Where to do the mandatory STCW starter course, whichever crew hub you are heading for.
STCW Basic Safety Training is the same certificate the world over. It's your legal ticket to work on a commercial yacht. Where you do it usually comes down to which crew hub you plan to job-hunt in: the UK and the Med (Antibes, Palma) for the European season, Fort Lauderdale for the Americas, or Cape Town, Phuket and Australia further afield. Below are strong, properly accredited centres in each of the main hubs, led by Flying Fish in Cowes.
Some links on this page may be affiliate links. If you book through one, YachtSync may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It doesn't affect the order below; rankings are editorial. Prices shown are pulled from each provider's own course pages, correct at time of writing and may change by date or intake, so always confirm the current price and any accommodation options directly with the provider before booking.
My own starting point. I trained with Flying Fish back in 2018. Purpose-built superyacht training base on the water in Cowes, RYA Training Centre and MCA-approved, with one of the widest course ranges in the UK: STCW, deckhand and interior packages right through to Yachtmaster. Onsite accommodation can be booked directly with them at a good price alongside your course. Book online and hold a place for 48 hours.
From £850 · accommodation option available
Major Fort Lauderdale training campus, MCA / USCG / RYA approved, the main US hub for crew training either side of the Atlantic.
Antibes-based, MCA and RYA approved, right in the heart of the French Riviera crew hub.
Phuket-based, MCA and IYT approved, the leading superyacht training hub in South-East Asia.
Sydney academy, IYT / MCA / AMSA approved, the established pathway for crew starting out in Australia.
From $2,545
Cape Town entry-level academy, MCA-approved, popular with green crew starting in South Africa.
Large charity-run academy in Cowes, MCA-approved and an RYA Training Centre, also running full cadetship pathways for crew who want the professional route.
From £850
This is our shortlist. See every provider offering STCW Basic Safety Training in the full STCW Basic Safety Training directory →
Looking wider? See our best STCW courses in the UK →
My own STCW was done as part of the Flying Fish deckhand package in Cowes back in 2018, rather than booked separately. Wherever you do it in the world, the syllabus is identical, what changes is the facilities and how it fits around everything else you need to get done.
Bundling it into a bigger deckhand course made it click. Instead of STCW feeling like paperwork before the real training starts, it fed straight into the practical deckhand skills, so I understood why each safety module mattered rather than just sitting through it.
Wherever in the world you're doing it, here's what I'd actually check:
The certificate is identical everywhere. What you're really choosing is the facilities and what happens in the days around it.
STCW is an international standard, so an MCA-approved certificate is recognised worldwide. Always check the school is approved by the MCA or a recognised flag state.
The best hub is wherever you plan to look for work. Doing STCW in the same place you job-hunt means you can start dock-walking straight after.
The core STCW Basic Safety Training elements are valid for five years, after which you complete a shorter refresher/updating course.
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