server

housekeeper

deckhand

recruiter

customer service representative

American Cruise Lines

This was the worst working experiences I have ever had. But it was a great opportunity to learn and grow. This job consists of 14 hour days 7 days a week. You don't get any days off the entire time you are there. The destinations are not that interesting, at least on my boat (New England Islands). 

The pay is more than I have made so far in such a short amount of time. But when you compare the hours worked vs. your take home pay, you are barely breaking minimum wage, for incredibly demanding work. 

The only thing separating you and managers is a bachelors degree, and often the Stewards have way more on the job experience. It doesn't matter how hard you work or how lazy you are, every steward and deckhand makes the exact same amount. We are not allowed to accept individual tips. So if you do wow a guest and they want to compensate you for it you have to turn that cash over to your manager, who then adds it to the tip pool. Which has the potential to be reasonable. Except most people don't turn over individual tips. So when I was turning over my tips like I was supposed to I really got cheated, and that was frustrating, but realistically there is nothing I could do without compromising my identity, or making people hate me more. 

There were a couple of good managers, and a couple of managers that made the decent managers look like saints. But good manager or bad manager it didn't really matter, managers dropped just as often as stewards. 

In the 8 weeks I was there I saw 7 stewards and managers fired. Many others quite. This is a small ship cruise which means that turn over rate is incredibly large for what is already a temporary position.

On top of working with these people for 14 hours a day you also have to live with them. It's great that they provide room and board. But just keep in mind that "board" is sharing one large bunk room with 10 other women. (Somehow the men's quarters were better equipped and there was more privacy). Strong personalities inevitably clashed. I found myself consistently bullied, it felt like I was back in high school all over again, yet with no going home to a family that loves you. Putting that on top of rough living conditions, 

The entire ship is made out of steal. That includes the beds that you sleep on with smaller than twin size flimsy mattresses. So your back hurts all the time from lack of support during the 6 or 7 hours of sleep you have every night. For the first two weeks I was there my feet were swollen and throbbing constantly. I was actually able to get used to this though. 

The food can be really good, but as much as I try to remember the good meals when they are serving terrible inedible meals, it still makes going into dinner service starving really frustrating. Oh and I hope you like fish, because more than occasionally that is your only protein option.

But you do get to eat pretty much all the desserts you want. Sometimes you can snag passenger left overs. 

You cannot drink at all the entire time you are working for American Cruise Lines. That is on and off the boat. They can fire you instantly if they catch you drinking. But similar to other expectations that are put forth, it can be a reason to fire you, but almost everyone drinks, managers included. It was the type of rule that I felt like I had to follow, but felt like an idiot for doing so because no one else was. I guess mostly I didn't want to waste what little money I was making of booze. 

Oh and also you have to pay for your travel to the ship and home from the ship. You also have to pay for (incredibly over priced) uniforms. They pay to fly you out for a week of training in Connecticut. But that week of training is not paid. 

I would really only ever recommend this job to someone that was homeless, and didn't have anything else going for them. But it can be a great way to put your foot in the door in the cruise line industry. They will hire anyone, I was working with a couple of people who had no experience in the hospitality/food/housekeeping industry. It is also a great option for someone who is unemployed and living with there parents. 

Everyone on this boat is cheating, if they can even find someone to cheat with. Maybe you can trust your girls, but even the most devoted boyfriend/husband I saw ended up cheating. It's just boat life. So if your doing research on what your significant other is about to go do, think long and hard about the implications for your relationship. 

You do get to see different parts of the country. I imagine that other ships had better destinations. You can also go to Alaska, the Mississippi, Maine, Florida, or the Columbus and Snake rivers. But you don't get any say in which ship you want to go on. Unless you want to wait around for a month waiting to get the ship you want.

They tell you that you might leave right after training, so bring everything you need for the trip. That may happen, I know people who got to go to a ship right after training. But after I finished training they gave me an estimated leave time of three weeks. But don't worry! They said, a spot could unexpectedly open up at any moment (first indicator of turn over rate) so be on call and ready to leave for the next three weeks. Again this plan is great if you are already unemployed, and have really flexible living arrangements. But I gave my landlord notice and quite a job in order to take this job. So I was stuck practically homeless with no job or source of income, until one morning they called and asked me to fly out the next day (about a week and a half after I finished training)

Even on their most optimistic timing, you probably won't see any money for at least a month. Your first paycheck mostly goes towards paying for your travel expenses and uniforms. So I hope you have some savings and no bills to pay. 


Some people have really great experiences. But no one ever comes back for a second round as a steward.

My typical day at work, provided that I had at least 5 hours of sleep the night before, began with waking up at 6 am to start prepping the tables for breakfast. As a server, I had around 2-3 tables to serve every meal and I mean every meal. I was expected to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner every day without a day or a service off. (I worked on the West coast. I have heard it's different on the Mississippi boats.) Everyone (around 18 servers if we were lucky,) would serve 2-3 tables and were expected to finish a number of responsibilities before service began. Guests would come in and sit at any table they liked. If you're good, you'll have regulars and they might tip you at the end of the week. However, guests are told tips aren't required or recommended because there's a gratuity that the ship gives on top of our paychecks (untrue.) Breakfast was always easy in my opinion. It was only hard for those who struggled to write tickets (which there is a lot of pressure writing those... Do not get me started on ticket writing or why we are still using a pen and paper on a "high class" ship) Lunch was almost always very easy with a lot of guests going upstairs to an outdoor eatery. Working up there was beneficial since you would have a little extra time outside. In between breakfast and lunch was training. Most of the time it was centered on ticket writing or something non-essential. Then right after training you would go right back to any responsibilities you had before lunch. You would usually have half an hour to finish these jobs. Some took 5 minutes. Others would take the whole time. (When we were VERY low on staff, you would have multiple jobs. Not great.) Between lunch and dinner, there you would usually have a fair break, around an hour and a half on average. It all depended on how well and fast you broke down lunch and set up for dinner. If you had a more efficient and experienced team, you might have more time. However, your team will probably change every week so don't expect that. Now, once your break is over and you have spent 30 minutes eating dinner, you have to do your before-dinner responsibilities. After you have completed these, now you have to wait for the guests. Dinner usually has appetizers, the main course and dessert (breakfast is just a course while lunch has a meal and dessert. Fancy.) Since everyone takes quite a bit of time eating and socializing, (as they should, they are on vacation for goodness sake,) you should expect to be working well into the night. Because of the recent pandemic, our curfew was usually 10 pm and then changed to 11. The last guests would usually finish anywhere from 9-9:30. After dinner however, you would need to clean up everything, put things away, polish glasses and silverware and finish your nightly responsibilities before going out. Don't worry, my average team would usually have about 30 minutes to go outside the boat and explore before curfew. After coming back inside, I would socialize with my colleagues and get a little mental break before going to bed around 12-1. 
What I learned... I had never served before this job. I learned how to do that. I learned how to work with and live with my co-workers. I also had a week of training as a pastry and pantry chef. 
Management was rough. While they promote many people, that comes with a cost. They promote so many that have little to no experience managing people. You expect your boss to respect you and try to work with you. You expect them to know more than you do or at least as much concerning the job. They might not. On top of that, your managers are  managing under a lot of pressure from corporate or others. With all the pressure and little to no breaks, they will usually take it out on their employees. Even managers who have managed before usually aren't aware of the pressure. If their work is insufficient, then of course they are fired. HOWEVER, usually any good managers are rare (I only knew two) or the good ones won't be there for long. So, ACL will keep bad eggs or hire/promote anyone they can find to keep management staffed. And I mean anyone. So the toxic cycle continues. Pressure builds, employees are overworked, and no one benefits. Little Fact- Restaurant managers are insanely busy. Servers quit weekly and so they're constantly training new servers. On top of that, corporate is visiting almost weekly and expect to see change/improvement from servers every week. That is hard when you're under staffed and have to train any newcomers. Do you see an issue? 
Work place culture is unique. You work on a cruise ship. All cruise ships are hard in various ways. You can't be late or else you're fired. You have to be on your best behavior in the worst atmosphere. The germs and diseases are plentiful. I assume ACL boats are just like other boats, just smaller
The hardest part of the job... Nevermind that. If you're planning on going through with applying because you wish to escape your current life/routine, please reconsider. Work for a private yacht. Get a Yachting license or whatever it's called and make bank. Watch Below Deck, you'll see what I am talking about. 
That being said, I think the best part was that it was a small cruise. (Hence why you should work for a yacht.) Even when I served on one of their largest boats, I was able to have a much stronger bond with the guests and the colleagues/coworkers I considered friends. I imagine a ship with thousands of guests would be... different. If you apply, congrats on your new job and good luck. 


I started at this place less than 3 months ago, already they are trying to fire me and a lot of other people. The turn around rate isn’t high because people quit, but because they fire people A LOT. The systems are sadly outdated and there is so much information to learn in such a short time. I have progressively increased the number of sales I have been producing each month, however this company goes based off conversion and not revenue or numbers of sales. On top of that, it is all based off a weekly statistic, I have consistently hit (20-30 sales a week) but it doesn’t matter. The problem with this, is even now (“Wave Season”) there is about 10-15% chance you will get an actual sales call, remainder of the time is customer service calls you have to transfer. Their queue is mainly brochure requests, customer who’ve already booked or clients that worked with another rep. Now here lies another issue If a customer talks with a previous rep, you are required to transfer the call to them and take the hit on your conversion or do their job and get none of the credit. Some of the “Senior Reps” calls that come in that you have to take, can take up to 30+ minutes because they don’t answer any of their questions. The worst part is, you’re required to take the calls and do their job for them and take the hit on your conversion. So not only is your conversion already trash because you’ve been taking customer service calls, but you’ve also been doing other peoples work. Unfortunately they lie to your face as well, I have had multiple occasions now where I have asked something and been told no, but another more “senior” rep gets told yes. The managers are cool and laid back, and the reason is because they will and can fire you at any point, if you have a great month, great year and then have a slow down due to unforeseen circumstances, in their eyes it is easier to fire you than keep you on. Your numbers don’t matter, only conversion but good luck trying to stay in a decent range every day, week, month year etc your basically dealing with a high volume of customer service calls in the sales queue because their new phone system is trash. On top of that, they lie to you and put you in customer service like queues frequently, they won’t admit to it, but they do. So there is a high probability that you might not even be in the good sales queue, again they won’t ever admit to it but it is true. There is no job security, and most of the “senior” reps call avoid and talk to a manager for 20+ minutes a day to keep their conversion up. There is no HR and using PTO and getting time off approved is rough. Managers have openly admitted that they don’t care and know it is set up for you to fail, no consistent trainings either. If you get sick, be prepared to call out for X amount of days, take too many days and they will fire you. They won’t approve your PTO to cover those “points” you take for being absent either. The PTO is basically useless. I hate to say it, because I do like this job, but you’re better off looking else where. As a new rep your main purpose is to take pressure of the senior reps until you’re no longer needed and then they fire you. They expressed they weren’t looking for a (shark) or wolf of Wall Street kind of person for the role, but they 100% are. It’s high stress and low reward at times. Naturally some people will be new and be good right out the gate, but have one slow month and it could cost you your job in whole. The odds are stacked against you and they know it, and don’t care. I have a senior’s rep I am friends with and he used to be a top performer but recently entered a slump over the past month and they are now trying to get him out. They will take every opportunity to fire you, if you let them regardless of your previous successes. This role is only good for someone who knows they can out perform the rest of the 40 people there, and you need to do it weekly, this role is also good for someone who is prepared and open to being fired on the spot at any time. But beware of the 8 week report stats, once you’ve hit your 8 weeks if your not at the top or middle of that report you will be talked to, it make take them awhile to do so, but trust me the conversation is coming. So if you’re a big hitter best in class sales person, I’d say this role might be for you if you can get good at call avoiding and having a big big big book of clients on your list. Be aware however that TA’s will not have a booking made and they will ask for someone else too, because the senior reps have told them too call them only. Also the TA’s can be super disrespectful, most of them don’t want you to set up a booking either. (I have yet to figure out why, because they don’t lose money from you doing it.) Lastly they do not pay you a percentage of the sales you close (which they should) it goes based off this. Close 10 make $15 per sales, close 20 make $20 a sale. They also have a multiplier for conversion, if you’re luck enough to get in the top converters weekly you’ll get paid double the amounts above. If not (which is usually the case for the new reps) you will either get paid 1.5x or you won’t be qualified to make more than just the $5, $10, $20 per sale. If you apply and get the job, don’t focus on your number or (the money you’re taking home from sales) focus on the conversion numbers that are clouded with customer service calls. Good luck trying to stay here long term.

Working for this cruise line was definitely an experience. I got to see a few parts of America I didn’t know anything about and I got to revisit some places I’ve always loved. Met a lot of people and was able to add another interesting job to my resume. The passengers are mostly older but I met some really neat people and I have kept in contact with a few of those passengers. Fellow employees end up becoming close to your heart even through the trials. We all still keep in contact as well. They pay for your flights (you will more than likely have a layover). They may even give you an overnight stay at a hotel in between ships. I know that’s just how it worked out for me but it was very much appreciated to have a night to myself at a nice hotel. I also experienced many negatives with this company. The lack of communication was insane. WiFi barely works on most ships (I was told it worked great on all of them before starting). I was told they’d have my uniform and shoes waiting for me when I arrived (didn’t get anything for over a week and was given all wrong sizes. Took a month and a half to finally get my right size when management noticed my pants would fall down a bit quite frequently because they were 3 sizes too big, even with a belt). Was told you will have 2, maybe 3 room mates (when I got onboard my first ship there were 10 of us). Was told there would be an employee hang out area, which happens to just be the dining room in all the ships I was placed on. We were only allowed to hang out there after dinner services. I was never able to video chat loved ones with privacy, unless I stayed up even later so no one would be around. You may have to be present to start work any time from 4am to 7am, depending on the day. None of this would have prevented me from accepting the job, by the way. I would have appreciated honesty so I could have prepared myself a bit better. You are not allowed to hang out in any public area even if no one is around. You as an employee are not allowed to use the 3 pieces of gym equipment, even if you haven’t seen a single passenger use it your whole time there. I felt if they’d spend just a little more time/ effort trying to better life for employees they wouldn’t be wasting so much time on employees that quit right away and are unhappy and essentially lazy. You live and work in the same place, it’d be nice if they took just a little bit better care of their employees. Many things go wrong on the ships, however the worst experience I had was on turn around day on one of the ships the rooms were not finished/ correct. The manager on that ship claimed she checked them (but was actually just standing around talking) and had everyone go to lunch. 3 of us (2 being just dining stewards) noticed some of the rooms weren’t finished and there was at least one thing wrong in all of them. It was not acceptable to have all of the managers and everyone else go to lunch and 3 new employees stay behind to finish the work that others were supposed to do. Point is, things aren’t always fair on the ships. Try not to let others, especially management take too much advantage of you. I was placed in positions where I would finish my work early and management would make me do jobs they were supposed to do. They hired incompetent stewards after incompetent stewards. On a ship everyone is a team and when someone doesn’t do their job others suffer, the whole ship suffers. I’m a great worker and found myself picking up for others all of the time (not always by choice, by the complaints of passengers). At times I did the work of 3-4 workers all by myself as well as managerial duties which should not have been pawned off on me. Stewards walked off the ship various times leaving extra work for me. I wasn’t shown any appreciation from management for the longest time. Some stewards would always say “work smarter, not harder”. However that was not the case, they worked lazier and it was disgusting. Now some of those stewards have gone on to management. Dirty living quarters, my first week on 2 of the ships I cleaned up the rooms I was supposed to be staying in 3 separate times all by myself and found mold everywhere on both. It took forever for management to do something about it on the one ship and it did help a lot. They wouldn’t do anything on the second ship. I understand the ships are on water. There’s going to be a lot of moisture, but there was mold in the ac vents, all around the shower and all along the doorway on the ships. Areas where something needed to be done. You do not get to see much of the areas you visit. I wanted to go on hikes, see waterfalls, do more on my short breaks but I found I usually didn’t have enough time so I’d just venture around the main strips in the towns. The pay is only good bc you are working anywhere from 10-16 hour days. When you do the math, it’s just around minimum wage. It is a good way to save money though. They do give you a bed and food (if you have dietary restrictions they do try to work with you. However some ships do not put in much effort). I would possibly try working for a cruise ship again. However, I wouldn’t give this company another chance. No regrets, but I have my disappointments.
- [ ]

A typical day is the same everyday. You work 12 hours or more depending on your position. The daily tasks are the same with a little rotation and your shift changes every two weeks or so depending on department. It's repetitive for the most part and no days off There's drills at least once a week, three crew meals a day and you will have at least two roommates in relatively small quarters. Cleanliness level and working appliances depends on roommates and the ship you are assigned. Same goes for overall food quality. At least one day off would be nice, but long hours and room mating is what they tell you in the beginning to be fair, but still there's people that realize later rather than sooner that working on a ship is not for them Good Luck!

I learned that this company's training program needs a lot of revision. It doesn't prepare you enough for working on the ship. Most of the crew if not all, said the same. The training currently takes place off-ship at a facility and it's only three days. It feels rushed and it comes off more like an info session. I also learned that this company could really improve with who they place in the manager roles especially when they tend to promote within. 

Management for the most part was either mediocre or downright terrible. Much of the crew felt the same way. These officers and supervisors know the work, but the soft skills and leadership is definitely lacking. There's a lot of hypocrisy, favoritism and unfairness. Supervisors who feel into the title a little too much and take advantage. You may even come across officers and supervisors with off-putting attitudes, those who may throw smart comments your way when you're just trying to learn, or those who are a little too lenient. 

The workplace culture is decent. There's regular crew nights, though the Deckhands don't really get to experience them much. I worked on five ships, and got to see more and experience working with far more people than what a new crew member typically does. I saw similar issues and experienced similar challenges. While it can sometimes be fun interacting with the crew and having some laughs, it was also challenging to deal with different levels of care especially when you are someone who tends to be diligent and detail-oriented. A lot of crew members are not really attentive enough to cleaning up behind themselves if they are even thoughtful at all. There's a lot of complaining and getting worked-up when doing a task. Definitely a turn-off to the job and company especially when a captain told me that "it's a Dictatorship." They treat it too much like military when it is not.

One of the hardest parts about the job isn't the work, though it kind of was so in the beginning because of the lack of training and frustration from both the officers and new crew members, but rather the interpersonal interactions and work relationships within the workspace. When you are regularly challenged by poor management and leadership, attitudes, smart comments by officers, and favoritism, it definitely made working on the ship far less than ideal. Management didn't seem to care when a crew member needed help dealing with an issue. I also found it challenging to continue to have to work through this company promoting luxury when there are clearly things about what this company does that is not luxury meanwhile these much older passengers are paying thousands and thousands of dollars to this cruise line. I felt that there was a little bit of an integrity issue among other things as well. For starters, prepackaged and frozen waffles is not luxury. 

The most enjoyable part of the job is being able to save money or pay off financial goals, and to see different regions of the country. While there were lots of interpersonal challenges, because I worked on five boats, I got to see more. Most new crew members work on two boats maybe three during the season, but even with that, you still get to see new sites without paying thousands of dollars, though depending on your shift, you may get little time if at all to get off the ship to check out what's in the area at the different ports. 

I came to American Cruise Lines (ACL) with a travel and tourism background and left a company that didn't allow sick days and told us up front we would not be able to fly home due to any emergency. What has impressed me the most about ACL is how much they care about their employees well being and personal happiness. During my initial rotations a few coworkers had to leave for family emergencies, they were given flights home the next day then flown back to the boat when they were ready. Then a manager and a few crew members were sick and instead of forcing them to work they were put into empty passenger rooms to heal peacefully. Now in my second season I am on leave as I am currently 9 months pregnant and the compassion has not ended. While working on board all fellow managers as well as the Hotel Director and other members of the Home Office never treated me with disregard and made working at 8 months extremely enjoyable. Although they do not have a set maternity leave, the way that they have treated me is much better than what could be set out in any guidelines. 

It is obvious that the company cares about their employees satisfaction as they are continually updating practices to improve our well-being, as well as paychecks. They implemented a new bonus program this season that is basically a guaranteed bonus every cruise as opposed to having to hit levels last season. They are continually implementing new procedures for enhanced guest experience, which of course can be overwhelming at first, but when you work from the guidebook provided and follow all updates everything is to make our jobs easier and the guests happier.

ACL has an outstanding training and development team who may be the most passionate employees throughout the organization. At the beginning of your training as well as at the beginning of each season you will have a group meeting with your respective department. It is a great experience to get to meet the others in your same position who you may never see during the season as you are assigned to different vessels. Having the opportunity to re-energize after having a few months off during winter/off-season is truly an invaluable part of our jobs as some processes may have drifted to the back of your mind.

The hours are long, which is to be expected in any hospitality setting but when you work hard with a great group of on board managers, each 6 weeks flies by. The best part about my job, aside from the amazing passengers, are my fellow managers. Working in a travel environment with people from all across the United States gives you a unique insight into how people work. When you find that right group of managers, all of whom are excited and put guests needs first, is when you will find your work family. I am fortunate enough to have had this experience many times with ACL and look forward to returning in a few months.

With all of the different types of people you come in contact with you receive invaluable opportunities to learn how you best interact in a professional setting, which helps you to develop into a well rounded individual and aid in career advancement. As a Cruise Director I not only provide great guest experience but as a member at the Hotel team I am able to enhance my skills in sales, dining and hotel duties.Truly great. 

Overall, if you are prepared to work hard in a hospitality organization, are looking to eat great food prepared for you, to save a ton of money and be able to travel for weeks and months at a time, or have true family time when you are home, you have found the perfect organization for you. If you are not prepared to work hard and quickly become negative, my advice would be to apply elsewhere.

I'm compelled to offer a candid, unvarnished account of my tenure at this company, which, frankly, was a disheartening experience. This isn't just feedback; it's a cautionary tale for anyone considering a position here.

**Undervalued and Overlooked**
The company's disregard for its employees is palpable, creating an environment where you're seen as little more than a cog in a machine. The lack of support for personal growth or professional development is not just disappointing; it's downright disrespectful. Expectations are heavily skewed in the company's favor, with little reciprocation or acknowledgment of employees' efforts.

**Remote Work and Micromanagement**
The work-from-home policy is laughably restrictive, reserved for a privileged few, blatantly displaying the company's distrust of its workforce. Micromanagement is rampant, bordering on suffocating, leaving employees constantly second-guessing their every move. This isn't just about oversight; it's about control, and it's demoralizing.

**Compensation: A Joke**
The compensation model is an absolute joke. Framed around bonuses with no real chance at commissions, it effectively puts a cap on how much you can earn, no matter how hard you work. The sales environment is a farce, stripping you of any real agency or ability to influence your earnings. You're set up to fail, with targets that are broad and unrealistic, ensuring the house always wins.

- The bonus criteria are absurd, requiring a Herculean effort for a pittance in return. The company's message is clear: do the bare minimum because it's all you'll ever be compensated for.

**Stuck in the Past**
It's as if the company is trapped in a time warp, with policies and attitudes that haven't evolved since 2005. The refusal to update or modernize is not just stubborn; it's harmful, fostering a stagnant, toxic work culture.

**Management: A Masterclass in Gaslighting and Incompetence**
Expect no support from management. Instead, prepare for a masterclass in gaslighting, where every failure is yours alone, and every success is the company's. The lack of advocacy, coupled with a penchant for blaming employees for systemic issues, is both infuriating and demoralizing.

- **Managerial Ineptitude**
  - Managers act more like glorified babysitters than leaders, occupying space without contributing value.
  - Consistent disagreements among managers lead to confusion and misinformation, especially regarding sales processes.
  
- **Lack of Direction and Respect**
  - The team leadership is disorganized, with no clear distinction in roles, resulting in a chaotic and unproductive work environment.
  - Disrespect, particularly from female managers towards male employees, exacerbate the toxic atmosphere.

- **Performance and Authenticity Issues**
  - Managers, having never sold anything for the company themselves, lack the experience and credibility to lead effectively.
  - Their behavior transforms dramatically in the presence of company owners, revealing a lack of genuine leadership qualities.

**High Turnover: Surprised?**
The turnover rate is high, and it's no mystery why. This company is a revolving door for talent, squandered by abysmal management and pitiful compensation. The leadership is delusional, clinging to outdated successes as the company stagnates.

**In Summary: Run**
This isn't just a bad place to work; it's a cautionary example of how not to run a company. Potential employees, consider yourselves warned. The company is a sinking ship, with leadership at the helm too blind or too arrogant to change course. My advice? Run. There are far better opportunities out there, where your talents will be valued and your efforts rewarded. Don't waste your time here.

I started off as a deckhand for two and a half months before switching to my current housekeeping role. I enjoyed working as a deckhand, but wanted to have more face time with the passengers in my pursuit of the Guest Service Coordinator position. This would have been difficult as a deckhand working mainly on the exterior of the vessel. My typical day as a housekeeper would be to clock in by 6:00 am and maintain assigned public space. Breakfast would be from 6:15- 6:45 am. After breakfast we meet up with our housekeeping manager where he/she lays out our daily tasks. On my ship, each housekeeper was assigned to 11/12 rooms to clean, and a public space to maintain throughout the day. There would be two housekeepers who worked cocktail service towards the end of the day (differs depending on ship). Lunch would be  from 11:30-12 am. We would meet again with manager to let them know whether we’re finished rooms or not, then depart. At this point we are either finishing the few rooms we have left or completing task’s assigned by manager. By 1:00 pm, all rooms should be complete and we meet once again with housekeeping manager. This is a scheduled training where we complete duties as a team including the manager. Training would be from 1:00-1:30 pm. After training, you are either on scheduled break (1 hour, 15 minutes) , or completing tasks assigned by manager. We rotate breaks so there are always at least two housekeepers on the floor. Dinner on my ship would be from 4:30-5:00 pm. As soon as dinner ends, the housekeepers assigned to cocktail would switch in to uniform and prepare food and utensils to transfer to designated cocktail area. Cocktail would last from 5:30-700 pm. During this time, housekeepers who are not on cocktail would be completing duties assigned by housekeeping manager from 5:30-6:25pm. At 6:30pm we would do something called turndown service. This is where the housekeepers who are not on cocktail would knock on every guest room door, and make up bed, dump trash, and replace towels if necessary. This should be completed by 7:00 pm, which aligns with the completion of cocktail hour. From 7:00-7:30 or completion of duties, we would maintain assigned public spaces and any other tasks given by housekeeping manager. After we confirm completion of assignments with manager, we sign time sheet and we are now done with the day! If we are docked, you are free to leave vessel and explore area. Just remember that curfew for majority of crew is 11:00 pm. While working with American Cruise Lines I developed strong relationships with employees and management. The work culture is like no other as you are constantly surrounded by your fellow employees. They will grow on you, as you will on them. It felt like a family friendly environment. The hardest part about it all was working 7 day a week, 12 hour shifts for four consecutive months. Though it has taught me that I am able to endure anything that comes my way. It made my character stronger ultimately. The most enjoyable thing in my opinion is all the new scenery you will experience and wonderful people you get to meet. Onboard and abroad. Overall, in my experience l, this has been by far the best job I have ever had, and I pray I am able to extend my career working as a Guest Service Coordinator with American Cruise Lines. 

I was able to see Alaska, which was amazing but you get ZERO days off for your 16 weeks. You also work anywhere between 12-16 hour days. It’s very hard to balance sleep, exploring and buying basic necessities. It’s cool that you get to see some fun things like whales and jelly fish but the guests can be incredibly demanding and if you have a bad manager it makes it that much harder. You also have an 11:00 curfew every night and I rarely got off before 10:15. I was fortunate enough to be on a newer ship so I was able to avoid the horror stories of the rooming situations on older boats but you have room inspections and can have your privalages to leave the boat taken away from you like you’re a child. The tv and WiFi RARELY work and we had washing machines break all the time and had times where the whole crew had to share 2 and there were only 4 to begin with. I had years of serving experience before working for this company so I know the hard work that goes into serving but this was a whole new level. You are bottom tier and the management has no problem making you aware of it every moment they can. One specific incident that still irritates me is a manager yelled at me in my face for following what I was supposed to do based on the instruction sheet from corporate because she “didn’t care” what I was supposed to do. She wanted me to do what she wanted. This same manager also made everyone report at 6:00 because the people scheduled at 6:00 had a hard time showing up on time INSTEAD to reprimanding those who were late. I only worked for this company as long as I did only to help myself out of a financial hole but that is the ONLY reason I would recommend this job to anyone. I ignored the reviews and assumed they were from people that had poor work ethic and were lazy but I am warning you not to ignore reviews. If you have a degree the upper management jobs aren’t bad but the guest better be 100% happy or your job is in danger. The turn around for this company is so high it’s ridiculous. We also had issues with managers taking our tips from guests and keeping them for themselves because we technically weren’t supposed to receive tips. They also tell guests at the beginning not to tip you because their “service charge” goes to us but all that does is help cover your wage increase on turn around day but you’re already contracted that rate.... so they’re stealing more money from the guests. The guests also complained every cruise about the food which is hard because food is such a big part of a cruise and it’s hard to make them happy when your job is to serve it. They also don’t hire enough people to do all the jobs that need to be done. They have servers turn into house keepers on turn around day and then back into servers after cleaning every room. Deckhands are also “supposed” to help with laundry but they take orders from the Captain and First Mate so they basically do whatever they want. It was a truly horrible and depressing experience. I would only recommend taking this job if you need the money, need a place to urgently live while you save money or if you need to escape your life and don’t want to think and only be told what to do. One of my coworkers summed it up best by saying it’s like a floating motel 6. It’s a BOAT not a ship.

After the pandemic, I never expected to land a job back in the travel industry, let alone the cruise industry. During my year of separation from the industry due to COVID, I had a long time to think about what I wanted to do next in my career. I decided to study and begin to search for roles within Talent Acquisition and Recruiting, preferably in the travel industry. When I first saw the listing for "Recruiter" on LinkedIn, I was ecstatic to even have the opportunity to apply. With my experience, I was crossing my fingers to get an interview. I was selected and chosen for a phone interview which lasted about 20 minutes. The questions during this involved insight on my work history, experience relative to the role, and what my long-term goals were. I didn't hear back immediately, but about a week later I was invited to come into the office for an interview. I met with the Senior Recruiter, and the Manager of the Department who were warm and welcoming and I felt confident when leaving. I didn't even make it home before they called me with an offer! I started the next day. Not only did they hire me, but they offered me a higher position than what I had applied for which was great recognition for the skills I was willing to bring to the company. 

I am now over 6 months with ACL and I still love it! I genuinely love coming in to work every day. The office environment is quiet but collaborative. After COVID, I wasn't sure how I would like going back to the office environment, but I love it. The office itself is a nice building with ample parking, great places for lunch, and plenty of space to walk around and stretch your legs during lunch!

A typical day at work in Talent Acquisition includes attention to email, phone, and follow ups with prospective candidates. Days are filled with interviews placing individuals around the country onto our beautiful ships. I love speaking to candidates of all different backgrounds. Myself and my teammates generally all work independently with a meeting once per week. Everyone focuses on their own workload and gets things done! 

Management provides you with the tools you need to succeed. You really need to be a self-starter type of worker to succeed here. There is often not much direction, which in my opinion, is much better than micromanagement. You work at your own pace and have clear set goals to accomplish, it is not a difficult job, but lots of moving parts. 

The workplace culture is positive. Everyone is nice and minds their own business, which I like!

The hardest part of the job is the changing of hiring trends. One day, there are not enough hours to complete what is needed to be done. On the other hand, there are days that feel like they drag and it's hard to plan for the weeks ahead not knowing what to expect. 

The most enjoyable part of the job is hearing a happy candidate accepting their new role and rejoicing! There is nothing more satisfying than fulfilling someone's dream to work on a cruise ship. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Server 25 salaries reported	$10.08 per hour
Housekeeper 16 salaries reported	$10.31 per hour
Deckhand 10 salaries reported	$13.60 per hour
Recruiter 5 salaries reported	$21.30 per hour
Customer service representative 8 salaries reported	$18.00 per hour

Working at American Cruise Lines: Company Overview and Reviews

American Cruise Lines

American Cruise Lines Ratings

Popular jobs at American Cruise Lines

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected