Before the days of Covid – music vacation cruises were more popular than ever and still on the rise. It sounds like a fun idea: spend a few days or a week on a cruise ship with some of your favorite musical artists. Who knows, maybe you’ll bump into them at the bar or, at the very least, see them perform in an intimate venue.
Obviously, 2020 was a wash, but some companies are dipping their toe (sorry for the pun) back into the water for 2021 and 2022.
The always popular KISS Kruise is wait-listing for a scheduled departure on October 29th of this year for a few days with KISS, Ratt, Queensryche, and more to be announced.
In a nod to “these times”, the website offers an “assurance page” which details protocols and cancellation flexibility. Also of note- you get a certain amount of activities with the stars as part of the packages.
Outlaw Country Cruise 6 just announced that Emmylou Harris will headline their event about a year from now, February 25 through March 3, 2022. The cruise will take guests from Miami to Costa Maya, Mexico and Harvest Caye, Belize with legendary Outlaw Country artists and SiriusXM Outlaw Country hosts in tow. The 6-night voyage will include performances and activities from the entire lineup, including Emmylou Harris & The Hot Band, Rodney Crowell, Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle & The Dukes, Old 97’s, Elizabeth Cook, Waco Brothers, Chuck Mead & His Grassy Knoll Boys, Albert Lee, Dale Watson, Jesse Dayton, Supersuckers, Linda Gail Lewis, Los Straitjackets, Sarah Shook & the Disarmers and of course, Mojo Nixon and many more to be announced.
This cruise is also wait-listing folks for now. I think all of these cruises are not totally pre-selling to capacity due to, again, “these uncertain times,” so seeing “sold out” headlines shouldn’t totally discourage you.
Rock Legends Cruise IX still has availability for its February 14, 2022 departure. The announced line-up so far includes: Styx, Blue Oyster Cult, Lita Ford and Warrant, among many others. This one has always been popular – it seems like a good fit between the music lineup and the demographic of folks who have the time and money for this kind of vacation.
January 22, 2022 is the scheduled date for the Soul Train Cruise which has booked some amazing classic R&B acts, such as The Whispers, After 7, Freddie Jackson, Patti LaBelle, and Charlie Wilson, for a start.
And the Blues Cruise has rescheduled 2020’s cancelled cruise for this coming October, 2021. Taj Mahal, Keb Mo, Charlie Musselwhite, Elvin Bishop and Ruthie Foster are among the acts.
Have you ever been on one of these things? Can you recommend or warn against? And then there’s this question: will you feel safe enough to go, if things happen as currently scheduled?
