• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Woman who lives on cruise ship for free shares the four strict rules she has to follow

Home> Lifestyle> Travel

Updated 10:01 30 Mar 2024 GMTPublished 19:00 29 Mar 2024 GMT

Woman who lives on cruise ship for free shares the four strict rules she has to follow

She lives on a cruise ship, but doesn't get it all her own way.

Joe Harker

Joe Harker

A woman who lives on a cruise ship has revealed there are four rules she needs to follow while on board that big old boat.

You might have heard of the people who decided to quit the life of a landlubber and just go live on the high seas because at this point it's actually cheaper than dry land.

This is not one of those times as Christine Kesteloo lives on board a cruise ship because her husband is the staff chief engineer, so she gets to come along for the ride too.

Advert

She explained that she gets to live the life of a guest while on board 'but also as crew', so while she can do whatever the guests are getting up to, she's also able to get herself wherever the crew can go as well.

Christine gets to live on the ship for free and can eat in any of the on-board restaurants for free as well, while if she wants to buy anything, she gets a big discount.

Christine and her husband live on board the cruise ship.
Instagram/@christinekesteloo

It sounds like a pretty cushy life, but before you update your Tinder profile to say you're really looking for cruise ship staff who can bring partners on board, you might want to hold your proverbial horses.

That's because Christine has rattled through four main rules she's got to follow while on board the ship.

No gambling

The first rule is a strict 'no gambling' policy, as she explained it'd look bad if the partner of a crew member was raking in a jackpot at the slot machine.

Advert

She said: "It would look a little weird if I, as the wife of the staff chief engineer, won a big jackpot. So I am not allowed to gamble on the ship."

Badges must be worn

Another big rule was that she had to wear a badge whenever she was in crew sections of the ship so nobody thought she was a passenger poking around the place.

"I am allowed in crew areas and guest areas but with that said when I am in crew areas I always have to wear my badge visible so they know I'm 'one of them' and allowed down there," she explained.

No gambling, wear your badge, don't hog the activities and be insured. Easy enough, right?
Getty Stock Photo

Advert

Sorry to those of you who love gambling and hate wearing badges who'd always dreamed of living on a cruise ship.

The customer comes first

As for rule number three, this wasn't so much an official one as it was Christine figuring out for herself that having the run of a cruise ship has got to have its limits.

While she's allowed to do pretty much anything on board, she knows the customers have to come first.

She said: "If the pool is packed I make sure to get up and give the guests a seat, it's just the right thing to do.

Advert

"I used to be cruise director so I totally understand how to give guests the best time."


She also explained that when passengers disembark at a destination, the crew have to wait an hour, and while she was technically both, she had to wait too.

Insurance is key

Fourth and finally, and this one sounds more like life admin than anything, she's got to make sure she's insured to travel round the world.

Advert

She said: "When I'm on the ship travelling with my husband I do have to at all times have international travellers insurance, medical, if something were to happen.

"Because we live in the Netherlands we have coverage there, my husband holds it on me and we just pay a little bit extra every single month."

Honestly, those rules sound pretty easy to live with in exchange for a free cruise.

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@christinekesteloo/Getty Stock Images

Topics: Cruise Ship, Travel, TikTok

Joe Harker
Joe Harker

Joe graduated from the University of Salford with a degree in Journalism and worked for Reach before joining the LADbible Group. When not writing he enjoys the nerdier things in life like painting wargaming miniatures and chatting with other nerds on the internet. He's also spent a few years coaching fencing. Contact him via [email protected]

X

@MrJoeHarker

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

13 hours ago
a day ago
2 days ago
  • 13 hours ago

    Brits urged to check specific passport detail before holiday or risk being turned away

    It could ruin your holiday if you're not careful

    Lifestyle
  • a day ago

    Martin Lewis issued warning to people about using air fryers instead of ovens to cook food

    The Money Saving Expert has shared his advice on air fryers

    Lifestyle
  • a day ago

    Man who has visited every country in the world shares 'paradise' island that is severely underrated

    He even visited North Korea when tourists were allowed back earlier this year

    Lifestyle
  • 2 days ago

    Teacher sacked for being on OnlyFans hits back at Susanna Reid's 'cheap' comment on GMB

    Teacher turned OnlyFans creator Kirsty Buchan has hit back at the comment

    Lifestyle
  • Woman who lives on cruise for free shares the four things she can’t do while on ship
  • Four strict rules you must obey on a cruise according to woman who lives on one
  • Couple sold house and entire lives to live on cruise ship because it was cheaper than their old life
  • Woman who lives on cruise ship exposes 'dark truth' on how much she pays to live in solo cabin for one year