Casino on the Cheap... How does that Work? Recommendations? What Do You Do?

[dbrucern]

My husband usually takes a $100 for blackjack and can play for hours - up and down but usually walks away with his $100 to play another day.

[ChefSusan]

I usually sit down at the Fun 21 Blackjack table with at least $50-100 a day, and have been able to win that back plus a whole heck of a lot more money. I always bring cash with me - never take anything off my S&S card, and whatever winnings I have at the end of the cruise, it goes towards paying off our joint S&S account.

 

To the PP who asked if there was a way to have a "shared" S&S card for gambling in the casino - I am not sure if this is possible. I'll be on Miracle a week from tomorrow, and will ask the casino host if this can be done.

[Cinders411]

DH and I generally make a trip to Vegas once per year. We mainly stick to the video poker. I have only cruised one time so far, but, found the slots sooooo TIGHT onboard.

[dolfansam]

i'll just preface this by saying i could count the times i've gambled in any casino on my two hands... i'm not a big roller, and it really doesn't offer the allure it seems to for others... to me...

 

my greatest experience was in vegas, where i played roulette for hours on a $20 buy in... i figured out how roulette works, and played for about 5 hrs... and many drinks later... still walked away ahead... :) (by about 15x = 300 :D)

 

but in my limited gaming experience on carnival, i blew through cash on roulette (because of $5 outside bets vs. $1 in vegas) and on the slots (i think they're rigged pretty steep)... and quickly realized this wasn't an equitable enterprise... :o

 

i've read about people playing penny / nickle / dime slots, but you have to play a few 'options' at a time? and sometimes if you have a bunch of 'options', even on a cheap slot, there can be a far greater payout? you can play a penny slot, but have 20 something 'spots', what? :confused:

 

what do you do in the casino, when you don't want to blow through (or put on the line) a lot of cash, and just want to have a little fun.

 

mind you, i wouldn't care if i lost it all... i just want more than a few minutes of entertainment while doing as much...

 

open to any suggestions / recommendations... :D

 

I only bring $40 to the casino. Once it is gone I am done. I usually play blackjack. If I start winning and I have doubled the money, I start taking money off the table anf only leave the original $40 on the table. I continue to remove money periodically. This way, I walk with my original money because once I take the money off the table I do not put it back during that round of play.

[kiwi121210]

I have a super great idea for you! Totally simple and you don't have to worry about payback percentages or anything.

 

go get 2 rolls of quarters and play that really cool quarter pusher game! It's totally fun and a quarter per try! it's totally addicting and super fun to watch and see if you get any quarters back and you sit in amazement on how many quarters can sit there and not fall off!!

[Tucker in Texas]

A long time ago, I read somewhere to play blackjack and bet in progression $5, $7, $12, $15, $25. Start with $5 and progress up until you win two of the bets then go back to $5. If you win two out of the five bets, you will come out ahead most of the time. Yes, sometimes you only win one, sometimes none. If you win none, you are down $65. Then I play to get back even and quit. When I'm up $50, I call it a night. I do basic strategy. It has kept me busy and usually end up winning over the long run but, if I don't, I don't lose that much. I look at it as "entertainment," anyway.

 

Tucker in Texas

[sc_wildman]

I also normally use a progressive betting strategy along with basic strategy. The progression i use is 1-3-2-6. If the table min. is $5.00, my first bet would be $5.00. If i win, i would add $5.00 to the $10.00 i have on the table and my next bet would be $15.00. Another win and my bet drops back to $10.00. Another win and the bet will be $30.00. after that you go back to min. bet again. Also if you lose a hand go back to min. bet again. I like this strategy because if you win the first bet you would then have $10.00, add another$5.00 and your bet is $15.00. Win this hand and you now have $30.00 on the table, remove $20.00 and your next bet is $10.00. LOse this hand and you have made $10.00, win this hand and your next bet is $30.00. Win this hand and you will have made $60.00 dollars profit. Lose this hand and you will be back to even. with this progression, once you win two hands in a row you are assured of at least breaking even through the progression. One note though, the house has the edge and if you play long enough the house WILL usually take your money.

[HoustonTom]

I just came back from a cruise on the Conquest. I like to gamble so I spent a lot of sea time in the casino.

Slots: I love to play the Penny slots (Is it the sound that is addicting?)

In the land based Casinos I will experiment with a combination of lines and bets to see what seems to work best on a particular type of machine. I always start with small bets (maybe 5 lines, 1 cent each line), and work my way up to about 5 lines/3 cents per line. I don’t win any big Jackpots, but I can play for a couple of hours on $20. The people on the machines next to me drop in $100 and bet the max ($3 per spin). Their machines make a lot of noise and they win some decent $$ on their bonus rounds. But after 45 minutes they have blown $100 and I still have $15 of my original $20.

That said:

The cheapest Conquest "Penny" machines require a minimum of 18 lines. Most require 20+ lines, so they are in effect quarter machines. And the payout ratios are nothing like Vegas.

And the card in-out process to absurd.

Let’s assume your nightly limit is $10.

-You deposit a $20 bill in the machine to fund 2 nights gaming.

-After losing $5 you decide you should try another machine.

-You cash out your $15 credit to your SS Card and find another machine. -Upon attempting to download $5 to the new machine (your remaining $10 nightly allocation) you are notified that a minimum of $10 must be downloaded.

As for Blackjack:

Most casinos will allow beginners to use a Blackjack Chart. They can be downloaded free from the net and give beginners a decent chance at the table without getting too sophisticated. Here is an example:

****www.cryan.com/pdf/blackjack.pdf***

If the URL above is blocked, just do a search on "Blackjack Charts".

It explains what action you should take based on your cards vs. the dealer's.

I gambled about 2 hrs each day (7 days) with a net loss of about $80. (I budgeted to lose $300).

[RedbirdFL]

I have a super great idea for you! Totally simple and you don't have to worry about payback percentages or anything.

 

go get 2 rolls of quarters and play that really cool quarter pusher game! It's totally fun and a quarter per try! it's totally addicting and super fun to watch and see if you get any quarters back and you sit in amazement on how many quarters can sit there and not fall off!!

 

DD and I played this on our last cruise and had a ball!! We weren't the only ones - the machines were almost always full.

[crusinpsychRN]

I can't figure out the combo wins on the slots. When it looks like you won, you didn't. When it looks like you lost, you win!

[pjhootch]

Roulette and slots are the worst possible odds, but fun for some people anyway. The slots that have bonus rounds can be fun but you will have to play more than the minimum bet to get the bonus on most machines. Pick a medium number of lines to play and play the second lowest $$ bet on the machine and that makes it a bit more fun.

 

Video poker generally has better odds than slots and sometimes you can play a very long time without losing too much money. However, you do need to have a basic understanding of VP to do that. The VP machines on Carnival have terrible odds, but I play them anyway because I enjoy it.

 

If you can handle playing the table games, that is your best "bet". More money to buy in than many people would put in a slot machine, so really... it depends on your budget and what your idea of fun is.

[Kdog1971]

Check your ego and your nervousness at the door and walk up to the craps table. The dealers will help you. Forget all the noise and the drunks playing the "hard ways" etc.

 

Put a min bet 5-10 on the pass line when appropriate. Then place full odds behind it after the come out roll... Don't worry if you don't know these terms, it really is easy...ask the dealers. Then just wait. That will be a $5 bet on the pass and 15,20,25 odds depending on the point. You can make a couple hundred bucks last for hours even days.

 

It is way more fun than slots and you may actually win something substantial.

 

I play craps (larger wagers) and love to help people get started. I have been know to stake a guy or gal $100 and once they build up a little bank get repaid. Every once in awhile we loose it, but most of the time they get 60-80 in winnings, pay me back and keep playing for a long time.

 

 

Try it.

 

 

 

i'll just preface this by saying i could count the times i've gambled in any casino on my two hands... i'm not a big roller, and it really doesn't offer the allure it seems to for others... to me...

 

my greatest experience was in vegas, where i played roulette for hours on a $20 buy in... i figured out how roulette works, and played for about 5 hrs... and many drinks later... still walked away ahead... :) (by about 15x = 300 :D)

 

but in my limited gaming experience on carnival, i blew through cash on roulette (because of $5 outside bets vs. $1 in vegas) and on the slots (i think they're rigged pretty steep)... and quickly realized this wasn't an equitable enterprise... :o

 

i've read about people playing penny / nickle / dime slots, but you have to play a few 'options' at a time? and sometimes if you have a bunch of 'options', even on a cheap slot, there can be a far greater payout? you can play a penny slot, but have 20 something 'spots', what? :confused:

 

what do you do in the casino, when you don't want to blow through (or put on the line) a lot of cash, and just want to have a little fun.

 

mind you, i wouldn't care if i lost it all... i just want more than a few minutes of entertainment while doing as much...

 

open to any suggestions / recommendations... :D

[Smithkids5521]

I would rather play blackjack or video poker. Did blackjack on the second cruise and played for over an hour on $50, plus had a great time doing it.

 

I like Texas Hold em for the same reason...I can buy in with $50 and sit at that table for a long time. As long as I play smart- only play if I have good cards dealt and fold if not holding anything good (unless I am small or big blind, in which case I will at least stay to see the flop...) ;) I can usually play for an hour or more and cash out even or at least a few bucks ahead...

[Termig8r]

I don't usually play slots, but on the Valor last week I had three quarters in my pocket and was walking thru the casino. I stopped at a quarter slot nearest the bar and dropped them in. on the third spin (only played the minimum .25 cents per spin) I hit $65. I quit for the night. On night two I went back and tried again on the quarter machine right next to the one I won on. I put in a $1 bill and on the second spin won $48. I quit again and stayed out of the casino until the last night of the cruise. I tried the quarter slots again with $1 bill and on spin #3 won $48 again. I was up about $158 for the cruise so being the last night I played craps for a couple of hours and walked away with about $150 more betting mostly the pass line and placing odds behind it...occasionally betting the 6 and 8 if someone got hot. The key to it all is like Kenny Rogers says...knowing when to walk away and knowing when to run!! In 6 cruises I have made more money than I have lost in the casinos with my "quit while you are ahead' strategy. But it is all fun.

[kazbar]

Slots are fun for about 15 minutes and then I get bored. Every few weeks I will play a bit online for free and that does me for a good while.

 

If you are interested, just google "free slots"

 

Be careful though that you don't get a false sense of security from the free ones cause they are much looser than the real ones :)

[golfadj]

Become platinum and get free admission to a tourney.

 

Nicer playing with someone elses money.

[nw2this]

I gamble even less than the OP, but in Vegas I enjoy 5 cent video black jack. Do they have this on cruise ships? My money lasts a while, it is more interesting than slots, and I win a little.

 

I tried pass line bets at the craps table a couple of times and won too. I understand the pass line bet but I don't understand the backing up with full odds thing. Is that another bet in a different place on the table at the same time?

[SE NC]

I love 3 card poker but was not doing very well. Later at a bar:D, Ii ran into a guy who had been playing at my table. He taught me the best way to play the game. Sooooo for the first time ever, I walked off the boat a $215 winner!:D

[ts7170]

SE NC - Willing to share any tips you learned at 3 Card Poker?

[jakesnana]

I gamble even less than the OP, but in Vegas I enjoy 5 cent video black jack. Do they have this on cruise ships? My money lasts a while, it is more interesting than slots, and I win a little.

 

I tried pass line bets at the craps table a couple of times and won too. I understand the pass line bet but I don't understand the backing up with full odds thing. Is that another bet in a different place on the table at the same time?

 

It is a different bet that you place behind your pass line bet (outside the line). The amount varies, depending on what the point is (the number the shooter is trying to get).

 

They offer classes onboard the ship, usually the morning of the first sea day. While craps can seem complicated, if you just play the pass line, with full odds, it is your best chance of winning in the casino, as it has the lowest house advantage. I occasionally throw a bet on the Field or Come, just to mix it up, but not often.

[jakesnana]

SE NC - Willing to share any tips you learned at 3 Card Poker?

 

I would like to hear this also. I have perfected black jack strategy, but sometimes the cards just come out in your favor and it's nice to have another game to go to when this happens. That being said, although I know the basic premis of 3 card poker, I'm sure there are strategies, just like black jack.

[SE NC]

I would like to hear this also. I have perfected black jack strategy, but sometimes the cards just come out in your favor and it's nice to have another game to go to when this happens. That being said, although I know the basic premis of 3 card poker, I'm sure there are strategies, just like black jack.

 

OK...here's what he told me. I know it might not make sense but it worked for the two nights I played.:D The chips are $5. He said never bet more then 1 chip against the dealer as playing against the dealer is not where you will win your money. Where you win your money is the side bet. The side bet is you will get a pair or better (the better your hand, the better the pay out ie 3 to 1... 4 to 1 etc. and is not betting against the dealer's hand. He said always bet at least 2 to 3 chips and more when "you feel it"! :p

Guys....it worked for me and I'll bet the same way on our upcomming "Super Bowl" cruise!!:D