Standard protocol is offer, survey and sea trial. Purchase offer is contingent on survey and sea trial.The specialist committee is composed of experts in sea trials from different areas of the world. A sea trial or trial trip is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a shakedown cruise. A sea trial is totally out of the question. Is it OK to just get a marine survey done with the boat out of the water? A sea trial is the marine equivalent of a test drive, crucial for assessing a vessel's performance before it is fully commissioned or sold. Sea trials are an important step within the boat buying process that allows you to take a boat for "test run. Notice No. 1 (effective on 1 July 2018) to the 2018 Rules, is summarized below.