HOW TO JOIN YACHTING · ARTICLES
Every article, in one list.
The guide is the book. These are the answers to the questions the book raises, kept current and dated.
Start here
Certificates, explained
- UPDATED August 2026
What does an ENG1 medical cost, by country, in 2026?
What an ENG1 seafarer medical costs in 2026 in the UK, France, South Africa and the USA, how long it lasts, and why to book it before any course. - UPDATED August 2026
What does STCW Basic Safety Training cost in 2026?
STCW Basic Safety Training prices for 2026 in Cape Town, Fort Lauderdale, Antibes, Palma and the UK, what the bundle leaves out, and the 5 year refresher.
Visas, the facts
Dockwalking and daywork
- UPDATED August 2026
Which yacht crew agencies should you register with?
Yacht crew agencies with live crew registration in 2026, the hubs they work, how to be remembered, and why none of them can charge you. - UPDATED August 2026
What do yacht crew interviews actually ask?
What yacht crew interviews ask in 2026, from a hiring captain: the real questions, what to ask back, the dress code, red flags and how trial days work. - UPDATED August 2026
How do you dockwalk for a yacht job? A captain's actual script
How to dockwalk in 2026: the hours, the dress, the words to say, what daywork pays, and what to do after 11:00. From a working superyacht captain.
The four departments
- UPDATED August 2026
How do you become a yacht chef?
Yacht chef jobs in 2026: the certificates, the pay, the solo galley reality, and how to get hired out of a professional kitchen ashore. - UPDATED August 2026
What does a yacht deckhand actually do?
What a yacht deckhand does daily, what it pays in 2026, the certificates you need first, and who lasts on deck. Written by a captain who hires. - UPDATED August 2026
How do you become a yacht engineer?
Yacht engineer entry level in 2026: which trades transfer, the certificates you need first, and what a junior engineer is paid per month. - UPDATED August 2026
What does a yacht stewardess actually do?
Yacht stewardess duties, pay, hours and certificates in 2026, written by a captain who hires junior stews every season.
Money, honestly
- UPDATED August 2026
Do yacht crew pay tax?
Do yacht crew pay tax? What the UK Seafarers' Earnings Deduction, SARS rules and the US filing test mean for yacht crew in 2026, and the day counts. - UPDATED August 2026
How do you spot a yacht job scam?
Yacht job scams in 2026: the one rule that spots every version, what MLC law says about recruitment fees, and how to check an offer before you travel. - UPDATED August 2026
What do yacht crew earn in 2026? First-rung salaries, tips and what you keep
Yacht crew salary 2026: deckhand, stew, chef and junior engineer ranges, what tips really add, and a worked example of a first season's saving.
Life on board
- UPDATED August 2026
Do yachts drug test, and do records or tattoos rule you out?
Do yacht crew get drug tested? What testing, criminal record checks and visible tattoos actually mean for getting hired on a superyacht in 2026. - UPDATED August 2026
Is yachting worth it? An honest answer from someone still doing it
Is yachting worth it in 2026? First rung pay, tips, rest hours, leave, shared cabins, and who it breaks. The honest ledger from a working captain.
Your CV
- UPDATED August 2026
How do you write a yacht CV with no experience?
How to write a yacht CV with no experience in 2026: what a captain reads first, which land jobs count, and how daywork becomes real experience. - UPDATED August 2026
Why is your yacht CV getting no replies?
Your yacht CV gets no replies for a short list of reasons. A captain ranks them, most common first, with the 2026 fix for each one. - UPDATED August 2026
What does a captain actually look for in a yacht CV?
What a captain reads on a yacht crew CV in 2026, in the order he reads it: photo, name, position, visas, certificates, experience.
Start with the guide: all ten chapters, free to read.
Your CV is the only thing that walks the dock when you can't.
I read a CV in about thirty seconds. Most green CVs lose me in ten. SeaPapers builds the one a captain expects: yacht fields, department templates, two-page discipline. Build yours before you book the flight.
on SeaPapers, the CV builder for yacht crew
Find out what your role needs before you book a single course.
Deck, interior, galley and engineering all want different paper, and half of it has an expiry date. See the list for your role, then keep every certificate, medical, passport and visa in one place a boat can open with one link, with an email before anything runs out.
Then store them in the SeaPapers folio.
Both live at SeaPapers. One account, one link to the boat.