Tom Joyner Fantastic Voyage Cruise 2013 Review

[kenholt]

Small world, I'm a Hutch Tech graduate.

 

Sent from my KFOT using Tapatalk 2

 

Yo I had cuzins there, Did you know any Sawyers or slaughter s?

[Oh away I go!]

I have thought about this cruise for a long time... Looking forward to hearing further information.

 

I am sailing on my fourth Festival at Sea cruise this summer. I am very impressed by their charter :cool:

[gapearl]

Yes ma'am. The cost goes towards scholarships that the TJ Foundation gives to deserving students at HBCUs.

 

I know someone who goes every year' date=' the sad thing is, he never takes his wife. But I guess that was irrelevant. :rolleyes: <<<<< That's a shame.

 

I guess I need to see when the cruise will take place next year, but I'm pushing it because I have the Blogger's cruise in February and I'm eating into my vacation. And depending on when it is, it may interfere with my deadlines for my reports.

 

But yes, I do hope the OP comes back with more information.

 

I just came across this-

 

Still, fun is the main draw and, boy, does “partying with a purpose” really pay it forward. Since its 1998 founding, the Tom Joyner Foundation – aided by the “Fantastic Voyage” cruise – has raised more than $60 million, providing scholarships for more than 20,000 students and helping more than 100 HBCUs.

 

That's awesome! It doesn't look like the 2014 itinerary is out yet. I bet it will probably be around the same time of year. As fun as it seems and as good of a time so many people have said they have had, I know it's not for me. I'm not a concert kind of person. Literally, I NEVER go to concerts. I sure as hell am not going to stand in line for 3 or 4 hours on a cruise to maybe get a seat at one. Plus I still can't get over that price. I could donate $700 to his foundation, buy front row balcony seats for three different concerts that come to town, pay for my own 7 day cruise, and still not be close to $2,400. That's just me though. Different strokes for different folks I guess. :)

 

I'd love to see a review of the One Love cruise too. They're doing Nassau/Atlantis this year instead of the cruise though. That's another one I seriously doubt I'll ever be on, but I'd still like to read a few reviews here. I can't help but wonder if the bars and dance club are open on that one. :o LOL

Edited April 19, 2013 by gapearl

[syvee]

I loved it!!!! I was on the voyage in 2012 and again in 2013. I will most definitely be sailing again in 2014. I won't even consider a regular cruise again...boring!!! There's so much to do on the FV. I wanted to see and do everything, but that was IMPOSSIBLE...not enough hours in a day!!! I love the friends that I've made. The entertainment is great and I got almost half of my money back as a tax deduction. I paid $3000 in 2012, $2500 in 2013 and I'm on in 2014!!! Don't miss out!!!

[Chicago_Traveler]

I am so glad for these posts. My wife and I were looking for a place to voice our opinions about the trip. We spent over $8,000 for the 2 of us without even knowing about VIP access which in our opinion is a joke! If you are paying a premium upfront cost then you should already be considered a VIP. This was my first Tom Joyner cruise but I’ve been on several other cruises with carnival cruise lines, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian. My wife has been no the Tom Joyner Cruise (TJC) 4 times now. She bragged and boasted on how great the TJC cruise was and I was excited. One major major issue is the fact that the carnival boat we were on (carnival Glory ) was an inferior boat and can’t accommodate the diva type acts that Tom Joyner booked such as Jamie Foxx and Snoop to mention a couple. The boat in previous years I hear was the Royal Caribbean Freedom ship which is far superior in so many ways so consider this:

Gross Tonnage Length Max Capacity

Royal Caribbean Freedom 154,407 1,112 feet 4,375

Carnival Glory 110,000 952 feet 3,700

· This boat didn’t feature a promenade that was as extravagant, spacious and useful for this type of event everything was just so cramped.

· The food was extremely subpar and was not the usually spread that I’m accustomed to. The worst food I’ve ever had at any all-inclusive travels out of about 12 that I have been to. The lines for food were almost ALWAYS about 30 minutes of wait time.

· The so called basketball court was a joke. It was about 40 percent of a half court with all of the hazards. The RC both in the previous yeas had a full court of basketball. The 3 on 3 tournament had to be turned into a 2 on 2 tournament.

· With the pool slide and other obstructions of views it made it nearly impossible to enjoy the Jamie Foxx and Snoop concerts unless you were guests of the band or guests of the guests of the random performers that I might add we paid for them to be amongst our presence in the first place! Even the so-called “VIP seating” was above the first level standing up trying to peep over and through the speakers, pool slide, guard rails, stairs, people or whatever else was in the way. Just a “hot ass mess” as my wife put it.

· The TJC crew members with the shirt didn’t initially understand that this was a vacation for people and they were not club promoters moving, handling and whisking people around here and there. These people are paid by US and should have understood that. I will say that this behavior did improve quickly after day one and complaining to Mr. Rich and a bother named Chaz who did attempt to calm us down after we were pretty enraged over the treatment on day one by other “orange shirt crew members”. Having said all of this when planning things and having one of the major diva stars (Jamie Foxx) change things all of the sudden may affect things and how arrangements are especially with the size of the boat restricting things that you can do.

Some of the positives:

And this is something that you can never ever get around were the people. We met some of the most intelligent, nicest, warmest people around. Our people. The networking and conversations were always on point. It was a beautiful thing to see and experience and Tom should be commended for that. The theme nights seemed to galvanize everyone and put us all in a great mood

The weather was absolutely perfect. The one time it rained we didn’t even notice because it was so late and we were partying indoors anyway.

This was a charitable event and for a good cause so you can go away knowing you made some contribution

Since we were so disgusted with the whole VIP debacle we didn’t get a chance to see Jamie Foxx and Snoop perform so we can’t comment on those two shows but the other performers were absolutely stellar and on a scale of 1-10 I we would have to say 10; from the comedians Rodney Perry, Dominique J Anthony Brown, Damon Williams, Melanie l, Tony Rock, Guy Torre and the music acts of Frankie, Ojays, Tyrese, Ludacris, EWF and so forth it was amazing and they all took pride in making the show incredible and noteworthy. I was really impressed and it left a good feeling no matter what else happened

The carnival cruise staff members were so helpful and attentive almost all of the time, they really knew what the vacationing experience was all about and seemed to be interested and honored to be in our presence and wallow in our many different cultures. They asked questions and tried emulating popular dances such as “the wobble” for our pleasure and their own as well.

My suggestions in order of importance would be to

1. Get a better Ship to accommodate the uniqueness of this experience. This is a special cruise with special people and truly a star studded affair. The ship should be able to accommodate that.
   
2. Assure a better array of food and food choices because we do know the difference.
   
3. Train the TJC “crew members” on the spirit of this VACATION and the importance
   
4. Do away with VIP access and have open seating for everyone except for people with special needs. The star acts that can’t be around the “normal people” shouldn’t be on the ship since we pay for them to be there in the first place.
   
5. Plan some better destinations, new places and not the same Puerto Rico / Bahamas which everyone has been to
   

Keep posting as much as possible! if we don't say anything and keep complaining under our breaths then progress will be hampered

[maddea20]

I am so glad for these posts. My wife and I were looking for a place to voice our opinions about the trip. We spent over $8,000 for the 2 of us without even knowing about VIP access which in our opinion is a joke! If you are paying a premium upfront cost then you should already be considered a VIP. This was my first Tom Joyner cruise but I’ve been on several other cruises with carnival cruise lines, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian. My wife has been no the Tom Joyner Cruise (TJC) 4 times now. She bragged and boasted on how great the TJC cruise was and I was excited. One major major issue is the fact that the carnival boat we were on (carnival Glory ) was an inferior boat and can’t accommodate the diva type acts that Tom Joyner booked such as Jamie Foxx and Snoop to mention a couple. The boat in previous years I hear was the Royal Caribbean Freedom ship which is far superior in so many ways so consider this:

Gross Tonnage Length Max Capacity

Royal Caribbean Freedom 154,407 1,112 feet 4,375

Carnival Glory 110,000 952 feet 3,700

· This boat didn’t feature a promenade that was as extravagant, spacious and useful for this type of event everything was just so cramped.

· The food was extremely subpar and was not the usually spread that I’m accustomed to. The worst food I’ve ever had at any all-inclusive travels out of about 12 that I have been to. The lines for food were almost ALWAYS about 30 minutes of wait time.

· The so called basketball court was a joke. It was about 40 percent of a half court with all of the hazards. The RC both in the previous yeas had a full court of basketball. The 3 on 3 tournament had to be turned into a 2 on 2 tournament.

· With the pool slide and other obstructions of views it made it nearly impossible to enjoy the Jamie Foxx and Snoop concerts unless you were guests of the band or guests of the guests of the random performers that I might add we paid for them to be amongst our presence in the first place! Even the so-called “VIP seating” was above the first level standing up trying to peep over and through the speakers, pool slide, guard rails, stairs, people or whatever else was in the way. Just a “hot ass mess” as my wife put it.

· The TJC crew members with the shirt didn’t initially understand that this was a vacation for people and they were not club promoters moving, handling and whisking people around here and there. These people are paid by US and should have understood that. I will say that this behavior did improve quickly after day one and complaining to Mr. Rich and a bother named Chaz who did attempt to calm us down after we were pretty enraged over the treatment on day one by other “orange shirt crew members”. Having said all of this when planning things and having one of the major diva stars (Jamie Foxx) change things all of the sudden may affect things and how arrangements are especially with the size of the boat restricting things that you can do.

Some of the positives:

And this is something that you can never ever get around were the people. We met some of the most intelligent, nicest, warmest people around. Our people. The networking and conversations were always on point. It was a beautiful thing to see and experience and Tom should be commended for that. The theme nights seemed to galvanize everyone and put us all in a great mood

The weather was absolutely perfect. The one time it rained we didn’t even notice because it was so late and we were partying indoors anyway.

This was a charitable event and for a good cause so you can go away knowing you made some contribution

Since we were so disgusted with the whole VIP debacle we didn’t get a chance to see Jamie Foxx and Snoop perform so we can’t comment on those two shows but the other performers were absolutely stellar and on a scale of 1-10 I we would have to say 10; from the comedians Rodney Perry, Dominique J Anthony Brown, Damon Williams, Melanie l, Tony Rock, Guy Torre and the music acts of Frankie, Ojays, Tyrese, Ludacris, EWF and so forth it was amazing and they all took pride in making the show incredible and noteworthy. I was really impressed and it left a good feeling no matter what else happened

The carnival cruise staff members were so helpful and attentive almost all of the time, they really knew what the vacationing experience was all about and seemed to be interested and honored to be in our presence and wallow in our many different cultures. They asked questions and tried emulating popular dances such as “the wobble” for our pleasure and their own as well.

My suggestions in order of importance would be to

1. Get a better Ship to accommodate the uniqueness of this experience. This is a special cruise with special people and truly a star studded affair. The ship should be able to accommodate that.
   
2. Assure a better array of food and food choices because we do know the difference.
   
3. Train the TJC “crew members” on the spirit of this VACATION and the importance
   
4. Do away with VIP access and have open seating for everyone except for people with special needs. The star acts that can’t be around the “normal people” shouldn’t be on the ship since we pay for them to be there in the first place.
   
5. Plan some better destinations, new places and not the same Puerto Rico / Bahamas which everyone has been to
   

Keep posting as much as possible! if we don't say anything and keep complaining under our breaths then progress will be hampered

 

Thanks for your thorough mini review. I agree a cruise like this needs to be on a bigger ship. I remember when they were always booking the Freedom class ships. If anything it should have at least been on a Voyager class ship since there is a big Promenade as well. I wonder if Tom lost out on a contract with RCI or something? Idk.

[Chicago_Traveler]

Tom explained while on the trip that he chose not to renew the contract basically because of the cost and RCL wanted to lock them into a longer term contact. Carnival "stepped up" in his words but Carnival just doesn't have the type of ships that RCL has in their fleet. Classic case of you get what you pay for. Nothing against Carnival because I've been on other Carnival cruises that were great but not for this type of trip.

[Leo's Rule]

I just came across this-

 

Still, fun is the main draw and, boy, does “partying with a purpose” really pay it forward. Since its 1998 founding, the Tom Joyner Foundation – aided by the “Fantastic Voyage” cruise – has raised more than $60 million, providing scholarships for more than 20,000 students and helping more than 100 HBCUs.

 

That's awesome! It doesn't look like the 2014 itinerary is out yet. I bet it will probably be around the same time of year. As fun as it seems and as good of a time so many people have said they have had, I know it's not for me. I'm not a concert kind of person. Literally, I NEVER go to concerts. I sure as hell am not going to stand in line for 3 or 4 hours on a cruise to maybe get a seat at one. Plus I still can't get over that price. I could donate $700 to his foundation, buy front row balcony seats for three different concerts that come to town, pay for my own 7 day cruise, and still not be close to $2,400. That's just me though. Different strokes for different folks I guess. :)

 

I'd love to see a review of the One Love cruise too. They're doing Nassau/Atlantis this year instead of the cruise though. That's another one I seriously doubt I'll ever be on, but I'd still like to read a few reviews here. I can't help but wonder if the bars and dance club are open on that one. :o LOL

 

You're right, Kim on the prices. I want to do it...one day...hopefully soon. But I do enjoy concerts. My first concert was at the tender age of 6 or 7. I'm a die hard New Edition fan and my mother made sure I was in attendance anytime they were in town.

 

As for the One Love Gospel cruise, I've heard excellent things about it. Two of my cousin's went one year and had wonderful things to say. And I might add that one of my cousin's can and will find something negative in anything, but she didn't have one complaint. She even won a singing contest and was flown to Atlanta to perform in the choir that was singing with Patti LaBelle for some Gospel event. I may do that one year too. But I may need a new job for that one because it's during report time for me.

 

It seems like you have to call them for information on 2014. The 200+ people that have booked cabins already, must have did so on the ship.

 

Tom explained while on the trip that he chose not to renew the contract basically because of the cost and RCL wanted to lock them into a longer term contact. Carnival "stepped up" in his words but Carnival just doesn't have the type of ships that RCL has in their fleet. Classic case of you get what you pay for. Nothing against Carnival because I've been on other Carnival cruises that were great but not for this type of trip.

 

Thanks for your review Chicago_Traveler. Maybe one of Carnival's newer ships will be used for next year, like the Breeze or the Dream?

 

I've never sailed with Royal, so I can't compare them. But I'm glad you had a great time and thanks for letting us know that Jamie had a "diva" attitude.

[KCCruisin']

Hello all,

 

My husband and I were contemplating taking this cruise, not only for the purpose of donating to a charity, but we felt it would be fun. We aren't concert goers either, but we see a lot of fun with just hanging out and watching!

 

I thought that the Tom Joyner cruise did cruise with Carnival, at least once, when they went out of Galveston. But, it might have been Voyager of the Seas, not sure. But anyway, thanks for the review. OP please keep your thoughts coming.

[Leo's Rule]

Hello all' date='

 

My husband and I were contemplating taking this cruise, not only for the purpose of donating to a charity, but we felt it would be fun. We aren't concert goers either, but we see a lot of fun with just hanging out and watching!

 

I thought that the Tom Joyner cruise did cruise with Carnival, at least once, when they went out of Galveston. But, it might have been Voyager of the Seas, not sure. But anyway, thanks for the review. OP please keep your thoughts coming.[/quote']

 

You know, it could have been on Carnival then, but I think it may have been on Royal. And I so wanted to be on that cruise...especially since I live in Houston, but I couldn't find anyone else who wanted to go.

[KCCruisin']

I hope they go out of Galveston again, that's our home port. Another plus for us would be if one took place during the Summer when I'm off :)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[Cruzinbabe06]

This is a funny comment I had to share.

 

I was driving to work this morning. And was listening to the Tom Joyner show. It was a taped segment and he was talking to Sybil and said Prince was asked to participate in this event.

 

Prince responded back his performances commence 1 million dollars.:eek:

 

Tom Joyner said "ok, thanks, but no thanks. You know what we can do with 1 million dollars? How about send some kids to college."

 

I was cracking up laughing.:D

[atinys]

Yeah ...I was hoping someone would do a review of this cruise....it is definitely on my bucket list.

[maddea20]

Uhm I don't think this person is coming back :D

[Leo's Rule]

Uhm I don't think this person is coming back :D

 

I logged on to see if the OP had come back; you took the words right out of my mouth. It sort of sucks they come on bashing the event, though they did have a good time, but I wanted to hear about the rest of it from their perspective.

 

BTW, bash may be a harsh word, but I only said it because they haven't come back to elaborate. It's like throwing a stone and running. And I will add, that I would have been pissed had I been in their situation and paid for something that I did not receive.

 

And maddea; you're traveling on a great day. A queen was born; me! Have fun traveling on my birthday!!!! :D

[travlngrl1996]

Uhm I don't think this person is coming back :D

 

Sadly, I was thinking the same thing. I was so interested in hearing about this cruise. U hope we are wrong though!

[maddea20]

I logged on to see if the OP had come back; you took the words right out of my mouth. It sort of sucks they come on bashing the event' date=' though they did have a good time, but I wanted to hear about the rest of it from their perspective.

 

BTW, bash may be a harsh word, but I only said it because they haven't come back to elaborate. It's like throwing a stone and running. And I will add, that I would have been pissed had I been in their situation and paid for something that I did not receive.

 

And maddea; you're traveling on a great day. A queen was born; me! Have fun traveling on my birthday!!!! :D[/quote']

 

:D And here I always thought I was the Queen. I'll try to have fun on your and probably millions of others birthdays that day. Thanks. ;)

[Leo's Rule]

:D And here I always thought I was the Queen. I'll try to have fun on your and probably millions of others birthdays that day. Thanks. ;)

 

LOL. You just had to rub it in that I wasn't the only one born on the 28th of July. :eek::p

 

There's room for more Queens. :D

[theucfan]

It seems as though there are two camps for this cruise: Newbies and former Tom Joyner cruisers. Please note that this was my first Tom Joyner cruise.

 

First I will give the negatives, some of which have been previously mentioned.

 

It did stink, that we were not able to leave, and Jamie Foxx had to perform on the deck while we were still at shore. However, we were SO excited to finally be on the cruise, it really didnt matter.

 

The whole VIP access thing was sort of crappy. Now, we didnt pay for the VIP package, but considering the cruise was so expensive, hell everyone should be a VIP, so first come, first serve!

 

I have been on several cruises, and the food was just so-so, Ive definitely had better.

 

They could have done without a few of the late night acts. For example, the 2 am shows, had some folks singing slow music, and it just made you sleepy.

 

Now based on my conversations with folks, that had been on several tom joyner cruises, this one was not good. I didnt have anything to compare it with, so if this was "bad", I wonder what was "good". because this was the bomb, even with the hiccups! Apparently, former cruisers, didnt like this ship, which to me, made absolutely no difference.

 

I was in a cheap cabin, interior quad, with 4 folks. It is imperative to travel with folks you can get along with. I heard more stories, of girls, falling out with each other during the cruise. My girls and I got along great. I thought I would feel claustrophobic being in an interior cabin, but it wasnt bad at all. Hell, we were hardly in the cabin.

 

All of these stories of waiting in lines for hours, just didnt happen to me. We did get to some shows early to get a seat, but we never waited for hours. Heck, there were shows that I missed, because there was so much going on.

 

The crew was awesome. They were just as excited to see the acts and celebs as we were, sneaking pics with their cameras. One night, in the formal dining room, the waitstaff said they had a surprise for us. EVERY one of the staff lined up, the music came on, and they started to Wobble...A whole room full of Indonesians, jamming, and breaking it down. I thought it was nice that they wanted us to feel welcome, and it was so unexpected.

 

As far as seeing the celebrities, some were very accessible, and others, you knew they were on the ship, but they never really mingled. The comedians, were off the chain, hilarious! I love unknow comedians, because they have to keep their material fresh, and they brought their a game.

 

If I had to pick a few of my favorite things: Ludacris beach party was bananas, Frankie Beverly, O Jays, comedy show and I LOVED 70's night, some folks go all out. Heck I was so tired by the time the Earth wind and Fire beach party came, I didnt stay for the whole thing, but the private island was nice.

 

Everyone, should do this once in their life, and its for a worthy cause. I would definitely go back.

Edited April 29, 2013 by theucfan

[mephistoles]

I have always wanted to do a TJMS cruise....maybe one day. I wonder why they moved from RCI to CCL? I remember listening to his show about 2 or 3 years ago and he was complaining about how some of the guests behaved...so badly that he was called to the captain's quarter for a "chat". I'm guessing that he was joking because they were all laughing about it.

[hattack]

For most 8+ million fans of the Tom Joyner Morning Radio Show the Fantastic Voyage is on everyone's "bucket list"..When Tom first started 14 years ago it was him and "Festival At Sea"..These days we can now choose private full music charters featuring the music of Tom's fan base including The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Dave Koz and Friends, The Soul Train Cruise, The Malt Shop Memories Cruise, The Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise and my favorite the Capital Jazz SuperCruise

Tom has yet to figure out the formula of success that moves the Fantastic Voyage from the "bucket list"to the "annual music vacation cruise" that sells out with over 50% annual return guests. IMHO is that the Fantastic Voyage is not perceived as best value for one's dolllar.

All the major cruiselines are in a fierce competitive battle to capture this very lucrative market. That may have something to do with why Tom switched to Carnival. The other challenge is guests perceptions and any promoter's abilty to meet those high expectations (for premium $$$$) given the limitation's of the ship's design . The good news is that the new ships coming off the line are designed to offer more venues that will be able to host more concerts that are perfect for concerts. Also, guests pay a premiun to interact with their favorite artists during the week. There are certain artists that would not be a good fit for a music theme cruise.These private full charters attract a very high % of first time cruisers who are drawn by the artists and the music, not the normal cruise experience. If the music and the weather is great, the food and your cabin type and location is very far down the list. Whether it's the Fantastic Voyage or the others that I listed, once you have gone on one ror the first time it is a 99.9% chance you will never go on a normal cruise again

[Leo's Rule]

For most 8+ million fans of the Tom Joyner Morning Radio Show the Fantastic Voyage is on everyone's "bucket list"..When Tom first started 14 years ago it was him and "Festival At Sea"..These days we can now choose private full music charters featuring the music of Tom's fan base including The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Dave Koz and Friends, The Soul Train Cruise, The Malt Shop Memories Cruise, The Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise and my favorite the Capital Jazz SuperCruise

Tom has yet to figure out the formula of success that moves the Fantastic Voyage from the "bucket list"to the "annual music vacation cruise" that sells out with over 50% annual return guests. IMHO is that the Fantastic Voyage is not perceived as best value for one's dolllar.

All the major cruiselines are in a fierce competitive battle to capture this very lucrative market. That may have something to do with why Tom switched to Carnival. The other challenge is guests perceptions and any promoter's abilty to meet those high expectations (for premium $$$$) given the limitation's of the ship's design . The good news is that the new ships coming off the line are designed to offer more venues that will be able to host more concerts that are perfect for concerts. Also, guests pay a premiun to interact with their favorite artists during the week. There are certain artists that would not be a good fit for a music theme cruise.These private full charters attract a very high % of first time cruisers who are drawn by the artists and the music, not the normal cruise experience. If the music and the weather is great, the food and your cabin type and location is very far down the list. Whether it's the Fantastic Voyage or the others that I listed, once you have gone on one ror the first time it is a 99.9% chance you will never go on a normal cruise again

 

Thank you for sharing your experience. Maybe I need to give them a call tomorrow and find out what ship they'll be on and what port they plan to leave out of next year. We shall see if this cruise is in my future for 2014.

[hattack]

You might make a list of your favorite musicians or idenitfy your favorite musical style (i.e. neo soul, jazz, funk etc.) that you would love to spend a week on a cruiseship with and go to their website and see if their tour schedule includes a full charter cruise...line ups are usually announced a year in advance.

Also if you usually attend summer smooth jazz & soul festivals, there is usually a booth from one of the cruise promoters where you can sign up for a cabin

[Leo's Rule]

You might make a list of your favorite musicians or idenitfy your favorite musical style (i.e. neo soul, jazz, funk etc.) that you would love to spend a week on a cruiseship with and go to their website and see if their tour schedule includes a full charter cruise...line ups are usually announced a year in advance.

Also if you usually attend summer smooth jazz & soul festivals, there is usually a booth from one of the cruise promoters where you can sign up for a cabin

 

I've never attended any festival like that; the Aruba Jazz Fest is still on my bucket list. :D I keep trying to get my favorite R&B artist to charter a cruise; he says he'll think about it, but I don't think it's going to happen.

 

Anyway, I'll find out today the costs and ship.

 

Thanks for the suggestions.

[hattack]

Just curious..who is your favorite R&B artist (s)? One of our ports of call this year on the Capital Jazz SuperCruise is Aruba...I'm excited, the last time I was there was in the 90's for Sinbad's Summer Jam Festival (awesome time!!!! ). You might check out St Lucia's and Grand Cayman's Jazz Festival also.

I noticed that the west coast full charter jazz/soul cruises have a hard time selling out even when they have almost the exact same artists line up as the east coast. I guess the Mexician ports of call are less desireable then the Caribbean. It also means lower prices or last minute deals.

Almost all of the major full charter jazz/soul. music theme cruises open for sale about a year in advance with their line up so you can choose which cruise to select based on who's performing..my favorite Capital Jazz SuperCruise does it differently.

 

You might go to the Capital Jazz website and sign up for their newsletter today. They will be opening for sale within the next 4 weeks their 2014 SuperCruise....they have an early bird ( thru November)special pricing along with several payment options...they will announce the ship and the ports of call now...and announced the artists in November/December...once the artists line up is announced, the prices go up. The SuperCruise is modeled after the Capital Jazz Festival which means the cruise line up will feature a strong combination of jazz,r&b, gospel, comedy, old school, funk, neo soul and lagniappe (i.e. a bonus musical offering that one would not expect to see) performers .

I strongly suggest that you visit all of the websites and view the photos and line ups of this years and past years to gain a sense of what teases your musical palate