Does HAL Have a Casino Dept That Awards Free Cruises ?

[mcrcruiser]

We are Blue Chip Casino members with Celebrity  . Recently we got offered   Their Free Classic drink package ,ppd gratuities &  the  free wifi for both of us  . We got these for 2 B2B cruises  .So since we also sail HAL ,wondering if HAL has a comparable  casino plan   .Additionally ,there are times when we can get a free balcony cabin & just pay port fees  /

 

 TIA for the information with HAL 

[albingirl]

I'd be very interested in this, as well.  LOL. If you get freebies with Celebrity, including all the perks, I'd just keep the ball rolling with them.

[DaveOKC]

Just gamble in the casino during your cruise.  If you gamble enough for them they will find you.

 

[JacksGal]

Yep, they do.  I just did a free cabin last week and have another one in November.  All due to casino play.  Free is a relative term, you have to put down $200 each which is returned in cabin credits.  You do have to pay tax and port fees.  We joined Club Orange and did the Have It All program on the week long cruise we just took.  We played a lot on the last cruise to get better cabin offers in the future.  lol

[disneyochem]

Yes, they do.  We’ve had offers for free insides and verandas.  Also get casino discounts on select cruises.

 

I don’t gamble a lot—-budget is $250 a cruise.  Only play slots and bet the minimum.  I do make an effort to spread my play over the entire cruise.  On board, I’ve received chocolate covered strawberries, bottles of wine and free Tamarind/Canaletto(sp?) meals. Hubby, who NEVER gambles and never will, accuses me of spending/losing a lot of money on board!  LOL—we use the same credit card so he knows that I only spend $200-250 a cruise!

 

 

[Florida_gal_50]

There is always some kind of casino thread going. Surprised the op hasn’t seen it or maybe they aren’t on the hal board?

[JesseLivermore]

4 hours ago, disneyochem said:

Yes, they do.  We’ve had offers for free insides and verandas.  Also get casino discounts on select cruises.

 

I don’t gamble a lot—-budget is $250 a cruise.  Only play slots and bet the minimum.  I do make an effort to spread my play over the entire cruise.  On board, I’ve received chocolate covered strawberries, bottles of wine and free Tamarind/Canaletto(sp?) meals. Hubby, who NEVER gambles and never will, accuses me of spending/losing a lot of money on board!  LOL—we use the same credit card so he knows that I only spend $200-250 a cruise!

 

 

 

that's a great deal to get free cruises by spending $200-250 a cruise. Do they comp. you both even though he doesn't. That would be a steal! 

Edited September 23, 2022 by JesseLivermore

[rodndonna]

5 hours ago, JesseLivermore said:

 

that's a great deal to get free cruises by spending $200-250 a cruise. Do they comp. you both even though he doesn't. That would be a steal! 

 

I think the free cruise with $200-250 spends are (will be) a thing of the past. They were VERY generous trying to get people back on ships this past year, but I don't think that is to be expected going forward.

 

Being in that category of spend, we received those offers (and used a couple), gambled quite a bit more on the 'free' cruise, but no more offers come our way. On a cruise Sunday so will have to run another "test", but I think those days are gone.

 

That being said, I am now getting 'free' offers from Carnival, even though and have not been on a a CCL cruise in a few years and had never received them in the past.

[disneyochem]

2 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

I think the free cruise with $200-250 spends are (will be) a thing of the past. They were VERY generous trying to get people back on ships this past year, but I don't think that is to be expected going forward..

And that’s okay with us!  A free cruise is nice but that’s not why we travel!  Have 10 cruises book for the next year and half—only three care casino comped!

[DaveOKC]

2 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

I think the free cruise with $200-250 spends are (will be) a thing of the past. They were VERY generous trying to get people back on ships this past year, but I don't think that is to be expected going forward.

 

Being in that category of spend, we received those offers (and used a couple), gambled quite a bit more on the 'free' cruise, but no more offers come our way. On a cruise Sunday so will have to run another "test", but I think those days are gone.

 

That being said, I am now getting 'free' offers from Carnival, even though and have not been on a a CCL cruise in a few years and had never received them in the past.

I agree that the "free" cruises for low rollers will soon disappear, thats why we are booking as many as we can now.

For the record, spending $200-250 in the casino can result in far different "rating" for offers, as it depends on how long you play on that money.  

[hbsurfcitycruiser]

Please know if you are lucky enough to get a "free" cruise offer, you can book more than one cruise at a time. Don't be shy! 

[jeff74]

2 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

I

For the record, spending $200-250 in the casino can result in far different "rating" for offers, as it depends on how long you play on that money.  

 

It's more a function of the combination of the size of your bet and how long you're betting right?  I'm much more likely to get a casino offer for future cruises if I won $2k betting $100 per hand at blackjack on a trip playing 4 hours per day on avg than if I lost $500 betting $15 bucks per hand playing only 2 hours per day on average.

[DaveOKC]

59 minutes ago, jeff74 said:

 

It's more a function of the combination of the size of your bet and how long you're betting right?  I'm much more likely to get a casino offer for future cruises if I won $2k betting $100 per hand at blackjack on a trip playing 4 hours per day on avg than if I lost $500 betting $15 bucks per hand playing only 2 hours per day on average.

yes

 

My DW just had a winning trip for a change and played alot.  Her free play at the end went from $75-150 normally to $400!  So, I think it is play that they are after.

 

Edited September 23, 2022 by DaveOKC

[jeff74]

 

14 minutes ago, DaveOKC said:

yes

 

My DW just had a winning trip for a change and played alot.  Her free play at the end went from $75-150 normally to $400!  So, I think it is play that they are after.

 

That makes sense.  There can definitely be outliers on individual trips but the longer you play the more your cumulative outcome should move towards the expected outcome which favors the house.  $400 is nice!  I've only seen $150 outside my door.

[mcrcruiser]

Thanks for your replies 

 

 On out Dec 10th Koningsdam  cruise ,we will check in with the Casino host/ hostess   & ask that person  what casino deals they offer  & the name of the  casino department with HAL 

 

 

[Euby]

I just finished one "free" Casino cruise a few days ago and have two more booked.  I don't play in the Casino but do play Bingo at every opportunity at the highest package ($60-70).  Bingo is under the Casino Dept umbrella.  Somehow that got me on an offers list.  As a solo cruiser, they can't be beat.  I'm just hoping they continue to send them to me.  If not, I at least got 3 cruises out of it.

[mcrcruiser]

17 hours ago, Euby said:

I just finished one "free" Casino cruise a few days ago and have two more booked.  I don't play in the Casino but do play Bingo at every opportunity at the highest package ($60-70).  Bingo is under the Casino Dept umbrella.  Somehow that got me on an offers list.  As a solo cruiser, they can't be beat.  I'm just hoping they continue to send them to me.  If not, I at least got 3 cruises out of it.

Good for you . Your bingo  play paid off 😁

[BobbiSox]

I don't know if anyone will ever figure out how exactly to get a discounted or free cruise on a casino offer.  We used to get free Neptune Suites, and we weren't big spenders. Now we budget much more money for the casino, we cruise often, and  we haven't seen a casino offer of any kind lately.  I don't see a rhyme or reason there, and they certainly keep it all very secret. 

[jkrelph]

We just got off a 10 Med cruise, which was a free cruise to me, all have been with NCL.

 

I rec'd today a free cruise from Holland America... We have never sailed this line.

 

Any suggestions on where to go?

[DaveOKC]

9 hours ago, jkrelph said:

We just got off a 10 Med cruise, which was a free cruise to me, all have been with NCL.

 

I rec'd today a free cruise from Holland America... We have never sailed this line.

 

Any suggestions on where to go?

First, be sure it is a legit deal from HAL.  Too many spam deals on everything floating around.

Second, how many days is the deal.  Makes a big difference where to go.

Third, do you want to stay in the US for departure or are you open to traveling to Europe or ?

Edited September 28, 2022 by DaveOKC

[jkrelph]

4 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

First, be sure it is a legit deal from HAL.  Too many spam deals on everything floating around.

Second, how many days is the deal.  Makes a big difference where to go.

Third, do you want to stay in the US for departure or are you open to traveling to Europe or ?

 

Thank you so much for responding!

 

I should have said, I rec'd the offer from a casino.  I pick up my cert at the casino in a couple of weeks.

 

Agree "days make the deal"

 

If it's up to 10 then we will go back to europe...

 

Any favorite ships?   We have never sailed on Holland.

 

Again thank you for response and suggestions on ships...

[DaveOKC]

4 minutes ago, jkrelph said:

 

Thank you so much for responding!

 

I should have said, I rec'd the offer from a casino.  I pick up my cert at the casino in a couple of weeks.

 

Agree "days make the deal"

 

If it's up to 10 then we will go back to europe...

 

Any favorite ships?   We have never sailed on Holland.

 

Again thank you for response and suggestions on ships...

While some of us HAL regulars have favorite ships for one reason or another, I think that most of the first time HAL cruisers, especially the younger set, would favor one of the three Pinnacle class ships - Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam and Roterdam (age in that order K the oldest).  More dining options plus they have the "music walk" venues.