Dockwalk had thepleasure of chatting with Second Stewardess Emily Warburton-Adams, crewmemberon Bravo TV’s reality show Below Deck.
“Ididn’t go into Below Deck to befamous,” she says. “It was a fun experience. I went on and was myself and didmy job.” As an experienced stew, the transition wasn’t too difficult havingjust come off a boat. “The guests still have to be served the same way, and youstill have to do all the crew laundry, and everything still has to be cleaned,and there are still turnover days, and it’s harder because you’re being filmeddoing it.…It’s the fun of it, and [people] should look at it more lightly; it’sa reality TV show.” She added that some of the yachts she previously worked onhad characters similar to those on the show. “It’s drama, but there’s alwaysdrama when you work on a yacht.”
After she finished her schooling in the UK,Warburton-Adams decided toget some real life experience, training as a masseuse, working as an event planner,and living paycheck to paycheck. It was at the suggestion of a friend that shelooked into yachting, and within two months, she completed the required coursesand headed to Antibes to find a job.
She registeredwith the agencies and was offered a couple of positions, but felt it wasimportant to know more about the boat on which she would find her first job.Enlisting her fun and creative side, she baked ginger cookies, attached a miniCV to each package, and hit the docks. In four days, she landed her first job.
“Iinterviewed with the captain and the chief stew, learned about my role, learnedabout the itinerary, and [felt confident that I’d be safe and comfortable withthe crew],” she says. The six-month seasonal position on a 45-meter charter yachtbegan the learning process. “I learned very quickly that no matter how muchexperience you do have on land — whether events, hospitality, or service — yachtingis so individual. You have to have that first season — you make mistakes, youlearn, and you get better, and you need that foundation.” Working with a fleet managementcompany, “I was on four boats for two and a half years as astew/masseuse and second stew,” she says. After an Atlantic crossing and aseason in the Caribbean on her last boat, BelowDeck came along and her life now provides a variety of opportunities.
She recently introduced a website to share the informationshe’s learned working in yachting and to promote health and wellness. Thewebsite is a “platform for people to get an insider’s guide to yachting,whether they are in the industry [or] want to know how to get into it [as wellas] an insight into what to expect when on the boat,” she says. From a blog aboutBelow Deck (as episodes air thisseason) and maintaining health, fitness, and wellness, the site includes atravel section that highlights “what to do and where to go,” such as salons,excursions, and night clubs around the Med. Fort Lauderdale, West Palm, and Miamiare upcoming. She also is studying to be a health coach and represents thevitamin company Vital.
Through thick and thin, good and bad, yachting teacheseveryone something they might not have known about themselves. “I learned I canhandle high-pressure, demanding situations a lot better than I thought I could,”she says, and when asked about yachting as a career, she adds, “It’s a greatindustry to be involved in….Ithink it’s a great career move to make in that you’re learning a lot ofpractical skills, and, speaking from the interior, the skills that I’ve learnedin management, accounting, service, hospitality, and serving very high-caliberguests as well as working and living amongst a very tight-knit community, Icould leave and get a job in high-end restaurants, hotels, and you’re [also]very valuable to agencies, brokers, and [others] because you know the industryand how it runs. You’re open to a world of [possibilities].”
When Below Deckfinished filming, she was asked back to her previous boat, showing that heractions on the show had no adverse effects and didn’t affect her career. “It’show you’ve worked in the past and how previous boats know you as a worker,” shesays. She considers going back on board, but for now, she is currently working on new projects and applying thebenefits of Below Deck, her time onyachts, and what she’s learned. “You learn a lot about looking after yourselfand for others,” she says. “You’re traveling and saving money, and that’s sohard to do nowadays. You could potentially save money for a house….This is ajob that could make you very happy.” www.english-emily.com