North Atlantic Ocean 18 November 2010

Hello again, Cruise Director Nigel Travis back with you!

Today we are on day three of our crossing of the mighty Atlantic Ocean from Southampton to Ponta Delgada, (The Azores), after Ponta Delgada we have a further four days at sea before we get to Antigua in the glorious Caribbean.

I returned to Arcadia on 16 October after leave and as with all joiners to any of our ships had to go through three safety training inductions. It does not make any difference that I have been with the company many years, every member of the ships company attends the induction programme on joining and quite right too, at P&O Cruises safety is our number one priority. We also have Crew Drills to attend. On this 23 night cruise I will have done the Southampton Passenger GES Drill, and a full crew drill.

I in fact left home in Cheshire on 14 October and spent 15 October at Carnival House our head office in Southampton. I have been working closely alongside our hard working shore based entertainment team for the last few months in the planning of the entertainment for our Round the World Cruises and Grand Voyages 2011. There are four of them in all and they range from 72 nights to 98 nights. I am scheduled to do the complete Arcadia Grand Alaskan Voyage 2011, it is one of the most comprehensive and exciting itineraries I have ever seen, I am sure the passengers booked on this voyage are so looking forward to it, I know I am!

The life of a Cruise Director is very varied; no two days are the same. At times it can be stressful, challenging and demanding, but never dull and always highly satisfying. We are all here onboard to make sure our passengers have the best holiday ever. Myself and the entire entertainment department along with every other member of the ships company are here to make that happen. As Cruise Director I oversee all the entertainment onboard from the daytime activities to our evening entertainment be it a Caribbean Deck Party or a West End Style Production Show.

A lot of my job takes place behind the scenes.

On any day on board I will be answering internal ships or shore side e-mails, attending meetings, dealing with passenger observations, running activities, compiling reports, doing appraisals, working on the planning of future cruises, hosting chat shows, attending drills, introducing production shows, cabarets or classical concerts, the list really is endless!!

One of the cruises very special events happened on board last night - The Captain’s Welcome on board Cocktail Party. The dress code is formal and every one of our passengers receives an invitation to this glamorous occasion. Captain Kevin Oprey made a speech of welcome and then introduced on to the stage the heads of all the different departments on board, eleven of us in all.

The Entertainment Officers of Arcadia, left to right, DJ Entertainment Officer Rob Merrills, Entertainment Officer Tim Connor, Deputy Cruise Director Nikki Hooper, Entertainment Officer Karen Davis, myself, Entertainment Officer Mickey Smith, Entertainment Officer Michaela Paxton, Assistant Cruise Director James Charter.

The boss!! The Cruise Directors at P&O Cruises report to the Executive Purser on board and on Arcadia at the moment that is David Hall. David was born in Shropshire but lives on one of the most beautiful islands in the world, The Isle of Wight! Like me he has been with the company many years and worked his way up through all the Hotel Officer ranks to Executive Purser. We have worked together on many ships in our numerous ranks throughout the years.

The Executive Purser of Arcadia David Hall and myself in the conference area of his office discussing last cruise’s Customer Service Questionnaires.

Bye for now, I will be back in two days' time to tell you all about our call into Ponta Delgada, The Azores.


All the best.

Nigel