The Truth About Seasonal Jobs: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

Working overseas is a wild ride - one minute, you’re living the dream in a stunning location, the next, you’re sleep-deprived, overworked, and questioning your life choices. Here’s the unfiltered truth about seasonal jobs from my personal experience...

Seasonal work is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a high-intensity boot camp for life, just with more hangovers, less sleep, and the occasional emotional breakdown in the laundry room. It comes with unbelievable highs, crushing lows, and a few “what the actual f* am I doing?” moments.

And yet, most people don’t quit. Why? Well, there’s no other job on the planet that lets you travel with a crew of like-minded legends, experience new cultures, learn ridiculous amounts of skills, spend every day outdoors, and meet people who challenge, inspire, and occasionally drive you insane.

After five years of working every seasonal job under the sun - from surf instructing to yachting, chalet hosting to summer camps - I can safely say it’s worth every single meltdown. Here’s why...

You Make Friends Faster Than a Drunk Girl in a Club Toilet

It's true, seasonal jobs fast-track friendships like nothing else. One minute, you’re awkwardly making small talk in staff accommodation, the next, you’ve trauma-bonded over a nightmare shift and are crying together because you just smashed a set of plates worth more than your entire monthly salary (10 minutes before service).

Seasonal work throws you into intense environments, and that means intense friendships - the good kind (most of the time). You live, work, sleep, and party together, and within weeks, these people know you better than some of your childhood friends. It’s like a dysfunctional family, but with more tequila and waaaay fewer boundaries. Despite the occasional meltdowns, you quickly realise you’re all in it together - and that bond leaves you with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.

You Get to Travel the World (without being a millionaire)

One season you’re skiing in the Alps, the next, you’re mixing cocktails on a yacht in Greece. The world becomes your playground, and instead of just visiting places, you live there. You know the cheapest happy hours and which boulangerie sells the best croissants.

When I was first hired for a job in America, I got to experience Maine - a place that I had never really heard of. When I arrived, I couldn't believe how peaceful and beautiful it was. It opened my eyes to how many wonderful places there are (many of which I never knew existed).

You Learn Skills You’d Never Get in a Normal Job

If you can survive a ski season, work on a superyacht, live with twenty 15-year-old girls at a summer camp, or run a luxury chalet, I genuinely believe you can handle anything life throws at you.

You start a season knowing nothing about cooking, bartending, or driving a van on black ice, but by the end, you’re whipping up three-course meals, making perfect cocktails, and navigating mountain roads like a rally driver. Seasonal work throws you in the deep end, and somehow, you come out the other side with an armour of skills that did not even think you were capable of developing.

I once found myself cooking four different meals at once to cater to allergies, picky eaters, and toddlers who would rather throw their dinner than eat it - all while plastering on a smile and remembering to refill the wine glasses. It’s a skill I never thought I’d need, but now I know I have it within me to handle a stressful service and deal with multiple things going on at once.

It Builds More Resilience Than a Wellness Retreat

If you can carry eight plates up a spiral staircase, smile at guests who’ve been rude to you all day, and work a 12-hour shift getting screamed at by your C/O without crying - you’re now unbreakable, congrats! Seasonal work makes you resilient, unflappable, and able to handle absolute chaos. You push through because you don’t have a choice, and somewhere along the way, you realise you’re capable of way more than you ever thought.

You Can Make a Shit Load of Money

If you land the right gig - like working on a yacht or for a luxury chalet company - you can make a serious amount of cash. Sadly as great as Camp America is, you ain't making money dollar.

Superyacht charter crew rake in tips of €1-3k per week. Chalet hosts in high-end resorts get fat bonuses. And because your accommodation, food, and ski pass are often included, your expenses are low.

Forget the myth that seasonal work means being broke - if you play your cards right, you can earn, save, and travel all at the same time.

Despite the highs and all the amazing skills you will learn (plus potential money you could earn), there are a whole host of downsides which can not be escaped...

You Miss Family & Friends (And Big Life Events)

One of the biggest downsides is missing out on birthdays, weddings, and Christmases. While your mates are having boozy reunions, celebrating birthdays, and getting engaged, you’re cleaning toilets or serving fondue to strangers. It sucks.

I spent my 30th birthday in a yacht laundry room, folding towels. Let me tell you, it was grim. And after years of missing birthdays and weddings, people stop inviting you - because they know you probably won’t make it. That part never gets easier.

But on the flip side, you do get to spend Christmas Day in the Caribbean or skiing in the Alps with your new seasonaire family. All you have to do is cook a perfect Christmas dinner for your guests in the evening and what's so hard about that?

You Have to Work When You’d Rather Be Doing... Literally Anything Else

It doesn’t matter if it’s a powder day, a scorching 30°C on the Med, or the most beautiful sunset you’ve ever seen - if you’re rostered on, you’re working.

The worst part? When you’re on a yacht in Italy, docked in the most incredible location - and instead of swimming in crystal-clear waters, you’re polishing a railing for the tenth time that day. It can be painful, but it only makes you more grateful when those days off come.

You Have to Be “On” All the Time

In most jobs, you can hide behind a desk when you’re in a bad mood or WFH. In seasonal work? Not an option... guests are paying thousands, so you better smile. You could be having the worst day of your life, but you still have to act like their ridiculous requests don’t make you want to scream.

One week I had to make three afternoon teas, only to find one of the vegans was sneakily adding cheese to her sandwiches every morning - make it make sense.

You have to just laugh at their bad jokes, keep smiling, and save your rants for your night off because when the tips come in, it is always worth it.

Sleep? Nah, Never Heard of It.

The combination of long shifts, staff nights out, and the absolute inability to say no to “just one drink” means sleep is a rare and precious commodity. Because you don't have much time off, when you finally do get a night off, you end up going twice as hard (not a good idea).

Then there are the ugly bits that could break you...

You Can’t Choose Who You Work With (And Sometimes, They Suck)

For every legendary seasonaire you meet, there is always one person who is a walking HR violation. I wish it wasn't true, but I have met some truly awful people over the years. The arrogant officer, the passive-aggressive manager who does no work, the lazy co-worker who disappears mid-shift to have a cigarette (or ten)...

You don’t get to choose them, but you do have to deal with them daily. This was by far my biggest challenge when working on a recent season. The important thing to remember is, as long as you work hard, stay positive and stay true to who you are, then you will know deep down that you are not the problem (they are).

Remember it's just a job and if things get that bad, you can always jump ship.

It Can Reek Havoc on Your Mental & Physical Health

Seasonal work is brutal on your body and mind. Lack of sleep, too much booze, not enough vegetables, and zero downtime can leave you burnt out and emotionally drained. If you don’t find a way to balance the madness, you’ll end up running on Berocca and leftover guest food and trust me, that’s not sustainable.

Self-care is key. I do my best to try and stay healthy throughout the whole season (it's hard when the Chef saves you dessert), limit my alcohol intake (again hard when you crave the buzz of that first sip of beer after a long day) and meditate for at least 10 minutes a day to restore just an ounce of peace. If I can get some self-care in, I know I can function better and finish the season without getting sick.

You Will Question Your Life Choices (At Least Once a Week)

At some point, you’ll find yourself putting snow chains on at 6 AM in a blizzard, scraping plates for entitled guests, or dragging yourself through another shift with zero energy and thinking, “Why the hell am I doing this?” Spoiler: the answer usually involves money, adventure, or the fact that you have no idea what else you’d be doing anyway.

Whenever I get home from working a season, I think, maybe I'll just stay here and find a job. Then I Google jobs and imagine myself working in an office or working for a company I'm not that passionate about and think... get me back on that boat scrubbing toilets and making palomas for drunk Americans.

Final Verdict: Is It Worth It?

Despite the chaos, exhaustion, and occasional existential crisis, seasonal work changes you in ways no other job can. It teaches you resilience, adaptability, and how to have the time of your life even when you're exhausted. You meet people who inspire you, see places most people only dream about, and realise that life isn’t just about working in an office until you retire.

If you don't have a set career path, have no idea what you want to do with your life and love to travel, then seasonal jobs are a no-brainer.

I grew up without knowing what I wanted to do. I didn't have big dreams of being a doctor, or a lawyer or dentist. I had a desire to travel, to have new experiences and to keep trying new things until I reached my dream job.

You learn that you can handle absolutely anything, and by the end of it, you walk away a better, braver, and more badass version of yourself.

Would I recommend it? If you have the ability to graft and make a few sacrifices, then 1000% yes. I'm already Googling my next role...