Missing your Cruise Ship

Why missing your Cruise Ship is a problem

As a crew member this is a pretty scary thought “missing your cruise ship” whilst doing cruise jobs. The thought alone brings this image of your ship sailing sway and you are stuck on the pier, scary really. I never missed my ship but have come close on a couple of occasions, one’s on Xmas Eve in Key West, another time in Safaga, Egypt. Key West, we had gone shopping at the Ross for Less store, on the other side of town and do you think we could get a taxi back, eventually we got one but it was cutting it so fine. In Egypt it was another story, I was on the Marco Polo, a lot of us had taken a taxi to Luxor, which is far away about 5, or 6 hours drive with escorts through the desert. Coming back seems to take longer what with waiting for the escorts at different points. To cut a long story short we made it back with barely any time to spare, and had to leg it from the taxi to the ship. Luckily all the passenger tours were late as well.

You do need to be aware of this lovely little sign that is at the gangway as you go ashore in the various ports in the world on board your ship with cruise jobs. It reads “crew all aboard time”, generally you as a crew member need to be back 1 hour prior to the vessel sailing, for passengers it is generally 30 minutes. If the ship is at tender, not alongside a pier it can be a bit tricky as well, so allow a bit more time in this kind of port. They sometimes change the sailing time, so always be aware of this, it could be for the weather or another ship needs the berth.

What happens, when missing your Cruise Ship

What happens if you are not there one hour prior to sailing time?
The crew purser will let the port agent know, who in turn informs the local authorities. The port agent is then handed your passport and your next of kin information, all obtained from the crew purser from your sign-on paperwork. The port agent contacts the local police and hospitals to see if you were involved in an accident or been arrested for something. The passport is with the port agent to allow you to fly from the country you are in at the time.

You will generally be dismissed if you missed the ship because of forgetting the time, or stuck in trouble, or even if you fall asleep on the beach or had a couple too many drinks. You normally get to come back to the ship to collect your belongings and then you are on your way home.

If you have a valid reason because of an accident, obviously the port agent will have proof from the doctor or hospital, your belongings will be packed up for you and sent to your address or hospital.

Beware of the Time, when Missing your Cruise Ship

For finding that position, go to this post on my site called Cruise Ship Vacancies.

So the moral of the story is Beware of the Time, that lovely little sign that reads “crew all aboard time”. Always allow for extra time especially when you have hired a car and need to return it or if it is a big vacation time somewhere. Recommend an awareness of that board and of the time factor in not missing your Cruise Ship.

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