The Untold Truth Of Below Deck Sailing Yacht
Bravo TV's second season of the reality show Below Deck Sailing Yacht debuted on March 1, and fans are already rabid to dive back into the world of chartered sea vessels. The series follows the highs and lows of a crew who sail charter boats in Croatia's Ionoian Sea.
The show is part of a series of spin-offs based on Below Deck, which has proven to be massively successful for the network. After 23 seasons, it's no surprise that two spin-offs were born: Mediterranean and Sailing Yacht. As Joshua Ocampo of Men's Health explains, people love all three shows because "the series has exposed the underbelly of [the] ultra-luxurious yachting industry."
Season two of Sailing Yacht features a lot of new names, including Daisy Kelliher, Dani Soares, Alli Dore, Natasha de Bourg, Colin Macrae, Gary King, Jean-Luc Cerza Lanaux, and, of course, a familiar face: Captain Glenn Shephard (via Bravo).
First mate Gary King did not get along with Jean-Luc Cerza Lanaux in season 2
As said, this year's BDSY team is full of brand new faces, which a lot of the series' fans think was the right move. The new cast is definitely expected to shake things up. Captain Glenn Shephard told Us Weekly that he believes Gary King is "a bit of a party animal," but added that he appreciates King's sailing skills. "He's a good sailor. I could relax a little bit with a right-hand man there. I didn't have to explain to him, he understands."
Captain Shephard also offered a little bit of dirt on the season. Turns out Jean-Luc Cerza Lanaux, the youngest crew member, and first mate Gary King aren't really good friends, but luckily they were still able to work well together. "I don't know that he and Gary got on perfectly, but I think they manage the season and their department quite well" (via Us Weekly).
It turns out the real story is a little deeper than that. Meaww writes that Lanaux and King had a huge fight over how to clean the ship. Lanaux and fellow crewmate Colin Macrae were mopping when they decided to use a cleaning solvent instead of soap... but then discovered that the solvent was really diesel fuel. The publication notes, "You could see Jean was apologetic and first mate Gary King was fuming but a little quick-thinking helped the crew manage the crisis."
There's also a scary accident in season 2 of Below Deck Sailing Yacht
Interpersonal drama isn't the only thing that will keep season 2 of Below Deck Sailing Yacht exciting for viewers. It turns out that Captain Shephard has now become the first captain in series history to crash a yacht.
Shephard explained to Showbiz Cheat Sheet that the accident was pretty rough. "That particular [accident], I felt it. And when I'm feeling the impact I'm fearing the worst and thinking 'Oh my God this is really, really bad.' In the end, it's not quite as bad as I feared. So I may have overreacted a little bit. But yeah, it's pretty serious."
It also sounds like the accident happened due to error on Captain Shephard's part and technical issues he dealt with. "I've never had an issue with the result like we had. And you can tell I was quite upset about it. I've never had that kind of result, but I've definitely had issues before where I've lost everything. The engines shut down. I have no thrusters, nothing. And that can be a little nerve-wracking. That's something that can be a showstopper, like an 'end the season' and kind of thing. It's something that can be very, very serious. People can get injured, it can be very serious."
Guests get a whopping 50% off if they book a trip on the yacht
If sailing around as a guest on Below Deck Sailing Yacht is your idea of a dream vacation, you're in luck: with the right amount of money, it's really easy to hop aboard the Parsifal III! The show's producer, Mark Cronin, participated in an Ask Me Anything forum on Reddit four years ago and revealed quite a lot about what it takes to be on the show.
For starters, Cronin said that while he wishes he could be more selective, he simply can't; whoever can afford to sail on the boat is welcome. "Whoever's check clears the bank is on the show! I wish I could be picky" (via Reddit). Luckily, guests don't have to pay the full $150,000 fee to charter such a yacht. "The guests pay their own real money to charter the boat. But we do give them a discount (about 50%) from the real cost of the vessel for three days. We ask them to tip about 15% to 20% of the full cost though. The tip amount is up to them as well. They are not compensated, but we pay their airfare" (via Reddit).
Guests on Below Deck Sailing Yacht can be super rude
Mark Cronin fielded quite a few questions about the passengers that come on board the yacht throughout filming. It turns out that most of them have the same complaint: they don't like how they appear on the show. But Cronin adds that typically, if someone appears to be rude on the show, they're that way in real life. While speaking about the passengers who have come on board, he noted, "I think they are actually rude sometimes. Rich people can be rude to people they consider 'servants.' Some get a rush out of it I guess. They're hungry for 'amusement' and sometimes abusing the staff [is] amusement" (via Reddit).
Fans who watched the first season of BDSL likely remember one guest who caused a lot of problems. As Decider recounts, two men behaved as if chartering the boat meant they had the right to behave however they saw fit. The pair wanted the crew to drop them off at a beach bar to find women to spend time with, but worried aloud about what they were wearing, with one of them demanding, "Pull right on the f****** beach. I don't want to get the f****** linens dirty."
Cast members get paid way more than you might think
Jill Goslicky, the show's executive producer, recently participated in her own Ask Me Anything forum on Reddit and addressed a few key questions: how do people become yachties on the show, and how do they get paid?
Goslicky says that the crew is paid in a multitude of ways, "They do get a salary for being hired as part of the yacht crew, they do get to keep their tips, and they do get a production fee" (via Reddit). Refinery29 also reports that crew salaries range from $5,000 to $10,000 a month, depending on the position and in the case of the chef, experience and training.
A second and third stewardess starts the monthly salary scale at $5,000, followed by the chief stew, who can earn up to $1,000 more. The salary of the chef, meanwhile, starts out at $7,000, with the potential of earning up to $10,000. And most importantly? That's all before they get anything extra: "This is before tip, which across the Below Deck seasons averages $15,000 a person for about six weeks of work" (via Refinery).
People who want to be on a Below Deck show have to follow a few key steps before they can get the gig. Men's Health explains that the first step is filling out the application online. Yachtie applicants also have to be at least 21 years old, have a visa for the filming location, and be qualified to work on a yacht in the first place.