Joonbug

False advertising! We went in a big group to their New Years Eve event and paid $ 200 ea for «Ultra VIP». Our tickets said «guaranteed seating and bottle service,» yet when we asked for our table they said tables cost much more and we were general admission. We ended up on a super crowded mezzanine that was crammed with people. It was standing room only, people falling over each other to get to the bar, and my pants were wet on the bottom within the first 5 minutes from all the crap on the floor. Gross. Never, ever again.

non-​professional, non-​organized, a big headache! I had to deal with stubborn and arrogant people once or twice. they have «0» respect to their clients, many people from the management think and have a self illusion that they are important because they check people’s tickets and distribute the lines in front. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS COMPANY TO FOLKS LOOKING FOR A PLEASANT EXPERIENCE IN NEW YORK! however, if the gig they offer is worthy, load yourself with patience and enough aggressiveness to ignore stupid and nonsense remarks you might encounter from Joonbug employees.

Joonbug wins worst party and biggest rip-​off for its New Year’s Eve disaster on December 31, 2014. One star is two too many. After paying $ 1500 for two premium VIP tickets for a promised amazing party, food, alcohol, and ball drop view, the following is just a short-​list of what was actually provided (or not) at their nightmare of a 2015 party:
1. 30 min line outside in the 30 degree weather to start the debacle.
2. 30 min bar lines
3. 45 – 60 min food line for crappy appetizers (some of which were displayed in the plastic containers like you’d get at a supermarket.) The line was so long it wound through and around all the VIP tables. The looks on the faces of those in that line was of profound dismay and sadness.
4. Zero decorations. Couldn’t they spring for a few streamers or colored table cloths?
5. Vulgar rap music that was so loud you couldn’t possibly talk to anyone who wasn’t within a foot of your face.
6. One employee standing in the sea of people with a clip board attempting to direct the already-​stunned VIP party-​goers to a table with hard plastic chairs. If you were one of the particularly unlucky ones, like me, your table was within a few feet of the speakers pumping out the mind-​numbing tinnitus-​causing vulgar rap music mentioned above.
7. Anyone paying less than $ 750 a ticket had no reserved seating so many were sitting on the floor or stuck in a dark movie theater.
8. Despite paying $ 749 too much per ticket, if I wanted to check my coat, that was an extra charge.
9. They provided a peek-​a-​boo view of the New Years ball from an ice-​cold standing room only terrace. We didn’t stick around to endure the inevitable cram-​fest that we knew would be occurring from 11 to mid-​night.
10. There was no dance floor. There was no MC to get the long-​faced and duped-​feeling revelers into any semblance of excitement.
These are just the top 10. There was just so much wrong with what they did and didn’t do.
After months of anticipation and traveling from So Cal, it was more than disappointing to leave at 930 and then have to scramble to find a nearby restaurant in an effort to avoid simply crying and throwing ourselves to the ground.
Even if my review is ignored by AMC management and Joonbug, I hope others will read this and go elsewhere when making New Years plans

I went to Joonbug’s New Year’s party at Capitale last week and had a great time. I’m not one to typically write a review but I’ve gone to several Joonbug events and everything has been as advertised.

Unilocal should really have a rating of ZERO stars. Or even negatives. Or some kind of button that indicates that this is the worst business ever. Never have I been more infuriated by a business more than this one (if you can even consider it a legitimate business). The company has a phone number that no one answers. Has a second phone number that is looped to redirect you back to the main menu if no one picks up. And has an awful website where you can’t leave any messages for support.
Basically what they do is that they take your money and you’re shit out of luck. Fingers crossed!

Should have listened to the reviews.
My fiancé and I bought one of the after party tickets for the NYE parties. Doors were to open at 12:30, and the open bar was to close at 2am.
Definitely not worth it because NYPD won’t let anyone on the street until 1am — ish. We watched the ball drop, so by this time our feet and backs are killing us (even though the ball drop was AWESOME!!!) so we didn’t think it was worth it to track through the crowd just for an hour party.
We just wish joonbug would have warned us so that we can make an educated decision, but hey, they are about making money.

We booked through joonbug for Halloween, and they changed the venue and never contacted anyone! As well as open bar was from 9−10pm and our VIP bottle service tickets said admission 11! We didn’t get our 2 bottles of vodka until 1am. Our group of 14 was very disappointed and won’t ever use their service ever again! Joonbug was very nasty and unprofessional.

I planned my birthday at empire through joonbug and as soon as we arrived we were taken care of, with the bottle waitress by our side. I can only recommend this company !

This business deserves ZERO stars. The business model is flawed and the hassle it takes to have to physically pick up a ticket as opposed to printing it out, makes this a service you SHOULD NEVER EVER EVER USE.
Customer service is absolute BULL****. Calling to ask questions about ticket pick up. I was hung up on repeatedly. HUNG UP ON?! I then had my girlfriend call to try a different number. We overheard some sort of ‘supervisor’ or coworker telling them to hang up. WTF is this? I never successfully got someone to talk to me after 20 – 30 attempts.
After going online and reading the super fine print a few more times and navigating 3 different websites, I finally found an address.
When I finally made it to the pick up location at the address of a hotel. There was no clear place to go to. After circling around this hotel lobby 4 – 5 times, I finally noticed a single small piece of printer paper with «Tickets Next Door» printed on it.
I then entered an unmarked door (Sketch) into an abandoned office building with trash on the floor /​escalator. After walking up the turned off escalator I saw 4 – 5 plastic fold out tables with one printer and a small line to them in an empty open area. Every single person seemed to be complaining about something having gone through the same terrible experience I did, just to find this place. After telling the workers about my terrible experience with their customer service, they simply told me they weren’t surprised and that it wasn’t their fault.
This is the most bootleg operation Ive ever been a part of. How they get big name venues to agree to use their service is beyond me.
I repeat again. Never. Ever. Use this service.
Check my photos for what I mean.

Being about six weeks before my birthday, I had the idea to throw a big party. However, I had no idea how to set up a party at a hotel. I looked online and came up with Joonbug. Joonbug was right on the money. Brittany was fantastic from start to finish, giving me options on venues and then helping be the middle person in coordinating with the Sanctuary Hotel. Even when I had an issue on the night of, Brittany was available to provide some help and guidance.
I very much appreciate her help and would recommend using Joonbug, and especially Brittany to plan your party.

STAY AWAY!!! I’ve never felt obligated to write a review on Unilocal,until I dealt with this company! This place should be shut down for how they treat their customers, theives! By far the worst experience ever for ordering tickets ever!!!
I placed an order for NYE tickets for Xfinity Live in Philadelphia about 2 weeks before NYE. 1 ticket cost me $ 150.00.
My first problem– while ordering online they do not have seperate boxes for shipping and billing addresses. Well I live in Austin, Tx which is my billing address and I wanted the tickets shipped to my families house in Philadelphia.
So this was my first call placed to joonbug/​Crave tickets (NYE 10 days away).
I was on hold for 20 mins and finally got someone–
They said I needed to take a picture of my ID and credit card and email it to them. Okay, fine!
Then when this problem got resolved, I got the tickets in the mail 3 days later and they sent me the wrong tickets!!! They sent me 4 tickets to an event in NY city valued at $ 250 a ticket. Wow really close, good job!
So I called them and told them they sent me the wrong tickets and they said someone would call me back. One day went by, no call. Two days, nothing. I waited 4 days and nothing so I had to reach back out to them.
Second call– (NyE 3 days away)
I told them they sent me the wrong tickets and they said they will write another customer service report. I told them this needs to be resolved today because NYE is 3 days away!!!
Then they asked me if I could send the tickets that they sent me back to them before they sent out my correct ticket. What?!? They wanted me to spend more money to send them back the original tickets they sent me!
This was about my breaking point– I asked if I could speak with the manager, and the guys says «sure, but you may have to wait 20 – 30 minutes to talk with him because he’s really busy helping other customers! «
I finally got to talk with a manager and he could do nothing for me! He told me that he would write another customer service report up and put a priority or it and someone higher up than him would give me a call in the next 48 hours!!!
Now I was really going nuts! That’s would be the day before NYE.
The manager gave me three possible options that the company would do–
1. And I quote «you’re out of luck»
Which I did not know wtf this meant, and he said that I would be stuck with the tickets they sent me.
2. Resend my correct ticket and there was no guarantee that the ticket would come before NYE
3. Will call– and the shipping fee that I paid for could not be credited towards my account. Not to mention standing in a will call line with hundreds of people.
So now I wait– he said it could be up to 48 hours before I hear from them, and if I don’t hear from them to give them a call back again.
I should have sold the tickets they sent me for $ 1000 and bought another ticket to my event for $ 150. But I was trying to be an honest and straightforward person, and this is how I get treated?!? Absolutely rediculous!
For all the loops you need to jump through and all the aggravation it just wasn’t worth it!
Now my NYE plans are all up in the air until Joonbug/​Crave tickets calls me back!
Thanks Joonbug/​Crave tickets, I hope you have a happy new year as well!

I don’t know what some people here are talking about but Joonbug has planned some of the best events I’ve ever been to. It’s going to be my 2^nd NYE with them and the value + treatment + production are second to none.

I have used
to book my birthday party for the past 6 years and only have good things to say! My birthday is right around Halloween and since they do so many events, I went straight to them. They always secure me a table at the most fun venue and make sure that all of my guests are taken care of.

I would give them zero stars if I could. I planned to spend 2012 at Bowlmor Lanes with VIP treatment. I was suppose to have a table in a specific themed room, open bar, a bottle of vodka, bottle of champagne, food and party favors. There was even an after party with location to be determined.
I arrived with my party to get checked in and was left with no further help. The folks working were Bowlmor employees and they had little help from joonbug. I never got food or was told the location of the food at check-​in.
Apparently my name was on the list but no further information. I was told that I only had open bar… Wtf! I spent the rest of the night getting the run around and talking to unhelpful people.
I was dragged away from the host desk one minute before the countdown by my boyfriend. The whole night was annoying and a waste of time. Definitely a day to remember, it sucked.
After a few emails (forget about phone calls, there’s no answer), I got some money back but they should have paid me to go to that horrible clusterfuck.

SCAM ARTISTS! We booked tickets through Joonbug for the Best Buy Theater in Times Square (don’t ask why) and they totally scammed us! Not only did the company oversell tickets, they also sold fake tickets for $ 155 each (we got ours for $ 75) for a supposed private viewing of the ball drop, which was unknown to the venue. We are going to fight to get our money back because ended up not even being able to utilize the open bar that began at 8pm because the line was so long no one could even get into the venue!
HOLY SCAMMERS!

To the people complaining about ticket wait times… WHY DID YOU WAIT UNTIL THE DAY OF THE EVENT?! I went with my boyfriend the night before and there was ZERO LINE. You had WEEKS to pick up your tickets!!! Literally we went on Dec 30 and were in and out in 10 minutes. I am not exaggerating AT ALL.
As for the event… we waited in line for like 15 minutes in the cold, checked out coats, were pat down (and yes, it was freezing. I was the Statue of Liberty at Armin… I am SURE you know who I am…) and let in to the venue.
Picking up coats was a breeze that night too.
It wasn’t the best run event, but honestly, I had a damn blast.

I can’t even put into words how upset I am with Joonbug’s NYE 2013 event I attended the other night.
I paid a ridiculous amount of money for what I ended up receiving from this company, and I honestly feel insulted. The night included being left waiting out in the cold for 2 hours in line with no explanation, being given free watered down drinks with barely any alcohol in them (I was given a cup of orange juice with ice at one point), and being forced to use outdoor porta-​potties (with no lights in them) in 20 degree weather. I’ve been to a number of shows that were a fraction of Joonbug’s price, and I can say that I was honestly treated like a queen at those shows compared to my experience for NYE 2013.
Although the performance was incredible (which really did save the night), the fact that I ended up walking away with a cold kind of ruined the whole experience.
Never ever ever going to a Joonbug show again. Lesson learned.

The talent provided in their shows/​events is great. Hey, great to hang with Armin van Buuren on New Years 2013.
But the bad. They subbed our the whole ticketing process to Crave and that’s the reason for bad reviews by everyone.
The skinny:
1. Buy tickets online; yes, but no online print or email. Must wait 3 hours in line to pick up physical tickets across town from the actual venue. Only solution is to grease some people in line. It’s 2013!!! Who ever heard of no online tickets?
2. Venue opens/​line to get in. Venue opens at 8pm is stated on tickets, info, website, etc. But at 8:40 we hadn’t moved an inch in a ½ mile GA line. Only solution is to find some «staff» to grease for $ 60 to move you up to front of line.
3. Coat Check is mandatory but must go outside again to get into venue. You’re kidding me? At a rave it’s shorts/​skirts/​t-​shirts, or less and you must check your coat then be in 15 degree weather again?
4. Drinks: Open bar 9 – 12. Exceptions, Red Bull, Water, Champagne. Bartenders fill a drink cup with ice completely before making any drink. 2 of them refused to dump the ice. Solution: grease the bartender.
5. Event staff badges: you could buy them off real event staff people. Outright grease them for $ 200 to get a badge to get free run of the place.
Seriously: Joonbug + Crave is a non-​starter now and that sucks since the talent is always good to see. Talent is assuredly unaware of how bad the experience is for patrons.

Never again. EVER.
I don’t know how the people who run this company sleep at night.
My friends and I went to the 2013 NYE party at the Empire Hotel rooftop. Tickets were $ 150, but I thought it’d be worth it at that price. I also thought I’d be on a ROOF-​TOP (go figure). WRONG on both counts.
We got there at 9:20pm as the event was advertised as starting at 9pm, thinking we’d avoid the line (if any). When we got to the venue, we actually had to go check with the bouncers to confirm that we were in the correct line because it was absurdly long. They told us it was the right line, and we realized that they hadn’t even opened the doors yet. By the time they started letting people in (around 9:30), the line was around the corner and at least a block down the street. We waited almost two hours in the cold with zero explanation. Those were the two hours where the hors d’oeuvres were being served, and the first two hours of open bar. So there are two things we were screwed out of without warning.
While we were waiting in line, a woman shoved her way through several times, shouting to the line to come with her if you were VIP. I was already appalled at how they were treating us with GA tickets; I can’t even imagine how angry I would have been if I’d have paid $ 300+ to wait in that line. Then the lady comes and grabs some girls who looked like human Barbies that were behind us the whole time in line. I was pissed off, so I asked her why they get to go if they’re not VIPs and she said «I was told to grab them» (AKA the bouncer wants to bang them so he’s letting them in). When we FINALLY got to the entrance to the hotel, we watched them let in 7 of a party of 9 then randomly refuse to let the last two in. I heard the girl complain to the guy taking tickets, and he said «at least you get to go in. I have to stay out here all night» in a snarky tone. Um, yeah. You’re PAID to be here, we PAID to be in there.
When we got inside, we could barely breathe because they’d clearly way overbooked the venue. I think I could have lived without knowing what the guy next to me had for dinner. Then we waited in another long line that didn’t seem to be moving (theme of the night) for the coat check, until some other poor souls came and graciously let us know the coat check was full. Huh, let’s think about this. You sold us the tickets, Joonbug, so you know how many attendees will be there and therefore, how many coats you’ll need to check as well. Again, ridiculously bad planning for an EVENT PLANNING COMPANY.
At this point we figured if we were stuck at a shitty event, at least we could get drunk for free. Time to get drinks from the «open bar.» Let’s be clear: there was nothing «open» about it. I had to fight both men and women Hunger Games style to grab as many drinks as I could at a time.
Then we went outside. We specifically paid for a ROOFTOP, and what we got was a 10 by 10 block of cement. Even inside, the windows were so foggy due to stranger sweat that there were no «views» to speak of. We went outside to a tented area, and after about 20 minutes, some guy jumps down from the stage aggressively yelling that we all need to get out because FDNY was called due to a noise complaint. You’re an events company — wouldn’t it make sense to PLAN for this kind of thing? Like, maybe, alerting neighbors if that’s necessary? And on the Fire Department note, I can’t imagine what would happen if there were a fire or any other emergency that required evacuation. It would be, as another Unilocaler called it, a «stampede» with unfortunate consequences. I saw a sign that said «Maximum Capacity 245.» There was easily double that.
And, finally, the bathrooms. There were FOUR STALLS for HUNDREDS of women drinking. DEAR JOONBUG UPPER MANAGEMENT, THIS IS WHAT YOU DO FOR A LIVING. THINK ABOUT IT. We shouldn’t have to experience a 40 minute line of women chanting «pee faster, pee faster» (I kid you not — this was going on) because we’re all in extreme discomfort.
In the end, I had fun in the later hours, only because my friends were there, and my friends are awesome.
I thought I was going to a classy place, but Joonbug managed to turn an upscale, reputable venue into the ugly stepsister of the shittiest, sweatiest, most uncomfortable club in New York City.
Bottom line: I felt insulted. It was literally a case of, «we’re going to treat you like crap for the rest of the night, ignore all your needs and break any promises made, because we’ve already cheated you out of your money.» Also — see the employee reviews on
— sounds like Joonbug is rotting from the inside out.

Three data points make this pretty much a trend. Crave Tickets and Joonbug are the worst.
Bought three tickets for the 4^th of July at XVI in Times Square. Part of the ticket price included an open bar from 6 to 7pm. We arrived at 545. Waited in line for over an hour to get inside (strike 1). We naturally assumed the open bar would be extended for the guests kept waiting in line, wrong (strike 2). We were lucky to get one drink in before the cut off despite talking to the manager and event coordinator. We were ‘moved’ no less than four times during the course of the evening, apparently there were problems with reservations (strike 3).
Crave and Joonbug are a joke. Avoid them and any activity they are associated with. If you don’t, I promise you will regret it.