A Guide To Boat Hitchhiking

You’ve probably heard of regular hitchhiking - you know, when you stand along the side of a road with your thumb out and wait for some (hopefully nice) stranger to give you a ride. You probably haven’t, however, heard of boat hitchhiking. This is what we used to travel from Europe across the Atlantic and then up through the Caribbean to Florida.

Recently, I have received many questions about boat hitchhiking, namely what it is, how it works, and how on Earth you can do so safely. While I won’t say that Jo and I are 100% masters of the subject, we do have enough experience now that we can confidently give a fairly in-depth how-to. So here we go: Your Guide to Boat Hitchhiking, brought to you buy two fairly experienced boat hitchhikers.

General Tips to Get Started

Before we get into the actual how-to’s of boat hitchhiking, there are few points that we want to address that will help you get on boats easier and faster, if you are to attempt to boat hitchhike yourself.

Tip 1: Go Get Sailing Experience

While plenty of people attempt to hitch a ride on someone’s boat with no experience, and there are boaters who put out offers looking for crew who specify no experience is necessary, you will have a way easier time being invited aboard someone’s boat if you already have some experience. Some basic sailing knowledge is good (aka knowing how to sail a boat), but the reality is that, particularly in long passages, the actual sailing is not a big part of what goes on. Having some knowledge of how to provision for a boat, cooking on a boat, and whether or not you struggle with sea sickness and how to deal with that is almost more important.

Jo already had some decent sailing experience and I grew up going out on lake Ontario with my dad. We still didn’t feel so confident, so we signed up for an intensive open-ocean sailing training course, you could call it, from Lisbon to the Canary Islands and then from there to Cabo Verde. All of this is to say, before you ask someone to take you on their boat, do something to get some experience out on the water. You don’t have to be an expert (I certainly am not), but knowing enough so that you can help with night watches, food prep and clean up, and other on-board duties will really help your case.

Tip 2: Clean Up

This may be controversial, but it is something that we noticed so it needs to be said. Most people with boats are those who fall within a certain income bracket, because unsurprisingly, boats cost money. If you show up to a marina looking like a bedraggled backpacker, most boat people won’t say yes. This doesn’t mean you have to wear fancy clothes or tons of makeup or anything of the sort. It does mean that you may want to take a shower, wash your hair, keep your beard shaved or groomed, and wear clean, regular clothes. We have seen many people who are boat hitchhiking because, in their minds, it's this environmentally friendly, bohemian type of lifestyle, and they show up to the marina kind of looking the part. Needless to say, they struggled to find someone who would take them onboard. While we respect personal style, you need to remember that boat life and van life are not at all the same thing. The minimum price of a boat is $30,000 for a working condition, small monohull. A working condition catamaran will easily be over $100,000, and most boats no matter what kind are far more expensive than that. Clean up a little bit and make yourself look like a tidy, trustworthy person who would keep that person’s boat clean and tidy.

If you’re still thinking that this can’t be true, I will end this part with a conversation between boat owners on a Facebook page who were speaking about the number of solicitations for rides they had received. Many of them mentioned the appearance of the backpackers being off-putting, with one stating “If I see get asked by one more person who looks like they haven’t bathed in a week to come on my boat promising that while they don’t have any sailing experience, they are ‘good vibes’ and can play the ukelele, I’m going to lose it”.

Tip 3: Get The Right Equipment

Come with the things you will need onboard, as well as the research done about the destinations that you are going. Things like headlamps, boat-friendly shoes, waterproof gear, warm layers, sun block, etc. Don’t expect that the boat owner will have those things available for you.

Tip 4: Do Your Research

Also, do your research. Look up things about boat safety and what should be available on board in case of emergency. If a boat owner doesn’t walk you through safety procedures or have the right/enough safety equipment onboard, don’t get on. Make sure that you are aware of the rules of entering a country on a private vessel for the passport you hold. It is not the boat owner’s job to know that for you. For example, Jo, being French with an EU passport, needs an ESTA to enter the United States. Upon research, however, we found out that if he is entering the states after his last ESTA stamp has expired, he can’t enter on a private vessel. He either needs to enter at a land crossing, on an airplane, or on an official vessel (aka a Ferry). Otherwise, he needs a B2 visa, which is a long process to get. When we travelled from St. Martin to the Virgin Islands, we had to drop Jo off in the British Virgin Islands, where he took a ferry across to the USVIs. After that, he had the stamp he needed to be able to enter the US on a private vessel for the next three months.

Research and understand the sailing seasons, making sure you check the time of year and when and where you want to go. The season to cross the Atlantic is generally from November to the end of January, and the Pacific from January to the end of March. Looking for boats outside of those times will likely not be successful. Know from where and when people tend to sail from East, West, North, South, and to and from the places that you want to go. Research and learn what routes they usually take. This will save yourself from ending up in a place where everyone is going the opposite direction that you want to go.

Finally, make sure to do everything correctly while checking in and out of countries (you must do this upon arrival and exit). Take this from two people who almost got deported from one of the Carribbean islands - it is not worth the risk.

Tip 5: Be Flexible

When boat hitchhiking, while it is okay to have a rough idea of where you want to go, having a super defined itinerary will be difficult. If your route that you want to take is overly specific, you may find yourself having a hard time getting anywhere at all.

Tip 6: Be Willing To Pay

In our experience, most of the time the boat owner will invite you onboard for free. That being said, you should be ready, able, and willing to participate in on-board costs. Food, fuel, marina fees, whatever that may be. Be sure to get a clear idea of what those expectations are ahead of time. You also should be willing to pay, if necessary. Sometimes people will take you but will request that you pay a certain amount per day. Whatever the situation is, make sure it is clear and agreed upon before getting on board.

For The Ladies

I have the advantage that I was boat hitchhiking with my boyfriend. Like it or not, that means that I come with a bit of a safety blanket. Skippers and boat owners with ill-intentions will likely not invite us on board, and when we are on board, I have Jo to support me and watch out for me. If you are a woman and doing this alone, or you are a pair of friends or sisters, be aware that not all skippers are stand-up gentlemen. The boating world is still full of a lot of sexism, misogyny, and the type of men that come along with that. Listen to your gut and follow along pages for women in sailing for additional safety tips. When posting on boat hitchhiker Facebook pages, think about what kinds of skippers and sailing buddies you are trying to attract and use verbiage and photos to fit that profile. Always meet up with any potential sailing partners in a public place before getting on board their boat so you can have time to suss out your gut feelings before it’s too late and you’re already out on the water.

All About Boat Hitchhiking

Now that the general tips are out of the way, how do you actually go about boat hitchhiking? The methods you use will vary depending on where you are and how quickly you want to get on a boat. Most of the time, you will use a combination of many of these.

In-Person Soliciting

This is probably the hardest one to do but is often the most effective. Some places have large marinas, for example, Mindelo in Cabo Verde, where the majority of the boats come into dock. You can walk up and down the docks saying hello to boat owners, explaining who you are and what you are doing, and whether or not they would be able to have you on board. Be kind, be clear, always accept a no with grace (you will receive more no’s than yes’s!). Having your information readily available for them, as often people will ask for your info to have on-hand in case they hear of someone looking for crew.

Beyond doing this in the harbor, you can also do some research and find out where the boat people hang out. This can be a bar, a cafe, a bakery - find out where it is and at what time people generally go there. Then you just have the hard part of being brave and striking up a conversation with people, particularly those you suspect might be boat owners. It is hard, but it is worth it in the end.

You can also use signs that say that you’re looking to get on a boat and what direction you are looking to go (for example, 2 Crew looking for a boat to the Caribbean), though we haven’t had a ton of success with that. We have found it is usually easier to actually have conversations with people and get to know them a bit.

Don’t be afraid to also talk with other boat hitchhikers that you come across. They can be allies, not competition. They may already know of boats looking for crew going in the direction you want to go, which may not be the same as them, or have other lay-of-the-land style tips for the specific place where you are.

The Apps

No, there are not applications specifically for boat hitchhikers. There are, however, apps for boat owners and sailors to connect. In these apps, you can send sailors direct messages as well as post general inquiries. These apps include Navily, SeaPeople, and NoForeignLand. I am sure there are others, but those are the ones we used and had success with. Direct messaging, as always, was the most successful. These apps come largely in handy when you are in places that don’t have big marinas and therefore all the boats are either moored or anchored off-shore. Make sure you send a message that states who you are, what you are looking for, and any relevant experience. As always, be polite and kind. In addition, make sure you meet up with the boat owner in a public space before agreeing to go on their boat. If at any point you get a bad feeling, politely bow out.

Another app that we have attempted to use but haven’t actually had any success on is one called YachtCabin. Here, boat owners post the trips that they are going on, the number of cabins they have available, and if they are charging for that cabin or if the only expectation is to share in the costs of the trip. I have put inquiries in on a couple of boats but have never heard back from the captain.

Generally, for the apps, it is a numbers game. The more boats you message, the more you will likely hear back from and get a potential yes. This takes time but is worth it. If you speak multiple languages and can send the boater a message in their native language, this is often a bonus.

Facebook Pages

There are so many Facebook pages dedicated to sailing and crew looking to board boats, it can be overwhelming. There are a number of them, though I’ve found that Sailing Crew Finders World Wide is the best. It is well moderated with both a male and female moderator who do their best to protect both boaters and crew, and have put a particular emphasis on respectful communication and the protection of women. We have had moderate success posting about our trip and what we’re looking for in these groups, however, the best success has come from reading the message boards and messaging boat owners who have posted that they are looking for crew.

There are also generally Facebook pages for every marina and location. For example, there is a page for sailors in Guadeloupe, for those in Georgetown, the Bahamas - nearly every one. Some of these pages, however, won’t let you post in them asking if anyone is looking to take on crew, so read the rules carefully. Again, directly messaging people we have found always works best.

Crew Websites

There are websites that are directly for the purpose of linking boat owners with potential crew. Some of these are for professional crew only, others are more mixed. I can’t speak much to these as we didn’t really use them ourselves. We did have some boat owners let us know that these places are where they found their crew, however, so they may be worth checking out.

Facebook Message Communities

There are communities on Facebook messenger that have individual chats within them about specific locations and the like. We are in one called Sailboat Hitchhikers & Crew Connections. You also have the opportunity to start a topic of your own, that anyone in the community can join and then respond to your message. We haven’t found this to be overly helpful in terms of posting inside them that we are looking to get on a boat. Where it can be potentially good is when a captain posts in looking for crew. We have found that there are far more people in there looking for a boat than boats looking for crew, however.

The Morning Net

If you have found yourself on a boat, and your captain is cool with you staying on board for a few days when you first arrive at port, you can hook into what is called The Morning Net. This is a morning radio program where people in the boating community at that harbor can announce upcoming events, ask questions, and go over general community information. You can join in, state who you are and what you are looking for, and then let them know how they can contact you after the net is over. We found this to be mildly helpful. When we were in the Bahamas, we made an announcement on the Net each morning, as well as messaged people on the apps. We had a few people offer us a ride on their boat because they had heard us on the Net, almost as if it had given us a bit of street cred.

Charter Companies

Beyond purchasing a charter for yourself, charter companies can sometimes be useful. To travel between Antigua and St. Martin, we hooked in with a local charter company who was delivering a boat there. The captain agreed to take us on board with him, and we helped him out with some basic boat activities during the trip.

Cargo Ships

Cargo ships doing long passages used to be easier to get on, from what we’ve been told. Since COVID, however, most large cargo ship companies require anyone on board to be a paid employee. In some places, however, there are local cargo ships that do take passengers. For example, the Bahamas has a system of mailboats that also sometimes take passengers. You won’t find the information online, though, you have to go and ask at what are called the “government docks”. They will let you know when the boat leaves and to where, how long it will be, and of course how much it will cost. Don’t be in a hurry if you’re getting on these boats, as they may make long stops along the way to drop off and pick up cargo. Also be sure to come prepared with food for the trip and warm layers to bundle up in, as the AC on board is often far colder than it ever needs to be.

And there you have it - a guide to boat hitchhiking, for anyone who is thinking about giving it a try. Happy sailing!