You can't lose money in the casino

[NewSalt]

on our last cruise, we were chatting with a woman whose DH was in the casino. She commented that "You can't lose money in a cruise ship casino," mentioning that he had won their current cruise on a previous one.

 

As someone who never even gets her change back when using a vending machine, I was somewhat taken aback by this comment. I've read that the odds are very firmly on the house's side in land-based casinos. Is it different on board?

[cb at sea]

The woman is lying, or lucky...one or the other. Ship's casinos have NO incentive to let you win....sometimes you do, but most times, you don't!

Sure...anyone can...but the odds are against you! Speaking of "odds"...the table game odds are nothing like Vegas....and the dealers seldom lose!

[famof4togo]

We gamble often...local casinos...vegas...cruises etc...and we do feel that we always walk away with money on a cruise vs vegas (we usually break even) or local casino's (we always seem to lose) now I don't think there is a "science" to this but it does seem to always be our personal case....we also find casinos on cruises much more casual which we like as well...

[flirtyfloridacouple]

Newbie question... but is there one game over another that has the best luck chance / odds of winning?

 

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[Cruise for vacation]

on our last cruise, we were chatting with a woman whose DH was in the casino. She commented that "You can't lose money in a cruise ship casino," mentioning that he had won their current cruise on a previous one.

 

As someone who never even gets her change back when using a vending machine, I was somewhat taken aback by this comment. I've read that the odds are very firmly on the house's side in land-based casinos. Is it different on board?

 

 

Are you saying that he was awarded a free cruise based on the money he played in the casino? Or he won in the casino and it covered the price you paid for the cruise?

 

On my last cruise I played in the casino and won almost two thousand, however I also received an email a few weeks later offering me a free inside cabin cruise.

[LadyShiva]

My husband begs to differ with the lady... ;p He wins at the poker tournaments onboard (so far), and he is definitely leaving a long list of "not winners" at the table.

 

He also loses at every slot machine--while I have reasonably good luck there!

[BND]

Ships casinos are very similar to land based casinos, so she's terribly wrong. They say they meet the standards of the Nevada Gaming Board. I will say I have won more on cruises than I have in land based casinos, but everything is relative. The most I've ever won is $75 in nickel slots. Sometimes I lose more than I win, but I also gamble small amounts and quit when I'm ahead. I limit myself to $20/day to play cause I don't really want to throw away more:rolleyes:

 

Could be her DH tells her he wins all the time, but that doesn't mean he does.

[yogimax]

Love these threads. Think about it... why would RCCL have slots that produce a positive return for the player? Do you really think they want to give away money?

 

In truth, cruisers will be lucky to get a 90% payout return on slots. In general, video poker has better odds but even there, the ship offer a miniscule 95% payout.

 

Sure there are winners, but they are the lucky ones.

 

Think of the casino experience as a price you will pay to be entertained. Period.

[boscobeans]

Casinos and race tracks make a profit?? Somebody must lose.

We do and then we break even and then sometimes we come out ahead.. Great fun and is part of the entire cruise experience... LOL

 

bosco

[riclop]

on our last cruise, we were chatting with a woman whose DH was in the casino. She commented that "You can't lose money in a cruise ship casino," mentioning that he had won their current cruise on a previous one.

 

As someone who never even gets her change back when using a vending machine, I was somewhat taken aback by this comment. I've read that the odds are very firmly on the house's side in land-based casinos. Is it different on board?

Yes she was using the change machine.

[danzig1989]

OP must be talking about cruises awarded off of points earned playing in the casino. I'd just like to know how much you need to feed the one-armed bandit to get enough points.

 

 

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[ronandcarla]

Newbie question... but is there one game over another that has the best luck chance / odds of winning?

 

Sent from my SM-G930V using Forums mobile app

In our opinion Craps would be the most chance of winning; When we play I use the method of playing the pass line with allowable odds and two come bets with the same odds and with each win I increase my bets, ie $5 goes to $10, etc., and usually stop at $50 and see how it goes. I usually dedicate $500 each night and no more and on the dozen or so cruises we have won for the week maybe 3 or 4 times, one of which was $4000 more or less and the others $200-300, but we had a lot of fun. Overall in my entire life lost way more than won and I would suspect many others have lost also.

[floppyMARCO]

It's not gambling when you know you're gonna win.

[George C]

I really like to gamble and do well playing poker with friends at a fairly high stakes game. I also win on occasions at casino on land and on the ship but no way I am even close to even on the ship casino. But I will bring a certain amount to gamble on every cruise, normally limit gambling to a hour or so a day since there is so much more to do.

[AbeFroman2]

If you're going to play tables in the ship casinos, just watch your hands and your payouts. It's clear that some of the dealers and stick folks are not always familiar with the game and they payouts, and they do make mistakes from time to time. Have never had an issue with calling it out by getting either the dealer's or pit boss' attention.

 

With the slots, I'd merely note that a lot of people filter through the casino and might drop a few bucks in slots located near steps, exits, and entrances, and thus the winners could be pay out. The hidden machines, though, usually have some winners left in them. Just a thought.

[ONECRUISER]

My husband begs to differ with the lady... ;p He wins at the poker tournaments onboard (so far), and he is definitely leaving a long list of "not winners" at the table.

 

He also loses at every slot machine--while I have reasonably good luck there!

Makes me think first time I gambled for cash. Was in Army 30+ yrs ago. 7 of us played and at end of nite supposedly everyone came out $50-$100 ahead...

[Cruiserbillyboo]

This has to be one of the more ridiculous comments ever! Think about it, let's take roulette for example. The wheel has the same number of slots in a cruise ship as in any land-based casino. The payouts are the same for all bets, either inside or outside. It's the exact same game in virtually any casino in the world, land or sea-based.

Take blackjack or craps - while indeed there may be some minor differences from casino to casino, land or sea-based, in payouts or rules (odds differences in craps, perhaps some differences in doubling or or how many split allowed in BJ, perhaps a 6:5 BJ payout instead of 3:2, perhaps dealer hitting vs. staying on soft 17, for example.....), these differences are relatively minor, given the overall scheme of the game. For all practical purposes, ship-based casinos play by pretty much the same rules as casinos anywhere else.

And like any casino anywhere else, land or sea, some people come out ahead, some (most) don't.

Not much more can be said about this!

[Shelley61]

on our last cruise, we were chatting with a woman whose DH was in the casino. She commented that "You can't lose money in a cruise ship casino," mentioning that he had won their current cruise on a previous one.

 

As someone who never even gets her change back when using a vending machine, I was somewhat taken aback by this comment. I've read that the odds are very firmly on the house's side in land-based casinos. Is it different on board?

 

Sounds to me like that's what her husband told her to keep justifying his continued gambling!

 

What a lot of nonsense... as someone else has said, would the cruiseline really give away money to its passengers?? Considering the whole additional mini-bar charge after departure fiasco, I highly doubt it!

[nelblu]

I gamble on cruises and on occasions I have had a net gain. I think of buying a tour.

 

I also gamble in AC and think of it a entertainment. However, I do get a lot of perks such as free rooms, gifts, food & entertainment. Rather than go to Broadway plays, I invest in AC casinos. Also, reciprocal arrangements as a few years ago, I got 7 nights in Vegas casinos for less than $200. As I said it's an investment. lol

[A&L_Ont]

I gamble on cruises and on occasions I have had a net gain. I think of buying a tour.

 

I also gamble in AC and think of it a entertainment. However, I do get a lot of perks such as free rooms, gifts, food & entertainment. Rather than go to Broadway plays, I invest in AC casinos. Also, reciprocal arrangements as a few years ago, I got 7 nights in Vegas casinos for less than $200. As I said it's an investment. lol

 

I agree about your comment of buying a tour.

 

To me it's not about how much you win it's how much you net.

[nelblu]

I agree about your comment of buying a tour.

 

To me it's not about how much you win it's how much you net.

 

Agree, I had a friend who boasted how much he won either at the track or casinos, but alas at the end he was net net loser.

[katiel53]

I guess if I didn't lose in the casino, the money disappeared into space or something. I play slots on all cruises and I have not ever won overall. I do spent what I consider a fair amount of money, and to me, it's entertainment. I have never gotten a free cruise. The most I have received is the free drinks card on Carnival and some dollars off my future RC cruise.

 

I don't do excursions any longer so I spend my cruise money in the casino. I have had far better luck in Las Vegas years ago as well as in St Maarten in a local casino. My luck has changed, but it's still fun for me.

[Baron Barracuda]

On many sailings our meet & mingle groups held slot pulls. Have never come out ahead, but recent results are disturbing.

 

Just off Celebrity Equinox where we had 80 folks plunk $15 each into a $1 Wheel of Fortune machine (not progressive). After a round of betting our $1200 had shrunk to $400. On so many pulls would never have expected 66% loss:eek::eek:

 

Prior sailing our group of 40 ponied up $10 each and lost 80% in one round on same type machine (different ship) :eek::eek:

 

On future cruises if cc group holds slot pull I'll join the fun, but on my own will stick to table games. Saw post recently by someone who participated in roulette pull. Curious how that works.

[BillHoo]

Love these threads. Think about it... why would RCCL have slots that produce a positive return for the player? Do you really think they want to give away money?....

 

from a psych standpoint, if (some) people win the occasional $75 to $200, they might think "Yea, I love the cruise casinos! I think I'll book a 12 night cruise next year and play non-stop!"

[Rogueperson]

On many sailings our meet & mingle groups held slot pulls. Have never come out ahead, but recent results are disturbing.

 

Just off Celebrity Equinox where we had 80 folks plunk $15 each into a $1 Wheel of Fortune machine (not progressive). After a round of betting our $1200 had shrunk to $400. On so many pulls would never have expected 66% loss:eek::eek:

 

Prior sailing our group of 40 ponied up $10 each and lost 80% in one round on same type machine (different ship) :eek::eek:

 

 

My first slot pull on the Independence, we had about 45 people. It was a $15.00 buy-in and there was a strict 5 pull limit for each. After 225 pulls, everyone got back about $21.00. So, that's about a 40% return there.

 

My second slot pull was on the Granduer. We had about 30 people with the same $15.00 buy in and strict 5 pull limit. After 150 pulls, we returned about $11.00, which was about a 30% loss.

 

It really depends on where you lie on the statistic curve, but statistically, the big winners are the ones who go in for a single pull, or a limited use thing and leave. The ones who continue to play, will fall victim to statistics eventually. The games favor the house and always will.