You take a photograph of the sunset from the aft deck. It is beautiful. In the corner of the frame, slightly out of focus, is a guest in a swimsuit and a corner of the saloon. You post it with the caption "office view". Within six hours it has been screenshotted by a tabloid, the management company has called the captain, and you are packing.
Why discretion is the core competence
Guests are frequently people whose privacy is worth a great deal of money to somebody else: heads of business, public figures, families who have been photographed against their will their whole lives. They are paying for a place where none of that happens. The yacht is one of the last private spaces they have.
Discretion is not politeness. It is the product.
The Non-Disclosure Agreement
Most yachts require crew to sign an NDA, either within the Seafarer Employment Agreement or as a separate document. Typically it binds you:
- For a defined term, often indefinitely — it does not expire when you leave the boat.
- To all information about the owner, guests, the vessel, the itinerary, the charter and the crew.
- With real legal consequences: dismissal, forfeiture of pay, and civil liability for damages.
Read what you sign. But assume, whether or not you have signed anything, that the professional standard is total.
What you never disclose
- Guest names, appearance, behaviour, conversation, health, relationships, tips.
- The owner's identity, movements, wealth, plans, family.
- The yacht's itinerary, position or schedule — this is a security matter as much as a privacy one.
- Photographs or video containing guests, guest areas, or anything identifying the vessel while guests are aboard.
- Crew matters: disputes, dismissals, salaries.
Social media rules
| Usually prohibited | Usually acceptable (check first) |
|---|---|
| Any image with a guest in it, however incidental | A photograph of yourself in a neutral location ashore |
| Naming the vessel while guests are aboard | Generic sunsets with no identifiable interior |
| Geotagging the yacht's current position | Posts made after the season, with nothing identifying |
| Posting interior photographs of guest areas | Nothing about work, at all, is always safe |
Many yachts simply prohibit all posting related to the vessel. Assume that is the rule until you are told otherwise, in writing, by the captain.
Onboard Notes
- Assume every phone in the anchorage has a long lens. Paparazzi genuinely do target yachts. Crew who confirm a guest's presence, even to a friend in a bar, have caused real harm.
- The dockside bar in Antibes is full of crew from other boats. What you say there travels the same evening.
- "My account is private" is not a defence. Screenshots exist.
- If a journalist, a stranger or another crew member asks you who is aboard: "I'm not able to discuss the boat." Then tell your HOD or the captain that you were asked.
- If you have already posted something you should not have, take it down and tell your HOD immediately. Boats survive mistakes disclosed early. They do not forgive concealment.