Just cruisin’ around

Dunstable College Tutor Maggie Parsons and her Travel and Tourism students recently paid an educational visit to a Saga cruise ship. The ship was docked at Southampton, where it was just hours away from embarking with its passengers and crew on a three-week cruise. Maggie and her students boarded the ship and began what Maggie described as an “inspirational experience”. The class was shown around the ship by a crew member. As the students had studied cruise liners of a bigger variety, they were not entirely sure what to expect. Since the ship was so close to sailing while the tour was going on, Maggie and her students were able to witness first hand the ship’s final preparations for departure. Maggie was particularly delighted that the students were treated as passengers, which meant that they were able to experience and therefore better understand the boarding procedures, which was very beneficial.

Maggie explains, “This was a most prestigious visit, because it is unusual for students to be allowed to explore a cruise liner like that one.”

The students certainly seemed impressed by their tour. Sammy Jo Denham and Kimberley Spurr, both aged 17 and from Leighton Buzzard, comment: “Visiting the cruise ship was really inspirational for both of us, as it has motivated us to look for career opportunities within the cruise industry. It was a fantastic day out and Saga Cruises treated us like royalty. The staff were more than happy to answer any questions we had.”

Maggie felt especially pleased with the outcome of the trip, “It makes a big difference for students to be able to be hands-on in their learning rather than just writing about it. It’s so rewarding to see students aspire to try something different; many, who didn’t even think about it before, are now giving serious consideration to cruise liner work.”