You wouldn’t automatically think of hair, beauty, barbering or complementary therapies when you think of a career at sea. The image most would conjure up would be very different indeed. But almost every luxury cruise liner in the world has a hair salon and a spa.
While travel around the world is currently disrupted, this career path may not be something you had considered, however, the future outlook for international travel is only going to get better, and this career provides a fantastic opportunity to explore the world and gain life experience whilst working at sea. If working internationally appeals to you, then working on a cruise ship could be a great option.
You will have to work hard, the hours may be long and your own living environment will not be luxurious, but having this experience on your cv will set you apart from other therapists, and the opportunity to have your own column will develop your business skills and your confidence as it is largely up to you to secure bookings for treatments.
You might be getting people ready for their formal evenings on the ship, you may be tending to the tired feet and legs of tourists, or you could be pampering a guest who is celebrating a special birthday while onboard. You may even have the opportunity to prepare a bride or groom for their wedding, as it is quite common for marriages to be performed on larger cruise ships.
You’ll not only have the opportunity to build your career, but you’ll also meet new people from all over the world, and working and living in close proximity to your colleagues you will build a whole new group of friends from across the globe. Not to mention the chance to travel for free, and spending your days off in exotic locations.
However, it’s important to bear in mind that it’s not a holiday. You may feel homesick, as you will be away from family and friends for months at a time. You will need to decide if working at sea is suited to you or not. There is likely to be an in-depth recruitment process for these roles, which will help you in making that decision.
We created a special information leaflet on one of the options for working onboard cruise ships – the career path of Cruise Ship Hairdresser. When putting this information together, we consulted with industry and education experts to find answers to some of the key questions that you might want to ask when considering this type of career.