Are Premier Perks worth it?

[pirateg11]

So I'm looking at booking a Carnival cruise and I currently have two very different casino offers.  One is the premier getaway (4 or 5 day) with $100 casino cash and the other is a Hot Streak with $500 OBC + drinks on us card.  At least two of the cruises I'm looking at are available for both offers.  I'm trying to decide if the premier perks are worth losing out on the extra OBC.  So, $400 OBC vs. priority checkin + gifts + welcome party + casino promotions.  I am already aware of how busy the casino will be, having been on a 7 day that turned out to be a premier, so that's not an issue.  I'm also curious what the odds are for the casino promotions, i.e. how often do they draw names vs. how many premiers (and guests) are on the ship.  The price would be the same regardless of offer.  Thoughts on which one is the best?  Also, there's a good possibility this would be a solo cruise.  

[pirateg11]

Anyone have any insight on carnival getaway casino promotions?

[bambidrummer]

I am wondering the same thing.  I booked getaway and the Carnival thought I was crazy for not wanting the $500 credit.  My mom is paying so I didn't care about the credit.  I just know that the Permier Players always got more than me.

[jcgld62]

I was on a getaway last month and had $200 free play + DOU. The casino was crowded but not overwhelming. They called names for free play but it was like $100 or so. I think it was $500 the last night. We got cookies, strawberries and 1 beach towel, overall great time but personally I would choose the $500 OBC if it includes DOU, you can use the OBC in casino or wherever you want. But then again I never win drawings anyway.

[pirateg11]

Right, I was a bit hesitant about putting my faith in potentially winning a drawing.  I did talk to my pvp a bit, who indicated that the OBC offfer was the better one.  Also mentioned that the drinks on us card for the Hot Streak only  applied to me, while the premier applied to both me and a cabinmate, but I don't actually see anything in the fine print about that.  I guess they can probably see more info on the offers than we can though.  Makes me sad though.   I'll probably end up going with the OBC offer, as the guest I'm bringing (no longer a solo cruise, yay) is not a gambler, so the premier perks really won't be attractive to them.  If I was bringing another gambler though, I would definitely jump on the premier bandwagon even though the OBC is "technically" the better offer.  I will take one of those premier getaways one of these days....

[bambidrummer]

Does anyone know how the reception works the first night?  Where is it?  How do you find out about where to do?  How do you get the landyard People where in the casino on the premier cruise?  I booked it because I was not happy  being on a cruise with the premier people even though I could have booked that way.  

[gopackgo21]

1 hour ago, bambidrummer said:

Does anyone know how the reception works the first night?  Where is it?  How do you find out about where to do?  How do you get the landyard People where in the casino on the premier cruise?  I booked it because I was not happy  being on a cruise with the premier people even though I could have booked that way.  

 

   Once you arrive on the ship you will have the lanyards in your room with you and your guest's names on them. There will also be a welcome letter telling you where to meet up at for the reception. My husband and I were on a premier cruise in February and the reception was held in one of the theaters. It was about 30-45 minutes of live music and non-stop appetizers being passed around. They also were bringing drinks by complimentary. We easily had 3-4 drinks each since we were just sitting there hanging out. At the end, the Casino host came up onstage and introduced herself, as well as what the week had in store. She then pulled a name from a drum for a couple hundred bucks or so. 

 

   It was our first premier and we enjoyed it. Free drinks and food is always a nice way to start your vacation. I do recommend bringing some cash if you like to tip your servers. 

[c-boy]

guaranteed  good time to be had by all attendees

[bambidrummer]

On 4/10/2019 at 3:11 PM, pirateg11 said:

Anyone have any insight on carnival getaway casino promotions?

How does the sloto tournament work for the premier players?  Is it free?

[gmblr]

I prefer the fun chips or cash over perks, but I’m already platinum. Elite is nice with a free excursion, free drinks anywhere, social internet, parking or airport transport, and free room service. It’s easily $500 plus in savings. Premier isn’t worth it. Ultra might be if you win a big prize, not the Apple Watch...

 

[InitialD]

"I'm also curious what the odds are for the casino promotions, i.e. how often do they draw names vs. how many premiers (and guests) are on the ship."

 

I've seen it vary widely from a few dozen to around a hundred. I've been on two premiere and between my cabin mate and me we won 3 drawings on the two cruises but we made sure we were there for every casino drawing, not just the premiere ones but the hotseat contests etc.

[Davey Wavey]

On 5/3/2019 at 6:18 PM, bambidrummer said:

How does the sloto tournament work for the premier players?  Is it free?

Yes, you and cabinmate can enter for free (seems I remember they now require you earn 1,500 points each to be eligible). On a 7 day cruise it is usually the 5th day or so. They start signing people up like an hour before the start time using a list of all premier players and cabinmates with a Yes/No column for those eligible. The have maybe 15-20 machines and assign people to rounds. The highest scoring 15-20 people play a final round. Everyone in that final round gets some free play prize.

 

On 5/8/2019 at 1:05 AM, gmblr said:

Ultra might be if you win a big prize, not the Apple Watch...

 

I won an Apple Watch and sold it on ebay for $899. Didn't seem so bad...