Gary ... I know we have discussed this before, but things have changed a LOT for musicians since the days you describe above ... We have been on a number of cruises the past few years, the most recent being a 13 day Mediterranean cruise aboard the Holland - America Line.
There was one R&B band that worked in the "BB KING" Lounge every night but one, and that was all they did ... another band played in a cocktail lounge for 1 1/2 hours before dinner and 1 1/2 hours after dinner ... this band was also the 'show band' playing for the big song and dance shows which were put on 3 times during the 13 days ... other nights the theater featured acts that got on the ship for one night ... there was also a male/female duet that played another lounge, a high powered 'piano man' who 'commandeered' an 'all request' piano lounge every night, and a piano/violin/flute trio in another location for a couple of hours before or after dinner ...
There was seldom anyone playing at poolside - which differed from cruises we've taken on Norwegian Lines to Bermuda which had a reggae band that only played by the pool - .
I had the opportunity to talk with the members of several different bands on the ship, and mostly they signed on for a 6 month or 9 month contract. They were ENCOURAGED to mingle with the guests, even to the point of having lunch with us. I often saw them having breakfast and lunch in the same dining room as the guests but I'm not sure where they had dinner. They said the pay was pretty good, and when the ship was in port they had the opportunity to go sightseeing if they weren't rehearsing.
So while I am not saying it is 'glittering gold', I think the life is a little better than it used to be.

A sax player that I played a gig with a few weeks ago just came off a 1 week Norwegian Line Bermuda cruise playing with a 50's group he is part of. I will ask him about accommodations etc. ...