Cruise casino comps, explained

Facts checked against official sources on 23 September 2026

Casino offers are the least understood way people cruise cheaply, partly because the lines publish some rules openly and keep others private. Below is only what is published. Where a line keeps something back, we say so.

Royal Caribbean: Club Royale

Royal Caribbean publishes both its tiers and its earning rates, which is unusual.

Choice	1 to 2,499 tier credits
Prime	2,500 to 24,999
Signature	25,000 to 99,999
Masters	100,000 and above

The year runs 1 April to 31 March. You earn 1 point for every $5 played on a reel slot, and 1 point for every $15 on video poker. Table games earn based on the game, your average bet and how long you play. Points are not earned on promotional play or FreePlay, and some machines are excluded, including the coin pusher, Key Master, Cash Crane and Texas Hold'em tables. You must tap or insert your SeaPass card at slots, and hand it to staff at tables, or none of it counts.

Published tier benefits include a complimentary interior stateroom on one cruise a year at Prime, a balcony at Signature and a Grand Suite at Masters, plus drinks in the casino, waived convenience fees, spa discounts and jewellery credits as you climb.

Celebrity: Blue Chip Club

Six tiers: Pearl, Onyx, Amethyst, Sapphire, Sapphire Plus and Ruby. Earning matches Royal Caribbean: 1 point per $5 on reel slots, 1 per $15 on video poker, tables by game, average bet and time played. A minimum of 10,000 reward points is needed for onboard credit.

Celebrity does not currently publish the point thresholds for each tier. An older chart still on their website lists them, but it dates from 2019, so we are not repeating figures that may no longer hold.

Princess: Players Advantage

Princess enrolls you automatically the first time you play using your Medallion, and play is tracked through it. You can check points at the slot machine or ask the casino host.

Sea You Soon is their published onboard offer: points accumulate from the moment the casino opens until 11:59pm on the second to last night, you book within 30 days of getting home, and you have six months to sail. Rewards are banded by cruise length.

Princess Hearts is invitation only, based on your past play, and publishes benefits including a complimentary stateroom, free play, drinks and a welcome party. Free play under that offer applies to one cruise only.

Tier Match lets you submit your best offer from another cruise line, except Carnival, or a land casino. It is open to US residents 21 and over, takes about seven business days, and any resulting promotional pricing covers guests one and two only, with a $200 non-refundable deposit per guest.

Princess does not publish tier names or a points-per-dollar rate.

What a "free cruise" does not include

This is the part that surprises people, and both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity spell it out in nearly identical words. Not included: all taxes, fees and port expenses, any online booking processing fee, gratuities, fuel surcharges, upgrades, additional cruise fare, extra guests, extra staterooms, air and ground transfers, and onboard expenses.

A comped certificate covers the cruise fare at double occupancy, plus the dining and entertainment that come with any fare. Everything else is yours.

Two age rules that catch people out

You can join Club Royale or Blue Chip at 18, or 21 on Alaska sailings. But to redeem a comped cruise offer you must be 21 and booked as the primary guest. Princess states that gaming on its US-based ships is 18 and over, and that valid government photo ID is required to verify age.

When the casino is open

Royal Caribbean publishes that its casinos operate in international waters and close in port, with few exceptions, and that the casino can stay open until the ship is about to arrive. The other lines do not publish an equivalent statement, so we are not applying Royal's rule to them.

Status matching outside the cruise lines

URComped is a private company, not part of any cruise line. In its own words, it helps players "get the best possible offers from various casinos and cruise lines," membership is free, and members upload pictures of their current offers, which are verified in one to two business days. No cruise line publishes anything confirming those arrangements, so treat the description as the company's own claim and judge the offers you actually receive.