Ah Yachting. The illustrious, over glamorised, Gucci filled, paid to travel lifestyle that attracts hundreds, if not thousands of green hopefuls all over the world, to have a sneak peak into the lives of the filthy rich, and famous.

I personally chose to get into Yachting because I wanted to travel, I was bored with my life and I didn't know what to do or where to go from here. I had contemplated working on cruise ships earlier in my hospitality career, but decided to go the event management route instead and then after a few years I figured why not transfer that to yachts rather than becoming just another kiwi working in a pub in London, or drinking copious amount of beer in SE Asia !!

Once people realised I was overseas in the beautiful Mediterranean (and now back home in Aoteroa, New Zealand), I have been inundated with messages via Instagram and Facebook about how I made my way into the Superyacht industry, what it entails and is it really as glamorous as 'Below Deck' makes it out to be?

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Well, sort of. However, the majority of people I spoke to in the yachting absolutely LOATHE the show 'Below Deck' because it does not show the physical, mental and emotional effort that goes into working on yachts. Because of this, people have an unrealistic idea of what it is like to work on them, and the industry became FLOODED with 'zero to hero greenies' who have terrible work ethic and a 'me me me' attitude. Im not saying everyone does, but what I am saying is that there were a lot of people that we noticed who only wanted to work a season or two to earn some great money, live the 'glamorous' lifestyle, and then get out again. This is all well and good, apart from there being a lot of us who want to make a career out of yachting, who then have to fight for jobs against those who don't.

To show perspective of what I mean to fight for jobs, I will give you an example. One yacht in Antibes, France, posted on the local crew page stating that they have ONE day of day work and were looking for ONE worker. Within the hour they had OVER 120 applicants all fighting, applying and pushing for one day of work. THAT, shows how little demand, and how much supply there was this season. Jacob and I spoke to ex Captains and Engineers who had been in the industry for over a decade and eventheywere struggling to find work.

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Anyway, your all here to learn not about the competition, but how to become involved in yachting and becoming crew, Or a 'yachtie' as we are affectionately (or grudgingly) called.

No longer can you walk the docks, say hey to a sailor, jump on board and sail the seas. Thanks to legislation, health & safety and changes in rules, a Basic Training STCW must required before working on sea vessels. STCW stands for Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for seafarers. It was developed to establish safety of life and property while out at sea and to protect the marine environment.

On your STCW course, it is both theoretical and practical training and if completed, you will be issued with the following certificates:

  • STCW Competence in Fire Fighting and Fire Prevention Certificate (Basic Fire Fighting)
  • STCW Competence in Personal Survival Techniques Certificate (Basic Sea Survival)
  • STCW Competence in Personal Safety & Social Responsibilities Certificate (PSSR)
  • STCW Competence in Elementary First Aid Certificate
  • STCW Security Awareness Training (SAT)

Once you have completed your STCW, you must also go and get your ENG1 Seafarers Medical Certificate. You must see a specialised doctor to assess and present you with your ENG1. Your looking at around $200-$400NZD for your certificate, and around $1500 for your STCW so there is quite a large upfront cost before you can start working on Superyachts. For Kiwis, here is a list of all the Medical Practitioners who are eligible to provide you with your Seafarers Certificate.

So now that you have the basic requirements, where to from here? Well, this is when walking the docks comes into play. Let me tell you… IT SUCKS! Not only do have around 30 seconds each yacht to introduce yourself, hand over your CV, and build up the initial courage to do so (its extremely nerve wracking), you need to have an 'elevator pitch' to prove to them about why they should give YOU the work, and not the other hundred people who are also approaching them for work (day work, permanent or otherwise). Many boats in Palma became so exasperated with the amount of people dock walking that security shut the ports down, and crew, would tell you togo away before you even reached the boat. Dock walking is very mentally & emotionally draining. 90% of the time it is rejection after rejection after rejection. There were multiple days where we would come home, look at each other and just want to curl up in a ball and cry.BUT, you pick yourself up, b*tch to your other yachtie mates, then turn around and do it again that afternoon and every day that week. TheBIGGEST thing for securing a job in yachting is that it is literally RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME.

Dock walking pizza

Artwork courtesy of Arlen Ray, facebook page here.

The next way to find work is to sign up with recruitment agencies. Make sure you have a LOT of time on your hands, (well if your not working what else are you meant to do….) You have to put in a TON of (repetitive) information and most agencies take at least an hour to sign up to. I also HIGHLY recommend going in and seeing them in person. This allows you to build up contacts, and allows the recruitment agency to see you face to face and how you present yourself. I will point out though that a lot of agencies struggle to find work for greenies, and often don't put your name forward for jobs because Captains are not likely to see them for green crew. This means the agency is not going to make any money from having you on the books, but it IS beneficial to be signed up with them just in case. I will create a page with a list of recruitment agencies in the various Yacht hubs around the globe and when to fly over to places such as Fort Lauderdale, Palma, Antigua & Antibes. There is also a list of recruitment agencies in Auckland, on the Auckland Yacht Crew page so head on over, join up and start advertising yourself!!

After a few months of Day Work in Auckland, Jacob and I decided tobite the bullet, and fly to Palma de Mallorca, Spain. WE chose Spain due to the amount of jobs we knew to be posted there, plus compared to Antibes, France, we knew that it had a more relaxed vibe and was a lot more economically friendly for living there. We headed there in April, and although thats a great time to head over, March would have meant that we could have secured jobs, or at least day work before the hoards of others arrived. Not only were there thousands of boats in Palma, there were also thousands of crew so getting in quickly is vital!

So what can make you stand out for the rest? As I said above, the basic requirements you need are your STCW and ENG1. However, so many crew have these and therefore upskilling yourself is incredibly important. For deckhand's I recommend aiming to at the very least go and get your PBL2 (Powerboat Level 2). It is only a 2 day course and costs approximately $500. For Stews, having a Food & Hygiene Level 2 certificate will put you in good stead, same as a PBL2 if your aiming to be a sole stew or Chief Stew and some training in Silver Service, Cocktail making and Barista work. Courses are easy enough to find and although will add to your initial outlay of expenses, you will reap that money back within your first month or two of your season. On average, a Junior deckhand or Stewardess will earn a minimum of €2000 a month. Obviously it may be more, or a little less depending on the size of the boat, but ideally that will be the lowest that a boat will pay.

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Palma de Mallorca from the Cathedral

Back to the 'glamour'. Is is as glamourous as what people make it out to be? It can be. More often that not your doing 15-20 hour days for weeks and months on end, and your only opportunity to see places is if boss / guests are off board, your doing provisioning or you have the luck to be based in port for a certain amount of time. A friend of mine was anchored off Ibiza and was on board for 84 days without going to land!! It is a lifestyle, not a job and can affect you negatively physically, mentally & emotionally.HOWEVER you can get to see some of the most beautiful places in the world, meet some incredible people, experience a variety of cultures and change your outlook on life and the way you perceive the world around you.

Therefore ask yourself, are you willing to work your arse off away from family & friends, for the benefits of travel, ludicrous money, make life long friends & living an interesting lifestyle? Then jump on board Sailor and lets sail the seas.

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