When I first started sailing in my little red topper dinghy all those years ago, I never expected to be able to recreate that happiness of a sunday afternoon race into a full-on career (of course, on something a little bigger than a topper…)
Last year I started working onboard a 52m ketch sailing yacht as a Deckhand, and since then have travelled from Newport, to the Caribbean, England, Norway, and Palma.
Most people don’t even know about the yachting industry until they’re fully submerged in it. It’s a community in itself, everyone’s a mutual friend and it makes all the travelling alot easier when you see familiar faces on the other side of the world. 
Of course, like every job, there’s the darker side.. the (sometimes) longer hours, being away from home for long periods of time and dealing with living in a relatively small space onboard.
There are the challenges of everyone blending in to form a team and getting on with each other. but hey, I’d take that over an office job any day!
My best advice to anyone thinking about a job in yachting is to go all in, You will need to fully commit and get as many sailing qualifications as you can, then see what happens – it’s a big lifestyle change, but the people you meet and places you go make it all worth it!
Alice S.
