CAS Program

[jrlamour]

Just wondering from those that have gone a compendium cruise. How does it work? Were you slot players or poker or both?

 

Thanks!

[skynyrd]

I am a slot player. Got my first cruise comped from a land based casino. I call CAS now.

[skierjj]

I agree with skynyrd, we contact CAS directly after establishing minimum points ( ~1500) on a cruise. I never reach that level, but my husband does. Now we get "free" cruises, have to pay taxes and port charges. If you are offered an inside cabin, you can pay for an upgrade to the next category, if you want.

BTW we just hit Platinum latitudes level on NCL as well as sapphire casino players club level. We are starting to get good comps now. (A "free" Haven spa balcony, over the holidays, no less; wow)! Love it!

 

 

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[riddle]

Wow I have been Sapphire all year and still only get insides comped.

[Vinegarjoe10]

Wow I have been Sapphire all year and still only get insides comped.

 

 

Hi riddle,

 

In speaking with several different CAS representatives, I have learned that ship/date/itinerary/published fares have a lot to do with what level of comp CAS will offer you.

 

Even though your play was Sapphire level, if you are looking for complimentary cabins on a popular ship, itinerary or time, they may not be able to offer you a balcony or higher, even if your play rated same.

 

In addition, the published rate for the type of cabin you are being offered by CAS also has an affect on what type of stateroom they will offer you.

 

We try to exploit what CAS will offer us by not sailing during the most popular times (Feb/March/April). If we want to be in a balcony or higher, we try to avoid the newer ships as the comp value of my play may not rate a balcony on the Bliss or the Escape, but will get me a balcony on one of the older ships.

 

 

We have been lucky in that we are not picky about what ship we travel on, (new, bigger ships versus jewel or older class).

 

We look for itinerary's we want and have the flexibility to schedule our cruises at anytime of the year and do not limit ourselves to only sailing out of one port.

 

We have received the best value from CAS offers during the months of December and January.

 

The other thing we try to take advantage of ( We travel as a family of 4 adults, my wife, her parents and myself) is combing a CAS offer with 3rd and 4th guests sail free, which opens up 2 bedroom suites or suites with a second full bathroom to us as possibilities.

 

Our last cruise aboard the Epic (12/9/17-12/16/17) started out with CAS offering me a balcony, which I upgraded to a 2 bedroom suite ( which on the Epic was in the Haven). This cruise offered 3rd/4th guests sail free. All said and done the cost for 4 in the 2 bedroom was actually less than 2 guests in a balcony paying the published fare.

 

We just booked another cruise for February 2019. We chose the 10 day southern out of San Juan on the Dawn.

 

The CAS rep told that due to the length of the cruise, I would be comped a balcony. They offered a 7 day on the Dawn with a similar itinerary, which the rep told me I could have an aft penthouse in. So I guess length of the cruise also plays a part in what CAS can offer.

 

In my opinion, if you do your research you can find great value in CAS offers, IF, you are willing to sail during non peak times and maybe on older (jewel class) ships.

 

Regards,

 

Vinegarjoe

[Sand and Seas]

I'm Sapphire with CAS also. Started cruising with NCL using certificates from CET (Caesars/Harrah's). Now I call them after I return from a cruise to see what they can comp me next. The last couple of years we have been cruising 4 times a year.

 

As noted by others,It does depend on what ship/itinerary you are interested in. I was able to get a higher level category on the Breakaway out of New Orleans over a Dawn Bermuda cruise out of Boston. It does seem to matter what the available room 'inventory' is for the cruise you are interested in so the larger Breakaway Caribbean cruise was a little better comp for us than the Dawn to Bermuda.

We were also able to book a great cabin on the Bliss out of Miami. If we had asked for Bliss to Alaska we would have had a lower cabin comped.

 

When you call, be prepared to give them a couple of different options to check on and the CAS agent can let you know what you are eligible for on each. No obligation to book at that time if you aren't ready.

[BirdTravels]

Your offer will depend on your theoreticals, not your player card level. Your card level dictates the types of perks you will get on the ship. You need to have consistent play (1-2 hours a day) at any level to qual for a comp. You could be a Ruby level and not offered a comp if you did not have sufficient play on your prior cruise.

[gbcruise]

May I ask what type of money you play on average per cruise? This is interesting to learn about.

 

 

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[bbryan5]

Your offer will depend on your theoreticals, not your player card level. Your card level dictates the types of perks you will get on the ship. You need to have consistent play (1-2 hours a day) at any level to qual for a comp. You could be a Ruby level and not offered a comp if you did not have sufficient play on your prior cruise.

 

 

I agree. I am still the basic card level (Jade, maybe?) and I recently called CAS about a May cruise on the Escape from NYC to Bermuda, and I got a comp'ed cruise for a balcony room, for my wife and I. However, after taxes, port fees, blah blah blah, it was still around $900 for a "free" cruise.

[bbryan5]

May I ask what type of money you play on average per cruise? This is interesting to learn about.

 

 

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You won't get many responses to this. Gamblers are usually very tight lipped about the gambling budgets. I am, what I would consider, a moderate gambler. I gamble enough to never have to pay for a meal, drink or room in A.C. Also gamble enough with NCL to usually have 1 or 2 cruises a year comp'd. Do I always win? No. Do I sometimes win? Absolutely. I've had big wins on NCL cruises, including a nice $3800 win last cruise. Went home with all my gambling money (the money I brought strictly to gamble with) plus $3800 more. Doesn't always happen like that tho. I consider it entertainment, not a way to make money. I gamble what I can afford to lose. That's a different number for everyone.

[Sand and Seas]

You won't get many responses to this. Gamblers are usually very tight lipped about the gambling budgets. I am, what I would consider, a moderate gambler. I gamble enough to never have to pay for a meal, drink or room in A.C. Also gamble enough with NCL to usually have 1 or 2 cruises a year comp'd. Do I always win? No. Do I sometimes win? Absolutely. I've had big wins on NCL cruises, including a nice $3800 win last cruise. Went home with all my gambling money (the money I brought strictly to gamble with) plus $3800 more. Doesn't always happen like that tho. I consider it entertainment, not a way to make money. I gamble what I can afford to lose. That's a different number for everyone.

 

Good answer! We gamble enough to never pay for a room in Las Vegas. We never go over our planned allowable losses, and sometimes come home ahead from Las Vegas or on a cruise. Either way, we are always comfortable with what we have spent and find it very enjoyable to pick up comped cruises or comped suites & meals in Las Vegas.

 

Never gamble more than you are comfortable with losing. When we were first married the most we would spend in LV was about $100 each. That number has gone up considerably now, but we are much more comfortable about the amount we can afford to wager now. We track $$ spent each year and compare it to the vacations we have gotten for very low out of pocket. We feel like we get a much better deal than those that pay regular price for a cruise or a Las Vegas suite. You have to feel good about what works for you.

 

Our biggest 'problem' now is we get a number of hand paid jack-pots each year. Some on ships and some in LV. Always have to itemize our taxes now:eek:

[luvcruzing]

I agree. I am still the basic card level (Jade, maybe?) and I recently called CAS about a May cruise on the Escape from NYC to Bermuda, and I got a comp'ed cruise for a balcony room, for my wife and I. However, after taxes, port fees, blah blah blah, it was still around $900 for a "free" cruise.

 

$900 for a balcony cabin for two is nothing to scoff at.

 

My cabinmate and I are Hot and always only get comped ocean view cabins no matter what ship, and we each play at least three hours on port days and six hours on sea days. You’re Jade and get a comped balcony. Doesn’t make sense.

[BirdTravels]

May I ask what type of money you play on average per cruise? This is interesting to learn about.

How much money you play is not relevant wrt comps. Again, they are looking for consistent play, 1-2 hours a day on any value machine ($0.01 or $1)

[riddle]

I generally sail on the "tournament cruises" that NCL comps me for. I get the fun of the tournament and the chance at a decent win.

 

I also sail on other cruises but length and date depend on when we can do it. An inside doesn't really bother me but I used to get oceanview. One good thing about the Epic is that since there are no oceanview if they comp you an oceanview I got a balcony instead.

[tel2]

One thing I never realized but that I recently learned from a manager on Breakaway re level of comped cabins -- our friends were with us, and we usually cruise only once or twice a year, and they cruise 4 or so times a year. We are both Jade. But we are almost always comped suites and they are never offered suites. In fact, they are only occasionally offered balconies - usually insides which they upgrade. And they couldnt figure out why our comps were so much better at the same "level" In any event, manager told them that in addition to itinerary and ship, they also look at loss and theo loss by number of cruise days. So that someone who has a 15k theo loss on a 7 day cruise and gets to Jade level on that one cruise will be offered much better comps that someone who cruises 4 times a year and has a theo loss of 4k on each cruise. I guess that makes sense especially if they are getting comped - even insides -- 4x a year. I just never heard it before.

[bam1957]

I called about a comp room on the May 13th sailing from NY to Bermuda on the Escape today(1/12/18). I'm Pearl and all she offered me was an inside, I wasn't happy at all. My cruise in December was a Mini Suite so I was totally disappointed with the call today. She said that NCL changed how they determine what level of cabin to comp last September. They are making ti harder to get comped the nicer cabins.

[garycarla]

May I ask what type of money you play on average per cruise? This is interesting to learn about.

 

 

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Exact number if difficult to come up with.

 

The logic behind is important. They are a business. If the room costs them $900, they need to feel very strongly you will leave well above $900 in the casino. (they have to pay for the room and of course pay to run the casino)

 

Some, somebody that has a $200 budget for the week would not get anything comped. Somebody playing poker all week (even with their terrible rake) may still not "donate" enough to the casino to get a cabin comped.

 

It is all a business.

[fstuff1]

Your offer will depend on your theoreticals, not your player card level. Your card level dictates the types of perks you will get on the ship. You need to have consistent play (1-2 hours a day) at any level to qual for a comp. You could be a Ruby level and not offered a comp if you did not have sufficient play on your prior cruise.

i read that offers are now based on how much you LOSE and no longer on theo. :confused:

i think the person who wrote that called CAS and that's what they told him/her.

 

in any case, i dont get any CAS offers because:

1) i only play the low house edge games of vp, $15 blackjack, and craps. ie: low theo

2) i'm up 4 figures last year. ie: didnt lose any $ :cool:

 

i still get offers from my land casino.

ie: Inside room on Bliss this year!! :o

[samiam0403]

I’m strictly a slot player - barely make ‘Hot’ (haven’t sailed since the new levels were implemented) each year with 1 or 2 sailings per year. I was comped a family inside on the Nov 18 transatlantic on Epic (13 nights), and was bumped up to a family balcony comp after I completed 1 more sailing in January last year. I recently cancelled that TA and asked about comps on a 7-night Eastern Caribbean on Epic sailing later this year - was offered a spa mini-suite comp. So it seems cruise length definitely affects comps - even though the prices of each cruise on the surface is similar.

[Halifax Dude]

Some of what I'm reading on this thread (actually quite a bit) is fiction, but some is close to fact. Here's the simple truth: The higher value of either your theoretical loss OR your actual loss over the course of an individual sailing (most often 7 days) dictates your comp. You will generally NOT get a comp if the higher of those values is less than $2,500 ON YOUR PREVIOUS CRUISE. For regular and long-term guests, the reps will sometimes evaluate your play history, which can result in a comp even if your last cruise fell below the $2,500 level. This is where the CAS reps have some discretion - but you typically need a fair number of sailings (8+) before they'll do any heavy lifting for you. Your CAS tier level means essentially nothing when it comes to comps - a reasonably low-level player could easily achieve Sapphire status if they took 6 cruises in a year (CAS does not care about the frequency or cumulative value of your cruising when assigning a comp - only your predicted loss on the next sailing). Additionally, the fact that a player is comped a Mini Suite on one sailing does not mean they should expect an equal cabin level on a subsequent sailing - the cabin comp level is determined by the retail price of a particular cruise. Hope that info helps. :)

[Crzy4my2]

I play slots only. I sailed with NCL for the 1st time last Feb. on the Epic. We are going again this Feb on the Getaway and it was a Comped cruise for DH and I and we had to pay to upgrade for the kids to come. We got an inside family ocean view.. I'm very happy with that seeing I have only sailed once with them.

[bbryan5]

$900 for a balcony cabin for two is nothing to scoff at.

 

My cabinmate and I are Hot and always only get comped ocean view cabins no matter what ship, and we each play at least three hours on port days and six hours on sea days. You’re Jade and get a comped balcony. Doesn’t make sense.

 

Sorry it doesn't make sense to you, but it is what it is!