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Quick Poll: Do you win at the table games at the RC Casino?


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My last cruise on the Oasis, which was also my first one, I only went to the casino one late night, sat with a BJ dealer by myself (Something I usually avoid), and immediately lost 6 straight hands in a row. It is within the realm of possibility to do that, but still unlikely (about 2%), so I felt it was fate telling me something and stayed out the rest of the cruise. That, plus a personal bias that the boat's casino may not be held to the same standards as a land-based casino.

 

Well, in Sep. I will be going on the Allure. A new day on a new ship; I was thinking of trying my luck again, until I started reading reward program posts. I only saw people talking about how much they lost until they got rewards; No one mentioned winning. So, I thought it begged the question: Has anyone who gambles a lot on the ship's table games ever come out ahead?

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I've NEVER won at BJ on a ship, although my husband came out several hundred ahead once. My dealer NEVER lost...ever....it seems sort of fishy, to me! I don't expect to win every hand, and I never play expecting to "come out ahead"...but I don't expect to lose EVERY SINGLE hand every time I play!

 

I will stick to Vegas for my gambling....sometimes, I actually win there!

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Over seven nights I’m always up after my roulette exploits, but I’m not gambling big, and I set aside my winnings rather than bet them back. I prefer the more relaxed atmosphere than the serious shore casinos. But then I’m an occassional dabbling amateur. Do love my nightly roulette tho when cruising.

 

 

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If you know enough gambling math to know something like losing 6 straight hands has a 2% chance then you should you know that, while uncommon, it's meaningless and "tells you" nothing other than you just experienced a 2% occurrence.

 

You should expect to lose in the long run at a rate equal to what the house edge is (assuming you're not giving yourself an advantage via other means).

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This last cruise with Carnival, not RC. I tried something in Roulette called the double down method or Martingale system. I have never been much of a gambler, but I ran some tests at home with an electronic roulette wheel and $100 in starting chips at $5 bets. This method never failed even once in my at home testing.This is how double down works basically.

 

Choose a color to bet on. Say, “red”. Until the end of the game, you will bet only on red.

-Place your initial bet, for example $1, on red.

-If you win, your net win is $1. Stop here.

-If you lose, you have lost $1. Place 2x$1=$2 on red.

-If you win, you win $2. Your net gain is $2-$1=$1. Stop here.

-If you lose, your net loss so far is $1+$2=$3. Place 2x$2=$4 on red.

-If you win, you win $4. Your net gain is $4-$3=$1. Stop here.

-If you lose, your net loss so far is $3+$4=$7. Place 2x$4=$8 on red.

So, unless a streak comes that is longer than your bankroll, you win, but slowly. I figured it was worth $100 to try it. I started playing and for about two hours this system worked perfectly. I was slowly making a gain, but when I reached about $280 and right after an employee who seemed to be watching me pretty intently was doing something at a workstation next to the roulette table, I had an eight number streak of not my color. I have to point out that for the last two hours and for as long as I had been watching the Roulette table this cruise, I had never seen more than a three color streak. Now I know that this could have just been dumb luck and the woman may have just been doing something routine and not related, but that cured me of gambling.

 

 

I was already suspicious though, because I used to get onto a Carnival ship and play the slots when the ship was headed out on night one. I set limits on my play. Start with $20 and if I lose that, I am done for the cruise. I would play a dollar and win like $50. After that first night, I would not win again. The next three cruises, I tried only playing on that first night and I won around the same amount each first night for three cruises. It was like the slots could not lose on that embarkation night, but now I am just cashing out and walking away and not gambling the rest of the cruise. This worked for four cruises and then stopped. My last three cruises, no wins on night one. I spend my twenty on slots and win nothing. So this could just be luck, I know that chance can be strange statistically, but in the back of my mind it could also be that an algorithm linked to my sail and sign card has told Carnival that I take my winnings and walk, so don't waste money on this guy. I know, I know, it is all highly regulated and above board, but that was enough for me.

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Looking forward to playing some craps. I just hope the dealers are better than the craps dealers on the carnival cruise I went on. Having played in Vegas several times, I am kind of spoiled with dealers that know how to work a craps table. They would continue to let people make bets after the roller had dice in hand. Several time people would hit the dice with chips or hands making a bet past the time they should have been able to do so.

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On my last cruise (Navigator) I was up $300 in blackjack going into the last night and the odds started catching up to me so when I got to plus $150 I stopped. I did not feel like there was anything nefarious going on, and I've played enough to know that the dealer will draw a 5 when hitting 16 once in a while. I had actually gotten a couple good hits when I had 14 and 15 and the dealer had a 10 up so I just assumed it was evening out. That money essentially covered all my extra tips to the waiters, room attendant, Adventure Ocean staff and a little extra for my favorite bartender (no I don't want to turn this into a "should I tip extra" thread . . . ). In comparison to my last trip to Vegas where I lost, I felt like the ship was OK.

 

 

 

My wife was on Carnival ship w/friends maybe 5 years ago and all of a sudden I get a text picture of her in her room with 12 black chips. Turns out she had hit one of her lucky numbers on roulette 3 times. She ended up coming home about plus $800. She was down about $100 or so after our Navigator trip.

 

 

 

Contrast that with friends of ours who cruise 3-4 times yearly and gamble a lot, to the extent that they have upcoming freebes on Carnival in September and RC in December and had two freebies last year, and they have never come back and said they won big. Maybe close to even, maybe one of them was ahead a little bit, but then the other was down.

 

 

So yes, people do win and come out ahead, but like Vegas or other gambling havens, those ships don't get built b/c people are winning . . .

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I consider it paid entertainment. I’m willing to pay $40 a night. Sometimes I get only 5 mins, other nights I get half hour and come away with more $s. I don’t feel like I lose this way.

 

 

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I consider it paid entertainment. I’m willing to pay $40 a night. Sometimes I get only 5 mins, other nights I get half hour and come away with more $s. I don’t feel like I lose this way.

 

 

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I am of course still talking about playing Roulette! ;-)

 

 

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I look for trends and good karma dealers - one the Independence a year or so, at craps 4 of us made $400/500 each, i was rolling crazy! I was calling hard numbers and hitting them, the streak was crazy, the pit boss came and stood beside me and tried to distract me but i looked at him and asked what his fave number was he says 7, I said nah nah, how bout 7 plus 1, the hard way and hit 44, then he tried to say i was tossing to high, anyway, was 45 minutes plus minimum and then when i passed to my buddy omg he did same, about half hours worth, a guy at the end of the table, was playing C notes+ and walked away with thousands..

 

But then again - Ive gone into a game, on land or at sea and crapped out after 2nd roll, a few times, so i leave...I look for a hot roller, usually when the craps table is loud, get in!

 

Roulette is somewhat fixed and they can hit a number or close to what they want, by the speed and release of the ball, just say i know this! So i watch the release and always last call bet that number and the opposite number...I play middle board but always add one or two bets to this system..

 

BJ - only sit down if players are their, if rooks, dont play, always ruin the flow...take when they shouldnt, or hold when they shouldnt, messes the flow...

 

Slots - well, odds arent good, but they are series machines, and hit on cycle, find one paying and stick with it...I normally spot someone winning or won, and they leave, ill follow up on that machine and look for the cycle - normally pays, of course sometimes it doesnt...

 

last couple cruises did ok, plus get free drinks and bonuses and cruise certificates...all about fun and entertainment..

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I just play slots on cruises. Land casinos I play craps. Play by the rules and almost always come out ahead. I've decided the motion of the ships messes with the dice. Most people that are winning are betting against the roller. What fun is that? And I'm there to enjoy.

 

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My wife has the only sure-fire system to leave a casino with more than she entered. (Works well in shore casinos that use coins/chips.) She walks through the casino and picks up change she finds and then walks out with what she found.

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Had some luck in craps, won over $200. And i guess broke even on slots. My slot input any one night, is $20. My initial put chips for craps was $120 (and yes cashed out at over $300)

 

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Some of the comments in this thread are frightening.

 

The majority of them are. Information is at your finger tips today

and still all these ridiculous comments on this and every thread about casinos.

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I like 3 card poker

 

In the end I usually lose61a6e6adc627345620f0699ab44a91ba.jpg

 

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Hubby got 2 straight flushes on our last cruise (only played 20 or so hands) so yes we definitely won at the tables. Got up and didn't push his luck.

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I go to Vegas once or twice a year and cruise ever so often, I wouldn't say I lose any worse on sea vs on land. I've had heaters in the casino and I've had some terrible runs too. Just depends on the luck of the draw that day for me.

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Do I win at tables games? Typically, no. That's how the odds are stacked. You're going to lose more than you win -- that's how the casino turns a profit. Once in a while I'll have a nice run and wind up ahead, but over the long haul -- I promise that's not going to be the case. Know how much money you're willing to lose before you ever set foot in a casino. Note: I'm not referring to advantage players here. Outside of the scope of discussing the games here.

 

You can definitely minimize your losses and get more play for your money spent if you invest a little time and/or learn the basic strategy least advantageous to the casino for the game you're playing. Some concrete examples:

 

- Roulette tables at every ship casino I've seen have both a 0 and a 00 slot on the wheel, roughly doubling the amount of money you can expect to lose over time. The house advantage is really high (5.56%). Wouldn't touch this with a 10-foot pole.

 

- You really need to understand the rules and payouts at the blackjack table you sit down at. There will be a mix in the casino. If you see blackjack pays 6:5, find another table that pays 3:2. The 6:5 tables are "single" or "double deck" -- which may be attractive if you're a skilled card counter, but that 6:5 reduction in BJ payouts pretty much negates any advantage you might think you're good enough to have via skill. You're much better off taking the time to learn what's called "basic strategy". It's not going to give you an edge over the casino, but you will minimize your losses over time if you adhere to it.

 

I'm not a poker player, but if I were, I'd add that to the list of the 3 table games I'm willing to play in a cruise casino: poker, blackjack and craps. Poker and blackjack require some investment in time to become skilled at. Craps just involves not placing stupid field bets. All of the other games/slots/etc have massive house edges and I if I play them at all it's just for a chuckle.

 

Lastly, if you're going to spend any significant money in the casino make sure your play is tracked by using your SeaPass card when playing any game. The casino keeps tabs on how much you've spent and how long you've played. If you're spending enough, you'll typically receive some kind of comp from the casino. On the low-end, this could be a bottle of champagne or chocolate-covered strawberries in your cabin. On the higher-end, you'll get comped cruises (that can also be redeemed for dollars off any cruise).

 

 

Last cruise I lost ~$3500 in the casino and received champagne, two rounds of the strawberries (who cares?) but also got $750 off my next cruise.

Edited by mk-ultra
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Okay, so the general consensus seems to be that the boat is like any other casino. My preconceived notions and bad luck made me think otherwise. You have to understand, it took me about 10 hours to lose $100 in Vegas; It only took 2 minutes on the boat. Of course, I know my evidence was anecdotal, which is why I asked on this forum to get a better feel.

 

I also have to add, while I understand the argument for it, I wouldn't gamble if I thought I was going to lose in the long run (With the exception of the occasional slots or scratch-off ticket, which I consider fun little time-wasters.). If you're that willing to lose your money to the casino, at least give me a chance to win it in a poker game first :P

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The best way to win in the casino is to not play.

 

That's not "winning", that's just not participating. I look at it this way - I determine before going to the casino an amount I'm willing to lose, AND ADHERE TO THAT AMOUNT. If I exhaust my predetermined amount, I'm done. That's the cost of the entertainment I received from playing. And I never go into the casino expecting to win. I'm expecting to be entertained and have fun. That's my way of winning.

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