CrewSeeker
Keen to go sailing, but you don't own a boat yet?
Want to get some offshore sailing experience before you sail your own boat to the Islands?
Our CrewSeeker service is a great way for crew to enjoy some amazing sailing adventures or for existing boat owners to gain some offshore experience or for professional skippers and crew to advertise their services.
Skippers can search here for potential crew members to contact directly or drop me a message, and I'll send out a notification to all CrewSeeker members that a role has become available.
To access our CrewSeeker Service, you need to be a member of the awesome Island Cruising community. This costs just NZD$129.00 per annum and you will receive:
- Your profile on our CrewSeeker page, where skippers can view your details and contact you directly.
- Email notifications whenever a crewing opportunity comes up
- Access to all our Online Cruising Preparation workshops, videos & resources.
- Advice on preparing a sailing CV.
- Tips on how to interview a skipper before agreeing to go on a passage.
- Support if things don't go to plan.
- Discounts on the Offshore Medic, Advanced Sea Survival, RYA and other navigation theory courses and VHF Radio Operator certificates.
- Discounts on safety gear and other boating equipment from our rally partners.
- Connection to our awesome cruising community.
- Weekly members email updates.
The Sailing Season
The Pacific Rally departs New Zealand and Australia in May each year and spend six months cruising in Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu or New Caledonia. They return to New Zealand or Australia in October.
Many skippers take on extra crew for the ocean deliveries and sometimes crew are also taken aboard to cruise for longer throughout the Islands. With over 130 vessels registered for the 2025 Pacific Rally so far, our CrewSeeker service is the best way of finding a position on board.
November–April is South Pacific Cyclone season and vessels typically do not sail offshore during this time. However, we often have people cruising around the coast of New Zealand or Australia over the summer and there are still lots of great opportunities that come up.
Tips for New Crew
If you have never been sailing before - an ocean crossing is probably not the best place to start. Offshore passages from Australia & New Zealand are at least one week or more at sea. The passage can be rough, and it is very unpleasant and unsafe for both yourself and the rest of the crew if you find you get seasick.
Skippers are generally looking for helpers who know their way around a boat, and can help with sail changes - night watches and the day-to-day running of the vessel.
A good place to have your first sailing experience is to go along to your local yacht club and ask if they have any learn to sail courses or race boats looking for crew. You can often get a spot racing around the harbour and learning all kinds of skills, such as handling lines & winches, safely moving around the boat and, most importantly - whether you enjoy being on board or not.
If you don't have any luck at a yacht club, there are lots of great companies offering hands-on Learn To Sail courses as well with a structured curriculum and giving you lots of important skills & knowledge for your adventures ahead.
Staying Safe
Before joining a vessel or taking on crew, it is VERY important to do some thorough due diligence on the skipper/crew member before agreeing to go aboard. We provide lots of suggestions on how to interview each other to ensure you are going to be safe while at sea, as well as tips on what kinds of personal safety equipment you might like to consider purchasing and tips on how you can communicate with your friends & family while you are offshore.
We also recommend that crew do some additional safety training before heading offshore. Your CrewSeeker membership gets you access to all our online cruising training content, as well as a 10% discount on Advanced Sea Survival, Offshore Medic, RYA Navigation theory and VHF Radio operators courses. These qualifications will give you more confidence with crewing on a boat, ensuring you know how to keep yourself and the others on board safe, and be a more useful crew member while on passage. You can quickly recoup your membership investment with these excellent savings.
Join Now!
If you are interested, you can find some more information about all the inclusions and how to become a member on the link below.
Once you are registered, email us a few paragraphs about your sailing experience, qualifications and a photograph, and we'll get your profile all loaded up. Then you'll start getting notifications of all the opportunities as they come through.
Already a member? Sign up as a Crewseeker for free to create your listing
