How to Become a Yacht Chef With No Experience

First, the good news: this is the beauty of yachting — it can give almost anyone a chance to prove themselves. I've worked alongside brilliant yacht chefs who never set foot in culinary school. But let's be real about what "no experience" means and how you bridge the gap.

The truth up front

Nobody is handing the galley of a superyacht to someone who has never cooked professionally. What they will do is give a hard-working, likeable person a start in a junior role — and from there, the galley is closer than you think.

The realistic routes in

Route 1: Cook anywhere, first. Stage or volunteer in restaurants. Take a job in a busy café or bistro. Even six to twelve months of real kitchen time changes what you can honestly put on a CV. I started my career at 15 washing dishes and worked up through a 4-year apprenticeship — you don't need my exact path, but you do need time behind a stove.

Route 2: Start on smaller or unconventional boats. My own start wasn't a superyacht — it was a dive boat on the Great Barrier Reef, cooking for over 100 guests a day between scuba dives. Dive boats, crew boats, charter catamarans, expedition vessels — they're less glamorous, they pay less, and they will teach you more about cooking at sea than any course ever could.

Route 3: Come in as crew, move to the galley. Plenty of chefs started as a stew or deckhand, helped in the galley on crossings, and fell into the position. Once you're on board and people see your work ethic, doors open fast.

Route 4: Crew chef / sous chef on a bigger boat. Larger yachts carry a second chef who cooks crew food and supports the head chef. It's the best apprenticeship in yachting — you learn directly from someone doing the job at the top level.

What you need regardless

Your STCW Basic Safety Training, an ENG1 medical, a food safety certificate, and a genuinely good attitude. Versatility, flexibility, composure, organisation and humility — those are the qualities that make a great yacht chef, and none of them require a diploma.

My honest advice

Get out there and take chances. Say yes to the weird jobs. Every skill you pick up — diving, driving tenders, photography, whatever — makes you more employable to a captain looking at a stack of identical CVs. That's exactly how I got my first yacht job, and it's still true today.

I break the whole journey down — in order, with the exact steps — inside Become a Yacht Chef. Module 1 is free, so start there.