LadyMage

I do wonder if the artist lineup is going to shrink drastically, if the charter even goes forward - there's no way they've made enough money to pay all of those artists, is there? Even at the astronomical rate that they're charging that is a LOT of talent, plus their private chef. I can't imagine that they've sold anywhere near the amount of rooms that they needed to.

My thoughts as well. I really think that the lineup will be shrinking very soon. The prices they're asking for are just nuts.

Thanks, I suspect you are not the only Smooth Jazz fan that booked a regular cabin in hopes of some contact with the artists...:D.....the size of the Maxwell group will have a major impact on how the week goes and the reaction of the balance of the cruisers (non Maxwell group) on the Freedom....on the cruise that I was part of the Jazz group, we had special lanyards that we had to show to gain access to the private concerts and events...I actually had folks offer me cash $$$$ for my lanyard to attend a concert (I declined)...I felt sorry fir the poor CD that had to constantly explain why folks could not attend our concerts which were better then the Cruise Line

 

I entered for a free cabin also :)

Luck!!

I kind of feel sorry for the CD, but kind of not really. They really should've thought a lot of this through; jacking up the prices really makes matters a lot worse. They won't recoup their costs like this, and in the process, they're angering a LOT of people. And I am willing to bet that there's no way that they would've sold enough of the cabins through their own pricing. And for shows of the magnitude they're trying to pull off would demand pretty much taking over the entertainment segments of the ship.

I severely doubt the RC passengers will be happy about that.

With your experience on many other full charter jazz cruises, are the prices that Maxwell is quoting for this one as absurd as it seems, or are these kind of cruises always this extremely expensive?

YES!! Maxwell is way, way overpriced. Their single inside cabin is $5,300. That's what I pay for my entire vacation with Capital Jazz: cabin, onboard, flight, hotel, souvenirs, etc. I always travel alone, so I'm already at a disadvantage for pricing, but this is an out-and-out ripoff.

They are either quite naive or quite foolish to think that they were going to sell out at those prices.

Hattack - I entered to win a free cabin for this thing. I have friends who are in the lineup, but I also have my reservations on the entire thing. I know a good bit about how these things are run; what I'm seeing on this particular charter is making me think twice.

Will be glad to review it if I end up winning and attending!

I agree 100% with LadyMage regarding being on full charter Jazz Cruises (I have done 11 straight)..the Maxwell cruise has all of us trying to understand the business strategy....final payment is due March 15th and I noticed the website has not been updated as to what the current status is...huge difference between a full charter music experience and being a group on a regular sailing in terms of what is being charged, access to public rooms and onboard concert presentations

 

I suspect there will be some additional clarity of the situation between now and March 15th ...the line up (as published) is awesome (80% of the artists I have enjoyed on my beloved full charter Capital Jazz SuperCruises at a better value for my $$$$)....I was once a part of a Jazz group on a regular sailing...the challenge became for the cruisers ( who were fans of our artists)that were not a part of our Jazz group who wanted to attend our private concerts .....they were not allowed into our private events and it was a source of contention for the entire cruise

I'm a Capital Jazz attendee as well! Will be there this year for my sixth sailing with them. Love them to pieces.

Some friends of mine were on a partially chartered cruise and they told me it was a nightmare. There's no real way to control access to the entertainment area, and there was no real way to restrict non-charter guests from attending.

Anyone heard any update on the Maxwell cruise?

Side note: I usually only take charter cruises. It's a ton of fun. I love and adore jazz music, so a full jazz charter is my personal heaven.

I've been keeping an eye on the Maxwell cruise. No new updates as yet, but I did call up RC, as some folks here have done, and they told me that 1. if I went aboard and not through the charter, I wouldn't be able to attend the shows offered by the charter, and 2. it's definitely NOT a full-ship charter. If it was at one point, certainly no longer.