Tahiti, St. Thomas and the French Riviera — I’ve yachted in all of those exotic locales, albeit from the comfort of my couch. And, thousands and thousands of Americans are in the identical boat.
In 2013, “Below Deck,” introduced the masses to essentially the most glamorous mode of traveling: yachting. Since then, it’s change into a Bravo mainstay with Season 9 of “Below Deck Mediterranean’’ premiering in June.
But how real is the fact show? I spent five nights on a yacht in Croatia to seek out out.
A tip on tipping
My suitcase wasn’t bursting with Benjamins. An agency at your final destination provides money for the crew’s tip money. Whilst you’re expected to tip $30,000 for a two-night cruise on “Below Deck,” in real life you simply should tip 10% to fifteen% of your charter fee. That’s about $10,000 for a two-night cruise on a 180-foot charter yacht like Mustique (from $250,000 per week), which stars in the brand new season.
Based on Zvonimir Androi, president of the yacht charter company Via Croatia, most of the time, the tip comes from what’s left over after provisioning.
So, shun the Dom Pérignon and skip the beluga caviar, and also you’ll have money to spare.
What’s up, dock?
In real life, “Below Deck’s” favorite commercial-break cliff-hanger isn’t nearly as dramatic. Docking in our yacht, Via Croatia’s five-cabin, 100-foot Adriatic Escape (from $52,800 per week), was breezy.
I asked the crew in the event that they hated establishing the slide — a tortuous, Herculean task in the event you consider what you see on TV.
“It’s not that bad,” a twentysomething Croatian deckhand, as cute as his on-screen counterparts, told me. “That said, we’re definitely not sad in the event you don’t ask for it.”
Play it cool
Despite being served meat on multiple occasion, my vegetarian co-guests on board weren’t divas when it got here to cuisine — a serious source of chef-related stress on the show.
Tantrums aren’t the norm Barbie Pascual, the “Below Deck” stewardess famous for putting up with former “RHONY” star Jill Zarin’s demands for the right Weight loss plan Coke within the “Real Housewives of Grenada” episode, tells me. “Guests know they’re being filmed so their reactions are more extreme than they’d be if the cameras weren’t around,” she says.
Pascual’s biggest tip for first-time yachters? Don’t go skinny dipping, like they do on the show, after dark.
“People ignore currents, sharks, etc.,” she says. “Jumping within the water should at all times be with the captain’s consent!”
Our humorless Croatian yacht captain was a far cry from “Below Deck Mediterranean’s” affable Captain Sandy Yawn. I feel we only saw him twice over the course of 4 days, and he definitely didn’t join us for dinner.
That was nice by us since the stews and deckhands were at all times handy with anything we wanted — including at chat.
Asking for it
“No” is a word you’ll never hear on a yacht, unless there’s a security issue, Pascual says.
While we didn’t ask our crew to do a striptease or decorate for ‘70s night (two recurring requests on the show), out-there demands aren’t out of the query, so long as you’re willing to pay for it.
For instance, Via Croatia is currently retrofitting one in all its multimillion-dollar superyachts for an upcoming charter booked by a multigenerational Jewish family from Florida.
“Along with paying the charter fee, the client is literally buying every thing latest: pots, pans, silverware, etc.” said Androi. “They’re even spending $30,000 on a latest tender for the elderly mother-in-law.”
Now, I’m no reality show producer, but a picky primary attempting to keep his wife, her elderly mom and their kosher kids glad at sea has the makings of an Emmy Award-winning episode.
Yachting on a budget
Charters are least expensive originally and end of a destination’s season. Via Croatia’s yuppiest yacht, the 160-foot, 12-cabin Agape Rose, fetches $200,000 per week in July and August. However it’s just $164,000 per week in April and October. Divide that by 24 of your closest family and friends and it’s just $6,800 an individual.
If that’s still an excessive amount of, consider booking a yacht club suite on one in all MSC Cruises’ Mediterranean voyages.
Sure, you’ll be on a cruise liner, but for $1,659 an individual you’ll be treated to seven nights of personal butler service with a non-public pool and restaurant that the pleb passengers don’t even know exists.
Tahiti, St. Thomas and the French Riviera — I’ve yachted in all of those exotic locales, albeit from the comfort of my couch. And, thousands and thousands of Americans are in the identical boat.
In 2013, “Below Deck,” introduced the masses to essentially the most glamorous mode of traveling: yachting. Since then, it’s change into a Bravo mainstay with Season 9 of “Below Deck Mediterranean’’ premiering in June.
But how real is the fact show? I spent five nights on a yacht in Croatia to seek out out.
A tip on tipping
My suitcase wasn’t bursting with Benjamins. An agency at your final destination provides money for the crew’s tip money. Whilst you’re expected to tip $30,000 for a two-night cruise on “Below Deck,” in real life you simply should tip 10% to fifteen% of your charter fee. That’s about $10,000 for a two-night cruise on a 180-foot charter yacht like Mustique (from $250,000 per week), which stars in the brand new season.
Based on Zvonimir Androi, president of the yacht charter company Via Croatia, most of the time, the tip comes from what’s left over after provisioning.
So, shun the Dom Pérignon and skip the beluga caviar, and also you’ll have money to spare.
What’s up, dock?
In real life, “Below Deck’s” favorite commercial-break cliff-hanger isn’t nearly as dramatic. Docking in our yacht, Via Croatia’s five-cabin, 100-foot Adriatic Escape (from $52,800 per week), was breezy.
I asked the crew in the event that they hated establishing the slide — a tortuous, Herculean task in the event you consider what you see on TV.
“It’s not that bad,” a twentysomething Croatian deckhand, as cute as his on-screen counterparts, told me. “That said, we’re definitely not sad in the event you don’t ask for it.”
Play it cool
Despite being served meat on multiple occasion, my vegetarian co-guests on board weren’t divas when it got here to cuisine — a serious source of chef-related stress on the show.
Tantrums aren’t the norm Barbie Pascual, the “Below Deck” stewardess famous for putting up with former “RHONY” star Jill Zarin’s demands for the right Weight loss plan Coke within the “Real Housewives of Grenada” episode, tells me. “Guests know they’re being filmed so their reactions are more extreme than they’d be if the cameras weren’t around,” she says.
Pascual’s biggest tip for first-time yachters? Don’t go skinny dipping, like they do on the show, after dark.
“People ignore currents, sharks, etc.,” she says. “Jumping within the water should at all times be with the captain’s consent!”
Our humorless Croatian yacht captain was a far cry from “Below Deck Mediterranean’s” affable Captain Sandy Yawn. I feel we only saw him twice over the course of 4 days, and he definitely didn’t join us for dinner.
That was nice by us since the stews and deckhands were at all times handy with anything we wanted — including at chat.
Asking for it
“No” is a word you’ll never hear on a yacht, unless there’s a security issue, Pascual says.
While we didn’t ask our crew to do a striptease or decorate for ‘70s night (two recurring requests on the show), out-there demands aren’t out of the query, so long as you’re willing to pay for it.
For instance, Via Croatia is currently retrofitting one in all its multimillion-dollar superyachts for an upcoming charter booked by a multigenerational Jewish family from Florida.
“Along with paying the charter fee, the client is literally buying every thing latest: pots, pans, silverware, etc.” said Androi. “They’re even spending $30,000 on a latest tender for the elderly mother-in-law.”
Now, I’m no reality show producer, but a picky primary attempting to keep his wife, her elderly mom and their kosher kids glad at sea has the makings of an Emmy Award-winning episode.
Yachting on a budget
Charters are least expensive originally and end of a destination’s season. Via Croatia’s yuppiest yacht, the 160-foot, 12-cabin Agape Rose, fetches $200,000 per week in July and August. However it’s just $164,000 per week in April and October. Divide that by 24 of your closest family and friends and it’s just $6,800 an individual.
If that’s still an excessive amount of, consider booking a yacht club suite on one in all MSC Cruises’ Mediterranean voyages.
Sure, you’ll be on a cruise liner, but for $1,659 an individual you’ll be treated to seven nights of personal butler service with a non-public pool and restaurant that the pleb passengers don’t even know exists.
