It is late October in Palma. The boat is spotless, the guests are gone, and the captain has just told you that in nine days you will be crossing the Atlantic. You have never done an ocean passage. You ask what you are supposed to do for two weeks at sea with no guests. The chief stew smiles and hands you a stores list.
The classic dual-season year
| Period | Where | What the interior does |
|---|---|---|
| May–September | Mediterranean — French and Italian Riviera, Balearics, Corsica/Sardinia, Croatia, Greece, Turkey | Peak guest season. Back-to-back charters or owner use. |
| October–November | Transatlantic crossing, or lay-up | Deep clean, inventory, stores, silver, uniform reorder. |
| December–April | Caribbean — St Barths, Antigua, BVI, St Martin, Bahamas | Second guest season; peaks hard over Christmas and New Year. |
| April–May | Return crossing, then shipyard/refit | Everything comes out. Carpets, curtains, deep maintenance. |
Not every yacht follows it. Alternatives include Northern Europe (Norway, Baltic), the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia, the South Pacific, and expedition itineraries to Antarctica, Alaska and Greenland.
Set-piece events
The calendar has fixed points that fill the anchorages and empty the crew of sleep:
- Monaco Grand Prix (May) and the Monaco Yacht Show (September)
- Cannes Film Festival (May)
- Antigua Sailing Week, St Barths New Year's Eve
- Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show (autumn) — also a major hiring event
- Palma and Barcelona — the Mediterranean refit and crew-hiring hubs in spring
Who the guests are
Guests are not a monolith. In practice you will meet:
- The owner and their family, including children and, frequently, pets.
- Owner's guests — friends, business associates. They often do not know yacht etiquette, and you guide them gently.
- Charter guests — paying a very large sum for a week and expecting it to be flawless. Multi-generational family groups are common.
- Cultural and religious variety — dietary law, alcohol restrictions, gendered service preferences, days of observance. The preference sheet and your chief stew will brief you.
What they have in common: they are on holiday, they are paying enormously for it, and they judge the yacht on small details. Warm towels. A drink refilled before it is asked for. A cabin that is turned down without them ever seeing it happen.
Onboard Notes
- A crossing is not a holiday. It is when the interior does the work that guest weeks make impossible: full inventories, silver polishing, uniform audits, deep-cleaning cabins one at a time.
- Seasons drive hiring. Med jobs are filled February–April; Caribbean jobs October–November. Be in the right place at the right time.
- The shipyard period is the dirtiest, least glamorous and most educational part of the year. Volunteer for it early in your career.
- Anticipate the guest profile from the preference sheet — but never make assumptions about a guest's nationality, religion or family relationships out loud.