Sydney Harbour, NSW
Captain Cook Cruises Sydney
Official hospitality/catering recruitment form. Employer states demand during Vivid and Christmas; no numerical pay or housing offered on page.
AUSTRALIA · JOB GUIDE
Boat hospitality crew jobs in Australia
Use your hospitality experience on sightseeing boats, dinner cruises or island trips. Compare onboard service roles and check each operator’s safety and training requirements.
Illustrative photo
This could suit you if…
You already enjoy guest service and would like to take it onto a day cruise or overnight vessel.
The trade-offs
Preparation and cleaning extend beyond passenger time. Overnight trips mean time away, and mixed deck duties can add training requirements.
What would I actually do?
Boat hospitality puts guest service on the water: serving food and drinks, helping passengers settle in, replenishing supplies and resetting shared areas. Search for cruise attendant, onboard hospitality and catering roles.
Day cruises and overnight trips create different working patterns. A shift can include preparation before boarding and cleaning after passengers leave; overnight itineraries also involve time away from your usual base.
Some small operations combine hospitality with deck or safety duties. Those additional duties determine the marine training needed. A guest-service role alone is not the same job as a deckhand.
What do I need before applying?
Ask which certificates must be current before your first shift, including RSA where alcohol service is involved, first aid and any employer-required marine safety training. Hospitality on a boat does not itself mean everyone needs a General Purpose Hand certificate.
AMSA says GPH is not needed when you do no deck or engine tasks, or when those tasks are directly supervised by suitably qualified crew. An employer may still specify additional training for its operation.
Courses & training
RSA for alcohol service — TAFE NSW or TAFE Queensland
TAFE NSW lists a Responsible Service of Alcohol skill set for NSW service roles. Alcohol-service recognition is jurisdiction-specific. Choose the RSA course rather than adding gambling training unless your duties need it.
Queensland RSA course route
TAFE Queensland also offers Responsible Service of Alcohol (SITSS00071). Check its study options, assessment and current full fee if your operator requires Queensland alcohol-service training.
First aid and CPR — St John
St John offers HLTAID011 general first aid and HLTAID009 CPR around Australia. Courses include practical assessment, and some use online preparation before the classroom session. Its state booking pages list local sessions and fees.
When deck training is relevant
AMSA’s GPH guidance explains the distinction between general and direct supervision. Pure hospitality duties do not automatically require GPH; if your position includes deck or engine assistance, check the duties and supervision before choosing that qualification.
AMSA General Purpose Hand pathway
St John Victoria: first-aid course example
HLTAID011 Provide First Aid: $199 for 4.75 hours in class plus pre-learning, or $225 for 7.75 hours in class without pre-learning. These are Victorian options; choose a listed venue and date. First aid is relevant when the role requires it, rather than a universal entry qualification.
St John Victoria course and locations · checked 23 October 2026.
Which companies can I contact?
Official recruitment routes checked 17 October 2026. Read the role details for current vacancies and work-rights requirements.
Airlie Beach, QLD
Cruise Whitsundays
The employer’s employment page links to a Cruise Attendant application. Open the full advert for current availability and required certificates. Pay and ongoing staff housing are not confirmed.
Whitsundays, QLD
ZigZag Whitsundays
Expression of interest. Online form asks about first aid, O2/CPR, RSA, marine qualifications and work rights; explicitly contacts applicants only if a suitable position is available.
Australian ferry and tourism operations
SeaLink — marine and tourism
Direct recruitment across deck, hospitality and customer-service teams. Select a named operation: ferry work and tourism charters can have different rosters and qualifications.
Cairns, Port Douglas and Green Island, QLD
Quicksilver Group
Marine tourism careers across the group, including dive instructors and customer service. Some instructor roles require language skills or additional marine credentials.
What should I put in my application?
Captain Cook Cruises accepts hospitality and catering enquiries through its Sydney careers form. Its page identifies extra demand around Vivid from late May and the six-week Christmas period from mid-November.
Cruise Whitsundays lists a Cruise Attendant application route in Airlie Beach. Give your arrival date, availability, hospitality experience and existing qualifications. A careers form can remain open between recruitment rounds; wait for a confirmed offer before changing travel plans.
What can you earn?
For day-charter work covered by the Marine Tourism and Charter Vessels Award, crew pay starts at $32.18 an hour casual and rises to $34.89 after three months. Crew duties can include deck work and passenger hospitality.
| Day-charter crew | Casual hourly minimum | Permanent hourly minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 — first three months | $32.18 | $25.74 |
| Level 2 — after three months | $34.89 | $27.91 |
Rates from 1 July 2026, before tax and excluding super. Casual loading is included. Crew aged 20 and over receive the full rate; younger crew have age-based rates. These ordinary-hours figures do not cover every ferry operation or overnight charter.
Sources & further reading
cruisewhitsundays.com — employment
amsa.gov.au — general purpose hand near coastal
Employer information and requirements checked 17 October 2026. Recruitment pages may change; confirm the terms of your own role.
Check specified-work requirements for your visa
Course providers and qualification pathways
Training information checked 17 October 2026. Compare the full fee, study dates and eligibility for your situation.
SeaLink — marine and tourism — official recruitment · checked 17 October 2026
Quicksilver Group — official recruitment · checked 17 October 2026