Free cruise

[Mimi19510]

We received a free cruise offer for inside cabin from Holland America players club. States we have to pay port taxes and fees, but nothing for the cabin. States upgrades available. Anyone have experience with this?we are really arent big gamblers so getting this offer was a bit of a surprise.  Any thoughts appreciated. 

[Sunseeker810]

Congratulations!  I have gone on quite a few of these.  Yes, you do pay only taxes.  Approximately $150 to $180 pp.  The only draw back with Holland is that you cannot choose a cabin.  They can put you anywhere.

[richstowe]

Great . Would you / did you ask about paying for an upgrade ?

[DaveOKC]

2 hours ago, Sunseeker810 said:

Congratulations!  I have gone on quite a few of these.  Yes, you do pay only taxes.  Approximately $150 to $180 pp.  The only draw back with Holland is that you cannot choose a cabin.  They can put you anywhere.

I like to pay extra and move up to a category where I feel comfortable in any cabin I may be assigned (hard to do I know).  Talk to your TA about your options on this.

[sambamama]

I got this offer and like you, was very surprised to get it. But I saw no downside, and as a solo, and HAL has now priced pretty much all their ctuises at 200%, I figured i would go ahead and book. I'm booked on the November 7 Niieuw Amsterdam cruise and staying in Miami before and after. It was cheaper flying in and out of Miami and I had a number of free hotel nights to use up. I had a bit of credit that paid for the taxes, so all I had to pay was $200 which is returned to me as shipboard credit. 

[Taters]

We received an offer like this a couple of weeks ago.  I am a bit claustrophobic, so an inside cabin isn't an option for me.  We ended up booking Koningsdam back-to-back, paying $199 per person for each 7 night cruise in an outside cabin.  Very reasonable! 🙂

Edited May 21, 2021 by Taters

[papadave]

Inside cabins can be nice too.    Having sailed in small staterooms both inside and with a window I can't say that I wanted to spend much more time in my cabin with a window.   If you are likely to use your cabin as a bed and a bathroom, not as a place to hang out, you might be fine with an inside cabin.   It is very much a personal choice.

 

You may see some difference in taxes and port charges depending on the itinerary you choose.   As this is a 7 day cruise you are unlikely to have any very expensive port charges.   The highest port charge I paid was for the Panama Canal, which was hundreds of dollars for two people.   Normally, port charges are reasonable.   

 

It sounds like you were very lucky, have been offered a nice deal which will let you know whether or not cruises are your thing.   Have a great time.

[AV8rix]

I get them all the time but the vast majority of them are for 7-night cruises, which I don't like.  However, I'm so cruise-deprived that I'm seriously thinking about taking them up on one of the Pacific coastal ones.  As a solo I'm in interiors most of the time but, as @papadavecommented, I'm only ever in my stateroom to sleep, bathe, and change clothes.

[Djptcp]

I get them a lot and always upgrade us to a verandah cabin or suite as we don't stay in inside o ocean view cabins. Six times we've been able to get Neptune Suites for only $799 per person for 7 day cruises. Great deals!

[sassy~one]

This is what I got!  I booked a b2b2b.  I was so surprised. I sail in January.  YEAH

[Mimi19510]

Thanks for the responses. I think we are going to do the 1/2/22 cruise on the new Rotterdam. 

[cruisegirl]

Is just the luck of the draw to get one of these offers?  We haven’t ever been that lucky. But it would be nice. 

[mcrcruiser]

Sort of Funny   we get Casino offers from Carnival Cruise lines but never  from HAL or Ptincess with whom we cruise often   .We can only hope that  it changes in the future  

[Mary229]

So I have to ask, when you say you are a moderate gambler what are we talking about here: $100, $1000 or $10000.  A few people I have met on cruises who were free-cruising have told me they spend quite a bundle in the casino but then I see on the forum people saying I am a moderate gambler, so what exactly is moderate.  😁

[sassy~one]

12 hours ago, Mimi19510 said:

Thanks for the responses. I think we are going to do the 1/2/22 cruise on the new Rotterdam. 

HI Mimi, I will be on the 3 sailings after this one.  I thought about this sailing also, BUT I could not get the same cabin as I was in for the next 3 sailings. ENJOY.

 

[vswan]

2 hours ago, Mary229 said:

So I have to ask, when you say you are a moderate gambler what are we talking about here: $100, $1000 or $10000.  A few people I have met on cruises who were free-cruising have told me they spend quite a bundle in the casino but then I see on the forum people saying I am a moderate gambler, so what exactly is moderate.  😁

 

I was surprised to get a similar offer last fall and booked for January - which was obviously canceled. Shortly after I received another offer for a free inside room and am booked for an 11 day Panama Canal cruise for the end of November.

 

I generally stop in the casino daily when on a cruise. I budget about $20 per day with maybe an additional $50 to $100 in reserve for the entire cruise, so not a lot of money. On a 7 day cruise I might budget (7 x $20) $140 and round that up to $200. If I have luck in the casino the initial $20 can turn into $50 and at times may exceed that.

[DaveOKC]

2 hours ago, Mary229 said:

So I have to ask, when you say you are a moderate gambler what are we talking about here: $100, $1000 or $10000.  A few people I have met on cruises who were free-cruising have told me they spend quite a bundle in the casino but then I see on the forum people saying I am a moderate gambler, so what exactly is moderate.  😁

I know it is confusing when people say they get these offers and that they are low or moderate gamblers.  Part of this comes from how casinos (land and ocean based) reward their players with comps/offers/freebies.  

 

A casino does not (generally) consider how much you win or lose when giving out these deals, instead they base them on your "play" and what type of games you enjoy.  As an example, I will use slots.  A slot player is judged by how much he/she puts into the machines over time.  Thus, a person playing $2 per slot pull is worth twice as much to them as a person playing $1 per pull.  Likewise, the longer you play, the greater your value to them.  So, if you are lucky or are playing machines with high "returns" AND you put your wins back into the machine, you will end up with great play for the casino and thus be considered more valuable to the casino (they know they will get your money sooner or later if you play long enough).  The more valuable you are, the better offers you get.  Quite simple!

 

We have experienced this first hand.  While we are "low rollers", losing no more than $50 per day, on a couple of recent cruises my DW caught a lucky streak and ended up "playing" quite a bit longer than normal.  She ended up still losing about the same amount as normal, but once we got home we started receiving better casino deals/offers - even got our first FREE cruise.

 

OK you ask, how do you increase your play?  First, being lucky helps!  But you can do some things to increase your "value", such as playing machines with lower jackpots (the machines are generally programmed to return a set %, and naturally the size of the jackpot inpacts this, to the extent that it ends up paying out more smaller wins, which allows you to play longer).  Also, allocate your gambling money to only one person in your household (and be consistant about who), as this will make that person look like more of a player to the casino (result is that this person will receive the casino offers and you will have to book using their Mariner number).  

 

While is information does not answer your question directly, hopefully it provides you with some input as to why people are reporting good offers while being low or moderate gamblers.  

 

 

 

 

 

[Mary229]

@vswan and @DaveOKC  Thanks, both posts are very helpful.  Do I need to sign up for their club ahead of time?  DH does spend a bit each day and with a transatlantic coming up I want to be prepared.  I will definitely show him these posts.

 

One more question - do the free cruises tend to be Caribbean out of Fort Lauderdale? 

 

 

[DaveOKC]

4 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

@vswan and @DaveOKC  Thanks, both posts are very helpful.  Do I need to sign up for their club ahead of time?  DH does spend a bit each day and with a transatlantic coming up I want to be prepared.  I will definitely show him these posts.

 

One more question - do the free cruises tend to be Caribbean out of Fort Lauderdale? 

 

You basically sign up while in the casino, as your cabin card is used.  Just follow the directions on the machine or ask a casino host how to do it AND use your card each time you play.

 

Most, but not all, free cruises are in the Caribbean, but I have seen offers for Panama Canal, Alaska, Mexico and New England.  I think it depends on how well the cruises are selling  and how much time the casino is open (or likely to be used).

[mollygirl]

I have received the free inside several times and I am not a big gambler - maybe $200 or $250 on a 7-night cruise.  I just booked a free inside for Feb 2022.  One way they get you is the upcharge for a higher category cabin.  My offer came with a $299 upcharge for an oceanview and a $499 upcharge for veranda.  And that is not counting the $200 per person required for booking the cruise, along with taxes and port fees.  One thing they offer that I feel is worth getting is their Platinum Cancellation Plan.  We paid $99 each for that, and it includes Cancel for any reason (90% back), along with $500 trip delay, $10,000 medical, and $50,000 emergency evacuation.  Other cruise lines charge a lot more than that.  I had a similar cruise booked for March of this year, and that was obviously cancelled.  

[DaveOKC]

10 minutes ago, mollygirl said:

I have received the free inside several times and I am not a big gambler - maybe $200 or $250 on a 7-night cruise.  I just booked a free inside for Feb 2022.  One way they get you is the upcharge for a higher category cabin.  My offer came with a $299 upcharge for an oceanview and a $499 upcharge for veranda.  And that is not counting the $200 per person required for booking the cruise, along with taxes and port fees.  One thing they offer that I feel is worth getting is their Platinum Cancellation Plan.  We paid $99 each for that, and it includes Cancel for any reason (90% back), along with $500 trip delay, $10,000 medical, and $50,000 emergency evacuation.  Other cruise lines charge a lot more than that.  I had a similar cruise booked for March of this year, and that was obviously cancelled.  

I thought you got the $200 back as OBC??  We did, so it really does not count as a cost IMO.

[mollygirl]

Just now, DaveOKC said:

I thought you got the $200 back as OBC??  We did, so it really does not count as a cost IMO.

Yes you do get it back.  I just wanted to let folks know that the upcharge is out of pocket but the additional $200 also has to be paid at the time of booking.  I don’t mind the $200 at all since it does come back as OBC.  I did read somewhere that OBC cannot be used for the daily gratuities, but I’m not sure about that.  Maybe someone else can answer that.

[vswan]

11 minutes ago, mollygirl said:

Yes you do get it back.  I just wanted to let folks know that the upcharge is out of pocket but the additional $200 also has to be paid at the time of booking.  I don’t mind the $200 at all since it does come back as OBC.  I did read somewhere that OBC cannot be used for the daily gratuities, but I’m not sure about that.  Maybe someone else can answer that.

I was told when booking that it could be used for the daily gratuities. It may be that there are "different kinds" of OBC and some can be used and some can not. Perhaps since we pay the $200 it is our money and not money given to us by the cruise line. Who knows. Will find out when I'm back onboard I guess.

 

 

[mollygirl]

8 minutes ago, vswan said:

I was told when booking that it could be used for the daily gratuities. It may be that there are "different kinds" of OBC and some can be used and some can not. Perhaps since we pay the $200 it is our money and not money given to us by the cruise line. Who knows. Will find out when I'm back onboard I guess.

 

 

Good point - It is our money! 😍

[tennispretzel]

On 5/22/2021 at 6:19 AM, Mary229 said:

So I have to ask, when you say you are a moderate gambler what are we talking about here: $100, $1000 or $10000.  A few people I have met on cruises who were free-cruising have told me they spend quite a bundle in the casino but then I see on the forum people saying I am a moderate gambler, so what exactly is moderate.  😁