Before you board Raja Bintang 01: a guide's safety and comfort checklist

I am Jewel, a guide and vessel surveyor at Komodo Explorer. My job before a departure is simple to describe: walk the boat with the crew, ask where things are, and make sure the answers are the same ones the guests will get if something goes wrong.

This note is that walk written down for Raja Bintang 01, a 24 m phinisi with 6 cabins and a crew of 6. It has three parts: what the boat carries, what I ask the crew, and what you can check yourself in the first hour on board. None of it needs a surveyor. Most of it needs only that someone asks.

One life raft

I ask where it is stowed, who on the crew releases it, and when it was last serviced. A raft is only as useful as the person who knows how to free it.

30 life jackets

Sixteen guests and a crew of 6 make 22 people, so thirty jackets leave a margin. I ask where they are kept, whether the straps close, and how many are child sizes, because a child in an adult jacket is not safe in it.

4 ring buoys

I look for them on both sides of the deck, within reach and not tied down.

8 fire extinguishers

I ask which one covers the engine room, which the galley and which the cabin corridors, and I read the gauge and the date on each.

The boat carries GPS (Garmin), AIS and a compass, an Icom IC-M220 radio and handheld radios, and a speedboat tender with a Suzuki 15 HP engine. The main engine is a Mitsubishi 6D14.

At boarding, ask the crew to show you the GPS with a position on it, the AIS switched on and the radio answering a call. AIS lets other vessels see where yours is, and it only does that when it is on. I ask how many guests the tender takes in one run and where its fuel is kept, since every beach landing depends on it.

The Master cabin on the upper deck and the Deluxe cabin each have a private balcony. The Master, the Deluxe and the two Private cabins have their own bathroom; the two Sharing cabins share one.

• Balcony rails and door latches: high enough for a child, and doors that stay shut when the boat rolls.
• The stairs to the upper deck: handrails, and grip when they are wet.
• The shared bathroom, which up to eight guests use: a lock, a light, air, and a floor that drains.
• Cabin air conditioning and the power sockets: I ask the crew when the power runs, so guests know when to charge.

• Where is the life raft, and who releases it?
• Can you show me the AIS on and the radio answering?
• Which extinguisher covers the engine room, and what date is on each one?
• How many child life jackets are on board today, and who hands them out?
• Does the shared bathroom lock and light properly?
• Who keeps watch while the boat is at anchor overnight, and how is the anchor checked?

I want each answer from the person who would act on it. If you would like the same answers before you pay, ask us, and we send them in writing.

You do not need my list to stay safe, only a few minutes after you board.

• Find your life jacket, and your children's, and try one on.
• Note the nearest extinguisher and the way up to the open deck from your cabin.
• Ask the crew where the ring buoys are and who to call at night.
• Wear shoes with grip on wet decks and on the gangway.
• Tell the crew about any medical condition or seasickness in your party.

The captain decides each day's stops and the night's anchorage with the weather, and the boat stays at anchor overnight. A safe trip is the one where that call is respected by everyone on board, guests included.