A peek behind the "crew only" door

[yammer]

Ever wonder happens behind the "Crew door" labelled EMPLOYEES only?

Guess what I found in the library on the Holland America Koningsdam ship?

Want some insights about cruising and hidden secrets of the cruise industry?

 

I have sailed a number of cruise lines over 19 years and recently while I was sailing Holland America I came across a very interesting book in the libray on the Koningsdam titled "The Untold Tales of a Sailor at Sea" by author L.C. Tang. It was written by a cruise passenger who became a crew member and then ended up working in the cruise industry as an employee while also sailing as a passenger in between contracts. While reading this book, it gave me insights into the lives of the crew members who serve us and it made me appreciate the employees alot more during my 10 day cruise. I highly recommend all cruise enthusiasts to read this book as it divulges some fascinating bits and secrets from both the perspective of a sailing passenger and a crew member. Check out the website of the book. www.authorlctang.com I ended up spending alot of time in the library as there is large selection of the latest books. My fellow passengers and I spent alot of time discussing this fascinating publication that provided insights into the operations of the cruise industry. 

 

Edited December 13, 2023 by yammer
spelling error

[leaveitallbehind]

While this is very interesting information, I would also add that - in particular for new cruisers - a number of the cruise lines offer behind the scenes tours that, at least in the past, included galley, backstage, laundry, storage facilities, engine control room, some crew areas, other facilities, and with some, the bridge.  We have been on several of them in the past and they were quite interesting.

 

A lot changed with the pandemic and I cannot answer with certainty which cruise lines have resumed this - and many may not yet have.  But it would be worth checking on any planned cruise to see if that would be an option.

Edited December 13, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[yammer]

I purchased the "behind the scenes" tour for $150 and for the hour we got to see the behind the scences activities. But the Bridge was no longer included in the tour after September 11th, 2001. We were informed that the Bridge used to be included in the tour and we were not permitted to take pictures or do any filming. All phones had to be left out of the tour. I have been on 4 cruises after the pandemic and have not seen this onboard tour available for passengers. 

 

 

[clo]

31 minutes ago, yammer said:

But the Bridge was no longer included in the tour after September 11th, 2001.

I was chatting with a United pilot a couple of years ago. Re 9/11 he said they went from hijacking to terrorism overnight. Just an fyi.

[leaveitallbehind]

2 hours ago, yammer said:

I purchased the "behind the scenes" tour for $150 and for the hour we got to see the behind the scences activities. But the Bridge was no longer included in the tour after September 11th, 2001. We were informed that the Bridge used to be included in the tour and we were not permitted to take pictures or do any filming. All phones had to be left out of the tour. I have been on 4 cruises after the pandemic and have not seen this onboard tour available for passengers. 

 

 

That is not necessarily true for all cruise lines as we have been on several bridge tours - all post 9/11. You are correct that filming was not permitted, but still pictures via our smart phones were - we have a number of them that also included several senior crew members during our tours.  I will add the caveat that most of our bridge tours were loyalty program tier related - only two were the result of the behind the scenes tour as you reference.

 

I also have not seen that tour anymore since the pandemic restart either and it may be possible we will not see it again.

Edited December 13, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[puppycanducruise]

On 12/13/2023 at 3:23 PM, yammer said:

I purchased the "behind the scenes" tour for $150 and for the hour we got to see the behind the scences activities. But the Bridge was no longer included in the tour after September 11th, 2001. We were informed that the Bridge used to be included in the tour and we were not permitted to take pictures or do any filming. All phones had to be left out of the tour. I have been on 4 cruises after the pandemic and have not seen this onboard tour available for passengers. 

 

 

We did a bridge tour on the Zuiderdam in June of this year.   I even took pictures.

[AussieOmni]

We got to go to the crew bar a couple of times recently on a Virgin voyage. No pictures were allowed but it was fun to get to see those areas, beyond just the stuff on a traditional tour.

[Mangrove Snapper]

On my first two cruises my friend and I spent quite a bit of time with the crew, including in their areas. 

[leaveitallbehind]

29 minutes ago, Mangrove Snapper said:

On my first two cruises my friend and I spent quite a bit of time with the crew, including in their areas. 

That sounds like personal time and not something typically sanctioned in terms of a tour by the cruise line.

[Mangrove Snapper]

30 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

That sounds like personal time and not something typically sanctioned in terms of a tour by the cruise line.

 

Yes, this was definitely on their off time and not on an official cruise line tour or anything close to that.  It was more like hanging out as friends.  It was interesting talking about our different backgrounds and experiences and hearing and seeing what it was like to live and work on the sea. 

 

That was decades ago but it always gave me an extra appreciation for how hard the crew work and an understanding of how much time they spend away from their families. 

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, Mangrove Snapper said:

That was decades ago but it always gave me an extra appreciation for how hard the crew work and an understanding of how much time they spend away from their families. 

No judgement here, but glad you noted the timeframe reference as, to my understanding, cruise lines today frown upon crew interacting with individual passengers in the crew areas.  

[Mangrove Snapper]

15 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

to my understanding, cruise lines today frown upon crew interacting with individual passengers in the crew areas.  

 

I would assume this has been forbidden for a very long time due to security and liability issues.  And rightfully so. 

 

It's interesting to look back at changes in travel.  I never did this but it seems weird now to think about how kids used to be able to visit the cockpit of an airplane at one time.  That's not something you'd even think about now. 

[john watson]

On Princess there are crew stairs and on a couple of occasions to attend the emergency muster we were ushered down the aforementioned stairs.  Unfortunately it has gone on line now and the opportunity is no longer available.

 

Regards John

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, john watson said:

On Princess there are crew stairs and on a couple of occasions to attend the emergency muster we were ushered down the aforementioned stairs.  Unfortunately it has gone on line now and the opportunity is no longer available.

Probably a good thing as in our experience with behind the scenes tours we have accessed crew stairways on more than one occasion and they typically are open steel steps that are a bit steeper than the passenger stairwells. They are also not as readily accessed.  Just my opinion, but I can't imagine that they would intentionally be used during an actual muster drill other than as an emergency secondary access to the main stairwells.  I certainly could be wrong, however.

Edited December 22, 2023 by leaveitallbehind

[sullaRaffaello]

On 12/21/2023 at 11:12 AM, Mangrove Snapper said:

 

......

 

That was decades ago .....

In 1982, on board the QE2, I was invited to the crew bar by a cocktail waitress. There had to be at least 40 passengers down there. 

[Dobby36]

Celebrity is offering tours to the bridge as part of their behind the scenes tours.  Or at least they were on Millenium a couple months ago.  The captain spoke to us there and encouraged taking pictures. 
 

 

IMG_4080.heic IMG_4081.heic

[leaveitallbehind]

BTW just returned from RCCL Oasis of the Seas cruise on which the All Access Tour, which included the engine control room and bridge, was being offered for $199.00 pp. Videos not permitted, but unlimited picture taking OK. This is the original tour that was offered pre-pandemic.  (Having done this before as a tour, and many times as a loyalty club bridge tour perk we did not do it this time).

[notscb]

On 1/8/2024 at 8:51 AM, leaveitallbehind said:

$199.00 pp

Excuse me, but what? $200/p.p. is absolutely wild. I get it's an Oasis class ship so it's bigger- the tour takes longer, etc. But that's just wild pricing.

[leaveitallbehind]

47 minutes ago, notscb said:

Excuse me, but what? $200/p.p. is absolutely wild. I get it's an Oasis class ship so it's bigger- the tour takes longer, etc. But that's just wild pricing.

I'm not defending it, just reporting it, and that's the going rate.  In the past it was lower and sometimes included a dinner at a specialty restaurant.  But it is what it is and you don't have to purchase it if you don't want to.  Have you been to CocoCay recently, or purchased a premium drink package?  All ancillary costs have increased since covid and with the current resurge in cruising.  Pricing (for everything) is based on what the market will bear and in part recovery of the multi-billions of dollars lost during covid.

 

And you will note that we did not take the tour as we had done this before at the described lower rate a number of years ago (which included a specialty restaurant) and have also had numerous bridge tours in the past based on our loyalty status.

Edited January 14 by leaveitallbehind

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, notscb said:

Excuse me, but what? $200/p.p. is absolutely wild. I get it's an Oasis class ship so it's bigger- the tour takes longer, etc. But that's just wild pricing.

Just to add, I looked back at the post made by @yammer who indicated that they purchased a tour for $150 that did not include the bridge.  The timeframe is uncertain but it likely was a number of years ago pre-pandemic.  So not sure the $199 is that outrageous comparatively as a current price since it also includes the bridge.

Edited January 14 by leaveitallbehind

[jlawrence01]

We were on Regal Princess in November 2023 and they two tours that were available to all cruisers at NO cost as part of an enrichment talk.

 

First, they allowed everyone to go on the stage on the main theatre and they took us all back behind the curtains to the backstage where we could see all of the props used that week and meet with some of the performers that week.

 

Second, they took us to the staging kitchen located behind the main dining room.  Having run kitchens in large institutions, I have to admit that this was not a real point of the cruise.  However, I would say that I was extremely impressed with the high levels of sanitation.  That kitchen was spotless.

 

I am sorry but I would not pay $$$ for a tour of the facility.

 

By the way, there are a minimum of 50 YouTube channels that are done by crew members who are content producers that will give you great exposure to the life of the crew.  I have watched hundreds of hours of this content.  You might want to look at Chris Wong as he has done a number of videos showing crew areas on various RC ships.

[leaveitallbehind]

9 hours ago, jlawrence01 said:

We were on Regal Princess in November 2023 and they two tours that were available to all cruisers at NO cost as part of an enrichment talk.

 

First, they allowed everyone to go on the stage on the main theatre and they took us all back behind the curtains to the backstage where we could see all of the props used that week and meet with some of the performers that week.

 

Second, they took us to the staging kitchen located behind the main dining room.  Having run kitchens in large institutions, I have to admit that this was not a real point of the cruise.  However, I would say that I was extremely impressed with the high levels of sanitation.  That kitchen was spotless.

 

I am sorry but I would not pay $$$ for a tour of the facility.

 

By the way, there are a minimum of 50 YouTube channels that are done by crew members who are content producers that will give you great exposure to the life of the crew.  I have watched hundreds of hours of this content.  You might want to look at Chris Wong as he has done a number of videos showing crew areas on various RC ships.

The two tours you describe have also been offered separately in the past by other cruise lines at little or no cost as well.  The All Access tour being described includes both of those areas as well as the engine control room, laundry, storage, recycling, and other facilities (and on Oasis class ships, typically the Aqua theater and ice rink), as well as certain crew areas and the bridge.  It also lasts about 2 hours and the comprehensive nature of the tour is what results in the charge to do so.  Not the same comparison.

[Heidi13]

On 12/21/2023 at 9:43 AM, leaveitallbehind said:

No judgement here, but glad you noted the timeframe reference as, to my understanding, cruise lines today frown upon crew interacting with individual passengers in the crew areas.  

 

Affirmative, fraternising with a pax today is one of the few things that will have you down the gangway at the next port, with bags following behind. When we sailed with our son, who was a Deck Officer, he could join us in the lounges, but could not enter the dance floor with his mum.

 

How times have changed, as in my day, the dance floor was our office. Back in the 70's and 80's, many of the officers married pax, myself included.

 

When we sailed with him, he could invite us for lunch/dinner in the Officer's Mess, provided the ship wasn't code red due to Noro, at which time the entire Bridge & Engineering watchkeepers went into lockdown. Since I knew a number of his Captains, we often had a standing invitation to the Bridge.

[Heidi13]

On 12/22/2023 at 7:52 AM, leaveitallbehind said:

Probably a good thing as in our experience with behind the scenes tours we have accessed crew stairways on more than one occasion and they typically are open steel steps that are a bit steeper than the passenger stairwells. They are also not as readily accessed.  Just my opinion, but I can't imagine that they would intentionally be used during an actual muster drill other than as an emergency secondary access to the main stairwells.  I certainly could be wrong, however.

 

Depending on the location of the fire, or other emergency and the response party staging areas, the main stairways may not be accessible. Therefore, we often used the crew stairways during drills to move pax to the Assembly Stations.

 

This is another downside to the current dumbed down Muster Drills, as the crews have lost a valuable training exercise in managing the herd via alternate routes. 

[leaveitallbehind]

8 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Depending on the location of the fire, or other emergency and the response party staging areas, the main stairways may not be accessible. Therefore, we often used the crew stairways during drills to move pax to the Assembly Stations.

 

This is another downside to the current dumbed down Muster Drills, as the crews have lost a valuable training exercise in managing the herd via alternate routes. 

Good point - thanks for clarifying.  Wasn't thinking of it in terms of limited accessibility to the main stairways.