A gambling ship is a seagoing vessel of any kind on which gambling takes place. Historically, international waters began just 3 miles (4.8 km) from land in many countries. Gambling ships, like offshore radio stations, would usually be anchored just outside the three-mile limit.When the extent of territorial waters were redefined to 12 nautical miles—approximately 13.8 miles (22.2 km. On most cruise ships, the minimum age to be in the casino is 18. Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara raise that age to 21 on sailings in Alaska, while MSC raises it to 21 in the Caribbean. There are a few more things to know about cruise ship gambling. The casino isn’t open 24 hours a day like you’d find on land. First, Royal Caribbean puts an age limit of 21 on casino gambling if you are taking an Alaskan cruise. So if you’re headed to the northwest United States, being under 21 will mean no gambling aboard the ship.

The MS Radiance of the Seas has a Vegas-style casino that is an impressive 6,459 square foot with 188 slots and 11 tables.

Cruise ships are a great place for players top enjoy some gambling while they are on a relaxing vacation at sea. With many of the leading cruise lines offering ships that have full casinos, players who enjoy the thrills of blackjack will find great games that can be played. The main difference between playing on a cruise ship as opposed to a land casino is the limitation of game variations. Since there is smaller floor space available, most cruise ships will only offer a single variation of blackjack, though there may be a few that have two or more variations depending on the size of the casino.

Cruise ship casinos open their gaming tables the moment the ship is three miles offshore, in international waters. Gamblers will find that he betting options on a cruise ship are relatively low, so high rollers may not be interested in betting. However, for the casual blackjack player, these cruise casinos offer a great way to enjoy some gabling action while on vacation. There are even themed cruises, where the focus is on gambling and these can offer more game variations and even tournaments that can be played aboard.

Best Cruises for Gambling & Blackjack

Blackjack fans will want to make sure their selected cruise ship offers the game and below are the most popular ships for those that enjoy the thrills of blackjack.

Radiance of the Seas – Royal Caribbean

Destinations: Alaska, Australia/New Zealand, Transpacific, Hawaii

• Single and eight deck blackjack offered with a $5 minimum on both tables.
• Cruise offers blackjack tournaments.

More info:www.royalcaribbean.com

Voyager of the Seas – Royal Caribbean

Destinations: Asia, Australia/New Zealand

• 6 blackjack tables offered, 2 with single deck games.
• Small table limits, between $3 and $6. Two tables offer higher bets, ranging from $25 to $300 per hand.

More info:www.royalcaribbean.com

Carnival Fantasy – Carnival

Destinations: Bahamas, Caribbean

• Multiple blackjack tables with variations such as Face Up and Fun 21.
• Low game minimums for casual players with some higher limits up to $300 per hand.

More info:www.carnival.com

Norwegian Jewel – Norwegian

Destinations: Alaska, Mexican Riviera, Pacific Coastal

• 9 multi-deck blackjack tables with $5 minimums.
• One table offered for high rollers for bets from $100 to $2000.

More info:www.ncl.com

Norwegian Dawn – Norwegian

Destinations: Bermuda, Canada, New England, Caribbean

• Multiple tables with eight deck games and side bets, like Lucky Ladies and Wheel of Madness.
• High roller table reserved with minimums of $100.

More info:www.ncl.com

Five Important Tips for Playing on a Casino Cruise

Playing casino games on a cruise ship is not much different from playing at a land casino, but there are some slight differences to prepare for when sailing. The following tips will get gamblers ready for their onboard blackjack experience.

1. Plan gambling around the complete cruise itinerary. Always remember that all cruise ship casinos are closed when the boat is in port. There are some exceptions, such as in Bermuda and Nassau.

2. The casino will be open when in international waters, so those eager to play just have to wait for the boat to be between 3 and 12 nautical miles from shore.

3. Be ready to deal with smokers. Most of the cruise ships that offer a casino will have designated smoking areas and if the casino is small, smoking may be allowed everywhere in the casino. There may be some exceptions to cigar smoking.

4. Most casino games on a cruise ship are played by casual players. There are seldom card sharks or professional players on board, so prepare for a casual and relaxing experience at the tables.

5. Watch for themed cruises where a major focus is on gambling. These are the cruises that will offer blackjack tournaments and special events throughout the cruise that will make onboard gambling even more exciting and rewarding.

A gambling ship is a seagoing vessel of any kind on which gambling takes place.

Historically, international waters began just 3 miles (4.8 km) from land in many countries. Gambling ships, like offshore radio stations, would usually be anchored just outside the three-mile limit. When the extent of territorial waters were redefined to 12 nautical miles—approximately 13.8 miles (22.2 km)—maintaining gambling ship became much more uneconomic.

In the United States, some states tried to control the effect of gambling ships through the use of state statutes.^[1] It was generally believed^{[according to whom?]} that organized crime was often involved in the operation of gambling ships.

Gambling ships off the coast of California[edit]

In 1928, the lumber schooner Johanna Smith was converted to a gambling ship and moored off Long Beach, California. She caught fire and sank in 1932.^[2]

On New Year's Day 1937, during the Great Depression, gambling ship SS Monte Carlo, well-known for 'drinks, dice, and dolls,' was wrecked on a beach about a quarter mile south of the Hotel del Coronado, near San Diego.^[3]

The barge Monfalcone was purchased in 1928 by a group including Los Angeles crime family boss Jack Dragna and started offering gambling off the coast of Long Beach. The ship sank in 1930 after a fire.^[4]

Other gambling ships operating off California during the 1930s included Rose Isle (aka Johanna Smith II), Casino (fka James Tuft), SS Texas (aka City of Panama; aka Star of Hollywood; aka La Playa), Showboat (aka Mount Baker; aka Caliente), SS Reno (operating off San Diego), and William H. Harriman (operating off Santa Barbara).^[5]

Anthony Cornero operated the gambling ships SS Rex and SS Tango during the 1930s.^[6] California Attorney General Earl Warren ordered raids on the gambling ships. On August 1, 1939, state authorities raided SS Texas and SS Rex off Santa Monica and Showboat and SS Tango off Long Beach. A court ruling later that year permanently shut them down. However, in 1946 Cornero opened the SS Lux off Long Beach. It was quickly shut down. In 1948, President Harry Truman signed an act prohibiting the operation of any gambling ship in U.S. territorial waters.^[7]

Gambling ships in Hawaii[edit]

Hawaii is one of three states that does not legalize any types of wagering such as gambling. So for a gambling ship to be sent from a Hawaiian island would be a very hard accomplishment. Hawaii has some strict laws on what types and which country flagged ships can dock in its ports. These ships that have gambling on them are cruise ships. Even though Hawaii has strict rules on its ports, a foreign flagged cruise ship can still dock in a Hawaiian port if it travels in international waters.^[8] During these cruises there would be gambling on the ship once it got to international waters. A cruise ship would not be allowed to have any type of gambling aboard its ship if its initial or final destination was not to a port on one of the Hawaiian Islands even when those ships are in international waters.^[8]

Gambling ships in Hong Kong[edit]

The popularity of gambling ships increased in Hong Kong following the anti-corruption campaign under Xi Jinping which began in 2012, under which high-ranking government officials and executives at state-owned enterprises are barred from gambling in Macau. In 2011, the Immigration Department reported 466 thousand passenger boardings of tourists from mainland China onto gambling ships, a 17.4% increase from 2010. Eight gambling ships were in operation in Hong Kong in 2013, many of them operated by triad syndicates. These ships have been criticized for their use of misleading sales techniques and for their risk to public safety due to the difficulty of law enforcement against their operation.^[9]

Legality[edit]

Some cities and city officials do not agree if gamblingships should be allowed to go out to sea and gamble but then come back and dock in ports where gambling is illegal. The gambling ships have to travel for over forty five minutes to reach international waters before they could gamble legally.^[10] In the city of New York, where gambling had been deemed illegal, there are some companies that would send their gambling ships to go out to sea into international waters which is about forty five minutes out so people could gamble on their ships legally. New York State AssemblySpeakerSheldon Silver was completely against the concept, arguing that returning with gambling paraphernalia into the Port of New York and New Jersey was illegal.^[10] Other speakers said that the gambling ships would be great for the city, because they would bring in tax revenues and tourism that would help the city's economy. There were other cities around New York City that allowed gambling, and if New York did not permit the operation of gambling ships, those other cities would earn all of the potential revenue from gamblers. Ultimately, it was up to the mayor to decide if the gambling ships would be allowed or not.^[10]

Enforcement of the Law[edit]

There was once an incident off the shore of California by Santa Monica Bay. A man, Tony Cornero, owned a ship called 'Rex.' Cornero licensed his ship from the state of Nevada, where gambling was legal, and set anchor three miles out from the coast of California.^[11] There were water taxis that would carry boat loads of people out to the 'Rex' and they could gamble on the ship. A State Attorney General, Earl Warren, did not like having this ship off the coast of his state. Warren set out with the sheriff department and drove boats out to the 'Rex' to shut it down.^[11] Cornero would not give in for eight days. But when he did the dispute went to the courts. California’s supreme court decided that 'three mile line' that marked international waters was not actually only three miles out from the nearest shore. The 'Rex' was shut down permanently.^[11]

Age Limit For Gambling On A Cruise Ship Royal Caribbean

Gambling ships in popular culture[edit]

Californian gambling ships appear in several novels of the period, including Sing a Song of Murder (1942) by James R Langham, The Case of the Dangerous Dowager (1937) by Erle Stanley Gardner, and Farewell, My Lovely (1940) by Raymond Chandler. The 1940 film 'Gambling on the High Seas' was set in part aboard a gambling ship, SS Sylvania. Other films that feature gambling ships include Gambling Ship, Dante's Inferno, and Smashing the Money Ring.

Economics of Gambling Ships[edit]

Age Limit For Gambling On A Cruise Ships

Whilst gambling and gaming are traditionally high-revenue businesses, the economics of gambling ships are quite different from traditional bricks-and-mortar casinos.

One example which illustrates this is Manhattan Cruises. They were based in Manhattan, New York City, they originally operated overnight cruises into international waters, but had difficult attracting passengers in sufficient numbers to cover pier fees.^[12]

With bigger companies come bigger ships which makes it that much harder on the smaller companies who are trying to get in the gambling ship industry. Smaller companies are sometimes faced with the choice of merging with bigger companies or going out of business. There are different factors that make it hard for the smaller companies to compete with the larger companies such as Carnival Corps and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.^[13] One of the factors is that the bigger companies can afford to make newer and bigger ships. Newer ships can hold up to 4,400 passengers and crew.^[13] These smaller ships can not carry those large of numbers. Newer ships acquire more updated safety requirements from the IMO, International Maritime Organization.^[13] The smaller companies have older ships that are not equipped with the new safety standards and will have to get these requirements if it can afford them. An analyst at Oppenheimer & Co., Steven Eisenberg, says this type of industry will be ruled by two to three big companies who will rule the sea in gambling ships.^[13]

See also[edit]

• Mr. Lucky (film) (1943), starring Cary Grant as a gambling ship operator
  • Mr. Lucky (TV series), loosely based on the same premise
• Gambling Ship (1933), also starring Cary Grant

References[edit]

1. ^CAL. PEN. CODE § 11300
2. ^'Johanna Smith'. California Wreck Divers. Retrieved 2010-02-27.
3. ^Graham, David E (Jan 2, 2007). 'Busting the House: Casino Boat Crashed into Coronado 70 Years Ago'. SignOnSanDiego. San Diego: Union Tribune. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012. Retrieved Mar 19, 2011.
4. ^Monfalcone - California Wreck Divers
5. ^More on California's Gambling Ships by Stephen P. Alpert Coin Slot Magazine April 1980 [1]
6. ^The other S.S. Rex – a gambling ship off Santa Monica, California in the 1930s and early 1940s. by Michael L. Grace cruiselinehistory.com August 2, 2009 [2]
7. ^Tony Cornero And The S.S. Rex Los Angeles Magazine June 28, 2013
8. ^ ^abMcDowell, E. (2001, May 6). Hawaii Still Resists Cruise Ship Gambling. New York Times. p. 3.[3]
9. ^'內地打貪　澳門止步 港八賭船爆海戰搶客'. Apple Daily. 15 July 2013.
10. ^ ^abcToy, V. S. (1995, November 20). Debating legality of plan for cruise-ship gambling. New York Times. p. B2.[4]
11. ^ ^abcKalambakal, V. (2002). The BATTLE of Santa Monica Bay. American History, 37(1), 36.
12. ^Onishi, N. (1998, May 5). Gambling ship stops operating overnight cruises. New York Times. p. B10.[5]
13. ^ ^abcdDe Lisser, E. (1995, November 24). Forecast for cruise industry is stormy, andsome of the smaller fleets may sink. Wall Street Journal – Eastern Edition. p. B1.