TransientChef

Get the certs. Find a bunk. Get the job. Feed the boat.

Certifications, crew housing, 100 placement agencies and port-by-port provisioning for yacht and estate chefs, in the order it actually happens. Written by a chef who did it, for the chef doing it now.

Written by Tory Aunspach. Thirty years in kitchens, five of them on yachts and estates. More about that.

Nine ports

Fort LauderdaleSt ThomasSt MaartenSt BarthsAntiguaAntibesMonacoSaint TropezNewport

All port guides. Next in line: Palma, the Bahamas, the BVI, Croatia, Greece, the Pacific Northwest. Work a port that is not here? Say so.

Certifications

ENG1, STCW, the Ship's Cook Certificate, what each flag state wants, and where to get them done fast.

Crew housing

Where chefs actually sleep between boats in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm, Newport, Antibes, Palma and St Maarten.

Want a yacht or estate chef job? Start here.

One of the largest consolidated agency lists for private chefs and yacht and estate crew. 100 recruiters and boards, one page.

What the jobs actually pay

Yacht chef pay by boat size, estate chef pay by city, day rates, tips, rotation, and what it costs you to earn it. Real 2026 numbers from the agencies doing the hiring.

Something changed?

Every guide is re-checked every 90 days. If you are in a port and a name, number or hour is wrong, email it with the port in the subject. Fixed the same week, credited to you if you want.