Others have described this as a guilty pleasure. I have to agree with that. This is an interesting snapshot into human behaviour, it is not like most reality shows in the way that it is more of a snapshot of the lives of people rather than people put into an environment.
44 Reviews
This is Actually a Good Show
BobbyG9 November 2016
Warning: Spoilers
I won't explain the plot or setting of this series. Just read the previous reviews. It doesn't seem like it would be possible to make this interesting, but somehow the people involved in the production have made it "must watch" TV. You could call it a guilty pleasure, but the show is very engaging; mainly the interaction between crew and customers (personality conflicts on display regularly). Below Deck demonstrates how challenging it is to run a private cruise ship and how difficult it is to obtain employees with the proper work ethic and temperament to get the job done. The production values of Below Deck are impressive with the editing being top-notch. Some of it might be contrived because it's hard to believe this concept could be this absorbing, but I recommend it highly for those with time to kill.
Kate Kate captain Lee
bestford27 May 2021
Mmmm let's start with Kate a mean girl who thinks she's a really all round nice gal. News flash she's not. She's every bully I've ever met rolled Into one person. Captain Lee, Kates very own personal assistant. Can be an over the top disciplinarian, and other times a wise old mentor. The others crew mates are a various bunch of misfits with various issues. Yet I love it so... I guess that kind of makes me a hypocrite. Oh well...
Strangely Captivating and Addicting
DonutLover23 July 2017
Warning: Spoilers
As someone who is not able to enjoy a vacation this summer, I have turned to "Below Deck" as well as "Below Deck Mediterranean" as the opportunity to witness blue, inviting oceans and all sets of fun water toys as well as foreign lands that I have never seen. Something about watching the sea every day soothes my hot soul and helps me plan for summers ahead in which I will be the participant in the cool, delicious ocean play.
The show portrays how difficult it is for responsible, intelligent bosses to handle drunk, immature and spoiled crew beneath them. In the first season we have a determined but somewhat gentle chief stew named Adreienne trying her hardest to motivate the spoiled, presumptuous Sam (a young lady) who refuses to show the slightest hint of responsibility or self awareness. Sam smirks and challenges every single instruction or order given to her by her boss and spends the entire season acting as cruel and unfair as she can, siding up with her drunk 2nd drunk stew, Kat, against Adrienne. If you are watching the show hoping to find any self awareness or moment of mea culpa coming from either party, forget all about that. Only Kat admits the truth about herself after the show is over. We never get any apology from Sam, but hopefully someday she will privately apologize to her tormented supervisor.
In the third season, a bi-polar or hard case ADD personality who self identifies as a dolphin throws the color and frustration into the charter season. Her mood swings jump higher than a dolphin zig zagging through the waves and at one point she actually jumps ship and swims away from the boat as fast and strong as an escaped Orca from Marine World. Clearly she is not equipped to live with and work alongside humans, but her insane antics and personality hold attention to the show. I feel bad for her exploitation however, as surely the producers have no compunction placing a head case such as hers alongside reasonable people for all the world to see.
The highlights are the captain, ever so reasonable, handsome and experienced, and Ben with his deep voice, dry wit and skilled hands in the kitchen. I'm watching season 2 right now and enjoying every minute of it!
I suggest you check out these shows and see if they appeal to you! Certainly a cut above the bickering of the Housewives franchise and in this case the beautiful blue seas of the Caribbean and Mediterranean are showcased, along with fun and upbeat music.
The show portrays how difficult it is for responsible, intelligent bosses to handle drunk, immature and spoiled crew beneath them. In the first season we have a determined but somewhat gentle chief stew named Adreienne trying her hardest to motivate the spoiled, presumptuous Sam (a young lady) who refuses to show the slightest hint of responsibility or self awareness. Sam smirks and challenges every single instruction or order given to her by her boss and spends the entire season acting as cruel and unfair as she can, siding up with her drunk 2nd drunk stew, Kat, against Adrienne. If you are watching the show hoping to find any self awareness or moment of mea culpa coming from either party, forget all about that. Only Kat admits the truth about herself after the show is over. We never get any apology from Sam, but hopefully someday she will privately apologize to her tormented supervisor.
In the third season, a bi-polar or hard case ADD personality who self identifies as a dolphin throws the color and frustration into the charter season. Her mood swings jump higher than a dolphin zig zagging through the waves and at one point she actually jumps ship and swims away from the boat as fast and strong as an escaped Orca from Marine World. Clearly she is not equipped to live with and work alongside humans, but her insane antics and personality hold attention to the show. I feel bad for her exploitation however, as surely the producers have no compunction placing a head case such as hers alongside reasonable people for all the world to see.
The highlights are the captain, ever so reasonable, handsome and experienced, and Ben with his deep voice, dry wit and skilled hands in the kitchen. I'm watching season 2 right now and enjoying every minute of it!
I suggest you check out these shows and see if they appeal to you! Certainly a cut above the bickering of the Housewives franchise and in this case the beautiful blue seas of the Caribbean and Mediterranean are showcased, along with fun and upbeat music.
Classic Reality Television. One of the Best.
peacefrog-6209110 July 2022
This show is the perfect example of when a reality TV show is clicking on all cylinders: compelling characters, juicy drama and crazy situations. But, being that it takes place on a yacht with a revolving door of guests to please and new crew members to break in, it stays fresh and the histrionics don't have to be manufactured quite so often as in other reality shows like the Real Housewives' series.
The series really hit its stride with the arrival of resting b*tch face, head stew Kate, in season 2. It then reached its peak in season 3 with the drama brought to the table in the forms of surly chef Leon, the quirky antics of deck hand Connie and the incredibly memorizing behavior of 3rd stew Raquel "Rocky" Dakota. After a few so so seasons 4 and 5, it returned with perhaps its best ever production in season 6, which just serves to demonstrate that this show's ability to not become stale and repetitive or just plain mundane in later seasons like, for example, Jersey Shore did. Even its latest season, number 9, had enough curve balls in it to keep me interested. The OG of the Below Deck franchise still seems to still have plenty of legs left.
The series really hit its stride with the arrival of resting b*tch face, head stew Kate, in season 2. It then reached its peak in season 3 with the drama brought to the table in the forms of surly chef Leon, the quirky antics of deck hand Connie and the incredibly memorizing behavior of 3rd stew Raquel "Rocky" Dakota. After a few so so seasons 4 and 5, it returned with perhaps its best ever production in season 6, which just serves to demonstrate that this show's ability to not become stale and repetitive or just plain mundane in later seasons like, for example, Jersey Shore did. Even its latest season, number 9, had enough curve balls in it to keep me interested. The OG of the Below Deck franchise still seems to still have plenty of legs left.
This show is great!
tsimmons-0139927 December 2018
One of the best reality shows on tv! I can't stop watching! It's so entertaining with all the personality's on the boat and the different guest who board the boat. I love how you see the backside view of working a yacht!
Hospitality On The High Seas
atlasmb15 May 2020
Below Deck (TV) 8 stars 2013 5/15/2020
This reality series gets high marks because it pairs interesting characters with an interesting premise. We may never charter a luxury yacht, but "Below Deck" gives us an all-access pass, including a look behind the curtain. These are some reasons that the concept of the show works so well:
1. The Venue. A charter yacht is like a floating Vegas casino in the sense that it demands the ultimate in client service while simultaneously requiring crew skills. If you fall short in your dealings with the clientele, you will lose money. If you fall short in your sailing duties, it can result in loss of life or serious property damage. Furthermore, the quarters are cramped, especially in those areas where the crew lives for weeks at a time. This creates cabin fever and stressful interactions. 2. The Crew. The business attracts young people, especially those looking for adventure, who are not saddled with responsibilities. As a result, there are plenty of partyers and young people looking to hook up. Conversely, the captain wants a responsible crew that puts the business and the boat before self. The crews tend to be attractive and fit. 3. The Guests. These people pay big bucks to be pampered. Like the whales in Vegas, they expect the best. And they are often not afraid of making odd or presumptuous requests. Their tips significantly define the degree of success of each charter.
The ship is run like a military operation, with a hierarchy of ranks. Discipline is strict. But if you are living among the beauty and the tender climes of the Caribbean, surrounded by comely coworkers and entertainment venues, you might allow your attention to wander occasionally. The result is plenty of drama and comedy.
The show also pierces the veil of cordiality, contrasting the polite ministrations of the crew with their behind-the-scenes editorials. This is a show for adults.
This reality series gets high marks because it pairs interesting characters with an interesting premise. We may never charter a luxury yacht, but "Below Deck" gives us an all-access pass, including a look behind the curtain. These are some reasons that the concept of the show works so well:
1. The Venue. A charter yacht is like a floating Vegas casino in the sense that it demands the ultimate in client service while simultaneously requiring crew skills. If you fall short in your dealings with the clientele, you will lose money. If you fall short in your sailing duties, it can result in loss of life or serious property damage. Furthermore, the quarters are cramped, especially in those areas where the crew lives for weeks at a time. This creates cabin fever and stressful interactions. 2. The Crew. The business attracts young people, especially those looking for adventure, who are not saddled with responsibilities. As a result, there are plenty of partyers and young people looking to hook up. Conversely, the captain wants a responsible crew that puts the business and the boat before self. The crews tend to be attractive and fit. 3. The Guests. These people pay big bucks to be pampered. Like the whales in Vegas, they expect the best. And they are often not afraid of making odd or presumptuous requests. Their tips significantly define the degree of success of each charter.
The ship is run like a military operation, with a hierarchy of ranks. Discipline is strict. But if you are living among the beauty and the tender climes of the Caribbean, surrounded by comely coworkers and entertainment venues, you might allow your attention to wander occasionally. The result is plenty of drama and comedy.
The show also pierces the veil of cordiality, contrasting the polite ministrations of the crew with their behind-the-scenes editorials. This is a show for adults.
Just what the doctor ordered!
CriticFred31 July 2020
Brilliant. I can't stop watching it. I love how you get to have an all access pass, so you can see what the charter guests are seeing and what a life of luxury they have. But also that you get to see what happens "Below Deck", what there going through and what romance is in the air. What I think I like about it the most is that you get to see the different sections of the crews, and that they put in what the person is saying at that moment which is always funny. I must say though I do like Kate and Ben they are so funny together, which makes it have a great vibe, especially when it gets really irate in the kitchen. Love it, watched, Brilliant.
my quarantine guilty pleasure
mapika20 June 2020
I hate reality TV shows normally. But this one is very entertaining, especially in times like these!
Six weeks a yacht crew of about 12 people is penned up 24/7 in the smallest spaces possible- working, sleeping, cooking, partying, fighting... while they have to serve and entertain up to 20 hours a day, during one to three days charters, highly demanding rich guests, sometimes wannabe sophisticated and mostly disrespectful, condescending scum and alcoholics, arrogant and spoiled pricks and brats, with only few exceptions.
Of course this creates much tension and pressure and brings out the most abysmal behaviors in one or the other crew member. Ego trips, cabin fever, intrigues and drama are preprogrammed! Especially the vengeful, cunning, yet sometimes really funny "resting bitxx face" chief stewardess Kate Chastain became the mistress of sabotage, manipulation and emotional cruelty. This might be the result of working too long in such a male-dominated, sexist, cynical, degrading, coldhearted and shallow environment. She herself mentioned more than once after every sexual harassment towards crew members: "this is nothing, I've seen far worse..." So one can imagine what happens with no cameras present. I can't remember who, but someone on this show once said something like: " I've sold my soul..."
This show is a great depiction of rich societies hedonism, chauvinism and sexism, and how they get away with it too easy, without legal consequences, although there should be some. Because again: money rules the world. So a mega yacht seems to be an even easier as usual hunting ground for predators and a perfect playground for bullies, both amongst the crew and the guests, though the guests are those who get away with it every time, while the "working class" at least sometimes has to face consequences.
At this point: kudos to all women in this show, who were able to stay positive, mostly calm, graceful, respectful and strong despite the stress and the embarrassing, degrading treatment they had to endure not only from guests, but more from their own crew members; especially Amy Johnson from season 2 and Courtney Skippon and Simone Mashile from Season 7. The only permanent sincere, gentle and respectful man from this show I remember was Deckhand David Alanson Bradberry.
Captain Lee sometimes comes off as a bit grumpy, but in general seems to be a decent and correct person with conservative values. His old- fashioned, too military hierarchy- driven leadership, where people often are only allowed to speak up, if he's gracious, might make it more complicated for the crew members to cope with their problematic personal and professional relationships. For him clearly rank and age go before everything. And it seems, sometimes he still mixes up fear with respect. That may be one reason why some of the crew lie and try to cover up their mistakes. Although it makes no sense, when everything gets filmed. After watching all seven seasons, I really wonder, why he is so shocked and surprised every time at the seasons reunions about the outcome of the shows, if he never shows interest in the first place when disputes occur and crew members try to approach him?!
The background information about the sometimes hard and dangerous, yet exciting and joyful yachting life and the beautiful sceneries make the whole show very watchable, otherwise it would just be like big brother.
I give this show 6 Stars, because the music gets annoying and stories get repetitive over time, but most of all for the lack of improvement relating to solutions for sexual harassment. Some crew members an guests are absolutely likeable, some okay, some are just idiots. The perfect mix for this kind of show.
Six weeks a yacht crew of about 12 people is penned up 24/7 in the smallest spaces possible- working, sleeping, cooking, partying, fighting... while they have to serve and entertain up to 20 hours a day, during one to three days charters, highly demanding rich guests, sometimes wannabe sophisticated and mostly disrespectful, condescending scum and alcoholics, arrogant and spoiled pricks and brats, with only few exceptions.
Of course this creates much tension and pressure and brings out the most abysmal behaviors in one or the other crew member. Ego trips, cabin fever, intrigues and drama are preprogrammed! Especially the vengeful, cunning, yet sometimes really funny "resting bitxx face" chief stewardess Kate Chastain became the mistress of sabotage, manipulation and emotional cruelty. This might be the result of working too long in such a male-dominated, sexist, cynical, degrading, coldhearted and shallow environment. She herself mentioned more than once after every sexual harassment towards crew members: "this is nothing, I've seen far worse..." So one can imagine what happens with no cameras present. I can't remember who, but someone on this show once said something like: " I've sold my soul..."
This show is a great depiction of rich societies hedonism, chauvinism and sexism, and how they get away with it too easy, without legal consequences, although there should be some. Because again: money rules the world. So a mega yacht seems to be an even easier as usual hunting ground for predators and a perfect playground for bullies, both amongst the crew and the guests, though the guests are those who get away with it every time, while the "working class" at least sometimes has to face consequences.
At this point: kudos to all women in this show, who were able to stay positive, mostly calm, graceful, respectful and strong despite the stress and the embarrassing, degrading treatment they had to endure not only from guests, but more from their own crew members; especially Amy Johnson from season 2 and Courtney Skippon and Simone Mashile from Season 7. The only permanent sincere, gentle and respectful man from this show I remember was Deckhand David Alanson Bradberry.
Captain Lee sometimes comes off as a bit grumpy, but in general seems to be a decent and correct person with conservative values. His old- fashioned, too military hierarchy- driven leadership, where people often are only allowed to speak up, if he's gracious, might make it more complicated for the crew members to cope with their problematic personal and professional relationships. For him clearly rank and age go before everything. And it seems, sometimes he still mixes up fear with respect. That may be one reason why some of the crew lie and try to cover up their mistakes. Although it makes no sense, when everything gets filmed. After watching all seven seasons, I really wonder, why he is so shocked and surprised every time at the seasons reunions about the outcome of the shows, if he never shows interest in the first place when disputes occur and crew members try to approach him?!
The background information about the sometimes hard and dangerous, yet exciting and joyful yachting life and the beautiful sceneries make the whole show very watchable, otherwise it would just be like big brother.
I give this show 6 Stars, because the music gets annoying and stories get repetitive over time, but most of all for the lack of improvement relating to solutions for sexual harassment. Some crew members an guests are absolutely likeable, some okay, some are just idiots. The perfect mix for this kind of show.
Addicting Trash TV
bleddyn-8595826 March 2024
Like all reality tv, you have to take everything in this show with a grain of salt. The crew and the guests are being filmed and they know they're being filmed, and everyone is being paid so everyone one is "performing." Most of the time, it's difficult to tell which group is trashier, the crew or the guests. Almost all the male crew members drink themselves into oblivion at the first opportunity, while almost all the female crew members are snowflakes who cry at the drop of the hat (with a few exceptions who would give witches a bad name-I'm thinking of Chief Stew Kate. As the prime example), and most members of both genders are constantly looking to get bedded. In real life most of the crew would never be hired to staff a luxury yacht, nor would they last more than one charter if they were hired. Having said all that, the show is fascinating like a train wreck-it's difficult to tear oneself away.
Take it for what if it is...reality tv
jakeadam199816 February 2021
If you take this show at face value, it is an entertaining show with frequent drama and shocking moments. The crew is picked by the casting to be entertaining and unique, which most of the crew are. The guests are entertaining if not being complete a**holes most of the time.
Don't expect high quality documentary style tv about working on a motor yacht, because this isn't it. It's reality tv.
Don't expect high quality documentary style tv about working on a motor yacht, because this isn't it. It's reality tv.
Great programme. Funny. Idiots galore
grantwrathall21 May 2020
This programme is classic. The crew are very interesting. The clients,although not always, are loke spoilt rich kids (the girls). In they act like kids. The staff drama is great. The pretty ladies that melt down allll the time. And the pretty boys with GIANT EGOS.. lol. Go Ashton. He has a crazy huge EGO. Loves himself. Haha. And it always works. Funny as.
Unrealistic reality where too much drama is contrived for the show
tom-45621 October 2021
Warning: Spoilers
There's enough drama in one episode of this silly show to last the real thing for several years. Too much of the conflict among the yacht crew is created for the benefit of the camera, in order that people will watch the show. And Captain Lee, to say it plainly, behaves perpetually like a jerk. He is not a leader. I dislike the fact that his conduct is portrayed by the show as leadership, while the truth is that his conduct is perpetually a very good example of poor leadership. His favorite trick is to put direct subordinates between himself and the working crew, when he knows that the working crew are screwups and that his direct subordinates have little if any experience in managing people. Then when the screwups screw up, he gets to rake his subordinates over the coals. This is all a big setup for the benefit of the home viewer. It would be nice to see an above-board documentary of how the crew on a small chartered yacht operates when it isn't all put on for the home viewer.
Love watching this show
adrian_walsh0531 January 2019
I think this show is awesome but makes me so jealous. These guys might have to work long hours and put up with with some rude guests etc but they get paid to work on a state of the art luxurious yacht and sail around St Martin in the sunshine. What I wouldn't do 😃 Hope there are more new seasons
Kate Chastain - The Bully
linda-810-61921919 January 2024
Warning: Spoilers
This is a great show. Captain Lee is a fantastic captain and very fair to his crew.
He doesn't take any BS. Unfortunately he doesn't see how much a terrible chief stew Kate is towards her fellow crew members. Every season she bullies at least one of her stews. She seems to thrive on berating other crew members that some want to quit. Fortunately she is no longer a crew member from 2021.
Apart from Kate ruining the show, it's great. I discovered it during lockdown for something to kill time and it certainly did that. Also the locations are amazing and seeing them certainly distracts you from your troubles.
He doesn't take any BS. Unfortunately he doesn't see how much a terrible chief stew Kate is towards her fellow crew members. Every season she bullies at least one of her stews. She seems to thrive on berating other crew members that some want to quit. Fortunately she is no longer a crew member from 2021.
Apart from Kate ruining the show, it's great. I discovered it during lockdown for something to kill time and it certainly did that. Also the locations are amazing and seeing them certainly distracts you from your troubles.
a charming piece of reality show fluff which rings true
Dunham161 November 2016
Warning: Spoilers
The premise is not at first enticing. A luxury yacht is for rent to wealthy charter primary bookers staffed by a so called professional crew for fiction totally untrained in any the social graces normally expected of such formal service and likely to be written by the fiction writers to clash with each other as males and females for days at a time must sleep and eat in each other's presence in very tight crew quarters. The yacht t ravels to different ports each season with a slightly differerent crew each time writing in perfectly delightful fictitious wealthy charter primaries and perfectly delightful new yachties for often interesting stories of why their ports of call have been for centuries premiere world tourist attractions. What makes this show enticing under these not always promising circumstances starts with the marvelous casting each and every on an absolute gem. ==Just take your pick because all are superbly written and superbly cast. Next is the delightful minute to minute interaction of the crew which is like any reality show what happens when not well meshed people work together under not well planned out management- certainly every episode delightful to watch for this fluff.
Cool show
rob-762-234799 August 2020
Strangely addictive
christopherstamp1 February 2022
Every season is full of weird people who are hilarious to watch. Strangely addictive watching a bunch of idiots serve the ultra rich.
Some seem like genuinely great people - like Eddie.
Other are clearly terrible human beings - like Rayna.
Some seem like genuinely great people - like Eddie.
Other are clearly terrible human beings - like Rayna.
Bring back Kate & Ben
billiue27 December 2021
Intriguing concept and show which points out how spoiled many employees are
VetteRanger5 February 2024
Let's talk about Kate Chastain. We saw her last year on The Traitors and I was interested to see where she came from, which led me to Lower Deck. So we tried it out, and it's a surprisingly entertaining show about what happens among the crew of an elite motor yacht.
I see comments from people calling Kate "mean" or a "bully". That's nonsense. The producers hire a LOT of questionable employees ... Captain Lee doesn't get to make that call, though hopefully he gets to weigh in. At least he gets to fire the worst of the worst.
However, every season has some employees who think they're the tail that wags the dog, rather than EMPLOYEES who should shut up and do their jobs. If you've never managed employees, maybe you can take the side of these infantile idiots. If you've ever been a manager, then you'll see that Kate's reactions to the goof-ups and goof-offs is often remarkably restrained.
It's a high-end business, not a kindergarden. When the boss says jump, don't question if you should jump, say "How high?" Some of these nitwits don't even understand the word 'jump' in the first place.
You get to see some great scenery, and some of the bits with guests are a pleasure to watch. Some of the guests are people I'd NEVER hang around with or invite to my house ... especially the drunks. No excuse for that, vacation or not.
I've taken to trying out a few of the things the chefs on the show do. It's fun and tasty.
And the editors are clever enough to make the end of each episode demand starting the next. It's a terrible temptation to binge old seaons for that reason. LOL.
I see comments from people calling Kate "mean" or a "bully". That's nonsense. The producers hire a LOT of questionable employees ... Captain Lee doesn't get to make that call, though hopefully he gets to weigh in. At least he gets to fire the worst of the worst.
However, every season has some employees who think they're the tail that wags the dog, rather than EMPLOYEES who should shut up and do their jobs. If you've never managed employees, maybe you can take the side of these infantile idiots. If you've ever been a manager, then you'll see that Kate's reactions to the goof-ups and goof-offs is often remarkably restrained.
It's a high-end business, not a kindergarden. When the boss says jump, don't question if you should jump, say "How high?" Some of these nitwits don't even understand the word 'jump' in the first place.
You get to see some great scenery, and some of the bits with guests are a pleasure to watch. Some of the guests are people I'd NEVER hang around with or invite to my house ... especially the drunks. No excuse for that, vacation or not.
I've taken to trying out a few of the things the chefs on the show do. It's fun and tasty.
And the editors are clever enough to make the end of each episode demand starting the next. It's a terrible temptation to binge old seaons for that reason. LOL.
Easy watching
becinreallife26 February 2022
Love it. If you need some easy watching tv after a long day, this is the show for you. You think you'd maybe get over watching one episode after another, but surprisingly not - it just gets better. Binge worthy reality tv, what more could you want?
Amazing UNTIL sn 7 CANNOT STAND KEVIN
karischlautman1 December 2023
Super disappointed in season seven when Kevin came on board as chef. What an asshat! I QUIT watching the show because I could not stand to see or hear this unprofessional, needy, ill excuse for a man! Captain Lee should know better. Out of seven seasons...... I've not "disliked" anyone ... this fool Kevin is a tool! His unprofessional, arrogant, ignorant personality makes every single episode (that I could tolerate to watch) in season seven hard to endure. I'm furious that I have grown to love a show and they bring this tool on the show!
All the other crew are amazing!
ABSOLUTELY love Kate!
Drunk Brandy was weird AF! Not sure what producers were thinking on that charter.
All the other crew are amazing!
ABSOLUTELY love Kate!
Drunk Brandy was weird AF! Not sure what producers were thinking on that charter.
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