Windstar's itinerary director shares cruise industry career milestones

Jess Peterson, director of itinerary planning & destination experience at Windstar Cruises, shares his cruise industry firsts.

August 24, 2026

Describe the first time you saw a cruise ship.

I'm not certain it was my first, but I vividly remember visiting my grandparents onboard the Royal Viking Sun at the port of Los Angeles. They were setting off for a trans-pacific cruise to Sydney and, in that pre-9/11 era, my whole family joined them onboard for a drink and a walk around the ship before they departed. I'll always remember how elegant and comfortable the ship felt, and I could easily imagine settling in for a one-month voyage. For the whole month they were gone, I kept imagining where they were and what they were doing.

What was the first cruise-related company you worked for as a young professional and what was the role?

I worked for Carnival Cruise Line as an itinerary planning intern. I had always been a huge cruise nerd, but that internship taught me that I loved the business side just as much, if not more. I was also immediately exposed to great co-workers who taught me an astonishing amount about itinerary planning in 10 weeks.

What was your first cruise experience as a passenger?

My first cruise was on Viking Serenade, a converted car ferry operated by Royal Caribbean International. It was a three-day cruise from Los Angeles to Ensenada, and I loved every minute of it. After that first cruise, I was totally hooked.

Name your first cruise industry mentor or inspiration.

I was lucky to work on a great team at Carnival for my first cruise internship. Renata Ribeiro, Ugo Savino, and Christian Deese are all still at Carnival, and all three of them were extremely generous with their time.

And your first memory of a Seatrade Cruise event?

It was in Fort Lauderdale, and I was completely overwhelmed. Another mentor, Sander Groothuis, worked at Windstar at the time. He walked me around the conference room floor, introduced me to people, and generally taught me how to do Seatrade right. He also insisted I wear a suit and tie - the one piece of advice I've ignored as time has gone on!