Enrichment Programs Enhance Learning at Sea

Cruise ship lecturers enrich the cruise vacation experience, adding an educational option and enhancing guest appreciation for the places they are sailing. These guest speakers may be on board a ship for one voyage or weeks or months at a time. Their job is to entertain as well as inform.

I've personally been lecturing on Holland America Line ships, and before that was a lecturer and Ventures Expedition team member for Seabourn Cruise Line in Alaska. I share with guests my love of all things Alaska and the maritime history of the U.S. West Coast.

Here's what guests should know about cruise line enrichment lectures.

Where to find enrichment lectures

Cruise guests will find enrichment lectures on most luxury cruises, expedition cruises, and small ship voyages, as well as on longer or specialized itineraries on larger cruise ships.

On luxury lines, such as Crystal Cruises, Seabourn, Explora Journeys, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, and Silversea, lecturers offer insight into topics that pertain to the ship's itinerary or general subjects of interest. On numerous transatlantic crossings aboard Cunard Line's Queen Mary 2, for instance, I've listened to lectures from former broadcasters, British Airways Concorde captains, maritime historians, and noted authors.

Expedition cruise ships, such as those of Quark Expeditions, Aurora Expeditions, and HX Expeditions, tend to have talks by a wide variety of lecturers who also double as part of the expedition team. These speakers are often accomplished scientists, photographers, filmmakers, botanists, wildlife experts, and marine biologists - and can offer guests expanded insight as they cruise remote destinations such as Antarctica, the Arctic, Greenland, and the Canadian Arctic. In some nature-focused destinations, such as the Galapagos, they include local naturalist guides.

Most big-ship lines, such as Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, MSC Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line, feature lectures on any world cruises (which have particularly extensive programming available), Panama Canal crossings, transatlantic sailings, and Alaska and British Columbia voyages.

Cruise ships visiting Glacier Bay Park and Preserve in Alaska, such as those of Holland America, Princess Cruises, and Norwegian, all have U.S. National Park Service (NPS) rangers onboard providing scenic commentary and lectures for the duration of the ship's stay. Working with the Huna Native Corporation's Alaska Native Voices program, several cruise lines - including Virgin Voyages and American Cruise Lines - also offer insight into local Tlingit culture with Native Cultural Heritage Guides onboard.

It can be hard to find out in advance who is lecturing on your voyage, but some cruise companies - such as Crystal Cruises and Ponant - have pages listing guest lecturers on their websites.

How guest lecturers are recruited

The job of guest lecturer is both to provide facts and entertain, and it doesn't end at the podium. Onboard lecturers are an extension of the ship's company. I've found myself in ship elevators and stairways, in buffet lines, and over martinis answering questions about topics of interest. It's the job of a good shipboard lecturer not just to know their subject matter, but to be approachable, gracious, and friendly for the duration of the voyage.

Because of the unique demands of lecturing aboard a cruise ship, cruise lines often use recruitment agencies to vet lecturers. Lecturers typically record themselves doing a presentation, or do a live audition, to ensure the subject matter, content delivery, and quality are appropriate.

Some lectures focus on shipboard life and sustainability practices

Many cruise lines have lectures that don't even appear to be lectures, in the traditional sense. These informal talks or presentations by the ship's crew, featuring, for instance, the entertainment team, chefs, or officers, may be presented as coffee chats or full-blown presentations in the ship's main show lounge, revealing what life is like behind the scenes.

A new option on lines such as Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line, and MSC Cruises, are eco-tours, where guests have opportunity to learn about their ship's operation and sustainability practices - while visiting, for instance, the engine control room, waste management, and recycling facilities. The cruise industry is on a path to net-zero cruising by 2050, and these highly popular small group tours keep cruisers in-the-know on sustainability advances.

Opportunity to learn

The best thing about attending lectures at sea is guests can learn without pressure or expectation. These aren't university courses; there are no grades or tests on the subject matter at hand.

A lecture at sea is a great way for cruise passengers to spend about 45 minutes of their morning or afternoon learning. They'll hear from someone who is knowledgeable and, most of all, passionate about their subject.

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