As a first timer attending Groove Cruise as well as being on a cruise in general, I was in for a wild ride. When first arrived, you knew exactly where you're supposed to be, everyone decked out in neon, girls barely clothed, a dance party was forming in the middle of the room because somebody brought a giant speaker. Had no idea what was in store for the next 5 days.
Feeling like you are in Hawaii when you first walk on you are laid with the official Groove Cruise survival guide with the complete schedule of all the set-times and activities that you can partake in. There were cabins being decorated inside and out, people couldn’t wait to start their journey. As a newbie you immediately start to make friends everywhere you turn. There were models on board, veterans, production crew, and most important artists, we were all in this together. For five days it was nothing but trance, house, and techno pumping through all at six locations on the Carnival Victory ship.
There was music pumping through every wall of every single room, even at the buffet which ran at all times which was awesome but wishing the food was just as awesome. Sam Feldt taking on the main pool deck with his beautiful tunes and also being a part of a proposal with everyone cheering and applauding. That was a magical experience to be a part of. For the first night theme was GREEK Mythology The Odyssey. At the theater was Markus Schulz, it was mayhem madness performing an eight-hour set and lucky me the cabin that I was assigned to was right above the theater. While sunrises we danced away to nothing but techno with Umek, Chus + Ceballos, and Boris. By making the journey even more special there was a sunrise wedding, two music lovers joining forces to take on the world together and Dash Berlin being a part of their love story.
Photo provided by: Veranmiky
Tuesday – Neon day, it was intense, starting out on the main pool deck soaking up the sun and sea with Chocolate Puma to Jax Jones. At the back of the ship, there was only techno and house music by favorites Oliver Dollar, Plastik Funk, Saeed Younan, Roger Sanchez, and Cocodrills. Or enjoy some Deep House Yoga on the top deck. If you wanted to get really funky and weird travel to the Club Arctic for Silent Disco with an impressive lineup with artists like Daniel Portman vs Patrick M, Carabetta & Doons vs ALX, and Frey vs Grum. Getting a feel around the ship, shockingly a friend spotted me and instantly was relieved that another friend was onboard. People dressed as Old School Ravers and some people were half naked thanks to The Black Tape Project. As well people just being free spirited with their bodies.
Photo provided by: Veranmiky
Exploring the ship I was approached by these magical people whisking me to follow them into the land of ‘OZ'. There you find a room filled with tapestries hanging from all different directions, chairs, blankets, cushions to sit and relax as you melt away to acid house blares through the speakers. Over at the theater, we would dance the night away with Cosmic Gate, Dash Berlin, and Grum. We were a community, more than that we were a family, we ate, slept, danced with each other for five consecutive days in a row.
Photo provided by: Veranmiky
“This particular party brings people together. It allows us to experience the same euphoric emotions all at once. You will find that everyone emotions all at once. You will find that everyone is the same in heart and spirit once the first beat drops and the ship set sail. No matter what language you speak, what color we are, the form of our politics or the expression of our love and our faith; this thing we call the Groove Cruise proves one thing: We are all the same.”
Day 3, the theme was Flower Power and we arrive at gorgeous white sand beaches of Turks & Caicos, all 2,500 of us. Girls were dancing in the clear blue water, people dancing on sands to Borgeous has he pumps up the entire crowd with a trap/big-room/mashup set. He pours champaign down the throats of his fans up at the front row. People drinking over by the bars, a perfect way to start the morning and mid-afternoon.
It was 4 PM and it was time to head back on the ship, over at the main pool were tunes provided by Tom Starr, Dean Mason. Also, Dancetronauts was putting on a great performance interacting with everyone throughout the entire Groove Cruise. People dressed as Hippies vs Hipsters (night-time theme), as they make their way to the theater to enjoy David Gravell, Andrew Rayel, and Jochen Miller. As the sun rises, we danced our hearts out to Lee Foss as he entertained us with his shark hat and a killer set, starting off the morning with a B2B set with Nathan Barato.
Photo provided by: Veranmiky
Thursday, the final day of Groove Cruise as people chanting day and night “We’re Never Going Home.” The day-time theme was Brides & Chippendales. At the main pool, it was the No Excuses Pool Party where it was EDX went back-to-back with Nora En Pure B2B Croatia Squad B2B Daniel Portman. It was wild, it was beautiful, it was so much to be apart of that show. Night falls upon us and more time to dress up, night-time theme was Carnival vs Mardi Gras. In the theater was Tom Starr with an explosive and wild set. Over in the casino was back-to-back trance-classics set with Kristina Sky and George Acosta bringing us back in time with every class trance song we imaginable. After pool hours with Markus Schulz, Bad Boy Bill, and Roger Sanchez closing the grand finale show. It was a celebration of love, happiness, peace, and friendship. People were being thrown in chairs we felt like we were at a Bar Mitzvah, smiles on everyone’s faces.
“Cherish every moment of this experience and treat everyone with respect and equal consideration. There are no ‘cool kids’ or ‘losers’ on this boat… just family.” This was an experience this one will never forget, making more life-long friendships. It’s the only ship where you can truly express yourself the most extreme level without any judgment what so ever. You could be whoever or whatever you wanted to be at Groove Cruise. Thank you to everyone that was a part of this unforgettable trip, until next time.
