The preference sheet says the principal likes red wine. That is all it says. Four days later he asks, with mild irritation, why the yacht has not stocked the Barolo he drank last summer, and whether the berthing in Capri is really going to cost what the statement says. Two failures, one week: you did not gather enough, and you did not explain enough.
The guest profile
The preference sheet arrives from the broker and is the start, not the end. The purser turns it into a working guest profile that the whole interior team uses.
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Allergies and medical needs | Safety first, and never guessed at |
| Dietary requirements and dislikes | Galley planning and provisioning cost |
| Beverage preferences by brand and vintage | The single most expensive guessing game onboard |
| Names, titles, pronunciation, relationships | The detail that makes service feel personal |
| Children, ages, staff, security detail | Cabins, safety, catering, manning |
| Sleep, wake and meal patterns | Crew rest hours and service timing |
| Water toys, sports, activities | Deck planning and fuel |
| Sensitivities: photography, privacy, publicity | Reputation risk |
Update it during the charter, and store it under the yacht data protection rules. Health data and dietary information are personal data and, in many jurisdictions, special category data. Access is on a need-to-know basis and it is not shared with suppliers beyond what is necessary.
VAT and local tax
State the principle and stop. VAT, charter tax and local levies are jurisdiction-dependent and change: they turn on the cruising area, the flag, the ownership structure, where the charter starts and finishes, and how the yacht is commercially registered. The purser does not decide the treatment, does not advise the guest on it, and does not quote a rate from memory.
- Record the facts precisely: where the charter began and ended, where the yacht sailed, where fuel was bunkered, where goods were bought.
- Ask the manager, the broker and the yacht accountants what applies, in writing, before the charter if possible.
- Apply what they instruct, and keep the correspondence with the charter file. This is not tax advice.
Talking to guests about money
- Be factual, brief and unembarrassed. Money conversations become awkward only when the person delivering them is awkward.
- Explain in advance: at the welcome briefing, tell the guest or their PA how the APA works, that a statement is available at any time, and who to ask.
- Never speculate on price in front of guests. I will confirm that figure for you within the hour is always better than a guess.
- Never let a guest feel audited. You present, you do not justify.
Onboard Notes
- The best guest profiles are built after the charter, in the debrief, while everyone still remembers.
- Do not carry a previous charterer preferences into a new profile by copy and paste. It is how a stranger name ends up on a menu card.
- If a guest disputes an APA line, do not argue. Produce the receipt, offer to review it with the broker, and inform the captain.