New Casino deals

[LadySpoilt]

Has anyone received a "free cruise deal" from MSC recently.  I don't mean the 30 percent off or the free room that you get while playing onboard (usually given out the last night of the cruise).  I am talking about the snail mail or email offers they used to send out.   I got one several months ago but none lately.

Spoilt

[tweakes]

I used to be able to call and ask if there were any deals (including free cruises) that were offered to me, but the agent told me they don't do that anymore. Not sure if it is accurate or if it's temporary due to COVID or what... he said they only offer the discount or free cruise based on your casino play while on board (as opposed to random offers). Onboard now using 30% discount and will let you know if I hear otherwise. 

[LadySpoilt]

Reviving this thread.

I actually did receive a new "free cruise offer" from MSC via email yesterday. Before they said "free means free"  There are now a couple of changes from previous offers.

 

1.  You now have to pay taxes and port fees....previously you did not.

2.  Regarding room current offer says "Best available stateroom will be provided based on availability.". It used to say what category your free cruise was in (inside, balcony etc.) Both still say you have the option of upgrading.

3.  Previously you paid a $ 200.00 per person deposit that was refunded to you via an OBC.  This one doesn't list a deposit.

 

When calling they say they haven't loaded the new offer into the computer yet so you cannot get prices. They said to call back in a couple of days.

 

Spoilt

 

Edited January 27, 2022 by LadySpoilt

[Paphillyguy]

The offer we received said you have to pay the taxes but port fees were still free. 

[LadySpoilt]

4 minutes ago, Paphillyguy said:

The offer we received said you have to pay the taxes but port fees were still free. 

I went back and looked at mine, and may misinterpreted what they said.  I thought that it meant Government taxes were port charges.

 

Government fees and taxes are required at the time of booking and range from $116.59 to $176.19 

 

 

 

[FrostyJoe]

Do ya'll mind sharing what you have to gamble/donate to get these type of offers?  I'm curious 😝

[Shippy]

  We got the CRUISE & PLAY offer in an email a few days ago.

It says a free cabin & then lists a lot of dates. Pick your date & call....I have not.

So, not sure what kind of cabin they are talking about. I am sure we would have to upgrade as we like to stay in the Yacht Club area.

Have not sailed with them in a few years because of covid.

We were suppose to cruise last September but my husband was to nervous to travel so we had our travel agent call the  casino dept. one week before sailing. They were great. Moved the cruise out to this September with no penalties.

    We only play penny slots...but everyone knows they take quite a few pennies ! 

I would say my average bet was $2.00. They have been very generous about handing out those 30% off coupons by the middle of the cruise.

Because of that, so....the more expensive the room, the more you saved. We were able to get the incredible YC3 suites. Did that twice. The one we canceled last year was a YC3.

I was amazed that they honored the discount & let us push the cruise forward one year with the same room.

Very generous of them as the discount coupon clearly states that it must be used with 12 months.

   Not sure if it is true but I heard somewhere that in the future, those discount coupons cannot be applied to the YC3 category and boy, have the prices on those gone up !

 

 

 

[FrostyJoe]

13 minutes ago, ChC said:

 

I think FrostyJoe was asking how much do you gamble (or loose) in a typical 7 days cruise. $2 per bet gives nothing since we don't know how many hours do you gamble per day on a cruise, and how many strokes you put on the machine every minute. I think FrostyJoe is looking at an answer like $2,500; 5,000 or 10,000 range.

Yes…but I suppose it’s kind of difficult to know either way with the playing more with winnings etc.  I just wanted to know if it’s like hundreds of dollars or few thousand or many thousands type of range. Just curious. Also, whether they only give those out of you lost to the house vs just overall spending 

[Shippy]

58 minutes ago, ChC said:

 

I think FrostyJoe was asking how much do you gamble (or loose) in a typical 7 days cruise. $2 per bet gives nothing since we don't know how many hours do you gamble per day on a cruise, and how many strokes you put on the machine every minute. I think FrostyJoe is looking at an answer like $2,500; 5,000 or 10,000 range.

I have heard it takes much longer to get the discount if you play tables.

Machine calculation is much easier, it is about how much runs through the machine to get points.

Example... I put $20. in the machine & get no play. Lost in just a few minutes with nothing to show for it.

Next time...I put $20. in the machine & can play for an hour. Maybe never hitting anything big, just keep getting small hits. LOTS of points. Both scenarios with $20.

 I would say I probably go into the casino for an hour or 2 a day.

Obviously, if I just lose it would be less. If I am winning it would be longer.

We have had luck there before. On our last cruise, my husband got the bonus spin on a machine.

He spun to $5,000.  I think he was betting $2.50 a spin.

[CarolnLarry]

3 hours ago, FrostyJoe said:

Do ya'll mind sharing what you have to gamble/donate to get these type of offers?  I'm curious 😝

I usually only play table games and maybe $1 slots.  I play after the early show and will have $1000 available to use for the night.  I won't lose it all at one table/machine.  Usually I have some leftover to add back to my gambling cash. Have won a lot occasionally

.

The offer I received for the free cruise was the first I have received and I am surprised as usually we get 30% off.  Have to book by the end of Jan.  and pay taxes and fees.  I would apply discount to YC but not interested in sailing now.

[FrostyJoe]

3 hours ago, CarolnLarry said:

I usually only play table games and maybe $1 slots.  I play after the early show and will have $1000 available to use for the night.  I won't lose it all at one table/machine.  Usually I have some leftover to add back to my gambling cash. Have won a lot occasionally

.

The offer I received for the free cruise was the first I have received and I am surprised as usually we get 30% off.  Have to book by the end of Jan.  and pay taxes and fees.  I would apply discount to YC but not interested in sailing now.

Oh okay thanks for the info!!!  Big roller!!!!!

 

That’s great about the free cruise heheh….best of luck in your future sailings!

 

I tried roulette before and lost like $500 so fast. I don’t understand how when I entered there was like 7 reds in a row but then I kept losing until they had like 5 more reds 🤪🤪….now just penny slots maybe $20-50 in at one sitting…

 

I’ll be lucky if I have one staff stop by to get a drink for me 😂🥲🎰🎰🎰

[Sundiego]

Got the email yesterday and the fine print says:

 

Government fees and taxes are required at the time of booking and range from $116.59 to $176.19 per person depending on sailing. Please inquire when booking. No other fees apply.

Best available stateroom will be provided based on availability. Should you wish to upgrade your stateroom experience, you can do so for a nominal fee. Please inquire when booking.

 

So I called and asked about the upcharge to YC and was told this particular promotion does not allow upgrades to another cabin type or experience. I'll call back later since the fine print refers to upgrades but I'm not hopeful. FYI... our code from email is "casino cruiser". Not sure if others have a different offer code?

 

~Denise

[Paphillyguy]

The one thing that I have liked about the MSC casino upgrades is when you get a certificate you get a list of the cost of an upgrade.  Usually a good deal 

[LadySpoilt]

5 hours ago, Sundiego said:

So I called and asked about the upcharge to YC and was told this particular promotion does not allow upgrades to another cabin type or experience. I'll call back later since the fine print refers to upgrades but I'm not hopeful. FYI... our code from email is "casino cruiser". Not sure if others have a different offer code?

 

 

5 hours ago, Sundiego said:

Sundiego

I just called and got the same response that upgrades to YC are not eligible.  Even the MSC rep was surprised about that.  He remarked he didn't know why are they are not and usually they are included in the available upgrades for an additional fee.  Hopefully this isn't a sign of the future!

Spoilt

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by LadySpoilt

[LadySpoilt]

5 hours ago, Sundiego said:

Got the email yesterday and the fine print says:

 

Government fees and taxes are required at the time of booking and range from $116.59 to $176.19 per person depending on sailing. Please inquire when booking. No other fees apply.

Best available stateroom will be provided based on availability. Should you wish to upgrade your stateroom experience, you can do so for a nominal fee. Please inquire when booking.

 

So I called and asked about the upcharge to YC and was told this particular promotion does not allow upgrades to another cabin type or experience. I'll call back later since the fine print refers to upgrades but I'm not hopeful. FYI... our code from email is "casino cruiser". Not sure if others have a different offer code?

 

~Denise

Sundiego

I just called and got the same response that upgrades to YC are not eligible.  Even the MSC rep was surprised about that.  He remarked he didn't know why are they are not and usually they are included in the available upgrades for an additional fee.  Hopefully this isn't a sign of the future!

Spoilt

[CarolnLarry]

Another reason I wouldn't book this offer.   MSC has to get their stuff together or a lot of us will look elsewhere for stability and good deals. We only sail in the YC if that helps to explain my comment.

 

[psmarkle]

On 1/27/2022 at 4:43 PM, FrostyJoe said:

Yes…but I suppose it’s kind of difficult to know either way with the playing more with winnings etc.  I just wanted to know if it’s like hundreds of dollars or few thousand or many thousands type of range. Just curious. Also, whether they only give those out of you lost to the house vs just overall spending 

I will say this was pre-covid, but my DW and DSIL only play penny slots and both got 30% off certificates during our last cruise in 2018. I played 3-card poker and also got a 30% off certificate.  I feel like it's based off casino exposure time vs big $$.  We go every night after the late show.  I usu call it a night around midnight, but DW and DSIL close the place down EVERY night and only "invest" $200-$300 during the entire cruise.

 

Since our last 2 bookings using one of our 30% certificates have both been cancelled by MSC, they actually still honored it even though it says on there it has to be used for a sailing within 9 months of issue.  We are booked for the Seashore in the YC in April using the same discount certificate code from our 2018 Seaside sailing.

 

So, bottom line, we do not bring that much to the casino (I bring $500/night, but have won on both our MSC cruises; DW "borrows" $200 from my wallet and makes it last the whole week somehow), but have found MSC's casino dept very generous and their separate reservations line is easy to deal with.

Edited January 29, 2022 by psmarkle

[ESCARGO]

Hi! Got the email for a free cruise from MSC Casino a few days ago. Called today and it was an easy experience. She booked me in a premium balcony and I only had to pay the port charges of $149! 😃 I asked about the beverage package and she told me I can add it later. She then said the beverage package cant be used in the casino with the free casino booking.....What!?!

I can't believe I cant get a free drink while playing in the casino! Is this a new policy for MSC?

 

 

[CruiseTee]

These casino deals are the way to go if you gamble! I won a free cruise on MSC from a local casino and paid $2400 to upgrade to YC for 2 people. I've never been on MSC, but I would venture to guess it costs a lot more than $1200 per person to get a YC Deluxe Suite. I recently sailed on Holland America, at the end of the cruise they also gave me a free cruise, I just booked it yesterday. I got a $10,000 suite for $1500. I probably spent (winning and losing) around $2000 in the casino on that cruise. I'm curious what I will come away with on my MSC cruise next week! Hopefully another free cruise!

[travelwide]

1 hour ago, CruiseTee said:

These casino deals are the way to go if you gamble! I won a free cruise on MSC from a local casino and paid $2400 to upgrade to YC for 2 people. I've never been on MSC, but I would venture to guess it costs a lot more than $1200 per person to get a YC Deluxe Suite. I recently sailed on Holland America, at the end of the cruise they also gave me a free cruise, I just booked it yesterday. I got a $10,000 suite for $1500. I probably spent (winning and losing) around $2000 in the casino on that cruise. I'm curious what I will come away with on my MSC cruise next week! Hopefully another free cruise!

Please let us know how you make out.

[ulster-cruiser]

I have received two 30% off vouchers while cruising MSC but never get any emails to my email account.

 

Are you guys all USA based? Maybe us UK cruisers don’t get them?

What is the casino phone line? We don’t appear to have one of those in UK 😞 it’s always a nightmare trying to get the 30% offer applied to our bookings

[CruiseTee]

I am US based. I received the free cruise offer from Holland America before I even left the ship (the offer was on my bed the night before disembarkation). I'm not sure what MSC does, since it's my first sailing with them, so I will keep everyone posted if I receive a casino deal from them before I leave the ship next week or when I return home, or if at all. 

[JAGR]

8 minutes ago, CruiseTee said:

I am US based. I received the free cruise offer from Holland America before I even left the ship (the offer was on my bed the night before disembarkation). I'm not sure what MSC does, since it's my first sailing with them, so I will keep everyone posted if I receive a casino deal from them before I leave the ship next week or when I return home, or if at all. 

Got the 30% off offer on the last night of our cruise.  Thankfully, DW did not gamble (translation, "lose!") enough to get a free offer.  Friends reported that they got the free offer on the last night as well, not a later email.

[LadySpoilt]

There are a couple of different ways to get and use MSC casino vouchers and cruises.

 

1.  Accumulate 1200 points in casino (at least that is what it was in October) and you will get a 30% off voucher toward the end of cruise.

 

2.  Accumulate 10000 points for a free cruise (inside I think) voucher toward the end of cruise.

 

3.  Not exactly certain but I think it is 40,000 points for a free YC room voucher toward the end of cruise.

 

4. Randomly you may receive an offer for a free cruise via snail mail or email.

[ulster-cruiser]

Am I right in thinking that If you want to sail YC you are nearly better not reaching the 10,000 points as the 30% off voucher is more beneficial than the free inside?