Cruise ship crew members have very different experiences than passengers.
For some staff, such as people doing laundry and those working in the kitchen, days can go by without even seeing the outside.
Few crew cabins have windows and many crew work areas also lack them. On some very new ships, but not older ones, the Crew Mess/Crew Windjammer Buffet will have windows.
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Many cruise ship employees can only access passenger areas when they are working. If they are off duty, they are limited to crew-only spaces. These always include some outside spaces, but they are usually small and, on some boats, not easily accessible.
Erica from the United States, a popular YouTube personality, works on Royal Caribbean's social media team, so she has access to the ship as if she were a passenger. However, its cabin may surprise you, since it is on a deck that few passengers get to see.
She shared what a day in her life is like on her YouTube channel.
A day in the life of a Royal Caribbean crew member
Transcription
Welcome to a day in the life of working aboard a cruise ship. Today is a day at sea and, honestly, I am very tired. I didn't really want to get up today, but I really wanted to exercise this morning.
The first thing I always do is check my cover phone because I'm really bad at answering calls, and then I went to brush my teeth. Uh, yeah, I don't look very sexy this morning.
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Today I decided to exercise on the jogging track because it only takes a little more than two laps to go one mile. Every time I try to get something out of my closet, of course, everything falls out.
Here I am ready to go to the jogging track. It's a little cold there in the mornings and you can't forget to turn off the lights to save the waves.
This is my normal morning commute. I live on 23rd Street and that is my favorite watertight door. My stateroom is on deck 1, which is technically below the waterline, and you also have to walk through the crew mess to get out of there.
I love the running track on the Oasis class ships. This is the inside of a lifeboat in case you were wondering. Dude, look at these views.
It's amazing to be able to wake up and see this every day.
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At the end of the running track you can go up to the guest gym. Here's Val. She's on my team. Look at her working so hard in the gym.
After working out, I had breakfast in the crew mess. I like to eat a lot of protein for breakfast, so I bought some eggs, beans, and added protein powder to my oatmeal.
At nine I had to be in a private video session for the slides. Honestly, this was so much fun.
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