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Thread: 7 Stars Cruise

  1. #1
    Alan, Dancer just wrote about a cruise to Bermuda that all 7-Stars folks get. Are you going or have you already? BTW, you can read his column about it on LVA, and you can see what an a-hole he acted like and how badly he treated "Bonnie" on that wonderful voyage. So he cheated on Shirley to get to Bonnie. He's a control freak, and if she's smart it won't last long. What's esp. funny is seeing an old man acting like a real jerk. He has little time left to atone.

  2. #2
    Rob's post was originally in another thread.

    I don't go on cruises -- or at least, haven't used one so far. There are cruise offers all the time of various sorts.

    The Level IV "7 Stars Experience" for those with 700,000 to 1,499,999 tier points has as an option a "Luxury Cruise" and one of the cruises includes Bahama.

    I also qualify for the Level IV but nothing on the list of "experiences" is something I want to experience. There's also going to an LA baseball game, or a New Orleans football game, or golf in Tahoe, or sports events in Kansas City with various airfare credits.

  3. #3
    "I also qualify for the Level IV but nothing on the list of "experiences" is something I want to experience" That's because you are a gambling addict Alan and your consumed and and blah blah blah ........
    Last edited by Alan Mendelson; 10-23-2013 at 02:36 PM.

  4. #4
    quahaug, my response to you appeared as an "edit." I removed my comment from your post. And here is what I wrote:

    If this is a satirical comment reflecting what Rob Singer might say, I am not humored by it.

    I think all of the 7 Stars Experiences are designed to make you spend more money at other Caesars casinos that you don't normally play at. And that's really the bottom line when I asked about "alternatives" to the "experiences."

  5. #5
    The Dancer column was bad. I can't believe they let those fly unedited at LVA. The columns come across as Rob said -- a woman-bullying control freak. I can't figure out why an editor doesn't try to fix those things. Dancer doesn't need any help from Rob or me to embarrass himself. He does a fine job solo.

  6. #6
    If the column you are referring to is the one about the cruise, and his girlfriend "fibbing" about whether or not she went on the cruise ship slides... all I can say is he must have run out of worthwhile material and why he would embarrass her, and why she would allow herself to be embarrassed is beyond my scope of understanding.

  7. #7
    Originally Posted by Alan Mendelson View Post
    If the column you are referring to is the one about the cruise, and his girlfriend "fibbing" about whether or not she went on the cruise ship slides... all I can say is he must have run out of worthwhile material and why he would embarrass her, and why she would allow herself to be embarrassed is beyond my scope of understanding.
    At least she didn't "rip him off".

  8. #8
    Anyone know his background before VP? Would be curious what he did and how he became the VP guru, at least in his mind.

  9. #9
    He was a database admin in SoCal..
    My question is...why are all these big names in vP all seniors??
    Guess I need to get cracking on writing books and becoming well known...
    Then again, why give away all my secrets, lol

  10. #10
    timspeed thanks for joining. Secrets?

  11. #11
    All this Bob Dancer nonsense aside, I can answer about the cruise.

    All Seven Stars members get a "free" cruise on Norwegian, where they get a balcony stateroom for 2. Only certain itineraries are available. The cruise must be 5-8 days (almost always 7), and it must be on a ship with a casino. This unfortunately counts out the very nice Hawaii cruise that Norwegian does.

    Caesar's also hands out a TON of free cruise vouchers in promotions during the year, but these promotions are far inferior to the standard Seven Stars benefit.

    Here is what I wrote about the "benefit" a few months ago:

    --------------------------

    Caesar's and Norwegian have a partnership.

    Norwegian provides "free" cruises to Caesar's to hand out to their Seven Stars and other active players.

    Caesar's gets the benefit of being able to run promotions around giving away these "free" cruises which don't actually cost them anything.

    Norwegian gets the benefit of keeping degenerate gamblers captive on a ship (with a casino) for at least 7 days.

    The slots and video poker on cruise ships is typically awful. Jacks or Better often pays 6/5 for Full House/Flush.

    Norwegian seems very hard-line about their rules. They want the gambler aboard, and are willing to let him take one companion for free, since it doesn't take up extra room on the ship, and most people don't want to cruise alone. However, they are very hard line about allowing extra people on the ship (relatives, kids, friends, etc) unless they pay near full-fare. Doesn't matter how much you try to convince them that you're a high roller.

    Also, the Seven Stars at least get a decent room (balcony stateroom) and a wider choice of itinerary (though the ship must have a casino, which counts out Hawaii). Everyone else is stuck with unpopular sail dates and an interior cabin.

    And of course, the port taxes are like $300/person, and tips are not included. Airfare is also not included.
    Check out my poker forum, and weekly internet radio show at http://pokerfraudalert.com

  12. #12
    I decided to take the cruise this year. I am tacking on the cruise to my Caesar's annual trip, as it will be leaving from the same city, so I don't have to pay airfare.

    Here are few more details:

    - You get 10% off staterooms you book in addition to your "free" voucher/Seven Stars stateroom. You CANNOT use two vouchers at once, nor can you use your 35% Seven Stars discount for a second room. Furthermore, the 10% off does NOT include port fees and taxes -- only the base rate (so it's actually less than 10% off overall).

    - Tips are not included. You are expected to leave substantial tips at the end of the cruise for the staff.

    - As mentioned above, you CAN combine your NCL cruises with other Caesar's promotions (or your annual trip). There is not the usual 48-hour waiting period that applies between back-to-back Caesar's promotions.

    - You have until March 31 the following year to take your Seven Stars cruise.

    - There are blackout dates. The Seven Stars cruises have fewer blackout dates than the vouchers, but blackout dates (usually popular sailing dates, such as Christmas) do apply sometimes. These change frequently. What is available today might be blacked out tomorrow, so book ASAP when you know what dates you want. You can also sometimes talk them into making exceptions to these blackout dates.

    - You get unlimited non-alcoholic drinks and well bar drinks. Typically you have to pay a lot for this, so it's a nice benefit if you like to drink.

    - You ARE NOT expected to gamble on the cruise. Your host will not care if you gamble on the cruise. Caesar's does NOT get any kickbacks from your gambling. It's simply a marketing agreement. Gambling on the cruise might get you invited back for free, but I wouldn't recommend it, as the games are TERRIBLE. If you remain a Caesar's Seven Stars member, you will be able to go on future years' free cruises, even if you never set foot in the ship casino.

    - If you are going to book a second stateroom at your own expense, and don't really mind being somewhat separated from your travel companions (that is, they may be way down the hall or on a different floor), you can get GREAT deals if you wait until the last minute. This applies to ALL sailing dates, even the popular ones. Just monitor room availability on ncl.com (pretend you're booking a cruise, and they will show you what's available -- you don't need to enter your name or any credit card info). Provided there are plenty of unused rooms, the fares in certain categories (especially the lower ones) will drop big time. Again, this WON'T work if you have specific room location requirements (i.e. wanting your entire family together in two nearby rooms).

    - Unless you are a super high roller, your host will not get involved with this. You need to book this yourself directly through Norwegian.

    Ask me if you have any more questions.
    Check out my poker forum, and weekly internet radio show at http://pokerfraudalert.com

  13. #13
    Dan, forgive me for the Dancer reference, but what you wrote was a helluva better than what Dancer wrote, so let me ask an obvious Dancer question. You mention that gambling on the cruise is not tied into Caesars'/Harrah's in any way. Why wouldn't somebody writing an LVA column mention this (it is kinda important)?

    That was good info and spelled out the pros and cons pretty clearly. I have some acquaintances who just received cruise offers from the Golden Nugget, and I'm pretty sure they'll find the same port taxes rules and such to be the standard tariff as you mentioned.

  14. #14
    Lots of good info Dan.

    On the drinks - are they complimentary only in the casino or can you get cokes and well drinks at any bar?

    On the cruise that Rob Singer was talking about to Bermuda - I think that maybe the cruise of discussion was the Seven Star Event that was offered this year. It was out of New York to Bermuda. Heard lots of good things about it.

  15. #15
    I'm with Alan: cruises aren't my bag any more. We've been on 5 or 6 of them including two of the European ones, and they no longer have an appeal for us. However, near-mandatory "tipping" seems to appear in every explanation about the cruises. And guess what--nothing is mandatory, and I have never left a cent for the collection of 3rd world drug addicts that grace the bottom deck of the ships.

  16. #16
    Originally Posted by sassycat View Post
    Lots of good info Dan.

    On the drinks - are they complimentary only in the casino or can you get cokes and well drinks at any bar?

    On the cruise that Rob Singer was talking about to Bermuda - I think that maybe the cruise of discussion was the Seven Star Event that was offered this year. It was out of New York to Bermuda. Heard lots of good things about it.
    Sorry, it was complimentary well drinks in the casino only. I had that wrong. I thought it was everywhere, but just looked it up.

    The NYC-Bermuda cruise was a special "Signature Event" promotion, and was a bit different than what I described above.
    Check out my poker forum, and weekly internet radio show at http://pokerfraudalert.com

  17. #17
    Originally Posted by redietz View Post
    Dan, forgive me for the Dancer reference, but what you wrote was a helluva better than what Dancer wrote, so let me ask an obvious Dancer question. You mention that gambling on the cruise is not tied into Caesars'/Harrah's in any way. Why wouldn't somebody writing an LVA column mention this (it is kinda important)?

    That was good info and spelled out the pros and cons pretty clearly. I have some acquaintances who just received cruise offers from the Golden Nugget, and I'm pretty sure they'll find the same port taxes rules and such to be the standard tariff as you mentioned.
    No idea why they omitted that gambling on the cruise is completely separate from Caesar's. Obviously that's important to know.

    I would seriously recommend staying away from gambling in the casino, as the machines are HORRIBLE.

    The blackjack tournament is actually beatable if you play perfect strategy, provided it has the same rules as the one on Princess. That one had huge flaws in the rules to where the smart player can have a huge edge over nearly everyone else, and I assume NCL is the same way. Still a lot of variance, though.
    Check out my poker forum, and weekly internet radio show at http://pokerfraudalert.com

  18. #18
    Originally Posted by Rob.Singer View Post
    I'm with Alan: cruises aren't my bag any more. We've been on 5 or 6 of them including two of the European ones, and they no longer have an appeal for us. However, near-mandatory "tipping" seems to appear in every explanation about the cruises. And guess what--nothing is mandatory, and I have never left a cent for the collection of 3rd world drug addicts that grace the bottom deck of the ships.
    You are correct that tipping isn't mandatory. Even if they put your tips on automatically (not sure if NCL does this or not), you can "opt out" and leave your own tips, either in cash or through your stateroom account.

    I do NOT suggest Rob's approach of simply not tipping. Most of the staff consists of generally good, hard-working third-world people, who are sending most of their paycheck back home to their families. They take these jobs because they provide free room and board, so they can essentially survive on the ship for almost no money for months at a time, and send their (meager) salaries home to support the wife/kid/whatever. You really shouldn't screw these people over. They work long, grueling hours, and get paid very little. The money is going to basic needs, not drugs. I'm sure there are exceptions, but this is the case with most of them.

    However, I do suggest completely opting out and tipping where appropriate.

    Opting out prevents workers you didn't encounter from getting your tips.

    For example, if you are always eating in specialty restaurants, the servers and maitre d' in the main restaurants should not be getting your tips, as they did no work for you. Instead, give cash tips to the people who actually did serve you.

    I would suggest opting out of the tips for your steward, and tipping him cash directly. Otherwise he is stuck sharing it with other stewards, so unless you are going to leave him the standard tip, anything extra will be barely land in his pocket unless you opt out and tip him in cash.

    You get the picture.
    Check out my poker forum, and weekly internet radio show at http://pokerfraudalert.com

  19. #19
    Rightfully, no one ever felt bad for me while working a pile of menial jobs in my younger years enough to "tip" me, and it's not anyone else's job to care or be concerned about what someone else does or doesn't get paid or can or cannot send home. That's always a weak excuse for those who can't handle the intimidating looks or actions that may come their way after not tipping in a seriously flawed "tipping" situation. Everyone has a choice to find another job if they're unhappy with their pay, and these 3rd worlders have nowhere else to go but up. I've spent and lived in many of those countries, and be assured, they laugh at Americans who think they're helping such "poor" people. They regularly get away with things (what some of you would call "advantage living") only the Obama administration does over here.
    Last edited by Rob.Singer; 10-26-2013 at 04:14 AM.

  20. #20
    My very first job was sorting returned books and cleaning the bathroom at the Nanuet Public Library. I was 14 years old. No one tipped me. But it was not a job where people get tipped. Servers, butlers, dealers get tipped.

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