Cruise Ship Gig

[DirtPoorRobins]

Has anyone on here ever done a cruise ship gig playing in the showband? What is it like and is it a worth while job for the summer?

[Seattle_BassMan]

Do a quick search on Cruise Ships....there's a few other forum threads that address this pretty extensively. I found the threads very useful...

[BetterBottomEnd]

Is free room and board on a cruise ship all summer where you get paid to play music a good job?

[JimmyM]

Cruise ship gigs have their advantages and drawbacks just like any other gigs.

ADVANTAGES:

Free room and food
Steady work
Get to go to the Bahamas and Puerto Rico a lot
Good job for a single musician or for a newcomer who wants to establish himself and get his/her professional reading and playing chops together
Lots of cute foreign girls working on the ship looking for cute American boys

DISADVANTAGES:

Have to room with some irritating jerk
Creativity is frowned upon
Sometimes grueling schedule
Not the greatest money in the world
Gone to sea for months at a time
Not allowed to be in certain areas of the ship
As a musician, you will be treated with all the respect of the busboys at the buffet

This is why I never took a cruise ship gig. To me the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages.

[AAdropout]

My sisters boyfriend played trumpet on a cruise gig, and he said that they were treated very well, and made a lot of money because everything was paid for when on the ship.

[the_fonz]

how exactly does one land a cruise ship gig?