JOCO Group booked on my sailing

[Want2Cruise 701]

I was just looking through some newly added excursions and one said "only available to those booked in the JOCO Group".

 

I did a google search and there is a JOCO Group cruise but in February on the Freedom. We are the May 28 Oasis.

 

Don't know if this is the same group or something totally different. If it's the same it states they are a "nerd group". I've never sailed a group cruise so just wondering what to expect.

[novicetraveller]

Maybe it will be removed shortly after the Feb sailing?

[Beardface]

I did a google search and there is a JOCO Group cruise but in February on the Freedom.

 

Holy dear lord, I almost crapped myself when I read this, and had to look it up. The JOCO cruise is February 21-28 on Freedom. I am booked February 28-March 6. PHEW.

 

Group cruises are just that, a cruise where the main focus on the trip by the staff will be to those in the group, especially if its a large cruise. Events and venues will be available to only those in the group, so good chance you won't be able to use places like the ice rink, main stage, Viking Crown, On Air, Aquatheater (for Oasis class), etc at various times throughout the trip.

 

It does annoy me greatly that RCL doesn't advertise when there is a large group booking during a given week. I would feel completely ripped off if I had made final payment or stepped onto the ship only to find out there is a large group booking on the trip that will supersede anything you're looking to do.

[Want2Cruise 701]

Maybe it will be removed shortly after the Feb sailing?

 

Hopefully this is a mistake of Royal's wonderful IT dept.

[novicetraveller]

Hopefully this is a mistake of Royal's wonderful IT dept.

Not necessarily a mistake but more a limitation in order to avoid creating duplicated entries on the RCI system / database for a given port. Is it lazy IT way of doing things? Maybe.

[Want2Cruise 701]

Holy dear lord, I almost crapped myself when I read this, and had to look it up. The JOCO cruise is February 21-28 on Freedom. I am booked February 28-March 6. PHEW.

 

Group cruises are just that, a cruise where the main focus on the trip by the staff will be to those in the group, especially if its a large cruise. Events and venues will be available to only those in the group, so good chance you won't be able to use places like the ice rink, main stage, Viking Crown, On Air, Aquatheater (for Oasis class), etc at various times throughout the trip.

 

It does annoy me greatly that RCL doesn't advertise when there is a large group booking during a given week. I would feel completely ripped off if I had made final payment or stepped onto the ship only to find out there is a large group booking on the trip that will supersede anything you're looking to do.

 

You make it sound like having a group on your cruise is not a positive thing. If there is a group on our cruise, we can't cancel. We can but it will have to be to the NCL Escape. We need a ship that docks in St. Thomas on the 31st.

[drhall]

My honeymoon cruise on Indy was accompanied by the World Poker Tournament group. About 500 people sailing for that cause.

 

They had access to a couple of specific venues at certain times...usually non peak hours. Beyond seeing their logos on various items (bags, bottles, signs, etc...), it was as if they weren't even there.

 

However, our ORIGINAL NCL honeymoon cruise got chartered by a heavy metal concert tour (Slayer, Pantera, etc...). My musical taste is diverse, but I think I would have much rather sailed with the poker players instead of the metal heads.

 

Would I sail with another group again? Very likely.

 

That was my experience. Your results may vary. :)

[danp]

Who is JOCO?

[Firefighterhoop]

Usually groups aren't necessarily a bad thing. They have areas reserved for special events but usually don't effect guests that aren't part of that group.

 

I was just on the Independence last weekend and there was a group of 1300, and the only way you knew there was a group on board was that they had nametags and door decorations. I think they had the Deck 5 Lounge reserved a few times, but that was about it.

[Beardface]

You make it sound like having a group on your cruise is not a positive thing. If there is a group on our cruise, we can't cancel. We can but it will have to be to the NCL Escape. We need a ship that docks in St. Thomas on the 31st.

 

It depends on the size of the group. If the group is small, they will mostly stay out of the way, but if the group gets large (25%-50% of the passengers) you're going to start seeing your options becoming limited.

[Want2Cruise 701]

Is there any way to find out if this particular group is in fact on my cruise. As I said, a google search just shows them on the Freedom for February 21 not the Oasis for May 28.

[besberry]

Usually groups aren't necessarily a bad thing. They have areas reserved for special events but usually don't effect guests that aren't part of that group.

 

 

We had a group of Canadian Auto Traders on my last cruise (Anthem) They block booked tables in all four restaurants, but didn't necessarily use all of them. That caused a few problems. There were also times when they used the solarium for an event and the rest of the passengers were thrown out.

[Beardface]

Is there any way to find out if this particular group is in fact on my cruise. As I said, a google search just shows them on the Freedom for February 21 not the Oasis for May 28.

 

Google search shows nothing. Did a search for "JoCo May 28" and it just brings up a bunch of county fair events. I think you're in the clear.

[cb at sea]

I wouldn't worry at all... a group of "nerds" (if that's what it is!) will cause you no issues whatsoever.

There are groups on EVERY cruise....99% of the time, you won't even know there are groups onboard.

Groups deemed to be "offensive" to most will do a full charter of the ship, so it's only that group sailing.

[cruisinfanatic]

Who is JOCO?

Read some of my Indy 2015 cruise review

[setsail]

Why are you worried about a cruise that has not happened. The O class and freedom class sail with groups all the time, it's not a big deal at all unless you believe everything you read on cc. It's just paying passengers

Edited January 14, 2016 by setsail

[Aerorea]

The JoCo Cruise group is only on the Freedom February sailing. The sailings are announced about a year in advance. Your Oasis cruise is "safe." Seeing the JoCo only excursions (usually the same as regular excursions, just with a time assigned so the group members can stick together) is an error on RC's part.

 

JoCo refers to musician Jonathan Coulton. The cruise is jokingly referred to as "nerd boat" and we have our own entertainers that we bring - musicians, comedians, authors, Internet personalities, etc. The size is ~900 last I heard. We take over the 2nd floor conference center and have 24-hr gaming. We have scheduled shows in Studio B and the main theater in the afternoons and late evenings when regular entertainment isn't scheduled. There's also a movie night on the pool deck (and hey, if you like what we are watching, you are free to stay - they announce that before the movie).

 

Overall, there haven't been too many complaints about the JoCo group. The staff seems to love us and we've heard that many request to work our cruise. The group is generally a younger, highly-educated, creative crowd and we tend to stick together (hence, those excursions). The biggest complaint is that we take the main floor and some of the second floor of the main dining room in the first seating. There are also a few impromptu gatherings in bars or other areas.

 

You'll find the casino, shows, and other "regular" cruise events less populated when the JoCo group is aboard. With our own entertainment, gaming, and other events, most of us don't participate in the usual cruise entertainment.

Edited January 14, 2016 by Aerorea

[crusinthrough]

My experience has been that group events are scheduled during the day in venues not being used for other activities. On a ship as large as the Oasis, every room and venue is not being used for ship activities all day. There are plenty of alternate space on the Oasis if one is being used. I would not worry.

[Paul65]

It does annoy me greatly that RCL doesn't advertise when there is a large group booking during a given week. I would feel completely ripped off if I had made final payment or stepped onto the ship only to find out there is a large group booking on the trip that will supersede anything you're looking to do.

 

I would guess that a pretty high percentage of cruises have some sort of group booking involved. About half of my cruises have had some group on board that was big enough to notice that they were there. But in my experience, RCL has always done a good job of managing the group events so that they don't "supersede anything you're looking to do."

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

I was an independent traveler who happened to be on the JoCo cruise on the Independence of the Seas in 2014. This was a very large group, but it did not adversely impact my cruise. In fact, I met some interesting people from the group during open-seating lunch in the dining room.

 

Chuck

[seguincruiser]

I was on a Carnival cruise once with a very large group of Red Hat Ladies. OMG it was so much fun. They looked like grandmas but they sure knew how to have fun. I would gladly book another cruise if I knew this group was on board. The worst experience I had was in Belize where our excursion was mostly LDS and a few not in their group. It was an uncomfortable 9hrs.

[LMKakaThing2]

Holy dear lord, I almost crapped myself when I read this, and had to look it up. The JOCO cruise is February 21-28 on Freedom. I am booked February 28-March 6. PHEW.

 

Group cruises are just that, a cruise where the main focus on the trip by the staff will be to those in the group, especially if its a large cruise. Events and venues will be available to only those in the group, so good chance you won't be able to use places like the ice rink, main stage, Viking Crown, On Air, Aquatheater (for Oasis class), etc at various times throughout the trip.

 

It does annoy me greatly that RCL doesn't advertise when there is a large group booking during a given week. I would feel completely ripped off if I had made final payment or stepped onto the ship only to find out there is a large group booking on the trip that will supersede anything you're looking to do.

 

As someone who had a JOCO group on their Freedom cruise in February 2013, I can tell you that your statement about groups is inaccurate. It was a delight to have them on our cruise especially formal night. Had I not known there was a group prior to my cruise, I would have not known until possibly formal night. Yes, they will wear things on formal night that will make you stop and stare, but it will not distract you. One couple went all out and wore outfits from the 1800s. The crew didn't treat anyone any differently either.

 

For it being a group of 700+ people, you couldn't tell they were a group. I don't even remember seeing any venues shut down either due to them only having access to them. My outgoing family of 6 was probably more noticeable than the 700+ JOCO group...especially the first night!

[njm5378]

We cruised on Liberty while the "Grown and Sexy" group was on board, I read terrible things about experiences with that group and and all of it was inaccurate, in our experience. They had a over 1000 people in their group and it did not affect us adversely in the least. The used places like the theater at 2pm in the afternoon, no impact to others. The had a party in the solarium one evening but welcomed anyone who was looking to have a good time. We met some really great people and would gladly sail with them again. I say take it as it comes and add it all to the experience.

[kccruisecritic]

Hello, I am part of the JoCoCruise group, having traveled on all 5 of the annual sailings. I can second everything that Aerorea previously commented.

 

Thank you to LMKakaThing2 and seacruise9 for your kind words! Our group has attracted a number of "converts" in the past. There have been passengers who are on the same sailing as our group. They encounter a few of us, and the next year, they join our group!

Edited January 14, 2016 by kccruisecritic

[TBone2K]

"What 800 Nerds on a Cruise Ship Taught me About Life":

http://www.wired.com/2014/12/nerd-cruise/