Casino?

[Momma Mojito]

Have any one of you had luck playing in the casino on the ships and if you have what were you playing? I like to play the slots but have never won much, sometimes just enough to keep me playing. On our last cruise I started with $20 and not one hit on it.

[Toto2Kansas]

Not my biggest win, but I did hit the progressive on the Emerald Poker slots last May for $1400. Now I have to remember to include that sweet (?) little 1099 they presented me at the same time as they paid me.

[Colo Cruiser]

Always way to tight for me. :eek:

[robgvic]

What is the 1099, Toto?

 

Not my biggest win, but I did hit the progressive on the Emerald Poker slots last May for $1400. Now I have to remember to include that sweet (?) little 1099 they presented me at the same time as they paid me.

[Luvmyrotti]

A 1099 form is what the casino is required to give you for winnings over a certain amount so that you can claim the winnings as income on your taxes.

 

On our recent Alaska cruise on Island Princess I played quite a bit of roulette and accumulated a net $350 or so in winnings. My DH played video poker and found the machines to be quite generous. He netted approximately $250 or so over the course of our cruise. Not too bad, we thought.

[wrecks]

Have any one of you had luck playing in the casino on the ships and if you have what were you playing? I like to play the slots but have never won much, sometimes just enough to keep me playing. On our last cruise I started with $20 and not one hit on it.

 

I'm sure you have heard the saying that those huge casinos in Las Vagas were not built because they paid out more than they took in :). The odds of you winning are slim, but what keeps people playing is that you can still win. Most of the time we have lost, but...on our last Panama Canal cruise, both my wife and I had extreme hot streaks and won big at 3 card poker. In fact, we paid for our cruise, but...again, if we didn't gamble at all we could have taken several more cruises than we have :o.

[Pia1913]

What is the 1099, Toto?

 

A 1099 is what you get when you win more than $1199; a nice little piece of paper for you to declare with the IRS. As a Canadian, I don't know whether or not it would affect you.

[janina]

A 1099 is what you get when you win more than $1199; a nice little piece of paper for you to declare with the IRS. As a Canadian, I don't know whether or not it would affect you.

Actually anything over $500.00 in winnings will receive a 1099.

[Colo Cruiser]

Yes the 1099 for tax reporting purposes. :(

[EAGLESLOVER]

The casino is a lovely way to spend part of an evening. I love to play blackjack and chat with my fellow cruisers. Breaking even is a win.

[robgvic]

Thankfully all gambling wins are tax free in Canada. That includes the big lotteries. If you win 50 million you get 50 million in a single cheque

[Califcat]

I have only been on 2 cruises. I won $500 dollars on first cruise and $150 on my second. $1 slot both times. I quit after winning both times and considered myself lucky to walk away a winner.

[Toto2Kansas]

Actually anything over $500.00 in winnings will receive a 1099.

 

When did this change? It has been anything over $1199 since they began giving out 1099's onboard the ship. And that has only been the last 7 or 8 years (if that). I know I won close to $1800 on the same type of machine on a cruise not all that many years ago and they were not giving you the 1099's then (it was right before they changed and IRS got involved). But I have never heard that $500 figure before.

Have you actually been given a 1099-Misc for a win just over $500?

[boaterette]

It is still anything over 1199.

[bighairtexan]

I've had to use the 1099 twice. Once in 2006 after a trip to Vegas for a $16,776 win on a progressive video poker and then last year on the Sapphire princess when I won $1,900+ on a silly little 5 reel slot (after being POUNDED at the tables). It's still any winnings on a MACHINE $1200 and over. Oddly enough you can win more at a table and don't have to get that nasty little 1099. Also you can count your gambling LOSSES against the winnings on your income taxes. Not sure on the ships, but land based casinos will supply you with a printed "gambling history." It's not always accurate (I'd lost more than they seemed to think I did) but it helps. Also the winnings and the losses don't have to be at the same casino, just the same calendar year.

Lastly, if you have no winnings, your losses don't count for anything on taxes and expire at the end of the year so can't be applied toward later winnings.

[teripp]

In land based casinos it's still 1199 for a 1099 :) Not sure if that applies to ships but I would think so....

[Pia1913]

In land based casinos it's still 1199 for a 1099 :) Not sure if that applies to ships but I would think so....

 

I can personally attest to the fact that it is NOT $500.

[99Cruiser]

On my last cruise I won almost $5,000 playing blackjack. I was told I was the biggest player on the ship. The casino manager was taking good care of me throughout the trip. I got everything from bottles of wine in the dining room, dipped strawberries sent to my room and a free massage.

 

The good thing about doing it on the tables is that they can't 1099 you for winning at the tables since the table max was $300 and I never won more than the 1199 on a single hand.

 

A tip for those that like to play large....make friends with the casino manager and ask if he / she will buy you a drink and 99 out of 100 times they will.

[MamaPuggle]

I too can attest that the 1099 threshold is $1200. I was sailing the Crown this past March and won $1000 jackpot on the $1 Wheel of Fortune machine. I also won a $500 jackpot on the same machine later in the cruise.

[gacruisergal]

We only play blackjack and usually end the trip up a few hundred. Last year on the Diamond I won a Player's Club bag of goodies because I kept winning tickets for the big drawing all night. That was great fun. You have to play consistant and move tables if the cards (and table mates) are not playing correctly. Usually by the end of the cruise, you have a group that plays together and usually does quite well.

[Rhitson88]

I have better luck just playing BINGO. Lol level playing field and someones guaranteed to win. I won twice for $400 on one cruise. I know this is about the casino but thats my answer. I haven't won in it so I just use my money for BINGO.

[WeBeGone]

We find the ship casinos to be on par with "Indian" casinos. They never pay like in Vegas. But I have won $1000 on the Wheel of Fortune machine several times (not during the same cruise). I think the reason to go to a casino is for FUN, not to make money. Don't gamble more than you want to lose! :cool:

[tinker 4]

My wife won 2,500.00 on the slots (.25). As a canadian all we had to do was show our passport (no taxes)

[Tophat4321]

I made $$ on Roulette (single $25.00 bets on black),slots and video poker but proceeded to give it all back plus a few hundy extra on the tables. I bring x amount of money as "RisK Money". Once gone I don't go back to the casino. My first time on a cruise gambling I ask where are the free drinks for gaming. Answer I got back was "This isn't Vegas where you can walk across the street and take your money with you."

[CALMOM]

My experience has been the casino slots are loose the first night (embarkation) and then forget it, they are tightened for the rest of the cruise. I have been fortunate enough to when enough money the first night, to carry me, the rest of the cruise.

 

There is a fairly new game table called Pro Poker, it's a lot of fun but usually is always packed. I won a few dollars by the end of the cruise. I also had a straight flush on Let It Ride, had money on both bonuses, too:D.

 

Your only real chance to win money is to play the tables.