Casino

[DevonianCruiser]

Having been on ships with more US and maybe European passengers in recent years where the casino's have been big and busy and in the main good fun, just wondering what to expect on Ventura.

 

Is is big/small? Many tables? Much game choice? Quiet/busy? Last time on P&O all the dealers were British. Never known more than maybe 1 or 2 dealers that were British on any other cruise line.

 

Do they have tournaments? Any info appreciated :)

[davecttr]

Having been on ships with more US and maybe European passengers in recent years where the casino's have been big and busy and in the main good fun, just wondering what to expect on Ventura.

 

Is is big/small? Many tables? Much game choice? Quiet/busy? Last time on P&O all the dealers were British. Never known more than maybe 1 or 2 dealers that were British on any other cruise line.

 

Do they have tournaments? Any info appreciated :)

Casino downsized last year. IIRC 2 roulette tables plus blackjack, 3 card poker and fun 21 tables. shares the same space as the Exchange bar so you can enjoy the karaoke as you lose money :rolleyes: Can be quiet or amazingly busy. there may be a blackjack or Texas hold em tournament.

 

the dealers are mostly filipino or eastern european with a scattering of other nationalities. the ladies like chocolates :)

 

blackjack is american style, 8 decks, hand shuffle, dealer stands on 17, no surrender, double any hand, split to 4 times? only one card on split aces, minimum £3, maximum £100. There is also a side bet called fun pairs which seems more popular with some players than the proper blackjack.

[DevonianCruiser]

Thanks Dave, very informative ;)

 

Fun pairs, like all these other side bets that have appeared in the last decade or so are just more easy wins for the house :eek:

[richleeds]

If you are looking for a bit of casino pazazz, atmosphere and Vegas style slots - you won't find them on Ventura.

 

The casino is like a National Express waiting room.

[davecttr]

If you are looking for a bit of casino pazazz, atmosphere and Vegas style slots - you won't find them on Ventura.

 

The casino is like a National Express waiting room.

No, British Rail, there is a little train that does not go round and round above the bar :D

 

Who the heck would want to play slots, daylight robbery, probably why there are those in the casino as well.

 

I have a Princess cruise booked for next year. That has a big casino. I might recognize some of the dealers too :)

[DevonianCruiser]

Last time I went on P & O they had a fruit machine in the pub! On Ocean Village they moved the casino into what I can only describe as a corridor or hallway. Strange really as on the American ships it's a big area and a big money maker I'd imagine.

[dsrdsrdsr]

Most American states have very restrictive gambling laws, so those who want to spend their money in that particular way have to wait until they board. In the UK, we can pour our money into bookies' hands every week of the year, so being able to do the same at the casino is significantly less urgent.

[richleeds]

I very much doubt the people you see scurrying into a high street bookies are the same people who enjoy a holiday cruise ship flutter, most people we speak to on the tables and slots say it's the only time they have a gamble save the Grand National etc.

Edited November 15, 2014 by richleeds

[DevonianCruiser]

I very much doubt the people you see scurrying into a high street bookies are the same people who enjoy a holiday cruise ship flutter, most people we speak to on the tables and slots say it's the only time they have a gamble save the Grand National etc.

 

Those high street bookies are a dangerous place for so many people. There seems to be a different story in the papers every week where those roulette machines has gained yet another addicted gambler who has lost his/her home and everything else!

 

For me I only gamble on holiday, I enjoy it. On my summer cruise on Jade I got a 1st place in one and a second in the other ($60 entry for each, $1375 for 1st and my second got me $750). Previous cruise I won a free cruise on the Oasis which was amazing. Doesn't sound like I will be playing these games :p Oh well there always St Martin :D

[dsrdsrdsr]

I very much doubt the people you see scurrying into a high street bookies are the same people who enjoy a holiday cruise ship flutter, most people we speak to on the tables and slots say it's the only time they have a gamble save the Grand National etc.

That's pretty much the point. American cruises have a significant number of passengers who (due to more restrictive gambling laws) select a cruise holiday specifically because they can do some serious gambling. The UK no doubt has at least as many, quite probably more, frequent/serious/high stakes gamblers, but they don't need to book a cruise to do the gambling.

[richleeds]

Or fly/drive to Vegas or many other states, go to the Bahamas/Jamaica or on one of those gambling ships just off the coast etc

 

Lots of options incl as you say a traditional cruise, though as many cruises out of the USA are port heavy, I wouldnt think cruising is the best way to maximise gambling time.

[Cloudyrain]

My husband is a gambler and on a cruise he is in the casino every night, on a few occasions I'm with him, but mostly I'm back in the room and leave him to his few hours of fun. He was always surprised on P&O when they would call the last three hands around 1am/1.30am even though there was a table full of players.

 

On NCL the regular players got a few free drinks and snacks brought to them and they generally played as long as there were players wanting to play: and when they did close they gave them a good half hour warning.

 

What's said about the Ventura is true, the Exchange pushes into it quite a lot and it seems to have been an afterthought like the designer thought "oops, forgot to include a Casino, where can it go?" Though that impression is perpetuated by the poor management of it.

[davecttr]

My husband is a gambler and on a cruise he is in the casino every night, on a few occasions I'm with him, but mostly I'm back in the room and leave him to his few hours of fun. He was always surprised on P&O when they would call the last three hands around 1am/1.30am even though there was a table full of players.

 

On NCL the regular players got a few free drinks and snacks brought to them and they generally played as long as there were players wanting to play: and when they did close they gave them a good half hour warning.

 

What's said about the Ventura is true, the Exchange pushes into it quite a lot and it seems to have been an afterthought like the designer thought "oops, forgot to include a Casino, where can it go?" Though that impression is perpetuated by the poor management of it.

It is not surprising they close the tables when they do as they must have made plenty of profit on them, at least on the blackjack table. In 25 cruises I have seen less than a handful of players who knew how to play the game properly. They kept the roulette going until 3am on Oceana with one player who was betting £200-£300 per spin!

 

The casino on Ventura used to be larger but it was downsized when they installed the single cabins in the Exchange bar area (worst cabins on P&O) They did that because they could get more revenue from the cabins than the lounge area of the Exchange they replaced.

[tom_uk]

....

The casino on Ventura used to be larger but it was downsized when they installed the single cabins in the Exchange bar area (worst cabins on P&O) They did that because they could get more revenue from the cabins than the lounge area of the Exchange they replaced.

 

I'm not sure it was downsized that much at the last refit - my recollection is that it was always less than half the width of the deck in that space. Perhaps a third? - with Exchange taking up two-thirds.

 

Now, as you say, there a double-row of cabins along one side which must take up about 25% of the width of the deck. I suppose Exchange now has 50% of the total width (or two-thirds of the remaining space) with the casino squeezed into a quarter of the total space. On the Princess sister ships, e.g. Crown Princess, the whole of that space is labelled 'Casino', although I believe there is a bar area in it. I haven't cruised with Princerss so I can't comment on how busy it is, but I have been on Celebrity fly cruises in the Med with mainly American passengers, I was surprised at how busy the casino was on those ships.

[davecttr]

I'm not sure it was downsized that much at the last refit - my recollection is that it was always less than half the width of the deck in that space. Perhaps a third? - with Exchange taking up two-thirds.

 

Now, as you say, there a double-row of cabins along one side which must take up about 25% of the width of the deck. I suppose Exchange now has 50% of the total width (or two-thirds of the remaining space) with the casino squeezed into a quarter of the total space. On the Princess sister ships, e.g. Crown Princess, the whole of that space is labelled 'Casino', although I believe there is a bar area in it. I haven't cruised with Princerss so I can't comment on how busy it is, but I have been on Celebrity fly cruises in the Med with mainly American passengers, I was surprised at how busy the casino was on those ships.

They got rid if the 'proper' poker table and carribean stud table plus the second blackjack? table. Replacing them with some lounge seating which seems to be monoplosed by people staring mesmerized at the video screens, even if it is just playing endless reeats of last seasons foorball games.

 

ps - I must say IMO the Exchange bar is the worst one I have experienced on any ship. Souless, dark, no atmosphere and no reason to go there. Luckily Ventura has an excellent bar, guess which one ;)

 

Mmm! must larn to spall

Edited November 17, 2014 by davecttr

[tom_uk]

.....

ps - I must say IMO the Exchange bar is the worst one I have experienced on any ship. Souless, dark, no atmosphere and no reason to go there. Luckily Ventura has an excellent bar, guess which one ;)

 

Agreed. The equivalent bar on Azura is better, while the Red Lion on Arcadia is excellent. Mainly, though, we don't really use these bars - we don't do quizzes or watch sports on TV, which is what mainly happens in them. it's the Glasshouse for us!

[daiB]

Agreed. The equivalent bar on Azura is better, while the Red Lion on Arcadia is excellent. Mainly, though, we don't really use these bars - we don't do quizzes or watch sports on TV, which is what mainly happens in them. it's the Glasshouse for us!

 

 

That would be the Rising Sun on Arcadia. :)

 

 

 

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[davecttr]

That would be the Rising Sun on Arcadia. :)

 

 

 

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I did not like the Rising Sun, far too much butlinesque stuff plus dark and dingy and when they started playing Vera Lynn at midnight and gave out little flags to wave. :eek::eek::eek:

 

then you have the Yacht & Compass on Oceana, a lovely bar spoilt by far too many quizzes and the inevitable FAR TOO LOUD music.