lady michelle yacht captain

Why Lady Michelle Is Captain Sandy's Favorite Below Deck Mediterranean Yacht to Date

In an exclusive chat with e news, captain sandy yawn explained why the season six yacht for below deck mediterranean is her favorite. see what she had to say.

All aboard!

In an exclusive chat with E! News, Below Deck Mediterranean 's Captain Sandy Yawn dished all about her season six yacht, named Lady Michelle. Fans of the Below Deck franchise got a taste of the luxury vessel during season two of Below Deck Sailing Yacht . Yet, in the new season of Below Deck Med , viewers will get a front row seat to what the yacht has to offer.

And, from what Captain Sandy told us, Lady Michelle is one impressive yacht. "My favorite boat ever," she shared. "It was like so solid, I didn't even know we were at sea."

While the layout of Lady Michelle is certainly breathtaking, boasting six guest cabins and over 180 feet in length, the captain revealed that she loved the way it handles. "For me, how it responds in the sea," she explained. "You know, the layout was great, it's for charter...The volume for the size was incredible."

This is certainly high praise coming from Captain Sandy, who has previously captained mega-yachts Sirocco, Talisman Maiton and The Wellington. However, after learning of Lady Michelle's $310,000 winter rate/per week, we can't say we're shocked that the yacht is so spectacular.

Although Lady Michelle typically sails the Caribbean and Bahamas, Captain Sandy led her through the waters of Croatia this season. On returning to the European country's coast, she relayed, "It was absolutely beautiful. The people were great. You know, remember, it was very quiet 'cause of what was going on around the world."

Per the captain, she was "just grateful" that they "got to go there."

Speaking of the coronavirus pandemic, Captain Sandy assured us that season six will be just as entertaining and fabulous as its predecessors. "We made it incredible, right?" she said. "So, that's the beauty of being on a boat is you can quarantine off-shore and have this epic time and see these beautiful places while the rest of the world is shut down."

The captain highlighted how the charter business also helped the economy. She concluded, "At the same time, you're employing people, you're provisioning, you're buying goods. You know, so you're helping the community at the same time."

Below Deck Mediterranean  premieres tonight, June 28 at 9 p.m. on Bravo . All new episodes will be available on Peacock one week early, starting June 21.

(E!, Bravo and Peacock are all part of the NBCUniversal family.)

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Behind the scenes: Captain Sandy Yawn on the reality of filming Below Deck Mediterranean

Sandy Yawn, the coolheaded captain who has shot to fame on Below Deck has returned to the helm for season six, Below Deck Mediterranean. Speaking to BOAT International she opens up about her experiences of filming the hit US reality show shown on US network Bravo.

The opportunity for Sandy, 55, to first join the Below Deck series “landed on her lap” after an acquaintance recommended her to the showrunner five years ago.

Captain Sandy revealed that she was discouraged from joining the show but decided to pursue the opportunity anyway.

“Everyone was saying don’t do it, you’ll ruin your career and I was like ‘This just landed in my lap, I can’t say no to it!' I went to the interview and said if it happens, it happens, if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I thought well I’m already a successful captain, I can always get another job.”

Luckily, captain Sandy breezed through the interviews and was asked to join the second season of Below Deck Mediterranean, replacing outgoing captain Mark Howard.

Despite initial warnings not to join, captain Sandy said she was never concerned about her own portrayal on the show.

“You can’t make someone look bad if they’re doing their job right, no matter how you edit it,” she said. “I’m a competent captain. I’m a woman so I’ve had to work five times harder than anyone else to get there. I'm there to do the job and the TV bit comes second," she said.

She admits that her first season on the show, which saw her take charge of the 47 metre Heesen superyacht Sirocco during a busy charter season in Croatia, was a “huge learning curve” in comparison to working on professional charters.

“When you’re from the charter world, you’re used to having the best charter crew on the planet,” she said. “And then you step on board Below Deck and the chief stew has no experience.”

Working with “green” crew is a key challenge in filming  Below Deck , she said. “When someone doesn’t have passion for the job or is just there to be on TV and hope their career is going to take off, that is hard for me. I don’t have time for it, and you can always tell – the camera never lies.”

One area that poses no challenges for captain Sandy is the logistics of filming the show. “I love the production side of it,” she said. “It’s all about logistics, which is what you do as a captain.”

The intense filming schedule squeezes 16 charters into a filming period of eight weeks. This means that two groups of guests will charter the yacht in a single week, giving the crew less than 24 hours to prepare the boat for the next charter.

“Charter means working 24/7,” captain Sandy explained. “We end charter and do the tipping thing, which we’ve always done, and then we start turning the boat around. The next day, the crew are all doing interviews and then we pick up charter again.”

The sixth season of Below Deck Mediterranean features 55 metre Benetti superyacht Lady Michelle as the main charter yacht.

Alongside chartering the superyacht, the Below Deck production also charters a second boat during filming to be used by the film crew for lunch breaks, as well as a large tender to ferry around cast and production crew.

Meanwhile, more than 60 hotel rooms are booked out to support the production while an average day’s filming will see around 30 people on board the yacht.

Captain Sandy is keen to emphasise the positivity of the show, which she says is “doing a great thing for our industry.” “It shows that there are so many jobs in the industry and that there’s an industry out there thriving.”

Click here to read BOAT International's feature on superyacht Lady Michelle , the star of Below Deck Mediterranean season six.

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Below Deck Mediterranean season 6 in Croatia onboard luxury yacht LADY MICHELLE

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By Nina Done   28 May 2021

Set to premiere on 28 June, the successful Bravo franchise is back and bigger than ever promising compelling viewing as we follow the latest antics of charter guests and crew onboard the 180-foot Benetti  motor yacht LADY MICHELLE ; from a major storm, heated hot tub blow-up and a fire in the galley to a wedding, several drunken hookups and some serious twerking; sit back and enjoy the fireworks.  

Below Deck Mediterranean Season 6 marks the return of Captain Sandy and newly single Bosun Malia to the stunning location of Croatia, along with a brand new crew, including chief stewardess Katie Flood and Chef Mathew Shea.  

Bravo recently granted viewers with their first teaser trailer of the new series, which showcases high drama and wild crew shenanigans, including a novel use for the crew mess’s Lazy Susan, as well as plenty of tears and tantrums. 

Bravo has also promised “a shocking franchise first” before the opening charter, plus a return of guest Roy Orbison Jr, all taking place onboard the elegant charter yacht LADY MICHELLE. This Benetti motor yacht can accommodate 12 guests in her 6 luxuriously appointed suites, and is capable of carrying up to 12 crew members, making her the ideal size vessel for all the usual Below Deck antics on a yacht charter !

Binge-watch every Below Deck episode on the Bravo app, or catch up on  Below Deck Mediterranean seasons 1-5 streaming now on Peacock.

Yacht charters around Croatia

With long stretches of glorious coastline and endless idyllic islands, Croatia is fast becoming one of the most popular yacht charter destinations for summer. Steeped in a rich cultural history, Croatia boasts an abundance of archeological treasures and ancient architecture, with some relics dating back to 3,000BC. 

Enjoying a warm Mediterranean climate, beautiful clear waters, secluded golden beaches and tucked away coves there is so much to enjoy on a luxury yacht charter around this enchanting East Mediterranean destination.

Interested in booking a luxury yacht charter?

To find out more about chartering in the region, check out our in-depth East Mediterranean yacht charter guide for more information.

If you'd like to learn more about chartering M/Y Lady Michelle , please get in touch with your chosen yacht charter broker . 

Featured yachts available for charter in East Mediterranean

55m Benetti 2003 / 2024

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