If there’s an opportunity for a new way to gamble, casino operators will do their best to offer it. For example, when betting on the outcome of a sporting event got a little too boring, dozens, if not hundreds of side bets started to become available.
It’s absolutely stunning to see all the things you can bet on these days. When the Super Bowl took place a couple of months ago, you could bet on how many times Taylor Swift would be mentioned by the broadcast team. And that was one of the less-bizarre bets.
Related: Carnival Cruise Line takes on tricky casino problem
When compared to Las Vegas casinos which have thousands of gambling machines, rows and rows of table games, elaborate sports books, and more, cruise ship casinos are rather tame. They generally have 100 or so slot machines (depending on the size of the ship), maybe 10 gaming tables, and a few other machines, like the infamous quarter-pushers.
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Although there hasn’t been a ton of evolution in the cruise ship casino model, aside from bringing in modern slot machines, some gamblers want to see technology incorporated.
A standard balcony stateroom on a Carnival cruise ship.
Image source: Carnival Cruise Line
Do cruisers want a new way to gamble?
Carnival brand ambassador John Heald was recently asked a question on his hugely popular Facebook page about gambling. But not the kind that takes place in the casino.
Specifically, Heald was asked “John many hotels in Vegas allow their guests to gamble over their room TV sets. Will Carnival Cruise Line have this on the new ships. Many hope so.”
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As Heald often does, he used this question to conduct an informal poll to gauge interest in this request. There were two options having to do with in-room gambling on the cabin TV:
I would like this, sounds funGambling on the cabin TV? Not for me thank you.
It might not surprise you that more people chose the second option. After all, gambling in the casino is about the atmosphere, and it’s fair to say that the average cruise ship stateroom is considerably less comfortable than most Las Vegas hotel rooms, at least in terms of room to spread out and enjoy gaming.
However, what might surprise you how big the spread was between the two choices. Heald’s poll received nearly 70,000 votes, and Carnival cruisers rejected the idea of in-room gambling by a margin of more than 30-to-one.
Several of Heald’s followers pointed out practical considerations and ways this could lead to problems. For example, Randy Hettenbaugh said, “imagine the parent who took a nap, to find junior had used his card to log in, and lose a few thousand playing a game.”
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Others just feel that if you’re going to gamble, you might as well enjoy the action in the casino. “Gambling in your cabin on the TV? How boring!,” commented Reatha Belen Sage. Crystal Ortiz agreed. “LOL gambling in the room is crazy when you have a whole casino,” she added.
More Carnival casino news:
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A few people indicated that it might not be such a bad idea. Karen Borsick Green pointed out, “One good thing about gambling in your cabin on the TV is you won’t have to deal with the smoke!” Sara Lukins-Templin added, “I might play TV gambling games if it was like keno, but if it was offered I would only do it a few times.”
Is in-room gambling necessary?
To be fair, there are some ways in-room gambling can serve a practical purpose. For example, when I’m in Las Vegas, I’ve placed sports bets from an app in my room while I’m getting ready for dinner, thereby saving myself a trip to the sportsbook. Something like this could be convenient to offer on in-room TVs on ships that offer sports betting.
But when it comes to electronic table games or slot machines, for most people, gambling is as much about the casino atmosphere as it is the gaming itself. And Carnival’s latest poll shows that. However, it’s worth noting that there was some interest in the idea, and casinos only need a certain number of interested gamblers to make money with a certain type of betting.
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