Groove Cruising In The Open Sea w/ Danielle
Can words truly explain this euphoric experience?
Groove Cruise 2017 – Jan. 23rd to 27th – was my third one and yet one of the best vacation experiences in my life taking us to the Grand Turk Island. I will try my best to breakdown reasons why this cruise was amazing. No words can fully grasp the experience. Explaining Groove Cruise to someone unfamiliar with cruise ship parties doesn’t provide the full effect. It’s in the experience. And why GC Fam – Groove Cruise Family – is the best in hopes that you will catch a glimpse of what is Groove Cruise.
College students have Spring Break, a time to forget school and get away for a week. This break gives them rejuvenation to finish out the school year strong filled with parties all night and day. However, as adults, we don’t cherish from Spring Break with crazy work schedule, bills and no time to get loose. It just sucks to be an adult sometimes. Luckily, Jason Beukema had the brilliant idea to start the Groove Cruise. This annual migration to Miami in January has become a ‘Spring Break’ for adults to let go of their inhibitions like college kids.
Picture courtesy of Danielle
In essence, Groove Cruise is a 96-hour rave cruise around the clock with some of the best house, trance and techno music. It is the best party experience because you are fully immersed in 96 hours of living, breathing, eating, sleeping and partying non-stop. The party just never stops on Groove Cruise. Some of the beauty of this cruise are interaction with artists because they are on the boat with you which would hardly happens on land. They are eating in the same dining hall, dancing on the lido deck, taking the elevators and betting on the same numbers in the casino all with you. It’s a vacation for them as well and they are enjoying every moment having fun just being ‘normal’ as you would. It is absolutely amazing to watch and be a part of. All those moments happening in those 96 hours cannot be described adequately. Like taking in the moment when dancing on the cruise deck as the sun sets or rises over the Caribbean. It’s a beautiful breathtaking site but just a blimp on the radar in the grand scheme of this adventure.
No one can fully empathize the experience of this trip besides your fellow GC’ers as you are bonded for life. Being with 2500+ like-minded people for those 96 hours is a fantasy regardless of background, political party, job, status or looks. This bond continues even when you leave the ship. Seeing strangers wearing GC gear gives you smiles and makes you go out of your way to say ‘hi’. You may see DJs like Scotty Boy and Croatia Squad wear their Groove Cruise hats in LA clubs with pride because they understand that common bond knowing Groove Cruise is more than just a logo.
CLICK HERE for more pics courtesy of Groove Cruise
Social media has this meme saying, “Strangers that turn into friends, and friends that turn into family”, which applies whole heartedly to this experience. You may enter the boat as strangers but you leave as a family. And while photos may be worth a thousand words, looking back at the memories I captured on film, it still fails to explain it correctly because this experience is felt thru the energy of the people on the boat which makes this trip incredible.
Also, the support GC Fam has for one another amazes me, such as wearing the gears and logos of fellow DJs like Dean Mason’s Officially Addicted line or a simple local outing on a Wednesday night to see Kristina Sky; we are all part GC Fam and we support our family. We lift each other up and make sure that you belong.
As days passed and those memories grow old, they will never truly fade away. Groove Cruise Miami 2017 will always be etched in my memory. The music, dancing, sights, sounds and the love I so humbly got to be a part of makes me fill like I won the lottery. The post GC blues suck but I will do it again blindly. So with ‘blind faith’, I know 2018 will top 2017. Take my money and send me back to paradise!
-Danielle Sanders
