Peace, Love & THE SOUL TRAIN CRUISE

I just wanted to stop by and let those of you old schoolers, who like me watched Soul Train every week; that Time Life and Entertainment Cruise Productions (ECP) will be launching the Soul Train Cruise in 2013.

It will be a full charter on HAL Westerdam Feb. 17-24, 2013. The ports are Turks & Caicos, San Juan, St. Thomas & Half Moon Cay. The line up that is booked so far is amazing and other might be added. Scheduled now are Patti LaBelle, The O’Jays, Kool & The Gang, Jeffrey Osborne, The Spinners, WAR, Russell Tompkins Jr & The New Stylistics, Harold Melvin’s Bluenotes, The Delfonics, and The Intruders, and George Duke is the Music Director. No word on the Soul Train Dancers, there might even be a Don Cornelius sighting.

ECP is the same group that puts together The Smooth Jazz Cruise and other music theme cruises & festivals. I’ve done several Smooth Jazz cruises with them and have always had a great time and no issues (all of the shows were held & started close to on time). The website is scheduled to be up 11/15 with booking starting then.

I’m looking forward to a week of Old School R&B. This should be a lot of FUN or as Don would say “A STONE GAS”. Let's get the dance line going.

we are planning on being on it..I will start practicing for the Soul Train Scramble Board

Where can we find more information about this? I am soooo interested in doing this.

Just google it in about a week the website will be up and running...this cruise will sell out quickly

Hattack it's good to hear that after all of the music cruises we have been on that we're going on the same one. Looking forward to a great week of some old school R&B.

You're right about googling the soul train cruise to find info. ECP should have the official booking website up next week, but right now you will find at least 3 travel agents talking about and taking names for the cruise already. Hattack is right when the official site comes online there is going to be a flood of bookings and cabiuns will be going fast. KenyaCruise I recommend you check often and book early.

Looking forward to sailing with you both.

Greg...looking forward to meeting you onboard...just returned from the Capital Jazz SuperCruise 5 onboard the Carnival Valor and it was great...we have already booked for #6 on the Carnival Freedom (lineup TBA Dec 1st)

The combination of EEC teaming up with Time Life and Don Cornelius Productions will make this offering in great demand...I suspect that we will see a major promo on The Soul Train Awards Program on Sunday night Nov 27th, which will cause a major booking spike the following week

If I were Tom Joyner and his Fantastic Voyage staff I would be very concerned

We are also waiting for Dave Koz to make his announcement for his 2013 offering..if he sails out of Venice, I am so there..my friends who were on his Alaska cruise said it was awesome

My "bucket list" would include one week on The Smooth Jazz Cruise, followed by one week on The Jazz Cruise, followed by one week on the Malt Shop Memories Cruise, followed by The Soul Train Cruise followed by a visit to the Poor House

Hattack those are some nice bucket list items. I wouldn't mind punching all of those cruise tickets myself. I agree thatit would also put a bite on the wallet also, but I guess you can't take it with you right.

With the Soul Train Awards airing tonight, I'd imagine that they would allow ECP to launch the website for booking after the show officially announces the cruise.

I agree with that Joyner has to take notice and probably step up his game. Bottom line though is we will have an additional choice for an R&B cruise and the competition should be good for the passengers

Dave Koz announced his 2013 offering departing from Rome in Sept 2013 on the Navigator of the Seas....he is really stepping up his game....artists include Michael McDonald and Gerald Albright....warrants serious consideration...Venice and Milan are short 3 hour train trips away for a great pre/post cruise side trip

It is very clear that the full charter music cruise offerings attract music lovers who are not cruisers to sail....the question is whether there is a carry over to regular sailings. After sailing on a full charter music cruise, a regular cruise would be very boring for me

The Capital Jazz SuperCruise 6 will announce its talent line up on Thursday Dec 1st...very excited to see who will be performing next year

The Koz cruise sounds great and Capital always has solid talent, unfortunately in the Fall I have a little part-time gig officiating college football and I just can't get away. One day I will let it go an then it's just a matter of moving around work.

Also wanted to let everyone know that the website is open and the booking process has started for the Soul Train Cruise. Site is easy to find, just add a www before Soul Train Cruise and a dot com after and you're there.

I think cabins will go fast so check it out soon.

Greg...how is the seating process based upon type of cabin booked,time of booking and past smooth jazz cruises working out...

At this time, I am leaning on just doing 2013 Koz out Rome which should empty out my piggy bank

This is the first time of heard of them using this type of seating process. I'll reserve final judgements until I see it in action and get feedback.

I can say that over the years I have seen the random issues arise from people saving any where from 3-4 seats to up to an entire row. I've seen people miss a good portion of their cruise because they line up every day 2-3 hours or more before the venue opens, just to be the first one in the door & get in the front row. There are also those who line up early just to get the same seat every night. So part of me understands that they are trying to eliminate the lining up 3 hours early, the mad rush for the front row and all of the issues around saving seats. For me its not that serious. We show up at show time and have always found great seats (most often floor seats) with no problem, and last year there was 6 of us.

It will be interesting with groups that aren't in the same cabin category, I guess they can't sit together at the main shows. Will it create a passenger rift, with only certain cabins allowed floor seats.

We don't have this process on the Smooth Jazz Cruise for '12 or '13. I guess we'll have to wait and see for '14.

Hattack I was hoping you were going to be on this cruise and we would get to meet, but I'm not mad at you for picking the Koz cruise. It should be great.

Like you, never had a problem about seat location....plus there is not really a bad seat in the house...my son gave me a nikon D3100 camera with a 70-300 zoom lens that take incredible pictures without a flash, so I am set....plus my experience on the capital jazz supercruise is that folks sit in the same general area every evening so it really has not been an issue

Since supercruise 6 is oct 20-28,2012 it is just too short a turnaround for a feb 2013 cruise from an expense perspective....i have not been to greece since 2002, so I am long overdue plus Koz is a class act and my cabin mate is a world class shopper so a side post cruise trip to milan and venice is currently under discussion...plus late sep the weather should still be nice, plus no throngs of tourist, plus the famous nude beaches in mykonos, might be a factor (lol) in my selection process..the fact that Koz chartered the Navigator Of The Seas which holds 3800+ speaks volumes to his popularity..i am sure when he completes his line up it will be awesome..however my fondness memory of my freshman year at college was watching soul train in the dorm lounge and then going to the off campus bar at night and doing the soul train line....oh well

Capital Jazz SuperCruise 6 just posted one half of their line up for next October on the Carnival Freedom 8 days (Oct 20 thru 28th) out of FLL going to St. Marteen, St. Lucia, Antigua..with 4 full days at sea it should be an awesome 8 days/night of incredible music

Will Downing, Boney James, The Brand New Heavies, Gerald Albright, Earl Klugh, Oleta Adams, Dwele, Ken Ford, Nnenna Freelon, Kim Waters, Marcus Johnson, Shilts (former Down To The Bone sax man), Frank Mccomb, The Three Mo' Tenors (opera at sea), George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic

and that's just 1/2 of the line up..more to come

Hello Gentlemen.

AZGreg I will see you on the Soul Train Cruise I was trying to convince Hattack to come. We met on Capital Jazz V Cruise. I was looking at the thread funny Hattack great minds think alike. For 2014 I was going to surprise my husband with one week on Smooth JazzCruise followed by one week on Jazz Cruise

Do you have a sister you could introduce me to, so she can treat me to the same surprise as you are thinking about for your hubby?....lol......My Mom and I were on The Norway in the 1990's on The Jazz Cruise which featured an AFI tribute to the jazz artists of the 1930 & 1940's and hung out with the great Cab Calloway

It was awesome

My sister is 17. Please I'm trying to get a travel companion like you! I picked the SA category for the Soul Train cruise. I love suite life!

Well it seems the party is getting started a poster began a Roll Call Thread.

This crise is going to be a party indeed!:D

Evening Soul Train Cruisers! Hope everyone has a happy Easter!:)

May 31 is the new date. Hope the savings will allow more people to book. Don't forget to join the Roll Call once your booked.

20 of 27 room categories are now sold out!

Early bird rates end 5/31 but will the boat be sold out before the end of the month? Please book and join the roll call. See you there.

Hurry Cruisers

Get on board we are down to 3 cabin categories! Hope to see you there!

Only SS and SY staterooms available! Early bird rates continue through until 5/31...hope to see you there.

With just days left and 2 cabin categories left, I hope you get on board!