twangster

The trick is finding a machine that is paying out, or not losing as much as other machines.  🤣
Sometimes you put in a $20 and you can go for an hour.  Sometimes you put in $20 and you go five spins.  
Earning points on the play through money beats earning the same points by feeding more bills in.  If I feel the money falling away quickly I move to another machine.  In theory they operate with similar statistics but if I'm not feeling it I waste no time trying another machine. 
When I decided to go for Prime I got lucky on that first cruise.  I put $300 in and pretty quickly hit a $900 win.  Logic said to take the money and run but I wanted Prime so I played that $1,200 plus a few hundred more all the way to a 1,200 level instant reward and halfway to Prime.
I chose to finish my Prime run on another cruise so I could get a second instant reward free cruise. 
Higher bets have the potential to yield higher wins but your money goes much quicker.  If you time it right and get lucky a higher bet for a few spins can really pay off but it can also eat your money very quickly so always be aware of the rate that your money is going down.
Last night on one machine when ever I increased my bet I wasn't hitting.  I went with minimum bets on a machine with feature free games and while it took hours of play time, I made 500 points with just over $200 invested.  It kept hitting the feature free games and while the payout wasn't massive on the small bets, over hours it amounted to a lot of play through money.  It was a lot of fun on a great run over 4 hours but I only seemed to hit with a small bet.  

The process is largely driven by US CBP in the US.  They dictate how long the B2B process will take.
In some cases CBP might ask the ship to gather consecutive cruisers at a specific venue on the ship where CBP will do the immigration process, in other cases CBP requires consecutive cruisers to physically leave the ship so the ship reaches zero count.  Only then will they allow the next cruise including consecutive cruisers to begin boarding. 
Either way they have everyone sign off the first cruise using the seapass card for the first cruise and then you embark the next cruise using a new seapass card.
Since CBP requires zero count before embarking the next cruise can start they usually ask consecutive cruisers to meet between 8:30am to 9:15am as a specific venue on board.  If some lazy cruisers are slow to get off when their cruise is over they may hold consecutive cruisers longer before having them visit with CBP either onboard or in the terminal.   That can make the whole process take longer but it isn't the ship choosing to draw it out, it's because of those other guests who try to overstay for whatever reason.  

The process is largely driven by US CBP in the US.  They dictate how long the B2B process will take.
In some cases CBP might ask the ship to gather consecutive cruisers at a specific venue on the ship where CBP will do the immigration process, in other cases CBP requires consecutive cruisers to physically leave the ship so the ship reaches zero count.  Only then will they allow the next cruise including consecutive cruisers to begin boarding. 
Either way they have everyone sign off the first cruise using the seapass card for the first cruise and then you embark the next cruise using a new seapass card.
Since CBP requires zero count before embarking the next cruise can start they usually ask consecutive cruisers to meet between 8:30am to 9:15am as a specific venue on board.  If some lazy cruisers are slow to get off when their cruise is over they may hold consecutive cruisers longer before having them visit with CBP either onboard or in the terminal.   That can make the whole process take longer but it isn't the ship choosing to draw it out, it's because of those other guests who try to overstay for whatever reason.  

The trick is finding a machine that is paying out, or not losing as much as other machines.  🤣
Sometimes you put in a $20 and you can go for an hour.  Sometimes you put in $20 and you go five spins.  
Earning points on the play through money beats earning the same points by feeding more bills in.  If I feel the money falling away quickly I move to another machine.  In theory they operate with similar statistics but if I'm not feeling it I waste no time trying another machine. 
When I decided to go for Prime I got lucky on that first cruise.  I put $300 in and pretty quickly hit a $900 win.  Logic said to take the money and run but I wanted Prime so I played that $1,200 plus a few hundred more all the way to a 1,200 level instant reward and halfway to Prime.
I chose to finish my Prime run on another cruise so I could get a second instant reward free cruise. 
Higher bets have the potential to yield higher wins but your money goes much quicker.  If you time it right and get lucky a higher bet for a few spins can really pay off but it can also eat your money very quickly so always be aware of the rate that your money is going down.
Last night on one machine when ever I increased my bet I wasn't hitting.  I went with minimum bets on a machine with feature free games and while it took hours of play time, I made 500 points with just over $200 invested.  It kept hitting the feature free games and while the payout wasn't massive on the small bets, over hours it amounted to a lot of play through money.  It was a lot of fun on a great run over 4 hours but I only seemed to hit with a small bet.  

This will be super subjective. I think there is no real rhyme, reason, or average. Yes, there is the hypothetical $12,500 cost based on nothing, by nothing that is with you winning absolutely nothing.  But imho it should be feasible at a maximum of $2pp. This is just my opinion, but you need to play games you like, not always on max bet. The most it has ever costed me was $2000 to make prime on a sailing. I have lived and learned, so I now break it down to get more cruises. But that was basically $.80pp. 
Just playing the pennies on max bet might not get you a good ROI. I like to play either the min bet on a higher denomination or the second lowest bet on 2cent. 
Another example, I was playing for my mother this year in May and it cost me $1700 to get 1200pts. That is $.71 a point, much less than the $5. I lost good in the beginning but found my rhythm away from her 🤣. I played for myself to get 1500pt and it cost me $800 and that was $.53pp. I would have been able to do it for less, but I started bouncing machines. 
Personally, I love gambling, so all of this was in my budget. My rule is as long as the cost of the cruise I will win is more than I will spend, I am golden. 

The trick is finding a machine that is paying out, or not losing as much as other machines.  🤣
Sometimes you put in a $20 and you can go for an hour.  Sometimes you put in $20 and you go five spins.  
Earning points on the play through money beats earning the same points by feeding more bills in.  If I feel the money falling away quickly I move to another machine.  In theory they operate with similar statistics but if I'm not feeling it I waste no time trying another machine. 
When I decided to go for Prime I got lucky on that first cruise.  I put $300 in and pretty quickly hit a $900 win.  Logic said to take the money and run but I wanted Prime so I played that $1,200 plus a few hundred more all the way to a 1,200 level instant reward and halfway to Prime.
I chose to finish my Prime run on another cruise so I could get a second instant reward free cruise. 
Higher bets have the potential to yield higher wins but your money goes much quicker.  If you time it right and get lucky a higher bet for a few spins can really pay off but it can also eat your money very quickly so always be aware of the rate that your money is going down.
Last night on one machine when ever I increased my bet I wasn't hitting.  I went with minimum bets on a machine with feature free games and while it took hours of play time, I made 500 points with just over $200 invested.  It kept hitting the feature free games and while the payout wasn't massive on the small bets, over hours it amounted to a lot of play through money.  It was a lot of fun on a great run over 4 hours but I only seemed to hit with a small bet.  

@Matt is live on YT from Utopia right now!
 

Bing was always an excellent Suite Lounge concierge going back many years.  I'm happy to see her progress into the Genie program.
We discussed being a Genie in May on Jewel when she announced her transition.
While I selfishly wish she was on Utopia for my star class booking this fall, I'm glad she has found a place in the Genie universe that she likes.
The wonderful thing about Royal Caribbean crew as a guest speaking, is you meet so many wonderful people over the years.  Some crew stand out more than others for one reason or another.  This includes Bing.  From what I have observed, Bing is well placed in her Genie role.  

@Matt is live on YT from Utopia right now!
 

Bing was always an excellent Suite Lounge concierge going back many years.  I'm happy to see her progress into the Genie program.
We discussed being a Genie in May on Jewel when she announced her transition.
While I selfishly wish she was on Utopia for my star class booking this fall, I'm glad she has found a place in the Genie universe that she likes.
The wonderful thing about Royal Caribbean crew as a guest speaking, is you meet so many wonderful people over the years.  Some crew stand out more than others for one reason or another.  This includes Bing.  From what I have observed, Bing is well placed in her Genie role.  

Royal will always put profit first.  The new to cruise market is hot right now and as any business should, they are maximizing profit.
The great thing about cruise ships is that they can be deployed to satisfy current market demands.  If the new to cruise market drops off in a few years then cruise lines can adapt to whatever market is hot at that time.  They can move ships to a different region or put them on different cruise lengths if that will maximize profit in that moment.
Make no mistake, Royal is a business with shareholders and they have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize their investors returns.  It would be foolish for them to put a ship into a market that will make less money just so some return customers are happier.  

I haven't seen them make any reference but it would be normal for some reduced capacity to start just to ensure positive feedback and to give the crew time to ramp up to full capacity.

She has some media cruises and the naming ceremony before she enters service.

The suite concierge can... well you don't need me to explain these things.
Sorry breakfast was late.  
After a recent port intensive early arrival European cruise myself I get it.  Breakfast is a challenge.  Add some teenagers to the equation and lookout.  

I haven't seen them make any reference but it would be normal for some reduced capacity to start just to ensure positive feedback and to give the crew time to ramp up to full capacity.

I haven't seen them make any reference but it would be normal for some reduced capacity to start just to ensure positive feedback and to give the crew time to ramp up to full capacity.

She has some media cruises and the naming ceremony before she enters service.

She has some media cruises and the naming ceremony before she enters service.

Bing was always an excellent Suite Lounge concierge going back many years.  I'm happy to see her progress into the Genie program.
We discussed being a Genie in May on Jewel when she announced her transition.
While I selfishly wish she was on Utopia for my star class booking this fall, I'm glad she has found a place in the Genie universe that she likes.
The wonderful thing about Royal Caribbean crew as a guest speaking, is you meet so many wonderful people over the years.  Some crew stand out more than others for one reason or another.  This includes Bing.  From what I have observed, Bing is well placed in her Genie role.  

The suite concierge can... well you don't need me to explain these things.
Sorry breakfast was late.  
After a recent port intensive early arrival European cruise myself I get it.  Breakfast is a challenge.  Add some teenagers to the equation and lookout.  

She has some media cruises and the naming ceremony before she enters service.

Bing was always an excellent Suite Lounge concierge going back many years.  I'm happy to see her progress into the Genie program.
We discussed being a Genie in May on Jewel when she announced her transition.
While I selfishly wish she was on Utopia for my star class booking this fall, I'm glad she has found a place in the Genie universe that she likes.
The wonderful thing about Royal Caribbean crew as a guest speaking, is you meet so many wonderful people over the years.  Some crew stand out more than others for one reason or another.  This includes Bing.  From what I have observed, Bing is well placed in her Genie role.