I first saw an ad for Yacht Week on YouTube ten years ago and thought, ‘Damn, that’s the coolest summer job ever—if only I could be that badass one day.’ Fast forward to 2023: I had put competitive sailing aside for medical school, but I was longing to get back on the water.
When my uni friends and I planned our third summer sailing trip and needed a second yacht, all eyes fell on me—and I volunteered to be skipper. Panic set in: I had NEVER sailed with a motor or handled anything bigger than 22 feet. That’s when I remembered the ad and thought, ‘Their skippers must have done some serious training to pull off a circle raft like that.’ The next day I applied for Skipper Academy.
It was the best decision. I arrived as a sailor and returned home as a skipper—with the skills and confidence to maneuver big yachts. Working at Yacht Week has taught me life skills no book ever could: how to lead, communicate, and balance fun with responsibility. Most importantly, it gave me a whole family of friends who keep me coming back every summer.
Yacht Week is the coolest summer job ever. Unmatched. But let me warn you — you won’t want to go back to university afterwards. And honestly, you don’t need to. Yacht Week gives you more than friends and skills: it gives you a global network and an ocean of opportunities. Having Yacht Week on your résumé opens more doors than any degree ever could.”