Below Deck nearly had a franchise first when the newest group of guests tried to get out of tipping.
During the Monday, August 18, episode of the show, Captain Kerry and the rest of St. David were in a predicament when the boat couldn’t leave the dock due to an engineering issue. The crew had to find ways to entertain the guests that didn’t involve being out on the water, which ultimately cost them.
Two days into the charter, Captain Kerry called the yacht agent, saying, “I am just trying to work out a number that we can discount these guys because we didn’t burn fuel.”
The captain argued that the guests deserved a “20 percent discount” while they were separately discussing whether to leave a tip at all.
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“No tip is not a reflection of our group,” one of the guests told another. “It is a reflection of the circumstances.”
Later in the episode, the primary pulled Captain Kerry aside to address their issues.
“You guys have been great, by the way. We have been completely happy but normally when something is significantly wrong — like the boat not leaving — that isn’t a small matter,” he told Captain Kerry. “There is the standard gratuity but I don’t know that the group is going to be happy about doing that.”
Captain Kerry, however, disagreed. “End of the day, it is the service industry,” he noted. “The house makes a mistake — the staff shouldn’t suffer.”
While Kerry hinted at “compensation on the front end” of the charter, the gratuity was still less than desired.
“Unfortunately, the guests — in their mind — they had punished us for the boat not moving. Which I don’t think is fair. [They gave us] $19,000, which I think is well short,” Captain Kerry told the crew about how they received $1,461 each for their hard work.
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Below Deck, which debuted in 2013 and has spawned several spinoffs, follows the lives of crew members who work and live on super yachts during charter season. The cast earns a salary for working on the boat and shooting the reality series, as well as tips from guests.
Chief steward Fraser Olender recently weighed in on what amount he typically expects from charter guests.
“I can tell you for a tip on our charter season, the minimum I would expect [where] you won’t see me crack a smile,” Fraser shared on a June episode of SiriusXM’s Reality Checked with Dorinda Medley and Kiki Monique. “If we are not getting between $20,000 — I’ll scrap that. $25,000 to $30,000 for the time we’ve done.”
Fraser noted he wouldn’t budge on that number, adding, “I don’t care if that’s one day or three days or five. I’m waiting for that amount of cash, and if you can’t or if you’re not coming with that to be expected, just don’t bother. Maybe just go on a cruise.”
Below Deck airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.
