The luxury expedition cruise line Ponant will voluntarily suspend the cruise operations across the entire fleet as their ships are not able to continue sailing in the right conditions. Following this difficult decision the company sent a letter to all the crew members saying that a significant financial effort will be made out of solidarity to support disembarked crews.

The German Cruise line AIDA Cruises has made a very difficult decision announcing temporarily pause of its global cruise operations until early April 2020. The decision was taken as a response to the global spread of COVID-19 virus, recently calling for extraordinary measures and for the resolute contribution of all stakeholders to stop the outbreak.

Watching the latest statement by the President of the United States after the announcement of the Coronavirus outbreak on the cruise ship Diamond Princess made me sad.

I am not a Democrat, I am not a Republican, I am not American, I am not a number, I am crew member.

For years the business industry has attempted to determine what makes a great leader with the intention of replicating the same and teaching it in classrooms that are meant to shape the new generation of great leaders.

The cruise industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus scare in Asia with more than 80 voyages cancelled by several cruise lines, and seven ports closed in the region.

Around 250 Indonesian crew members will be evacuated from the cruise ships Diamond Princess and World Dream to deserted Sebaru Island located in the Thousand Islands (Kepulauan Seribu). 

Holland America Line announced today that all 747 crew members onboard the cruise ship Westerdam have tested negative for the novel coronavirus COVID-19. In a blog post, the cruise line said the Cambodian Ministry of Health issued a statement confirming the negative test results. MS Westerdam, which docked in Sihanoukville, Cambodia since February 13, will remain at the port for a few more days until its future itinerary is finalized.

Recognizing the importance of the crew to keep in contact with their families and friends, Princess Cruises has introduced free Whatsapp for its shipboard employees. Starting February 14, the free texting service is available on six Princess cruise ships, and the company is working hard to expand the program throughout the fleet.

For each one of the bar personnel it is always the game not to go to work in the crew bar during your contract. If working with passengers is sometimes difficult, working in the crew bar can be even more challenging. Almost everybody that enters the crew bar has to go to work, this means they want fast service. Sometimes I even feel that crew members respect me less than passengers, but maybe this is just a feeling. 

Keeping the team’s spirits up on the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess, the Galley crew shared a video of several chefs dancing on the Justin Bieber song “Yummy”