CaptnBoat.com
Hire a Skipper Easily on Capt’n Boat – User’s Guide
Thanks to Capt’n Boat, it’s never been easier to hire a skipper!
With the development and democratization of yachting, the demand for skippers, and more generally for professional sailors, is constantly increasing.
However, the complexity of the regulations and the lack of a marketplace made it difficult to find and hire qualified skippers, hostesses and deckhands. That’s why Capt’n Boat was born, to provide a simple and accessible regulatory solution.
🎯 Its goal? To simplify access for boat owners, renters and charter companies to professional yachting sailors.
In this user’s guide, you’ll discover how easy it is to hire a crew member on Capt’n Boat. We’ll explain everything!
Capt'n Boat, the platform for hiring qualified skippers
Capt’n Boat is a certified seaman placement platform.
Via its digital platform, Capt’n Boat enables you to find the most suitable professional crew member from a wide range of professional sailors, not only from a regulatory point of view, but also according to various criteria such as: language(s) spoken, local sailor, pedagogue, comfortable with children…
Capt’n Boat is aimed at anyone looking for a professional crew, whether they are private boat owners, charterers, boat builders or boat dealers.
Capt'n Boat it's:
A regulated marketplace between professional sailors and both private clients (owners, renters) and professional (charterers, builders).
A dedicated Capt’n Boat expert to guide you in your cruising, coaching, convoying and support needs.
The assurance of being in compliance with the law with our sailors, all of whom hold the diplomas and training required to comply with current regulations.
A regulatory framework: Capt’n Boat edits the contracts and provides a professional Civil Liability for all the platform’s skippers + a multi-risk & damage policy for delivery missions.
Secure payment: Pay securely into a trusted third-party account. The money will be paid back to the sailor once the service has been completed.
Registration and ad posting are 100% free. We only charge a commission if you find the right sailor! The commission includes insurance and service fees.
Quick guide to find a professional skipper on Capt'n Boat
Here’s the step-by-step guide to post an ad and hire a Capt’n Boat sailor! 👇
1. Register with Capt'n Boat
First of all, you need to create a customer account on Capt’n Boat (it’s free! 😉 ).
In order to offer you support tailored to your requirement, you’ll need to specify your profile type: private owner, charterer, renter, broker…
Remember to fill in all your details correctly: phone number, e-mail address, date of birth… This information will then be used for contracts and billing.
⚠️ Your password must contain at least 8 characters, including one upper case letter, one lower case letter and one number.
2. Add a boat
Once your profile has been created, you can post your ad. The first step is to add the boat on which the mission will take place.
Then enter the name of your boat and select the model from the drop-down list (if the model is not in the database, don’t hesitate to contact us so that we can add it: contact@captnboat.com).
Specify the flag (nationality) of the boat and add a photo.
3. Detail your ad
To publish your sailor ad, select the boat you want from the list.
Then indicate the type of service you require:
- Cruise: Enjoy a relaxing cruise with a professional skipper and/or hostess.
- Convoying: To move your boat to a new cruising area, to a boatyard or for winter storage.
- Coaching: To help you handle your boat. The skipper is in charge during the service.
- Support : To be accompanied on a delivery trip or an outing at sea. You remain the skipper during the service.
Enter departure and arrival dates and ports. We indicate the duration of navigation in days for cruises, coaching and support, and in nautical miles for convoys.
If you are looking for a sailor to sell a service to a customer, please answer YES. This will enable us to generate a payment link and send it to the final customer.
Fill in all the requested fields so that we can refine your sailor research as much as possible.
4. Specify the type of sailor you are looking for and the remuneration
Indicate the profile you are looking for: skipper, cook, hostess, first mate… If you’re looking for more than one crew member, you can add a role on board later.
Capt’n Boat gives you a global amount for your research. This amount is a suggestion based on market standards; you can modify it upwards or downwards.
You can then preview the details of the transaction amount. The “Sailor’s remuneration” line shows the amount the sailor will receive if he is self-employed and invoices you directly. The “net remuneration before tax” line shows you the remuneration the sailor will receive if he decides to join a Maritime Employment Company.
What’s more, for long-term assignments, you can choose to pay the seaman every month, or to pay the entire amount directly.
5. Describe your need
In this field, you are invited to specify as much as possible your requirements: what you expect from the sailor, the desired sailing itinerary, useful information such as the number of children on board, special equipment, specific criteria…
Then select the desired languages spoken and the type of contract: either you are invoiced by the independent sailor, or you hire him/her with your company.
Indicate the type of sleeping accommodation provided for the sailor, and if travel expenses are covered or not.
Now that all the information has been completed, you can publish your ad!
6. Consider sailor applications
As soon as your advert is published, all eligible sailors will be notified, and those interested can contact you via the internal messaging system and apply directly to your advert.
All you have to do is choose the skipper, hostess, deckhand or cook who suits you best!
7. Sailor validation and payment
You’ve found the right sailor! Now you need to validate his application by signing the contract and paying for the service.
Once the 2 parts (you and the sailor) have validated the terms of the mission, Capt’n Boat edits a service contract for signature.
To validate the contract, you must proceed with payment of the sailor’s services. Payment can be made by direct debit or credit card (except American Express).
The sailor’s remuneration will then be blocked in a secure escrow account until the mission is completed. Once the mission is completed, Capt’n Boat will pay the sailor’s wages.
Want to be accompanied?
Our Capt’n Boat experts are here to advise and support you in your research.
Delegating your sailor research to us means :
🤝 Regular follow-up by a dedicated advisor
⚓ Receive filtered sailor applications
⌛ Save time by entrusting your needs to our expertise
Book an appointment with a Capt’n Boat expert to delegate your search! 👇
Follow-up and completion of the mission
Your sailor is found, the contract signed and the salary paid: you will receive the sailor’s personal contact details so that you can contact him/her directly to finalize the last details.
The sailor’s contact details are available in your Capt’n Boat account in the conversation linked to the mission. You can also find them in the signed contract and in your e-mails.
Sailor's comments and rating
Once the mission has been completed, you are invited to leave a review of the sailor’s performance.
In particular, we ask you to evaluate the sailor on the following criteria:
- Communication and flexibility
- Nautical (and/or culinary) quality
- Respect and discretion
These reviews will then be published on the sailor’s profile, making them visible to all users.
They can then be used to guide future shipowners in their choice of sailor.
Tips for hiring the right skipper fast
Here are a few tips to help you find your ideal sailor:
- In your ad description, give as many details as possible about your requirements. This will give sailors an overview of what you expect of them and how the job will be carried out.
- Be reactive: when a sailor contacts you and applies.
- Before accepting a sailor's application, talk to him via the internal messaging system to find out more about his motivations.
- Keep in touch with the sailor before the start of the mission to check the final details.
Our customers are our best ambassadors!
“Very satisfied with the services we received. We had a wonderful trip and will have unforgettable memories. We felt very safe with a very qualified captain and hostess. Thank you Capt’n Boat!”
Joe M.
“Excellent service / our skipper Frédéric was very competent, adapted to our needs when sailing along the Var. He performed his duties calmly – we hardly knew he was there. I highly recommend him!”
Sinead M.
“Capt’n Boat managed to find us atypical skippers who fit in perfectly with our Solar sailing business. They did the job perfectly. Well done and thank you.”
Guillaume J. L.
