On the penultimate day of our Mediterranean cruise, we met the captain of the Freedom of the Seas: Espen Been from Oslo, Norway. Among other things, he tells us about everyday life on board, about the happiest guests, about safety and takes the opportunity to advise us on countries we should visit.
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Norwegian captain - who speaks Spanish
The captain of the Freedom of the SeasEspen Been is from Oslo, Norway, and when we meet we can speak Scandinavian to each other. But Espen not only speaks Norwegian and English, he is also fluent in Spanish. He has lived for many years in Chile, although he has now moved back to Oslo.
Espen benefits greatly from speaking Spanish on board the ship. Many of the guests on this Mediterranean cruise come from Spain, and when the ship cruises in the Caribbean there are many Latin Americans on board. According to Espen, the Latin Americans are the happiest guests!
Long experience
Originally, Espen wanted to be a pilot, but various circumstances led him to become the captain of one of Royal Caribbean's largest ships. Today, he has extensive experience. He started his career with Petro Trans Skaugen, a company that transported oil from the Gulf of Mexico, and in 1996 he started working for Royal Caribbean.
Espen has worked on several different ships, and was also part of the team that spent several years building the Voyager of the Seas in Finland. Today, he is the captain of the huge ship Freedom of the Seas, which operates in the Mediterranean in the summer and the Caribbean in the winter. Together with the ship's HR department, he is responsible for over 1400 employees!
What is the captain's life on board?
We ask about life on board and learn that the captain sleeps at night, even if the ship is running. However, he is always in charge and is woken up if necessary. Normally, he gets up at five o'clock in the morning, when they start with a briefing on the night's operations.
The captain always works ten weeks in a row, and is then home in Oslo for ten weeks in a row. Isn't it difficult to be away from any family for so long? Captain Espen brings his partner on board, and if you have children, you can bring them too.
How is safety on board?
We also take the opportunity to ask about safety on board. Although this type of ship feels safe, we remember the nasty accident involving the Costa Concordia off Italy a few years ago. But Espen says there is absolutely no need to worry.
All the major cruise lines work with quality assurance systems today and there are regular drills for both passengers and staff. During our days on board alone, there were actually two such exercises - one for everyone and one for staff only.
Captain's favourites
Last but not least, we wonder about the captain's favourites. He says Europe is beautiful and has great harbours. But there's no mistaking his love for Latin America either. When we say we haven't been there, he speaks highly of countries like Panama and Colombia. "You have to go there!" he says.
Part of this trip is a press trip, in cooperation with Royal Caribbean. Top photo: Helena, Captain Espen Been and Peter, photo: Rosita Lincoln
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English (UK) 
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Mr Steve says:
Interesting. No regular 9-5 job Mon-Fri there either.
11 September 2017 - 7:25
Helena says:
Certainly not! 🙂
11 September 2017 - 18:09
Anna, New York - My Bite of the Big Apple says:
Exciting to get an insight into a captain's job! Good that you got to participate in a safety exercise as well.
11 September 2017 - 7:36
Helena says:
The safety exercise felt really hard (because we slept deeply haha), but of course very good and important!
11 September 2017 - 18:10
Åsa in Åsele says:
10 weeks of work sounds a bit too much without leave but what do I know maybe the captain has time off sometimes 😉.
In fact, I didn't realise that the 'shifts' were so long,
It must be nice to have some time off after being on board the ship for so long.
11 September 2017 - 8:10
Helena says:
Let's hope he has some "free time" sometimes 😉 And ten weeks off in a row doesn't seem so bad!
11 September 2017 - 18:11
Ditte says:
How nice and rewarding to have a private conversation with the captain. And fun to get a little behind the scenes. Feels like most ships work a lot with safety on board. This with fire and evacuation exercises and extra exercises for the staff I think is standard on all cruise ships, small and large. Have for me that the company itself is Norwegian-American and then it fits well with a Norwegian captain on board.
11 September 2017 - 9:29
Helena says:
It was interesting to see the bridge and get a little "behind the scenes". If I got it right, the company is American, but has a historical anchorage in Norway with offices there for a long time. Not 100 % sure I got everything right though 😉.
11 September 2017 - 20:41
Ama de casa says:
Fun to visit the bridge! We did not, but our captain was a young, nice Italian who walked around the boat sometimes as "an ordinary person" (a bit like the Phantom did in the series 😉 ), and mingled with everything and everyone. Although he had his captain's suit on, unlike the Phantom who disguised himself 😉 Very nice, actually 🙂 .
Wondering if it was because he was younger (don't know how old, just over 40?) that he was so "mingling" by himself? Can't remember that I saw the captains on the other cruises, other than at the special captain events.
11 September 2017 - 10:50
Helena says:
Haha, I think it feels pretty good that the captains can also be "ordinary people". I have no idea if "our" captain mingled around, not easy to perceive among about 4000 guests 😉.
11 September 2017 - 20:42
Lennart says:
Interesting!
11 September 2017 - 11:47
Emma, sun like sun? says:
There are many who live like that, several weeks away from home and then just as much at home. Several of the mums at the Swedish school have it that way. "I wouldn't want it to be like that, we've only been apart for five days at the most.
Wondering what your partner does on board? Working on the boat, working from the boat or sleeping...?
11 September 2017 - 12:34
Helena says:
Yes, one might wonder? If you only travel once in a while it can be nice to relax, but if you travel often it might be practical to have a job on board... or be able to work remotely 😉.
11 September 2017 - 20:45
Alexandra says:
How nice to visit the bridge!
Perfect to be the captain's partner and travel with if you are a bit of a digital nomad - or at least have an online business 😀.
11 September 2017 - 13:14
Helena says:
Right? Online business is a good thing in general, it feels like ... 😉 .
11 September 2017 - 20:46
Snows says:
So interesting to have a conversation with the captain and get an insight into the daily life of the person in charge. It is certainly not a nine-to-five job, but many would probably appreciate being at home for ten weeks. Different working hours but probably very much a matter of habit. Fortunately, someone is awake at night and keeps track anyway 😉.
11 September 2017 - 13:43
Helena says:
We learnt a lot that we didn't know, so it was interesting! Of course it's a different way of working, but there are other jobs where you have different working hours ...
11 September 2017 - 20:47
Days by Johanna says:
So interesting to read
11 September 2017 - 20:53
BP says:
I really like that post!!! Calm, nice and not least interesting!!! Certainly not a 9-5 job, but great to be free 10 weeks in a row after 10 weeks at sea.
It would have been fun to see how the captain and his partner live - luxurious or small-scale. Would also have been interesting where the 1,400 employees come from and how they live. But as I said - the interview was TOP:-)
11 September 2017 - 21:00
Helena says:
Glad you liked the interview! I heard at some point that the employees come from 60 different nations... Agree that it would be interesting to know how the crew lives during the cruise!
12 September 2017 - 5:56
Anna in Dubai says:
I can imagine it must be really cool and very beautiful in Panama and Colombia. Seems like if the captain says it's his favourite and he's probably seen a lot, it's probably really been a visit.
But best of all is your skirt!
12 September 2017 - 6:42