VillainsGin

I definitely recommend that you check with MLife ahead of time. It’s entirely possible that you could qualify for benefits that I am unaware of.  Also, if you are seriously interested in high stakes gambling, you can prearrange an onboard account (line of credit).  I’ve never considered doing this but I know it can be done.

TJ!, please refer to Waytoo. He,(or she) is WAY more versed in this subject than I!!

The casino is cash only. If you want to charge against your onboard account (Sea Pass) you can do that either at the cashiers cage or at a table but unless you are at least a Prime level VIP player with Club Royale (their casino rewards program) you will be charge a 5% “convenience fee”.  I think there are some provisions for MLife players too but I don’t know those rules.  I believe that all has to be prearranged prior to boarding.
There is no such thing as putting your Sea Pass card into a slot machine and getting credit to play.  Carnival does that (or used to) but Royal Caribbean does not.
Bottom line....if you are new to a Royale Caribbean, bring cash to play in the casino.

If you gamble regularly (since you mentioned being to LV a hundred times or so), you might make prime status during your first cruise. We live on the east coast, so if we are lucky we go out to LV twice  a year. That being said we are fully comped at the golden nugget (love that place, old Vegas FTW), and we made prime by our last night in the cruise.  If you gamble enough you could make prime early on your cruise and enjoy free drinks for the remainder from what I've read. 
A great resource I've found is a Facebook page dedicated to casino royale. Check it out.
 
BTW. I asked on there and they did confirm that a slot download for cash is treated like a purchase,  not a cash advance!!

You can bet your bottom dollar I’m going to more than break even on the deal on my cruise. ?

Were you traveling solo? I cruised last month with my best friend (I am married, she is not) so it certainly wasn’t a ‘family’ or ‘couples’ cruise for us. Just hitting the pools and going to the bars - neither of us are heavy drinkers - we met plenty of people. I even went to lunch solo in MDR when we were at sea and opted to be seated with another solo diner... just to have someone to talk to. But we’re both fairly extroverted people (she much more than I). 
Any vacation is going to be what you make of it. Sorry you didn’t have a good time. 

No, Symphony sauna and steam rooms are coed and for a fee...$30 per visit I think, they also offer a whole cruise package but space is limited. They do offer more than just a sauna and steam room like the older ships have.
Heres a link to more info. https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/07/20/spotted-royal-caribbean-thermal-spa-pass-online
 

This is why I try to stay on the ships that still offer this service/benefit for free...although they are slowly removing the free saunas and steam rooms from some of the older ships too...
 

Thanks for the info!
I always assumed the sauna/steam room would be inclusive on the symphony of the seas. 
That's pricey per visit since I can barely do 10 minutes in there but absolutely love it.

If you are playing slots, you just put your Sea Pass card into the machine.  What you lose/win will be added/subtracted from your bill at the end of the cruise.
For table games, it's cheapest to buy chips with cash.  Otherwise, you charge your Sea Pass at the casino cage (is that the right term?) which incurs a fee (5%?) unless you have high enough status in Crown and Anchor or the casino program.  Either way, your credit card won't see a charge until the end of the cruise.

First off, my past cruise was our first cruise,  so we just brought cash.
Now that I have researched it, I see that you can "download"  credits onto a slot machine and it will be debited to your sea pass account.
 
What my question is, does your credit card treat that like a regular charge, or a cash advance, with the highercash advance  rate. As opposed to just a regular purchase?

I already posted my past experience on Symphony above.  That being said, my next booked cruise is on Harmony next May,  the DBP right now is $65pp. I can't justify locking in that price which is including gratuities is over $1070. We also made prime in the casino which means our drinks are free for the both of us, but in the casino only 
 
Now I do like the freedom that the DBP allowed us, at this point I can't justify that price. I paid just over $800 instead of $1070 for the same thing. So I will keep checking the cruise planner for a sale. I keep seeing mention of a black Friday sale. Holding out for that.
Worst case scenario,  drinks for the wifey and I are free in the casino,  and pay as you go elsewhere. 

My wife and I are going on symphony in November and recently got it for $46pp per day. After we initially purchased it , we stalked the sales in the cruise planner as I believe we first purchased it at like 56pp

I agree 100%

@monctonguy  Good luck. We're also waiting for a deep discount on drink package. Since we're sailing in January, we might have to wait until Black Friday/Cyber Monday. Hope springs eternal.

You're right it doesn't hurt to just lock down the price now and cancel later. I'll be booking the ddp as soon as I get back from the office!
Thanks for taking your time to help me out!

Personally, I would not wait for Black Friday.  There is no guarantee what the price will be at that time.  I personally would purchase it as soon as I am able to and then just re-price it at Black Friday if it is lower.

Thank you Matt for that guide! This was exactly what I needed since I dont cancel anything often once I purchased it in fear of the hassle and waiting of funds to return back into my account.

If you know for sure you want it, go ahead and buy it.  If the price drops you can just cancel and rebuy.  That's what I did, originally bought it for 52 or 55, can't remember which,  then when it dropped I called and rebought it. 

I was on the same sailing as @cobra614 and same, the lowest it fell to was $47pp/day.  My advice is buy it as soon as you can and watch prices.  If it drops, you can re-price up to 2 days before sailing.  If you don't buy it now, you run the risk of the price going up even higher.  In the past, Black Friday usually nets the biggest savings.

As soon as you know you want it. The best strategy for pre-cruise purchases is buy it early and track it for price changes. If there is a price drop, cancel and rebook it. 

They just upped the drink packages across the board, so the lower prices that folks have experienced in the past may not be obtainable.  If you are comfortable paying the price that it is currently, just go ahead and book it to lock in the price.  It's simply to cancel and repurchase if the price drops.
I will say that my Allure sailing next weekend is at $55 right now.  Before the overall price increases it hadn't been more than $52 a day and had gotten as low as $49.

See Matt's post above. 

Booked my very first cruise with MEI travels after doing some research and hunting for a TA that would make me comfortable. (first cruise and first time using a travel agency)
We're sailing on the Symphony of the Seas 7 days on Jan, 2020 and extremely excited!!!
Blessed enough to have Kelley Hardy as our TA to answer the barrage of questions I have on almost a weekly basis. She has been amazing, so patient and informative along with being so kind. My girl knows how paranoid and cautious I can get but Kelley eases that part of my worries. (I tend to search for cruise/TA horror stories haha)
Just wanted to let anyone who is considering a travel agency to give MEI travels a try and ask for Kelley, doesn't hurt just to feel it out and see if it's the right fit for you.
As I'm writing this post i'm still barraging her with questions about flights, on-board cruise, cruise planner, hotels, etc etc. She's answered them all and provided some amazing insights and tips.
I'll definitely update everyone as it comes closer to my sailing date and after my first experience!
Keep up the hard work and always appreciate you Kelley!