Feb 22, 2023 - The 2023 Schedule, and Some Related Items
Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2023 22:58
Subject: The 2023 Schedule, and Some Related Items
From: JoCo Cruise Info
To: booked cruisers
Sorry again in advance for a real long one today; but you know how it goes this close in to the cruise. (Or maybe you don't, in which case: it goes like this.)
First and foremost:
The JoCo Cruise 2023 Schedule
It's here! It's here! You all waited very patiently, and it's finally here!
https://jococruise2023.sched.com/
This schedule will be available onboard; you don't need to sign up for an Internet plan, just connect to the ship's network. Daily versions of the schedule will also be posted by each elevator bank, in a daily newsletter distributed to everyone's cabins, and via your cabin's on-demand TV system.
In Sched you can add events to "My Schedule" for a customized personal schedule at a glance. To be clear, this is not an official sign-up/attendance process, and adding an event to your schedule doesn't guarantee you entrance (such as events with limited capacity like the various crafting workshops). The schedule is subject to change without notice, though we will do our best to notify everyone in the event of any major changes in official schedule events.
One specific note: the Orientation is currently scheduled for 3 pm in the Lido Pool Area. This is because there may still be construction going on in the World Stage theater—in order to increase capacity, we remove the front theater seats, install a floor to cover the connection points, and put in more folding chairs. We hope and expect the reconfiguration to be complete by then; if so, we'll make a public announcement that the Orientation is moved to the World Stage. But until then, we need to assume we'll be up on the Lido Deck. One plus: if you want, go through Orientation in a pool!
World Stage (Main Theater)
photo by Louis Srygley
Located in the forward section of the ship, the World Stage is where our nightly Main Concerts take place. As noted in our FAQ , Gold Team members attend the early show, then have a dinner seating afterward; Red Team members have dinner first, then attend the late show. Your lanyard, which is colored to match your team, will serve as your "ticket" for your main concert; please have it with you. (All other events onboard, both in the Wolrd Stage and elsewhere, do not require your lanyard and are open to all.)
Main Concerts are also available via simulcast on all stateroom TVs, and also in the B.B. Kings lounge. World Stage events will be made available via the ship TV's on-demand system the following day. The late (Red Team) main concert will also have a captioned version available on demand at that time.
Assistive listening headsets available at all World Stage and Sea View Stage events for those who require them.
Dinners Onboard
A quick reminder/refresher as to how dinner seatings work onboard, for those who are new and those who just love reminders:
Most evenings, there's an early dinner seating at 5 pm (for the the Red Team) and a late seating at 7:30 pm (for the Gold Team). Exceptions:
- On Day 1 (Sunday) and Day 7 (Saturday), the dinners are at 5:30 pm and 8 pm, respectively. (On Day 1, this is so you don't miss the 5 pm sail-away; on Day 7, this is to give the ship's dining staff, many of whom work on Half Moon Cay that day, time to get back on board and get ready for the dinner service.)
- On Day 4 (Wednesday), since we're in San Juan until 11 pm, dinner that evening is "As You Wish" dining; you can show up anytime between 5:30 pm and 9 pm for dinner. The ship does request that if you're coming to the main dining room that night, please try to roughly correspond with your usual dining time, so that the staff and kitchen don't get swarmed all at once.
At dinner, there are no assigned tables; you can sit anywhere you wish each night (with a couple exceptions, see below). Feel free to mix things up and meet new people, if you like. If you're looking for new people to join you, you can grab one of the "Hi" Die table signs from the game library area on deck 3 to indicate you welcome folks to join your table.
If you're really unsure of where to start, several tables are set aside for "hosted seating" each night; experienced, friendly JoCo Cruisers will act as "hosts" for a friendly (but low-key) gathering, answer any questions new folks might have, and generally make for a congenial, relaxing and welcoming meal. These will be available each evening at table 218 in the Lower Main Dining Room and at tables 62 and 64 in the Upper Main Dining Room. (Dining room staff can direct you.) No need to reserve anything, just show up!
- There are a limited number of fixed seating tables during each dinner; these were requested by people who preferred to have the same assigned table each night for various reasons. These tables will be indicated with table tents; please avoid using these tables if not assigned to them.
- There is also an area reserved for JoCo Cruise crew only in the rear port area of the Upper Main Dining Room ("back right" if you're looking from the entrance) during the late dinner seating. This area will be marked with signage.
Finally: you're never obligated to eat dinner in the Main Dining Room on any night; there's numerous other dining options at just about any hour of the evening. It's your stomach, feed it how and when you like!
Game Library
photo by Jim Zajkowski
From the JoCo Cruise Tabletop Team:
Hello friends! Here's a much awaited update about the board game library. It's the JoCo Cruise 2023 game library list !
The JoCo Cruise game library contains games in the JoCo permanent collection + games that your fellow passengers are lending for the week. Its a sharing & caring community of games. The game library lives in the Upper Main Dining Room (Deck 3, aft; you can't miss it); it's open 24 hours starting at 5pm on Day 1, is self-serve, and uses an old fashioned card check in/check out system.
This list contains all of the titles in the JoCo Permanent collection. AND its a place to list games you are bringing to share to the library. This is so we don't have 12 folks bringing the same game. Use this list to add games you are bringing.
We're also excited to announce we've added about 112 new games this year including Wingspan, Ark Nova, Shobu, The Spill, Dixit, Roll for the Galaxy, Sushi Roll, Doomtown, Sagrada, Mariposas, and many more.
As noted above, if you are running a game and seeking others to join, grab a "Hi" Die table sign to indicate to others they're free to join your game. You can bring these signs elsewhere on the ship if you're playing somewhere else, too! (Just please return them to the game library once you're done, thanks.)
Escape Room
Escape Buffet , the JoCo Cruise 2023 escape room experience, will happen in the Loft (Deck 10, midship). Sessions will be run on the following schedule:
- Day 2 (Mon. Mar. 6): 1 pm - 5 pm; 9 pm - 12 am
- Day 3 (Tue. Mar. 7): 1 pm - 5 pm; 9 pm - 12 am
- Day 6 (Fri. Mar 10): 1 pm - 5 pm
Signup sheets for each day's sessions will be available at a table just outside the Upper Main Dining Room (MDR) doors (Deck 3, aft) on the day prior, from 3-5 pm—e.g., signups for Day 2 (Mon. Mar. 6) sessions will be on Sun. Mar. 5 from 3-5 pm, signups for Day 3 (Tue. Mar. 7) sessions will be on Mon. Mar. 6 from 3-5 pm, and signups for Day 6 (Fri. Mar. 10) sessions will be on Thu. Mar. 9 from 3-5 pm.
Sessions are for groups of four people; if you sign up for a time slot with fewer than four players, you may be combined with other players to fill out the group. Please do not sign up for a time slot unless you're sure you will be able to attend, and don't sign up other attendees for your session unless you're sure they will attend. (No list of "dummy names" that you will fill out later with actual people.) Demand is very high for this event, and we want to get in as many folks as we can. As such, we also ask that people only attend the escape room once, to let the greatest number of people take part.
On the day of your session, you must pick up your "tickets" at the Deck 3 MDR signup table 15 minutes prior to your start time. From there, you'll go to the Loft and then try to escape it! If your tickets aren't picked up at this time, you risk forfeiting your time slot.
The standby wait list will be available at the Deck 3 MDR signup table during that day's session times (see schedule above); if you wish to be on the wait list, come sign up and wait nearby to be informed whether any time slots open up. (Again, the wait list is by the MDR, not up by the Loft; the only time you should head up to the Loft is when it's time for your session, having already picked up your tickets.)
Karaoke Song List
As usual, there will be karaoke events on board this year. And we're once again using the massive song library of our friend Joel Stitzel (thanks, Joel!), and the events will once again be hosted by JoCo Cruiser Randy Parcel (hi again, Randy!).
We will have several physical copies of the complete list available, it's a BIG book—26,215 songs' worth!—so we're also making it available for you to download. If you're interested in doing karaoke this year, we strongly recommend you grab the song list now.
You can connect to and copy this Google Sheet version of the list , which has tabs sorted by artist and by title. You can also go to "File - Download As" to download it in various formats (PDF, Excel file, etc.), since Google documents aren't available via onboard Internet unless you have the Premium plan.
Speaking of karaoke, don't miss the Disney and Celebrity Karaoke sing-along events on Day 4 (Wed.) and Day 6 (Fri.) respectively, on the World Stage.
Reminders
- If you haven't e-signed your Terms and Conditions yet, please do that soon as you can; if you haven't received email instructions for doing so, please email us ASAP.
- Complete the HAL Online Check-in process by Thursday, March 2nd. Doing so will save you a lot of time in the cruiseport during boarding.
Ten days!
THO.
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