Hello Yacht enthusiasts! I'm 22 and I love working on boats. I've been racing sailboats for 3 years and I enjoy taking care of the boats as if they are my own. I would love to see the world on these boats. What is the best path for me to take in order to get a job working on Yachts? I live in the Tampa Florida Area. Thank you so much for your time!
OP, when I click on this link, the page that loads is the entire subforum related to crewing. Was that your intent, or did you really have a single thread in mind?
I think OP's link was to direct a new member to the proper forum for posting his question. This thread has been moved.
If you are ready to start right away, move to Ft Lauderdale. The boat show has just ended and there will be some jobs available before boats leave for the winter. Find a place to stay, when I was there I stayed with Neptune House, and they have crew housing located all over Ft Lauderdale. There are several others such as smart move, and the bridge at Cordova, which all provide the same service. Enroll yourself in the STCW course at one of the training schools, Maritime Professional Training, or the likes. Meet people, walk some docks, and find some day work. Eventually you will hear of some openings and find a boat full time. Try to find a boat and program that meets your requirements, this will take time to actually figure out what you want to do. A boat that sits at the dock in Florida all year might not be for someone who likes to travel and see the world, the opposite is also true. The most important thing is work hard, bust a$$ and earn your keep, be aware that there are hundreds of others in the same position looking for the same jobs, and there are people who are more experienced then you doing the same. Learn everything you can, the more skills you acquire the more you are worth to a potential employer. Realize that it is hard work with long hours, and you will be tired and sore, sleep whenever possible because you never know when you are going to need to start washing the boat down at 3 am when you arrive at a destination and the guests are coming aboard at noon. Good luck
Now that you're here in the proper forum, I'm going to turn the question back toward you. What have you done to prepare yourself for a crew position? You say you love working on boats, what is your experience? Have you looked at the USCG requirements for being a crew member? I always ask these things about any job and individual. If you come to me looking for a job I want to see the initiative you've taken to prepare yourself. While many will pick up crew for day jobs from most anywhere, if I'm "hiring" a crew member for a regular job they will have been to some maritime school and at least have their STCW 95. Anything else they've done to show initiative will be a plus. You say you'd love to see the world on "these boats." That sounds like a tourist. What about working on them? Is this just something you want to do while young to see the world or are you looking for a career? There are thousands of young people who like the idea of spending time on a boat, think it would be fun. But they're not thinking of it as a job. Their commitment is until they get tired or the next idea hits. You will need to demonstrate you are not one of these types.
Ouch! Then, again. It always helps your position to take the necessary time to explore a website and prove your abilities by posting in the correct Forum Thread.
Don't be such an old phart..... I think though the big thing is to approach it like a profession, not a vacation. Our crew has fun, more than most crews, but they all have credentials and work hard and professionally.