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Boat vs. Ship vs Yacht: What’s the Difference?

A couple looking at the sunset as they ride on their sailboat | Sebastus Sailing

Language is a tricky thing, and picking out the differences between similar terms can be confusing. This is especially true when some of the definitions overlap. This is the case with the case of boat vs. ship vs. yacht . What’s the difference? We know in our gut that there are differences between these three seafaring vessels, but unless you’re a harbor master do you really know what counts as what?

Let’s get into some definitions, and we’re going to start with the easiest to explain: What is a yacht? What is a ship? And what is a boat?

Yacht vs. Ship vs. Boat

What is a yacht.

A yacht, I think everyone would agree, is fancier than a ship or a boat. “Yacht” infers some amount of luxury , and definitely recreation. There’s also something to be said about size. A yacht tends to be anywhere between 35 feet up to 160 feet. And some yachts, known as superyachts, go even beyond that. (Jeff Bezos just built a 417 foot yacht, but that’s really breaking yacht records.)

Because of the size, yachts tend to operate in larger bodies of water–generally the ocean. Yachts are able to handle rougher ocean waves, and they are also equipped with more advanced navigation and guidance instruments than smaller boats. Likewise, a yacht tends to have a full crew to help with the navigation, engineering, repairs, as well as having stewards that serve the yacht’s guests. This can be anywhere from a crew of four or five up to a crew of a few dozen on large yachts.

One interesting thing to note is that outside of the United States, a yacht refers to a sailboat , and a motorized yacht is called a “motor yacht”.

So, is a yacht a boat? Yes, technically a yacht is a boat. But a yacht is a very specific kind of boat.

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What is a Ship?

The term ship is most commonly associated with a very large boat, and something that is not as fancy as a yacht (one exception is that cruise ships can still be very fancy, but are referred to as ships because of their size and power.)

Ships are generally so large that they would never be found in a lake, with some exceptions for the Great Lakes, and are made for navigating the high seas of the open ocean. An ship can refer to a cruise ship, a naval ship, a tanker, a container ship, and many other commercial vessels.

Ships tend to have advanced navigation and technology, but much more advanced than that of a yacht due to the size, the speed, and the routes that a ship will take. They are meant to be traversing the open ocean for very long periods of time, from one continent to the next, while a yacht may only rarely set across the ocean and most often stays somewhat near land.

A ship will also have a much larger crew than a yacht or a boat. Ships are typically so large that they need not only one trained navigator but a set of navigators, plus an entire engineering team, and includes many more positions.

Finally, a ship is meant to carry things. This may be passengers, yes (in reference to cruise ships and some navy ships) but most ships are for carrying cargo–or even carrying equipment to do work on other ships including repair work or refueling.

What is a Boat?

Well, a boat is harder to define, because a yacht is technically a boat, and a ship is technically a boat. But when people refer to boats, they are almost always referring to something smaller than either a yacht or a ship. Boats may be motorized, like a speed boat, or they may sail, or they may be man-powered, like a rowboat or a kayak. Really, anything up to and including a liferaft, can be called a boat.

(As a side note that will just muddy the waters even further, submarine captains are adamant that their subs are boats. They are not ships.)

So, Boat vs. Ship Vs. Yacht?

Ultimately it comes down to this: all three of them are boats, but yachts are fancier, larger, and used for recreation, and ships are even larger, used commercially or by the navy, and are meant to cross oceans. The dividing line is sometimes thin, but generally speaking, when it comes to boats vs. ships.vs. yachts you can go by the adage “ I know it when I see it .”

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My Week Cruising in A Controversial Ship-Within-A-Ship – MSC Yacht Club

by Gary Bembridge · July 19, 2023

So many cruisers contact me saying they are getting frustrated, because more cruise lines are closing areas of their ships and making them only available to a select group of passengers in what lines call “ships-within-ships”. With exotic names like “The Retreat”, “The Haven” and “The Yacht Club”.

These are eye-wateringly expensive, starting at $800 /£700 per cabin per night, making them out of reach for most cruisers. But curiosity got to me, so I raided some savings and booked myself in the MSC Yacht Club on MSC Virtuosa on a 7-night Norwegian Fjords cruise to see what’s their ship-within-a-ship is all about – and if you’ve got the cash if it’s worth it.

Here’s what I discovered.

What is the MSC Yacht Club?

The Yacht Club covered several decks high up in the front of the ship. My cruise card granted me access through big sliding glass doors on Deck 16. Inside were all the Yacht Club cabins, a Guest Services/Concierge desk, the Top Sail Lounge and bar with snacks all day, afternoon tea and live music in the evenings. The MSC Yacht Club Restaurant with open seated dining for all meals and dedicated menu and kitchen, and a large deck with plunge pool, hot tubs, bar, and a grill serving breakfast and lunch.

But I also got added perks including the premium drinks package, two devices streaming internet, a butler, pillow menu, welcome bottle of Prosecco and chocolates, daily canapes, and treats, access to the Spa’s thermal suite and some other perks I’ll come to which helped me navigate around the crowds and lines around the ship.

MSC Yacht Club – Not Just Suites

Unlike other line’s ship-within-ships, Yacht Club was not only suites. This means that there are some even more affordable ways to get into their ship-within-a-ship versus other lines. It had 15 inside cabins alongside two Royal Suites, eight duplex suites and 77 deluxe verandahs, which is what I booked.

This cabin was probably size wise more like a mini-suite on many large and mid-sized ships. Though comparable in size to suites I have stayed in on smaller ship luxury lines like Seabourn, Silversea and Regent Seven Seas.

The décor was neutral, although rather brown with a good-sized bathroom. It did not have well-known branded toiletries like on other luxury suites but just dispensers in the shower labelled “body wash” and “shampoo”.

One big plus was the cabins are well away from noisy and busy venues, and my cabin was incredibly quiet. I would say my cabin is one of the quietest I have had on any cruise ever! As the ship was modern and new, even the air conditioning was very quiet.

As the Yacht Club is in the front of the ship and high up, the restaurant had incredible views out the vast windows. I had the most gorgeous scenes of the Norwegian Fjords from my table there.

So far, I’m sure you’re thinking this mostly sounds exotic and wonderful. But let me talk about some other sides to the ship-within-ship experience that raised more doubts.

Escaping the Whirlwind

MSC Cruises ships are big. MSC Virtuosa, when full, has 6,300 passengers. It is jam-packed, boisterous, and noisy all over.

One big plus the Yacht Club gave me was a less busy and calmer place to escape the manic atmosphere of the ship. It felt like stepping out of a whirlwind of activity and noise into an immediately more sedate and quieter space without hordes of people. Although it was not totally quiet, and it wasn’t just an adult space.

MSC is a family friendly line, and so although there were 102 cabins in Yacht Club, which means 202 people at double occupancy, because most of those have sofa beds, there could be 70 to a hundred kids in there.

My sailing was not in school holidays, so there were only a handful of families, but they still did often take over the small pool, run around during afternoon tea and moan, cry and basically be kids at meals.

Secondly, although it’s supposed to be an exclusive area, clearly some people staying in the Yacht Club were travelling with friends and family who weren’t in the Yacht Club and so would bring guests in, mostly heading to the deck, but sometimes in the lounge. A blind eye was turned to this.

Navigating the Crowds

I do feel though an even bigger MSC Yacht Club plus was all the things designed to get me around the crowds.

For example, check-in was incredible considering many thousands had to be checked in.

On the day I embarked, I could check in at 10:00am. So early! There was a dedicated spot to hand in my suitcase before being whisked past the lines for security, then shown to a special seated check in area where I was offered drinks and snacks while checked in at my seat before being escorted by a butler to the Yacht Club lounge.

I was in that lounge about 18 minutes after pulling up at the terminal.

Another was avoiding the crowds for excursions. Instead of having to join hundreds of people meeting to depart, I waited in the Yacht Club lounge. Once the tour bus was ready to depart, a butler would then whisk me down through security right out to the bus or port side departure.

MSC Yacht Club Priority

And Yacht Club guests got priority, for example in Flam we were led right to the front of the many hundreds queuing for the scenic train, and so got to board first and choose the best seats.

In Olden I was led by a butler right to the shuttle bus to the Loen Skylift and boarded that first.

Seeing shows in the theatre also meant skipping crowds and lines. As the MSC Virtuosa theatre holds fewer than 1,000 people, they ran three shows a night and regular travellers had to book, and some were sold out. And guests also had to wait in long lines even if booked to get scanned in.

But there was a dedicated Yacht Club seating area, meaning no booking and I could also get whisked down by a butler past the lines if I wanted to. So sold out shows like the crew talent show and Opera shows anyone in Yacht Club wanting to see those could.

For the Cirque du Soleil style shows in the Carousel Lounge, again we Yacht Club guests were escorted down by a butler, past the lines and got to choose our seat before others.

The Yacht Club Concierge desk meant no waiting in the often-long lines at Guest Services too.

The lounge and bar meant no fighting to find a seat in the other bars or waiting ages to get a drink. In the Yacht Club lounge there was always spaces to sit and live music too.

MSC Yacht Club Dining

Dining also offered a way around crowds. Non-Yacht Club guests were allocated one of the three dining times (5:30pm, 7:30pm or 9:30pm) with few options for anytime dining or changing those times. It was busy and hectic in the main dining rooms with tables tightly packed together.

Yacht Club was open breakfast, lunch and dinner and open seated dining. So, I could go any time I wanted, and could have a table by myself or chose to sit with others I met if I wanted.

On the Yacht Club deck, they served buffet-style breakfast and lunch, so no need to battle the crowds in the very popular Marketplace buffet.

On disembarkation day I could meet in the lounge and the minute the ship was cleared, we could get off as our bags were taken off first. Again, I was whisked down by a butler, jumped the queues. The ship was cleared at 6:30am and I was in a taxi heading to the train station within 15 minutes.

For me, probably the biggest plus of the Yacht Club was how it helped avoid the downsides of the crowds and lines on this big resort ship. In fact, some of the premium and pampering aspects that I expect were going to be the highlights were less so. Let me explain.

High-End Service?

I have cruised on some “high-end” lines in the past, like with Celebrity Retreat suite experience, Cunard Queens Grill and on luxury lines like Seabourn and Regent Seven Seas. Many asked me during and after if Yacht Club was that kind of experience.

It missed in two striking ways.

First, the service and attention to detail was pretty good but varied, erratic at times and wasn’t very personal or personalised. Something the more luxury high-end lines are masters at.

So even though I was on there for a week, the concierge or rest of the crew in MSC Yacht Club never greeted me by name, which is the norm on those other lines. Many on the desk didn’t even always greet me and I had to fight to attract attention at times.

Butler Service

The butler service was erratic and seemed to vary based on who people had rather than be consistent. I clearly though did have a less optimal experience as my butler disappeared for a couple of days off ill and was not substituted or covered by another butler leaving it to my cabin steward.

I did not find the overall service in the restaurant or across the MSC Yacht Club matched a high-end line, but it was faster than across the ship overall.

MSC Yacht Club – No Attention

Another example of how the promise and reality did not match was I was sent a beautiful email before the cruise, asking me to submit all my preferences including the type of pillow, mini bar items, and what daily newspaper I wanted delivered. They paid no attention to it. And I heard several people going to the concierge and asking, “Whatever happened to these specific requests?”.

Second, I though the food was good and enjoyed it, and MSC Yacht Club had a different menu to the main dining room. But I did not find it as elevated as on other more premium lines in their equivalent restaurants like Queens Grill or Celebrity Luminae. Though to be fair those also charge way more, so I feel that I had to considered this when assessing.

I was concerned at my very first meal, which was lunch on embarkation day, as the salad looked very basic and had lettuce that looked wilted and brown at the edges.

However, over the week I found the MSC Yacht Club ingredients were good, and the menus had a decent choice with good pasta especially, though probably lacked some of the finesse and flair on more premium lines. However, I always found dishes that appealed and after that initial reservation no other issues.

The gala night dinner menu with Beef Wellington was the highlight of the week, and I do think that the Chocolate Volcano cake dessert, which many lines get wrong, was probably the best I have had at sea.

Good Value?

The MSC Yacht Club was good value for what it is and I decided that for anyone that wants the benefits of the buzz and excitement of a big ship with ability to dip into water parks, rope climbing, production shows and so on, but want to be able to escape the noise and the hustle and the bustle and have ways of mitigating the crowds, the Yacht Club is a plus.

For me though, it was not enough as MSC itself had issues that I think you need to also consider. So, watch this video where I dive into all of that starting with the biggest misconception about the line.

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Boat vs. ship: What's the difference? The annoying mistake some cruisers keep making

Vacationing on a cruise ship? That's great, but for the love of all that is nautical, please don't call it a boat.

Modern-day cruise behemoths have earned the right to be called ships. The name is grand, it implies stature, and it lets everyone know that there's some sort of official larger purpose, whether it's the transportation of goods or of people.

What's the official difference between a boat and a ship? Technically, there isn't one that's universally accepted. Everyone seems to have their own ideas about what defines each, with no final verdict. Some say it has to do with size or tonnage, while others argue it's about how many masts the vessel has or whether it's a submarine (which, I'm told, is always a boat). Still others claim it's more about the bodies of water on which a vessel is designed to spend its days.

Regardless, the one certainty is that you'll sound like you have no idea what you're talking about if you refer to a cruise vessel — except maybe a riverboat — as a boat instead of a ship. In that vein, to help you understand the differences, let's take a look at some of the most popular differentiators, depending on whom you ask.

For cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPG's cruise newsletter .

Vessel size

When you ask the average person what makes a vessel a ship versus a boat, they'll often tell you that it comes down to size. A ship is big; a boat is small. That seems to be the most common consensus, but those terms are arbitrary. What constitutes large and small?

In researching, I've discovered there's no official length at which a vessel becomes a ship. Sources cite everything from 100 feet to 200 feet in length and everything in between.

In terms of height, some seafarers insist that any vessel with more than one deck is a ship, and anything with only a single deck is a boat, as presented by The Guardian via a reader in the paper's Semantic Enigmas section.

Another common size-related refrain — one that's used by the United States Naval Institute — is that if a vessel is large enough to carry other vessels, it's a ship.

"In general, a boat is a watercraft ... that is small enough to be carried on board a larger one, and that larger one is a ship," said Lt. Cmdr. Thomas J. Cutler in a blog post on the USNI's website . "This is sometimes expressed this way: 'A ship can carry a boat, but a boat can never carry a ship.'"

Vessel tonnage

Tonnage is another determinant some entities use to qualify vessels as ships instead of boats. In fact, the maritime information website Marine Insight claims it's one of the most important factors to consider.

Vessels of more than 500 tons, regardless of size, are ships, according to the site.

Where the vessel sails

I recently sailed on my first U.S. river cruise, during which a lecturer explained that boats are specifically built for inland waterways, such as lakes and rivers. "This is a boat, despite its size," she said, also noting that it carries lifeboats (which would make it a ship by some definitions).

Supporting this theory is Scientific American , which quotes The Straight Dope (Cecil Adams, the self-proclaimed smartest man in the world) as saying, "With regard to motorized craft, a ship is a large vessel intended for oceangoing or at least deep-water transport, and a boat is anything else."

How the vessel corners

A handful of online query results say another way to tell a ship from a boat is by observing the direction in which it leans when it turns.

"A U.S. Navy rule of thumb is that ships lean towards the outside of a sharp turn, while boats lean towards the inside," The Maritime Post said. For a more relatable visual, think about a motorcycle versus a car. The former leans in as you go around a turn; the latter leans away from the center of the turn.

Vessel propulsion and design

As you might expect from a larger vessel, ships often have more complex construction than boats. They also have more machinery on board than boats do, whether that's in the way of navigation or engine room accouterments.

Further, how they're propelled might differ. Most modern-day ships are powered by engines, whereas boats can be moved by anything from oars or sails to engines, according to Marine Insight .

Number of masts on the vessel

In terms of sailing vessels, if a rig has three masts or more, it's considered a ship, per the New Bedford Whaling Museum in Massachusetts. To qualify, it must also have square sails on all masts.

Obviously, most modern-day cruise ships don't have masts. (Exceptions are ships from Windstar and Star Clippers.) Although this rule is less relevant today, it does come up frequently in maritime circles when discussing the difference between a ship and a boat.

Bottom line

There's no hard-and-fast rule when it comes to determining whether a vessel is a ship or a boat. Generally, the most common ideas about this seem to revolve around size: tonnage, number of decks or whether or not the vessel can carry other boats.

Lots of people will have opinions about the "correct" criteria, but the bottom line is that you should never refer to a cruise ship as a boat if it carries travelers on the ocean for vacation.

Got more cruise questions? TPG has answers:

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What's a cruise cabin guarantee and will it save you money?

7 Differences Between a Ship and a Boat

Although everyone knows the difference between a ship and a boat, there are quite a few who often get confused between the two terms. Technically, there is a thin line between them and this often leads to major confusion.

While talking about the difference between a ship and a boat, the first thing that comes to one’s mind is their sizes. Traditionally people consider a ship as a large ocean-going vessel, whereas boats are comparatively quite smaller in size.

To understand the differences between ships and boats, a number of aspects need to be taken into consideration.

Mentioned below are seven main aspects which are taken into account to differentiate between a ship and a boat.

1. Size of Ship and Boat

The most important aspect that is considered while stating the difference between a ship and a boat is the size. It is said that the best way to differentiate between a ship and a boat is to remember that “A ship can carry a boat, but a boat cannot carry a ship.”

Technically speaking, a mode of water transport that weighs at least 500 tonnes or above is categorised as a ship. In comparison, boats are stipulated to be quite compact in their structural size and displacement.

2. Operational Areas

A major difference between ship and boat is that of their areas of operation. Ships are vessels that are operated in oceanic areas and high seas. They usually include cruise vessels , naval ships, tankers , container ships , RoRo ships , and offshore vessels . They are mainly built for cargo/ passenger transportation across oceans.

Boats, in contrast, are operable in smaller/ restricted water areas and include ferrying and towing vessels, sail vessels, paddle vessels, kayaks , canoe , patrolling vessels etc. Boats are mainly used for smaller purposes and mainly ply in areas near to the coast.

3 . Navigation and Technology

Technologically, boats are simple vessels with less complicated equipment, systems and operational maintenance requirements. Since ships are required to be operable for longer time-duration and travel across oceans, they are manned using advanced engineering, heavy machinery, and navigational systems .

This is one of the major differences between a ship and a boat.

Ships are huge in size and therefore they are operated by professionally trained navigators and engineers . A ship requires a captain to operate the ship and guide the crew.

On the other hand, the size of the crew on a boat depends on the size of the boat. It can be one person or a full-fledged crew depending on the size and purpose of the boat.

5. Cargo Capacity

A boat is small to the mid-sized vessel, which has a much lesser cargo-carrying capability as compared to a ship.

Ships are specifically made to carry cargo or passengers or boats, whereas boat is a generic term used for a variety of watercraft.

Mainly boats are used for recreational purposes, fishing, or ferry people.

6. Construction and Design

When it comes to construction and design, ships are complicated structures having a variety of machinery systems and designing aspects for the safety and stability of the ship.

A boat is much simple in construction and build, and has lesser machines and design complexities.

7. Propulsion

A boat can be powered by sails, motor, or human force, whereas a ship has dedicated engines to propel them . (Ships can also be propelled by sails or other advanced propulsion technologies)

Even though all vessels operating in the high seas are referred to as ships, submersible vessels are categorically termed as ‘boats.’

This is mainly because of the fact that in the earlier centuries, submersible vessels could be hoisted on ships till they were required to be used in naval operations.

However, while talking about differences between a ship and a boat, vessels floating on the water surface is mainly considered.

The usage of the term ‘ship’ or ‘boat’ also depends on the region it is being used in. People from several countries often refer a medium-sized fishing vessel as a boat, or a medium-sized ferry or a recreational boat as a ship. As can be seen, people have a tendency to generalise a vessel on the basis of its size.

However, it is to note that the difference between a ship and a boat depends on a number of factors as discussed above.

About Author

Raunek Kantharia is a marine engineer turned maritime writer and entrepreneur. After a brief stint at the sea, he founded Marine Insight in 2010. Apart from managing Marine Insight, he also writes for a number of maritime magazines and websites.

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46 Comments

Please i am a National Diploma student of Maritime Academy of Nigeria Oron studying nautical science, i want to know more about the course

Hi.thank its so good and sufficient

As a profesional mariner of over 25 years I would like to “weigh in” on this subject. What I will say is not about the currently accepted distinction between ship and boats, but rather historical. When ships (powered by sails) began to start losing trade to vessels powered by engines (boats) they as an industry attempted to associate these vessels with unplesant attributes like noise, soot, vibration, and in some cases slower speed. The sailoing industry (both cargo and passanger) would say that you could SAIL on a quiet, clean, calm, fast ship or go one of those dirty loud vibrating slow BOATS with an engine. The concept a ship being superior and a boat being inferior was sucessfully instituted. The engine powered vessels simply side stepped the ridicule bestowed on the term “boat” and made bigger, faster, clean, quiet vessels and took the market from the sail powered vessels along with the defination of SHIP for themselves. i wont step into the curret debate of what constitutes a boat or a ship but the origins of the debate stem from new technology (steam engines) fighting over market share.

A large freighter (1000′ x 85′, think of the Edmund Fitzgerald) hauling iron ore on the great lakes is referred to by her crew and company as a boat, never as a ship!

“Boats in contrast, are operable in smaller/ restricted water areas and include ferrying and towing vessels, sail vessels, paddle vessels, kayaks, canoe, patrolling vessels etc. Boats are mainly used for smaller purposes and mainly ply in areas near to the coast.” “Technologically, boats are simple vessels with less complicated equipment, systems and operational maintenance requirements.”

Correct me if I am wrong but, isn’t a submarine classed as a boat? That kind of contradicts what you have stated above.

comment:the any where abroad/indian officers you can any time call me on 30 year’s on merchant officers

You can put a boat on a ship but not visa versa eg life boats…

What is the difference between a boat and a ship?

1. The boat leans to the right when turning right

2. The ship leans to the left when turning right.

This is what I have been told by a old (90 Year old boat capt)

Great reply’s. some years ago while on the QE 2 a passenger asked one of the officers when does this boat dock? The young officer replied. “Madam, this is a Ship not a boat, a boat is those you get into when this ship is sinking!

Hello. May I please ask for some assistance from the forum?

I am writing a blog/journal on the differences between ships and yachts. What has prompted this conversation is the plethora of ‘superyachts’ now plying the international oceans and performing well on deep water passages.

Surely some of these can come under the category of ‘ship’, and not yacht, since many are being built on a larger scale than anything we’ve seen in past years. My understanding of the determination of a ‘ship’ is : Length, Tonnage, Draft and Displacement.

I have read your forum discussion regarding use, but I am still unclear as to where the line is drawn for this category. Many of the ‘superyachts’ carry cars, helicopters, pools, and require very advanced equipment, captain and crew. Perhaps we will soon see this as a real conversation in the industry.

Appreciatively, Rosanne Allen-Hewlett For ‘The LUXE Report’ ( Sailor, racer of only boats and yachts )

I was told that the difference between a ship and a boat is that a ship has a funnel and a boat doesn’t, no matter it’s size….

David Musselwhwite’s comment is the best way to determine a boat of a ship. This holds true for submarines (boats). If it leans into the turn, it is a boat. If it leans out on a turn, it is a ship.

In response to comments about the Edmund Fitzgerald, when you spend your life on one you can call it whatever you want. I am sure they all knew it was a ship, I served 20 years in the Navy and always said I was heading back to the boat even though I knew it was a ship.

While in Boot camp in 1964, US Coast Guard, we were told that a ship is 95 feet or longer and a boat is 94 feet and under. That makes it pretty simple.

With over 30 years in the marine industry including working at sea, ship building and ship repair, I would offer my comments.

Yes all above is true. My understanding is that the bottom line is ” a Ship carries boats ie Lifeboats”. If it doesn’t have a proper lifeboat, it is not a ship.

The best a boat has is dinghies or liferafts etc. Consequently a submarine does NOT carry life boats. There are many broader requirements Size and the ability to navigate very heavy seas, such as those whipped up by a tropical Revolving storm (TRS). It must be designed to travel in the open sea in all weather conditions and have lifeboats that can do the same. They carry cargo or passengers and have a substantial crew to operate it including engineers.

As far as the Edmund Fitzgerald is concerned, these vessels are an enigma. They were large and qualify in most areas, but – was it capable of going to sea and did it have sea-going lifeboats? Ironically it suffered probably as bad a storm as it would have done at sea. The problem is that in fresh water the waters are more treacherous than salt water as they rise up far more quickly.

But then again it sank meaning that it couldn’t handle it. Yes it was a large vessel but was it a Ship – ?

What is difference among?

Marine Boat Marine Ship Marine Craft Ship Boat

What is difference between Marina and Marine?

Being the son of a WW II submariner. My dad cruised the Atlantic of the east coast of US and in many conversations about the war he always called his boat a boat never a ship.Thats it!!

The simplest and most accurate definition I stay with is that a ship can carry a boat but a boat cannot carry a ship . SIZE MATTERS !

Captain chalga: try to form a coherent sentence.

I asked a friend of mine, “What is the difference between a boat and a ship?” He said, “About 100 feet . . .”

Thank you for the information. My husband won this discussion. God Bless all who are bravely floating on/in one. I am terrified of the ocean or even a small lake. You have my utmost respect for your sacrifice. I love seafood but would never know the pleasure of eating it without you brave souls. Thank you.

As a proud Submariner I have to disagree and will always say that I serve on a boat.

There is the Boat of Millions of years,which is a very advanced spacecraft able to.travel the millions of light years betwen Galaxies.

And you have vessels such as the Motor Vessel Arlene out of Port Arthur.

I was once told that a ship had multiple decks and a boat had only one.

When I queried sailing yachts that had berths under part of the deck, it was modified to the deck on a yacht is as much structural as deck, but if a vessel has 2 or more non structural “floors” it is a ship.

Then I mentioned tug boats and fishing boats and it all got confused.

It’s a bit like the difference between horse and pony. Despite every one saying it’s size, the falabella is a horse and polo ponies are ponies.

A naval architect (constructors) view is that to be a ‘ship’ a vessel must have at least one continuous internal deck running the length of the vessel. Large Submarines may have complete decks forward however, going aft, it is normal to have to descend a ladder onto a lower ‘engine room’ deck-level or platform. Some large freighters have a similar construction with internal split deck levels and that is why they are correctly known as boats, although in some cases the term ‘ship’ feels more appropriate because of their large displacement. The argument regarding leaning into or out of a turn is an interesting idea, however this may have more to do with hull and propulsion characteristics than vessel construction. In reality, as with most nautical expressions, whatever feels best to use is probably best and relying on the opinion of a sailor, with regards to an explanation of nautical expressions, puts you at the mercy of a sharp sense of humour.

It might be worth mentioning that some might refer to a ship as “boat” as a diminutive term of endearment, similar to the personification of a car or a pet by assigning the human pronouns to them.

I was once told a SHIP sails the oceans, a BOAT sails on rivers and lakes.

IT SEEMS WE HAVE VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE SEA MEN IN THE HOUSE . BUT I AGREE TOTALLY WITH JEREMY MEYER

It’s always been my info is that a boat can be up to 197’ whereas a ship is over that length. As with anything, I’m sure there are exceptions.

some of the people got it spot on. Tilt away from direction of turn = ship. Tilt towards the direction of turn = boat.

There are two points on every vessel. Center of buoyancy and center of gravity. A ship’s center of gravity is above its center of buoyancy. A boat’s center of gravity is below its center of gravity.

Anyone can answer me why we only know the bareboat charter for any size of the ship? It never mentions bareship charter?

“some of the people got it spot on. Tilt away from direction of turn = ship. Tilt towards the direction of turn = boat. There are two points on every vessel. Center of buoyancy and center of gravity. A ship’s center of gravity is above its center of buoyancy. A boat’s center of gravity is below its center of gravity.”

Except a kayak (or canoe) is like a ship – cg is above cb. If you get a ruddered kayak up to speed and hit the rudder hard it will heel outward like a ship. Since the paddler can easily influence heel, if you want to make a hard turn you heel the ‘boat” outward (to lessen the ends in the water) and sweep stroke on the outward side to spin the “boat”. Is a kayak then a “ship”? Hardly. This is exactly the problem with trying to make one pithy statement to define a ship or boat. It is far more complex than that.

I completely agree with you that the difference between a ship and a boat is the size. One of my friends have a boat, she bought it from Boat Lagoon Yachting. Thanks for sharing!

If you can haul it on the back of truck (even trailered), it’s likely a boat…but if the anchor weighs in like a truck it’s definitely a ship. Obviously, some subs are one or the other regardless of whether you can stuff a (non-inflatable) life boat inside. [Army logic from qualified ex-boat commander, combat support boats, bridge section, Corps of Engineers.]

I grew up near the Welland Canal, and it’s true: vessels which plied the Great Lakes were called “lake boats”, or more commonly, “Lakers”. Oceangoing vessels a were always and reflexively called “ships”..

I am wondering if the naval architect”s comment about internal decks makes the difference, as even a non-engineer can see that a deck extending stem to stern would provide more stability to a vessel’s structure.

The lake boats are always longer than the ocean-going ships, so it’s not size.And we occasionally get a visit from “tall ships”, which are oceangoing sailing vessels, but relatively short.

That’s really informative post. I appreciate your skills, Thanks for sharing.

I will take a shot at this. The word marine is redundant before ship and boat. The word “marine” relates to the sea and one of the conditions of being a ship is that it is ocean going. This does leave the possibility of not being a river boat but a marine boat. I would use the expression sea-going boat.

Marine craft is a useful expression when there is a need to make it cleat that you are not referring an aircraft, space craft etc.

On a general note there are no absolute rules or definition. All we can do is give examples of how the words are used. Companies, governments, navies and anyone else are free to make gheir own definitions but nobody else is bound by them.

I served on the U.S.S. CG-19 ‘THE DZLE & U.S.S. CV-63 KITTY HAWK FOR THE US NAVY in the 80’s. So what about the placement of the helm being center of Bridge on a ship & on starboard side usually on a boat?

With many years of sailing lakes to blue water sailing and large power yachts I can offer this for abot of levity. Afterall,the SeaView had the ‘Flying Sub” flown or driven undersea,on the surface and flown by Captain,Admirals and sadly Polititians and insane quasi research criminals. The Flying Sub also had an inflatable Zodiac,so both could be considered Life saving vessels. Plus,it was really cool!

Can be as difficult as we want. My training was as a NCO (enlisted man in the USN. As others have stated, A ship will lean away from its turn. A boat will lean into the turn. This is naturally due to there the center line of gravity is located. Cargo ships mass above that line. A boat can be loaded onto a ship (lifeboats). Regarding Submarines, they are affectionately referee to , by the crew, as boats and that goes back to WWI /II, the ELB. Electric Boat Div of General Dynamics, located Groton Connecticut .

This design is wicked! You obviously know how to keep a reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Fantastic job. I really loved what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!

More importantly… are they all “She’s” ?

I’ve been wondering about this since I was younger and saw The Hunt for Red October. The COB (Chief of the Boat) was an interesting character, and I wondered by a Sub Chief was called Chief of the Boat, if a sub was a naval ship. Some very interesting and fascinating answers in here! I like the one about how a ship turns, leaning into it or not. That makes sense to me. As for the tiny kayak/canoe exceptions to this, I’d guess that if a human weighs more than the ‘vessel’ and can manipulate it’s attributes of buoyancy or center of gravity whichever, with their own body, then it doesn’t really count as either a boat or a ship. It really has no deck, nor propulsion other than human muscle, no anchor, etc. I don’t see it as much more than a modern design for what used to be termed a ‘raft.’ But I am just spit-balling here, don’t blast me! lol

That’s really nice post. I appreciate your skills. Thanks for sharing.

All the information that you shared with us is very useful for us. Thank you for sharing with us.

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What’s the Difference Between a Boat, Yacht & Ship?

Whether you are a brand new sailor or just wanting to brush up on some terms, it is essential to know what to call a particular watercraft if you’re going to fit in while you’re at the docks or out on the water. There are many nuances and subtle differences between water vessel types, but below are some of the main differences.

In general, yachts are either sailing or motor vessels used for pleasure. Yachts are often luxurious and equipped with an overnight cabin. Boats can be either propelled sail or a motor and come in varying sizes. On the other hand, ships are usually motor-powered and much larger than boats.

Some of the differences between watercraft types can be a little fuzzy, but once you grasp the main differences between them, it becomes relatively easy to tell them apart. If you have no previous knowledge of watercraft, you are likely very confused about what defines a yacht, boat, and ship, so I’ll try to clarify any confusion you might have in the next few sections.

What is the difference between a boat a ship and a yacht?

Similarities and Differences Between Boats, Yachts, and Ships

The many bodies of water all over the world are home to an extensive collection of different watercraft. There are so many shapes and sizes that they come in that it is nearly impossible to fit every single one into a specific classification.

However, in the following table, I did my best to loosely define ships, yachts, and boats so that it is easy to see the differences between the types of watercraft.

As I mentioned earlier, it is impossible to fit EVERY SINGLE water vessel into a particular category, so there are tons of exceptions out there. In addition to the exceptions, different organizations, laws, and people classify types of boats slightly differently.

There is no universally accepted definition for ships, boats, and yachts, but instead many different sets of rules and regulations. In this article, I have tried my best to use the most commonly accepted definitions for each watercraft type.

Now that we’ve gone over some of the main differences and similarities between boats, ships, and yachts, let’s take a look at each type of vessel individually and look at their most prominent characteristics and attributes.

What Exactly is a Boat?

Boats come in a vast array of sizes and shapes. To many people, the term “boat” simply refers to nearly any watercraft, but there are actually a few restrictions and defining characteristics that all boats have. So let’s just get right into it and take a quick look at what exactly qualifies a vessel as a boat.

Overall Size of Boats

As I said before, there is a massive catalog of different types of boats, and they come in a variety of sizes. There are huge boats that hold lots of cargo or people, and then there are smaller ones that barely can stay afloat with a single person on board.

Typically, boats are defined as watercraft that are less than 197 feet long. However, most boats you are likely to encounter on the water are usually around 30 feet long.

General Price Range of Boats

Again, it is hard to accurately give a price range for all boats because they come in so many different sizes, styles, and types, but most modern boats seem to fall in the $1,500 to $100,000 range.

Small Jon boats can cost even less than $1,500, while large sailboats and houseboats can cost well above $100,000.

Most Common Uses of Boats

Boats are used all over the world for a variety of different reasons and to do many tasks. Many types of boats serve a wide range of uses, but most are primarily used as a residence, for pleasure, or commercially.

Some of the most popular types of boats, such as sailboats, bowriders, and dinghies, are commonly used for enjoyment, fishing, racing, or other pleasurable activities. There are also many types of houseboats used as residences and commercial boats used for chartering or moving goods or people.

Propulsion Method of Boats

Due to the wide variety of boats, you are likely to find boats propelled by almost every propulsion method imaginable. Some of the more popular propulsion methods for boats to use are man-power, wind power, and motor power.

Boats on the smaller end often use the power of the people on board to row or paddle, while larger boats rely on sails or powerful motors attached to the stern. Many boats use more than one propulsion method, either together or with one of them as a backup.

What Exactly is a Yacht?

Yachts have many of the same attributes as boats, but their quality, size, and luxury really set them apart. When someone says “yacht,” many people imagine watercraft that are SUPER LARGE, and while there are lots of massive yachts, many smaller boats also qualify as yachts, which might surprise you.

Overall Size of Yachts

There are many different sized yachts, and the rules regarding how big they have to be are not very strict. In general, luxury watercraft greater than 33 feet in length are considered yachts. However, boats smaller than 33 feet are sometimes called yachts if they are exceptionally luxurious and elegant.

There is no upper limit to how large a yacht can be. Yachts longer than 100 feet are often referred to as mega yachts, and ones over 150 feet long called are super yachts.

General Price Range of Yachts

Because the very definition of a yacht requires it to be very luxurious, they often come with quite a price tag as a result. There is quite a range of different price points for yachts, ranging from $250,000 to $50,000,000 and beyond.

Most Common Uses of Yachts

Yachts, because they are so expensive to maintain and purchase, are primarily used for pleasure purposes. Day trips out on the water are typical for yachts, although they often have overnight cabins, so longer excursions are popular.

Chartered yachts are also very popular, which bridges the gap between commercial and pleasure. Although, when you are on a chartered yacht, it is usually for the sole purpose of having a great time and enjoying yourself.

Propulsion Method of Yachts

Because yachts are considered very luxurious and often so large, they are usually solely propelling using motor power. Even if a yacht is on the smaller end of the spectrum, they often only use a motor as a means of driving the craft through the water.

However, many large sailing yachts out there use sails and the wind to propel the vessel. So while the large majority of yachts use motors, keep in mind that some large and luxurious sailboats can be considered yachts.

What Exactly is a Ship?

Throughout history, large ships have been a helpful tool for many civilizations and have allowed them to transport goods and explore places beyond their homes. In modern times, ships are quite common and are used for a variety of different reasons.

Overall Size of Ships

One of the primary characteristics of ships that set them apart from boats is their size. Ships, especially in modern times, are often MASSIVE and are restricted to navigating only extensive waterways.

Vessels greater than or equal to 197 feet long are often considered ships. However, most ships today are huge and often fall in the 1,000-foot range or larger.

General Price Range of Ships

Most individuals will never own a ship due to their extreme maintenance and the cost of purchasing one. While many smaller ships are far less expensive, most modern ships cost anywhere between $50 and $500 million.

Large and luxurious cruise ships can even cost upwards of $1 billion to construct, and that’s not even taking into account staff, maintenance, and other costs.

Most Common Uses of Ships

Ships perform many different duties throughout the world, but usually, they are used to transport passengers or goods over long distances. In addition, they are also often used by military, scientists, fishers, and a plethora of other professions and people. They are also often used for pleasure purposes, in the form of passenger cruise ships.

Overall, ships encompass a large selection of vessels that perform many different duties.

Propulsion Method of Ships

Due to their large size, most modern ships are propelled using motors. However, even though ships are equipped with massive motors, they are still pretty slow and often move at around 20 knots per hour, although some move much quicker.

While most, if not all, ships today use motors to propel themselves through the water, this was not always the case. Before motors were around, many civilizations used ships for military, exploration, transportation, shipping, and many other uses. During these times, ships were powered primarily by man and wind power. Even today, you can occasionally find a sail-powered ship, though they are quite rare.

James Gerard

Hi, I'm James! I started sailing at a very early age here in the UK, and have enjoyed so many opportunities to sail all over the world. I created this website to share the many sailing tips I've leaned over the years, so that you can also discover the joy of sailing with safety and confidence.

All You Need To Know About Yacht Transport Ships

After the yacht transfer, ship at a show

The World of Yacht Transport: Shipping the Ship

Whether a builder, broker, or owner/operator, transporting a yacht is the final step to enjoying the ride..

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The Yacht Transport Journey: Coming to America

A yacht before transport at port being lifted by two cranes

Loading and Off-Loading

From builder to broker.

Aquila power catamaran yacht transport in action

On the Road

The front view of a truck transporting a yacht

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Yacht shipping: How to prepare your boat for a trip on a transporter ship

February 24, 2020

Shipping your yacht may seem counter-intuitive, but putting wear on someone else’s hull can make more sense than you think, writes Will Bruton

yacht-shipping-Martinique-credit-sevenstar-yacht-transport

Transocean yacht shipping is becoming increasingly popular. Photo: Sevenstar Yacht Transport

Bypassing seasonal weather restrictions and being able to relocate quickly are among the factors making yacht shipping more popular than ever.

Cargo ships cruise well in excess of the speeds of even the fastest racing yachts and are rarely delayed due to weather that would make a passage under sail untenable.

But while there is much less wear and tear on your yacht than a 3,000-mile ocean crossing will cause, there are still preparations you need to make sure your yacht is unloaded in good shape. We take a look at the process and how to prepare for it.

yacht-shipping-disembarking-credit-tor-johnson

Once the strops are in position the owner and crew disembark for lifting. Photo: Tor Johnson

The beat back across the north Atlantic to Europe via Bermuda and the Azores is, despite its course to windward, a rewarding trip to make. But there’s a good reason many shy away: it’s often hard on the yacht, as well as the crew. Some 3,000 miles of wear on sails, engine and rigging has a significant impact.

For those who have travelled further, maybe across the Pacific, the trip back to Europe also involves significant weather challenges and time demands. Jeremy Wyatt, director of the World Cruising Club, has noticed a steady increase in the number of WCC event participants using yacht shipping services.

“Many are time-poor and unable to take the long periods of time necessary off work to complete ocean crossings. Also, production yachts proportionally suffer greater stress and wear and tear on the north Atlantic route to Europe than traditional heavy displacement boats. So the cost/benefit of shipping over sailing the route swings more towards shipping.”

Article continues below…

Yacht shipping versus yacht delivery under sail – which method really costs more and why?

A transocean passage can be a cruising delight, but it can also represent a logistical challenge. Owners who are constrained…

Could a floating shipping container sink your yacht? How real is the danger?

It is the stuff of every sailor’s nightmare – the unseen object, lurking beneath a wave, which punctures your hull…

Preparations

Preparing a yacht to be shipped should be undertaken with a similar level of attention to detail as getting ready to complete an ocean passage, or riding out a storm season, in order to minimise the chance of damage.

“The best preparation to get your boat ready for shipping is to think of it as winterising it,” explains Sevenstar loadmaster Geert de Krom. “If you stop for a season at home, you’d take the sails off, make everything nice inside, empty your tanks.”

The other thing he advises is to bear in mind that the yacht may well be exposed to the elements. “The big ship is also moving. If it is blowing 25 knots and the ship has its own speed, it can be 40 knots or more over the deck for days.

yacht-shipping-loading-credit-tor-johnson

The ship’s loading crew will control the yacht during the lifting process. Photo: Tor Johnson

“The best thing to do is try and get rid of all the sail covers; they’re best stored inside. If a sail cover or other wrapping is blowing off it can also damage their neighbours’ yacht.”

The loading process

Yachts need to have their fresh and grey water tanks emptied (before approaching the ship as there will be divers working in the area) but to make sure that there is a little fuel left on board for offloading at the arrival port.

Owners (or their representatives) are responsible for driving their yacht up to the ship. There are good reasons for doing it yourself if you are able. “I always prefer it if the owner is doing it himself,” explains de Krom, “because they know their yachts best.

“For example, you have to remove your backstay, because we have a spreader beam for the lift, and the backstay is always in the way. On some yachts that’s five minutes work, on other yachts where it hasn’t been removed for the past eight years it takes longer.

“But if it is your own yacht, you know where the tools are and it’s more easily done. In the Caribbean a lot of times the delivery skippers will bring the boat alongside, but they don’t always know where the right screwdriver is.

“Normally you have a contact a couple of days before loading, and you’ll be assigned a loadmaster like me. We agree a loading time, and tell them where to come alongside, which side to put the fenders on. We try to prepare all the clients so we don’t have to shout down from the big ship.

yacht-shipping-sevenstar-loadmaster-geert-de-krom

Sevenstar Yacht Transport loadmaster Geert de Krom

“They just come alongside and then we have a crew who climb down the ladder and prepare the yacht for lifting. The lift rig will be lowered down, and we have one or two divers – always on every yacht – to double-check where to put the belts.”

Then we start lifting. The divers can also give us some information on the level of the yacht, if she is too bow down or stern down,” de Krom explains. “When everything looks safe we disembark, and lift the yacht into position on deck.”

Once the yacht is in position on the ship, it will be secured on its stand with lashings, and the stands are welded onto decks. For some yachts the loadmaster will ask for advice on the best strong points to lash the boat from.

yacht-shipping-cradle-lowering-credit-tor-johnson

The yacht is lowered onto a cradle in position and secured with tie-down points. Photo: Tor Johnson

“We always ask owners to send us pictures or drawings of previous lifts. But we ship 2,500 yachts a year, so we have quite a good database of how we’ve lifted previous yachts.” Even though the yacht process is a very well oiled machine, de Krom says owners shouldn’t feel rushed at this stage.

“They have plenty of time to prepare the yacht for the voyage. They can close everything down, put fenders inside, lock everything up, take your time. If you are the first yacht and I still have 45 yachts to loads, you have three days! But even if you are the last yacht, I still always offer the owner time.”

Key things to remember before stepping off for the last time are to disconnect the batteries and turn off the AIS . The process for loading onto a semi-submersible ship is slightly different. “Owners should approach it like going into a big lock,” he advises.

“So you’re waiting for the lock with 20, 25 yachts, and you stand by on Ch21, and one by one the loadmasters will call the vessel’s name, and then we have a lot of crew on board to catch the lines and help the skipper moor.

“Once the yachts are on the ship we start deballasting, and we have between 12 and 22 divers in the water. They have underwater stands they put in place so the yachts will not tip over.

“Loading takes place on one day, so if all the yachts are on by 1000, by 1700 the decks will be dry. The clients can stay on board, do some paperwork – or leave when the yacht is ready.

yacht-shipping-sevenstar-Martinique-aerial-view-credit-Drone-Caraibes

To prepare for unloading, remove the backstay, put out fenders and long mooring lines, and double-check you have enough charge to start the engine. Photo: Drone Caraibes

“Then by the evening the deck is dry, and the crew put all the sea fastening stands on to prepare for the voyage, which are also welded to the deck.”

How the yacht is secured is crucial. The loss of the 40m superyacht My Song , which fell from a ship last year , is at the centre of a legal case. When yachts ride on deck, they are held in a cradle supplied by either the yacht shipping company or sometimes the yacht owner.

However, if you supply your own cradle you should check it has been designed for use on the deck of a ship as well as for static storage ashore.

yacht-shipping-approaching-ship-credit-tor-johnson

The owner (or owner’s representative) is responsible for driving the yacht up to the ship. Photo: Tor Johnson

While seeing your yacht hoisted atop a giant ship is spectacular, de Krom pleads that owners bring only essential crew who are able to climb the ladders. “It’s not a family party. I’ve had babies onboard coming alongside.”

He also advises that anyone at loading or unloading wears a good pair of deck shoes – not flip-flops. “We will provide the safety vest and helmet. But at least wear decent shoes to protect yourself. We work on a big steel vessel and there are so many ways to hurt yourself.”

One of the chief complaints made by owners after yacht shipping is that of dirt from the ship’s exhaust system causing staining to the hull and mast, particularly for yachts positioned downwind of the exhaust.

For this reason, it’s a good idea to wax the hull as well as to take down all canvas and as many lines as possible. Some owners prefer to have the yacht shrink-wrapped for even greater protection.

Andrea Lezzi organised the movement of the 82ft Southern Wind Feelin ’ Good from Thailand to Palma and, unusually, he also accompanied the yacht on the shipping stage of its voyage.

“No one wanted the yacht to go through the Gulf of Aden so it was decided shipping was the best option early on. The ship we were allocated was not a specialist yacht transport ship but a heavy lifting cargo ship that can carry almost anything with its own cranes on board.

“One early miscommunication meant that the loadmasters didn’t realise how big our fixed keel was, assuming it to be retractable.

“The guidance to remove all canvas, indeed anything you can, is worth heeding. On our passage we had 30 knots on the nose of the cargo ship and she moves at 20 knots; that’s 50 knots over the deck.

“So, shipping can still be quite harsh on the yacht in a different way. In total we used 43 lashings onto the deck and 23 inside the yacht for various furnishings.”

yacht-shipping-cradle-welding-credit-tor-johnson

While the cradle is being welded onto the deck owners have some time to make final checks. Photo: Tor Johnson

Lezzi travelled as a passenger on the ship. “I was on board for 40 days in total. At first the shipping line wasn’t keen to accommodate me but we negotiated a rate for a cabin for the passage.

“I polished the yacht before we left – not to a shine, but to protect from dirt. But one big advantage of being on board is that I was able to rinse the yacht off every day with freshwater from the ship.”

Yacht shipping tips

Check your insurance for every stage of the operation in advance. Are you covered at every point in the process?
Strip everything you can from the yacht. Canvas work should be removed and lines moused out.
Is your yacht watertight? Yachts are exposed to the same weather as on passage and sometimes worse.
Is your interior secure? Yacht shipping companies recommend using trucking straps to secure anything below that might move.
Empty all water tanks. Fuel tanks should only carry the minimum of fuel necessary to get to and from the ship. Gas bottles should also be removed.
Check your yacht shipping contract. Some do not guarantee a delivery date and weather delays do happen, even to big ships.
Shop around. Prices for shipment vary significantly based upon many factors, including how full the ship is at the time of quotation. Check if there is a scheduled service as they are often cheaper.
Think in terms of winterising your yacht – shipping via northern Europe can expose the yacht to cold. Will anything freeze?
Leave the mast up. S pecialist yacht shipping companies will ship almost all yachts with the rig stepped.
Leave a spare key. I f the ship pulls into another port, Customs may want to get on board your yacht

Insurance should be an early consideration. Robert Holbrook of Admiral Marine says: “We insure a lot of yachts which are shipped to Europe from places like the Caribbean.

“We have found over the years that the shipper often provides cargo cover which is well priced and so the normal practice is to cease cover on the yacht from the time that the yacht is loaded (usually when the slings are attached), and cover remains suspended until the yacht is safely offloaded onto the water or onto the quay at the destination.

“It is not possible to cover the yacht as cargo under a normal yacht policy. The cover offered while the yacht is being shipped is Institute Cargo Clauses (All Risks).”

If it’s not you loading and unloading, you should also be careful to check there are no blurred lines in liability with who you put in charge of the yacht.

First published in the February 2020 edition of Yachting World.

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Yacht or Boat?: What’s the difference?

Yacht, ship, or boat – which is it.

Back Cove 37 Downeast - Luxury Motor Yacht

The English language is full of this kind of intriguing conundrum. Definitions of words like yacht, boat, or ship aren’t always sufficiently indicative of which is appropriate and when. The result is that most of us develop and use our own (unspoken) rules within our boating communities or, when the rules don’t apply, we just wing it!

If ‘winging it’ isn’t your style, or you’re new to the boating community, we have some guidelines to help you along the way to nautical fluency.

Back Cove 41 - single engine downeast motor yacht

When in Rome…

As we mentioned above, everybody has their own ‘rules.’ Moreover, the plasticity of language means that any guidelines have a substantial amount of grey area. So always be aware of those familiar with the vessel in question. If you are invited out on ‘the boat,’ it’s safe to say that is an acceptable term. If a captain or owner refers to their vessel as a ‘yacht,’ then use yacht. When in Rome, do as the Romans do!

There is one bit of unequivocally good news in all this confusion – when it’s yours, you can call it whatever you like!

PS – Do you find any other nautical terms confusing or unclear? Let us know in the comments!

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“Boat” vs. “Ship”: Chart A Course To Understand The Difference

Boat Vs. Ship
Yacht Vs. Boat

Ahoy, me hearties! A true seadog worth their salt would never let aboard a landlubber who calls their ship a boat . That kind of mixup is the talk that gets you walking the plank!

In this article, we’ll sail the seven seas of nautical knowledge to define the difference between the words ship and boat , explain what they refer to in technical and casual use, provide examples of different kinds of both ships and boats , and we’ll even clear up the meaning of the word yacht .

🚢 Quick summary

In casual use, the word boat is often used to refer to any watergoing vessel, regardless of its size or how it’s powered. However, large oceanfaring watercraft—those that use multiple sails or engines—are more properly called ships . In contrast, the word ship isn’t commonly applied to smaller craft. The word yacht is typically used to refer to any larger noncommercial vessel—one used for sailing or other recreation, as opposed to business.

What’s the difference between a boat and a ship ?

By definition, a boat is “a vessel for transport by water,” “a small ship,” or “a vessel of any size built for navigation of rivers or inland bodies of water.” In casual use, the word boat is used to refer to any vehicle used to travel on the water—anything from a canoe to an ocean liner.

In this kind of casual and general usage, the word boat is often used to refer to watercraft of all sizes and types, as you can see in the variety of terms that include the word, such as sailboat , motorboat , fishing boat , rowboat , tugboat , paddleboat , and lifeboat .

In contrast, the word ship is typically reserved to refer to a large, ocean-faring vessel propelled by multiple sails or engines.

(Of course, the word ship is also used to refer to large, nonwater craft, such as airship and spaceship .)

In technical, nautical contexts, the word ship sometimes specifically refers to a sailing vessel that has three or more square masts. As is the case with boat , though, the word ship is applied in the name of a variety of large watercrafts, including cruise ship , cargo ship , pirate ship , battleship , longship , and steamship .

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In contexts where it’s important to distinguish the difference, the distinction made between ship and boat is typically based on the size of the craft being discussed and if it is used only for ocean or sea travel. Additionally, the word boat can refer to vessels that don’t have any sails or engines, such as a kayak or a rowboat, whereas the word ship usually refers to vessels with many sails or large engines. Even in casual usage, it’s very uncommon for someone to call a small craft a ship , unless they’re doing so jokingly.

One distinction made in nautical contexts is that the word ship often refers to vessels too large to fit inside other vessels. By contrast, the word boat is often used to refer to smaller craft that can fit inside larger ones. For example, a massive cruise ship may have a large number of lifeboats inside it.

What are you sailing? An ocean or a sea ? Learn the difference here.

Yacht vs. boat

The word yacht typically refers to a vessel used for private, noncommercial reasons (those other than business), such as sailing or racing. As a general term, the word yacht can refer to any watercraft that isn’t intended to be used to make money, which includes anything from racing sailboats to billionaires’ floating ultra-luxury mansions.

The word yacht is not used to refer to small vessels, such as row boats or canoes. In casual usage, a yacht may be referred to with the more general terms boat or ship , but certainly not all ships and boats are yachts .

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What's the difference between a 'boat' and a 'ship'?

All dictionaries try to avoid the dread lexicographic condition known as circular defining . This is when one looks up a word such as dictionary , sees that it is defined as “a lexicon ,” and, when looking up lexicon , finds that it is defined as “a dictionary.” Given that we spend a considerable amount of time avoiding this sort of defining, it may come to a surprise to some users to discover that one of the definitions for boat is “ship,” and vice versa.

Take to the sea.

This is not actually a case of circular defining, as these seeming examples of synonymy are but one of a number of possible meanings for each word. And we do not define the words in this manner out of a desire to annoy people who love to observe the distinction between these two kinds of vessels. The reason we offer the definitions of “ship” for boat and “boat” for ship is that this is the manner in which a large number of people use the words.

‘What is the difference between a ship and a boat?’ has a good number of answers, but unfortunately most of these are not couched in the type of precise language a dictionary aims for. Sample responses to this question include ‘You can put a boat onto a ship, but you can’t put a ship onto a boat,’ ‘a boat is what you get into when the ship sinks,’ and ‘a boat is the thing you put gravy in.’

If you were to look for precision by asking this question of ten nautically-inclined people in ten different areas it is possible that you would get a wide range of answers, for the exact moment at which a boat becomes a ship varies considerably. We define ship in the following ways: “a large seagoing vessel,” “a sailing vessel having a bowsprit and usually three masts each composed of a lower mast, a topmast, and a topgallant mast,” and “boat (especially one propelled by power or sail)”. Boat has a slightly narrower semantic range, including “a small vessel for travel on water,” and “ship.”

Usage writers appear to have been warning people about these words since the late 19th century; boat appears on James Gordon Bennett’s “Don’t List” in the New York Herald , with instruction to avoid “except in describing a small craft propelled by oars.” However, the distinction between boat and ship had been observed by others well before this.

Mr. Barnes then proceeded to state the distinction between a boat and a ship, and contended that all vessels above a certain tonnage, and which were registered, came under the denomination of “ships,” inasmuch as boats had no register. — The Essex County Standard (Colchester, Eng.), 29 Oct. 1841 ”What do you think, William, is the next gradation?” ”Why, father, is there any thing between a boat and a ship?” ”We are not come to a ship yet, William; we have only spoken of such sorts of vessels as are moved by paddles or oars.” — Isaac Taylor, The Ship, or Sketches of the Vessels of Various Countries , 1834

Despite the fact that we’ve been receiving admonitions about boat and ship for over a century now, many people cheerfully insist on using boat for waterborne vessels of any size. However, few, if any, use ship to refer to small crafts. If you find that you are unable to remember the which is the larger between ship and boat it may help to sing the children’s song Row Your Boat (“row, row, row your ship ” sounds decidedly odd — small oared crafts are almost always referred to as boats ). No matter how many aphorisms we come up with, it seems unlikely that we are going to get much more specific than 'ships are bigger than boats.'

Considering that our language has hundreds of words for different kinds of things that float on the water it is somewhat odd that we should focus exclusively on the difference between only these two. Should you find yourself beset by an angry sailor who calls you out for using boat when you should have used ship you may turn and ask if they know the difference between a xebec and an umiak , a corvette and a wherry , or an argosy and a garvey (the first ones are all ships and the second ones all boats).

The fact that English usage is messy, and has contributed to a use of boat that is somewhat vague, does not mean that there aren't settings where precision is called for. For instance, when you are sailing on someone else's vessel it is polite to always employ the correct terminology. And if you find yourself at a loss about when a boat becomes a ship you should contact your local maritime authority.

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Crew on Icon of the Seas cruise ship rescues 14 people stranded at sea

The crew on the world's largest cruise ship, the Icon of the Seas, helped rescue 14 people who were clinging to a small boat this week, officials said.

A Royal Caribbean spokesperson said the ship "encountered a small vessel adrift and in need of assistance" Sunday.

"The ship’s crew immediately launched a rescue operation, safely bringing 14 people onboard," the spokesperson said. "The crew provided them with medical attention, and is working closely with the U.S. Coast Guard."

The cruise, which began in Miami, was headed for Honduras when the rescue happened, passengers said. Passengers captured video of the crew using a small vessel to ferry the group to the safety of the cruise ship.

The crew broadcast “Code Oscar, Code Oscar, Code Oscar,” over the loudspeakers, Alessandra Amodio said in a report on FoxWeather.com . Amodio said she watched as people on the tiny craft waved a large white flag.

After the rescue, Amodio said, the cruise ship’s captain announced the crew had rescued 14 people stranded at sea for eight days.

The Icon of the Seas boasts 18 decks and six waterslides, and it can accommodate more than 5,500 passengers. It has 2,850 staterooms and seven swimming pools.

The colossal ship is 1,198 feet long, dwarfing the Titanic, which was 882.9 feet long. It departed on its maiden voyage on Jan. 27 from Miami, TODAY.com reported.

Antonio Planas is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

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Meriam Bouarrouj is an NBC News assignment editor.

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This 700-Foot Transport Vessel Can Carry 36 Superyachts at the Same Time

'yacht servant' will be able to carry superyachts by submerging its hull and letting them float right on., julia zaltzman, julia zaltzman's most recent stories.

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Ever wonder how the world’s largest superyachts—and hundreds more than are not quite as large—cross back and forth between the Americas and Europe? The crossing doesn’t necessarily happen on their own hull bottoms. Rather, they often take place on a large vessel designed to carry dozens of yachts at a time. Loading and unloading can be a nail-biting process in which these multi-million-dollar yachts are lifted by crane from the water, a hundred feet into the air and then set on cradles on deck.

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DYT Yacht Transport (previously Dockwise) has the only dedicated fleet of yacht transport semi-submersible vessels in the world. Now, it’s building the King Kong of submersibles, a 699-footer called Yacht Servant , that can carry up to 36 superyachts back and forth across the ocean. It will be the largest vessel of its type.

Instead of hoisting yachts by crane, Yacht Servant takes on ballast water until the main deck is flooded. The boats can then float on and off—a process DYT calls “flo-flo.” When all yachts are loaded, divers attach temporary supports to keep the boats elevated as the ballast water is released. Yacht Servant floats up and its decks become dry. At that point, the yachts are fastened into cradles for safe transportation. The process eliminates the need for cranes or dry docking.

Submersible transport vessels actually sink into the water so that yachts can drive on, rather than using a crane to lift them out of the water. DYT

Yacht Servant will increase the size and type of yachts that the company can transport, compared to its current largest carrier, Yacht Express . “On average, Yacht Express carries around 25 yachts with tenders on a single transatlantic voyage,” Andriy Antonenko, DYT Load Master, told Robb Report . “With Yacht Servant we can up that number to 36 yachts.”

Carrying a third more superyachts is significant. From an operational standpoint, Yacht Servant also cuts in half the two days it currently takes to load the yachts, because the time it takes to ballast and de-ballast is reduced to one hour. “That means it’s only a day to load and unload,” says Antonenko.

Last month, Yacht Servant held special keel-laying ceremony in Yantai, China. “This is not just the laying of a keel, but the start of a new era in yacht transport,” said Laura Tempest, DYT general manager. “Yacht Express will set a new benchmark in the yacht transport industry.”

Scheduled to be completed next year, “Yacht Servant” will usher in a new era in yacht transport.

Tempest says that sailing yachts that could not be accommodated before because of their deeper drafts can now be transported. The vessel was designed by DYT’s parent company, Spliethoff Group, in Amsterdam.

“We opted for to build a new vessel because there is a lack of availability worldwide of boats that can be converted to a submersible yacht carrier,” Tempest told Robb Report . “Everything was either the same size or smaller than what we already have. A new build gave us the opportunity to increase our capacity and be more fuel efficient. We’ve really maximized the whole ship in terms of what we can do.”

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Charity hopes to send second food aid ship to Gaza in next few days

Pallets with 50% more supplies than first boat, Open Arms, being loaded in Cyprus

Middle East crisis – latest updates

The charity sending food aid to Gaza on a ship travelling across the Mediterranean from Cyprus is loading a second boat with supplies, which it hopes will set off in the coming days.

Pallets containing 300 tonnes of food aid – 50% more than the first shipment – are expected to be screened and loaded by the end of Thursday, but there is no indication yet when it will leave the port of Larnaca.

The supplies include cans of beans, carrots, tuna, chickpeas and corn, plus parboiled rice, flour, oil and salt.

The UN has warned that at least 576,000 people in Gaza – a quarter of the population – are on the brink of famine and global pressure has been growing on Israel to allow more access to the territory.

Janez Lenarčič, the EU’s humanitarian aid and crisis management chief, said on Thursday there were already pockets of famine in Gaza, and warned it could spread to the whole region. He urged Israel to open more road routes to deliver aid.

The first ship, which is towing a barge loaded with 200 tonnes of aid, enough for half a million meals, is expected to arrive on the Gaza coast in the coming days after leaving Larnarca on Tuesday .

World Central Kitchen (WCK), a US-based food aid charity working with the governments of Cyprus and the UAE and the Spanish NGO Open Arms, had an additional 500 tonnes of aid in Cyprus ready to be loaded in what it hoped would be a series of journeys across the Mediterranean, which have been given the name Operation Safeena, meaning boat or vessel in Arabic.

Theodoros Gotsis, spokesperson for Cyprus’s foreign ministry, said the Spanish-flagged aid ship was making “good progress” and was on course for the Gaza coast. It was taking longer than expected to arrive because the boat was by necessity moving very slowly. Tracking apps had “been jammed” because the ship was sailing in seas off a war zone where communication was patchy, he said.

It was still uncertain on Thursday how the aid would be unloaded and distributed once it reached the Gaza coastline. WCK volunteers and others in Gaza are building a jetty from the rubble of buildings destroyed in Israeli bombing during the past five months.

A composite of Maxar Technologies’ satellite images created on 14 March showing the construction of a jetty on a beach in Gaza between 11 and 13 March.

Gaza was the “most politically complex environment WCK has operated in”, its founder, the Michelin-starred chef José Andrés, said on the charity’s website at the weekend. A spokesperson said on Thursday that plans for docking and distribution were being continually adapted.

Gaza health ministry officials, meanwhile, said six people had been killed and dozens wounded when the Israeli military opened fire as crowds waited for aid trucks in Gaza City on Wednesday evening. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the incident.

It is the latest in a series of chaotic scenes and deadly incidents at aid distributions as desperately hungry people scramble for food. More than 100 people were killed last month as they waited for an aid delivery near Gaza City. Palestinian health authorities said Israeli forces shot them, while Israel said the victims had been trampled or run over.

Aid agencies in recent days have sought to vary routes for convoys to avoid large numbers of people gathering and potentially stopping convoys. “The problem is there are very few routes to take, and all are very difficult to travel on. There have been tanks driving up and down them for months and they are basically just strips of rubble now. So people can predict where the trucks are going to be,” said an NGO official in Gaza, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Starvation being used as a tool of war in Gaza, says EU's top diplomat – video

The White House called for a swift investigation into an Israeli airstrike this week on a UN food distribution facility in Gaza.

Israel said the strike had killed a Hamas commander whom it targeted, and Palestinian health officials said it had killed four more people, including a UN worker.

On Wednesday, R Adm Daniel Hagari, a spokesperson for the Israeli military, said Israel would try to “flood” the Gaza Strip with humanitarian aid from multiple entry points.

More convoys would follow six aid trucks with supplies from the World Food Programme that entered the northern part of the Gaza Strip this week through a crossing in the security fence known as the 96th gate. There would also be deliveries from other entry points, complemented by airdrops and seaborne aid cargoes, Hagari said.

Hamas was reported by local media to have killed the head of a powerful family in the territory for stealing aid and having contact with Israel. There was no immediate confirmation of the claim, but earlier this week Hamas threatened to execute “collaborators”. Tensions in Israel and the occupied territories remain high ahead of the first Friday prayers of Ramadan. Hamas has called for a “day of escalation”, and thousands of police have been deployed around Jerusalem’s Old City.

On Thursday, Netanyahu met families of hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza and said he had little positive news. The Israeli prime minister said there had been no “real response” to terms offered for a ceasefire earlier this month.

“They are still clinging to unacceptable demands ... They do not want to make progress. They want to ignite the ground during Ramadan. This is their attempt; this is their goal,” he said.

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The conflict between Israel and Palestinians — and other groups in the Middle East — goes back decades. These stories provide context for current developments and the history that led up to them.

An aid ship is en route to Gaza, in a test of a sea corridor for the war-torn enclave

Open Arms members carry humanitarian aid for Gaza in a joint mission between NGOs Open Arms and World Central Kitchen at a port of Larnaca, Cyprus, March 9. Santi Palacios/Open Arms-World Central Kitchen/Handout via Reuters hide caption

Open Arms members carry humanitarian aid for Gaza in a joint mission between NGOs Open Arms and World Central Kitchen at a port of Larnaca, Cyprus, March 9.

AMMAN, Jordan — A barge loaded with food is on its way to Gaza from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus in a test of a possible maritime aid corridor meant to help avert what United Nations officials say is imminent famine after five months of war and Israeli restrictions on aid.

Since the start of the war in October, Israeli attacks in Gaza have destroyed most of its infrastructure , while Israel's restrictions on food and medicine entering by truck have left most of the enclave at risk of famine and vulnerable to disease, according to the U.N.

With aid headed to Gaza, risks remain to getting food to its starving population

Israel says it needs to ensure that weapons are not being smuggled into Gaza. But the European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, told the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday that starvation is being used as a weapon of war.

Enter World Central Kitchen , a U.S.-based aid organization founded by celebrity humanitarian-chef José Andrés. The organization has partnered with Open Arms , a Spanish nongovernmental aid group that is using its ship of the same name. The United Arab Emirates provided funding for the food while Cyprus provided logistical help.

While WCK and other aid groups are scrambling to find alternative ways to deliver aid to Gaza because of Israeli restrictions, they have also had to rely on Israeli cooperation to pursue the alternate routes and devise a way to offload pallets of aid.

"The most difficult part, the diplomatic technicalities, already is kind of behind us," Andrés says. "The most difficult part ahead is as we speak, we are finalizing the construction of a temporary jetty."

Five months of intense Israeli bombing added to previous destruction and an Israeli blockade of Gaza since Hamas took control there in 2007 have devastated Gaza's infrastructure, including hospitals, water treatment plants, schools and universities.

Israel destroyed Gaza's airport during a Palestinian uprising that began in 2001 and since October has further damaged what remained of Gaza's fishing port.

Jordan has taken the lead in airdropping aid into Gaza, along with the United States and other partner countries. But the airdrops are extremely expensive, and with ongoing fighting, they are difficult to target and almost impossible to distribute on the ground.

WCK has been providing meals in Gaza since the start of the war, and once it builds the jetty, will unload the cargo onto smaller boats to take the aid ashore to be distributed to its network of 64 kitchens.

Israel approved and inspected the goods that will be going into Gaza. Andrés says they were not allowed to bring in machinery, equipment or the concrete blocks requested for the operation, but the aid organizations are improvising with what they have. Israel bars a large range of goods to Gaza, saying they could be used by Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that rules Gaza.

"We have crews working 24-7 and we are really trying to build this 60-meter [yard]-long jetty that will allow us then successfully, if things go well, to start bringing in humanitarian aid in bigger quantities," Andrés says.

Laura Lanuza, communications director for Open Arms, says it has taken three weeks to deal with regulations, restrictions and logistics after the boat arrived in Cyprus.

The Open Arms vessel, carrying almost 200 tons of food aid to Gaza, is seen docked in the Cypriot port of Larnaca on March 9. Iakovos Hatzistavrou/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

The Open Arms vessel, carrying almost 200 tons of food aid to Gaza, is seen docked in the Cypriot port of Larnaca on March 9.

"We had a huge challenge in front of us trying to make this happen," she says.

Lanuza says each box of food was individually scanned under supervision of Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories at Larnaca port in Cyprus to ensure it did not have contraband before it was loaded onto the barge and then the entire shipment sealed.

"We have to be cautious and we have to follow all the protocols that we have in order to have a good end to this," she says, adding there is food waiting at the port in Cyprus for an immediate second trip if the first goes well.

The mission, which began Tuesday, is expected to take several days because of the slow speed necessitated by the heavily laden barge, and the logistics of building the floating jetty.

The organizers said they were not disclosing where on the coast the vessel was planning to land for security reasons.

The barge's cargo — roughly 200 tons of food , including lentils, rice and canned meat — is the equivalent of only about 10 trucks of aid.

The main land entry for aid to Gaza through Egypt has 30,000 trucks backed up waiting for entry, says Ahmed Naimat, a spokesman for Jordan's National Center for Security and Crisis Management.

He says some trucks of Jordanian aid have been waiting in a line for two months for approval to enter.

"Israel's military operations are intended to cut off life to Palestinians — especially for medical and food services," Naimat says.

Israel has blamed delays on U.N. agencies. The U.N. has said Israeli forces have not just delayed approval for truck convoys, but turned away key aid to northern Gaza and attacked its staff and facilities .

Jordan, which has a peace treaty with Israel, has accused the Israeli military of deliberately targeting its field hospitals in Gaza. Israel has said it was aiming at Hamas militants.

Humanitarian aid for Palestinians on the Gaza Strip is loaded onto a Jordanian Air Force aircraft in Amman on March 10, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the militant group Hamas. Ahmad Shouraa/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Humanitarian aid for Palestinians on the Gaza Strip is loaded onto a Jordanian Air Force aircraft in Amman on March 10, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the militant group Hamas.

Jordan and other countries have continued airdrops into Gaza in a desperate effort to save at least some people from starvation despite the considerable risks. Last week, Gaza health authorities said five people were killed when a parachute on one of the pallets dropped by a Jordanian partner failed to open.

The United States insists it is pressing Israel to allow in more aid by land but has announced it plans to set up a floating dock to deliver aid by sea in bigger ships. The project is likely to take several weeks and still faces severe obstacles in widely distributing the aid.

The war has left most of Gaza's 2.3 million people homeless and the U.N. says a quarter of the population is malnourished. The U.N., quoting Gaza health officials, says at least 23 children have already starved to death.

Malnutrition is particularly acute in northern Gaza, which has been largely cut off by Israeli forces over the last five months and where UNICEF says 1 in 6 children under the age of 2 is acutely malnourished.

Last week, the United Kingdom's foreign secretary, David Cameron, told the House of Lords that the amount of aid allowed into Gaza last month was half of that received in January, adding that the patience of Israel's allies with the humanitarian crisis was "wearing thin."

World Central Kitchen plans to use its existing distribution network and to increase to about 100 the number of kitchens it is operating in Gaza to prepare and distribute meals. Andrés says so far the aid organization has provided more than 35 million meals there.

"It will be very easy to solve if we will be able to open other entry points around Israel that can double or triple the amount of trucks reaching Gaza every single day," Andrés says. "But for various reasons this is not happening and this is out of our control."

"The necessity and the urgency are so great that the worst thing we can do is not try new ways," he says.

World Central Kitchen
Israel-Hamas war
Israel-Gaza war
Palestinian aid
humanitarian aid
Jose Andres

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Dozens of Migrants Die After Their Dinghy Deflates in the Mediterranean

Survivors, who departed from Libya, said they had been adrift for four days when they were found.

People in two rescue boats help a group of people in a partially deflated dinghy in the ocean.

By Gaia Pianigiani

A European humanitarian aid group said on Thursday that about 50 migrants died after their small boat deflated during an attempt to cross the central Mediterranean Sea.

A ship belonging to the charity, SOS Mediterranee , spotted the deflating rubber dinghy on Wednesday, in international waters under the Libyan rescue jurisdiction. Twenty-five dehydrated and exhausted migrants were on board.

The survivors told the charity that they had been adrift for four days, since the engine on their dinghy broke. Some 50 other people were with them when they departed from the Libyan port of Zawiya, they told the rescuers, including two infants and four women. There were only male survivors, half of them boys, the charity said.

Valeria Taurino, the director general of SOS Mediterranee, said the situation on board was “disastrous.”

Two of the passengers were unconscious when they were found, and they were evacuated by the Italian military for treatment on shore. The rest, hailing from Gambia, Mali and Senegal, showed signs of dehydration, exhaustion and burns from fuel on the boat, and were receiving medical treatment aboard the charity’s ship, the Ocean Viking, Ms. Taurino said.

The Ocean Viking was heading to disembark the passengers at Ancona, on the northeastern Italian coast, over 870 miles from where the survivors were found. The government says it is spreading the burden of identifying and later housing migrants. But charity groups argue that the practice is aimed at keeping ships occupied and off the ocean where they look for migrant boats, and makes rescues more expensive in terms of fuel consumption.

Migration advocates say there is a glaring scarcity of rescuers in the central Mediterranean. The U.N. International Organization for Migration said that 227 migrants had died on the Mediterranean route this year, without taking into account the most recent shipwreck. While arrivals have decreased by 70 percent compared with 2023, the death rate is not falling as rapidly.

“Deaths are down by 20 percent only,” said Flavio Di Giacomo, a spokesman for the International Organization for Migration in Italy. “It is a clear sign that the rescue system at sea is insufficient, and people keep dying as a result.”

An earlier version of this article misstated the distance between Ancona and where the survivors were found. It is 1,400 kilometers (870 miles), not 1,400 miles.

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Gaia Pianigiani is a reporter based in Italy, covering breaking news across Italy and Europe. More about Gaia Pianigiani

Aid ship offloading cargo into Gaza; Israel to continue negotiating over cease-fire

Israel’s government warned that Hamas “is continuing to hold to unrealistic demands” as it prepared to review the latest cease-fire proposal Friday. A ship carrying 200 tons of food — the first attempt to deliver aid by way of a maritime corridor — began offloading its cargo into Gaza on Friday. The boat left Cyprus earlier this week, dispatched by the U.S. nonprofit World Central Kitchen, founded by celebrity chef José Andrés , and the Spanish search-and-rescue group Open Arms.

At least 20 killed, 150 injured in attack on crowd awaiting aid in Gaza
Muslims gather at al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem for tense Ramadan prayers
Israel says Hamas has ‘unrealistic demands’ as cease-fire proposal is put forward

Here's what to know:

Here's what to know, live coverage contributors 18.

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At least 20 killed awaiting aid in Gaza as new cease-fire offer debated March 15, 2024 At least 20 killed awaiting aid in Gaza as new cease-fire offer debated March 15, 2024
Israeli officials slam Schumer’s call for new election as ‘counterproductive’ March 15, 2024 Israeli officials slam Schumer’s call for new election as ‘counterproductive’ March 15, 2024
Who is José Andrés, the chef behind the first aid ship to Gaza? Earlier today Who is José Andrés, the chef behind the first aid ship to Gaza? Earlier today

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Israel-Gaza war

Israel-Gaza war: Israel’s government warned that Hamas “is continuing to hold to unrealistic demands” as it prepared to review the latest cease-fire proposal Friday. A ship carrying 200 tons of food — the first attempt to deliver aid by way of a maritime corridor — began offloading its cargo into Gaza. The boat was dispatched by the U.S. nonprofit World Central Kitchen, founded by celebrity chef José Andrés , and the Spanish search-and-rescue group Open Arms.

Middle East conflict: Tensions in the region continue to rise. As Israeli troops aim to take control of the Gaza-Egypt border crossing, officials in Cairo warn that the move would undermine the 1979 peace treaty. Meanwhile, there’s a diplomatic scramble to avert full-scale war between Israel and Lebanon .

U.S. involvement: U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria killed dozens of Iranian-linked militants , according to Iraqi officials. The strikes were the first round of retaliatory action by the Biden administration for an attack in Jordan that killed three U.S. service members .

DeSantis details alarming find aboard Haitian migrant boat seized off Florida coast

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Friday that state law enforcement had intercepted a vessel coming to the Florida coast carrying dozens of Haitian migrants, as well as firearms, drugs and night vision gear.

"Our Florida Fish and Wildlife offices interdicted a vessel that had 25 illegal immigrants, potential illegal immigrants from Haiti in their boat. In their vessel they had firearms, they had drugs, they had night vision gear and were boating very recklessly, which would potentially endanger other folks," DeSantis said, adding that the interdiction had occurred "recently" in the last few weeks.

"That vessel was interdicted near the Sebastian Inlet and those illegal aliens were turned over to the Coast Guard for deportation," he said.

DESANTIS SENDS SOLDIERS, AIRCRAFT TO ‘PROTECT’ FLORIDA FROM ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS BOATS AMID HAITI UNREST

DeSantis made the announcement at a press conference in which he also signed three pieces of legislation to deter illegal immigration into the Sunshine State.

The Republican governor had earlier this week announced an increase of personnel and aircraft to the Florida coast in light of unrest in Haiti and the potential for an increase in migration via the sea from the conflict-hit country.

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The Caribbean nation has seen a significant escalation in violence as gangs have overrun the capital, burning police stations and attacking the main airport. Gangs have also raided some of the largest prisons, releasing thousands of inmates.

DHS WARNS HAITIAN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRIVING BY BOAT FACE ‘IMMEDIATE REPATRIATION’

The deployment in Florida includes 48 additional National Guardsmen with four additional helicopters, 39 officers from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, 30 additional Florida Highway Patrol officers with aircraft and drones, and 23 additional officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission with eight additional seacraft, according to DeSantis' office.

He stressed on Friday that this had been going on for a while, and this was an increase in enforcement and not a new operation. He said that from Jan 2023 last week, officials had assisted the Coast Guard with the interdiction of 670 vessels carrying over 13,500 illegal immigrants.

"The message is the last thing you should want to do is get on a boat and think you're going to come through from any of these islands to get to the state of Florida," DeSantis said. "The most likely scenario is you'll be stopped, and you will be returned to your country of origin."

HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER ARIEL HENRY TO RESIGN AMID LOW-SCALE CIVIL WAR, BOWING TO INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE

"It's a hazardous journey, it’s not worth doing, and we have the resources to continue to keep the people of Florida safe."

On Tuesday, Rebecca Zimmerman, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, told lawmakers that the Pentagon is "alert" to the possibility of a mass migration event, but it has also not yet seen large numbers.

"I think you’re right that the driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people," she told Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla. "We recently approved some additional assistance we could provide to the Coast Guard."

The Department of Homeland Security has also said it is monitoring the situation, but has stressed that migration flows in the Caribbean remain "low." It also warned that those crossing face being turned back to their country of origin.

"U.S. policy is to return noncitizens who do not have a fear of persecution or torture or a legal basis to enter the United States. Those interdicted at sea are subject to immediate repatriation pursuant to our longstanding policy and procedures. The United States returns or repatriates migrants interdicted at sea to The Bahamas, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti," a spokesperson said.

On Friday, DeSantis also signed three pieces of legislation related to immigration. One increased the maximum sentence for people driving without a license. Another enhances penalties for crimes committed by illegal immigrants who return to the country after deportation, while the third bill states that no jurisdiction can recognize IDs that are distributed by other states to illegal immigrants.

Original article source: DeSantis details alarming find aboard Haitian migrant boat seized off Florida coast

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Friday that state law enforcement intercepted a vessel heading toward Florida carrying migrants, firearms, drugs and more. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

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