- 14 hours ago
A floating city on the sea, with privileged access to every part of the cruise's operations, uncovering the army of people and complex systems that keep this ship functioning....
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00:00:00The MSC Seaside is one of the biggest cruise ships in the world.
00:00:05Built at a cost of over £1 billion and weighing in at 160,000 tonnes,
00:00:11it's home to more than 6,500 people.
00:00:17With 2,000 guest rooms and 800 staff cabins, it's a giant floating hotel.
00:00:23We can go through 20,000 eggs per day.
00:00:27A glamorous holiday destination.
00:00:30Everything is so much fun. Everything is there for you.
00:00:34This is the events you've all been waiting for.
00:00:39And an astonishing feat of engineering.
00:00:43This is one of the most huge generators in the world.
00:00:47But how does this city at sea really work?
00:00:51With exclusive access to a luxury Caribbean voyage,
00:00:54we explore the ship's hidden secrets.
00:00:58This is huge. Without the laundry, nothing is going to happen.
00:01:01We're feeding the fish. It's recycling in a nice way, isn't it?
00:01:06It's quite amazing. All these mechanisms have to work together.
00:01:09And the hidden army of people that keep this extraordinary ship running.
00:01:15Any cruise ship this size is the biggest food operation in the world.
00:01:20This is the secret life of the cruise.
00:01:28This is the secret life of the cruise.
00:01:29It's 7am on Saturday, and the gigantic MSC Seaside has just docked in Port Miami,
00:01:36the biggest cruise ship terminal in the world.
00:01:38In just 12 hours' time, this floating city is heading off for a week-long cruise,
00:01:45travelling more than 2,000 miles across the Caribbean.
00:01:48But before then, it needs to be transformed.
00:01:51There are over 2,000 rooms to clean, 5,000 passengers to disembark,
00:01:57and 15,000 pieces of luggage to come off in just a few hours.
00:02:02Then the ship needs to be refuelled, restocked, and refilled with passengers all over again.
00:02:08In the cruise business, it's known as turnaround day.
00:02:12And the clock is ticking.
00:02:14Many people think that we're coming in the day before.
00:02:17We stay overnight, we take a rest, and then the next morning they come on and they see the ship.
00:02:23So many people ask me, when did you arrive? And we say, we arrived this morning.
00:02:26But how can the crew do so much in so little time?
00:02:30Of course, our turnaround day is very hectic, but this is a dance,
00:02:34because everything has its timing, and it's like a choreography.
00:02:37The day is a complicated ballet, where every crew member needs to remember their moves.
00:02:43But this complex dance relies on something a bit more mundane.
00:02:47One very long corridor.
00:02:50Down on deck 4, a secret crew passage runs the entire length of the ship.
00:02:55It's known as the I-95.
00:02:58It's the only way to move people and cargo quickly around the ship,
00:03:02and it's crucial to the entire operation.
00:03:05How many elevator we're using? Only one?
00:03:07Guys, hold on the elevator.
00:03:10First thing in the morning, the I-95 is packed,
00:03:13as a hidden army of workers take 15,000 bags off the ship,
00:03:18through just two doors, in less than two hours.
00:03:23Of course, you see that we have our pool attendants helping us with the luggage,
00:03:26because on turnaround days, all hands on deck, we need all the manpower available.
00:03:30Please align all the people right now, please.
00:03:34And it's just as busy portside, where a separate team of dock workers have to work in tandem with the
00:03:41ship's crew.
00:03:42We normally have about 13 forklifts and 57 porters working on a given day.
00:03:47It's extremely hectic.
00:03:49It isn't just luggage coming ashore.
00:03:51Over the last week, the ship has accumulated some unpleasant cargo.
00:03:5750,000 gallons of human waste.
00:04:01Today, five tanker loads of poo will be removed for disposal.
00:04:10For the turnaround machine to work, the ship has to be loaded at the same time it's being emptied.
00:04:17This morning, it needs to be stocked with enough food and drink to last the entire week.
00:04:24This is for those cones, you know? This is for the decorations.
00:04:28Where is the cativa?
00:04:30Giuseppe, where are the aragosti here?
00:04:33Ben Mohamed is in charge of the operation.
00:04:36The other guy is at the point.
00:04:39This one is at lobster inside, I have to go on board.
00:04:43Every week, I'm talking, it's chaos, but the chaos has a limit.
00:04:47In six hours, Ben and his team will load 160 tonnes of food onto the ship, worth over a million
00:04:55dollars.
00:04:57Throughout the morning, lorries arrive from a complex network of warehouses and suppliers that stretches across the world.
00:05:04It's very complex. We used to be not more than 1,200 guests. The ships are bigger and bigger and
00:05:10bigger.
00:05:11Today, it's more sophisticated, and it's a lot of area to control too, you know?
00:05:16Of course, it can work like wild old machines, you know? Like a Swiss wash machine, okay?
00:05:23All of this food needs to be loaded onto the ship through a single door.
00:05:28To prevent a backlog, it's delivered immediately to one of 48 separate food stores.
00:05:34Everything has a place, and every crate has to be loaded at a specific time.
00:05:40One late delivery can threaten to disrupt the entire machine.
00:05:46You are late again. Very bad. I don't like it.
00:05:51This is catering on a massive scale.
00:05:54In one week, the ship's passengers will consume 70,000 eggs, 15 tonnes of meat, and 47 tonnes of fruit
00:06:03and veg.
00:06:08Every item must be checked rigorously before it goes on board.
00:06:12Nothing can go back on board without the speaker of K9.
00:06:16If the course car comes and it goes on board without the K9, that's trouble.
00:06:22As well as safety, Ben and his team have to check every item for quality.
00:06:27This is halibut. That's come from Alaska.
00:06:30Salmon. For the sushi. Look how beautiful.
00:06:34This is a ribeye steak, 20 oz. This is our biggest protein product.
00:06:40Blackberry. This is for pastries. Then the strawberry, we don't want them big, we don't want them small.
00:06:46Every week, the Czechs throw up some surprises.
00:06:51You see what's happened to the pineapple? This is a freezer burr.
00:06:55And what's happened is softness and ruin the product.
00:06:59Even if it's one case, we send a whole lot, you have to give me a new product.
00:07:04In the next two hours, you have to bring me pineapples.
00:07:06I will call the vendors now, and I will tell him that all the pineapple have to be returned.
00:07:18Moving luggage and food is only half the battle. The most important job on turnaround day is to move people.
00:07:28All passengers have to be off the ship by 11.30 a.m.
00:07:32This moment is known as the zero count.
00:07:35If any guests are still on board, it means that none of the new passengers can get on.
00:07:41What's the 10.30 count, if you have it for me, please?
00:07:45On board 500. 5-0-0 on board at 10.30.
00:07:51Thank you very much, Miss Ruby. Let's get them out quickly.
00:07:57New passengers are already arriving at Terminal F, where the seaside is docked.
00:08:02Built specifically to handle this ship, it's the biggest terminal at Miami Port, and it's already getting busy.
00:08:11We're actually about 120 people left on board, and we already have about 200 people checked in.
00:08:19This is probably the most nerve-wracking point of the day, when you're right between getting people off and getting
00:08:25people on.
00:08:26At this point, we start searching people, looking for them in the rooms, around the pool, the open bars, and
00:08:33just making sure we get down to zero people as quickly as possible.
00:08:40Port side provisions master Ben has had some good news. In less than two hours, his network of suppliers have
00:08:49come through.
00:08:49As you can see, I show you this morning the pineapple return. By 11 o'clock, the replacement was here.
00:08:57The vendor's here, we have a good relation with them, to supply us what we need.
00:09:02Giorgio, listen, and thank you very much. You just arrived now, I see the pineapple coming out.
00:09:07Thanks, Giorgio. Thanks. Have a good day.
00:09:11The ship is also being stocked with everything else it needs for the following week, from 7,000 rolls of
00:09:18toilet paper to replacement engine parts.
00:09:21The technical part, the medical part, just name it, you know.
00:09:26For a seven-day trip, the ship also needs more than 1,000 tonnes of fuel.
00:09:34Back above deck, the last of the passengers are finally making their way out.
00:09:40All crew, all crew. Zero count. We have zero count. Start the embarkation. Zero count.
00:09:47Brilliant!
00:09:49With the holidaymakers gone, it's the only time in the entire week when there are no passengers on board.
00:09:56Cruise director Gene Young uses this time for a quick motivational speech.
00:10:01Well, attention all crew, attention all crew, this is your cruise director Gene Young speaking.
00:10:06Congratulations on finishing another incredible voyage.
00:10:08I put the challenge out to you, my friends, my family members.
00:10:12This cruise, let us say hello to each other.
00:10:14Let us be the best that we can be, because you are the best. You are wonderful.
00:10:18And our guests love you. Let us do it. Let us do it great, and let us do it again.
00:10:23Thank you.
00:10:25The respite doesn't last for long. Five minutes later, it's time for boarding.
00:10:31So, stand by for boarding.
00:10:37And the week starts all over again.
00:10:43By midday, the front desk is checking in up to a thousand passengers an hour.
00:10:51The holidaymakers are already exploring the ship.
00:10:57Oh, wow. Hello, guys. Hello. How are you doing?
00:11:01Such a nice impression in.
00:11:03Wow. Just wow.
00:11:04Wow, yeah. Shiny, bright. Can't wait to go have a look around.
00:11:09So, we're about to go into our room.
00:11:12Oh, it's open. It's open.
00:11:13Oh, my gosh.
00:11:17This is nice.
00:11:19Oh, wow. What a massive mirror.
00:11:23Downstairs, on the I-95, another group of people are getting their first glimpse of the ship.
00:11:29And things look very different down here.
00:11:32You in China? Yeah? Where are you coming from?
00:11:36Honduras.
00:11:37Philippines. Philippines. How are you?
00:11:40Welcome on board. Yeah?
00:11:42On every cruise, there are up to 200 new members of staff.
00:11:47As up to a tenth of the crew leave for holiday or to work on other ships.
00:11:52This room is that we receive our crew members.
00:11:54We're going to make all the paperwork for immigration.
00:11:57We're going to sign them on. They get their cabin assignment.
00:12:00At the on-board uniform store, they have to keep uniforms for every job, in every size.
00:12:07Just one tiny part of a hidden world, but crucial for keeping this ship running.
00:12:14On turnaround day, everything has to be perfectly choreographed.
00:12:18But there's one factor that's out of anyone's control.
00:12:32At the cruise terminal, bad weather can have major consequences.
00:12:36The storm means planes aren't able to land at Miami airport.
00:12:41And many of these planes are carrying passengers bound for the cruise.
00:12:46Hey, that American Airlines flight that was scheduled for Boston was diverted to Fort Lauderdale with 39 passengers.
00:12:55Hold on. Come again. 39 passengers?
00:12:59Oh, Lord. All right, I'm coming up.
00:13:01But how do you keep tabs on more than 5,000 passengers arriving from all over the globe?
00:13:07With the clock ticking, the terminal team are in constant contact with travel agents to check how many passengers are
00:13:14missing.
00:13:15The British air flight that's been delayed all day, it's still in the air right now.
00:13:19There's eight on there.
00:13:20And American Airlines 207, there's four guests, it should be that one, is still surfing.
00:13:27OK, so 51 people in total?
00:13:29Correct.
00:13:29So that means they won't be here before seven?
00:13:32Well, yeah.
00:13:34Right on seven?
00:13:35Right around seven.
00:13:37The storm clouds don't last for long.
00:13:41It's time for the captain to make his final preparations for departure.
00:13:46It's always exciting to be in command of such huge, modern and beautiful vessel.
00:13:52But how do you even begin to move a vessel of this size?
00:13:59OK, after session, advice when you are ready.
00:14:02The key lies downstairs in the engine room.
00:14:06Before departure, the ship's engineers have to ready the ship's four giant engines.
00:14:11So let's start the third generator and let's go in manoeuvring mode.
00:14:16The engines stir into life, transferring 80,000 horsepower to the six metre high propellers at the back of the
00:14:24ship.
00:14:25With the doors about to close, Patricia has some good news.
00:14:29Her passengers have arrived just in time.
00:14:32They're made it, they're all here, they're out, they're checking in.
00:14:35Ah, how exciting.
00:14:38We have the green light, we have all guests on board.
00:14:41Good evening, madame, we'll be ready in 15 minutes, around five minutes.
00:14:46With all passengers on board, the ship is ready for the final act of turnaround day.
00:14:53Even if you do exactly the same manoeuvres, they are always different each other.
00:14:57Every single day is different.
00:15:00Yeah.
00:15:02Okay, post-site clear, very good.
00:15:04Hidden beneath the water line, the ship engages its thrusters.
00:15:09Smaller propellers built into the side of the ship.
00:15:13All seven thrusters are in operation, we can analyze the bridge now.
00:15:18Bridge, front forward, thrusters clear.
00:15:20Auto's clear, forward.
00:15:22Copy, forward, thrusters clear.
00:15:23The ship is equipped with seven of these thrusters in total,
00:15:27allowing the 160,000-tonne vessel to pull away from the dock with inch-perfect precision.
00:15:37After five minutes, the ship is safely in the middle of the channel.
00:15:42The propellers engage, and the seaside begins to make its way forward into open ocean.
00:15:51Fourteen hours after arriving in Miami, the MSC seaside is on its way again.
00:16:02For most of the next week, the ship will be at sea, with 6,500 people on board.
00:16:08But what keeps this sea-bound city afloat 24-7?
00:16:12This is one of the most huge generators in the world.
00:16:24It's day two of the MSC seaside's Caribbean cruise, and the ship is powering through the Atlantic Ocean.
00:16:32Over 300 metres long, and weighing 160,000 tonnes, the vessel is part of a new generation of monster cruise
00:16:42ships.
00:16:43If it was on land, it would be one of the 50 biggest hotels in the world.
00:16:49There are over 6,500 people on board.
00:17:05The ship is huge, we're losing the kids, we're getting lost all the time.
00:17:09We can't find the same bar straight away, you know, we're looking for heaters.
00:17:13When we first got on the ship in Miami, it was just, you know, how big it was.
00:17:17It was described as a floating hotel, but it just seemed more than that when we see it.
00:17:2120 storeys high, the ship has 9 restaurants, 11 bars, shopping plazas, a gym, a 1,000 seat theatre, a
00:17:38spa, a nightclub, a bowling alley, a full size basketball court, and one of the biggest water parks at sea.
00:17:46This ship is not like a ship, it's like a city, it's got everything, it's unbelievable.
00:17:51But this floating city needs a vast amount of electricity to function.
00:17:57So how does the ship get all the power it needs?
00:18:01The secret lies here, buried in the depths of the ship, in the engine room.
00:18:08Noisy and boiling hot, it couldn't be more different to the glitz and glamour above deck.
00:18:15But the engine room is the seaside's beating heart.
00:18:20Here, four massive engines work as supersized electric generators.
00:18:26If you love engine generators, this is the best place. This is our big generator, not that we call the
00:18:36big brother.
00:18:36We have 14 cylinders. This is one of the most huge generators in the world.
00:18:45Combined, they produce 80,000 horsepower in total.
00:18:50This raw power is then converted to electricity.
00:18:54The engine gives the mechanical power. All of the mechanical power is transformed into electrical energy by the alternator system.
00:19:04Just one generator right now, we are giving it to all ships.
00:19:08The engines can produce enough electricity to power 50,000 homes.
00:19:15And they also drive this ship across the ocean.
00:19:20Two giant propeller shafts run all the way through the engine room, to the 26-ton propellers at the back
00:19:27of the ship.
00:19:27And something so special, when you're just thinking through this shaft, all the power of the ship are going.
00:19:35And just on the other side, you have the propeller.
00:19:43The engine room is also the key to another vital commodity that the ship needs in bucket loads.
00:19:51Water. On board, there are 30 swimming pools and jacuzzis.
00:19:56And more than 3,000 showers and taps.
00:19:59And every department on the ship, from the galleys to the engine, requires a constant supply of clean, fresh water.
00:20:06You'll do very well. Ready to go. 3, 2, 1.
00:20:10Ball in the floor!
00:20:14In total, the ship needs 250,000 gallons of it every day.
00:20:22So how does it quench this thirst?
00:20:30This is one of the most huge and big systems of fresh water generator production in the world.
00:20:38So what do we do? We take the sea water here through this pipe.
00:20:44Come 600 tonnes of water per hour.
00:20:47Underwater, huge pumps are constantly sucking in water from the sea.
00:20:53Then, in two industrial desalination machines, waste steam and heat from the engines boil the sea water to remove the
00:21:02salt.
00:21:03Once treated, the distillated sea water is clean enough to drink.
00:21:08It's pumped throughout the ship.
00:21:10This water comes out from our shower, or from our hand wash.
00:21:15And for swimming, it puts it everywhere. You see water? It comes from this system.
00:21:20The system can produce 3,000 tonnes of fresh water a day.
00:21:26Enough to fill 400 of these swimming pools.
00:21:31But this floating hotel doesn't just rely on secret systems.
00:21:36It also depends on a hidden army of people.
00:21:41Every day, 60 cleaners are constantly at work, cleaning the ship's 20 storeys of staircases and 10 kilometres of corridors.
00:21:52Meanwhile, a team of 112 cabin stewards have to strip and make more than 2,000 beds.
00:21:59A thousand of these linen bags are filled every day.
00:22:04But how does the ship deal with so much laundry?
00:22:08Hidden away on deck three, another department is absolutely crucial to the smooth running of the ship.
00:22:15Oh, this is huge. Without the laundry, the ship is not operational.
00:22:20Everybody thinks the housekeeping and the dining room without the food cannot be operational.
00:22:25No, without the laundry, nothing can happen.
00:22:29Almost everybody on board relies on regular deliveries of clean laundry.
00:22:35In one day, they have to process 14,000 pool towels, 10,000 sheets and 60,000 napkins.
00:22:47Everything comes down here.
00:22:48If you're looking at the hotel in Las Vegas, they have 2,000 rooms as well.
00:22:52The difference is, in the hotel, they have different laundry operations.
00:22:57They bring it to them every day, and they collect the dirty ones in here.
00:23:01Everything is in-house, and so everything needs to be connected within your operation.
00:23:06If one machine broke down, I'm already on a crunch time because the restaurant cannot operate without the tablecloth and
00:23:13the napkins.
00:23:18To get through this never-ending deluge of linen, the laundry is staffed round the clock by a team of
00:23:2428 people.
00:23:30Again, the ship's engines play a vital role in powering this department.
00:23:36They produce huge amounts of waste, heat and steam, which is harvested before being piped here to the massive machines.
00:23:46This tunnel washer alone is capable of cleaning up to 1,000 sheets every hour.
00:23:53After the washing cycle, a robotic arm moves the material to one of four huge dryers.
00:24:03This is the only thing that can accommodate the needs of the ship.
00:24:08Without this, we can never meet the expectation.
00:24:12Once the laundry is washed and dried, another machine presses and folds it into perfect squares.
00:24:19Make sure you get the end-to-end like this, then you have a quality linen coming out on the
00:24:24other side.
00:24:25See? Well pressed. See that? Okay. Continue what you're doing. And you need to be faster.
00:24:31The next person just have to collect the finished product and goes into the storage place.
00:24:36Very, very impressive how this machine is designed. It's very beautiful.
00:24:41With a turnaround time of one hour, the newly cleaned, dried and pressed laundry is ready to go.
00:24:48I'm very proud to manage this beautiful operation. I am just as proud as a cow.
00:24:55Like, what did I say?
00:24:59Upstairs, the ship's army of cleaners have another important role to play.
00:25:05Every day, they need to dispose of all the rubbish.
00:25:09With 6,500 passengers and crew living on board, you can imagine how much garbage is being generated on a
00:25:17daily basis.
00:25:18So how does the seaside deal with this growing mountain of waste?
00:25:24Down in the ship's onboard garbage room, an army of sorters have to painstakingly separate it all by hand.
00:25:32When the crew members come on board, I take a class. Each person being trained how we need to separate
00:25:39the waste on board. And it is their responsibility.
00:25:43Only after it's been meticulously sorted, can the waste be processed.
00:25:51Every day, this room receives 10 tonnes of garbage, including 2,000 cans and 3,000 glass bottles.
00:26:05We do not want to pollute the sea. You know, we don't want to discharge the sea. This is one
00:26:10of the most eco-friendly ships in the world.
00:26:1380% of the waste generated on the ship can be recycled. The rest is taken back to Miami.
00:26:24Just keeping this ship afloat takes an army of people. But perhaps the biggest task is keeping everyone on board
00:26:32fed.
00:26:32You're dishing up too many at the time, okay?
00:26:35And dealing with the consequences.
00:26:46It's day three of the MSC Seaside's Caribbean cruise, and the ship is on course for Jamaica.
00:26:57On board, 5,000 passengers have settled into cruise life. Relaxing, drinking, and perhaps most importantly, eating.
00:27:07Can you make sure that they don't put it on top of each other?
00:27:10They need to put it nicely like this.
00:27:12People always ask me, how many meals do you serve a day?
00:27:15And I say, well, most passengers, they have only one meal.
00:27:18They start in the morning, and they finish at night. They eat continuously. It's only one meal for them, right?
00:27:29But how do you go about feeding the 5,000?
00:27:34The key is sheer manpower.
00:27:37800 people work in the food and beverage team.
00:27:40That's more than half of the entire crew.
00:27:43Together they cook, plate, and serve 15 tonnes of food a day.
00:27:49Every evening, passengers eat at two massive restaurants.
00:27:53Capable of serving 1,500 people at a time, they run three separate sittings a night.
00:28:00First sitting, very quiet.
00:28:03Second sitting, very busy.
00:28:05And extremely busy on the third sitting, okay?
00:28:08Let's go and get them, huh?
00:28:10Thank you, guys.
00:28:13At 5pm, the team kicks into action.
00:28:19With 250 well-drilled crew members working in two huge galleys, Thomas has to make sure everyone is up to
00:28:27standard.
00:28:29Don't cook too much fish in advance, okay?
00:28:32Pieces like that don't need to be on there, right?
00:28:35Don't serve that, okay?
00:28:37You make sure you're decorating the food with chopped parsley or something all the time.
00:28:44Any cruise ship this size is the biggest food operation in the world, because it's not like a hotel.
00:28:50A hotel might also have 5,000 beds, but half of them don't eat in the hotel.
00:28:56Here, they have no choice. There's nowhere else they can go.
00:28:59But the galleys are only one part of a vast catering operation.
00:29:04Behind the scenes, there is a hidden labyrinth of stores, fridges and freezers stretching over 15 floors.
00:29:1124 hours a day, these supply lines have to constantly replenish the galleys above.
00:29:18Nobody really understands the scope of what we do on board, unless you've been part of this industry before.
00:29:26Imagine 6,500 persons, diverse, multinationalities, multilingual, and a wide array of exquisite tastes.
00:29:38And we have to accommodate to each one of these tastes as much as possible.
00:29:44Each one of the stores is specially dedicated to a certain product, so there's no cross-contamination.
00:29:52This is just for ice cream. Just for ice cream.
00:29:57And you also have a little weird favor, go over hazelnut.
00:30:00I mean, what is, who would have that? Have you ever had that?
00:30:03All right, so we're going to go over to the call room.
00:30:06I need a coat to go into this room.
00:30:09It's like being in Alaska.
00:30:12All right, let's do this.
00:30:13Okay, so this is a fish room. Look at these guys.
00:30:17They big, they nice, they juicy.
00:30:21Yeah, this is what we're talking about.
00:30:23The net weight of this bag is 2 pounds.
00:30:26Just to let you know, in a night, yeah, we can consume over 1,500 pounds of shrimp.
00:30:33Just in one sitting, yeah?
00:30:35It's the same like when we do eggs, you know?
00:30:38We can go through 20,000 eggs per day.
00:30:42Easily. 20,000 eggs.
00:30:46Every item in these freezers needs to be defrosted at the exact right time.
00:30:52Too early and the food will spoil in massive quantities.
00:30:55Too late and there won't be enough to serve.
00:30:59Although the cruise only lasts seven days, the ship must keep enough for two weeks in case of emergencies.
00:31:06We are sailing in North America and we encounter a lot of hurricanes, a lot of unfavorable weather conditions.
00:31:13And we may or may not miss a port, but if we do, we do have enough stock on board
00:31:18to take us past for a couple of days.
00:31:21And guests don't just need to eat.
00:31:25With 11 bars on board, the alcohol stores are some of the best stocked on the ship.
00:31:31One of the first priorities is ensuring that we have the nectar of life, the nectar of fun, which we
00:31:37all know to be alcohol.
00:31:38So we've got the cordials, the liquors, the beers, the water.
00:31:43You need to rehydrate and then you repeat.
00:31:45In one cruise, thirsty passengers will go through 2,000 bottles of spirits, 8,000 bottles of wine and 10
00:31:55,000 litres of beer.
00:31:57We're not a party boat. It's a boat that caters for everyone's individual thirst.
00:32:03Good food and lots of alcohol aren't the only ways to keep the ship's passengers happy.
00:32:09From dance groups, to shopping sales, to weddings.
00:32:15Give you this ring, as a symbol of my love.
00:32:19The crew lay on hundreds of activities a day to entertain them.
00:32:23And there's one man in particular who's responsible for keeping the party going.
00:32:28All right, stand right, stay early, segment one.
00:32:30Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen. I'm your cruise director, Gene.
00:32:32And I'm your cruise star manager, Canon.
00:32:34And welcome back to the morning zoo.
00:32:36Ladies and gentlemen, we hope you had a nice couple of days here on board MSC Seaside.
00:32:41We've had a wonderful time.
00:32:43So that we can introduce ourselves.
00:32:46Gene Young is the ship's cruise director.
00:32:50As the public face of the ship, he has to be happy at all times.
00:32:55They're looking for a Disneyland experience.
00:32:58Everything is so much fun.
00:32:59Everything is there for you.
00:33:01This city of fun, this city of pleasure.
00:33:05I define the excitement.
00:33:07And I define it because it is there and it can be defined.
00:33:10Look how wonderful this is.
00:33:11Aren't you having such a neat time?
00:33:13But what's the secret to keeping more than 5,000 passengers happy?
00:33:18The first rule is to be very nice to everyone.
00:33:23I like your bikini. That's nice.
00:33:24I studied people, studied their emotions, how to drive their emotions.
00:33:30As a cruise director, I specifically tried to figure out what are people thinking?
00:33:33What brings them anxiety? What brings them joy?
00:33:37How old? It's got to be.
00:33:38The second rule is to practice.
00:33:41I hate to say it, but it is rehearsed spontaneity.
00:33:44I rehearse trying to make sure that they can relax so they can enjoy.
00:33:47And so it's something that I rehearse all the time.
00:33:52The ship's huge restaurants are coming towards the end of their first sitting.
00:33:56And in the galleys, a dedicated team of workers are slicing and dicing a mountain of produce.
00:34:04They're helped by some industrial-sized equipment.
00:34:09It's basically washing our fruit before we process them.
00:34:14A machine like that you probably would only find in a commercial plant where they make canned fruit and things
00:34:20like that.
00:34:21We've got one here. Beautiful.
00:34:24It's just the right length for me.
00:34:28To have my jacuzzi, no?
00:34:31We can actually have a spin dryer in there when you have a different kind of fruit.
00:34:36Almost like a closed spin dryer.
00:34:40This is probably the cleanest pineapple on the ship right now that we have.
00:34:45Together, these machines can power through 300 kilograms of fruit and veg every hour.
00:34:51In all my time of working on cruise ships, this is the first time that I see this kind of
00:34:56technology on a ship.
00:34:58It's state-of-the-art stuff.
00:35:00The chefs also need some super-sized kitchenware.
00:35:04Some of these boilers, they hold about 300, 250, 300 litres, some of them.
00:35:09And this is what we need here, you know?
00:35:11When we make tomato sauce, I make 300 litres every day.
00:35:15Just tomato sauce, every day.
00:35:17And it's gone at the end of the day.
00:35:19Even the dish washing is an industrial operation.
00:35:24After each sitting, every single plate needs to be washed.
00:35:28This is the clean side of the operation.
00:35:33Comes out here, gets dried, piled up and pushed back into the operation.
00:35:39We actually need everything for the second sitting and the third sitting.
00:35:44The food has a rest after the first sitting.
00:35:48We replenish the line.
00:35:49But these guys, it's continued.
00:35:52As soon as all the crockery is washed, the galley has to gear up for the second and third sittings.
00:35:58You're dishing up too many at the time, okay?
00:36:01Do half and then take them off, put them into the cooler and then do the next one.
00:36:06As the restaurant gets busier, the team work like clockwork.
00:36:12This is now very well organised.
00:36:14From now on forward until the end of the service until everybody has their food.
00:36:19It's well organised.
00:36:20Very good team I have here.
00:36:21They never stop.
00:36:26Over four hours, this galley will cook, plate up and serve 14,000 plates of food.
00:36:35But at the end of the last service, the work isn't over.
00:36:39We have a night shift and a day shift, so it's a 24 hour operation.
00:36:44Almost half of them actually working overnight.
00:36:46So when the culinary team comes back in the morning, everything is nice and clean, floors, ceilings.
00:36:54We do a total wash down every night.
00:36:58And cruise ship catering has one more secret.
00:37:02Every day, a tonne and a half of food is left over by passengers.
00:37:07That's enough to feed another 500 people.
00:37:10So what happens to all this waste?
00:37:14In each galley, giant grinders crush the leftovers, before it drops three floors below, where it's stored in tanks.
00:37:23Then, when out at sea, the ship discharges this waste as fish food.
00:37:29Sometimes on a day when we're allowed to discharge the food waste, you can spot some dolphins out here and
00:37:36they're following us because of that.
00:37:38So we're feeding the fish. It's recycling in a nice way, isn't it?
00:37:49And all this eating has other consequences.
00:37:52With six and a half thousand passengers and crew downing at least three meals a day, the ship's sewage system
00:37:59works hard.
00:38:02But this city at sea can't have normal sewers.
00:38:06So how does it deal with all the poo?
00:38:10It all happens here, in the bowels of the ship.
00:38:14All the human waste from the ship come in here, in this room.
00:38:19This is advanced waste water treatment.
00:38:22Every day, this secret sewer has to treat 30 tonnes of human waste.
00:38:28On board, it's known as black water.
00:38:31When I come first day, when I feel this smell, I didn't like, but day after day, this is normal,
00:38:39eh?
00:38:40Nobody likes the wall here because you smell.
00:38:43Also, it's very hot, but what we can do? Somebody must keep this system in good condition.
00:38:49The seaside has its own specially developed system for processing the waste.
00:38:54First, under huge pressure, the solid is separated from the liquid in a pressing machine.
00:39:00The liquid coming here and going to stage one.
00:39:06Solid coming here and going down in the slurry tank.
00:39:13The solid waste is removed every week in Miami.
00:39:17The liquid needs further treatment.
00:39:19This is stage one. The tide is very dirty.
00:39:242,000 gallons a day filters down into these tanks.
00:39:29So, now I show you how is the water in the beginning.
00:39:37You can see the colour. It's very, very, very dirty.
00:39:41The black water is filtered until it's almost as clean as drinking water.
00:39:47The water passed the filtration, separation, passed from this membrane and coming here in this tank.
00:40:00You can see it. This is the final product.
00:40:03Can you drink?
00:40:04Yes, if you want.
00:40:07This water doesn't get drunk.
00:40:10Some of it is siphoned off to cool the massive engines.
00:40:15The rest is safe enough to be discharged into the sea.
00:40:21The cruise is reaching its halfway point.
00:40:24And tomorrow, the captain and his team face one of the biggest challenges of the entire trip.
00:40:31You risk to create a serious damage to the ship.
00:40:34There are no marginal mistakes.
00:40:457am on the bridge of the MSC seaside.
00:40:50She's travelled almost 1,000 miles from Miami and in one hour is due to dock in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
00:40:57But the port throws up some particularly difficult challenges for a ship of this size.
00:41:04This is the port.
00:41:06Here is just a big coral reef that we enter from this direction.
00:41:13As you may see, a vessel is docked here. Reefs are here.
00:41:17If you just delay a bit, the moment that you start to change your route, you can easily hit something.
00:41:25Or if you don't control your speed, you can easily ground, which is even worse.
00:41:31The vessel at the end finishes very close. There are no marginal mistakes.
00:41:37So how do you navigate something this complex?
00:41:41While out at sea, the ship travels on autopilot.
00:41:45But as they approach land, the captain assumes full control.
00:41:50Okay, we can keep proceeding with this course and speed, no problem.
00:41:53Okay.
00:41:54Now, if anyone on the bridge makes a navigational error, the ship's computer will not correct it.
00:42:01As the seaside enters the narrow port, the key is to slow down as much as possible.
00:42:08Mission to the wheel.
00:42:10Yes, mission.
00:42:11It approaches first at three, then two knots.
00:42:16Any faster, and the 300-meter-long ship will be almost impossible to control.
00:42:25By this point, the ship is less than 200 meters from another vessel, and 150 meters away from surrounding reefs.
00:42:33It now needs to pivot 45 degrees towards the dock, without any forward movement.
00:42:40The ship is so big that the team move to the bridge wing.
00:42:44Underwear the wheel.
00:42:45Underwear the wheel.
00:42:47Take over the wheel on the stubble wing.
00:42:50And take over all the controls.
00:42:52Here, they have a better view of the pier, while maintaining full control of the ship.
00:43:00Underwater, the ship's seven thrusters kick into action, rotating the vessel towards the dock with inch-perfect precision.
00:43:10And that's the most complicated moment, because the vessel's weight is 160,000 tons.
00:43:15The water around is not really very much. There are a few meters of water under the queue.
00:43:19The ship is so close to the seabed that the thrusters force the silt to the surface.
00:43:25Any more speed, and the ship could sink lower in the water and run aground.
00:43:31This last part of the job is the most delicate of the entire job.
00:43:37Slowly, slowly, softly, softly.
00:43:40That's okay.
00:43:41There's a bridge on forward.
00:43:43Stop us.
00:43:45Despite the fact that maybe you have a residual speed of 0.2 knots, maybe 0.5,
00:43:50if you hit with that residual speed any concrete things, you risk to create a serious damage to the ship.
00:44:00Meters away from the pier, all the thrusters stop turning.
00:44:04And inch by inch, the ship drifts into position.
00:44:09You should really land softly with zero residual speed.
00:44:13In practice, I used to say it's like kiss the pier.
00:44:174, 0, 5, clear. We are in position.
00:44:28While most of the passengers are off the ship, the crew have a vital duty to perform.
00:44:34Every week, the ship's officers run a full emergency drill.
00:44:38Check on aft part, aft part. During a manoeuvring, we hit the pier on the compartment approximately 4 and 5.
00:44:48Today, the officers have come up with an emergency scenario to test all the crew.
00:44:54Captain, we understand the compartment affected are 5 and 4.
00:44:58Safety officer Marco is dispatched to assess the extent of the imaginary damage.
00:45:04Yes, we go.
00:45:05Bridge, I'm closing down on compartment number 4 by the vertical escape.
00:45:10For speed, Marco uses the ship's vertical escape ladders.
00:45:15Bridge, bridge, fancy.
00:45:16Hidden passageways running from deck 1 to 4.
00:45:19Bridge on deck 1, compartment number 5, we have 2 metres of water on deck 1, compartment number 5.
00:45:27Compartment number 5, we have 2 metres of water.
00:45:30The ship is divided into 10 vertical zones.
00:45:34In an emergency, they're designed to be watertight, to contain any breach of the hull.
00:45:39For today's drill, two of these compartments are supposedly taking on water.
00:45:44Charlie, Alpha. Charlie, Alpha.
00:45:48As soon as the bridge sounds the crew alert, every member of staff has to drop what they're doing.
00:45:55All the crew members on board, they have second duties in case of emergencies.
00:46:00They can be people in charge of the evacuation, people in charge of medical team, people from fire team, lifeboat
00:46:08preparation.
00:46:09They have many, many different duties all around the ship.
00:46:12The safety officers check that the crew are confident with their duties by pretending to be lost guests.
00:46:19Can I stay here?
00:46:21No.
00:46:22Why?
00:46:23I want to just talk with you.
00:46:25A few minutes.
00:46:27We try sometimes to scare them, to give them pressure in order to maybe feel what can happen in a
00:46:34real emergency.
00:46:35It's the only way.
00:46:35What are you doing?
00:46:37You are waiting there?
00:46:38Yeah, remaining calm.
00:46:39Yeah, of course.
00:46:40When you can leave your position?
00:46:43When it's over.
00:46:45No.
00:46:46Never.
00:46:47No.
00:46:48A few of them were really under pressure during the test.
00:46:52We need to work in order to improve their performance, but it's okay.
00:46:57The drill is over.
00:46:59The drill is complete.
00:47:00The drill is complete.
00:47:04This is a good day.
00:47:12With the drill over, the crew can return to their normal jobs.
00:47:17But what's daily life like for the 1,500 crew members living on board?
00:47:23Hidden within the ship, there is a second city, one that passengers never get to see.
00:47:29Here, in a maze of corridors, there are three crew restaurants, two private crew bars.
00:47:37Mi casa es su casa. Come in, come in.
00:47:39And 740 crew cabins.
00:47:42So this is my cabin.
00:47:44I'm a senior officer, so it's a larger cabin and I don't have to share it, which is a big
00:47:48perk on ship life.
00:47:50But you can see, really, it's not the biggest space in the world either.
00:47:55But on a big ship, this is all that I get to call my own.
00:47:59The officers are lucky.
00:48:01This is our corridor.
00:48:03Most of the crew live in less luxurious surroundings.
00:48:06Here we are, home sweet home.
00:48:08When you're in these cabins, you're a bit like stuck.
00:48:10You feel a bit stuck and confined.
00:48:14Beds.
00:48:15Jess is on the top bunk.
00:48:16I'm on the bottom bunk.
00:48:17I miss waking up and looking outside of the window.
00:48:20It is a bit strange.
00:48:21Not having a window in here and we don't really see daylight for quite a while.
00:48:25Then when you do go outside, your eyes are a bit like...
00:48:27Yeah.
00:48:30But then when we want to have a nap, it's good.
00:48:33Because it's pitch black in the rooms.
00:48:35There is the bathroom, sink toilet, and then the shower.
00:48:42For us guys, the only real time we're here is when we're sleeping.
00:48:46It's just a base, you know?
00:48:47Very rarely in here.
00:48:50I think crazy is the word we'd use to sum up this whole experience.
00:48:54Yeah. Crazy.
00:48:55It's like living in a little bubble.
00:48:58We call it a ship bubble, don't we?
00:49:00Ship bubble, yeah.
00:49:01Yeah.
00:49:02You're in your complete own little world.
00:49:05We work together, eat together, we do everything together.
00:49:08And life on a cruise ship can be a lot of fun.
00:49:15So nice.
00:49:17So nice.
00:49:19All of us entertainers are getting off.
00:49:22Woohoo!
00:49:24Hey!
00:49:24Freedom!
00:49:25This is a privilege of doing a cruise, guys.
00:49:30All trolling.
00:49:31Just done the shot.
00:49:32Stopped up.
00:49:39Oh no, it's not the TV!
00:49:41This is!
00:49:42No!
00:49:46Little ladder for stupid little people.
00:49:50Now it's back to the ship.
00:49:51Back to our little floating home.
00:49:54After a few hours off the ship, it's back to work.
00:49:58Then, with all passengers and crew back on board,
00:50:02the seaside sets sail again and heads out into open ocean.
00:50:09With one of the biggest live theatre shows at sea,
00:50:12what does it take to entertain 5,000 passengers three times
00:50:16every single night?
00:50:18Costume after costume, headdress after headdress.
00:50:20Trees, we have trees.
00:50:22Oh wait, hold on, I'm out!
00:50:30Early evening on the MSC seaside.
00:50:34While the passengers enjoy the last of the sun,
00:50:40the ship's in-house theatre company are in the midst of rehearsals.
00:50:45So, let's check now the field position now.
00:50:47Tonight is the premiere of a brand new show,
00:50:50and there's some last minute work to do.
00:50:52Ladies and gentlemen, you've been watching Timeless!
00:50:58We are the dancers of MSC seaside, and we're part of a cast of about 40.
00:51:04We live more in the changing room than we do in our cabins.
00:51:08We spend more time here than anywhere else.
00:51:10Like everything on this ship, the entertainment comes supersized.
00:51:15Every single night, the company performs to up to 3,000 people across three shows.
00:51:21That's a bigger audience than in any theatre in London's West End.
00:51:26There's a full-scale lighting rig, a state-of-the-art sound system,
00:51:30and a dedicated backstage team.
00:51:33Even the props and costumes have been specially commissioned for the ship.
00:51:38And here we are greeted...
00:51:39This is Ruben's dad.
00:51:40This is Ruben's dad.
00:51:40By the dinosaur.
00:51:42Do you know the dinosaur?
00:51:43Do you know the dinosaur?
00:51:44There we go, we've named it.
00:51:45And it has a camera, so the person...
00:51:47Who's inside?
00:51:47Who's inside?
00:51:48Wait, hold on.
00:51:49Ow!
00:51:50They're spiky!
00:51:51But his eyes move as well.
00:51:53Guys, it has a little fan in there.
00:51:55It's a little fan in case he gets hot.
00:51:57These are some of the costumes.
00:52:00And it's just costume after costume, headdress after headdress.
00:52:03The trees we have.
00:52:04This is like how we get from one side of the stage to the other quickly.
00:52:09Our secret passageway.
00:52:12That's what we call it.
00:52:16The cast rehearse for up to seven hours a day,
00:52:19then go straight into performing.
00:52:23We usually work around 60 hours a week.
00:52:25Long hours.
00:52:26Long hours.
00:52:26Hard work.
00:52:27Get ready, warm up.
00:52:29It's just then a continuous rehearsal.
00:52:32But we do it because we love it.
00:52:33Yeah.
00:52:46With rehearsals over, the cast have just over half an hour
00:52:50to get ready for the premiere.
00:52:53I get nervous, but I think I've always been at that.
00:52:55But it's always good to have a bit of nerves.
00:52:57Still, every time we pop curtains off, we might need a little week.
00:53:00Why was it all late?
00:53:01They were excited.
00:53:03Yeah, yeah.
00:53:03I'm looking forward to it.
00:53:04We've worked for it.
00:53:05Do you know what I mean?
00:53:05We've worked, so I feel like it's finally time to show an audience.
00:53:08Yeah, to show what we've done.
00:53:08The new one's, like, going to be amazing.
00:53:11Ladies and gentlemen, this is Titus.
00:53:21Once the show begins, the biggest challenge isn't the dancing.
00:53:25It's four costume changes in half an hour.
00:53:41After the show, the cast have no time to celebrate.
00:53:45There are two more shows tonight.
00:53:47One down, two to go.
00:53:49Yeah.
00:53:51Once we've finished doing our make-up, again, redoing our make-up,
00:53:54it's straight to show again.
00:53:56Fifteen minutes later, it's curtains up again.
00:54:12By 10pm, the last show is over.
00:54:17The cast have been on the go for 12 hours straight.
00:54:26No sleep.
00:54:27Yeah.
00:54:28No, I'm having a drink.
00:54:29No bit.
00:54:35Eight stories above, on the bridge, the atmosphere is very different.
00:54:41The vessel is still motoring through the ocean at 22 knots,
00:54:46but the captain can't work 24 hours a day, so who's in charge?
00:54:51Throughout the night, three-man teams work shifts on the bridge.
00:54:54Their job is known as the watch.
00:54:58We are just outside the bridge.
00:55:02I'm the first officer, and I'm head of the watch.
00:55:05The bridge must remain pitch black at all times throughout the night.
00:55:09The first five minutes are not easy, because it's all black.
00:55:13You cannot see now.
00:55:14Each shift lasts just four hours.
00:55:17Any longer, and there's a risk that the watchers could lose their concentration.
00:55:21Current is pushing.
00:55:24Current is pushing.
00:55:24Yeah, pushing.
00:55:25Do not.
00:55:26I take the charge at the going, okay.
00:55:30The bridge is equipped with millions of dollars' worth of modern equipment.
00:55:34But at night, the watch relies on some much simpler technology.
00:55:40We are watching the other vessel moving.
00:55:43So with the binoculars, we can see their light, especially with the small boat, the fishing boat,
00:55:48that many times are not plotted on the radar screen.
00:55:52Looking after this billion-pound vessel is a huge responsibility.
00:55:57We have 1,000 passengers and 1,000 crew members.
00:56:01So if we make any mistake on the bridge, there are many people here.
00:56:07And our job is to let them feel safe.
00:56:14The bridge isn't the only place that has to operate throughout the night.
00:56:19Across the ship, a secret nighttime army is at work,
00:56:23making sure the seaside runs smoothly 24 hours a day.
00:56:27Four floors of outside decking needs to be scrubbed.
00:56:31Every restaurant given a deep clean.
00:56:33And every public space, hoovered from top to bottom.
00:56:37On board, more than 100 staff work through the night.
00:56:42And one department in particular is a hive of activity.
00:56:47The ship's in-house bakery.
00:56:51Fresh bread has to be made from scratch all night.
00:56:55Every night.
00:56:59The bakery is working 24 hours.
00:57:01The night people are coming at 8 o'clock.
00:57:03Preparation, all bread for the breakfast.
00:57:05Croissant, pan-chocolato.
00:57:07All the breakfast is night people.
00:57:10All the bread you eat on board is fresh.
00:57:12In one night shift, this bakery will make 5,000 croissants and 3,000 pan-chocolat.
00:57:19And that's just for breakfast.
00:57:21Over the course of a week's cruise, the bakers will produce 7,000 doughnuts.
00:57:2610,000 pizzas.
00:57:28And 70,000 bread rolls.
00:57:32To make life easier for the crew, the bakery is stocked with state-of-the-art equipment, like this.
00:57:38Which cuts cakes using a high-pressure water jet.
00:57:42It can slice more than 1,000 cakes every hour.
00:57:46Everybody, collaboration.
00:57:47For example, one people meet the dough, one people work on the table, one put the proving, one put the
00:57:53oven.
00:57:55When coming outside, I want to see the bread. It's perfect.
00:58:02The final task of the night, to prepare the decks for another busy day.
00:58:08Then, as the passengers begin to get up, the night team heads to bed.
00:58:13Another shift finished on the ship that never sleeps.
00:58:20The ship is on its way back to Miami.
00:58:23But there's one final challenge to face.
00:58:26They all agree that this is one very narrow, very fast, crazy place.
00:58:39It's the final evening of the MSC Seasides Caribbean cruise.
00:58:46But as the ship heads back to Miami, the crew still have one major event to put on.
00:58:53Party night.
00:58:53Well, ladies and gentlemen, a very good evening and welcome to our Asia Mirror.
00:58:57Tonight is the main event of the cruise.
00:59:01We're going to be dancing until the early hours of the morning.
00:59:03This is the event you've all been waiting for.
00:59:07Ladies and gentlemen, tonight is our white party. Here we go.
00:59:11It's the biggest night of the cruise for the guests and for the ship's tireless 12-person entertainment team.
00:59:19They're kind of like the front line. They're the ones doing all the events and they're the ones that are
00:59:23pretty much responsible for making sure that all the guests have an amazing holiday.
00:59:26With crowds of up to 2,000 people, the seaside's white night is one of the biggest parties at sea.
00:59:34Guys on my team are incredible. They work really hard.
00:59:36To do it for eight months straight, every single day, no weekends off, you know, it takes a special person
00:59:42to make that happen.
00:59:43If they're happy, then all the guests are happy.
00:59:48In just one week, the ship's 5,000 passengers and 1,500 crew have eaten 160 tons of food and
00:59:57drunk 8,000 bottles of wine.
01:00:01On the way, they've used 100,000 pool towels and thrown away 70 tons of garbage.
01:00:08And the huge ship itself has used more than 1,000 tons of fuel and 2 million gallons of water.
01:00:18But the journey isn't quite over.
01:00:22After all the passengers go to bed, the bridge team have to prepare for perhaps their most difficult challenge yet.
01:00:28How to bring a 160,000 ton ship into one of the narrowest ports in America, in the pitch black
01:00:36night.
01:00:38By 4am, the ship is one mile outside the port of Miami.
01:00:43They might have all the latest technology on board, but to get into port safely, they need some expert local
01:00:50help.
01:00:52Captain John Nitkin is a Miami port pilot. It's his job to guide these massive cruise ships safely into dock.
01:01:05This morning, he's meeting up with the seaside.
01:01:09MSC seaside. Good morning. We are outbound to you now. What side is your pilot ladder?
01:01:17What side?
01:01:20Okay, we copied port side. Very good. We are headed to you now.
01:01:26We always ask the captain, have you been to Miami before?
01:01:29And if they say no, we tell them, you're in for quite a ride.
01:01:33And after, they all agree that this is one very narrow, very fast, crazy place.
01:01:44There she is. She's a beauty. She's the biggest one in Miami right now.
01:01:51First, the most dangerous part of the whole manoeuvre for John.
01:01:56He has to jump from his moving boat up onto the seaside.
01:02:00There have been a lot of accidents and pilots lost climbing that ladder.
01:02:11Alongside. Miss ship.
01:02:15The giant cruise ship has to make sure it holds its course precisely, so it doesn't smash into the smaller
01:02:22boat alongside.
01:02:24Safety.
01:02:26We hold this course.
01:02:28Okay, we hold this course.
01:02:29We hold this course.
01:02:41Once on board, John heads straight to the bridge.
01:02:48Where's my captain?
01:02:49I hear you. Good to see you.
01:02:52Every port has its own pilots.
01:02:54They're the world experts in their own small piece of the ocean.
01:02:59We know the waters here and the conditions better than anybody.
01:03:05On the bridge, John takes control of the con, the movement of the vessel.
01:03:11Thank you, captain.
01:03:12You're welcome.
01:03:14Excellent.
01:03:15The pilot is like the conductor, and it is one big symphony, and everything has to be timed just right.
01:03:21But bringing something this size into Miami isn't easy.
01:03:26Port Miami is very narrow.
01:03:29When I started 30 years ago, we didn't know what is the capacity, the largest ship that the port could
01:03:35handle.
01:03:35We're now there.
01:03:37Starboard five.
01:03:39Yes.
01:03:40On the surface, Miami port easily looks wide enough for the seaside, but beneath the water, it's a different story.
01:03:48To allow these huge ships to enter the port, a shallow channel has been dug out of the rock seabed.
01:03:56But it's only 100 metres wide, leaving very little space either side.
01:04:02John has to get it right, or the massive ship will run into the side of the channel.
01:04:07The ships have grown and changed, but the thing that hasn't changed are these narrow rock channels.
01:04:13In these ports, like Miami, everything is feet and inches.
01:04:17The huge ship is also susceptible to small changes in wind conditions.
01:04:23A cruise ship is a giant sail, and they call each balcony with the little partitions, parachutes.
01:04:29They all catch the wind, so when the wind is on the side of the ship, the big challenge is
01:04:34keeping these ships safely within the channel boundaries.
01:04:38John has to make sure that the vessel stays dead straight to avoid hitting the side of the channel.
01:04:45Then, over 20 minutes, the seaside has to execute a perfect 180 before it can come into dock.
01:04:57The weight of the responsibility is really heavy.
01:05:01Everybody's watching me do this, it doesn't look that hard.
01:05:04That's because we're doing a good job.
01:05:06It takes a lot of patience, skill, and you have to have pretty much ice water in your veins.
01:05:15As the ship approaches the dock, the officers have one final job to do.
01:05:225 meters.
01:05:25Safety officer Marco has to line up the ship perfectly alongside the gangways.
01:05:31We are moving the stairs, and we are almost in position.
01:05:36Altometer.
01:05:39Altometer.
01:05:39Altometer, all done up.
01:05:41Inch by inch, they guide the seaside home.
01:05:45At 5.15 precisely, the ship docks, marking the end of its 2,000-mile journey.
01:05:54Then, as the sun comes up over Miami port, the ship's hidden army readies itself for another turnaround day.
01:06:03Another 5,000 passengers.
01:06:06Another week at sea.
01:06:07The cruise comes to an end, and then the guests go home.
01:06:10The guests re-embark, and then we do it all over again.
01:06:13Just big satisfaction.
01:06:15Know that, okay, it's done again.
01:06:18Okay, now we go.
01:06:19It's the beginning of another week in the secret life of the cruise.
01:06:24Take care.
01:06:26Take care.
01:06:28Bye.
01:06:37Got it.
01:06:44Got it.
01:06:49Bye.
01:06:50Bye.
01:06:52Bye.
01:06:54You
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