Hey guys, what's up?
It's Charlie here, and today we're going to be looking
at 10 secrets cruise ships don't want you to know.
Whether you've been on a cruise ship or have just
seen them on TV, you were likely intrigued.
Well, as it turns out, there are some fascinating secrets
that cruise ships wish you didn't know.
Whether you plan to go on a cruise, know someone
who is, or just like to know what people don't
want you to, then you have to see these insane
facts.
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Coming in out to number 10s, we have prison.
We all know that pirate ships back in the past
were horrible places.
From the poop deck to the Brig, they weren't exactly
anyone's idea of luxury.
But of course modern day cruise ships are nothing like
that, right?
Well, not exactly.
You see, most cruise ships do actually have what is
known as a Brig on board.
For those not in the know, a Brig is basically
a prison of the sea.
That's right, cruise ships have jails just like in your
local town.
While people are on a cruise ship, it can take
hours until they reach anywhere with a town and a
ton of cops.
The people are like a small community and we all
know that people in communities can sometimes go a little
overboard, pardon the pun.
So if someone has one too many cocktails and gets
a little rowdy, then the brick may come into use.
The size and age of the ship usually dictates the
conditions of the brick.
If it's a smaller or newer ship then a cabin
near the front of the ship is usually assigned to
the Brig.
This will be a regular small cabin with no furniture
except for a bed, but if you're in a larger
or older ship then it will resemble a real prison
cell with metal bars and everything.
So while a cruise ship environment may be fun, it
is not a lawless land and you could find yourself
thrown in the Brig if you misbehave.
Next up is join the crew.
When I say you should join the crew on a
cruise ship, I don't mean you should apply for an
actual job on board.
What I mean is you should try and mingle your
way into the crew.
To do this, you don't have to throw a crew
member overboard and steal their uniform.
Don't worry.
You see, during the night, cruise ship crews are expected
to dress in regular clothing to mingle and party with
the guests.
However, if you get chummy with enough crew members, you
can actually make it look like you're a crew member,
which entitles you to a lot of perks.
One is that crew members get huge discounts and sometimes
even free drinks.
So if you play it cool and hang with the
crew by the bar, then you could save yourself quite
a bit of cash.
The crew also have their own bar which is much
more private and far cheaper.
They can go here to unwind and get drinks for
a dollar at the most or sometimes even free.
If you make friends with the crew, they do allow
some people to come down to their exclusive bar, so
get chummy.
It's also an excellent idea to befriend the crew because
they pretty much control the ship you and everybody else
is on.
Be sure to be nice to them and get you
into their memory.
This can be a real asset if you ever have
a problem on board or if you get into trouble,
it can be someone to vouch for you.
Next up is Dead Space.
On a cruise ship, anything can happen.
We all know the joke that many elderly people enjoy
cruises and when you're out to sea with thousands of
elderly people and no hospitals nearby, this can sometimes prove
difficult.
You see, many people actually pass away while on cruises.
I don't mean from falling in or the ship sinking,
but some people, especially the elderly, can pass away from
natural causes on the ship.
If this happens, the guests are not notified and the
bodies move to the onboard morgue.
That's right, cruise ships have their own temperature regulated body
storage spaces.
On every boat, it's usually in the crew only area
and is one of the few rooms on the ship
under lock and key.
You might think that the ship would make a special
stop to drop off the body or at least drop
it off along the way.
However, this is not what happens and the bodies only
dropped off at the final port of call.
So even if you don't live to see it, you'll
still travel your entire distance on the cruise ship before
being dropped off.
The reason why they do this is to not cause
any interruptions to the planned activities and the times of
when the ship needs to arrive and leave from areas.
It's all planned out in advance and the morgue allows
the bodies to be kept at the right temperature to
allow them to do this.
So you could be sharing your beautiful cruise experience with
the dead as well as the living without you even
knowing.
Next up is secret codes.
So we know guests aren't told when somebody passes away
on the ship, but how did the crew let each
other know this without ruining the guests time on board?
Well, there's a selection of codes that crew members use
to say all kinds of things that they don't want
the passengers to hear.
One code is cones and that's what they call guests.
This is because passengers often don't have sea legs like
the crew and usually walk very slowly and carefully around
the ship.
This means that most of the time the crew have
to walk around people when they're trying to get somewhere
on the ship.
Now the code is V.
You might have already been able to guess this as
it's actually the same code they use at Disneyland.
V of course stands for vomit, which is what happens
to many passengers who want used to being at sea.
So if you hear a crew member saying code V
at a location, then this means someone has thrown up
there and it needs to be cleaned up.
And finally code P, which stands for past, which usually
refers to a guest passing away.
This is what needs to be said so that crew
members can escort a body onto the onboard morgue.
So now you'll be able to hear all the things
they don't want you to know on board.
And if you lean over the crew only bar and
tell them you had to deal with the code P
today, expect a rather large free drink.
Next up is all uninclusive.
We all know that most of the time cruise ships
are what's called all inclusives.
This means you pay one time before getting on board
and then never again during your trip.
But a lot of the time that's simply a marketing
tagline and there are many things not included in an
all inclusive cruise.
You really have to look at the fine print because
some things like onboard spa treatments and classes for your
kids can cost a ton of money.
Even shore excursions at ports of call can cost more
money even if you choose not to get off the
ship.
And another hidden expense is gratuities, which are charged to
your account every single day.
This means you don't even have to think about it
and means you can lose track of what you spend.
If your cruise is going through the Panama Canal, this
costs the cruise company around $300,000 and this cost is
usually split amongst the guests, averaging out to around $45.00
a head.
And cruise ships also never bring enough toilet paper to
make more money.
So if you ever need more toilet paper on board,
this comes at a cost.
So don't think there's a one time payment and then
you can live freely on your cruise as it's almost
never like this.
Next up is secret pool.
We've already covered staff perks such as bar discounts and
even special secret bars they have, but they're not the
only places the crew can go to unwind.
Of course, the crew does have a break room like
any other workplace, but they also have something secret that's
located at the front of the ship.
At the front of most cruise ships will be a
small circular thing.
This is actually a crew hot tub built just for
them.
It's usually better than the regular hot tubs for passengers
as it's large and state-of-the-art.
So while you might have a coffee and a smoke
during your work break, crew members get to relax and
hot tub.
The funny thing is everybody sees it in pictures of
cruises and even when they get on and off the
ship.
However, people don't get to see it up close as
it's in the cruise private staff only area.
Yeah, no matter how friendly you get for the crew,
the chances are they won't allow you to come aboard
the secret hot tub as it's strictly for staff.
It's one of the only places staff have to unwind,
so the policy is no cones allowed.
Next up is unlocked.
As I said before, the morgue door remains locked.
However, this is actually one of the few doors and
cruise ships that are.
It may surprise you to hear this, but almost no
doors and cruise ships are actually allowed to lock.
They don't make them to lock in case of an
emergency.
So if you're feeling curious, you could sneak around the
whole ship at night and explore areas where most won't
go.
You can't go to some places in the day, but
at night no crew are around to stop you.
Some people have found some pretty amazing stuff on board
cruise ships doing this and it can just be fun
exploring the massive ship that you're on.
So feel free to test the waters and explore a
cruise if you like.
Next up is adults only.
We all know that cruise ships are very entertainment heavy.
They have bars, pools and even casinos on some ships.
But with all that entertainment are thousands of passengers.
This can make an entire area fill up pretty quickly
and mean that sometimes you can't even get a deck
chair by the pool.
But some frequent cruise goers have discovered a cruise ship
life pack that allows them to get a poolside chair
100% of the time.
Instead of going to the regular pool, they simply enquire
about an adults only pool.
Most ships have this away from the main pool, hidden
in a quieter area.
They're usually less crowded because either people don't know about
them or because families can't go there.
You have to be over 18 to enter, but if
you are then this means you can get a deck
chair by the pool and find the best spot.
Almost always, even if your ship looks like it doesn't
have an adult Sony pool, it's probably just tucked away
somewhere, so be sure to ask a crew member about
it.
Next up is freebie.
Now cruises sound pretty good, right?
The only downside is they're very expensive, sometimes costing thousands
of dollars.
But what if I told you there's a way to
get to your very own cruise for free?
All you have to do is offer your lecturing services.
What this involves is teaching something to the guests on
board.
It could be something you went to college about, or
even a language you speak.
So if you decided to lecture Spanish, people would pay
the cruise ship for a lecture and you would do
it.
And in return you get a cruise for free.
Some lecturers only work for around one to two hours
a day, so it's well worth it to save thousands
of dollars.
If your cruise is picking up people from another country,
then you could simply volunteer to lecture English or whatever
language you speak.
The best way to do this is to call the
cruise entertainment office and inquire before your cruise.
You never know, but that one little phone call could
end up saving you thousands of dollars.
Vacations are always enjoyable, but I bet you'd enjoy it
much more if you knew it was all for free.
Next up is staff treatment.
You may be thinking they have it pretty good with
the discount secret pools and free bars, but remember this
is only for the crew that's involved with the guests.
There are plenty of other jobs on board who do
not get recognition or perks.
You see, most cruises are not regulated by American labour
laws and they don't shy away from taking advantage of
this.
Only 1/4 of cruise ship employees are American and those
who are usually get the jobs which are called visible
jobs.
Visible jobs meaning crew members who interact with the guests.
Most other employees hail from countries with very low wages
and maybe only paid around $400.00 a month.
Also, all crew members have to work seven days a
week.
Some work a full day every day while others just
work for a couple of hours a day.
It depends on the job you do, but remember to
be nice to the staff as their conditions may not
be that of the USA.
Check out the poll in the top right corner.
Vote for the most amazing secret on this list.
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the crafty.
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