Carnival Casino points system

[FLASHINGLIGHTS83]

Does anyone have the breakdown of how you earn points in the Casino on board, and how many points you need to redeem for $$ off a cruise, or a free cruise?   Thanks in advance...

[maryred]

A slot point is equal to $2.50 in slot play but this can be money you deposited to machine or winnings re-invested in play. Points can also be earned on video poker and other electronic card games (excluding the Texas Hold'em table) but are at the rate of 1 pt.= $5 in play.

Those that play tables are not excluded but the formula on how the Pit Boss calculates comp points is a closely held secret. In general it is said that for Blackjack a player needs to bet $20 per hand for at least an hour before being recognized to have their play watched close enough to record points. Then they need to play at least a total of 10, 1 hour sessions at that same rate before getting the card. Each type of game has its own minimum betting requirements, that has nothing to do with the minimum table bet per round, to gain management's attention to track a table player to evaluate if they should be getting points , even though every player that gets chip is asked for their S&S card. 

Depending on cruise length at 1,000 (cruise 4 days or less) or 1,500 points (cruises 5 days and longer) yo will receive a Drinks on Us card, good for any bar menu drink to a maximum of 15 alcoholic ones/day, while at a machine or table in the casino. Players that reach 5,000 points, in addition to receiving a "fare free" comparable cruise usually in a balcony for 2 for port charges only (must be book within 2 weeks of disembarkation and sailed within 90 days in most cases), will receive a DOU card at casino opening on their next cruise taken within 2 years regardless of if they pay for the fare or it's a casino special. Other offers for port charge only interior or better cabins on select sailing, goes to approximately 10-15% of the top players that cruise. If you start getting little "thank-you" gifts  from the casino management of fresh snacks sent to your cabin, offers/coupons for free bottles of wine, or a free dinner for 2 at a specialty restaurant you know you are at least a contender with the possibility for a free cruise certificate. Points from one sailing do not transfer to another sailing date, to "earn" on board bonuses or other comps. Though the home base csino office does track accrued players points over a 2 year period, so players that generally reach at least 2,500 accrued points tend to receive quarterly offers for reduced rate cruises with Casino Cash or FunPlay bonus credits for a few years.

[FLASHINGLIGHTS83]

Maryred, Thank you very much!!  I appreciate the breakdown for me.

[Elaine5715]

17 hours ago, maryred said:

A slot point is equal to $2.50 in slot play but this can be money you deposited to machine or winnings re-invested in play. Points can also be earned on video poker and other electronic card games (excluding the Texas Hold'em table) but are at the rate of 1 pt.= $5 in play.

Those that play tables are not excluded but the formula on how the Pit Boss calculates comp points is a closely held secret. In general it is said that for Blackjack a player needs to bet $20 per hand for at least an hour before being recognized to have their play watched close enough to record points. Then they need to play at least a total of 10, 1 hour sessions at that same rate before getting the card. Each type of game has its own minimum betting requirements, that has nothing to do with the minimum table bet per round, to gain management's attention to track a table player to evaluate if they should be getting points , even though every player that gets chip is asked for their S&S card. 

Depending on cruise length at 1,000 (cruise 4 days or less) or 1,500 points (cruises 5 days and longer) yo will receive a Drinks on Us card, good for any bar menu drink to a maximum of 15 alcoholic ones/day, while at a machine or table in the casino. Players that reach 5,000 points, in addition to receiving a "fare free" comparable cruise usually in a balcony for 2 for port charges only (must be book within 2 weeks of disembarkation and sailed within 90 days in most cases), will receive a DOU card at casino opening on their next cruise taken within 2 years regardless of if they pay for the fare or it's a casino special. Other offers for port charge only interior or better cabins on select sailing, goes to approximately 10-15% of the top players that cruise. If you start getting little "thank-you" gifts  from the casino management of fresh snacks sent to your cabin, offers/coupons for free bottles of wine, or a free dinner for 2 at a specialty restaurant you know you are at least a contender with the possibility for a free cruise certificate. Points from one sailing do not transfer to another sailing date, to "earn" on board bonuses or other comps. Though the home base csino office does track accrued players points over a 2 year period, so players that generally reach at least 2,500 accrued points tend to receive quarterly offers for reduced rate cruises with Casino Cash or FunPlay bonus credits for a few years.

Nice work

[amcankid]

I accrued 5,500 points on my last cruise and have only received 50 percent off an inside cabin on select cruises! 
Very disappointing after reading I should have expected more 

[pe4all]

2 hours ago, amcankid said:

I accrued 5,500 points on my last cruise and have only received 50 percent off an inside cabin on select cruises! 
Very disappointing after reading I should have expected more 

That is interesting.  You should have received a "bounce-back" offer for the 5,000 pts.  They used to put a letter in your cabin's mail slot the morning of debark.  Last few cruises I received an email with the offer  and a postcard with the offer in the mail a day or 2 after I got home.  If it was a very recent cruise keep an eye out for it.  If not, it never hurts to call the casino dept. and ask.

[mz-s]

3 hours ago, amcankid said:

I accrued 5,500 points on my last cruise and have only received 50 percent off an inside cabin on select cruises! 
Very disappointing after reading I should have expected more 

 

Do not gamble to get comps. Gamble for entertainment and any comps you get are gravy.

 

The only formula that Carnival publishes I'm aware of is you need 1500 points for Drinks on Us for the average 4-5 night cruise. There is no published schedule for any other comps that I am aware of. So - like I said - gamble for entertainment, if you get comps then great.

[dallasdan]

4 hours ago, amcankid said:

I accrued 5,500 points on my last cruise and have only received 50 percent off an inside cabin on select cruises! 
Very disappointing after reading I should have expected more 

They only give the bounce back offers to a certain number of players per cruise.  You may have been to far down the list.  Also, the new offers come out after August 30th, you may get a great offer.

[Elaine5715]

4 hours ago, amcankid said:

I accrued 5,500 points on my last cruise and have only received 50 percent off an inside cabin on select cruises! 
Very disappointing after reading I should have expected more 

 

2 hours ago, pe4all said:

That is interesting.  You should have received a "bounce-back" offer for the 5,000 pts.  They used to put a letter in your cabin's mail slot the morning of debark.  Last few cruises I received an email with the offer  and a postcard with the offer in the mail a day or 2 after I got home.  If it was a very recent cruise keep an eye out for it.  If not, it never hurts to call the casino dept. and ask.

There is no "should" receive other that the published DOU after earning 1500 points.  The As mentioned "bounce backs" are to the top points per cruise and 5500 isn't much.   As to expecting, please know unless you see the offers, people fib to feel better about spending too much.  There have been changes since 2019 so the numbers in the long explanation are no longer valid.  OnBoard Comps are indeed based on either points earned or projected play (the computer estimates your play based on early sessions).  After cruise offers aren't based on points but on marketing demographics, the more your data matches their targets, the better offers you will get.    

[May1cruiser]

Also to mention. It does not hurt to ask casino host during cruise if they will comp you anything. One of us goy a bottle of wine, The other some meal credits at seafood shack. 

 

As mentioned, there is no set formula, play for fun not future comps. It is usually cheaper to just book a cruise rather than gamble to win a cruise. I speak from experience. 

[Colorado Beach Bum]

54 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

After cruise offers aren't based on points but on marketing demographics, the more your data matches their targets, the better offers you will get.

This is not true. Been debated many times and plenty of people have seen offers improve when they earn more points or previous cruises.  It’s a proprietary algorithm that none of us can definitively prove. 

[Elaine5715]

8 minutes ago, Colorado Beach Bum said:

This is not true. Been debated many times and plenty of people have seen offers improve when they earn more points or previous cruises.  It’s a proprietary algorithm that none of us can definitively prove. 

proprietary algorithm=marketing demographics.  It isn't earning more points, it is having a higher sail and sign balance.  

[mz-s]

30 minutes ago, May1cruiser said:

Also to mention. It does not hurt to ask casino host during cruise if they will comp you anything. One of us goy a bottle of wine, The other some meal credits at seafood shack. 

 

As mentioned, there is no set formula, play for fun not future comps. It is usually cheaper to just book a cruise rather than gamble to win a cruise. I speak from experience. 

 

Yes absolutely make friends with the casino hosts during the first night, talk to them frequently, ask for comps, say hi throughout the cruise, mention you'll make mention of them on the post-cruise survey, etc - it makes a difference! I'm not saying that a smile will earn you a free balcony cruise offer - but just might get you a free bottle of wine that night at dinner or something. More than you'd have otherwise! The casino and Carnival gets plenty of my money I'll take what I can get back, thank you very much.

Edited August 24, 2023 by mz-s

[Elaine5715]

35 minutes ago, mz-s said:

 

Yes absolutely make friends with the casino hosts during the first night, talk to them frequently, ask for comps, say hi throughout the cruise, mention you'll make mention of them on the post-cruise survey, etc - it makes a difference! I'm not saying that a smile will earn you a free balcony cruise offer - but just might get you a free bottle of wine that night at dinner or something. More than you'd have otherwise! The casino and Carnival gets plenty of my money I'll take what I can get back, thank you very much.

It can help and the opposite behavior is very much proven...be a jerk and get squat.  

[xyzcruiser]

1 hour ago, Elaine5715 said:

proprietary algorithm=marketing demographics.  It isn't earning more points, it is having a higher sail and sign balance.  

so I always pay for everything ahead of time lately ( excursions, spa treatments, specialty dinners all purchased before getting on board) so I have a very low balance at the end of cruise. While this is all separate from the actual cash I take for gambling, do you know that on board purchases affect offers? I do feel like while I still have offers they. are for lower valued cabins than previously and I haven't received a bounce back recently, when I used to get them most cruises. I was attributing this to the fact that cruising is up and ships are sailing full, and not my behavior since I have been gambling about the same amount each cruise. Any other thoughts on this?

Edited August 24, 2023 by xyzcruiser
grammar

[StephPS79]

2 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

proprietary algorithm=marketing demographics.  It isn't earning more points, it is having a higher sail and sign balance.  

 

This is theory, not fact.  It would save us all a lot of typing if we could just add this disclaimer lol.

 

Just to mention, and another example that goes against that theory, we received new premier offers today.  My partner and I previously had similar premier offers, however, this time, she got a free room + free play offer, while I got $1200 off fare (same as before).  

 

The only thing that changed since our last round of premier offers was our cruise where she blew dollars, points and chummed the host, dealers, and bit bosses the whole time.  I don't know how you can still deny onboard play impacts future offers.  I'm not saying there aren't other factors, but to continually insist there is no impact is just not correct.

Edited August 24, 2023 by StephPS79

[dallasdan]

38 minutes ago, xyzcruiser said:

so I always pay for everything ahead of time lately ( excursions, spa treatments, specialty dinners all purchased before getting on board) so I have a very low balance at the end of cruise. While this is all separate from the actual cash I take for gambling, do you know that on board purchases affect offers? I do feel like while I still have offers they. are for lower valued cabins than previously and I haven't received a bounce back recently, when I used to get them most cruises. I was attributing this to the fact that cruising is up and ships are sailing full, and not my behavior since I have been gambling about the same amount each cruise. Any other thoughts on this?

We spend very little on the ship except for gambling.  On board purchases do not affect your offers.  Like @mz-s says, it helps if you interact with the casino host.  

[mz-s]

42 minutes ago, xyzcruiser said:

so I always pay for everything ahead of time lately ( excursions, spa treatments, specialty dinners all purchased before getting on board) so I have a very low balance at the end of cruise. While this is all separate from the actual cash I take for gambling, do you know that on board purchases affect offers? I do feel like while I still have offers they. are for lower valued cabins than previously and I haven't received a bounce back recently, when I used to get them most cruises. I was attributing this to the fact that cruising is up and ships are sailing full, and not my behavior since I have been gambling about the same amount each cruise. Any other thoughts on this?

 

The only comp that Carnival actually publicly confirms is 1500 points to earn drinks on us during a typical 4-5 night cruise.

 

Anything beyond that is pure speculation because Carnival does not have a published schedule for comps. Unlike some other cruise lines and certainly land based casinos that have thresholds etc. Carnival keeps all that close to their chest.

[john91498]

4 hours ago, mz-s said:

 

Do not gamble to get comps. Gamble for entertainment and any comps you get are gravy.

 

The only formula that Carnival publishes I'm aware of is you need 1500 points for Drinks on Us for the average 4-5 night cruise. There is no published schedule for any other comps that I am aware of. So - like I said - gamble for entertainment, if you get comps then great.

 

This. My wife gambles maybe a $100 a cruise and she gets free rooms, drinks, dinners, etc... I gamble thousands and do not get anything...

[Elaine5715]

39 minutes ago, StephPS79 said:

 

This is theory, not fact.  It would save us all a lot of typing if we could just add this disclaimer lol.

 

Just to mention, and another example that goes against that theory, we received new premier offers today.  My partner and I previously had similar premier offers, however, this time, she got a free room + free play offer, while I got $1200 off fare (same as before).  

 

The only thing that changed since our last round of premier offers was our cruise where she blew dollars, points and chummed the host, dealers, and bit bosses the whole time.  I don't know how you can still deny onboard play impacts future offers.  I'm not saying there aren't other factors, but to continually insist there is no impact is just not correct.

I didn't say there was no impact .  One point gets you the data point.  Rack up 50,000 points with a corresponding sail and sign account spend $20,000, gets you another point.  If you racked up those 50,000 points due to a Jackpot and feeding the winnings back into the machines, no impact. Apply a high limit credit credit to pay that $20,000 sail and sign, now we are cooking.   

[ElCrapyTan]

I can confirm on-board casino comps are much less and pretty much non-existant post-COVID cruising.

 

Pre-COVID cruises, I would normally play $5-$10 table games and casino host would offer me DOU usually on the second day (tipping helps 😀), and I would receive the daily "thank you gifts" the casino would send to the room (cookies, chocolate strawberries, etc.) that my wife would love.

 

My last cruise in April 2023, I ended up purchasing CHEERS! since I was not planning to play much in the casino since I heard about the cutbacks in service. Well, you get bored when your cruise is 4 sea days out of 7, so I ended up spending a lot more time in the casino than other cruise, played slots more, and earned over 5,000 points. I wasn't expecting anything, but I was not even approached by anyone after I earned 1,500 points. Nothing was ever delivered to the room either.

 

In the past, the casino host was always visable, roaming the floor. This last cruise, I don't think I saw the host once. I wouldn't say this is a cutback, just poor customer service which results in me non wanting to cruise or play on CCL. I wonderr if their strategy of raising prices, targeting only new cruisers, and cutting quality and service works is a good strategy once the post-COVID pent-up demand for travel begins to die down.

[mz-s]

2 hours ago, ElCrapyTan said:

I can confirm on-board casino comps are much less and pretty much non-existant post-COVID cruising.

 

Pre-COVID cruises, I would normally play $5-$10 table games and casino host would offer me DOU usually on the second day (tipping helps 😀), and I would receive the daily "thank you gifts" the casino would send to the room (cookies, chocolate strawberries, etc.) that my wife would love.

 

My last cruise in April 2023, I ended up purchasing CHEERS! since I was not planning to play much in the casino since I heard about the cutbacks in service. Well, you get bored when your cruise is 4 sea days out of 7, so I ended up spending a lot more time in the casino than other cruise, played slots more, and earned over 5,000 points. I wasn't expecting anything, but I was not even approached by anyone after I earned 1,500 points. Nothing was ever delivered to the room either.

 

In the past, the casino host was always visable, roaming the floor. This last cruise, I don't think I saw the host once. I wouldn't say this is a cutback, just poor customer service which results in me non wanting to cruise or play on CCL. I wonderr if their strategy of raising prices, targeting only new cruisers, and cutting quality and service works is a good strategy once the post-COVID pent-up demand for travel begins to die down.

 

Carnival knows the casino is a money printer for them that they can throttle as needed. Right now they're able to throttle it back. It won't be long and they'll need to throttle it back up. This summer was a cruising summer - very busy for all lines. Time will tell if that is their new normal or if the revenge travel hump is over for the cruise industry, as it appears to be for places like Disney World.

[ChuckF]

On the Magic in April 2023 and got offered a steakhouse entree in MDR and a cheap bottle of wine.  Asked if we could pass on the cheap bottle and got two glasses of a better wine. They said Yes. 

[Haljo1935]

On 8/24/2023 at 12:14 PM, john91498 said:

 

This. My wife gambles maybe a $100 a cruise and she gets free rooms, drinks, dinners, etc... I gamble thousands and do not get anything...

So you're saying your wife does a better job of chatting up the host than you do, lol. You're too busy giving them $$ to chat. 🤭

[Colorado Beach Bum]

6 hours ago, ElCrapyTan said:

I can confirm on-board casino comps are much less and pretty much non-existant post-COVID cruising.

 

Pre-COVID cruises, I would normally play $5-$10 table games and casino host would offer me DOU usually on the second day (tipping helps 😀), and I would receive the daily "thank you gifts" the casino would send to the room (cookies, chocolate strawberries, etc.) that my wife would love.

 

My last cruise in April 2023, I ended up purchasing CHEERS! since I was not planning to play much in the casino since I heard about the cutbacks in service. Well, you get bored when your cruise is 4 sea days out of 7, so I ended up spending a lot more time in the casino than other cruise, played slots more, and earned over 5,000 points. I wasn't expecting anything, but I was not even approached by anyone after I earned 1,500 points. Nothing was ever delivered to the room either.

 

In the past, the casino host was always visable, roaming the floor. This last cruise, I don't think I saw the host once. I wouldn't say this is a cutback, just poor customer service which results in me non wanting to cruise or play on CCL. I wonderr if their strategy of raising prices, targeting only new cruisers, and cutting quality and service works is a good strategy once the post-COVID pent-up demand for travel begins to die down.

Not our experience at all.  Comps have been same or better for us post Covid.  5k points are not much especially if you are on an ultra, premier or elite sailing.  Hosts tend to spend more time with those guests.  But if you earn enough points the hosts will definitely seek you out even if you’re not part of the ultra, premier or elite group.