Free Drinks in the Casino - gone?

[Ms belp]

We'll just have to agree to disagree. :)

 

PS: I used to be a regular in AC, and I've watched it get dumpier and dumpier every year, and could see with my own eyes the "bum" problem during my last visit several months ago (something which was confirmed to me by various casino staff that I chatted with). You don't see this in Vegas, and from what I saw Borgata is the only place that was up to Vegas standards these days (although I see Trump just opened a new tower at Taj, and I haven't seen Harrah's new tower yet).

 

What is AC, Atlantic City? Where is Borgata? Can you please speak in terms the rest of us can understand?

[Catz4001]

Does anyone know if the drinks are free at the Atlantis while gambling?

[cruzndiz]

I love reading all of these posts about casinos, gambling on board and drinking (my favorite vices LOL).

 

AC is Atlantic City and the Borgata is one of the newest/nicest hotels however Harrah's new tower kicks @** and the pool/cabana area is to die for.

 

In fact, since Harrah's and NCL share the same parent company if you are a Platinum or higher rated player with Harrah's you should be able to get yourself some substantial savings on NCL cruises now through December. Talk to your casino host about it.

 

Regarding the poster whose closest casino doesn't serve drinks....we have one of those Indian Reservation casinos about 3 hours away that is in the same situation. I ALWAYS bring my own rum or vodka in a large plastic water bottle since the free sodas/juices abound. Nobody gives me a 2nd glance when I have to "dilute" the soda with some "water"...in fact, the waitresses will often bring me the requisite slice of lime when I ask. Being a good tipper helps in this regard.

 

I do understand why the casino onboard does not make a practice of handing out free drinks to any Tom, Dick or Harry because there are many people who will just plop themselves down at a nickel slot, put a couple bucks in and wait for the waitress. I applaud them for weeding out the non-gamblers. Nothing is really free; someone somewhere has to pay for that alcohol.

 

That being said, what I'm really trying to find out is how "loose" the casino is onboard NCL ships? Usually the machines are pretty tight due to the fixed audience who will play regardless; but since my ship is stationed only in the Bahamas and there is gambling competition I wondered if they had taken that into consideration when ordering the slot machines.

[WonderMan3]

That being said, what I'm really trying to find out is how "loose" the casino is onboard NCL ships? Usually the machines are pretty tight due to the fixed audience who will play regardless; but since my ship is stationed only in the Bahamas and there is gambling competition I wondered if they had taken that into consideration when ordering the slot machines.

 

I'm sure it varies depending on the ship and the itinerary. On my recent cruise on the Dream I found the slots to be the tightest I have ever encountered anywhere (didn't hear of anyone hitting anything big), but when cruising the Sun a few years ago I thought the slots paid out like any land based casino I've been to. I figured the payout percentages may have been set lower for The Dream as the ship loses about 3 days of casino revenue time due to docking in Bermuda.

[terrymtex01]

We have only been on two NCL ships so far, the NCL Sun and the Star. I can tell you the Star is the tightest casino we have ever been in, anywhere in the world. At least on the Sun we did hit a jackpot every now and then. The loosest casino at sea we have ever been on was RCCL's Grandure.

[Boat_Drinks]

On my recent cruise on the Dream I found the slots to be the tightest I have ever encountered anywhere (didn't hear of anyone hitting anything big), I figured the payout percentages may have been set lower for The Dream as the ship loses about 3 days of casino revenue time due to docking in Bermuda.

 

Ditto (WonderMan and I were on the same cruise). VERY tight slots on Dream, and they are probably using lower percentage payout chips because the casino is CLOSED for about 50% of the time it would otherwise be open and generating revenue on a typical cruise where you are at sea each evening.

 

If you understand the economics involved in running a casino, it makes sense. A casino expects each machine to generate X dollars in revenue each day. If you cut the number of days the machine can be used by 50%, you need to have fewer payouts in order to meet your goal of X dollars in revenue, hence lower percentage payout chips. This is also why a $5 slot will (typically) pay out more often than a $0.25 slot. It's MUCH easier for the $5 slot to reach it's goal of X dollars per day in revenue, so it typically will have a higher percentage payout chip compared to the $0.25 slot (hypothetically 98.5% for the $5 slot, while 94% for the $0.25 slot).

 

FWIW, the LOOSEST slots I've ever seen on a ship were Emerald Princess. Lovely casino, lot's of modern/current games and they paid out - A LOT! I played through over $49,000 (all slot play) during 12 days on Emerald Princess, and the best part was I left with exactly the same amount of cash in my pocket that I brought on board with me, I didn't lose a penny. :cool:

[BuckeyePat]

Wow! So, I am curious: I was able to receive the Cas at Sea discount for my first NCL cruise due to my land based gambling cards. I read on these boards that program has since been discontinued, but have no way of knowing for sure. I am a Platinum Harrah's player but for the first time----normally just Gold. Also gamble at other properties. Go to Vegas [2,000 miles away:( ] once or twice a year; other casinos I visit are by car a few times a year. Just in Windsor which is now a Harrah's property.

 

As this is my first NCL cruise, how much gambling is "expected" in order to receive Cas at Sea discounts for future cruises? Will players card and drink card be in my cabin even though I have not gambled previously on a NCL ship? Thanks for any insight.

[terrymtex01]

Wow! So, I am curious: I was able to receive the Cas at Sea discount for my first NCL cruise due to my land based gambling cards. I read on these boards that program has since been discontinued, but have no way of knowing for sure. I am a Platinum Harrah's player but for the first time----normally just Gold. Also gamble at other properties. Go to Vegas [2,000 miles away:( ] once or twice a year; other casinos I visit are by car a few times a year. Just in Windsor which is now a Harrah's property.

 

As this is my first NCL cruise, how much gambling is "expected" in order to receive Cas at Sea discounts for future cruises? Will players card and drink card be in my cabin even though I have not gambled previously on a NCL ship? Thanks for any insight.

 

If you are not a guest of CAS, you will have to sign up for the players card after you board the ship. Our experience is you will not get the "free drinks VIP" card unless you are actually a guest of CAS. I am not for sure how much is expected to play to be a guest of CAS on another cruise, but I could tell you to expect it to be probably two to three times what the cruise would actually cost you. Two times at a minimum. When we first started cruising with NCL, we had heard the rumors that CAS would give you discounts to book the cruise even before you ever sail with NCL. So we called them. They told us that was not true. I know since then it is true, but at the time it wasn't. We also asked them if they comp'ed future cruises after you "proved" yourself to them. The guy we spoke to then said yes, and what we do is if we comp you a cruise we will tell you we expect you to play in the casino for x number of hours for x number of days. Again, for our second and their cruise with NCL they did not give us that information, just told us to continue our amount of play that we had from the previous cruise. When you are comp'ed a cruise by NCL it is solely based on your last cruise and how much you played in the casino. We have asked CAS many times when they have comp'ed us a cruise what they expected us to play for the comp'ed cruise. Every time, several times each, they have told us that if they comp us the cruise.. it is our cruise and a thank you for our play in the casino. They have told us if we do not continue our normal play, that we just wont be comp'ed the next cruise.

 

Hope that helps with info some.

[Boat_Drinks]

Wow! So, I am curious: I was able to receive the Cas at Sea discount for my first NCL cruise due to my land based gambling cards. I read on these boards that program has since been discontinued, but have no way of knowing for sure. I am a Platinum Harrah's player but for the first time----normally just Gold. Also gamble at other properties. Go to Vegas [2,000 miles away:( ] once or twice a year; other casinos I visit are by car a few times a year. Just in Windsor which is now a Harrah's property.

 

As this is my first NCL cruise, how much gambling is "expected" in order to receive Cas at Sea discounts for future cruises? Will players card and drink card be in my cabin even though I have not gambled previously on a NCL ship? Thanks for any insight.

 

Hi Pat,

 

First, NCL/CAS has no recipricol agreements with any other casinos except the recent one with Harrah's Total Rewards members. I'm a Platinum player with Princess/Carnival's Ocean Players Club - but that couldn't be considered by CAS. Same is true for all land-based casinos, except Harrah's Total Rewards.

 

How much play is required to get a CAS rate in the future? Who knows, I can only tell you about my experience. I played through about $5K cash/$10K cash and winnings over the 4 or so days the casino was open on Dream a few weeks ago. That one 4-day trip ranked me as qualified for "INSIDE-COMP", and in fact before disembarking the casino manager gave me an invitation for 2 for essentially a free balcony cabin on Dawn (NYC/Bermuda) for a slot tournament (I think there was a $200 tournament fee, and I think we would have had to pay port and fuel charges and of course tips, but the balcony stateroom was basically free). I declined because we had JUST returned from Bermuda and didn't feel like going back so soon.

 

A fellow gambler travelling with me did about 50% of the play that I did. Although he was not ranked, his play was recorded and it was sufficient for CAS to extend the "Casino Rate" to him, which turned out to be approximately 33% off published rack rates.

 

We booked a Couryard Villa (A3) on Jade for 14 days in Europe. After paying for the upgrade from INSIDE-COMP to A3, and factoring in his Casino Rate (my player rate would normally have been applied to the entire reservation if the cruise were 7 days, but where this is a 14 day cruise the player rate applied to me, and the Casino Rate was extended to my friend, the third person rate remained $499), we ended up getting nearly 50% off the published rack rates.

 

As a player, you know the formulas casinos use can be very secretive and impossible to decipher - so I cannot say that you'll be ranked exactly as we were by doing what appears to be the same play. However, I must say that CAS (so far) seems to be one of the most generous of the shipboard casino groups (now if they would JUST loosen up the slots a bit!!!!). By comparison, I'm ranked Platinum on Ocean Players Club (just shy of VIP Platinum, their highest ranking, by a few thousand points) and they have NEVER contacted me to offer me ANYTHING. As a matter of fact, when I called them last week to verify my ranking (I wanted to try and use it as leverage with CAS, turns out I really didn't need it) they were rather dismissive and didn't seem to care that I was even expressing interest in them. The woman I spoke with said she would send me an email for an invitational slot tournament for I think it was sometime in October/November, it never arrived. :mad:

[BuckeyePat]

Thanks for the great info. I always have a 'budget' to gamble, and then usually gamble any/all winnings:eek: . Just can't seem to walk away! LOL I would be thrilled with a "casino rate" of 33% off! I will let everyone know how it goes once I am off the ship. Get to board in a month!!!!

[Boat_Drinks]

I will let everyone know how it goes once I am off the ship. Get to board in a month!!!!

 

What ship/itinerary?

 

PS: You CAN sign up for your casino player's card online, but a number of people have posted that their card was not waiting for them when they arrived. Search NCL.com, probably under Entertainment, I think if you scroll down to the Casino section and select it there is a page with lots of casino info including a link to sign-up in advance for the card.

 

PPS: Here's a tip for other players. Did you know that you can draw up to $2K/day from the cage as a room charge? These room charges are NOT processed as cash advances (which carry high interest rates), and do not incur any "special" fees, it's just a charge to your credit card like any other charge. I met a woman while she was getting ready to use the ATM in the casino and told her about this JUST before she was about to complete her transaction. She saved a bunch of $$$ on foreign ATM fees. :)

[Toyz711]

you go down to "site map"...then just go down to "more". there you will see the link to the casino

http://www.ncl.com/nclweb/cruiser/cmsPages.html?pageId=CasinoIntro

i have signed up, online, twice. the 1st time the cards were ready, no waiting. the 2nd time the guy hadn't printed up the cards..had to wait for him to sign up the new people before he printed the cards that were ordered on line. he had the list, just hadn't done it.

doesn't take that long to do it on the ship

[Evilmille]

What ship/itinerary?

 

PS: You CAN sign up for your casino player's card online, but a number of people have posted that their card was not waiting for them when they arrived. Search NCL.com, probably under Entertainment, I think if you scroll down to the Casino section and select it there is a page with lots of casino info including a link to sign-up in advance for the card.

 

PPS: Here's a tip for other players. Did you know that you can draw up to $2K/day from the cage as a room charge? These room charges are NOT processed as cash advances (which carry high interest rates), and do not incur any "special" fees, it's just a charge to your credit card like any other charge. I met a woman while she was getting ready to use the ATM in the casino and told her about this JUST before she was about to complete her transaction. She saved a bunch of $$$ on foreign ATM fees. :)

 

I did know this and it was a great perk until the last day when my DH saw the bill. LOL

[starkarlis]

people only get beaten up for exagerated posts, not for making an honest statement or giving an opinon. yes, the casino is a source of revenue for the ships, with or without free drinks. All inclusives that I know of don't offer free drinks in casino if they have them (few do) There are casinos in St Martin and ARuba that follow the Us policy of free drinks. I don't know about other Caribbean Islands. San Juan does not, in fact I don't think they allow booze in their casinos, I could be wrong. I think for the most part most of us will continue to cruise with or without drinks in the casino....

 

Nita

 

I never said and certainly did not mean to imply that all-inclusives had casinos. But they DO include free drinks as DO casinos. And with that coralation, it would seem that in order to match the offers of other desired vacation activities, cruise lines would do the same. I am not a heavy drinker so free or not, it will not stop my cruise. After all I am cruising to see Alaska and did not expect to do this on a Booze Cruise!

And though I do not want to be arguementative, I have seen several people get beat up for their opinion. Afterall isn't this what the majority of the responses of this board are, someon's opinion or experience? There are several posts where one person has experienced something different than the next person and the discussion gets heated.

 

Terry, thanks for your reply. I always enjoy reading your posts. They are very informative and well-written.

[conandrob240]

I never said homeless or drunken riffraff were not a problem in AC. They are and it is quite gross there. What I have never (or rarely I should say because I did see it once) was a problem with these people inside the casino, playing machines and scamming free drinks. I have seen some enter the casino to be then escorted out by security.

 

This really isn't the point at all. Most people will nto sit in a casino, not playing at all just to get a few drinks. If they did, NCL shouldn't allow it- they should look at the machines to make sure a person actually is playing something when drink orders are placed. I can tell you for absolute sure that I have donated much more $ in AC or in LV when drinks were coming than I would if I had to wait a long time (or not see a waitress at all) for a drink. The free drinks are just good casino sense and I'll bet if they kept with the program for a while until the novelty wore off, they'd see a huge spike in casino revenue for sure.

[newmexicoNita]

I never said and certainly did not mean to imply that all-inclusives had casinos. But they DO include free drinks as DO casinos. And with that coralation, it would seem that in order to match the offers of other desired vacation activities, cruise lines would do the same. I am not a heavy drinker so free or not, it will not stop my cruise. After all I am cruising to see Alaska and did not expect to do this on a Booze Cruise!

And though I do not want to be arguementative, I have seen several people get beat up for their opinion. Afterall isn't this what the majority of the responses of this board are, someon's opinion or experience? There are several posts where one person has experienced something different than the next person and the discussion gets heated.

 

Terry, thanks for your reply. I always enjoy reading your posts. They are very informative and well-written.

oh my, if you thought I was attacking you in any way, I wasn't. I was just pointing out the casino on cruise ships will stay busy with or without free drinks as this isn't something any are offering at this time.

 

I am so sorry if you took my comments wrong.

 

Nita

[starkarlis]

oh my, if you thought I was attacking you in any way, I wasn't. I was just pointing out the casino on cruise ships will stay busy with or without free drinks as this isn't something any are offering at this time.

 

I am so sorry if you took my comments wrong.

 

Nita

No apologies necessary. I come here to hear what everyone thinks. I am taking my first cruise next June, so this board has given me a TON of useful information! I guess in a nut shell my thought was just this: people choose all-inclusives because once they get there, they never need their wallet again. They aren't nickled and dimed for eveything. The main reason I have never cruised is the dining issue. I want to eat whenever I want. Now that NCL has made that an option, I am taking a cruise! But you are correct in saying that people will gamble and drink regardless of if the free drinks or not. Just as in Vegas where the buffets are not .99 anymore and people still gamble and eat!!

[newmexicoNita]

No apologies necessary. I come here to hear what everyone thinks. I am taking my first cruise next June, so this board has given me a TON of useful information! I guess in a nut shell my thought was just this: people choose all-inclusives because once they get there, they never need their wallet again. They aren't nickled and dimed for eveything. The main reason I have never cruised is the dining issue. I want to eat whenever I want. Now that NCL has made that an option, I am taking a cruise! But you are correct in saying that people will gamble and drink regardless of if the free drinks or not. Just as in Vegas where the buffets are not .99 anymore and people still gamble and eat!!

Ijust didn't want you to think I was trying to start anything. As for All Inclusives, they are indeed that and great for certain situations but normally the cost is about 1/3 more than cruises, depending on the quality of the resort.

 

yep, you can say that again about Vegas. Actually we have stopped going to Vegas, partly because we now live in the mid west: partly because of the cost. Before we moved we would choose Laughlin. No, the shows aren't the same, nor are the hotels, but it was about 1/3 the costs and more relaxing. Vegas is now a nightmare as far as we are concerned. I still sell packages to Vegas, not nearly the way I did 5 years ago. People are opting for Tunica, La, and other places that are less crowded and less expensive.

 

Nita

[terrymtex01]

Ijust didn't want you to think I was trying to start anything. As for All Inclusives, they are indeed that and great for certain situations but normally the cost is about 1/3 more than cruises, depending on the quality of the resort.

 

yep, you can say that again about Vegas. Actually we have stopped going to Vegas, partly because we now live in the mid west: partly because of the cost. Before we moved we would choose Laughlin. No, the shows aren't the same, nor are the hotels, but it was about 1/3 the costs and more relaxing. Vegas is now a nightmare as far as we are concerned. I still sell packages to Vegas, not nearly the way I did 5 years ago. People are opting for Tunica, La, and other places that are less crowded and less expensive.

 

Nita

 

Nita.. you are so right about Vegas.. We used to go to Vegas three or four times a year, but we have switched to Lake Tahoe.. OH. my beloved Lake Tahoe. We love it so much I want to buy a home/condo when we retire and live there. Not only did we find the casino's loose and fun, but it is probably the most beautiful place I have ever seen, next to Alaska.

 

Not a big deal.. But I like Tunica also. I'm not 100% for sure, but I believe Tunica is MS, not LA. Again.. No big deal either way.. .

[Toyz711]

tunica is in mississippi, about an hour from the memphis airport. spend a lot of time on the new highway between here and there.

tunica is alright, the casinos are getting old and showing their ages. they don't have the money vegas and other gambling spots do.

but they do serve free drinks on the casino floor, if you can find the server. the casinos are cutting back, getting harder to find the cocktail waitress.

the casinos around the gulf port (ms) are nice....mississippi has a lot of casino all around the state.

[lambs2]

PPS: Here's a tip for other players. Did you know that you can draw up to $2K/day from the cage as a room charge? These room charges are NOT processed as cash advances (which carry high interest rates), and do not incur any "special" fees, it's just a charge to your credit card like any other charge. I met a woman while she was getting ready to use the ATM in the casino and told her about this JUST before she was about to complete her transaction. She saved a bunch of $$$ on foreign ATM fees. :)

 

Is there not a 3% charge added to your room charge for this "service"? I was under the impression that there was.

[newmexicoNita]

Nita.. you are so right about Vegas.. We used to go to Vegas three or four times a year, but we have switched to Lake Tahoe.. OH. my beloved Lake Tahoe. We love it so much I want to buy a home/condo when we retire and live there. Not only did we find the casino's loose and fun, but it is probably the most beautiful place I have ever seen, next to Alaska.

 

Not a big deal.. But I like Tunica also. I'm not 100% for sure, but I believe Tunica is MS, not LA. Again.. No big deal either way.. .

We lived for years in the bay area and rented a cabin in Tahoe every year, then moved to Sac, did the same. Just before my dad passed away we took a trip to see him stopping in Tahoe for about 3 days. There are not many places a pretty as Tahoe except NW ARkansas. LOL

[newmexicoNita]

Is there not a 3% charge added to your room charge for this "service"? I was under the impression that there was.

 

Right now no, Princess and HAL do charge 3%. The one thing we did find on the Star; if you want to get just a few $$s from the casino you have to take at least $100. This is fine unless you are me: $40 goes fast when playing the slots, $100 goes just as fast...LOL

[Boat_Drinks]

Is there not a 3% charge added to your room charge for this "service"? I was under the impression that there was.

 

Nope, no service charge - if you take $100 it costs you $100 (not $103).

[AFT_LOVER]

When you book your stateroom thru Casinos at Sea, your cards (2) are in your room. One is for points & the other is to show for free drinks.

 

Folks filling out a membership form for a card do not get these. Our Dawn cruise to Bermuda last April was confusing since no cards in the room for the CAS booking. But that was quickly fixed by the Casino Hostess. Even a bottle of Merlot was in the room with a I'M SORRY card.

 

 

I called the casino department to verify this & I was told the following:

 

There are NOT free drinks just for signing up for the casino players card,however, if you have booked your reservation through the casino, then you will still receive your free drink card while playing in the casino.

 

Like for us, we always book through the casino & always have our players cards & free drink cards in our staterooms when we arrive.

 

Hope this helps:)