Casino advice

[ezmofokine]

So I'm going on my first cruise in about 10 days and I am an avvid gambler and therefore looking forward to visiting the casino onboard. However, it seems everything I read on here says the casino is a place to avoid on the ship. As a regular gambler I understand that losing is a big part of gambling, but I have yet to hear anything about people actually winning in the ships casino. I am going on Liberty of the Seas, does anyone have any info on the casino onboard? For instance I want to play Roulette, does anyone know their payouts? Also, does anyone have a story about actually winning on a ship casino?

[cb at sea]

Roulette has almost as bad of "odds" as a slot machine!!! The payouts are standard on the roulette table (and it has a 00 and an 0) which makes your odds even worse.

The ships have no real incentive to let you win--and while a few walk away ahead of the game, most don't. For instance, on our last cruise, playing BJ, you couldn't even "push" with a 20---the dealer won every time--and this went on for the ENTIRE trip. Very discouraging!

[unklez]

Roulette has almost as bad of "odds" as a slot machine!!! The payouts are standard on the roulette table (and it has a 00 and an 0) which makes your odds even worse.

The ships have no real incentive to let you win--and while a few walk away ahead of the game, most don't. For instance, on our last cruise, playing BJ, you couldn't even "push" with a 20---the dealer won every time--and this went on for the ENTIRE trip. Very discouraging!

 

The ship casinos are as bad or as good as most non-Vegas casinos with some variations. No casino has any incentive to let you win long term and they don't make that a secret. You just gotta figure out your odds and strategies if the rules are not exactly what you are used to playing. I'd very much like to hear what you think the ship had to do when you did not even get a single push with 20. That's just your rotten luck - is it not?

[unklez]

So I'm going on my first cruise in about 10 days and I am an avvid gambler and therefore looking forward to visiting the casino onboard. However, it seems everything I read on here says the casino is a place to avoid on the ship. As a regular gambler I understand that losing is a big part of gambling, but I have yet to hear anything about people actually winning in the ships casino. I am going on Liberty of the Seas, does anyone have any info on the casino onboard? For instance I want to play Roulette, does anyone know their payouts? Also, does anyone have a story about actually winning on a ship casino?

 

People win and lose all the time in casinos with long term trend being a loss for sure! The gamblers on the ship are not the smartest players. They are just vacationers who have a limited set of venues to spend their time on the ship and when they end up at casinos they probably lose more than usual.

 

The conventional wisdom says to stay away from casinos because that is a money maker for the ship. No secret there! I personally found that the dealers on the ship are VERY FRIENDLY. On tricky calls they advised me on the strategy as much as I wanted or as little as I wanted. By the 2nd or 3rd day they knew me by name, what I liked to drink and my playing habits.

 

One of them even advised me to stay away from the BJ table on a particular night because the table was "too good for the casino and not for the players" that night!

 

I played the basic strategy on 6 deck BJ and won up to $120 a night and lost up to $150 a night with the overall loss of $100 over 7 nights! The nights I drank more, I made riskier choices, strayed away from the strategy and lost more! Again, no different than a land casino!

 

That they do not serve free alcohol was my only beef!

 

And yeah the usual casino tipping guidance applies.

[Terrafreaky]

My DH won the slot tournament on our Dawn cruise. I won the jackpot on a slot on the Pearl last March. To me the "luck" feels about the same as the other casinos.

[dna1990]

Luck is or luck ain't. I assume the OP refers to comparing gaming odds/rules to land based casinos. Not if anyone 'wins'.

 

 

In my experience:

 

As already mentioned Roulette is 0/00 with normal payouts as you expect. $5 min inside, sometimes $10 is typical. Some newer/larger ships have two wheels, but many have just one and it can be crowded.

 

I don't know BJ subtleties, so I will skip. But it looks multi-deck large shoe type of game, I forget the dealer stand, ins, etc.

 

Some have LetItRide or CarribeanStud - I rarely play, but I think normal limits/rules in play.

 

Craps - I spend alot of time here. Mostly single odds, although a few ships have been double. Everything else normal.

 

Slots - they seem tight, way tighter than their land counterparts.

 

Poker - I think it was Ecstasy that had a poker table and electronic screens for players to play each other with. I didn't get into it.

 

 

The big differences, is no free drinks (for most). And RCCL especially has an odd VIP Players club, not that well worked. For instance $50/roll craps will get you meals and maybe even a cheap room on land if there long enough. On RCCL $100/roll will rarely get you a nod or invitation to VIP. Not that many people play so high, it is just that pit bosses don't care so much about rating and stuff.

 

I have had exceptions, where specific dealers/bosses seemed to be more than just courtious and got some drinks and trinkets, but not like on land. It ain't like you are about to walk out and go to the casino next door...

 

My advice, stick to roulette if that is your game, or craps - avoid the slots, and don't expect much from bosses - unless you make a big introduction of yourself and play with lotsa black and green chips.

[cruisead]

I've never seen anyone win at roulette on a cruise ship---heck, everyone knows roulette has the worst odds even in Vegas. I'm not saying they're cheating, but..... And, very few people play roulette on ships. Maybe they realize you're not going to win, so they avoid it. On our last cruise on Navigator of the Seas, the roulette tables were always empty. Everyone seemed to prefer blackjack.

[mpg29]

heck, everyone knows slots has the worst odds even in Vegas.

Fixed that for you. That's not to say roulette has good odds either, but they're still better than slot machines. If you know what you're doing poker is the best bet since there is no house hand. But really it's best to just do whatever you find fun.

[grandmato4]

Yes, people do win in the ship's casinos. A lot of people take a small amount of money to play with so their chances of winning any substantial amount is pretty slim. There's always a handful of those that spend a great deal of time in the casino each cruise playing their favorite games that spend a substantial amount of money. If you're one of those people be sure to get to know the casino host so he knows who you are as that's the person that can choose to give out those free drinks;)

 

Won $11,000 on the slots two cruises ago so winning on any game is possible. :)

[amandaepperson21]

LOL @ the friendly dealers comment..... they work for tips, of course they're friendly! :D

 

We blew $300 in a heartbeat in the casino on our first cruise (playing cards). It's fun sitting there and it's quite an adrenaline rush (I've only played the slots a couple of times... not a big gambler, I like to keep my money). Winning is great but I just don't see the point in spending hundreds unless you've just really got hundreds of dollars you can kiss goodbye. I'd rather spend my $300 on spa services, supper club, more DODs, better excursions, etc.......

[dna1990]

Dealers do play more into a cruise casino versus their land counterparts. Sure, they work for tips - but even so a tip-friendly dealer, a truly-friendly dealer, and a plain tired sour puss are all easy to spot.

 

I say cruise dealers have a bigger impact, becuase you will see them all week (as an avvid gambler). So sometimes getting off to a good (or bad) foot with some of the staff can make your week more pleasant or not.

 

I am not talking about winning or losing, I am talking about gambling and gaming. If you are there to 'spend some time with the chips', finding dealers you like and that like you - is something to consider.

[ezmofokine]

Thanks for all the input. Like I said I understand that most casino trips end in a lighter wallet. I just wanted to verify that cruise casinos aren't noticeably harder to win in.

 

Thanks again!!

[unklez]

Dealers do play more into a cruise casino versus their land counterparts. Sure, they work for tips - but even so a tip-friendly dealer, a truly-friendly dealer, and a plain tired sour puss are all easy to spot.

 

I say cruise dealers have a bigger impact, becuase you will see them all week (as an avvid gambler). So sometimes getting off to a good (or bad) foot with some of the staff can make your week more pleasant or not.

 

I am not talking about winning or losing, I am talking about gambling and gaming. If you are there to 'spend some time with the chips', finding dealers you like and that like you - is something to consider.

 

Well said. The friendliness (or otherwise!) of a ship-casino dealer makes a bigger difference because for a week you are gonna see the same dealer several times. If they are not friendly, that might put me off. On land, a casino is significantly larger offering more possibilities, there are other casinos nearby (usually) and there are several other entertainment options nearby.

[blindrid]

Well said. The friendliness (or otherwise!) of a ship-casino dealer makes a bigger difference because for a week you are gonna see the same dealer several times. If they are not friendly, that might put me off. On land, a casino is significantly larger offering more possibilities, there are other casinos nearby (usually) and there are several other entertainment options nearby.

 

I agree. Another thing to mention if you play table games is that a lot of the dealers, stickmen etc. are not as professional and well versed in the game so you may expect some slower action and sometime you do have to babysit them a tad.

 

I have found a lot of dealers fun to be around and have just a few that were real jerks as it was noticable that their table was empty with the balance being busy.

 

I enjoy the craps table and as mentioned typically 2X odds and normal stuff.

[dna1990]

Yea, good point on dealer proficiency. Esp with technical games like craps. Last cruise there was a very nice dealer, great speed, patient with new players, etc. But during an off day, I started playing the don't side. You could tell right away she had dealt with week after week of just simple 6/8 betters and really struggled to keep the math right on the back side.

[2Cruise4Ever]

I found the opposite to be true. Every time we go to a land-based casino, we lose. But, almost every cruise we've come home with more $ than when we left. DH won jackpot on the Wheel of Fortune slot last October on the Victory. And, only once have I left the roulette table with less $ than when I started. I also hit the jackpot on a triple diamond slot machine a few years ago.

[ATL2LAS]

I have actually had better luck on cruise ships than on land. Most Vegas casinos have gone to the dreaded 6/5 odds on blackjack where the cruiselines are still at 3/2. One thing I didn't think I would like is that Carnival hand deals their 3 card poker. I actually had more winning hands in the sessions I played than in Vegas with the shufflemaster. I even caught a few straight flushes. They also hand deal Let it Ride, but I have found the odds a bit better with 3-4 players. On my last cruise I caught a 4OAK for a really, REALLY good payout:D. You just have set and keep to your budget. Remember its just entertainment:).

[Yo Eleven]

So I'm going on my first cruise in about 10 days and I am an avvid gambler and therefore looking forward to visiting the casino onboard. However, it seems everything I read on here says the casino is a place to avoid on the ship. As a regular gambler I understand that losing is a big part of gambling, but I have yet to hear anything about people actually winning in the ships casino. I am going on Liberty of the Seas, does anyone have any info on the casino onboard? For instance I want to play Roulette, does anyone know their payouts? Also, does anyone have a story about actually winning on a ship casino?

The fact of the matter is that casinos are a big part of the cruising experience and really shouldn't be avoided in my opinion. As long as you understand the games and know when to stop gambling.

Well I can say that I have won several times on a ship casino. Mainly from shooting craps. However, there are times when you lose. If any ever tells you they are always a winner then they are so full of crap it is dripping out of their nose and ears. HOWEVER, if you play smart and know WHEN to stop when you are ahead, more times than not you will leave the ship a winner. Greed gets the best of most people and when someone gets in the mindset they will keep winning, they will end up being a big loser.

As for roulette, the payoffs are easy to calculate. It all depends on the type of bet you placed. This chart is simple and a breeze to understand. Good luck:

http://www.roulettetactics.com/roulette/odds/

[Wxgirl]

I actually just got back from my first cruise not too long ago and thought about this question a bit as well.

 

I decided to put some money aside to gamble (aka pretend I would never see again) which is how to look at it. Its money for entertainment, aka enjoy the blinkey lights, the dealers and people nearby.

 

I have gambled a decent amount on land (but never been to Vegas) so I was use to no free drinks already (but I missed my free pop). I have to say that in the casino the workers are a lot nicer, more willing to deal with you, and the people there overall just seemed to be more fun.

 

I mainly stuck to craps, but did have fun with slots and the weird quarter game (it had Garfield ... a weakness of mine). Craps was fun because of the people at the table, and well once again the workers there were friendly and seemed happy to help you. After a bit they started to know how I played and would remind me if I was missing my 6/8 every now and then.

 

Overall, I walked out up (enough to pay for my drinks and tips on the cruise so YEAHS!) so that was cool. I have to admit though I saw a lot of stupid players there so if you play smart you should be OK. I saw people go up $200 and an hour later they were down $100 o.O.

 

So I would not say avoid the casino but ..... leave when you are ahead is an awesome plan.

[blindrid]

IOverall, I walked out up (enough to pay for my drinks and tips on the cruise so YEAHS!) so that was cool. I have to admit though I saw a lot of stupid players there so if you play smart you should be OK. I saw people go up $200 and an hour later they were down $100 o.O.

 

So I would not say avoid the casino but ..... leave when you are ahead is an awesome plan.

 

When one plays craps, it is conceivable that you will potentially drop a few hundred in a few minutes and then have to work to get up a few hundred. A lot of players walk if they don't win right away and that is normally the loser. If one is strategically playing, the swings can be tremendous so I think the example of a $300 swing in an hour is not a big deal. I am not suggesting playing stupid but I think a lot of times people playing craps walk too quick. It would be way too easy if you were playing with the house's money.

[shalornew]

I always think of how much fun I am having instead of what I am losing. Heavan knows I never think I am going to play to win!:D

[ezmofokine]

So I just got back from the trip and I played Roulette about every night after dinner. Liberty of the Seas has 3 roulette tables and they were always full after dinner. It seems to me that this was the most popular game in the casino. (Although the craps table got really loud sometimes) I did end the cruise down about 200 bucks but that was expected and I did leave the casino up a few times so that was good. My only complaint was the rude people in the casino. Some of the dealers were rude but mostly the other cruise passengers, seemed like mostly europeans (and a few american frat boy types). They were obnoxious and would just push their way into a spot at the table even if there wasn't one available. I thought the dealers and pit bosses could have done a better job organizing the crowds at the roulette tables and only allowing so many people at a time to play.

 

Overall I felt the casino was very much comparable to a land based casino, and overall the dealers were friendly and helpful with just a couple exceptions.

[Yo Eleven]

Nice thread! All this casino talk makes my mouth water!!!!!

 

Swinging hundreds in craps? I have seen thousands being swung in a matter of minutes!!!!!!

 

Check out the new casino section here at CC. It is the place for all casino lovers!!!!!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=586