Behind the Scenes Galley tour

Have you ever wondered what goes on in the galley on a ship? As a cruise geek this is something I always wanted to see but never thought this would  be possible. However on my recent cruise on MSC Prezoisa we were invited to go below the passenger decks and take a galley tour, and was one of the highlights of my trip and one of the main things on our itinerary I was looking forward to and was not disappointed.

We were lead round and our guides were happy to open up the fridges, let us enter the freezers, and also walk round the bakery which is actually open and working 24 hours a day. Fridge after fridge was filled with food and we were advised that the ship would be stocking up on more food in Barcelona for the ship to make its way over to Brazil. As they use Italian brands and ingredients they then have to import the food all around the world to meet the ships. What surprised me the most was just how much of each ingredient they had on board.

Our tour commenced at 2pm and I was surprised that the galley was not a hive of activity with lots of chefs standing over pots on the cookers, or chopping vegetables or getting ready for that evenings service. We were advised that the all the preparation had been done, the cold starters were ready to go, and that the chefs would return about 5.30pm to commence dinner service. There was a separate preparation area for meat and fish, and this had to be cleaned and sanitized after each different fish or meat cut had been prepared before preparing the next one. As you can see from the photos everything was immaculate and so clean.

The only people working in the galley as walked round was a couple of staff dish-washing, cleaning the preparation areas and also the guys working in the Bakery. We were told that the galleys cook on average 10,000 meals a day – I struggle to cook 3 meals a day for me and my partner.

So next on my list to visit is the Bridge and the Engine Room – maybe I will get the opportunity when I sail on Queen Mary 2 next month. Have you been lucky enough to have seen behind the scenes on a cruise ship before?