Life onboard a superyacht might seem like superyacht crew are living the dream to those on the outside, but to seasoned professionals in the yachting industry, beyond the turquoise waters and luxury service, there’s a growing desire for more. Many superyacht crew crave more flexibility, more security and more fulfilment in their working lives. Yacht crew side hustles are paving the way to achieve exactly that.
Whether it’s pursuing passion projects, building passive income streams, or using existing skills to make money as yacht crew during downtime, more and more yachties are navigating towards financial freedom without stepping away from the demanding hours of crew life onboard.
In this month’s blog, we explore why a growing number of superyacht crew are adding side hustles to their already busy lives, what kind of work they’re doing, and how you can get started without risking burnout or letting it interfere with the day (and night) job. This blog is here to share ideas and inspiration. For any financial decisions, it’s always best to speak with a qualified advisor.
Why More Yacht Crew Are Starting Side Hustles
While there’s no one single reason for busy yacht crew adding yet more work onto their already gruelling daily to-do list, there are a number of shared motivations behind turning free time into entrepreneurial energy and building crew income ideas that support both current and future goals.
- Lack of job security: It’s a known caveat within the yachtie world that working onboard a superyacht does not offer the same job security a normal land-based position would. Even with contracts in place, many yachties have found themselves on the unemployment dock with little to no warning. A simple mistake, a yacht going up for sale or even new senior crew, can lead to a farewell trip on the tender. Having another source of income is a massive anxiety hack when it comes to job security and a smart way of making money as yacht crew, just in case.
- Planning for life after yachting: Very few superyacht crew plan to work onboard forever. Developing skills and starting something small in any spare time can build into a post-yachting career. Growing a savings and investment portfolio will also offer a lot more freedom for life after yachting.
- Creative and personal fulfilment: With crew life structured, demanding and routine-heavy, many crew find themselves craving a way to express their creativity or explore new hobbies and interests.
- Financial freedom: Extra income from a yacht crew side hustle can mean faster savings, early investments, or just simple peace of mind.
- Seasonal flexibility: The off-season, shipyard periods, or quiet charters can get pretty boring. These times offer ideal windows to learn, create and build a business, without impacting your onboard responsibilities.
What Side Hustles Are Yacht Crew Actually Doing?
By this point, you’re probably wondering exactly what yacht crew are doing to generate an extra revenue stream. We’ll never be able to list everything people are doing (we’d be here all season), but we can list some of the most popular crew income ideas we’re seeing across the industry.
Property: A Passive Side Hustle That Works While You Sail
For superyacht crew who have already invested in property, turning that asset into a passive income stream can be a smart way to put that asset to work. Whether you decide to rent out long-term to tenants or short-term through platforms like Airbnb just while you’re away, property can earn for you while you work at sea.
If you’re on board for short rotations or rotate between seasons, Airbnb can be ideal. You maintain flexibility, earn high nightly rates in popular areas, and can stop bookings when you’re home. Set up a system that can run smoothly without you. Many crew utilise the help of family or hand control to professional property managers to handle changeovers and guest support.
If you’re onboard pretty much full-time, consider long-term letting for a more hands-off approach. The monthly rent payments will help to pay off any mortgage payments and may provide a steady passive income to support everything from additional savings to funding an additional property, business idea or retirement.
Already got significant savings? Some crew choose to explore buy-to-let property as a way to generate additional income over time. With the right research and a good mortgage advisor, you can put a deposit down on a property and start earning rental income right away. Many crew choose to invest in areas with strong rental demand (think university towns, commuter belts, or coastal holiday spots).
Whether you’re listing your flat on Airbnb during crossings or building a mini real estate portfolio to support life after yachting, property can be one of the most powerful and scalable yacht crew side hustles around.
Turning Crew Life into Content and Income With Social Media & Influencing
In the last five years, we’ve seen a huge growth in the number of yachties growing massive followings on Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. Some (with permission) use their yacht and position to their advantage, sharing everything from day-in-the-life vlogs to showcasing their skills and work.
Yacht Chefs like @lilyofthegalley and @simplyhannah1 take full advantage of social media and their niches to showcase their culinary and plating skills while also creating cooking guides and educational resources. Over in the interior department, stews like @superyachtgirl and @girlblake offer a behind-the-scenes look at luxury service, posting housekeeping tips, cocktail and coffee masterclasses and tablescaping projects.
But it doesn’t all have to be yacht-related. Search TikTok or Instagram, and you’ll find plenty of fitness trainers, pilates instructors and yoga enthusiasts working onboard and sharing their workouts, healthy recipes, lifestyle tips and vlogs. Successful accounts like these grow niche and sometimes mainstream followings, which can lead to paid content creation, affiliate links, brand partnerships, and ambassador deals. For crew with a passion for content creation, social media influencing can be both creative fulfilment and a high-potential side hustle.
Make Money With Superyacht Photography & Videography
If you’re the crew member in charge of the yacht’s media, filming drone shots and GoPro footage on the daily, why not sharpen those skills and build a portfolio? With a decent portfolio behind you, which you can use social media to promote, you can offer freelance work in your spare time, building up to a full-time career.
In 2023, former deckhand Callum Johns did just this and launched his company Orca Media, a full-scale media content creation service for the superyacht industry, offering photography, videography, drone capture, and marketing. Orca Media also offers Your Charter Movies, in which the team films guests throughout their charter to create a charter movie they’ll treasure forever.
Not ready to launch a business? You can earn a passive income by selling images and footage as stock through agencies such as Alamy and Shutterstock. These agencies eliminate the hassle of marketing and chasing payments. However, they do take a hefty chunk of the profits. You can also sell physical prints through sites like Etsy, using a print-on-demand provider like Gelato or Printify.
Turn Your Industry Know-How Into Digital Products
Digital products can be a great passive income stream. Use your superyacht knowledge to your advantage and get to grips with Canva or Indesign to design and sell editable printables to your niche. Create CV templates, provisioning checklists, stew or deckhand bible templates, laundry guides, and ebooks or guides for junior and green crew looking to broaden their knowledge and get a head start. For inspo, check out this live listing that someone has put together to help green crew land their first role.
These types of digital products are helpful and in demand by crew and will help you create a passive income. Searching ‘Superyacht’ on Etsy doesn’t yield too many results which means it’s not yet an oversaturated market.
Earn Extra by Teaching or Coaching Online
Superyacht crew with additional skills, like chefs or those who have training in areas like yoga, fitness, breath work, or languages, can look to offer online coaching to add to their revenue stream. Group classes, one-on-one sessions or even personalised plans and programs are great ways to utilise your skills in exchange for monetary gain. Look into platforms such as Zoom, Teachable and Superprof to monetise your skills.
Freelance & Remote Work Offer Flexible Side Hustles for Yacht Crew
Great at putting pen to paper or got a head for organisation or admin? Writing, design, virtual assisting, voiceover work, and even coding can all be done remotely and in your spare time. Sites like Upwork or Fiverr are great places to start building a profile.
Unexpected Hustles Yacht Crew Are Trying
Looking to spice things up and earn money doing something a little different? Look into flipping vintage clothing on Vinted, reselling rare trainers, trading crypto, pet-sitting during shipyard periods, and dog walking in your spare time.
How to Make A Side Hustle Work Without Getting Fired
Obviously, a side hustle should never interfere with your onboard responsibilities. The captain, guests, and your crewmates rely on your full attention while on duty. A side hustle should be just that, an income generator that you can do in your spare time that won’t interfere with your main employment. Here’s how to keep your side gig safe and sensible:
- Know your contract: Some yacht contracts include clauses about outside work or income. Make sure you’re not violating any terms.
- Use off-duty hours only: Your hustle should happen during downtime, off-charter periods, or the off-season. Not during working hours.
- Keep it discreet and professional: Avoid spamming your crew or using guest-facing platforms to self-promote.
- Get the captain’s blessing (if needed): If there’s a chance your hustle might overlap with yacht life, content creation, for example, transparency is always best.
- Start small: A good side hustle should feel energising, not draining. Start with manageable goals and scale over time.
The superyacht world is dynamic, exciting, and full of opportunity, but it doesn’t usually last forever. The best time to plant seeds for the future is always now. Whether you’re on a quiet watch, anchored off Ibiza, or sitting in a shipyard café in La Ciotat, your free time is a chance to start something that could one day be your next career or at least a meaningful income-boosting side project. Get curious, be creative, and see what’s possible. Because making money as yacht crew doesn’t have to end with tips.
At FunAir, we’re all about supporting yacht crew on and off the water, whether that’s with our yacht-friendly inflatables or real-life advice to help you explore new passions, grow your side hustle and plan for life after yachting. As always, we recommend speaking with a qualified financial advisor or mortgage specialist before making any big financial decisions. Got a side hustle you think we should know about? Drop us a line at [email protected] or browse this site to explore our latest crew blogs and game-changing products.