Alumni Newsletter

And this marks your transition into the dazzling entertainment
sector on luxury cruise liners! What inspired this dramatic
change?
We had a lot of temporary staff at
the share registry, and one of
them was reading the variety
newspaper “The Stage” at
lunchtime. Once they’d finished
with it, with nothing of my own to
read, I asked if I could have a look
at it. I saw a job advertised asking
for “Cruise Staff” with Fred Olsen
Cruise Lines. The job description
sounded quite appealing and I’d
never travelled abroad other than
the occasional day trip to France and Belgium and a week
on the Isle of Wight. I edited my CV to put greater emphasis
on the extra-curricular activities I’d been involved with at
university in the hope that the interviewer would take a
chance on me. Sure enough, they commented that they’d
never had someone with a Pure Mathematics degree apply
to be cruise staff on one of their ships. I replied that at least
I’d be qualified to do the bingo, and with that I was offered
the job!
This proves that a degree in mathematics can open up so
many different doors! You then worked your way up the
career ladder to become a Cruise Director and Expedition
Leader. How did you find this progression? Did you face
any hurdles along the way?
Meeting a local in Uwajima, Japan
The ‘Spirit of Adventure’ went everywhere. We went as far
north as the Arctic, as far south as Antarctica, as far west as
Acapulco, and as far east as New Zealand
– although every year we’d return
to the UK for the summer season.
Now I work as a Cruise Director for
Noble Caledonia. This role was definitely
a new challenge for me, as the
ships only carry a maximum of 100
passengers, and are of such size that
they can reach the remotest and
smallest of harbours. However, if a
harbour is not available then we have
a fleet of inflatable crafts (called
‘zodiacs’) and can operate a beach landing. It truly is expedition
cruising and I love how every day is a new challenge.
There was quite a lot of suspicion towards me at first, given
my unconventional route into the cruise industry, but I soon
realised that there was potential to rise up the ladder. I
watched my colleagues and learned from what they did well
and not so well. I rose up the ranks at Fred Olsen, becoming
Senior Cruise Staff and then Assistant Cruise Director. However,
I fancied trying my hand at one of the large cruise
ships that you see in the major ports, so in 2004 I joined Celebrity
Cruises then-flagship “Constellation”. I can recall being
up on deck at 5am to watch us sail into New York harbour
on my first visit to that incredible city – definitely the
best way to arrive!
After six months with Celebrity I joined Saga Cruises and
spent over eight years there. It was during that time that
Saga launched a ship called “Spirit of Adventure”. The idea
behind these new liners was that passengers could fly out to
join the ship wherever it is in the world. This was where I
truly thrived and I became Cruise Director at the age of 27,
which is very young for this industry.
Neil standing on a zodiac watching the sunset at San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua
That sounds fascinating! I’m getting serious wanderlust
hearing about your job. Where was your favourite place to
visit?
Gosh, it’s so hard to say! I have visited 147 countries since I
started cruising 15 years ago. Some places are now tinged
with sadness in that, at the time, I didn’t think that I would
not be able to go back. For example, the visits to Libya, Syria,
Lebanon, Yemen, the Crimea – never did I think that the
incredible historic sites there would become off-limits.
Most recently, I enjoyed visiting Livingston in Guatemala.
We took a small boat up a river to an extensive project
where local Mayan children from the riverside villages can
stay and receive a good education. It is a privilege to visit
places like that where a real positive difference is being
made to peoples’ lives. I was also able to offer a donation
from the Noble Caledonia Charitable Trust as part of our
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