Dive & Expedition Yacht Crew
Yacht dive instructors, divemasters and crew for explorer, expedition and long-range yachts, recruited by someone who has taught diving and run a dive programme on board.
The right crew can make or break a remote programme
On an expedition yacht, a long way from the nearest shipyard, there is nowhere to hide a weak hire. Dive operations need crew who take safety seriously, and guests in remote places need a team that stays calm, capable and self-sufficient.
Recruited by a yacht dive instructor
Before founding Surge Crew, Lucienne spent two and a half years running the dive programme on a private yacht as the sole dive instructor on board, later stepping up as Relief Bosun. She has dived in 15 countries, including Komodo, Sipadan and the Seychelles, often scouting remote, unmarked sites herself before leading owner and guest dives.
She designed and equipped the yacht's dive store, ran the compressor and dive equipment, and trained the crew, including the captain's and second officer's Rescue Diver courses and the captain's Divemaster. She has also logged over 14,000 nautical miles offshore, including a delivery from Europe to Asia via South Africa. That background shapes how every dive and expedition candidate is assessed.
PADI Open Water Scuba & Specialty Instructor (Deep, Wreck, Nitrox, Self-Reliant, O2 Provider) · EFR Instructor · RYA Yachtmaster Offshore
How yacht dive candidates are assessed
- Certification level and teaching experience, checked against their documents
- Current teaching status, dive insurance, and first aid and oxygen provider training
- Logged dives, conditions and the types of diving they have led
- Guest briefings, supervision and how they handle nervous or new divers
- Equipment care, Nitrox, compressor and fill station experience
- Emergency procedures, asked about in detail rather than taken from the CV
What we look for in expedition yacht crew
- Experience in remote areas and on ocean crossings
- Tender operations and landings away from marinas
- Self-sufficiency, from maintenance to provisioning
- Comfort with long passages, changing plans and time away
- The right temperament for a small team far from home
Positions we recruit for
Yacht dive instructors and divemasters, including combined deckhand and dive instructor roles, watersports and tender crew, deckhands, bosuns and officers, engineers, and interior and galley crew who suit an explorer or expedition yacht.
Every search follows the same approach as all our work: three personally interviewed, reference-checked candidates, clearly compared. See how it works.
Looking for a yacht dive or expedition role?
If you hold dive instructor or divemaster qualifications, or you've worked on explorer or long-range yachts, register with us and make sure your CV shows your certification level, logged dives and the areas you've cruised. There are never any fees to crew.
Dive and expedition yacht crew FAQs
What qualifications does a yacht dive instructor need?
As a minimum, an instructor rating such as PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor with current teaching status and dive insurance, plus the standard yacht crew certificates: STCW Basic Safety Training and an ENG1 medical. Dive-led yachts also look for first aid and oxygen provider training, Nitrox, specialty instructor ratings and hands-on experience with compressors and dive equipment.
Do yachts hire dedicated dive instructors?
Some larger and expedition yachts do, but most yacht dive roles are combined positions, usually deckhand and dive instructor. A strong second skill, such as tender driving, deck work or interior service, makes a dive candidate far more employable.
What do expedition yachts look for in crew?
Experience in remote areas and on ocean crossings, confident tender operations away from marinas, self-sufficiency with maintenance and provisioning, and the temperament to work well in a small team far from home.
Does Surge Crew charge crew a fee?
No. Surge Crew never charges crew a fee, in line with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006).
Hiring for a dive or expedition programme?
Tell us about the yacht, the itinerary and the role, and we'll come back with three carefully selected candidates.