Like most fans of music, I constantly find myself counting the days to next time I can experience it live. 11 years ago while attending my first music festival, I realized that the true experience of music is best captured by fully immersing yourself in it.
Until now, I thought the traditional “music festival” was the best way imaginable to fully submerge yourself in the music and let it take you on a ride. The excitement and build-up, the artist announcement, the set time reveal and all the incredible media that increases the hype. Its magic.
Finally, rave day comes and those last few moments slip away as you enter the gates and your playground awaits you. Dancing, smiling faces, food, friends, art, sound, lasers. The feeling is palpable. For many of us, it is home.
In comes Groove Cruise. Before 2016 I’d never taken a cruise before, let alone think of it as something that could compare to the music festivals I revere so much, and choose to spend all my money on. The thought of combining dance music and a music festival into a cruise was exciting to say the least, but I didn’t have a clue what was in store for me.
As a writer, blogger, communicator and storyteller, Groove Cruise Cabo taught me a very important lesson about the words we choose to explain something. For that reason, I’ve determined that Groove Cruise (Cabo) is more than just a music festival. Calling it a music festival just doesn’t give it justice for what it truly is.
Groove Cruise is a fully immersive music expedition. I really can’t think of a better way to explain it.
The dictionary defines ‘expedition’ as “a journey or voyage undertaken by a group of people with a particular purpose, especially that of exploration, scientific research, or war.”
Sounds about right to me. Exploration of new music and new places, scientific research of new relationships and how new experiences reinforce them for a lifetime, and finally war on your beliefs and dispositions of how to best experience life.
Watch the Livestream Read of this Article by thatDROP Founder & CEO, Brett Napoli
The Music
This is a no-brainer. A meticulously curated lineup of house music superstars spanned 120 hours of continuous music. Artists like Dubfire, SNBRN, Robin Shulz, Croatia Squad, EDX, Chocolate Puma, Lee Foss, Klingande and more graced the ships multiple stages and environments. At any time of the day you could experience a world-class set in different locations on the ship. Each location filled with anywhere from a few dozen to a few hundred of your new friends. All raging, having the time of their life and not ashamed to show it.
The Quality of Life
The ability to sleep, eat, drink, relax, dance, swim and explore was literally steps away at any moment. No long walks back to your tent, no cold showers, no late night fast food and retreat to the hotel. Everything you could possibly need was at your fingertips, and it was higher quality then you’d ever expect at a music festival.
The freedom to experience this event on your own terms made it that much more interesting. You never really felt like you were missing out on something, you just submerged yourself in the fun whenever felt right to you.
The Staff
Whet Travel and Norwegian Cruise Lines absolutely crushed it. No other way to say it. Every single component of the trip was thoughtfully crafted and maintained. The quality of the ship, the quality of the food, the cleanliness of the environment, the attitudes and kindness of the staff were all above and beyond what I could have expected. Absolute flawless execution.
For Whet Travel (the organizers of Groove Cruise), this isn’t their first rodeo. They conduct a variety of Cruise and Travel Music Events throughout the year and they’ve done 13 Groove Cruises. And boy does it show. The helpful employees were anywhere you needed them; answering questions, having fun and always with a smiling face. Jason and Rafi were seen constantly throughout the trip, sharing laughs and smiles with friends then quietly disappearing to run the show. A huge thanks is deserved by all of the Whet Travel staff for being so damn good at what they do.
The Destination
Cabo was gorgeous. Crystal clear blue water, beautiful beaches and scenery, friendly locals, delicious food and drinks on the beach and an elegant, beachside Mexican town with foreign flavor, but the comforts and safety of home. Don’t even get me started on ME Cabo.
ME Cabo was the day club/pool party for our only full day in Cabo. This place was everything you could want a pool party to be. Hundreds of beautiful people having fun, a beachfront pool/club/restaurant with the beautiful ocean in the distance and our cruise ship posted up just offshore. A swim-up bar in the center of the pool, a stage with its back to the ocean, palm trees and grassy lounge areas, delicious food and cocktails and a world class soundtrack.
The Friendships
Happy people, nice people, friendly people, loving people. Talk about easy to open a conversation with a person who you’re pretty much guaranteed to like. This ship, much like Groove Cruise Miami, was filled of fun, happy people that wanted nothing more than to share the time of their life with their closest friends, while in a sea of smiling faces they just haven’t met yet.
In Conclusion
Groove Cruise Cabo was a fully immersive music expedition, something which really has no comparison. This unique experience allows you to fully immerse yourself in your love of music and everything that comes with it. Great music, delicious food and drink, happy people, new destinations and travel, intimate musical journeys and the freedom from all that could encumber you from having anything less than the time of your life.
I can’t express how much this experience reinforced how music festivals aren’t something we grow out of. Like most things in life it is just something that requires a renewed perspective in order for us to fall further in love with it.
I whole heartedly encourage you to round up your friends and loved ones and sign yourself for Groove Cruise Miami or Groove Cruise West Coast in 2017. As it did for me and so many others, it will remind you why you love music, why you love music festivals, and it will guarantee to make you pat yourself on the back for making such a great decision on how to spend these few days on Earth.
For More on Groove Cruise:
- 20 Photos That Capture the Magic of Groove Cruise Cabo
- Groove Cruise Cabo Will Be the World’s Longest Electronic Floating Festival
- The Groove Cruise Miami 2016 Aftermovie
- 8 Life Lessons I Learned As A Groove Cruise Virgin
- Everything tagged “Groove Cruise” on thatDROP.com
Photos Courtesy of Groove Cruise
