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Travel|They Live on Cruise Ships. People Love to Watch. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. They Live on Cruise Ships. People Love to Watch. Crew members’ videos let cruising fans get behind the scenes of what life is really like on board. (Spoiler: It’s not as glamorous as you might think.) Nov. 6, 2025, 5:00 a.m. ET For those who might picture living and working on a cruise ship for months at a time, images of debauched parties, amorous co-workers and glamorous travel may come to mind. What might not? Banana-eating contests, mandated quarterly cleaning of shower heads and the appearance of coveted Pringles at the below-deck crew shop. But in the world of cruise social media, those mundane details have millions of followers flocking to crew members’ accounts as they document their lives on board. Bryan Henderson, a singer and guitar player who lived and performed on Royal Caribbean ships for the better part of seven years, captured many of these crew rituals on video and shared them with his roughly 1.5 million followers across YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. “I think the content writes itself,” Mr. Henderson, 38, said. “I will wake up and look at something that will make me go, ‘I could make a video about this.’” Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe. Related Content Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
