Cruise Casinos-where are the people?

[Crzr4Lyf]

I couldn't help notice on my past cruises that I hardly see anyone in the casino. If there are thousand upon thousands of people on the ship, why don't they visit the casino. And the main reason I ask is because whenever I visit an Indian reservation casino, every slot machine is occupied and they place is jammed packed. Not to mention Las Vegas! That place has 38 million visitors a year.

 

So why don't people go to the casino when they are cruising? I know I'll be there.:D

[cuyahoga11]

Probably, because when they go to Vegas, they go to gamble and when people go on a cruise, they go for what the cruise offers, not just the casino.

[Fredr]

Hello,

 

My wife and I very rarely use the casino when we are on a cruise (17 cruises so far and an 18th in 2008). We have no objections to gambling, but there are lots of things to do on a cruise such as hearing music and lectures, dancing, watch movies, long walks on the deck, and our favorite -reading. And now that casinos seem to be everywhere and with better odds than on ships, these may be two reasons why the casinos on ships seem to be sparsely attended.

 

Hope that you win lots of money.

 

Fred

[Lvs2Cruise2]

DH and I LOVE to gamble. We are in the casino every night. Sometimes bummed because we miss the show for the evening, but we do like the casino. I think people avoid it because it's an "extra". They don't have to spend money to go to the shows, or to the disco. (Unless they're big drinkers!) But we allow it into our budget because if we aren't cruising, We're in Vegas!

[Happy ks]

I can only answer for myself. I find gambling to pretty much be a waste of money and don't find it all that entertaining. We usually budget about $10 each to try our hand at a bit of luck, any more we consider to be throwing good money away. So, we're generally only there about 10 minutes ;) .

 

We also have a hard time breathing the cigarette smoke and have sore throats for days afterward with too much exposure to it. That, even more than the $$ loss, keeps us well away from the casino. There have been several cruises we've taken that we haven't even gone near the casino.

 

For others, you have to remember that there are a lot of families that now cruise. So your "thousands" theory is cut by several hundred pax who can't even go into the casino. Many others prefer the shows, lounges and other areas of the ship. Our favorite thing to do in the evening is to go up above the pool deck for a brisk walk in the ocean air. The sea and the stars are beautiful and it's very quiet, far less people than even the casino :)

[chasetf]

.......So why don't people go to the casino when they are cruising? I know I'll be there.:D

First off, all cruisers are not gamblers. Most LV or Indian Casino visiters are gamblers.

 

I am not a gambler, but if I was, I would not play their slots because they are the worst odds of any slot venue. Plus I think you probably only see the hardcore gamblers (vs those going in to donate their $20). And if I gambled I would probably stick to the table games because those have the better odds.

[daiB]

I couldn't help notice on my past cruises that I hardly see anyone in the casino. If there are thousand upon thousands of people on the ship, why don't they visit the casino. And the main reason I ask is because whenever I visit an Indian reservation casino, every slot machine is occupied and they place is jammed packed. Not to mention Las Vegas! That place has 38 million visitors a year.

 

So why don't people go to the casino when they are cruising? I know I'll be there.:D

 

So why is it that Casinos on US ships are so big. On UK ships the are half the size. eg when Sea Princess became Adonia they halved the casino.

 

I always had the impression that on US ships the casinos were well used. If they are not, will they be cut down in size????:eek:

 

I use the casino every night so it is of great interest to me:D

[isujim]

I find your observation is correct..............

 

I attribute it to the cruiselines screwing down more and more the slot machines..........we have noticed especially in the last few years from say about 2004 that on ANY given night, the casino is 75% empty, even on formal night. We just got back from the Jewel and went into the casino every night for $20 worth of entertainment.........there was nobody there........

 

So for whatever reason, I agree............there are less and less people in the casino.

[phoenix1181]

We're in the casino every night too. On our recent NOS cruise, the tables were quite busy (had a hard time getting a seat @ three card), but the slots weren't. The slots can be big money makers, but not if people don't play them....... It seems they're much tighter than they were 10 or 15 years ago and people are smart enough to see that. I never expect to win when I play the slots, but when I feed in that $20, I want to play for more than 5 minutes! I'll eventually leave it in the machine, & if there was some actual play time, I'll add more money, but if the machine eats it & never gives me anything in return, I'm all done!

[Chmie]

Slots on cruise ships are very tight when compared to Vegas or maybe even the Indian casinos which could be why they are not full. I've read that a good portion of the cruise line's income is from the casino so, unless this profit decreases substantially, I don't see the square footage being reduced. Even with these poor odds we booked our cruise based on the ship having a casino ( not sure if all ships have one ) and plan to donate to Carnival's bottom line next summer. ;)

[BruceMuzz]

Not so long ago, when the wealthy were cruising, shipboard Casinos were busy and made plenty of money.

 

Today's cruiser is often on a tight budget. He is more concerned with entertainment in the casino - not winning or losing.

 

The biggest request in shipboard casinos today is penny slot machines. How much money can a ship make from a penny slot machine?

 

Slot payouts are determined by 2 factors: The actual payout percentage and the frequency of use of the machine.

If everyone is playing the penny machines, they pay out more often.

If the higher denomination machines are played less often, they pay out less often.

 

On a mass market ship today, the only revenue department that makes less money than the casino is the photo department.

[newmexicoNita]

our experience has been a little different: of course the slots are tight, but I actually think they are looser now than in the years past. At least on Celebrity and NCL. I have actually had winning nights, not many but a few. HAL was absolutely awful. No, the casinos are not as busy as in Vegas or the Indian casinos and for good reason, like someone mentioned your number one reason for going to Vegas is gambling, that isn't the main reason most of us cruise. We have always seen the slot area pretty busy, the black Jack tables the same, but the crap table is what seems dead. NMnita

[isujim]

Nita I'm glad somebody has had some luck in the past few years. It makes sense to me the fewer people that play, the less the payout is going to be due to lack of usage..........

 

On our last Jewel 8 night cruise I don't remember a single jackpot or large payout on ANY night by anybody...........by the last night of the cruise I'll bet there weren't 25 people in the casino...........I think it would help if they paid out a little more..........people wise up after a few days and continual losing:)

[Chmie]

I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but the frequency of play on a slot has nothing to do with it's payout. The Random Number Generator determines when and how much that slot will pay. A slot can be played for only one credit once a day for two consecutive days and can hit a jackpot each time. On the flip side, a slot can be played 24 hr/day for several days and not hit a jackpot. It's all in the timing, not the amount of play on a slot that determines if you hit a jackpot. :)

[BruceMuzz]

Most slots are programmed to pay out a certain percentage of the time played and money inserted.

 

If a slot machine is programmed to pay out 25% of the time/money, and is played 100 times an hour (Like in Vegas), then the payout will seem pretty good.

If the same machine is played 100 times a week (Like on the ship), then the payout will seem rather poor.

[BruceMuzz]

Most slots are programmed to pay out a certain percentage of the time played and money inserted.

 

If a slot machine is programmed to pay out 25% of the time/money, and is played 100 times an hour (Like in Vegas), then the payout will seem pretty good.

If the same machine is played 100 times a week (Like on the ship), then the payout will seem rather poor.

 

That's why many "experts" recommend that you play slot machines located near the aisles in casinos. Those machines generally get more play, and as a result, pay out more often.

[Chmie]

Most slots are programmed to pay out a certain percentage of the time played and money inserted.

 

I respectfully disagree.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slot_machine

 

Read the part about common misunderstandings.

Number of plays and length of play have no bearing on when the slot will hit. The RNG determines this. :cool:

[Crzr4Lyf]

CHMIE you are so right and in fact I visited a used slot machine store here in the valley. The owner told me that these machines cost upwards to $25,000 and come with a default EPROM(erasable programmable read-only memory) the houses the RNG. He went on to say that certain casinos, Indian ones to be exact, pay extra to get the "tighter" eproms. Whereas Vegas and the ship buy the standard chips.

 

Having said that, I have noticed that slots are much looser on ships than at most other casinos. And I should be considered an authority on this matter since i invest heavily in the gaming entertainment. :p My return is not what is would have been if I hadda invested the same money in mutual fiunds. But i have a blast.

[Crzr4Lyf]

OOPS, I meant I agree with CHMIE.

[Chmie]

Having said that, I have noticed that slots are much looser on ships than at most other casinos. And I should be considered an authority on this matter since i invest heavily in the gaming entertainment. :p My return is not what is would have been if I hadda invested the same money in mutual fiunds. But i have a blast.

 

Thanks for the support, Crzr4Lyf.

Although I have never gambled on a ship I understand their payback is in the 90% range while Vegas is about 95% or slightly more. I also have invested heavily in Vegas and make the trek several times a year. In fact this March the wife & I hit 22 jackpots in the $400 range during our 4 nite stay. Won't happen again but has paid for our July trip. :cool:

[BruceMuzz]

I never gamble - but I have managed shipboard casinos for the past 23 years.

[Chmie]

I never gamble - but I have managed shipboard casinos for the past 23 years.

 

I have never managed a shipboard casino but have gambled for many years and read up on the subject for almost as long.

So....are my comments and link to slots/random number generator and their frequency of payout inaccurate ? :D

[isujim]

I find this discussion fascinating............tell you what........everybody give me a $20 and I'll check all your theories out:D I am reading this.......heck I'm 0 for 13 cruises on the slots.........looking for any edge I can find.:rolleyes:

[Chmie]

everybody give me a $20 and I'll check all your theories out

 

A variant of the infamous $20 trick ? :p

[BruceMuzz]

Twenty years ago my small onboard Casinos frequently netted over $1 Million per week.

Today my much larger onboard Casino (with 35 employees) might net $75,000 on a very good week. More often than not, it is more in the $30,000 - $50,000 range.

The photo department next door (with 4 employees) always makes at least $50,000 a week.