When a cruise ship arrives at port, you may assume crew members would spend the time relaxing or seeing the sights.
However, according to Bryan James, who was been working on cruise ships for three years, when crew members finally get the chance to walk around on dry land, their first port-of-call is usually a pharmacy and supermarket – not a beach bar.
‘When crew members go out in port in the Bahamas or Florida it’s usually not to spend a day out at the beach,’ Bryan, who is currently on the Utopia of the Seas ship, explained in a TikTok video.
‘It’s not even to go out eating or drinking,’ he continued. ‘Crews are mostly getting off the ship to get errands done.’
Bryan said in his particular instance, he was looking for a pharmacy to pick up some medication.
After finding the pharmacy – which was located in a busy tourist strip at the back of a souvenir shop – he realized it was more for over-the-counter medication, but picked up what he needed.
‘But that’s fine cause that’s all I needed,’ he said, adding that the store was filled with brands he wasn’t used to.
‘I just kind of had to pick what seemed like the closest match,’ he exclaimed.
According to Bryan James, who was been working on cruise ships for three years, when crew members they finally get the chance to walk around on dry land their first port-of-call is usually a pharmacy – not a beach bar
He added that the crew really look forward to docking in the United States because that’s where they find the widest variety of products.
‘The problem is an Uber to Target or Walmart is like $50 round trip,’ he added. ‘So when you go shopping you tend to buy everything in bulk, and buy anything you need for months and months at a time.’
He added that Port Canaveral in Florida is maybe ‘the worst’ of all the US ports for crew when it comes to walkability.
‘And that’s a bummer because SOOO many ships go out of here,’ he added.
Some users were shocked they hadn’t thought of the logistics behind living on a cruise ship.
‘Idk why I just assumed cruise ships would have like over the counter meds for sale somewhere?’ someone questioned.
‘Wow! I don’t know why I’ve never even made this connection that you would have to go get general products,’ mused another. ‘Can you connect with passengers & save on a shared ride?’
Bryan often documents his life on the cruise ship, showing off where they live, what they eat and how they go about menial tasks like doing laundry and cleaning.
Bryan said in his particular instance, he was looking for a pharmacy to pick up some medication
Some users were shocked they hadn’t thought of the logistics behind living on a cruise ship
Bryan isn’t the only cruise ship worker to share his experience online.
Earlier in the year, content creator Erica DePascale, who worked onboard the world’s largest cruise ship, Icon of the Seas, also shared insight.
In her videos, Erica shared what it was like working on board the ship.
Before the customers arrived to set sail on the 20-deck ship, Erica revealed that she and her co-workers had been ‘stress testing’ all of the facilities on board.
Erica gave some jaw-dropping behind-the-scenes look into what life on board the ship looks like.
This included what activities guests can participate in, as well as some of the astounding attractions – including the largest water parks at sea.
Erica’s footage gives a sneak peak of some of the standout attractions, with colorful looping slides and a 40,000 gallon swimming pool yet to be filled.
