Aloha JP-
I haven’t worked for Cruisewest- but half of the crew on my last 3 ships were from there- and we docked next to several of their ships every week.
Mates-
stand watches, assign work to the deck staff, have dinner with the pax (passengers) on a rotating basis, train the deck crew/ participate in drills, oversee dibs (small boat excursions) do paperwork, etc.
In Alaska the mate and the deckhands stand on the bridge and look for whales, bears, etc- then steer towards them so the pax can take pics- not the worst way to spend a day:D
Yes you get to go ashore:) though only for a few hours- and may cut into your sleep…
Depends on your shift but in general you’re in port almost every day. Every mate I’ve known has gone ashore daily- this goes for my old company- as well as all the cruisewest boats I’ve docked near.
I know some people here would never work cruise ships- but the idea of being a mate/captain on a cruise ship is the reason I started on ships.
Anthony