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What Makes a HAL Cruise Director Excellent?


sail7seas
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Hummm. I expect every one of us will have very different ideas about that. Here's a few of mine---

(S)He has to be outgoing and personable. A sense of humor is essential, and the ability to roll with the punches and not get flustered. Grace under pressure. A take charge ability when the games don't go as planned (think of the incorrect answers on the Trivia official answer sheet).

The CD has to be very organized, get to activities on time. A bit of the showman in them is helpful, so they come across as very natural on the stage, without thinking they are the show.

And the CD has to make it all look easy. It should come across that the CD can't imagine being anywhere else on this earth than on that ship with these passengers.

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As Ruth said, each of us will have different ideas on this. For me, the Cruise Director needs to be out and about and open to the passengers. Being "on time" for the activities, in my opinion, is not enough. (S)He should be early enough to have everything ready to start on time. By the same token, (S)He should allow time between activities so that (S)he is not rushing out of an activity almost before it is over.

 

In many cases some of us might feel that a particular CD is wonderful while others may feel that particular CD is one of the worse. In particular I know of a CD that many on here particularly liked. He happened to be from a place that I spent a lot of time and I tried to talk to him about it. He constantly blew me off. He had better things to do.

 

On the other had, one Cruise Director and three staff members on different cruises seemed to constantly run into me on the ship and would stop and ask how thing were going.

 

I realize that there are over 1,500 passengers on most of the ships, but these interactions formed my opinion of the people involved.

 

Most of the Cruise Directors do an good job. They show up for the activities, but sometimes their "heart" is not in it for whatever reason. It may even be different from cruise to cruise.

 

It is difficult for anyone to be "up" all the time, yet we generally expect the Cruise Directors to be just that way.

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That post made me wonder too sail. A cd is totally unimportant to me. Maybe we wouldn't have the twice daily updates about what is going on around the ship without one. Clearly none of us can read. I rarely go to any organized activities so I really don't care who the cd is.

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That post made me wonder too sail. A cd is totally unimportant to me. Maybe we wouldn't have the twice daily updates about what is going on around the ship without one. Clearly none of us can read. I rarely go to any organized activities so I really don't care who the cd is.

 

 

We've met a number of CD's we really enjoy a chat with and think nice gent/lady. But we are not big 'joiners' and don't participate in many organized activities so we only get to know them from cocktail parties etc :)

 

I truly am interested reading what those who are more active around the ship wish for from the CD's.

 

Thanks to those who posted here.

 

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That post made me wonder too sail. A cd is totally unimportant to me. Maybe we wouldn't have the twice daily updates about what is going on around the ship without one. Clearly none of us can read. I rarely go to any organized activities so I really don't care who the cd is.

I wasn't going to even post on this thread until I read your comments. DH and I agree with you completely. I've sailed HAL six times. I could not tell you the name of any CD on those cruises. "If" we needed entertaining, then we might feel differently. So, if I had to say anything, it would be that I find CD's annoying. :rolleyes: And sometimes they know not of what they speak.

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Quick-witted, think on he or her feet, affable, welcoming, real voice and vocal intonations, hospitality focused, comfortable on the stage, interviewing and mindful of his or her audience. The best ones we have had also had some sort of cabaret experience. Glen on the Rotterdam (2013) was a gem, and made the bilingual demands on him for that cruise in both Dutch and English a smooth delight. I'd give him a five star on all those qualities. His boyish impishness made us all fall in love with him too.

Edited by OlsSalt
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I could not tell you the name of any CD on those cruises. "If" we needed entertaining, then we might feel differently. So, if I had to say anything, it would be that I find CD's annoying.

 

You betcha. I remember the name of our CD on the Veendam two years ago, but I won't repeat it here. A more annoying human being I have never experienced. Constantly making announcements. I was seriously considering cutting the wires to the in-room speaker (I would have reconnected them before we left).

Edited by Langoustine
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I could not tell you the name of any CD on those cruises. "If" we needed entertaining, then we might feel differently. So, if I had to say anything, it would be that I find CD's annoying.

 

You betcha. I remember the name of our CD on the Veendam two years ago, but I won't repeat it here. A more annoying human being I have never experienced. Constantly making announcements.

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You betcha. I remember the name of our CD on the Veendam two years ago, but I won't repeat it here. A more annoying human being I have never experienced. Constantly making announcements.

 

LOL...I think I recall the same annoying CD...on a Veendam cruise to Bermuda!

Personally, I don't care who the CD is...we don't partake in Trivia, Bingo, or any of the things the CD orchestrates.

 

The CD on our recent NA cruise was a very friendly, nice guy...but other than meeting him in the Q & A and recognized me later out and about on the ship, so stopped to chat. He's going to the Eurodam...and seemed to be a decent CD on the NA.

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LOL...I think I recall the same annoying CD...on a Veendam cruise to Bermuda!

 

That's the one! It was torture. He NEVER shut up, and he just blathered on and on and on...we kept thinking "Perhaps the ship will sink, and we will die, and this annoying person will die with us. That might be OK."

Edited by Langoustine
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My first cruise I had a cruise director named Gary Walker. I thought he was outstanding. My next 14 cruises I couldn't tell you the name of any of them. Nor do I know any of the beverage managers or who will be the one on my next cruise in 2019

Edited by Wakepatrol
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As one who participates in many, many of the things the CD is responsible for I do care who our CD is.

 

IMO a great CD is courteous, takes time to listen if you have something to say, has a great deal of showmanship, a good sense of humor and the ability to roll with the punches.

 

I know quite a few of HAL's CD's ( or former ones) personally and some have become true friends.

 

I find a bad or incompetent CD can take a lot of joy out of a cruise, whilst a good one can make your cruise a joyous thing.

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You betcha. I remember the name of our CD on the Veendam two years ago, but I won't repeat it here. A more annoying human being I have never experienced. Constantly making announcements.

 

Can you please email me the name...the name of the one I'm thinking of escapes me but I'm sure if I see it, it'll ring a bell!

The CD on our recent cruise was a great guy. Not an "in your face" CD, but did a great job on the ship from what I could see. Just the right amount of showmanship. I don't do Trivia or Bingo, but he was at all the cooking demos as well as the shows we attended. He told me that he's moving over to the Eurodam next year as is the Hotel Director, Marco Belleghem.

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Our favorite HA cruise director on HA was Tom Faulkner. We use the word "was" because Tom is no longer a cruise director but will now be found doing is future cruise consulting (along with his lovely wife...Tina) on various HA ships. What made Tom special? He quickly won-over most passengers the first day of every cruise with a short announcement that he would only be making one PA announcement per day (at noon with the Captain's report) and folks who wanted to know about activities could find this info in the daily schedule. To spend all day without the annoying PA stuff was a true pleasure. We are just back from the Veendam where there is an excellent CD (Alex) except that he simply had to interrupt everyone with announcements at around 9:45am, 12:30pm and again at 4pm (and sometimes had 1 or 2 other annoucments). Everything said in those announcements is contained in the daily schedule but I guess HA (and most of their CDs) feel that their charges are illiterate and need frequent reinforcing of the daily schedule and ways to spend their money ("there is a sale at the spa," "a shop sale at the pool," "a scheduled show in the Showroom," etc).

 

There is an interesting facet of cruising for those who cruise on many different lines (we have been on 14 lines). The number (and length) of annoying PA announcements seems to be inversely proportional to the overall quality of the product. If you cruise on the ultra luxury lines there are generally no more then a single announcement per day. But the mass market lines seem to feel that its fine to annoy customers. It reminds me of the "Blue Light specials" that are announced at K-Marts.

 

Hank

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Best CD--doesn't tell the same old corny jokes that we have heard so often at the end of the cruise!!!!

 

No more end of cruise Disembarkation Talk so more of the corny jokes, told over and over and over again. :D

 

However, that also means no more singing of Love in Any Language and I do miss that.

 

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Can you please email me the name...the name of the one I'm thinking of escapes me but I'm sure if I see it, it'll ring a bell!

 

The CD on our recent cruise was a great guy. Not an "in your face" CD, but did a great job on the ship from what I could see. Just the right amount of showmanship. I don't do Trivia or Bingo, but he was at all the cooking demos as well as the shows we attended. He told me that he's moving over to the Eurodam next year as is the Hotel Director, Marco Belleghem.

Senorita, did his name start with the letter C ??

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