I am going on the Adventure of the Seas on Sunday (my first cruise). I thought about trying the casino out at San Juan and on the ship. I was wondering if anyone heard of someone winning anything substantial? I was wondering if it was worth it. Thanks
I won about $10K on $1 Video Poker (2 Royals, a few 4-Aces) on Voyager of the Seas in January, 2003. My husband won $1K on the $1 Wheel of Fortune on the same trip.
Somebody won the Progressive Slots on Carnival (multi-ship) game for over $400,000 last year.
I only play blackjack and craps and sometimes win a couple of hundred a night, but then I play for a long time and don't take risks but only play according to the "book."
I was lucky enough to win about $1200 on the quarter slots on the Radiance last year. I had only invested about $20 when I hit. I know this is rare, especially on the slots, but I put another $5 or $6 in and won another $60. Great night. My husband had to drag me out of the casino! He knows I would have probably sat there till I put it ALL back in! Gotta say tho, I'll be back in the same chair on the next cruise!
Last October, on the Sensation, I hit a quarter machine for about $125. Changed it to Dollars and won $680. Put my stake back, bought champagne at dinner and didn't worry about donating back for the next couple of days. Brought home over $500. My sister hit the same machine for another $680 the next day.
I've been on 25 cruises and I know it sounds silly but it seems like there is usually a big hit on the slots the first night out just to get the players excited. My last cruise I had a big hit the first night and didn't play again.
i am more interested in what my 'balance' is at the end of the cruise that what i win or lose on a given night. playing video poker, i have most often come out two or three hundred dollars ahead. playing slots, i always lost. but, it is the fun of it all that really counts.
Last year on the Valor I lost $300 between blackjack and the slots. My husband loaned me $25 the last night and I paid him back and took home my $300. A few years ago dh won $1400 at blackjack for the week.
This year in April on the Diamond...I was at the bar playing VP..first night the lady to my right won eight grand...two nights later...her hubby to my left won 10 grand...wow...well they bought me a drink whenever they saw me in the Casino for the rest of the cruise...lucky..hmmm
This past March on Celebrity's Millenium on the last night after dinner, I figured I'd use up my last $100 of gambling money at the single-deck blackjack table.
About 4.5 hours later when I left the table, my $100 had turned into $800 and I was able to pay off my cruise tab the next day in cash which felt awesome!
I also came in third place in the black jack tournament earlier in the week, which was nice.
At breakfast in the morning, I ran into my dinner mates who were in the casino with me for awhile and they were shocked I made out so well.
In 2004, on the Coral Princess Panama Canal cruise, I won $1600. I put that in the cabin safe and took it home with me.
When I paid for my 2005 Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Sun Princess, I used that money.
On the 2005 cruise, the first night out, my cabin mate and I went to the casino just after it opened, SHe promptly won $250 on a quarter machine. While we were waiting for the casino attendant to come back with her payout, I played a quarter machine and on the 5th spin, hit a jackpot for $625. The next night I won $700 on a $1 machine. By the time the cruise was over, I had won $2400. Again, I locked the winnings in the safe, and that $2400 paid for the Hawaiian cruise I am taking on 1/21/06.
SO the answer is, YES, it is definitely possible to win in the onboard casinos.
The most important thing one can do when they win, is to lock that money up and take it home. Don't feed it back into the slots. I budget a certain amount for playing the slots and consider that part of the cost of my vacation, and I don't use any of my winnings for additional gambling during the trip.
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Past Cruises:
2004 Coral Princess - Panama Canal
2005 Sun Princess - Eastern Caribbean
1/06 Island Princess - Hawaii
2/07 Sea Princess - Southern Caribbean
11/07 Golden Princess - Mexican Riviera
3/08 Diamond Princess - Hawaii
11/9/08 Tahitan Princess - Tahiti & French Polynesia
Booked cruises:
9/13/09 Star Princess - Alaska
3/14/10 Golden Princess - Hawaii
My parents have had alot of luck on the video poker machines. On our last cruise aboard the Dawn Princess, they hit for a $1,000 on the .25 machine a couple times each and, between the two of them, came home about $4,000 ahead overall. On the cruise before that aboard the Sapphire Princess, they had a couple $1,000 hits and many $200 hits and came home about $3,000 ahead. They usually limit their time in the casino to two hours a day or $50 each (whichever comes first), so they have had alot of luck with just a very limited amount of time spent gambling.
I play Blackjack and usually manage to come home $200 or $300 ahead for the cruise. Once I was very lucky and came home with $1,000.
There was a real BIG win a year ago last May on the Carnival ship that came in after us in Vancouver - it was like half a million on a progressive. Needless to say everyone was excited about that as the word spread at the airport. They said the winner didn't even seem phased.
In May 2002, I won so big, I paid for my entire 14 nights plus my sign and sail card on the Triumph back to back cruise. I just happened to have much luck at the blackjack table. It didn't all come in one night, I just knew when to get up and walk away and anything I won went into the safe.
Jodi
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20 Carnival Cruises completed...more to come...
I get into the casino phase of the trips and normally have $15-20k wired into my house account prior to the trip. This keeps me from having to carry the cash and while at the tables, I can pull a marker for the evening.
Never won big though. In BJ, they limit the tables to around $300 a hand so while you can build up a pretty good run at times; it's nothing like playing the tables in Vegas. Also hard to concentrate with all the loud mouthed drunks sitting around trying to tell you what to do.
Last summer on the Legend while they were unable to provide me with a private table, they did set up a table with a minimum of $100 and max of $500. This kept the dollar players off the table, though it did not keep the know-it-alls from standing around critiquing my every move. I will be the first to say I am not a professional but I do like to play and while losing is not fun, it's quite obvious I go in with the mindset that if I lose my entire bankroll, the sun will shine the next day. I would never gamble with anything I was not prepared to lose.
I recall this one obnoxious guy who on day one bragged about winning back his entire cruise costs at the tables on every cruise he had been on. If that was the case, that particular cruise broke his ongoing record as he was struggling just to keep his bankroll. Frankly I think he was full of crap.
Another young guy and his wife/girlfriend came to a table and lost a couple hundred very quick. This guy was so mad and angry he threw his chair. I was thinking to myself how on earth could someone put themselves in such a position.
Life goes on. Let's see what the Crown Princess has to offer this July.
April 2005 I hit for $300 on a slot machine on the HAL Zuiderdam on the 3rd night of the cruise. A friend won $400 when we were on the Carribean Princess in Oct of 2005. at the time of the wins we both were on .25 machines and rarely head to the casino with more than $40 at a time. this isn't much but it covered our gambling $$$ on those trips
I won $1300 playing 3-card poker over 14 nocs. I started each evening w/$100 and usually won that back +more. I quit while I was ahead and stuck those black chips in the safe each evening. With the bingo money I won and the $500 my husband won on video poker, we took home more cash than we brought. We defintily payed off our sign & sail card when the bill came.
On one cruise I won! I had a 20 dollar bill in my hand and was walking around the casino trying to find the "right" machine. I got tired of looking for it and left the casino with my 20 still in hand.
just returned last week from brilliance of the seas,second night out hit quarter video with royal for 1100.00.two nights later playing same game a woman 3 machines away hit royal for over 1000.00,was ready to give up with a hit so close,but within 5 minutes I hit another royal for 1005.00.I was really surprised. if you hit the machines it just has to be your night.
A couple of years ago on a Princess cruise in to N Europe. My wife hit a $500 payout, while wating to be paid she hit another $800 on the machine next to it. Thats the biggist win she has had on a crise ship.
Has anyone ever won at any of the casinos?
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