Salty Yachts Australia is a team of marine professionals who deliver vessels by sea. Our fundamental aim is getting your yacht from origin to destination safely, without damage to vessel or crew.

We specialise in yacht delivery by sea, on the yachts own hull, in Australia and the Pacific. When we get itchy feet, we deliver Worldwide.

Yes. Combining negotiation and delivery services is how Salty provides maximum value to its clients.

We deliver most types of vessels including power, pilot, sailing, monohull, catamaran, trimaran, cruiser, racing, fishing and trawler.

Yes, we are licensed to deliver both recreationally and commercially registered vessels. Our Masters hold commercial marine certificates of competencies (CoC’s) issued by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA).

Our Masters are licensed to operate vessels up to 35m long within Australia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and up to 80m long in Australia’s inshore waters. As we gain more crew, this capability will expand.

Within Australia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) we deliver both recreationally and commercially registered vessels. Outside of Australia’s EEZ (within the Pacific and Worldwide) we deliver recreational vessels only. As we gain more crew, this capability will expand.

Higher-end yachts and commercial vessels from 40 to 110 feet is our sweet spot, and generally stay away from vessels less than 40 feet.

We can depart when a) all documentation is taken care of, b) the vessel is prepared, equipped and ready for sea, and c) we have a suitable weather window.

Maybe. It depends on documentation, the vessel’s readiness, the weather window and our availability (read the above point). If we can assist, we will.

We once took a call from a Jeanneau 44 owner who needed his yacht delivered ASAP to the Whitsundays for a family vacation. Our crew were available, the yacht was ready to sail and the vessels paperwork and insurance was in order.  All that was left was to sign an Agreement, pay the deposit and secure crew travel arrangements. We threw lines within 24 hours.

Salty Yachts Australia exists to provide the yacht delivery market with absolute professionalism, in an industry that is often plagued with substandard operators. Salty is here to evolve the yachting industry.

Our crew hold various commercial and recreational Certificates of Competencies (CoC’s), licenses and qualifications for deck and engineering duties and safety, medical and security training.

Commercial deck qualifications include Coxswain NC, Master<24m NC, Master<35m NC, Master<80m NC, Master<200gt, Master<500gt, Master<3000gt and Master Unlimited.

Commercial engineering qualifications include Engine Watchkeeper, MED 3 NC, MED 2 NC, MED 1 NC, Engineer Class 3 NC, Engineer Class 2, Engineer Class 1 and Electro-technical officer.

Safety, medical and security training includes Elements of Shipboard Safety, CoST (STCW-95), Apply First Aid, Oxygen, CPR, ENG1 Medical, AMSA Medical, Maritime Security Identification Card (MSIC).

Supporting qualifications include MROCP (Marine Radio Operators Certificate of Proficiency), GMDSS (Global Maritime Distress and Safety System) and ECDIS (Electronic Chart Display and Information System).

Recreational qualifications include Recreational Marine Drivers License (RMDL), Competent Crew, Essential Navigation & Seamanship, Diesel Engine Maintenance, Safety & Survival at Sea, Day Skipper, Coastal Skipper, Yachtmaster Coastal, Yachtmaster Offshore, Yachtmaster Ocean and Yacht Master Instructor.

Collectively, the Salty crew has hundreds of thousands of accrued sea miles, all over the world.

Within Australia, we have delivered vessels between Darwin, Gove, Thursday Island, Yorkeys Knob, Cairns, Hinchinbrook, Townsville, Bowen, Airlie Beach, Hamilton Island, Mackay, Rosslyn Bay, Gladstone, Bundaberg, Urangan, Hervey Bay, Mooloolaba, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Ballina, Yamba, Coffs Harbour, Port Stephens, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Pittwater, Sydney, Jervis Bay, Ulladulla, Batemans Bay, Eden, Lakes Entrance, Port Welshpool, Hobart, Triabunna, Flinders Island, Melbourne, Robe, Adelaide, Ceduna, Esperance, Bremer Bay, and Fremantle.

Within the Pacific, we have delivered vessels between Palau, Solomon Islands, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga and Tahiti.

Salty has recorded zero incidents.

Yes. Your vessel is insured under its own insurance policy. So, provided that your policy is valid, your vessel is insured. Salty does not carry additional insurance for your vessel as this would be result in double coverage.

The client or vessel owner is liable to pay the excess. Salty has recorded zero incidents and is a safe operator.

Yes, it is best practice to list both Salty and the Master on the policy. During the preparation process, you will email your vessels insurer to request this in writing. Your insurer may suggest that this is not required, however having approval in writing will put you in the strongest position possible should an incident, and subsequent insurance claim, occur.

Yes, this is a legal requirement, in the same way that a vehicle must be registered to legally operate on the roads.

Probably, provided that we’re given sufficient advance notice. Timing and execution of deliveries are at the mercy of documentation being in order, payments being made, vessel condition and readiness, and the weather gods. If we can get your vessel safely to the destination on time, we will.

As a blanket rule; no. A general rule for maintaining insurance coverage is that the vessel should not depart port when a gale warning has been issued, or is in force.

Rules aside, good seamanship prevails. If departing means that safety is compromised or the vessel will endure undue stresses, we don’t depart.

It depends. As per good seamanship we will choose the safest option. At times, going into port and tying up may be the safer option. At other times, running away to sea to avoid navigational hazards and allow plenty of sea room may be the safer option. And always, understanding the longer-term weather forecast pre-departure, and only departing during a suitable weather window is the safer option.

The time required to complete the entire delivery process is made up the below phases:

1. Planning and preparation. One or two days for our onshore team to complete;
2. Crew travel from home to the origin. Half a day domestically, one day Internationally;
3. Vessel preparation. Generally half to one day, dependant on vessel readiness;
4. Time underway (hours) = distance (nm) divided by speed (kn). Plus, any refuelling stops;
5. Weather delay. We minimise this by choosing a suitable weather window;
6. Mechanical delay. The vessel owner minimises this by ensuring the vessel is sound mechanical condition, properly equipped and ready for sea; and
7. Crew travel from the destination back to home. Half a day domestically, one day Internationally.

In short, we don’t depart. Keep in mind however, that all vessels are different, and handle weather differently. Therefore, our threshold for departure varies between different vessels.

It also depends how long the passage is. For shorter passages of a few days, for example from Eden to Melbourne, short windows may occur every few days or week, for the short ‘hop’. However, a suitable longer window from Tahiti all the way back to Australia only exists when the SE trade wind is blowing from around May to September.

Australia’s summer is from December to February and winter is from June to August. Prevailing winds during the summer months are from the north and in winter from the south. The better time to cross the South Pacific from east to west is when the SE trades are active from approx. May to October. Within Australia, the Pacific and Worldwide, all cruising routes have better and worse months due to the prevailing winds. A great resource to learn what route to sail and when, is Jimmy Cornell’s book entitled World Cruising Routes.

Our policy is to stay well away from cyclones, or tropical revolving storms. We can and have delivered vessels during cyclone season within tropical coastal waters, because long-range weather forecasting is great, cell reception is good, and during coastal deliveries we are generally within 24 hours of a safe port if we need to come in and tie up. We would not however, deliver a vessel (for example) from Fiji to Australia during cyclone season as it would result in unnecessary risk and probable lack of insurance coverage.

Australia’s official national weather agency is the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM). The BoM also produces MetEye; 7-day wind, wave and rain weather forecast maps for boating.

Windy and Ventusky are similar websites that provide interactive worldwide weather forecasting services.

PredictWind provides accurate wind and weather global forecasts, uses exclusive models, provides weather routing and departure planning and uses (small) GRIB files that can de downloaded via cell or satellite phone coverage.

Pocket Grib also uses GRIB files and provides another source of global weather data.

Your vessel must be equipped with all safety equipment as required by legislation. The requirements for recreational vessels are set by state-based legislation (each state differs slightly) and domestic commercial vessels are set by the National Standard for Commercial Vessels (NSCV).

For recreationally registered vessels, try Googling “marine safety equipment for recreational vessels QLD” and you will be on the right track.

For domestic commercial vessels (DCV’s), try Googling “NSCV safety equipment for domestic commercial vessels” and you’ll find a link to the NSCV on the AMSA website. You’ll need to select your vessels Class to find the equipment guidance notice that applies to your DCV.

Legally, it depends on the vessel, it’s state of registration and its registration type.

However, for the delivery, yes, the vessel must be equipped with a suitable offshore life raft. If your vessel does not have one, you can hire one for the duration of the delivery (read the next point below).

We use and recommend Great Circle, Brisbane. They are helpful, have reasonable rates and they help to organise freight to and from the vessel.

Any safety item that might expire during the delivery must be replaced before the delivery, to ensure that all safety equipment is valid for the entire delivery. If for example a delivery is delayed for whatever reason, the flares expire during the delay and we can’t source replacement flares locally; this adds an additional delay that could have been avoided. It’s worth noting that crew cannot fly with flares in their luggage.

The rule for EPIRBs (current at time of writing) is that any vessel that is operating outside of partially smooth waters or more than 2nm from land in open water must carry a 406MHz digital EPIRB. GPS and float-free is best. Be aware that requirements from DCV’s changed on January 1^st 2021 and some vessels require GPS and /or float-free EPIRBs.

Yes. Salty carries an advanced GPS tracker on-board. We provide a URL link so you can track your yachts position online.

Yes, if your vessel is equipped with AIS. You can locate your vessel via the Marine Traffic website: https://www.marinetraffic.com/

Yes, you can call or SMS the Master during delivery if required. Be mindful that crew is in watchkeeping patterns and are not available to answer anytime. For this reason, please avoid routing calling. If we have a missed SMS or call from you, we will reply when we can. We will provide a progress update generally once per 24 hours. Cell coverage is reasonably good in Australian coastal waters.

Unfortunately, mechanical issues are common. Crew hold engineering qualifications and will remedy any defect as per their ability. If a defect is non-repairable at sea, and is critical, we may choose to come alongside for professional repairs, which will first be discussed with the client.

Crew hold engineering qualifications and will remedy any defect as per their ability. If the vessel has sails, we may continue under sail. We may also choose to come alongside for professional repairs, which will first be discussed with the client. If the vessel loses propulsion and is in navigational danger, we may elect to contact the coastguard, or a nearby vessel, for towing assistance.

If it needs it, yes. It will improve vessel speed, saving you time and money.

Yes, the passage plan is a comprehensive berth-to-berth guide that includes waypoints, safe havens, refuelling locations and much more.

Most marinas and ports have public marine fuel facilities. At some locations we need to order a fuel truck in advance. We refuel as often as we need, but only as required. The passage plan aims for an efficient refuelling schedule.

Usually, Salty pays for fuel upfront during the delivery. This cost of fuel is included in the delivery fee.

Usually, Salty pays upfront for berthing, customs, immigration, spare parts, crew travel arrangements, etc. These costs are included in the delivery fee.

If we already have the required charts, we will provide them and you won’t be charged for these. If the passage requires additional charts we will purchase these and add them to the delivery fee. Charts are quite cheap and cost about AUD$30/chart.

We use and recommend Boat Books Australia. They print paper charts on demand and express post.

Yes, we perform a general clean, but do not detail the vessel.

A general overview of the activities we complete at the destination is in our arrival destination checklist. You can read it here:

https://saltyyachts.com.au/we-negotiate-and-deliver-yachts/yacht-delivery/how-does-a-yacht-delivery-work/#arrival

No, Salty crew does not drink alcohol whilst on delivery.

Yes, Salty has a zero tolerance for drugs, and no alcohol is to be drunk or brought on delivery.

Yes, Salty generally provides a position and progress update to the client once per 24 hours, provided we have cell or satellite coverage.

Usually, we respond within 24 hours, however if we are away delivering a vessel, it may take a few days.  If we are on delivery, attention to that takes priority, but we will respond as soon as possible.

The ‘Quick Quote’ is a one-page PDF document that Salty issues to prospective clients, after a quote is requested. It is a preliminary and non-binding document that provides details of the vessel, the proposed passage, distance, our daily rates, expected charges and expected running costs.

Anything you need to fill in the gaps. This FAQ page should answer 95% of your queries, while the phone conversation should answer the remainder.

We will issue you with your Services Agreement via email. Signatures are completed electronically via computer or smart phone. You don’t need to print or scan anything, we run a paperless office.

Documents are provided to Salty via email. After you sign your Services Agreement, we will send you a pdf named “The Salty Guide” which lists all required documents (you can also link to The Salty Guide here).

After you have signed the Services Agreement, 10% deposit secures the delivery. When we have a suitable weather window, 50% deposit is payable and crew travel arrangements are secured. Balance of delivery is payable on vessel handover at the destination.

10% deposit and 50% pre-delivery via EFT. Balance on arrival via cash or EFT.

If you cancel before delivery the 10% deposit is generally non-refundable. If you cancel during the delivery, we will apportion costs. Whatever happens, we apply a reasonable and fair approach.

During the planning and preparation stage, you are required to prepare your vessel for the delivery and provide us with required documentation. We will send you a pdf named “The Salty Guide” which lists all required documents and detailed instructions of what needs to be completed (you can also link to The Salty Guide here).

If our schedule allows, yes. Ask us what you need, and we will assist as best we can.

Do you have what it takes to join the Salty Crew? You can read more here: https://saltyyachts.com.au/yacht-delivery/#crew

And apply directly here: https://saltyyachts.com.au/crew/

You can lodge a complaint with us here: https://saltyyachts.com.au/we-negotiate-and-deliver-yachts/complaints/

Clients can leave feedback or a testimonial here: https://saltyyachts.com.au/we-negotiate-and-deliver-yachts/feedback/

Have another question? You can ask us a question either via Salty Online Chat (opens in a new window) or through our website.