Career as Cruise Director

Stream : Hospitality, Hotel management and Tourism
Sub Stream : Cruise ship management

Cruise Director
Much of the fun of your cruise vacation is in the hands of a very important crew member – the cruise director. The cruise director is responsible for all activities and entertainment on the ship, from musicians and lecturers to deck parties and evening shows.

The cruise director is also one of the most visible crew members, serving as emcee for events, attending receptions and making announcements on the public address system. In fact, the cruise director’s voice is likely to be the first you hear each morning, announcing the port call for the day. In fact, you may wonder why your cruise director sounds so cheerful at 8 a.m. when you saw him or her talking and laughing with passengers on deck just a few hours before.

Job Responsibilites

- The Cruise Director is a head of the entertainment department and supervises and evaluates the performance of all department personnel - Headline Entertainers, Production Show Cast Members, Stage Manager, Stage Staff, Sound and Light Technicians, Bandmaster, Musicians, Cruise (Activities) and Youth Staff

- Reports to the Hotel Director/Manager

- Responsible for guiding his/her team to develop activity programming sensitive to guest demographics and itinerary fluctuations

- Host and acts as Master of Ceremonies at special events, theme parties and functions such as Captain's Cocktail Party, Guest's Talent Show, Welcome Aboard Show etc.

- Makes announcements on the Public Address System

- Monitors and evaluates guest comments and creates plans for improvements

- Conducts regular meetings with the other heads of departments to review policies, discuss opportunities and coordinate solutions

- Ensures that guest entertainment and activities are carefully integrated with all product offerings aboard the ship

- Coaches and rehearses performance with department staff to ensure that cruise line standards are being met

- Responsible for the training and counseling of all the staff under his/her supervision

WHAT QUALITIES ARE REQUIRED?

While looking for a job, we search about the responsibilities, scope, qualification etc required for a particular. But we often forget the most important factors  i.e career interest, Aptitude and personality, needed to be considered, while applying for a job. 

Some of the basic aptitude, personality and interest required to succeed in this career are-

INTEREST

APTITUDE

PERSONALITY

 

Business

  • Since it is common for performers to back out or equipment to malfunction, cruise directors should also be extremely flexible to always implement a “Plan B” strategy that will keep passengers delighted. 
  • In order to be successful, cruise directors must combine their organizational skills and attention to detail with a fun-loving personality that welcomes guests..

                 Assertive

  • You must have a "can-do" attitude. Smiling is a natural thing that everyone can do and having an infectious personality is also an added bonus. You should also be easily approachable and ready to help someone at all times. 

                  

 

 

Gregerious

  • Due to the interpersonal nature of the job, cruise directors must possess solid communication skills and an outgoing personality in order to be able to effectively interact with hundreds of people on a daily basis  

 

THINK YOU POSSES THE ABOVE QUALITIES?

CLICK HERE->  TO FIND OUT HOW MUCH YOU KNOW YOURSELF AND DISCOVER YOUR HIDDEN ABILITIES

REQUIREMENT

  •  Degrees such as MBA Cruise Ship Hospitality Management, Bachelor of Business Administration, MBA in Tourism & Hotel management, Diploma in Event Management & public Relations etc could give you a leg up on the competition and specialized courses in business, management, hospitality or maritime activities can be helpful as well.
  • There are also Diploma courses available like Diploma In Cruise Ship Hotel Operation Management 20 Weeks.
  • Many cruise directors transfer in from similar fields. For example, hospitality managers at hotels or restaurants often make a smooth transition to cruise director.
  • Cruise directors usually work their way up through the ranks of a cruise ship and often land the job after working as an assistant cruise director for a number of years. Waiters, DJs, entertainers and event coordinators on a cruise line might eventually become a cruise director as well.

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