A cruise ship worker has let slip the one thing that guests do that makes crew members really cringe.
Lucy Southerton, 28, from Birmingham, loves her life working aboard cruise liners and shares behind-the-scenes snippets on her Instagram account.
She started in her career on the sea after securing a job as a massage therapist aged 19 on a cruise ship spa.
Now Lucy – who helps others into careers at sea – has revealed the major passenger faux pas that never fails to make fellow staff members giggle.
Speaking to the Daily Star, Lucy said: “Crew members generally make fun of passengers who think it’s okay to walk around the cruise ship barefoot.
“There’s always at least one passenger per cruise who feels comfortable strolling around the entire ship without shoes.
“They’ll even go into shops and the theatre barefoot because technically they are indoors.”
The cruise worker said that as soon as you venture outside of your cabin really “you should have your shoes on.”
She added: “And if you do want to walk around the cruise ship with no shoes on just know that the crew members will be making fun of you.”
Being rude is a big no-no too according to Lucy who said that it was passenger’s “biggest mistake” adding you don’t know “which crew member is going to be able to solve your issues”.
She also said that there are extra perks to be had by guests – but only if they make “genuine connections” with crew members.
“If you are a nice person and you have a connection with a crew member they are more likely to go above and beyond for you,” said Lucy.
On her website Lucy says she aims to answer crew-life questions – and helps to advise people who wish to follow in her footsteps.
She says that there are “unspoken rules” on the ships.
Her website says: “When you start your career on cruise ships you will see that there are a lot of rules that you have to follow.
“Some are talked about and taught and some are unspoken they are things that people do and rules that people follow without even questioning why they are doing it.”
You can learn more about Lucy’s experiences on Instagram under the handle @cruisingascrew and on her website cruisingascrew.com.
