Got cash for shipboard credit in the casino.

[We-R-Off]

I had read in past CC posts that the shipboard credit could be used in the casino and redeemed for cash. This is no longer true. Last week on the Summit we took out $150.00 from our shipboard credit at the Casino in exchange for chips. We received it all in $5.00 chips. We did not wish to gamble, we expected to turn them in for cash. Imagine our surprise when we realized that these chips were highly restrictive. We had to play the entire $5.00 chip at once, the chips were non refundable, and we could not exchange them for cash. We were not happy. Our only choice was to gamble them away. Fortunately, I told my tale of woe to a very sweet roulette dealer. He told me to play even, odd, red and black where I would double my money in two of the four bets. He then gave me my winnings in real chips. I played until I had used up all the $5.00 promo non refundable chips and walked away with $150.00 in cash. I'm not sure how long Celebrity will allow folks to beat the system, but it worked for us.

 

 

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That's good to know. I had intended to do the same last week, with our very healthy NR OBC. I splashed out & bought a new mini Ipad & will give my old one to my grandson !!! At least you won at the tables & got your money.

[UniPac]

This is not really new as I read about it here at the end of 2015 or beginning of 2016.

We have been on Equinox in March this year and there was a sign that you can't cash out OBC anymore.

So we wanted to use the promotional chips we got for the OBC on black/red or odd/even etc. (so winning chance is high) but the dealer would not let us do it (even as we have been 2 players - her and me!). We have been told that you have to play numbers only with those chips. He even went back to the cashier who checked with the supervisor as they were not sure what is allowed and was not.

Came back and told us that we cannot play red/black, odd/even etc at once.

 

Well, now I read that others even have been told to do that. Always the same with Celebrity, rules are different everywhere.

 

Of course I understand that OBC can't be changed to money as this is a policy.

BUT:

If there are more limitations e.g. that I can't play what I want they have to tell you at the time of your booking cause that is part of the contract. Nope they dont do it - they just limit it to the wording that it can't be redeemed as cash.

 

What comes next? Upgrading drink package with OBC not allowed anymore? Paying excursions with the OBC? And all just in time when you are onboard and you want to use your credit. Just like it happened to me at the roullette table.

[AlbertaCruisers]

When you win even a small amount on the slots, say $4, do you have to cash out each time when using the promotional obc?

 

No, some how the machine tracks it. I had no idea what I "won" and how much promo was left. I had something like $74 dollars in the machine after playing for a while, and when I cashed out, it gave me a ticket (that I could cash in for cash) for the amount that was "winnings" about $18 and the rest went back on my card, which I could put back into another machine.

[J&B in GA]

Not sure if this will work on Celebrity ships, but it worked for me on another line. I went to the poker table and inserted my S&S card and opened a poker account with NR OBC. As there was no one there to play poker with I removed my S&S card and left. Two days later, still hadn't seen any poker players, so went to the casino cage to close my poker account and received 100% back in cash. BTW - I checked my shipboard acct to see if they charged me the 5% cash adv. fee that they would have charged if I had gotten cash directly from my OBC at the casino cage, and they did not. I've used this method on several cruises, but not on a Celebrity cruise, so don't know if it would work there.

[kevinyork]

I really wish they would allow the pre cruise booked shore excursions to be applied to the shipboard credit.

 

 

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We had pre booked an excursion before travel but realise onboard that we would have some spare OBC. I went to guest relations and asked if I could cancel the excursion and rebook. He immediately said 'the price may be higher onboard, how. Icy did you pay?' I told him I don't remember but surely he had the info. He quickly confirmed the price was the same and rebooked us. He didn't seem particularly happy though, almost like we were taking money off him personally.

 

 

 

 

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[Karynanne]

Those of you have experienced unusual methods for utilizing OBC in the casino, may want to keep it to yourselves. Celebrity does read CC, and in will create a new policy, if they find that passengers are beating their system.

[twopats]

On a recent Eclipse sailing, we went to the casino cage and received $100 in different looking chips. These chips are not refundable but when you gamble, simply always use these chips and save the ones that win with. It worked perfectly for us as we won quite a bit on 3 card poker (always paid in the regular chips.) Of course, the caveat is you cannot lose $100 without winning a bit and end up with the regular chips.

Trish

[ISABELLA]

You can use any obc at the casino, you just get it as promo chips or promo cash on your card to put into the machine and have to actually play that and only can cash in your winnings. They will not give you cash for OBC. When we were on the summit in March we had only refundable OBC and they told us it didn't matter to them, they couldn't tell the difference so any OBC was given as promo chips. For the slots, you put the money in off your card, it keeps track of the promo amount versus winnings. You cash out winnings as a ticket that you can cash in, but any remaining promo goes back on your card. For example, say you have $100 in promo on your card and you put that into a machine, you spin $3 and win $100 on that spin. You will have $197 in the machine. If you cash out you get a $100 ticket and the $97 goes back as promo play on your card. At least that is how it worked for me - except I think my biggest win was $20!

 

They absolutely can tell which OBC refundable and which is not. You should have talked to casino manager.

[ISABELLA]

Those of you have experienced unusual methods for utilizing OBC in the casino, may want to keep it to yourselves. Celebrity does read CC, and in will create a new policy, if they find that passengers are beating their system.

 

I have been saying this for years---------too much yapping...

[AlbertaCruisers]

They absolutely can tell which OBC refundable and which is not. You should have talked to casino manager.

 

Can't or won't, doesn't really matter, their position on the Summit was as long as you have OBC you can only get the promo chips, they wouldn't give cash as long as their is OBC on your account. That policy may have changed, but that was the position on the Summit in March. FYI - it was the manager and the casino host that confirmed that policy for me.

Edited August 17, 2016 by AlbertaCruisers

[chamima]

Does anyone have any experience with using the non-refundable OBC to buy glass from the Hot Glass Shows at the auction on the last day of the cruise?

We will have quite a bit on our next cruise and that is the only thing I can think of that I ever want from a cruise.

[Beanb41]

Does anyone have any experience with using the non-refundable OBC to buy glass from the Hot Glass Shows at the auction on the last day of the cruise?

We will have quite a bit on our next cruise and that is the only thing I can think of that I ever want from a cruise.

 

Shouldn't be an issue. Hot Glass auctions are charged to ones seapass account just as any other purchase onboard is

[ThursdaysChild]

We had $80.45 in nonrefundable OBC left on the last day of our recent cruise, and took out $80 in slot credits which we parlayed :rolleyes: into $50 cash, leaving us with 45 cents in non-refundable credit.

 

When our refundable credit was charged back to our credit card a week or so later...it ALSO included those 45 cents.

 

Made me wonder if I could have gotten the whole $80 back if it had been left over at the end!

 

Has anyone just left the non-refundable credit on the account and shrugged? Maybe it's all refundable!

 

I've twice left the ship with Non-refundable OBC left in the account. Once for about $2, the next time for $7. Both times it was refunded to my credit card. I suspect they refund any N-OBC under $10.