i have been to a hiring event for a big cruise line company. i forget which one it was. i can't speak on what it would be like as a chef but from what they were telling all of us who went to this presentation thing, it was pretty shitty all around.
let me see what i can remember...the living situation. at first you would have to share a small tiny cabin with another person. after you have been on board with the company for some time you might be able to get a cabin to yourself. the employee living deck is seperate from the guests.
pay was shit. now this may be different from company to company but i would think most are the same. it could also be different for people doing your line of work. the even i went to they were mainly talking to people who build sets, doing audio and visual stuff, live show productions etc. but there pay was not based on your experience so much. in fact, they said all new hired people make the same amount of money. if you were just starting out with the company you would get payed just under 1100 bucks a month. you would have to sign a 6 month crontract with them. after that contract if they offered you a job back you would get a pay increase to just over 1100 bucks a month.
if you worked for this company for a year you wouldnt even see 15 grand a year. shit when you factor in taxes, the fact that you would work about two or three weeks on and then a week or two off you would still have to keep an apartment or some place to live. so you are still paying rent and other bills.
another really shitty part they mentioned was that you could not go any place on the cruise ship where the guests would. so you couldn't go to the bar on the boat or any of the other fun places they provide. you would rarely ever get to get off the ship and explore the places they dock at unless you happen to have that day off. you eat in a seperate part of the ship so the guests dont see you.
all in all it seemed like a pretty shitty experience in my opinion. but it could vary to company to company too.
in the end i bet you would make more money working in a city