Only when I started working at Margaritaville at Sea Paradise did I realize how much I would miss working for Carnival Cruise Line. Compared to CCL, Margaritaville at Sea is a one-ship company, which I thought would take extra care of its crew. Boy, was I wrong!

Food

While I was working for CCL, the food was terrific. There were several meals per day, including various food-themed party events, in the crew mess at least once a week. My favorite part of the cuisine on board the CCL was the midnight buffet. Smoked salmon and tiger prawns were my favorite, as well as Mexican quesadillas. CCL has a great way of allocating the food from the passenger areas, Lido, and dining room to the crew mess for the midnight buffet in the crew mess. That way, there will never be too much food waste, and crew members like me would get the taste of their favorite food at least 4 or 5 times per week. Besides that, at least once a week, we had some remarkable food events where you could clearly see the top-quality food prepared by the chefs. 

There were several times when I was arguing with friends from my country because they were constantly complaining on CCL:" Food is a disaster." Or " Again the same?” And I used to ask them if they had back home a 3-course meal every day, soup and salad, fruits and vegetables, fish and meat, and ten different kinds of desserts. Of course, regardless of the fact that the food on CCL was terrific, you can't please everyone, and many crew members still complain. After all, It's more about the mindset, I guess, and the ability to be content and thankful. 

Yes, I know some people will say, " Which ship did you work for"? Or maybe somebody will say," It's not true, food on CCL is like this or like that... 

No. It would help if you went to work for Margaritaville at Sea Paradise, and then you would know what I am talking about. 

On Margaritaville at Sea, I could taste some of the worst meals in my life, and I am the person who never complains about the food (until I went to work on Margaritaville at Sea Paradise). The quality of the food is below poor. The tasteless fish is on the lunch and dinner every day, and it never changes for several months. Most days, the menu is the same for lunch and dinner. There are 2 or 3 food items to choose from. The tasteless fish was like eating the rubber from my tire, the meat chunk that looked scary to me that I never even bothered to try, and some penne pasta without any sauce. Believe it or not, I lost 8 kg in my first month working for Margaritaville at Sea. There are no fruits at all. One time, they put some green apple, and I was so excited to take it, I had one bite, but then it was brown from the inside and half frozen.

The worst part for me was that my duty was finishing late, around 23:30, and at that time, there was no more food on the ship. So many nights, I was starving and went to bed hungry and just slept through the hunger, tired and exhausted from my work. Only after one month of work did I learn that crew members were allowed to buy Pizza for $8, but only if there were no passengers in the pizzeria.

CCL is like a company on a different level compared to Margaritaville at Sea when it comes to food and, generally life on board the ship for the crew members.

Crew Life on board 

While I was working for CCL for 10 long years, I enjoyed the fact that in every contract, you work on a different ship, meaning it's an excellent opportunity to see some unique places all the time. On Margaritaville at Sea, no matter how many contracts you have, you will be stuck with only one port, arguably one of the most unpopular ports for crew members in the world - Freeport, Bahamas. Don't get me wrong, Freeport is a great place, but not for crew members. Everything worth visiting is very, very far from the port, and crew members do not have that much time during their busy schedules.

The Crew Bar

On Margaritaville at Sea, the crew bar almost does not exist. The ship culture is sad; nobody goes to the crew bar, and the atmosphere is depressing. There were no special events, department parties, or gatherings; everyone seemed so exhausted and overworked. 

On Carnival Cruise Lines, there are many crew parties every month, and there are department parties that I miss so much. Department parties are special events where we gather to eat, drink, sing karaoke, and create some strong bonds with our colleagues.

Crew Tours

CCL offers a variety of choices when it comes to crew tours with discounted rates, so crew members are able to visit some amazing places in the ports of call for an affordable amount of money. 

While I was on Margaritaville at Sea, there were no crew tours offered at all for crew members. The general feeling on that ship is that crew members are not happy, and they are just pushing themselves day by day to complete their contracts without any desire to come back and return to that ship.

Experience at work

While I was working for CCL, I felt happy and well looked after, with the great food on board and some unforgettable events for the crew members that will remain in my memory forever. Sometimes, I felt that it was like a dream job during some of my contracts with CCL.

On the other hand, after only a few weeks on board the Margaritaville at Sea, I felt like I was ready to go home and never to come back. It's not only about the poor food quality and lack of social life on board. It was just about the fact that Margaritaville at sea contains accumulated negative energy from the exhausted crew members, and you could sense those bad vibes in any random conversation with any crew member on that ship.

If it happens that you are considering choosing between these two companies, I think that the decision is obvious.