne/sexual-party/blackjack-wale's$$$$ and wanted it private settings despite the space meant for public library+entertainment and guests-1st, anyways dad didn't fight/saying backwards and i after following him/later asked why be so coward to someone that's being snobby+rudeness ect, gramp's wasn't interested in paying-to-play( 21 yes wale's no as he putting it's my version of a video game and best not to put 1000 on the table every round so call me cheap but 1-5USD/round will suffice for a couple of hours, and to my knowledge was into 19-32~yo's/stipper's his/ww2-veteran type at the time would probably be 60's+ if at all and that's with my grandma-RIP at the time ) so also left and or didn't remind them of how many cabins( cabins and basic/economy-class airfares he covered but everything else wasn't like excursion's or taxis/bus's ect )/$$$ spent ect
Complete nonsense
That's was a great interview, I've been a big fan of Lucy for a while now, It was nice to see her in a long format interview.
I was 45 Years at Sea and I cannot recall any problems like this!..
Back in the day we just all mucked in and got on.. Why? Because we had to!..
We all took it for a fact that we were all Board of trade acquaintances...
I finished up as 2nd Engineer..
If I have to stand to order and get my food I do not tip. Period.
A big YES 😊 my friend, have been in that same situation and there is a big TIP jar at the cashier. I hated that, the person behind the counter did nothing above and beyond service. Some don't even smile.
So I should TIP them for what they are already getting paid for. It is so bad NOW with the TIP being asked on those new credit cards tap or slide check out for payment. I will always give the highest TIP if I get great service, but please it has to be just like you said, a person waiting on me at a table, coming back asking how it is going and do I need anything, especially when the restaurant is very full
On the Princess cruise ship We went on. The Butler and cleaning staff were A+ plus. The Butler even let me take a picture of the two of us, with my personal work boat type CG certificate life jacket on. I always brought it on any vessel I went on.
Cheapskate!!!
lol the story of the handncuffs cracked me up that he left her there BUT on a serious note ...what the hell would have happened if Lucy handnt come back and therewas some sort of shipwide emergency in betwee the 3 hrs? such as going to muster staitions? her poor cabin mate would have been stuck there like Jack dawson in titanic as the ship sank!
Thank you for having this in depth behind the scenes talk about what is expected of a crew member WORKING on a cruise ship or working ships. I love how this female guest speaks so frankly and has a veru good outlook of especially the "SEX" part 😊 she speaks the way I wish others
Especially Females at sea would deal with advances on the person. On cruise ships with so many cultures, sexual advancement is thought of differently than American cry Rape at any thing. I was taking a smoke break in the outside area of the after starboard side of a cruise ship, and a young crew member was out side with us. The topic of conversation between the smokers was your pets. I showed the young female cruise crew member my pet mini Australian Shepherd who we do agility training with. She started "RUBBING" against my side very smooth and sexually like. I then showed her pictures of me and my wife. She STOPPED rubbing on me and move away from me. My wife hates me smoking, so she was not present 😊 I thanked the female workers for looking at my dog picture, went back to my cabin. ( I tell my wife everything) Told her about the encounter with the crew member, she laughed about it. 😊 We never hide anything from each other, especially something like this. I have seen very old well dressed ladys who are way older that the young gentleman thay are with, on the dance floor on cruise ships, dancing very close. I didn't believe in my Humble opinion that this gentleman is a son or part of the family. Just calling it as I saw it
Gentlemen, thank you for a fun, insightful, and brilliant interview. As an American who doesn't sail on cruiseships, I was not aware of you all / your channel, but my late Mom and I have been big fans of Lucy for years now, so youtube pointed me here! (so thanks to youtube as well?) It's always nice to hear Lucy's insights and I love this long-format style, as well as your superb questions. Thanks again guys....Fair winds!
Thanks so much for watching and for your lovely comment. Fair winds and following seas to you too :)
Tipping culture in the US is crazy. But we tolerate it and have been for decades, which is how we got here. Companies have been slow playing people for half a century. And we've also turned it into a competition and showing off how much money someone has, which is rooted in the selfish/self-centered culture that we've promoted for the last 40+ years.
I am an American, I absolutely and utterly hate our tip system . I especially hate how cruise lines tell you how much you are tipping and keep increasing that amount. We also very much enjoyed going on Virgin, so much we bought the hammocks they have on the balcony. This is the first video I've seen from you and I really enjoyed it.
Try taking a Star Link on board. As soon as they find out, they confiscate it. It's competition to their wi-fi which they charge for !
I'm an American and I agree with the British tipping idea. Only Exemplary service deserves a tip! The tipping in America has gotten out of hand! Looking back ; I'm thinking the tipping for everything had gotten worse when COVID hit and people did not go out for their meals and businesses like UBER eats and Door Dash came into being,
Please dont go out
Tipping in Canada is the same, the only thing people in Canada for an actual minimum wage. It seems as though we are expected to tip almost everybody now. Not only restaurants , but manicure ,pedicures, hairdresser, fast food joints. It gets to too much and the government says we should give 15% or more. Just maddening. I think tipping is for exceptional service,and believe me, it is hard to get that these days.
On that basis the wait staff are doing what, four tables an hour? And minimum wage is $10? So they are getting $2.50, not $50 because we happened to order the best steaks and an expensive bottle of wine.
If tipping was to substitute for wages it wouldn't be tied to the value of my order. Should I pay more for my gas because I drive a Mercedes not a Nissan?
I have followed Lucy for years and really miss her working on the ships.
I don't think that she has worked on Viking though, so I would be interested to know her crew perception differences between Viking and Virgin.
I thoroughly enjoyed this delightful interview.
Thanks for watching :)
Sadly never found any extra mural activities available on any of the cruises I have been on. Even tanning topless was not allowed, except for the guys?
Good luck in your quest for "extra mural activities" :)
A really interesting segment, made all the better by Lucy. Her personality, knowledge and presentation are exceptional.
Hi, fascinating video, I worked on P&O Arcadia in the 70ies, loved every minute of it. I was a 3rd Baker in the dessert section. I worked in several different areas of that department. For me in my twenties to see the world and get paid it was a dream job. I managed to save enough money to put a deposit on a house
Thanks for watching Sophie and sharing your experience. It sounds like it was a good career move for you :)
Long trips, away from home family and friends, shxx pay, shxx accomodations, special bar, cheap drinks , but ridiculously low BAL expectations. What a great job.
Shall we send you an application form?
That was good guys , well done and thanks
Thanks for watching, Nick!
0.05 is like nothing. Same with 0.08 which is DUI level in FL. This policy just says that if youre not teetotaling the can get rid of you if they like.
American: I don’t tip at any counter service restaurant because they are getting paid at least minimum wage. At sit down restaurants the wait staff is barely paid and rely on tips.
I 100 percent agree. I don't tip people standing at a counter taking orders. I recently went to grocery store that had a tip option at check out on the credit card machine. I was like wtf is going on hear. I bit my lip. Paid my bill and left no tip.
Fantastic video love you guys and Lucy too😊quick question went on Ventura this year and going on Discovery 2 next will I find this ship quite different? Thanks x
Thanks for watching and for your kind comment. To be honest, I think you may prefer Discovery 2 more - in our opinion food, entertainment and the included drinks make for a better cruise overall compared to Ventura. Have you done Marella before?
That’s really helpful thank you😊never been on Marella before so definitely looking forward to it x
You talk about having to adjust to different regimes on joining a new ship. I've been a freelance construction agent and put in charge of whole building sites ... i have a similar anxiety about ... is it going to be a sh*t hole when i get there and will i have to take people to task, is the build quality going to f**ked and I'll have to throw people off of site. Are they all going to be wearing their PPE properly or has a slack culture set in. Will I get overruled by the contracts manager for decisions i know are correct coz their mate is the roofing foreman, and they go on the sniff together, and things like that.
So, I suppose a new captain will feel my sort of anxieties on taking on their new command.
Hi. Very enjoyable interview, thanks. Even though I've never wanted to take a cruise! Lucy comes across as a very good people person.
You don't need to tip at a take-out (take-away), they are paid minimum wage at least. Its the wait-staff in a sit-down restaurant, sky-caps (if they still existed) thats paid well below minimums as it is classed legally as a tipped job.
Please keep you opinion to yourself in future
@@Savedcitytitan7118 Isn't this the comments section? I'm not saying don't tip at takeout, I often do a small tip. But most foreigners don't realize there is a large difference in the wage based on if the job is expected to be tipped.
@@Savedcitytitan7118 I’ll keep my opinion of you to myself because what I’m thinking about you isn’t nice 🤬
Strong words! 👀
@@daveR0berts isnt relavant either
Great crossover with Lucy. Thanks for this guys.
Thanks for watching James. Glad you enjoyed it :)
The mention of sex on board really got her nervous, she contradicted herself a couple times she didn’t know what to say..interesting, I do know that assault on a cruise ship happens by crew and passengers.
I went for a trip and was in a cabin on the back of the boat, below sea level and woke up behind the curtain of the performance stage area at the upper deck (front of the boat) - quite a walk. I had been sleep walking 😂. Lucky there wasnt a show and the curtain drawn back🤣
The tipping culture in America is of course derived from the corporate control of American politics. Corporations seek the highest profits. To achieve this they have engineered the American economy and political environment to maximize profits. An important part of this involves control of the labor market and ensuring there is a large pool of potential workers - this gives employers more power than workers. In service positions, employers have established a culture where labor can be payed less because they can make earnings through tips. Fortunately, from the workers perspective, average Americans understand this and this has led to tipping being part of the culture, even for "normal" service. If you have worked as a waiter or bartender or barista etc, or if you have siblings or children or friends with this experience you put yourself in their place and know that tipping makes their lives better. Of course this has the disadvantage of reinforcing the notion that it is acceptable to pay service workers less, but, speaking as an American, we are doing what we can with the situation we have. I think its important to understand that this system also applies to service workers on cruise ships - many of them are not payed a good wage and rely on tips to generate a substantial portion of their income. So much so that many lines essentially require a certain amount of tipping as a base. When cruising, my wife and I understand this and look at what Europeans would consider tipping (tip for good to exceptional service - service beyond normal) as what we do if we want to tip above the base level. Since we usually do get very good or exceptional service, we do usually tip above the base level, usually in cash so we are sure the worker gets the full tip. I do wish the lines would pay their workers a good wage as a base, but concede that this would make the costs for cruising higher. But it would certainly make it less confusing. Nevertheless, ultimately, I think its important to consider the circumstances these workers are in and tip according to that vs. how we wish the world was. This was an outstanding video, very much enjoyed your content! Cheers, JW.
Came across this video purely by accident. Once I started watching, I couldn't stop. Great hosts and great guest. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the goings on on a cruise ship. PS American tipping is a joke. You get tips for delivering exceptional service not because your bosses are too stingy to you crews a proper wage.
As an American, tipping is part of my vacation. I’d carry loads of dollar bills on a cruise and tip after every drink.
I carry $2 bills, golden dollars, and 50c pieces for tips.
Thank you very much for interesting insights into cruise ship life. I was offered the chance to work on a cruise ship doing theater tech several decades ago but passed; I'm sure the industry is radically different today.
The prostitution discussion left out a 3rd aspect, cruise passengers plying their services to other passengers. I'm sure if caught doing this, the passenger would be set adrift in a lifeboat & banned for life...
Last year on a cruise I did see some strippers in the nightclub. They were wearing lingerie, dancing in some cages! This was a regular nightclub, and they just popped up out of nowhere....😂 The funny part, I didn't even notice the cages until they were dancing in there!! 😀
I totally agree I live in America and I think tipping should be gotten rid of I paid for my meal I’m not there to support the wait staff by tipping them it’s their job.
Well it’s an interesting takeaway. All these things happen everywhere. Drugs, prostitution etc…… go to any hotel or resort and you will find this out. It’s up to you whether you participate or not. Especially I see she’s worked on Virgin cruises and there are no rules at all
Oh Ms. Lucy so proud of you...🩷🪷🫶💐
I would prefer cruise lines charged top whack fare, and no gratuities to pay, So you know up front what you can afford. At the same time I would at the end of the cruise tip for any great service I was given (If you were prepared to pay £2k for a cruise then £2200 would not stop people booking)
Similar to working seasonal hotels where you are all one big (happy?) family for eight months before you all you all disperse throughout the UK for the winter season.
Next season it's game on again when it's almost like a death in the family when some staff don't return.
Happy days........
Working as casino staff during the 80s on a cruise ship was the best time ever.
@@allwrighty100 i was a casino dude in the 80 s...Norwegian, Royal Caribbean..lot of fun before tons of surveillance cameras...haha
Quite frankly I can't believe I just watched from beginning to the end!? Sooo I figured I need to leave a comment. Thanx for sharing.
Wooooo go Lucy!! ❤
Why give things a Title & talk about everything but the title? Ijs
Do you or did you make more money in the spa 18% gratuity added?!?
As an American I only tip when I sit down and get waited on or you deliver to me.
Some Male Workers , sell their Ship Worker GF to other Shipworker guys on the ship. I know because I got to sleep with one of these crew members. The husband was charging , offering
Why is this called “Uncensored” when it’s censored like crazy?
The topics of conversation are uncensored, and we're willing to tackle topics which other podcasts aren't. However, TH-cam has strict policies on certain expletives which mean we can't monetise from a video if certain words aren't censored. Next question?
@@sailawaymag 😂
Great interview Lucy is a beautiful lady..
I saw girls standing around the casino all dressed up standing alone just waiting for old men to pick them up. I see this alot on Carnival. On RC not so much
That's interesting, and a bit shocking. Thanks for watching :)
The "no crusty feet" comment is totally inappropriate. Guests go to overpriced cruise ship spas believing they will benefit from whatever treatment they paid for not thinking staff will make innapropiate comments on their anatomy...it's good you are no longer there and you should never be allowed to work on any cruise ship period.
Get a grip! If you're offended by this, you'd be offended by anything! #snowflake
When it comes to TIPS, the Cruise Ship Industry has now adopted the "Customer Satisfaction Review Method," a digital software package that bombards customers with requests for feedback. It is a cheap trick to tell the customer that if they rate any question with not at least a 9 or a 10, they hurt hard-working people working behind the scenes.
If a customer is really dissatisfied with the price/service offer of a cruise - that is a problem for which MANAGEMENT AND ultimately the Cruise ship Lines are responsible. Don't pass the problem on to the cleaners.
What! Americans don’t spend every penny on vacation. We just aren’t cheap and have budgeted for the vacation. Also, Americans don’t take vacations as often as Europeans do.
The problem with the USAian tipping culture is that the CEO's and what not can hide behind underpaying their workers salary instead of paying a proper and decent salary. The workers should have a proper wage so you only tip when it's deserved.
Even St. Peter’s Basilica has a ‘tip’ box! 😊
As an American, we hate tipping as well.
You not we
@@Savedcitytitan7118 I just can't get over how stingy some people can be
@@robertlulek1634 wild. I think it has to do with living in a 1st world country
Don't include me in your blanket statement. I have no problem tipping for great service.
@@lennyj3300 should I include you? I'm talking about the cheapskates if you think you're a cheapskate that's on you. It was not directed on you. It was directed at cheapskates
If one has earned the rank,they should show it.
Why do you say it's hard to get drugs on board?!
Because it isn't easy!
Curious what issues you've had or heard of? I've always found it incredibly easy and it's clear others do too.
What do you mean you can’t drink the tap water? Every cruise I have been on states it’s safe to drink. Do you mean the crew gets different water? Of course introverts can succeed there. I am one and was a performing musician when I was young, and now give training and presentations to peers and customers. I get my down time to recharge and so would they.
You shouldn’t be drinking tap water on a ship. The water they serve you in dining rooms is specifically filtered. Most cruise lines charge crew for bottle water, and don’t offer a filtered water facility.
We don't worry about epaulets on tugs and cargo ships.
Super interesting interview. I wish I was 40 years younger
I think you don’t understand tipping if you’re giving Starbucks baristas tips.
Throw em 1 or 2$ per drink. Youll be alright
Drinking: drink at beginning of off time. Sleep 8 hours after drink before duty
She is beautiful and charming at the same time. Come to the Missouri for Holiday and I will show you around. Yeah I know, not gonna happen but I had to ask.
Who knew massage was a degree level vocation?
It is not an easy course. My niece is a massage therapist. It is 2 years of college. She does make $50.00 an hour though.
@@almabelhumeur6672 I agree it's way harder and more involved than people would ever think. My wife qualified to International standard. But it's not a degree.
Cruisers can drink 15 alcoholic drinks per day. I think that is ludacrous!! The same rules should apply to cruisers. They only allow it because they want to make money.
You think that passenger blood alcohol level should always be below 0.5%? Doesn't sound like a fun holiday to us! Gilead Cruises.
Ever worked on a nudist cruise???
I don't understand having drinks being so cheap for the crew and then getting upset and firing them when they drink too much. Any alcohol impairs thus all crew should never drink. All crew will then be ready for any emergency. You state that if the crew drinks and have a good time then the experience for everyone will be better. I say if you need alcohol to have a good time and can not do it with out then something is terribly wrong with that person.
Opinions vary.
Thank god
Damn, always knew the pay was awful, hence the reliance on cheap labour from abroad. But, would've thought they paid the brits/other countries the minimum wage equiv? Then again, I imagine there's no shortage of folks lining up to be paid even less to travel. Even still...£1k-£1.2k is criminal. Not like this is some charitable endeavour either...these are highly profitable multi billion £ industries. Anyhow, a good interview. Never been on a cruise, always give off the vibe of old folk dogging/fat yanks/annoying families, but it's an interesting industry nonetheless. I do like the idea of long term cabin with balcony rental sailing across the world. Perfect for wfh/remote workers like me who hop around Europe/the world in airbnbs...or the niche world of living out of all inclusive hotel resorts in off season for like £1k a month. I'd take a month long cheap cruise.
Tap water on all cruise ships is perfectly all right to drink. Don’t take my word for it. Look it up.
As someone that has worked on ships, and has inspected countless fresh water tanks, there is no way I’d drink that water. My car can go 100mph, but I wouldn’t do it on a country road. You are not supposed to drink water from cabins - will it kill you, no. But is there any chance it could make you ill, yes!
A great interview with Lucy Southerton ( i would even though she prob cat say) Ask what cruise lines she has worked for out of interest? TBH i have only ever done thompson / marella in all my cruising days ( pre pandemic) My partner allways called them butlins on sea (tbh i thought that was a bit unfair as the staff , food entertainment was and is allways top notch ) so they were older and smaller ships ..as you mentioned marella in the vid...
Not done carnival, RCL, cunard etc as thompson / marella allways offered the all inclusive drinks as a pax as in drink alcohol from 10 am till 2 am (no limit) and NEVER once did i see a pax totaly pissed to the point of falling over / abusive through being drunk or crew either ! ( i suppose it just the way us crusing brits are we know when enough is enough!)
where as the amenrican lines you get a drink package and liimted to so many drinks a day or up to a certain ammount! (back when they were thompson..marella as they are now branded ) if you booked early enough you got the AI free or had to pay for it ...these days marella are AI across the fleet ....
.going back to what Lucy says about crew alcohol intake ...in the past on thompson / marella ship a LOT of the entertinments crew ..mailny those ( including the cruise director ) could be found in a lot of the public bars and would accept drinks purchaes by passengers (even though the had a crew bar) so they would have def been over that limit she mentioned! BUT also as A pax made some great friends on marella / thomson with the entertianments crew too ..and IF you cruised with them again on the various ships they had / have ( i know they crew change round even the resturant bar staff too from ship to ship IF you were a reg cruiser with them evein if it was over a year ago ALL the crew remembered you from the last time be they bar staff , resturant staff or entertainment staff! that is something you Dont get all the time! )
BUT i suppose they have tightend up those restrictions now ( last cruise i went on was 2013 ) BUT sometimes that out of hrs (as in not working) interaction with the pax made the cruise for myself as it showed they were not aloof and out of the way ( even though i know sometimes it was a total ball ache for them to do that interaction outside of working hrs if you get my drift?)"all part of the customer smiely smiley interaction the crew have to do and put on a good face of the cruise line ..i get it ....I used to work in pubs and clubs and part of an entertianments crew when i was in my 20s so had to do the same sort of thing so totaly get that!
As for the sex thing lol .....OBV i dont know what went on crew wise BUT on a Thomson cruise round the med on board Destiny as a PAX (and i know crew /Pax sexual interaction can get you fired!) ONE of the entertainments crew sent a guy over (part of the entertinments crew BUT not shows) to sit with myself and my BF as they knew he was gay ..and he was flirting etc BUT I was cool about it and friendly BUT also said a firm NO to that as No 1 because i didnt want him to lose his job (and maybe was set up by the other crew memberber who sent him over ..you never know some crew are like that sadly!) NO 2 i was on the crusie with my partner even though we had open relationship and 3 we didnt want to get chucked off mid cruise ! ...he was a realy nice guy not my type BUT i didnt want o end his cruise career ..we sat had some drinks and a good old chat! thats were i left it so i CAN understand LUCY'S point of view on that topic ...as i know crew and pax interactions only go so far and crew aint allowed to have hook ups with pax! ( im sure it does happen but if found out it will cost the crew thier job! )
😘 i did say to him though OUTSDE of work then we would be friends as thats different and your outside personal life! the cruise lines cant stop that as its personal and outside of work if you get my dift? met a few gay crew on thomson over the years ....sadly not trveled with them since the rebranding ...BUt still one of my fave lines to cruise with!
even though tips are included with marella / thomson as they allways have been ... we ALWAYS tip our cabin steward, restuarnt staff who served us and the bar staff to the bars we went to all the time because they got to know you and gave outstanding service and got to know you! so we ALLWAYS left a tip on top to them even though we techinical did not have to as all tips were included in the price of the cruise!
Sorry guys for my long comment by the way! 😉
It amazes me how cheap people are that they do not want to tip. I would not care if they made 100,000+ salary every worker on the cruise ship if they provide me with good service they're getting a tip since when, does a tip have to do with how much money they make?a tip is a form of reward for good service does not matter how much salary they make people are so damn cheap. tipping has nothing to do with how much the employees are paid. Get it through your heads you damn cheapskates!! It has to do with providing good service if they made $1 million a year I still would give them a tip if they provide a good service stop being cheap and pony up!
Virgins cruise line is not racist vs other cruise lines.
In your opinion, which cruise lines are racist?
We just did virgin and if it was our first ever cruise I would never cruise again it was garbage and that’s being nice.
*signs up for spa package* 😂
You made me spit my drink out 🤣
I think someone’s making up stories to try to have a better show
Who is making up stories?
Two fingers or hand…hilarious!
this is bull you are saying that they are all drug addicts and you are willing to risk customers lives
What are you talking about? At what time is there a claim that everybody is a drug addict? And who is risking customers lives? 🤣
Vomit?! At the spa?! 😮😅