Cruise casino vs. Atlantic City or Vegas

[familyak3]

]My DH and I love to gamble. We are not high rollers. It just gets the blood pumping for us.

We will be going on Voyager in a few weeks.

Can you think of any differences between a cruise casino and

the land ones. We don’t play craps because we don’t know how. We like black jack, slots, roulette, poker etc. Will any games be better on the ship?

[cb at sea]

HUGE differences! A ship doesn't give a damn if you're there or not....no "free" anything. The odds are bad, and the dealers are always hot.....a cruiseship casino is NOTHING like Vegas, and far away from Atlantic City (which isn't like Vegas, either!)

[familyak3]

Thank you. I will lower my expectations to say the least.

[Yo Eleven]

Any differences you ask?

 

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[familyak3]

Let me clarify my question

Not to offend anyone but, I would never go to Indian casinos but enjoy AC/Vegas. I will be on a cruise for the first time and any ideas for comparison will help. Are some ships better for gambling?

For black jack do you get paid for 21 or is it a push. One deck,

with all the cards? Roulette must be the same….

[patseacruiser]

I don't remember if I saw one deck BJ or not. One of the differences is that there will be maybe 2 BJ tables, 2 3 card poker tables, 1 caribbean stud table, etc. So if you are losing (which seems to always be the case) you do not have a selection of tables to jump to. There are not a huge amount of slot machines to choose from either. I'm not saying there aren't a lot of them but compared to Vegas or AC which I live 30 minutes from - the ship casinos are nothing. No free drinks. I do believe if you have BJ and the dealer has BJ it's a push. They do pay 3:2 for it.

[Casino Player]

Let me clarify my question

Not to offend anyone but, I would never go to Indian casinos but enjoy AC/Vegas. I will be on a cruise for the first time and any ideas for comparison will help. Are some ships better for gambling?

For black jack do you get paid for 21 or is it a push. One deck,

with all the cards? Roulette must be the same….

 

Howdy familyak3: In Black Jack you get paid for 21 unless the dealer also has 21. Most ships Casinos use 8 decks dealt from a shoe. In the rare instance you find a single deck game it pays 6-5 on BJ. Roulette is pretty much the same. Craps is the same. Slot machines have less of a return.

As someone else has stated you won't get comps. Although on some cruises I've had boxmen purchase me a drink and on one cruise Casino management sent bottles of wine to my table in the dining room.

[familyak3]

Slot machines have less of a return.

 

As someone else has stated you won't get comps. Although on some cruises I've had boxmen purchase me a drink and on one cruise Casino management sent bottles of wine to my table in the dining room.

Thanks everyone, I feel more prepared now. Just curious Casino Player,

is that a known fact or your gut feeling that the slot machines have less of a return.

[familyak3]

I have read somewhere that there is a ship that gives classes on board

to learn how to play craps. Should I be leery of this if it turns out to be

offered on my cruise? I wouldn't know if they are teaching me good strategy.

[patseacruiser]

I think most of the ships offer lessons. I'm not sure they teach you strategy but more or less how the game works.

[ATL2LAS]

Most cruiselines will provide classes on any of the games they offer, you just have to ask or check the ships paper for times. The slot selection is weak at best, you will find a few "newer" games but nothing right out of the box. As with any casino, you join their casino club and see what happens. I have read posts from other cruisers that they have gotten land based room comps. Good luck and remember that shipboard casinos are for pure entertainment. It helps the cruiselines bottom line each cruise. Just like drinks:D

[familyak3]

As with any casino, you join their casino club and see what happens. I have read posts from other cruisers that they have gotten land based room comps. Good luck and remember that shipboard casinos are for pure entertainment. It helps the cruiselines bottom line each cruise. Just like drinks:D

I will join up and see. I think gambling is entertainment for me but I can't

help wonder why there is such a big difference between land casinos and ones on water. Both are guaranteed to get the house cut. It is a money maker without them trying to squeeze everyone.

ATL2LAS have a great cruise as I see you are on one tomorrow. Good luck if you visit the casino.

[Mr. Luckytoo]

Familyak3,

 

I spend a lot of time on the ships casino and there are definate differences.

 

First is that the casino's on the ship don't operate until out of port (usually 1-2 hours). On the sea days most of their slots open around 11 am with table games starting around 1 pm. The craps table won't open until 6 pm

 

On Princess the BJ is dealt from a CSM (continuous shuffle machine). Celebrity deals from a shoe. With regard to BJ most play conventional poor rules, such as dealer hitting soft 17. The single decks only pay 6:5 and have manditory shuffling after 4 hands. There aren't many opportunities for counting on a ship.

 

Craps - take the class if you want - the odds are the same as land based casinos but on Princess you only have single odds while RCCL has double odds. I believe NCL has 5x odds (will find out tomorrow)

 

The slot payoff is terrible. I actually talked to a casino director who told me the payoff was "around 70-80%" - but I doubt that.

 

You'll have to pay for all your own drinks at cruise ship prices - unless you are a big tipper or are a black chip player.

[grod19]

I have read somewhere that there is a ship that gives classes on board

to learn how to play craps. Should I be leery of this if it turns out to be

offered on my cruise? I wouldn't know if they are teaching me good strategy.

 

the classes are definitely not strategy based, they are there strictly to teach you the flow of the game. A craps class will be good because they will teach you the differences of the come out roll vs an established point, the pass and don't pass, as well as the hardways etc.

 

At the end of the day the table games are very similar to land based casinos, there may be some minor differences. If you view gambling as entertainment you are going in with the right attitude, have fun and good luck.

 

However if you see a guy walking by with 2 dice on a velvet pillow quickly bow your head as a sign of respect because the great YO ELEVEN is about to walk into the casino (sorry Yo couldn't resist).

[btyko]

Familyak3,

 

 

Craps - take the class if you want - the odds are the same as land based casinos but on Princess you only have single odds while RCCL has double odds. I believe NCL has 5x odds (will find out tomorrow)

 

 

Unless things have changed recently, Princess offers double odds, RCCL offers single odds, and NCL offers 3X4X5X odds. That is 3X odds on the four and ten, 4X odds on the five and nine, and 5X offs on the six and eight. NCL's odds, along with a relatively generous players club (Casinos at Sea) make NCL the choice for serious craps players.

 

Good luck on your cruise tomorrow, and let us know how things went when you get back.

[familyak3]

the classes are definitely not strategy based, they are there strictly to teach you the flow of the game. A craps class will be good because they will teach you the differences of the come out roll vs an established point, the pass and don't pass, as well as the hardways etc.

 

I will take the class. First I'll get a book and see what I can teach myself. I am excited to finally be learning craps.

[Mr. Luckytoo]

Unless things have changed recently, Princess offers double odds, RCCL offers single odds, and NCL offers 3X4X5X odds.

 

btyko,

 

I stand corrected - went back checked my notes and sir YOU are correct. There was one night where RCCL offered double odds :rolleyes:

[AndyTheK]

Unless things have changed recently, Princess offers double odds, RCCL offers single odds, and NCL offers 3X4X5X odds.

I can verify this for Princess. On the Coral this past December/January it was double odds. What I didn't know, and perhaps someone with recent Princess experience can tell me, is whether they offered "full double" on points 6 and 8 - that is it if your line bet is $10, will they up the odds bet limit from $20 to $25 (payoff 30 avoiding single dollar chips). At the time I didn't ask since I wasn't playing ten dollar lone bets.

[Casino Player]

Thanks everyone, I feel more prepared now. Just curious Casino Player,

is that a known fact or your gut feeling that the slot machines have less of a return.

 

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO familyak3: Why would the casino's on a cruise ship give you a competitive return? Are you going to board a another ship to use their casino? You are a captive audience. It isn't like Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Reno or other gaming destinations where you can go to their competitor.

[Casino Player]

I think most of the ships offer lessons. I'm not sure they teach you strategy but more or less how the game works.

 

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLOOOOO patseacruiser: You are correct. The ships do offer lessons. Usually during the first seating on the first night. They teach you about all the bets and how to play the game. It is up to the player to determine what strategy to use.

[familyak3]

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO familyak3: Why would the casino's on a cruise ship give you a competitive return? Are you going to board a another ship to use their casino? You are a captive audience. It isn't like Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Reno or other gaming destinations where you can go to their competitor.

 

Thank you for explaining.

I think these cruise casinos should or could give people fair odds similar to Vegas and would make more in the long run. I firmly believe that if there were more happy winners business would actually increase. A cruise ship with a great casino would get a reputation worth tons of money. Maybe there is not enough space in the casino for attracting too many gamblers. Sort of like supply and demand.

[Casino Player]

Thank you for explaining.

I think these cruise casinos should or could give people fair odds similar to Vegas and would make more in the long run. I firmly believe that if there were more happy winners business would actually increase. A cruise ship with a great casino would get a reputation worth tons of money. Maybe there is not enough space in the casino for attracting too many gamblers. Sort of like supply and demand.

 

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO familyak3: The best line I think for gaming is Celebrity Cruise Line. 3-4-5x odds on the craps table. Minimum $5 bet for Pass Line and Don't Pass bets. $1 for Prop bets.

[dkjretired]

Thank you for explaining.

I think these cruise casinos should or could give people fair odds similar to Vegas and would make more in the long run. I firmly believe that if there were more happy winners business would actually increase. A cruise ship with a great casino would get a reputation worth tons of money. Maybe there is not enough space in the casino for attracting too many gamblers. Sort of like supply and demand.

 

I have a diifferent take on the slot odds. Remember on land they are regulated by the various states, there is a loose organization of cruise lines that supposedly regulate the ships but there is no enforcement behind it. Although the odds could very well be lower, I think it may have to do more with individual machines. The trick in a casino is to find the machine that pays the best odds, I suspect there are less "good" machines in cruise casinos because the casinos are much smaller. To give an example, you may have a bank of ten machines in a land based casino and two of those machines may pay the best odds. Since the ships casinos are smaller, you may only have about ten or so of those machines in the entire casino. Generally, in all casinos, the lower the denomination of of a machine, the lower the odds. Multi denomination machines are seperate games for each demonination, this is required by law...

[familyak3]

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO familyak3: The best line I think for gaming is Celebrity Cruise Line. 3-4-5x odds on the craps table. Minimum $5 bet for Pass Line and Don't Pass bets. $1 for Prop bets.

Thank you Casino Player.

[familyak3]

I have a diifferent take on the slot odds. Remember on land they are regulated by the various states, there is a loose organization of cruise lines that supposedly regulate the ships but there is no enforcement behind it. Although the odds could very well be lower, I think it may have to do more with individual machines. The trick in a casino is to find the machine that pays the best odds, I suspect there are less "good" machines in cruise casinos because the casinos are much smaller. To give an example, you may have a bank of ten machines in a land based casino and two of those machines may pay the best odds. Since the ships casinos are smaller, you may only have about ten or so of those machines in the entire casino. Generally, in all casinos, the lower the denomination of of a machine, the lower the odds. Multi denomination machines are seperate games for each demonination, this is required by law...

DKJ, Very interesting