Cruise Directors -- Am I Missing Something???

[CTMak]

I guess I just don;t get it. The adulation for CD's on these boards puzzles me -- and I think I am not getting it. The amount of threads on cruise directors is amazing. It seems this guy John Heald has a cult following; one post said that his cruise revolves around the CD -- and that hewouldn't book a cruise unless they knew the CD. Huh???

 

What am I missing? We've been on 7 cruises and for the most part the CD has a couple of sessions re shore excursions; he/she MC's the Newlywed Game and/or the Hairy chest contest. In my view -- OK -- but what's the big deal? They are all energetic, some a bit more personable than others. But to me they all seemed fine and I'm wondering if I'm missing out on something? Seems to me he/she wouldn't make/break my cruise under any circumstances.

 

 

What am I missing?

 

 

CTMak

[madelinerose]

CTMak - I'm with you. Although I haven't yet cruised, (got my docs today :D) I've always wondered the same thing.

 

How can the CD possibly have that much influence on your cruise?

 

The Newlywed Game and the Hairy Chest Contest hold absolutely no interest for DH and me. We also don't do excursions.

 

I hope we get answers. It's mind boggling to me. Thanks for the post!

[hstrybuf]

Beats me! The only CD that made any impression on me was Bret Alans and it wasn't a good one. His staff was good though and made my cruise just that much more enjoyable. No CD could ever make or break my cruise!

[DFD1]

CT; You hit the nail on the head. I've been cruising for 4 decades and I have seen some CDs that were absolutely awful. Some were so immature and silly that one could have thought the only reason they were there was because they could not get a real job. A few have been okay, but not many.

[herb]

I don't remember any names of the cruise directors on my past cruises.

 

What I do know is that it's the cruise directors job to hire all the entertainers; comedians, bands, dancers, singers etc. If you've enjoyed the entertainment offered during your week on board the ship then you can say you had a good cruise director.

[makayjean]

I have been confused about that as well...me and the folks i cruise with do at times attend shows and events where the CD is present, but none of us are dependant on him for the success of our cruise.

 

We were on the Fantasy in May and while i cant remember the CD's name, just thinking about his voice over the loud speakers still makes me want to cover my ears and SCREAM

[gymbrat33]

Madelinerose,

 

You must go to the Newlywed and Not so Newlywed game. You will laugh a lot and have a great time.

 

The CD's don't make or break my cruise, but some of them are super funny, and make you enjoy your cruise even more.

[lmondrop]

I don't belive I've ever even seen any of our CD's unless it was on replay on the ship channel!

[CTMak]

Herb:

 

I know for a fact that the cruise directors DO NOT hire the entertainment. That's done by Carnival Corporate in Miami. You are correct in that, the way I understand it, is that the cruise director is ultimately repsonsible for all that goes on on the ship -- other than the technical, ship-operations which is the responsibilty of the captain. But, 1. the CD reports to the captian; and 2. the dance captain and the musical director are responsible for the on-board entertainment -- and even at that, the performers are hired out of Miami.

 

Whew. I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking that my cruise is not make/break depending on the CD.

 

CTMak

[newbie2cruise]

I don't belive I've ever even seen any of our CD's unless it was on replay on the ship channel!

SAme for us, it hougt "who is that person with the accent that keeps showing up on my tv" We never saw him in person , and disnt care either way . If Im cruzin IM happy

[lmondrop]

That's what I'm saying! I have my hands full just trying to figure out how to get from one end of the ship to another...LOL!

[MrPete]

 

I remember my first cruise, where on the first night, we skipped the welcome aboard show. Getting up the next day, there were all these buzzwords flying about. Well, it seemed there’s something more to this cruise director thing other than Julie McCoy. It turns out, as most cruisers eventually do, that the cruise director, being the HOST, is setting the stage for “something” that happens on a ship over the course of the cruise. Even as the years go by, even though the banter is the same, it’s the interacting and the guest participation that makes these things work. I’ve seen the same old Bedtime story, not so Newlywed game, spoon and string thing, balloon in the overalls, pillow fighting, male nightgown pageant, game show, etc., but they’re different every time. And they make mini celebrities out of the participants. And all these things tend to make the total ship this living community for the week. You end up talking to these people or doings things without embarrassment, cause you’re never going to see these people again (although, I’ve made many life long friends over the past 16 years).

 

 

When I see questions about “does it matter who the cruise director is”, to me, the answer is yes. If the guy up on stage is Johnny Carson, the air is a bit more abuzz than if it was a David Frost. We found the more we went to the cruise director functions, the more involved we felt. When we hit upon a less than average cruise director, we would tone it down and do our own thing.

[JJS2K3]

When I see questions about “does it matter who the cruise director is”, to me, the answer is yes. If the guy up on stage is Johnny Carson, the air is a bit more abuzz than if it was a David Frost. We found the more we went to the cruise director functions, the more involved we felt. When we hit upon a less than average cruise director, we would tone it down and do our own thing.

 

Thanks for the 'other' side of it.

[jpurdy]

Having cruised 9 times, we also never understood the CD following........that is until we had John Heald and Wee Jimmy on our Legend cruise.

I can honestly say John, Wee Jimmy and the other asst. cruise person (he had blond hair) were absolutely hilarious. They were present all over the ship, made the karoake lounge ROCK and showed up at the disco later in the evening.

Now I see what a Cruise Director can do if so they are gifted and truly want to give that extra effort. On our Royal Caribbean cruise after Carnival, we were actually disappointed! Of course we make our own fun, but knowing the staff was ever present to kick it up a notch made the experience that much more enjoyable.

[cruiserNC]

We felt the same way as the OP but after our last cruise on the Triumph with John Heald we quickly realized that the CD can enhance your cruise experience even more. Will a less than John experience spoil our next cruise on the Victory...NO. I compare it to watching an award show the host will not make or break your enjoyment of watching it but if he or she has some spunk it sure does make it more enjoyable.

[klfhngr]

I have to admit, the posts for John are kinda silly, HOWEVER, I do think a C/D can make a big difference!! We had John many years ago, he was GREAT!! Out of 10 cruises, he and Heidi are the only two that I can remember....

Whenever I pull out the old tapes, I realize how a c/d can make a big difference on a cruise, i.e., boring vs. lively/entertaining.......

[CTMak]

Thanks for the input. I hope someday I run across a CD who can enhance the experience. But, well, I don't know. Hey, though, I'm glad you guys did.

 

In any event -- I WILL have a good time ... CD star or not!

 

LOL

 

 

Happy Cruising!!!!

 

CTMak

[FengShuiBBturtle]

Well, I was on a cruise 3 years ago and I didn't realize we had a cruise Director. But if you get the chance, we just had John Heald and he IS the funniest thing since sliced bread.:D