The Hiring Process

I started working in casino's in 1999, in Edmonton, Alberta. I worked at the Palace Casino, in the West Edmonton Mall. I was wandering around the mall one day and saw the casino. It was time for a new line of work and I have always enjoyed playing cards, so I thought why not give dealing a try. After my initial interview I was told that I had been selected to attend blackjack training. The training classes were usually lasted 4 hours. We trained for 2 weeks, 5 days a week. 40 hours. At the end of the training we had to do whats called a "table test". For this test you usually have 2 or 3 supervisors from that casino come and play at your table for about a 10 minutes.

I passed my test. I still had some practise to do, but, I would be fine to work on the gaming tables. Over the next few months I worked dealing dealing blackjack only. After I was confident in my ability, it was time to learn Caribbean Stud, Let it Ride and Baccarat. These games are very easy to deal, with little training needed. Soon after I learned to deal Poker and then Roulette.

In 2002 I applied to work on cruise ships for the first time. I wanted to work with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises, mostly because I had a lot of friends from the casino who had gone that way before me. The requirements were that you dealt Blackjack, Caribbean Stud and Roulette, with a minimum of 2 years experience on Roulette. I applied via email. I was 6 months short on the Roulette experience but I had also started my Craps training, and hoped that would help me out. The response I got was to reapply in 6 months. That's what I did.

When I tried the second time, the response I got was much better. The hiring partner that I applied to was coming to my city to conduct interviews and table tests. I was give a date and time to show up, and given a list of documents that I would need. My interview would be in about 3 weeks. I spent this time anxiously waiting, and collecting my paperwork. I was showed up early for my interview. I also had a friend with me who was interviewing as well. We were both dressed in suits, and I think looked pretty good. There was a group of about 20 people interviewing at the same time. We all sat in a conference room for a meet and greet, and to watch a short video about cruise employment. After that each person went to a small room to have and interview, then to another room for a short table test. After that it was back to the conference room to fill out paperwork.

I passed my interview. I was blown away. I got an email about a week later saying that I had been accepted, The email also contained a list of about 5 ships that I could choose from for my first contract, and another list of documents that I would need to bring with me. I decided To pick the GTS Summit out of the list. I called the hiring partner, and she gave me a date to be in Florida to join the ship. I would have to get a medical, and pay for my airfare. It was winter in Edmonton, and very cold. I was leaving Canada for the first time and I would not be home for 6 months. I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

My First Day In Mexico

I started my first contract working for Celebrity Cruises, in February of 2003. I joined the Summit, in Fort Lauderdale Florida, and for my first 2 months we would be sailing the Caribbean. During my first couple of weeks I had gone through lots of training (mostly ship stuff), met many new people, and did a lot of drinking.

One day that I will never forget, came after just 2 days on board. We left Florida, and the next day was at sea. Our first port of the cruise was Cozumel, Mexico. I was a little hung over when I woke at 9 in the morning. A couple of hours of training, and I was free for the day. I happened to get lucky, in that, my place in the schedule game me a day from the casino 2 days into my contract. I would have time to finish unpacking, get my room organized and do more looking around the ship.

I finished my training around 11:30am. This is around the time that casino people start to wake up, after a night of dealing cards and drinking after that. When I got to my hallway, my friend Jason had his door jammed open. I stopped to chat for a minute. He said that there was a bunch of people from the casino going to the beach, and for beers at Carlos n' Charlies after that, and pretty much begged me to come along. I was finished my training for the day and was off from the casino, so why not.

After a few hours at the beach I was getting a sunburn. Time to go to the bar. If you have never been to Carlos n' Charlies, in Cozumel Mexico. You have to go. It was like a night club, at 3 in the afternoon. Loud music, tall frozen drinks and girls pouring sangria down your throat. I got smashed. We all had a great time, but I think I had overdone it. The sunburn, the heat and the drinks had taken their toll.

Looking back now I am amazed that I made it back onto the ship without getting breath tested for alcohol. While on the ship you are never supposed to have more than .08% and I was well over that. I stumbled past the guards on the gangway, and bounced off the walls all the way to my cabin. Jason stayed with me to make sure I made it to my cabin. When I got there I fell into my bed and passed out. Late that night I woke up, and around 11:30 pm I went to the crew bar. I was still too messed up to drink much more so I only had a few beers and went to bed.

About Cruise Ship Casinos

I had worked in a land based casino for about 3 years before deciding to leave home and work on a cruise ship. At the time, I considered myself a pretty good dealer. I dealt all the normal casino games like Blackjack, Roulette, Poker and Caribbean Stud. I had also gone through about 100 hours of Craps training (all on my own time), but I was still having trouble with the game. Experienced dealers say Craps just comes to you one day and all of a sudden you understand. Now I understand.

Working in a land based casino is a pretty easy job. Generally you have a 7 or 8 hour shift. During that shift, you will work for about 40-45 minutes at a gaming table, then take a 15-20 minute break. Usually most casinos keep their dealers on a 1 hour schedule, So if you worked for 40min you get a 20min break. You break is at the same time every hour. Pretty peachy.

Working on a cruise ship is a different story. The length of your shift really depends on where the ship is for the day. If your in port, the casino opens about 30min after sailing, and stays open until 2 or 3am. If you are at sea for the day, your shift will be a long one, and sometimes the breaks don't come around so fast. On board, the casino has a break list, and is run much more like a real business. Tables are opened and closed on based on how full the casino is. If the place is quite you may get a break every 30min, and during peak times I have stayed at a table for more than 2 hours.

My first few weeks on the ship I felt like a total rookie. Some of the equipment was a little different, and I felt a little out of place. I could feel my supervisor looking over my shoulder a little more than I was used to, and the late night parties, and early morning training was getting to be a little bit too much. Lucky for me, I adapted to the changes (even if it took a little longer than it should have) and after my couple of months I had worked out all the kinks.

Going To Work On A Cruise Ship Part 1

I had been working as a casino dealer for about 3 years when I decided that I needed more. The job itself was good, the money was a little lacking, and the social life had gone kinda cold. Then I met this Welsh guy who, had worked on cruise ships for a few years and he said I'd have a great time if I would try it out. So I said why not. He gave me the address of the person I needed to contact and told me that they come to town every 6 months or so. After a little research I realized that the company I wanted to work for was RCCL. When it comes to living and working standards the others just didn't seem to compare.

A few weeks after I applied I got an e-mail. I was so excited! The mail was from the hiring partner (the person who scouts for the cruise ships) and they said I got the job! They would contact me in a few weeks with a placement. In the mean time, I had a list of things to do. I was a good thing too, because I was so anxious to travel. I had to get my passport, a shipboard medical, and numerous other smaller things wrapped up, after all I was leaving home to go work on a cruise ship for 6 months.

The days before I left home were the most nervous of my entire life so far. I had gotten a placement on Celebrity Cruise Lines ship called the Summit. I knew nothing about this ship other that it sailed out of Fort Lauderdale. The morning I left home I woke up spent some time with my family, ensured all my papers were in order, and went of to the airport. I had traveled many times inside Canada, but this was my first time leaving the country.

I got very lucky on my flight to Florida. I started chatting with the woman next to me, and she was going to work on a ship too. I was so relived to have someone next to me who knew where to go. After the flight we shared a cab to the hotel area, and went our separate ways. I was exhausted anyway so I fell asleep.

The next morning I got up, had a shower, and went off to join the ship. When I checked into the hotel the night before the woman at the desk said that there was a shuttle to pick up crew members, and it showed up on time. An hour later we pulled up to the pier, and I was amazed at the size of the ship. It was huge! Anyway The ushered us on board and into the cafeteria.