A Cruise ship captain is constantly on the go and must have all required licenses and certifications by a recognized maritime government body. They are required to have 5 to 9 years of experience as deck personnel on a ship but within a lower status capacity, such as a staff captain. They also must have graduated from a maritime training school and may have been a member of the military in a sailing capacity such as the Coast Guard or Navy. So you can rest assured that next time you sail, your Captain has much experience and knows his stuff!
Of course a captain has many responsibilities, one of them being a people person and to look after customers safety. This means that he will conduct safety drills soon after the passengers board the boat. He also must be aware of any protocol where extraordinary conditions are underway such as fire, terrorist threat, weather and ship damage.
A Ship's Captain commands and manages all ship's personnel, and typically in charge of the ship's accounting, payrolls, and inventories. The Captain is responsible for compliance with immigration and customs regulations, maintaining the ship's certificates and documentation, and compliance with the vessel's security plan. The Captain is responsible for responding to and reporting cases of accidents and incidents, and in case of injuries and illness among the ship's crew and passengers. He also ensures that the ship complies with local and international laws as well as company policies.
It is the Captain that holds meetings, attending dinners with guests and having his picture taken with guests. A captain is the most important member of the cruise staff and the person whom everyone looks to when there is a problem. A Captain sails constantly and only gets to rest when the ship is in port- how tiring!
The captain must know the navigational information and which ports the ship will be docking at. He attends ceremonies where passengers get to meet the captain and have dinner, all the while making sure the ship is on course and being aware of any extreme conditions.
So when we think about multi tasking, a cruise ship captain really does it all! Poor him! I know next time I'm resting in my warm comfy bed in my cabin I will be sparing a thought for the Captain - who will probably be pulling a 14 hour shift, if not more!
