Silly Question re CDs

[gxchan]

I'm booked on the Volendam's September 30 cruise through the Panama Canal and have only taken one other cruise. On my first cruise I never had any contact with the Cruise Director. There seems to be a good deal of affection for certain CDs. I'm just wondering what services they provide, etc.

 

I know this is a silly question but . . . well, I'm willing to look silly.

 

Thanks for your assistance.

 

Ginnie

[Atomica]

No such thing as a silly question! Actually, I've been on almost 6 cruises now, and I haven't had any contact with any CD's. So I'm curious myself! If I'm not mistaken, I believe they, along with the Hotel Manager, can help you if you have any issues/problems with some aspect of your cruise while on board.

[ekerr19]

Most ships have a Guest Relations Manager (GRM) that is available to assist with a variety of problems that can be encountered while on board.

 

Personally, I think of the Cruise Director position as more of a social host or hostess - greeting pax at the Mariner's receptions, mingling with guests in lounges, etc. We've been on several cruises where it seemed the CD was non-existent, and other cruises that had amazingly witty, fun and outgoing CD's.

 

The Hotel Manager is an officer with extensive responsibilities, and often quite busy - though some are much more visable than others, if you get an opportunity to chat, most we've encountered are quite gracious and a pleasure to meet.

 

If you have a problem with something such as shipboard credit, an error on your shipboard account, etc. it is best to take it up with the persons directly responsible for correcting and addressing such issues - such as the front desk staff or the concierge staff. :)

[JimVrhovac]

The guest relations manager also manages the fron desk and you should consider that person to be your first step in solving any problems.

 

They can point you in the right direction or take care of it for you.

 

You could say that that position is the key that unlocks the problem solving process on the ship.

 

Ruth and I always make a point of visiting the Guest Relations Manager and saying hello and chatting with them for a while. It can be especially helpfull on longer cruises if you have a problem but it never hurts to know the staff if you cruise on a particular line a lot.

 

Jim & Ruth

[sail7seas]

Cruise Director has many responsibilities.

 

Among them are the openings at all the shows; Introductions at Captain's Welcome Aboard; he/she is normally in receiving lines to introduce guests to Captain and Hotel Manager; he/she is in charge of cruise staff and all the activities they run and the shows and cast fall into his sphere of responsibility; Disembarkation talk; makes many of the announcements when the ships is cleared and such; certainly meet/greet/mingle with guests etc etc etc

 

[gxchan]

I had an idea that CDs organized events on ships but read on other boards (CC NCL, for example) where people are actually tracking which CDs are on which ships. It made me think I was missing some vital resource.

 

My one and only cruise (so far) was so great, no problems at all, that I didn't have a need to speak with anyone in the ship's management. I hope to continue that record on my next cruise in September, however, if an issue arises I now know where to direct my request. (I really had no idea there were so many levels of management on a ship. :eek:)

 

Thanks!!

 

Ginnie

[Copper10-8]

The C/D is in charge of the Entertainment Dept. aboard ship. HAL has some very good ones (Susan Wood, Bruce Allen Scudder, Gary Walker, Linda Konarski to name a few) who you run across several times of the day and some that you hardly ever see except for their mandatory appearances

[RuthC]

There's a few CD's that I've known since they were cruise staff leading activities. Many of them have made a special point of approaching me for a few minutes when they have seen me alone. That's always an appreciated touch.

It's fun to run into them again, and real nice when I get to congratulate them on a well-deserved promotion. It's nice to be remembered; whenever I board a HAL ship I feel like "I'm home".