Capital Jazz Supercruise 2012

[hattack]

feel free to edit the survey...I know for a fact they incorporate the survey information into their planning process..they will also survey 72 hours after we return from our cruise to gather feedback from the experience while it is still fresh in everyone's mind

 

I suspect they had some major technical glitches in their billing upgrade system which took time to fix.

 

Incredible line up for the Capital Jazz Festival this year. I was planning on coming but decided to use the funds to send a friend's 10 year old daughter to Space Camp this summer. Also the 2013 edition of SuperCruise 7 will be opened for sale in April, so I will put down my deposit then and hope that some of the performers at this year's Festival will be on next years SuperCruise

[mrsbuddha123]

feel free to edit the survey...I know for a fact they incorporate the survey information into their planning process..they will also survey 72 hours after we return from our cruise to gather feedback from the experience while it is still fresh in everyone's mind

 

I suspect they had some major technical glitches in their billing upgrade system which took time to fix.

 

Incredible line up for the Capital Jazz Festival this year. I was planning on coming but decided to use the funds to send a friend's 10 year old daughter to Space Camp this summer. Also the 2013 edition of SuperCruise 7 will be opened for sale in April, so I will put down my deposit then and hope that some of the performers at this year's Festival will be on next years SuperCruise

 

Attending Capital Jazz fest only doing Pavillion seating for Anita Baker the other days I'll hang out on the lawn. Also doing Berk's Jazz fest this month.

Thanks for always sharing information Hattack has a wealth of information and resources.

I'm seriously considering b2b SJC and TJC Jan 2014. Skipping Capital Jazz cruise this year we may return next year. My husband loved it!

[hattack]

Good choice..you do know the same folks that do The Smooth Jazz Cruise and The Jazz Cruise are producing The Soul Train Cruise and The Malt Shop Memories Cruise so you can do b2b2b2b

 

I LOVE Berks Smooth Jazz Festival...This year I am doing SeaBreeze Jazz Festival and of course our own New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival..next year will plan on doing The Playboy Jazz Festival in June and Ascona Jazz Festival in July in Switzerland

 

I will get both you and your hubby Capital Jazz SuperCruise teeshirts....sorry I will miss you guys at the Festival but my favorite "wing person" Tiara is soooooooo excited about attending Space Camp this summer and flying a space module so tell Ms. Anita Baker, I said "hi" and when is she coming out with some new music

[mrsbuddha123]

Good choice..you do know the same folks that do The Smooth Jazz Cruise and The Jazz Cruise are producing The Soul Train Cruise and The Malt Shop Memories Cruise so you can do b2b2b2b

 

I LOVE Berks Smooth Jazz Festival...This year I am doing SeaBreeze Jazz Festival and of course our own New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival..next year will plan on doing The Playboy Jazz Festival in June and Ascona Jazz Festival in July in Switzerland

 

I will get both you and your hubby Capital Jazz SuperCruise teeshirts....sorry I will miss you guys at the Festival but my favorite "wing person" Tiara is soooooooo excited about attending Space Camp this summer and flying a space module so tell Ms. Anita Baker, I said "hi" and when is she coming out with some new music

 

I was born in '68 Buddha in '69 so the Malt Shop doesn't really appeal to us. Yes I know it is one production company. I will not repeat Soul Train truthfully I booked for the Don experience and sadly he will not be there. I started to cancel but I will go to honor his memory. We have seen all of the artists at one venue or another here in NY.

 

I wanted to attend the SeaBreeze Festival the hotel and tickets are cheap getting to Florida not as cheap. Besides I have to attend a Quality Management Conference in Atlanta that weekend. Yes please get me a t-shirt. Youngest daughter is starting HS in Sept tuition is $8200 more like $8500 with the uniforms. So that is 2 in college her HS tuition and a new grandbaby due in August. That makes a total of 3 Jazmin age 7 (Krystal's daughter) Jessenia age 5mo (Jessica's daughter) and Krystal is expecting again.

 

As for Ms Baker we saw her at the Essence Music Fest in your dear NOLA in 2009. She said she was raising her children and performing again was a blessing.

[Ms411]

And how do I edit the survey???? Sigh. They should have made that clear in the original survey. I'm doing them a favor by giving them ideas, so they should make it easy for me to submit them IMO.

 

If it weren't for Chrisette's "Blame It On Me" which gives every woman an anthem for relationships they want to escape, I would be putting my reservation on ebay. I love that song! "Say I'm a liar, a cheat, say anything that you want. Blame it on me." Just let me outta here! That one artist sold it for me.:D

[hattack]

Just click on the survey again and change the one area that you were concerned about...as the cruise gets closer you will get more excited

 

I bet you will enjoy yourself once you are onboard

[Ms411]

Here's the link for their program.

 

http://www.curacaonorthseajazz.com/en/festival/news/more-names-sergio-george-all-star-salsa-friends/

[Ms411]

We finally got an invoice, and it's WRONG. I truly don't see how I can have a good time supporting a company that provides such poor service. It's been a nightmare from my first call, but my friend wants to go, so unless she backs out, I'm stuck. I just might start going to church and praying that she does.

[hattack]

I have not received our invoice yet.....when did you receive yours?

[Ms411]

Sunday morning. Mar 25, 2012.

 

I sent two emails telling them it was wrong. One to billing@capitaljazz.com and another to, I think, cruiseinfo@capitaljazz.com. The second email address is one they told us to contact if we had questions about our reservation (they didn't say who to contact if you had questions about your billing :confused:), so I sent it to both. I got an auto response from the billing address.

[hattack]

Thanks..I'll let you know when I receive mine

[Ms411]

Ha, ha! You mean IF you receive yours????

[Weekendlady]

Look in your junk/spam folder. That is where I found mine.

[hattack]

Thanks...will check my junk mail box on a daily basis

 

The dates for next year's SuperCruise 7 were announced on their Facebook page today....Nov 2-10, 2013...details of ship and ports will be announced next month (April) when it will be open for sale. Onboard artists, if they stick to past cruises, will be named in the fall

[Ms411]

Yawn. I could care less. I would have preferred the New Orleans Jazz cruise to this one, but I was outvoted. Hopefully my friends will come to their senses.

 

Why would I want to even consider another cruise with Capital Jazz when the service is so poor???? Why offer the lowest prices before the current cruise has left port? That means you have to commit before you've even been on one of their cruises.

 

You must have a PR contract with Capital Jazz. 'Fess up!

[hattack]

Sorry...no connection with Capital Jazz..just one of the many satisfied returning customers..I've always received good customer service and when I have had a question or concern, they have addressed it in a timely fashion and the SuperCruise has one of the highest repeat cruiser % in the industry (that's why it sold out 8 months in advance)

 

It's actually a good business model that they use to maintain pricing integrity and value. The "Early Bird Pricing" ensures that the lowest price is guranteed at the "front end" of the process. By purchasing trip insurance, and not having to make your first installment payment until January, when the line up is announced in the fall, you can "recoup" your deposit if you don't like the line up. Once the line up is announced, beginning in Feb., the price goes up every month until the ship is sold out. Also the major competitors (The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Dave Koz and Friends, Soul Train Cruise, Festival At Sea) opens for sale 15-18 months out, so to remain competitive,and capture the market share, Capital Jazz has done the same. Plus, since the cabin cost is higher, it makes it easier to budget your funds to pay for it. I am confident that your pre cruise customer service issues that you are now encountering will be resolved quickly and your onboard experience will want you to be on SuperCruise 7. You would be surprised on how many guests book for next year's cruise while they are onboard this years cruise and discover that many cabin categories are already sold out.

Tom Joyner's Fantastic Voyage is a good example of the opposite business model to Capital Jazz's. The last few years (and especially this year, I have friends who are on it now), they have had problems filling their cabins and have reduced cabin prices at the end by 40-50%. My friends knew this and waited until 6 weeks from sailing to book and saved big$$$$$$$.. Not alot of guests go on The Fantastic Voyage as repeat guests (which is the life line in this business) which speaks to perception of value for their vacation dollar in these tough economic times.

I've been on about 12 full charter music cruises (loved them all), but The SuperCruise, Dave Koz and Friends and Festival At Sea are my favorites and I consider the best value so the folks at Capital Jazz have my loyalty. The new billing system probably has kinks to work out manually, but it will probably make things easier for future cruises. We still have 7 months to resolve billing issues

[Weekendlady]

Hattack:

 

I am in agreement with you. I went on the cruise for the first time last year. I had a few problems with my booking but I was patient and they worked it all out. It was a great time and I can't imagine anything better. The Capital Jazz staff were working so hard on the ship to make sure that everyone had a great time. I tell all my friends and associates that they need to try it at least one time. They will have an unforgettable time.

[Ms411]

Weekendlady,

 

So there've been problems with the billing before? What were the issues and how were they resolved?

 

I don't feel like a valued customer with Capital Jazz. I have a good time almost every week, so they have lots of competition for my entertainment dollars.

[hattack]

Thanks Weekendlady...I think the staff at Capital Jazz devoted to the pre cruise customer service is very small, but do an incredible job. As the booking and collecting of $$$$ become more automated and the number of repeat cruisers continue to expand, it will allow the small staff to focus on resolving the issues that arise with individual bookings especially with first time SuperCruisers. Repeat cruisers with them know that it may take alittle time, but we will have our issues resolved. The onboard Capital Jazz staff during the SuperCruise learn more every year from the challenges presented and listen to the guests concerns, acknowledge the challenge immediately, ,adjust in a day, and then incorporate into their playbook for future cruises so it doesn't happen again. Classic example of this is last year's midnight jam sessions on the Valor. On the previous SuperCruise on the Liberty, the midnight jam sessions were held in the small lounge holding 500 with no problem. On the Valor the first night of the jam session was so popular that folks could not get in. The staff adjusted and moved it to the main showroom that holds 1500. I bet this year all the midnight jam sessions will be scheduled for the main showroom and since it will be packed they will schedule alternative performances in other venues on the ship

The best sales staff that the SuperCruise staff has is it's repeat guests who spread the word and bring our friends the following years. When I wear my SuperCruise teeshirt when I am out, folks always ask me about it and I show them the website on my tablet. The usual first pushback is the price (as compared to a normal cruise) but when I break it down for them they see the real value. Where else can you see 30+ of your favorite artists, multiple times during the course of a week, room, food, visit great islands for that price. The pictures on my tablet and the website seal the deal. Last year my interior cabin was on the same deck as Chante Moore's and she was very gracious to take a pic of us together which I have as my screen saver and tell all my male friends she was my date....lol......as they say in the Visa tv commercial....priceless...

[hattack]

Ms411... I know one of the issues that the old system had was if there were 3-4 guests in a cabin, that each were paying individually, some by credit card, some by check, and if 1 of the guests did not make their monthly payment on time, or the check was return for NSF, it caused an issue. The new system, as I understand it, is better able to track and manage this invoice wise.

 

I know they track challenges (I avoid using the term problems) during the precruise booking process, to see if it is a systematic glitch that many guests experience or an isolated incident. If it's systematic, the staff will change the process to eliminate the issue for future cruisrs. If it's isolated they try to work with their guests. They also review their post cruise feedback(sent by email on the Monday wben you return from your cruise) surveys to identify challenges to fix while it's still red hot in our minds

[Ms411]

hattack, you sound like an evangelist. Maybe I should make you a t-shirt "I Worship at the Cathedral of Capital Jazz Supercruises."

[Weekendlady]

MS411:

 

My problem last year had to do with a couple of my payments not showing up on the first invoice I received. They researched it and found the payments and everything was fine. These problem can happen to anyone for anything, not just the cruise. I guess I am just the type that don't let it get to me. I still had 6 months to get it corrected. I felt as long as it was corrected before I got on that ship I was fine. That little inconvenience was worth it in the long run. I communicated though e-mail. It took them a little bit to get back to me when I first contacted them but once I received a response it was fixed within that same day.

[Ms411]

Thanks, weekendlady. Since our invoices show the payments as a total, I have to calculate to see if all my payments are reflected, and it's confusing because the total is for two of us in the cabin.

 

I like seeing my balance go down, so I always get an invoice when booking a cruise. I was SHOCKED when Capital Jazz didn't supply one. SHOCKED. And when Stephanie tried to "explain" the payment procedure to me over the phone when I made my reservation, she had the total wrong. That's why I wanted an invoice immediately so I could verify my calculations.

 

I would have cancelled then if I hadn't committed with my friend. It just doesn't feel right to me.

[Weekendlady]

It will be fine and you will have a great time. From this point on you will receive an invoice monthly. I am one who keeps track of my payment myself on a spreadsheet so therefore I know how much each person owes and what I have paid. I guess I'm a little obsessed at keeping track. It might be a little of a hassle for you right now but don't let it get you down. You will enjoy it and hopefully you will be able to look at this as just a little inconvenience that didn't make that much of a difference compared to the good time that you had.

[Ms411]

The main reason I'm posting is so that others will know what to expect. The experience starts the minute you make your reservation.

 

I feel like I'm the only one who's obsessed, because everybody else I've talked to seems to be fine with late invoices!