Woman who works on cruise ship shares how much she actually spends each day on board
Bec Oakes
Featured Image Credit: TikTok/Instagram/@wanderlustalley
Ever wondered what it would be like to work on a cruise ship? One woman has shared how money works out on the open seas and it seems like a pretty good deal.
Alley Kerr works as a dance captain and company manager on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, performing in shows and liaising between management and the production cast members.
The 26-year-old regularly shares what life is like out at sea on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram under the name 'Wanderlust Alley'.
In a video posted to TikTok, Alley broke down the costs of living on board, and it's a lot cheaper than you'd think.
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She explains: "When it comes to my cabin, you may be surprised to find out that it's 100% free."
Alley then pans the camera across her room, which has a single bed, wardrobe, mirror, desk and storage space. There is also an en-suite bathroom.
The only fee Alley has to pay is $5 (£4) for housekeeping, which is more than reasonable.
"This goes for most of the food as well," she continues. "All meals in the mess are free and personally I really enjoy it."
The mess offers crew members buffet-style dining and the creator can be seen with three plates of food.
And, when Alley wants to treat herself to a meal at one of the ship's speciality restaurants, she gets staff discount.
The performer then shows viewers a Japanese restaurant on board called Izumi.
The meal came to a total of $40 (£33), which she only paid $32 (£26) for due to her employee discount, giving her a total spend for the day of $37 (£30).
Speaking to MailOnline about the benefits of being a cruise ship performer, she said: "It’s pretty incredible.
"As a performer I know that I'm gonna be able to have a salary, and when the paycheque comes in I know I'm going to be making money.
"Whereas when you do this on land, you have no idea of like what opportunities are or are not around the corner, and I find this to be a lot more sustainable because I'm not paying for rent and I'm not paying for food."
Alley continued: "In theory I could end up just pocketing all of the money that I'm getting."
Alley went on to explain how difficult it can be pursing a career in the entertainment industry and that most performers have second jobs to boost their income.
She said: "Everyone has like 10 jobs at a time, because it's so not sustainable to be a performer.
"I think [working on a cruise ship] is a really great way for me to save and like invest in my future because it's really hard to be able to save money when you're like barely making it in or London, or wherever you're pursuing entertainment."
Of course, getting to travel around the world is a massive bonus, with Alley saying she gets the 'most fulfilment from travelling'.
"I think it's a really neat experience to be able to see so many places in a way that I never would be able to," she added.