Deck 15 · Sail-away · 16:45
Cruise ships hire DJs all year. Almost nobody applies right.
We're a crew of working cruise DJs. We've written down the whole thing — the mix that actually gets shortlisted, the application that doesn't get binned, the interview, the medical, the contract, and your first night on deck. Including the gigs most DJs never hear about.
Free kit · No card needed · Not an agent — we never take a cut of your pay
Entertainment dept.
- Name
- — your name —
- Position
- Disc Jockey
- Ship
- to be assigned
- Contract
- 6 months
- Cabin
- Included
Straight talk first
What the job actually is
Before you spend a dollar with us, here's the honest version. If it still sounds good, keep reading.
You are crew, not a guest
You live on board, eat where you're allowed on board, and follow ship rules. You also get a bunk — in many cases your own room — plus meals and a flight home at the end of the contract, so your monthly spend drops close to zero.
Contracts run months, not nights
Three to seven months is normal. That's a long time away from home and a long time getting paid without chasing bookings, invoices, or a promoter who ghosts you.
You play for everybody
Sail-away, deck party, 70s night, teen club, silent disco, a wedding, a 90th birthday. Range beats genre loyalty. If you can only play one sound, this is the hard part.
The hiring is a process, not a break
There's an application, a mix, an interview, a medical, and paperwork. Every one of them has a way it's supposed to be done. That's what we teach.
The route
Seven ports between here and a signed contract
The course follows the hiring process in the order it actually happens. Each stop has a workbook chapter, a checklist, and something you finish before you move on.
Know the shipFleets, roles, and who hires whom
Which lines run in-house entertainment, which hire through partners, and what a DJ actually does on each. You'll pick three realistic targets instead of emailing all of them.
Build the mix they ask forThe 20-minute audition set
Structure, tempo, transitions, mic breaks, and the crowd-read they're listening for. Includes the exact set list template we submit ourselves.
Shoot the tapeVideo, sound, and looking like crew
A phone, a room, and one light is enough. What to wear, what's behind you, and the thirty seconds that decide whether they watch the rest.
The applicationCV, cover note, and where to send it
A one-page CV in the format recruiters expect, a cover note that isn't a paragraph about your passion, and a tracker so you know what's out and when to follow up.
The interviewVideo call, panel, and the trick questions
The questions that come up nearly every time, why "I'd play what I like" ends the call, and how to talk about living in a shared cabin for six months.
Paperwork and the medicalGetting to the gangway
Seafarer documents, visas, background checks, the pre-employment medical, and the timeline — so nothing you can control is the reason you miss a join date.
Your first contractLife on board, and getting asked back
Crew etiquette, the daily schedule, working with the cruise director, saving money, and the handful of habits that turn one contract into a career.
The workbook
It's not a video you watch once and forget
You fill it in. By the last page you have a finished audition mix, a shot tape, a CV, a target list, and a follow-up schedule — not a folder of notes.
- Fill-in worksheets for every port on the route, in order.
- Copy-and-edit templates — CV, cover note, follow-up email, set list.
- The audition checklist we run before we submit anything.
- An application tracker so you know what's out and what's overdue.
- Line-by-line notes on the major cruise lines and how they hire.
- A packing and paperwork list for the week you join a ship.
The fleet
Where these jobs are
Every major line sails with music on deck. They don't all hire the same way — some run entertainment in-house, some use casting and entertainment partners. The course covers the difference, and then the gigs that aren't on this list at all.
Party-forward sailings with deck events on nearly every voyage. High-energy, broad-format DJ work.
Multiple venues on one ship — deck, club, and themed nights running side by side.
Flexible venue programming and a long entertainment day. Range matters here.
Very mixed European and Latin American crowds. A second language is a real advantage.
Broad guest age range. Motown to current pop in the same night, read the room fast.
Design-led ships and a lounge-leaning sound. Polish and presentation count.
Serious live-music programming across several rooms. Great place to learn.
Family deck parties and youth programming. Clean edits and stagecraft are the job.
The closest thing at sea to a proper club booking. Strong scene credibility helps.
Italian-flagged, mostly European guests, Mediterranean itineraries in season.
Ballroom tradition alongside modern nights. Dress code and etiquette are part of it.
Quieter, culture-first sailings. Smaller rooms, lower volume, older crowd.
Fewer guests, more repeat sailors. You'll know names by day three.
Very small ships and a high service standard. One DJ covers everything.
Expedition and luxury itineraries in remote regions. Adaptability is the skill.
Short, high-turnover cruises. A good first contract to cut your teeth on.
Cruise DJs is an independent training company. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting as a recruiter for any cruise line named on this page. Company names are used to describe where DJ work exists. Always apply through a line's own careers page or an authorised hiring partner — and never pay anyone a fee for a job offer.
The part nobody tells you
The best DJ jobs at sea aren't on that list
A few weeks a year, a promoter buys an entire ship and fills it with one kind of music and the people who love it. Jazz. Country. Rock. Yacht Rock. Blues. EDM. Every cabin sold to somebody who chose that lineup on purpose.
These are full-ship music charters, and for a DJ they're the best week of the year. Most DJs have never heard of them. The ones who have usually don't know they're staffed on a completely different track from the cruise line's own hiring.
- You're playing for people who came for the musicNo wedding requests, no "do you have anything my mum would know". A room that actually listens.
- Different people do the hiringThe line runs the ship. Somebody else entirely books the entertainment — and they're not reading the same inbox.
- The same names get asked backCharters run annually with a loyal crowd. Land one properly and it can become a standing week in your calendar.
We know how these get staffed because this is the world we work in. That chapter isn't something you'll find on a forum.
Read this before you pay anyone
We're not an agent. We never touch your pay.
There's a whole industry between DJs and cruise ships, and a lot of it is paid out of your wages for as long as you keep sailing. We're not part of it. You pay us once, for the training, and that's the end of the money.
Agents and placement services
Paid out of what you earn
- A percentage comes out of your shipboard pay, contract after contract
- Some ask for money before you've been hired at all
- You're tied to whoever they put you in front of
- Leave them and you can lose the pipeline
- The relationship never really ends
Cruise DJs
Paid once, up front, and that's it
- One payment for the course and workbook. No commission, ever
- You apply direct to the line or its own hiring partner
- Your contract is between you and your employer — we're not on it
- What you learn is yours for every contract you ever sign
- We don't see your wages, and we don't want to
To be straight about it: we sell training, not employment. We're not an agent, not a recruiter, and we can't place you on a ship — nobody selling a course can. What we can do is teach you how the hiring works so you can go and get it yourself, without signing away a slice of every paycheck to do it.
The finish line
What you'll have by the last page
Not notes. Actual finished things, ready to send the day you close the workbook.
A 20-minute audition set
Recorded, structured, checkedBuilt to the shape recruiters listen for, with the mic break written out and the checklist run before you export it.
An audition tape
Shot, edited, hostedFilmed on a phone, lit with one light, and hosted somewhere that opens on the first click from any device.
A one-page CV and cover note
In the format they expectWritten to the layout cruise recruiters actually read, with a cover note short enough that they finish it.
A shortlist and a schedule
Three targets, dated follow-upsThree realistic lines with a reason for each, in a tracker that tells you what's out, who's replied, and when to nudge.
Free · Step one
Get your crew card
Tell us where you're at and we'll send the free hiring kit: the audition checklist, the CV template, and a plain-English map of who hires DJs and when. Then we'll keep you posted when a line opens up.
Entertainment dept.
- Name
- — your name —
- Position
- Disc Jockey
- Status
- Applicant
- Kit
- not sent
Questions
The ones we get every week
Do you get me the job?
No, and be careful with anyone who says they will. We're a training company. We teach you how the hiring process works and help you build the materials it asks for. You apply through the line or its authorised hiring partner, and you should never pay a fee for a job offer.
Do you take a percentage of what I earn on the ship?
No. Not a cent, not on this contract and not on any contract after it. You pay once for the course and the workbook and the money stops there. Agents work the other way — a slice of your wages for as long as you keep sailing — which is exactly the arrangement we built this to replace.
I've only played house parties. Is this too early for me?
It's the right time, actually. Ships care more about range, reliability, and reading a room than club credentials. The course starts at the beginning and tells you which gaps to close first.
I've already got contracts under my belt. What's in it for me?
Ports 06 and 07 — negotiating a better contract, moving to a bigger ship or a better line, and building the reputation that gets you asked back by name. Then the bonus chapter on full-ship music charters, which is the part experienced ship DJs tend to buy this for.
What's a music charter, and why do you keep going on about them?
It's when a promoter buys out an entire ship for a themed sailing — one genre, a full lineup, and a few thousand guests who booked it for the music. For a DJ it's the best week at sea, and it's staffed completely differently from a regular cruise. The bonus chapter covers who books them, when they staff, and what they want from you.
Do I need my own gear?
Usually not — most ships have installed DJ setups, and we cover the common ones so you're not learning a new mixer in front of six hundred people. You'll want your own headphones and a couple of USB drives.
How long does it take to get hired?
Honestly, it varies — weeks if a line is short-staffed for a season, months if you're aiming at one specific company. The workbook includes a realistic timeline and a follow-up schedule so you're not sitting there wondering.
Is the workbook printed or digital?
Digital, so you get it straight away and you can reprint any worksheet as many times as you need. It's built to be printed at home if you'd rather write on paper.
Last call
Two ways to start
Take the free kit and read it. Or skip ahead and get the full course and workbook today.