Summary
There have been quite a few celebrities who have appeared onBelow Deckas charter guests. The reality series spotlights the crew members working on superyachts. Each charter season, the crew navigates their jobs as parts of the exterior or interior departments.Below Deckshowcases the not-so-glamorous side of yachting,shifting focus from the guests to its crew members who stick around for a full charter season. Nonetheless, guests sometimes steal the spotlight away from the crew to themselves. Some formed incredible bonds with the crew, while otherBelow Deckguests had terrible attitudes.
Charter groups can set the vibes high or incredibly low during their stay aboard the superyachts. While they aren’t the stars ofBelow Deck,patrons can stir up drama and make the crew’s job incredibly difficult.Some guests are far more easygoing than others. OnBelow Deckseason 11,TheReal Housewives of New YorkCityalum Jill Zarin attended a charter.Jill slammed Chief Stew Fraser Olenderafter her episodes ofBelow Deckaired, accusing him of making their trip terrible. However, she’s not the only big name who has appeared on the show.
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8Heather Gay
The Real Housewives Of Salt Lake City
Heather Gay is one of the most recent housewives to appear onBelow Deck. She was featured as a charter guest duringBelow Deck Adventureseason 1 with Captain Kerry Titheradge. Joining Heather on the trip was her fellowThe Real Housewives of Salt Lake Cityco-star at the time, Angie Harrington. She toldE! NewsthatWhitney Rose was also invited to the charterbut couldn’t make it due to a “schedule conflict.” Despite another housewife being onboard the superyacht, most of the spotlight was on Heather during the charter.
Despite having an incredible time with Captain Kerry and his crew,Below Deck Adventurefans didn’t enjoy Heatheron the show. Some argued she was putting on for the camera at times. Nonetheless,Heather looks back on her experience in the series fondly.Heather toldE! Newsthat after watching the show back, she was “surprised” by “how much work the crew has to do.” While her charter has been over for quite some time, she keeps in touch with Captain Kerry and the rest of theBelow Deck Adventurecrew.
7Cynthia Bailey
The Real Housewives Of Atlanta
Cynthia Bailey is one of the most beloved cast members fromThe Real Housewives of Atlanta. She was onBelow Deckseason 3 with herRHOAseason 7 co-star, Claudia Jordan.Cynthia was the first housewife to appear onBelow Deckduring one of the most hectic early seasons of the franchise. Nonetheless, she enjoyed her time on Eros and forged a good relationship with Captain Lee Rosbach after her charter experience. At BravoCon 2019, Cytnhia toldDaily Dishshe was “excited” to see him again after so long.
She explained her time on the show “made” her daughter, Noelle Robinson, think she was “the coolest mom ever.”Cynthia said she formed “a really good connection”with Captain Lee. BravoCon 2019 was their first time seeing each other sinceBelow Deck, and she said they “hugged each other like crazy” when reuniting.Cynthia is a fixture in the Bravosphere, and it would be exciting to see her return for another charter onBelow Deckor any of its spin-offs.
6Alexis Bellino
The Real Housewives Of Orange County
Alexis Bellino starred inThe Real Housewives of Orange Countyfor seasons 5-8 and is making her return to the franchise for the upcomingRHOCseason 18. She appeared onBelow Deckseason 7, Chief Stew Kate Chastain’s last season on the show. Alexis attended the charter with her then-boyfriend, Andy Bohn. Kate and the rest of the crewfelt a little uncomfortable with how affectionate Alexis and Andy were throughout the trip.Their excessive PDA made the crew’s heads turn, and Kate was willing to call it out in her confessional interviews.
“She just got divorced, and I don’t know if she’s trying to prove it to her ex or her friends that she is doin' fine!”
5Kary Brittingham
Former The Real Housewives Of Dallas Star
Before joining the cast ofThe Real Housewives of Dallas, Kary Brittingham was onBelow Deck Mediterraneanseason 2. Sheappeared in Jason Ziegler’s infamous charter, where he kissed Chief Stew Hannah Ferrier.When Kary joinedRHODseason 4, she was recognized by Bravo fans because of her brief time onBelow Deck Med. She toldThe Daily Dishthat attending the charter with Jason was a “once-in-a-lifetime experience,” and she never saw herself being cast onRHODafterBelow Deck Med.
Jason instantly hit it off with Chief Stew Hannah duringBelow Deck Medseason 2. They flirted throughout his entire time on the superyacht. Hannah knew it wouldn’t be a good look to hook up with a charter guest, though they undeniably had chemistry.Hannah and Jason did end up sharing a kiss, which was controversial for the Chief Stew at the time. Kary was a guest during one of the most talked-about charters onBelow Deck Med.
4Johnny Damon
Former Major League Baseball Player
Johnny Damon appeared in not just one but two different seasons ofBelow Deck Med. He served as aprimary guest alongside his wife, Michelle Damon, duringBelow Deck Medseasons 4 and 5.The former Major League basketball player was very particular about his food during his two charter trips. During season 4, he sent back Chef Anastasia Surmava’s food and claimed the experience wasn’t “five stars” onThe Daily Dishpodcast. Johnny also thought he and the rest of his guests would be spotlighted more instead of the crew after his first appearance.
“We kept expecting the camera to be in our face, and it wasn’t.”
Even though their first charter wasn’t a home run,Johnny and Michelle returned for another charterforBelow Deck Medseason 5. During their second stint as guests on the show, their group feuded much more. One of their guests,Shanna, claimed Michelle had Spanx on, which upset her.In response to Shanna’s claims, Michelle showed everyone she didn’t have Spanx on by exposing her backside. “Clearly I don’t need a Spanx. Duh,”she said. Johnny told his wife it would’ve been fine if she had been wearing Spanx and the beef was squashed.
3Jemele Hill
American Sports Journalist
American sports journalist Jemele Hill is no stranger to the show, appearing as a charter guest duringBelow Deck Medseason 6 andBelow Deckseason 7. Shecelebrated her bachelorette party duringBelow Deckseason 7and wasn’t on the best terms with Chief Stew Kate after meeting for the first time. However, Jemele and Kate bounced back and ended up getting along great. After Jemele’s episode aired,Katerevealed on X that Jemele and her party were her “favorite charter guests of all time.”
After the great experience, she returned forBelow Deck Medseason 7 alongside her husband, Ian Wallace. They booked the charterin celebration of their first wedding anniversary,and was the final trip of the charter season for the rest of the crew. She noticed an immediate shift in the crew’s energy compared to her time onBelow Deckseason 7. While Captain Sandy Yawn’s interior team was down one stew, Jemele was still impressed by the crew’s ability to persist forward in times of uncertainty.
2Whitney Thompson
America’s Next Top Model Winner
Whitney Thompson was a charter guest during the first season ofBelow Deck Sailing Yacht.The series was not her first time on reality TV as Whitney was the winner of Cycle 10 ofAmerica’s Next Top Model. Her win was historical as she was the first plus-sized model to win a competitive modeling show. OnBelow Deck Sailing Yacht, Whitney was a great guest, but Chef Adam Glick complained about her requests for vegan food. “We did not make the crew’s life easy,”Whitneywrote in a caption of a picture of her aboard the Parsifal III on Instagram.
1Jill Zarin
Former The Real Housewives Of New York City Star
Jill Zarin wasone of the most difficult charter guestsfor the crew ofBelow Deckseason 11. She was not the primary guest but made many demands of the crew. It felt like Jill was testing Chief Stew Fraser and his team at times. From food selections to toiletries in the guest’s rooms, if Jill’s standards weren’t being met, she let Fraser know. Her charter was one of the most grueling ofBelow Deckseason 11, and the crew was overjoyed when she left St. David.
There have been several notable names as charter guests across theBelow Deckfranchise. Bravo takes advantage of its pool of talent and often features former stars to appear on the yachting series. However, there have been plenty of other celebrities not affiliated with Bravo who’ve charted superyachts onBelow Deck, and they’ve all been pretty memorable guests.
Below Deck Mediterraneanseason 9 premieres Monday, June 3 at 9 p.m. EDT on Bravo.
Sources:E! News,The Daily Dish,The Daily Dish,The Daily Dish,Kate Chastain/X,Whitney Thompson/Instagram
Below Deck
Below Deck is a popular reality TV franchise that focuses on a group of crew members as they work on luxurious yachts and cater to their client’s needs. After the original series proved to be a success, Bravo developed a handful of spinoff shows including Below Deck Selling Yacht, Below Deck Adventure, Below Deck Down Under, and Below Deck Mediterranean.
