Learn from my first yachting mistakes! Let’s rewind to over 5 years ago when Jess was not a seasoned yachtie. She was an aspiring yachtie… wanting to be a yacht stewardess. She was young, had minimal funds, and limited knowledge of how the industry worked… well can you blame her? There was no information out there. Thankfully today there are a few more resources that guide you on your way.

5 TIPS… I wish I knew back when first started in the yachting industry. 

➡️ Want the step-by-step guide to confidently break into the yachting industry? “THE YACHTING KICKSTARTER GUIDE” is your answer.

TIP 1: You need to know the best timing when looking for a job on a superyacht, the yachting industry is seasonal. I went to Antibes in late October! That’s freezing cold in Europe (well it is for me being Australian), the season had ended and most boats were already on their way to the Caribbean for the winter or the boats were spending time in shipyards doing refits so they didn’t need junior crew – to say the least, this was not maximising my job opportunities. So take note – the Mediterranean season kicks off in May (aim to be there late March/April and ends around late September/October. The USA And Caribbean season runs from November – April.

TIP 2: Get help or research so you understand exactly how to create a yachting CV. Yes, There’s a specific Layout for yachting CVs and your CV will be sent straight to the shredder on board if it doesn’t look like a yachting CV. Also take the time to really look at your transferable skills to add to your CV. I had previous event planning and surf life-saving experience, and did not think to add this to my CV. At the time I didn’t recognise you do a lot of organising and planning for events onboard so that’s transferable and you are constantly looking after guests… especially keeping an eye on them in the water… Surf life saving experience definitely should have been added to the list of key skills and experience.  If you want more info on the Do’s and Don’ts of yachting CV’s I suggest you check out episode 8 on The Seaworthy Stew podcast. Also worthwhile checking out The Yachting CV toolkit which gives you three CV templates to choose from as well as a and step by step guide to creating a CV that ticks ALL the industry boxes. Highly recommend to save you spending hours going down a rabbit hole on Google looking for mixed advice on Superyacht CVs. Been there done that. 

TIP 3: The mistake I made was I didn’t know of the lesser-known ports which are still worthwhile visiting to dock walk. This was lost opportunities in my eyes, I went to Monaco to Dock walk however I didn’t know there are two ports basically one for the bigger boats and one for the smaller boats. I have included in my Yachting Kickstarter course all the places you should be dock walking (the hidden spots too!), to broaden your scope and give you the exact ports to visit- with info on their security restrictions.

Also I think it’s important to note you can’t just rely on crew agents. My first mistake was I was in the yachting hubs at the wrong time so of course, the crew agents could not help me. You have to get out there and pound the pavement by dock walking to really put yourself out there.

TIP 4: Stay in a crew house it will likely impact your success once they are on the ground in the yachting hubs. I made the mistake of booking an Air Bnb on the outskirts of town. Firstly I was a solo female traveler in a foreign country, antibes is not all safe, I was fine however there have been many yachties being intoxicated who have been mugged walking back to the boat. So just be careful and try and be in groups. Staying in an air bnb was also depressing, I had no one to keep the positivity going! To talk about what boats had came in and who got work on what yacht and get excited with. So the perks are in crew houses you’re surrounded by other aspiring yachties it’s like a little community and really nice to have around you. Captains will also ask the crew houses for CVs if they are looking for crew or day workers, this increases your job opportunities! 

The owners of the crew houses are usually ex yachties and have a wealth of knowledge to share. I would suggest booking in advance as the most popular crew houses such as Grapevine in Antibes books out early especially (march – May) and in my eyes they are the best in Antibes, I’ve personally stayed with them. 

TIP 5: Make sure you budget and have money in your yachting safety net. I definitely did not do this and it was so stressful during the period when I was looking for work. I had no real clue as to how much accommodation, trains, etc. was going to cost me. If I had my time again I would know what to account for and stick to it so you know how much money you have for when you aren’t working and therefore could work out how long you could potentially stay for without working. THE YACHTING KICKSTARTER GUIDE has a complete budget planner and it factors in everything you need to consider, work towards, and save before jet setting across the world. Being financially stressed is not a nice place to be when you are in a foreign country.

➡️ Want the step-by-step guide to confidently break into the yachting industry? “THE YACHTING KICKSTARTER GUIDE” is your answer.