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Have you ever come across your dream yacht job, only to realise right before you apply that you don’t have the exact maritime qualifications needed? Or perhaps you’ve recently been thinking about developing your service skills to progress in your yachting career? Bespoke Yacht Crew Training Onboard and Offshore allows crew with different experience levels to develop and adapt their skill sets to their individual needs.
Co-founded by Mark Cox and Duncan Biggs, an ex-Superyacht head chef (who share a combined 50+ years of experience in the yacht service industry), OceanWave Monaco is an industry leader in bespoke yacht crew training courses. Designed with crew in mind, the maritime training academy is open seven days a week and located in two of the Med regions’ Superyacht hotspots (Monaco and Antibes) to assist with a variety of maritime training options.
Over time, OceanWave Monaco has become recognised on a global scale for supporting crew of all levels, both onboard and onshore. Their unique superyacht training and services can be adapted to fit in with any yacht’s schedule.
Image by OceanWave Monaco
While yacht training courses are most commonly held in the Mediterranean region in January, February, March, and April (before the summer season kicks in), OceanWave Monaco is seeing more and more candidates all year round. The maritime training team has provided more information on what courses are available for both green crew, and experienced Superyacht crew.
What makes OceanWave Monaco different from other yacht crew training organisations?
“All of our trainers have worked in yachting, which means we can offer an exceptional and comprehensive understanding of what yachting is and what it is like to work onboard a luxury yacht. We also pride ourselves on our flexibility – We’re different because we come to you!”
Their business model is based on filling a gap in the market for a variety of courses that other Superyacht training academies weren’t offering and applying their knowledge to train others. The team helps yacht crew to put their skills to the test while working collaboratively with them to advance their knowledge.
Are their courses for green crew or do they also cater to seasoned crew who are looking to up-skill?
Both! OceanWave Monaco works in partnership with KDW Training to provide specialised Yacht Interior Training courses for Interior crew members who already have at least one season of experience under their belt. The training covers a range of areas, including Service, Housekeeping, Laundry, Valet, Cigars, and Yacht Interior Admin courses.
“We also specialise in Chief Stewardess/Senior Stewardess training with a bespoke 5-day training programme. We offer IAMI GUEST accredited training onboard, shoreside, and online, as well as bespoke training solutions, depending on the needs of the team,” added Mark.
How far are you willing to travel for yacht crew training?
“Although we have dedicated yacht crew training centres in Antibes and Monaco, we will travel to wherever we’re needed – we’re like the Thunderbirds!”
What other crew services does OceanWave Monaco offer?
Along with their comprehensive yacht training courses and yachting certificates, the crew training specialists can also offer Galley Set Ups and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) services, as well as develop Water Safety Plans for vessels:
“The Water Safety Plan grew from us teaching food hygiene because an important element of this is a vessel’s water supply,” added Duncan. “ We then started talking to various water treatment companies and saw that there was a market for supplying yachts with comprehensive safe water plans, to help them stay compliant with ship sanitation standards.”
Mark elaborates that:
“Galley set ups involve a series of steps, beginning with an assessment of the galley and other interior spaces, including pantries, crew mess & garbage storage and disposal areas. Also any additional areas specific to the individual yacht.”
The team will undertake a full assessment of the vessels safety equipment, all galley equipment, and implementation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), specific to the yacht in question. “All yachts, regardless of size, need SOPs to ensure that they remain fully adherent to all legal requirements, as well as providing a safe working environment for crew.”
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Crew feedback: What are previous students reporting saying after participating in OceanWave Monaco’s bespoke yacht crew training courses/services?
Chef Manual K:
“Thank you very much to OceanWave Monaco for this excellent course. More than being an assessment situation alone, my time here was filled with learning and experience. It really was enriching and a great pleasure to meet and work with Mark and his team. Thank you Mark for taking the time for all course-related info pre-course and all of your (positive) energy you shared with us doing it. It’s been a great pleasure meeting you! And I will definitely recommend it!
I loved the degree of challenge – working against time, with plenty of things to do and in a kitchen, we did not know and being given a degree of flexibility to still individualise our work and approach. And I honour your decision to make it a group experience by allowing interaction and exchange of ideas and inviting us to taste the dishes of others. I perceived it to be an enriching experience to receive guidance and counsel from you, the instructors, on how we could approach certain recipes and tasks in different and/or less time-consuming ways, and really felt that your heart is at the right place when you passionately and unceasingly advised/reminded us to take care of the best, most important resource we have: ourselves. Thank you for the work you do! “
Chef Victor H:
“I can’t describe how much doing my certificate with you helped me understand what I was about to face. In just a few months I made the transition from Yacht chef on a 45M+ thanks to Mark’s advice”
Chef Samatha K:
“I realised how important it is for every yacht chef to do their Ship’s Cook Assessment as I almost lost an amazing job opportunity due to not having my certificate. Thankfully OceanWave managed to fit me in at the very last minute but only because they had a cancellation BUT this left me very unprepared. They helped me through the whole process and pushed and guided me through when I was so nervous. I can highly recommend all you yacht chefs to book your Ship’s Cook assessment at ocean wave ASAP, so you don’t have to lose any amazing opportunities. Thank you so much, Claire and Mark, I wouldn’t have wanted to do my assessment anywhere else but with you guys. Thank you so much again for everything you guys are amazing.”
Both, Duncan and Mark, pride themselves on being able to teach yacht crew training onboard and in familiar surroundings, whilst enabling the continued smooth running of their yacht.
For more information on Oceanwave Monaco bespoke yacht crew training courses, click here.
