The hierarchy on a Below Deck yacht is very specific, so Captain Kerry Titheradge and more Season 13 yachties spoke to Bravo Insider to break down the crew titles and where each role ranks.
After all, the chain of command aboard a superyacht is important. As Chief Stew Fraser Olender put it, “The hierarchy does need to be respected, as much as some people might not like it or like to do it. I think rank is important for a boat to be working to the best of its ability, and I think when things don’t sort of follow that order, things could get messy.”
Does a chief stew outrank a bosun on Below Deck?
The answer varies, but according to Captain Kerry, “The chief stew and the chef, rank wise, are the same. And then the bosun is under the both of them.”
“But people have departments that they operate and run, so the chef is not going to tell the bosun how to tie the boat up,” Kerry added as a caveat.
Fraser, however, has a different point of view. “I wake up and sort of manage the schedule of every person on board, so the guests’ experience is the most important thing, and I’m sort of planning what people are doing and then the rest of the crew falls into place,” he explained to Bravo Insider. “Then, the bosun jumps in and sees how they can make these things happen. But ultimately, it’s very, very important that I get done what the guests want. But that comes from my side of things.”
Second stew Rainbeau de Roos also weighed in on the matter, admitting that while she might be “biased,” she thinks the chief stew “outranks all” aside from the captain. “And that is not because I have been a chief stew before,” she told Bravo Insider. “It’s an interesting power dynamic. They’re both heads of department. They both have really, really, really tough jobs and a lot of responsibility. I would say chief stews are more responsible for keeping charters going on the entertainment side, but bosuns have more responsibility on the safety of the boat. But if a chief stew and a bosun both need something at the exact same time and it’s the exact same thing, I’m giving it to the chief stew. And the end of the day, I work for a chief stew, I don’t work for a bosun.”
What does a chief stew do on Below Deck?
A chief stew, short for chief stew or chief stewardess, is the head of the interior department aboard a Below Deck superyacht. As Captain Kerry put it, “The chief stew’s job is all thing guests, everything.”
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What does a bosun do on Below Deck?
A bosun, short for boatswain, is the head of the exterior department who oversees a team of deckhands on Below Deck. As Captain Kerry told Bravo Insider, “The bosun, that’s my right hand person. And their job is to take away a lot of the pressures that I have — learning how I like a boat run, and making sure things are safe and on point.”
What’s the difference between second stew, third stew, and fourth stew on Below Deck?
According to Captain Kerry, “The second stew is to support the chief stew, and they’re on service, more than doing interior work as far as housekeeping.”Â
“The third and fourth stew, if you’re going to have a third stew, will be more housekeeping, and the fourth stew is always green,” Kerry added. “So the fourth stew’s job is to learn everything from the stews above.”
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How are deckhands ranked on Below Deck?
Below the bosun is the lead deckhand, who according to Captain Kerry, “is there to kind of pick up the slack for the bosun when the bosun’s trying to calm me down.”
“And then you have your two deck crew,” he continued. “Hopefully your third deckhand has a bit of experience, and the fourth deckhand is green, because we’re all trying to bring people through the industry and educate them so they can take the next level and move up.”
Does a crew member’s rank impact what cabin they get on Below Deck?
Position ranking should have an impact on what room you get on the boat, according to Fraser. “Based on your rank, you should be awarded with better living conditions, if you will,” he said. “Also, the chief stew gets to allocate cabins on boats, so those who are sort of working with the most responsibility need probably a bit better situation for our sleep.”
