When you walk around the public spaces on a cruise ship, it's not uncommon to see people playing all sorts of different games.
Some people play cards, while others may have domino sets or games like MahJong or Canasta. A lot of cruise ships have game rooms that offer chess and checker sets along with select other games.
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Many passengers play games during their cruise, and in the rare event of bad weather, even more people may go looking for decks of cards, board games, or other games.
Traditionally, people have often played these games for some sort of financial stakes. People may play poker with a quarter as the maximum raise or use other small-stakes bets for whatever game they may be playing.
That's something that Carnival Cruise Line can't allow, according to Brand Ambassador John Heald.
Image source: John Heald/Facebook
Carnival Cruise Line does not allow cash games
Heald fielded a question about playing games onboard when he spent Dec. 30 answering questions on Facebook.
Good morning, John! I’m cruising soon and would like to play LCR with friends. It’s a dice game you play with a total of 3 $1 bills. The winner gets the pot. I have done this many times on ship, I was just told Carnival doesn’t allow that anymore Is that true?" wrote Suzy LeGear Johnson.
Heald was blunt in his response.
"Well, we’ve never allowed it. It’s never been allowed, as is the case with any game that involves the exchange of money or gambling outside of the casino. You can play for no money, but I’m afraid that because of very important rules and regulations, we do not allow guests to gamble outside of the casino. Thank you so much. I hope you can still play this, and I hope you have a wonderful time," Heald shared.
What Heald does not say is that the cruise line can only enforce the rule if actual money is being used. You can play poker using chips or LCR using different M&Ms or Skittles colors as currency.
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As long as you settle any real money in private, or better yet, off the ship, Carnival has no recourse. The cruise line isn't looking to bust people for playing small-stakes games with their friends; it's literally just enforcing the rules.
Home games for money are actually illegal on land, although the rules vary by state.
In Florida, many cruise ships call home (although not legally, as no ships are registered in the US), and most cash games are prohibited.
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"Home games are also legal in Florida, but only if the pot amounts to $10 or less. That’s right, you can’t win more than $10 on a single hand if you play your friends at home. Probably a good idea if we’re honest," Poker.com shared.
Again, you're not likely to get busted for playing for small stakes in a private game on land, and Carnival does not want to have to break up these games onboard. Playing with pretend money, chips, or some other avatar for cash is allowed and the cruise line has no way to know if actual money will change hands later.
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