Tom Joyner Fantastic Voyage Cruise 2013 Review

Hopefully my review will help others in deciding whether this cruise is for you. Its lengthy, so I'll have to put my review into parts.

This was my first time on the Tom Joyner Cruise. I have been listening to Tom Joyner Radio for close to 15 years and consider myself a regular listener.

My wife and I are graduates of HBCUs and we figured this would be a great way to give back. And as Tom puts it.."Party with a purpose!" However, there is really only two words that best describes this years cruise...DISORGANIZED and to SMALL for the events planned.

Part 1

For this voyage, you could purchase any of the following packages in addition to the cost of your stateroom. The first being the highest in price and none of which were cheap.

1) VIP access. According to the website this package included guaranteed front row seating to the two main island concerts. JamieFoxx/Ludacris & Earth Wind and Fire. People with this package had orange/pink wrist bands.

2) Club access. This package included preferred seating for two intimate club room concerts on the cruise ship. People with this package had black/white checkerboard wrist bands.

3) Taste of Carnival. This package allowed you to have option to taste 5 different foods (eg. Italian, Carribean, etc) I have no idea what wristband color these were. I didn't meet anyone who got this package. I would love to hear the experience for anyone who did purchase this package.

We choice to add club access to our package since we were more interested in having preferred seating for the intimate setting concerts on the boat. Boy was this a mistake. First off the Tom Joyner staff was completely disorganized and unfamiliar with their own packages. We arrived for Tuesday nights concert featuring Mike Phillip/Avant 30 minutes before show as noted on our club access paperwork, only to be told that there were no more seats and that it was first-come first-serve. Unlike most events where you have separate lines for VIP/preferred seating, they had one line for everyone. Since we didn't get in line TWO hours before the show like others had done, we were out of luck. When we voiced our complaint to the Tom Joyner staff, they themselves could not dispute the problem, but could only tell us to try and find one of their staff members(can't remember his name) before the next nights show and they would insure we could get in. So now we needed to allow extra time for hunting down one out of a hundred staff members on this huge boat? Yeah, right. We quickly learned that our checkerboard wrist bands and the amount we paid for them would mean nothing on this cruise. We never did receive any preferred seating for any event on this cruise, despite paying extra for it. We got in line just like everyone else and hoped there were seats available when we got in.

There were similar stories for people who paid even more than we did for VIP access. From what I've heard, many did not get VIP access to much of anything. Only those who were willing to stand in line up to two hours before an event were guaranteed preferred seating because they were first in line. IF you plan to do this cruise in the future, DO NOT PURCHASE any special access packages. Its a ripoff. Trust me on that one. Save that extra $500-800 bucks for something else.

More review to come.....

Thanks for posting. I went to an HBCU (but left after 1 yr for a more traditional college) and was interested in booking this cruise some time in the future. I really appreciate hearing your feedback! So far this does not sound like it's going to be a good story though ;)

Thanks for posting, I too have listened to TJMS for several years and thought about going on this cruise-but the pricing has kept me from booking :eek:.

Looking forward to hearing more.....

Happy Sailing!!!

Yay! So glad you're doing a review. This cruise has came up as a possibility for a fam/friends cruise next year. It already sounds like a bad idea. Can't wait for more.

Wow! :eek:

Thanks for sharing this information, and I'm looking forward to the rest of your review. I've always wanted to go on a Tom Joyner cruise, but the price kept me from going. This cruise is already expensive without any special access packages. I would be very upset about this. I'm sorry you had to experience that. Hopefully, you still enjoyed your vacation.

I am also a really big Tom Joyner fan and i have this cruise on my bucket list(LOL).I have heard about the thousands of people cruising and often woundered why not a mega ship for this mega event. I truly hope to go in the very near future and hope they iron out the issues. I will not be buying any extras Thank you for insight!!

You didn't get what you paid for. I'd dispute the charge with your credit card company or follow up. That's a lot of money! They were in the wrong and should refund your money. You can't be the only ones this happened to?

I'm also interested in your perspective of the Tom Joyner Cruise. I have heard only good things about this cruise and always wanted to take one. As someone mentioned before, the price has kept me from going, but one day...;)

I am also a really big Tom Joyner fan and i have this cruise on my bucket list(LOL).I have heard about the thousands of people cruising and often woundered why not a mega ship for this mega event. I truly hope to go in the very near future and hope they iron out the issues. I will not be buying any extras Thank you for insight!!

I personally do not listen to his radio show, but I do know that in the past, this cruise sailed with RCI. Not sure when that changed. I have never had a desire to go on this cruise, even when I listened to his show many years ago.

Well Dang!!!!!!!!! I didnt know it was a Carnival Ship that he did it on.. I was listening the 1st day (well a clip) and they were talking about jamie Foxx not being able to Go on the Cruise now, but he got down with some Special Guest b 4 the ship left the Port.. I cant wait to read this.. I have Always wanted to go on one with them..

But Now Im Torned in between Steve Harvey Show in VEGAS baby.. Hoodie Awards (well they change the nake now) But Im really Proud they both are doig the damm thing :)

Thanks again for taking time out to do this Review.. Hope to c some pix :)

I didn't realize they had it early or switched ships:rolleyes:

This is the first year that they have sailed with Carnival. They previously used RCCL as indicated from other posters. This is also the first year of doing it in April.

Wow. I don't know anyone that's ever been on the Tom Joyner cruise, so I'm looking forward to reading the rest. I've never really had a desire to go, but I know they get hyped up so much and seem like a lot of fun. I'm assuming they chartered the entire ship, right? I went to their website to see which ship you all were on (Carnival Glory). I think the first red flag for me might be that they have Private Island listed on the itinerary instead of Half Moon Cay. I know most people haven't heard of HMC and they likely did that so people wouldn't be asking where the heck is that, but still, as a formality on their website, I think it should have been listed. And good grief those prices! $2,400 per person for an interior on the riviera deck! YIKES!!!!:eek: You have every right to be upset about the wristband issue. I would for sure be writing a letter to him or someone up his chain to complain. Very interesting review. Please post more soon.

Well Dang!!!!!!!!! I didnt know it was a Carnival Ship that he did it on.. I was listening the 1st day (well a clip) and they were talking about jamie Foxx not being able to Go on the Cruise now, but he got down with some Special Guest b 4 the ship left the Port.. I cant wait to read this.. I have Always wanted to go on one with them..

 

But Now Im Torned in between Steve Harvey Show in VEGAS baby.. Hoodie Awards (well they change the nake now) But Im really Proud they both are doig the damm thing :)

 

Thanks again for taking time out to do this Review.. Hope to c some pix :)

Shatima - I have done the "neighborhood awards" a few years and had a very good time. If you go, definitely stay at The Hotel. Less crowded and beautiful suites.

I have a friend who was on this cruise. I'll have to see how her experience was. She goes every year, I think.

She's not on CC, so I'll just share her general impression.

Nice job ....

Cannot wait to hear the rest of this review! I've seen so many pics and I was wondering about the cost and wishing I had booked! Thank you for sharing your review so far.

Man, I wanted to do one of those but those prices were a bit steep for me. I'm looking forward to reading more of your review, as it sounds now, I can nix this sailing off my to do list. I'll wait to read more before doing so.

Wow, that's a crazy price and I definitely want to hear more about the cruise as a whole. I would dispute the charge for the club wristband. That's a lot of money. I used to listen to TJMS every morning for years.

I would love to do this cruise one day.

I've heard nothing but good things about it. And, yes this is the first year they sailed on Carnival. Wonder why they jumped cruise lines?

That's a very large event to keep organized. You feel duped when you pay extra money for something and you didn't receive it. I really hope in all you had a good time.

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

Looking forward to hearing about this cruise since this is not mentioned much on the boards. Especially on the Carnival Board.

Thanks for posting! I'm not a TJ fan but listen to his show occassionally. I was tempted to take the cruise this year because I'm an Earth, Wind & Fire fan, but the price shut that notion down really quick.

Bottom line is you didn't get what you paid for, though. I'd dispute the charge on my credit card, report it to the Better Business Bureau and the Attorney General's office, for starters. $500-$800 is a lot of money (for me, anyway) to give away and at the very least, you deserve a reimbursement for services you didn't receive. No way in blazes should you, as the customer, have to go find a staff member to fix problems they should be handling.

I'm looking forward to reading more.

Shatima - I have done the "neighborhood awards" a few years and had a very good time. If you go, definitely stay at The Hotel. Less crowded and beautiful suites.

I am not a huge TJ supporter but do you all realized that this cruise is a charity event hence the inflated prices. I also don't like confusion and unfilled promises but seriously disputing a charge with the CC company for a charity event is a bit harsh.

Writing a letter to the foundation would be a better route.

I'm also glad to see this review. I've always wanted to enjoy the ship board entertainment on the Tom Joyner cruises but the cost always kept me away!:eek: It truly is a great benefit for the colleges/universities which are supported by the TJMS yearly cruises. I would also like to know why this year's cruise was with CCL and not RCI. Can't wait to read the rest of your review!!

I am not a huge TJ supporter but do you all realized that this cruise is a charity event hence the inflated prices. I also don't like confusion and unfilled promises but seriously disputing a charge with the CC company for a charity event is a bit harsh.

 

Writing a letter to the foundation would be a better route.

I get what you're saying, but is it okay for a charity to collect money and not render services promised simply because it's a charity? Eventually that line of thinking is going to cost them and they may not get all the support they desire because of a bad rep.

I could be wrong, but I can totally see the foundation saying they didn't organize the cruise, the TJS did and that's who they should talk to. But I agree a letter to the foundation (and "cc-ing" them on any other correspondence you send out regarding this situation) is appropriate.