I Wanted a Summer Job in Finland. I Ended Up on a River Cruise Ship instead.

I never really planned on working on a cruise ship.

Actually, I was supposed to be going back to Finland.

I'd just spent five months working in Finnish Lapland, around 250 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle, and I absolutely loved it. So much that I wanted to return for the summer. Although this time, I was thinking of going a little further south, somewhere around Helsinki or Hanko.

I started sending CVs to restaurants and hotels across southern Finland, hoping to find something for the summer season. After a few interviews, one restaurant in particular caught my attention. It was located near the southernmost point of Finland, surrounded by beautiful nature, and I could already picture myself spending the summer there.

Everything seemed to be going well until their replies became less frequent. Eventually, they stopped answering completely. I didn't really know what had happened, but summer was approaching and I needed to find another job.

An Instagram Ad Changed My Plans

One day, while scrolling through Instagram, I came across an advertisement from a Slovak recruitment agency offering jobs on cruise ships.

I'd never seriously considered working on one before. But I did grow up watching The Suite Life on Deck with Zack and Cody, and I remember thinking that living on a ship looked pretty cool. Travelling around and meeting people.

So I clicked on the advertisement, looked through the information, and sent in my CV. A few days later, the agency called me.

We discussed my experience, the kind of work I was looking for, and whether I'd be interested in working on an ocean cruise or a river cruise. Now, thanks to Zack and Cody, I already knew my answer.

Ocean.

Unfortunately, the agency explained that getting a job on an ocean cruise ship could take quite some time. And since I needed a job sooner rather than later, that wasn't ideal.

So I asked about river cruising instead. They told me the recruitment process could be much faster, which sounded a lot more convenient. I didn't know much about river cruises, but it was still a ship, still an opportunity to travel and, most importantly, an opportunity to get a job. So I went for it.

The agency acted as the middleman between the cruise companies and me. Once I'd decided to try river cruising, they connected me with Viking.

Until then, I'd mostly worked in smaller places. Viking is a huge international company, much more corporate than anything I was used to. For me, it felt like quite a step up.

Before the actual interview, Viking invited me to an introductory video call where they explained more about the company, what working on board involved, and what we could expect from life on a river cruise ship.

Then came the interview.

I remember feeling fairly confident going into it. But once it started, I was answering the questions, trying to make a good impression, while somewhere in the back of my mind I kept thinking:

Yeah, I'm not getting this job.

The funny thing is that the interview itself was actually quite nice. I just wasn't particularly convinced by my own performance.

Not long after the interview, I received confirmation that I'd been hired. I was so happy.

After all those weeks of looking for work, the uncertainty with the restaurant in Finland and applying for a job I'd never seriously considered before, I finally had something confirmed.

I was going to work on a river cruise ship.

Not Exactly the Summer I Had Planned

A few weeks earlier, I'd been trying to find a summer job in Finland. Now I had a job that would take me through several countries, working and living aboard a ship.

All because a restaurant stopped answering my messages and I happened to come across a random ad.

It wasn't exactly what I'd planned, and definitely not the ocean cruise I'd imagined. But the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea of actually living on a ship.

I'd get to travel, discover new places, meet people from all over the world, and get paid for it.

Obviously, I still had absolutely no idea what I'd just signed myself up for.

Thinking about working on a river cruise ship?

If you're curious about the job, the recruitment process, or what life on board is really like, feel free to send me a message. I'm happy to share my experience and answer what I can.