
It’s unbelievable sometimes the apparent disconnect between yacht owners and their crew.
For the past two weeks our crew has been on ‘stand by’ – standing by to standby as it were.
What I’ve discovered during my time working on the megayacht industry, is that there seems to be a characteristic that is common among superyacht owners, in that they seem to have very little understanding of what is involved when it comes to preparing a yacht for their impending arrival.
So for those of you wondering what’s involved – here are some of the items on our daily work list.
Let’s start with the exterior crew…
We’re up at 7am, the yacht is washed down, the stainless is polished, the scuppers are cleaned, the hull is scrubbed, the windows are made spotless, the decks are wiped, the covers for the seating areas are removed, deck ornaments like flowers and glasses are setup where need be and wide ranging detailing covering the entire yacht is carried out – the entire process on a 34 meter yacht can take anything up to three to four hours.
Then there’s the interior crew…
The chef heads off at 6:30am to do the daily shopping, the chief stew and the rest of the stewardesses prep the interior; vacuuming, wet wiping the floors, changing the sweets and savoury snacks, check the exterior fridges are fully stocked, setup guest towels and bathrooms, squeeze fresh orange juice, prepare fruit bowls with the chefs morning shopping, finish up all the laundry, prep the cabins bedding and complete numerous other household activities – again this can take in excess of 4 hours.
“But that’s what you get paid to do” – I hear you say…and yes you would be correct – but there is a certain gratification that goes along with the owner or guests being onboard and enjoying the fruits of your hard labour.
Allow me to explain a little further…
Yesterday, the owners PA rings up at around 1pm and says to the Captain that the owner and guests will be arriving in half an hour to an hour.
“Right then guys, I want everyone in full charter uniform, with your radios on and standing on the aft deck in 15 minutes!” – states the Captain.
A mad dash then ensues while the entire crew checks and double checks that everything is perfect before the owner’s arrival.
We all meet on the aft deck in less than ten minutes and the first mate and I stand ready on the dock, waiting to spot the owners black Mercedes arriving at the gates on the end of the quay. Easy as!
It’s another scorching day in the French Riviera mind you – a cool 33 degrees and only a breath of wind. So there we are, the mate and I standing on the melting cement in a state of expectation; our feet sweating uncontrollably in our leather dock shoes while droplets of sweat begin to work their way through the fibres of our neatly pressed shirts.
Two hours later and there is still no sign of any owner or guest.
The Captain puts in a call for help to the owners PA – “Hi there, we are wondering where you are as we are standing here on the dock waiting for you. Can you tell us the latest and greatest please?”
“No we are not coming anymore – we are now back at the hotel” – was the reply.
The hotel?! You have your own private yacht and you check into a hotel?
Now I’m sorry, but the mind can only boggle at this but to add insult to injury as it were, this situation has been ongoing for the past two weeks.
See, I’m fascinated by the entire mindset of this because how can one own a yacht worth a cool €10 million, be in the same city at the same time, inform the crew that you are definitely going to be there and then never pitch up?
The toughest part about being on standby is that once the boat is setup and all the work is done, there is very little else to do without any owner or guest onboard; and I can tell you first hand that the incessant battling of boredom over a period of an afternoon is more tiring than working a full eighteen hour day!
This sort of thing drives the crew nuts.
I sometimes wish that private owners were able to fully appreciate the efforts of their crew.
For charter guests at least, the context is a little different as they pay for a specific period onboard where they can and do enjoy the lifestyle and benefits that the yacht has to offer – and what many crew are finding is that this satisfaction translates into big tips for the crew themselves [only last week a good friend of mine received a €5,000 tip for a two week charter].
But for some private yacht owner’s at least – this aspect of yachting seems to be lost on them.
[Rant over!]
Have you had any experiences of your own with owners or guests that simply drive you crazy?






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“The Power & Motoryacht 100" – the definitive annual list of the world’s largest megayachts has been running for the past twenty three years, and is always a hot topic of discussion for yacht enthusiasts from across the globe. 







