Aegean Paradise was delivered to Kingston Maritime at ST Marine Shipyard in Singapore. After refurnishing at the shipyard, the ship will join 2 other casino ships owned by the same company. She will be operating as a casino cruise ship off the Indonesian island of Batam.

• One Day Casino Cruise Singapore
• Casino Cruise Singapore
• Leisure World Casino Cruise Singapore

1. Floating casinos offering gamblers a 'cruise to nowhere' took a big hit when Singapore's two casinos opened in 2010. But the crowds have returned to the Leisure World, and they appear to be mostly.
2. When the cruise, on the ship Quantum of the Seas, left the city-state on Monday, all 1,680 passengers and 1,148 crew had tested negative for Covid-19, according to the Singapore Tourism Board.

Region
Asia

Local Time
2020-12-15 08:22

Port Map

One Day Casino Cruise Singapore

Port Singapore, along with its 2 cruise terminals, also has passenger ferry terminals and drydock facilities for marine vessel refurbishments and repairs. The port is ranked world’s 2nd biggest containership cargo port (following Shanghai). In 2013, here were handled 32,24 million TEUs (containers) - slightly behind Shanghai's 33,62 million.

Singapore City is a sovereign city-state in Southeast Asia, with total area 719 km2 (278 ml2) and population over 5,7 million. Identified as a tax haven, Singapore is a global finance, commerce and transhipment hub. The country is ranked top international-meetings city (UIA), city with 'best investment potential' (BERI), most 'technology-ready' nation (WEF), 2nd-most competitive country (after China), 4th-largest financial centre (after NYC, London City, Hong Kong), 11th-largest foreign exchange market, 7th-largest oil refining centre (ExxonMobil Singapore), 2nd-largest container port (after Shanghai).

Port Singapore features an excellent infrastructure, outstanding cruise facilities, strategic location. It is known as the gateway to Southeast Asia and is an ideal homeport for exotic itineraries to multiple Asian countries with convenient short-break roundtrips. Among the regularly visirted destinations are seaports and islands in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam.

Port's largest container terminal (COSCO-PSA / CPT) is operated by a joint venture between COSCO SHIPPING Ports (CSP) and PSA Singapore (part of PSA International Corporation). As of 2019, CPT has 5 mega-boxship berths (all automated), with annual capacity 5 million TEUs. COSCO-PSA was established in 2003. On May 13, 2019, was inaugurated Magenta Singapore Terminal - joint venture of ONE (Ocean Network Express) and PSA Singapore. The new Pasir Panjang Terminal has 4 mega-berths and combined annual capacity 4 million TEUs. The longterm ONE-PSA partnership was officially announced in December 2018.

When completed, the new Tuas Terminal (container port) will add 21 million TEUs capacity to port's current 32,3 million TEUs. This is a 3-party joint venture company (Penta-Ocean Construction, Hyundai Engineering and Construction, and Boskalis International). The project was started in 2018 and is to be built in 4 phases on 387 hectares reclaimed land with 8,6 km wharf (constructed with 227 on-site fabricated caissons). By 2040, all Port Singapore container shipping operations will be consolidated at Tuas Terminal, which will have projected annual max TEU capacity 65 million.

Singapore cruise port

In 2017, the port handled 421 ship calls and around 1,38 million cruise passengers - an increase (over 2016) of 3% and 17% respectively.

On May 3, 2013, Carnival Corporation opened its Singapore office. With Costa Victoria and Costa Atlantica (2680-passenger), Carnival's local subsidiary company 'Costa Asia' doubled its regional capacity. In 2013, Costa had a total of 125 Asian cruises with total traffic over 220,000 passengers. Costa Cruises was industry's first company establishing year-round shipping operations in Asia. On the occasion of its inaugural port call (that coincided with Carnival Asia's regional office opening), on the Atlantica ship were hosted formal reception and gala dinner events. Carnival's office houses 'Carnival Asia' (managing Corporation's Asian shipping operations and market expansion). The special events on the Atlantica were attended by 300+ VIP guests, among which government officials, local dignitaries and celebrities, travel industry representatives. In May-June 2013, Atlantica sailed on 3-4-day Singapore roundtrips to Thailand and Malaysia.

On August 26, 2015, the RCI ship Legend of the Seas arrived to be once again home-ported in Singapore. The ship previously sailed on year-round roundtrip itineraries out of port Singapore in the period 2008-2013. (statistics) in 2015, the cruise port handled a total of 385 ship calls and served over 1 million passengers. In 2015, the number of Singapore citizens departing by sea was nearly 1,754 million, which accounted for 19,2% of all outbound travellers. The increase in port calls (2013-2016 period) was over 35%, The cruise port had a combined annual growth 10,6%.

In 2016, after 10 years absence, P&O Australia homeported a vessel in Singapore. Pacific Eden (now CMV Vasco de Gama) arrived on July 30. and operated a total of 5 roundtrips to ports in Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia and Thailand. The ship was based at SCC HarbourFront Terminal.

On March 20, 2016, the AIDA Cruises newest ship AIDAprima docked in Singapore (Sembawang Shipyard) during her relocation itinerary from Nagasaki to Hamburg. In June 2016, during the Ovation of the Seas maiden port call, RCI representatives announced the ship will be homeported for its 2017 season in Singapore. Adding the large-sized Ovation to Voyager of the Seas (May 2017) and Mariner of the Seas (October 2017) increases the line’s passenger capacity in Southeast Asia by 30% over 2016. Ovation added around 42,000 passengers to the cruise port's volumes. The ship operated on 3- to 5-night roundtrips to Penang (Malaysia), Phuket and Laem Chabang (Bangkok) Thailand.

In January 2017, Dream Cruises announced that their newest ship Genting Dream (151,300 GT tons) will be homeported in Singapore in 2018. Between early December 2017 and late March 2018, the ship operated on a series of 5-night roundtrips (Sunday departures) combined with 2-night weekend mini-cruises to destinations in Strait of Malacca and Java Sea. Passengers also had the choice to combine Strait of Malacca and Java Sea voyages into a 12-night B2B cruise, with the option of spending the weekend either onboard or in a Singapore hotel. Between April and October 2018, the ship's schedule had destinations in South China Sea and Java Sea.

In July 2017, at Clifford Pier was celebrated the 'Royal Caribbean Cruises Asia' company's 10th anniversary. The special ceremony was attended by over 150 VIP guests representing Asian media, government officials, RCCL travel partners. The first RCI ship homeported in Asia was Rhapsody of the Seas (2007). For season 2017-2018, RCI had scheduled its longest ship deployment in Singapore - a total of 72 roundtrip itineraries.

On January 22, 2018, at the cruise port ROyal Caribbean welcomed the company's 1 millionth passenger embarking in Singapore. The 52-yo Singaporean boarded Mariner of the Seas. At the ship's gangway, he was welcomed and cheered by RCI crew and staff. To celebrate the occasion, he was taken to the Viking Crown Lounge, where was greeted by Captain Claus Andersen. He was also presented with prize package worth of over USD 2400.

On March 5, 2018, CLIA and STB signed a 3-year partnership aimed at boosting the industry in Singapore and Southeast Asia. The project included conducting professional travel agent training in priority Asian markets (Indonesia, Malaysia, India) for improving sales skills and overall destination knowledge. The partnership leveraged CLIA's training capabilities and STB's travel agency networks.

In 2019, RCI has company's ever biggest Asian season, with 3 liners (Voyager, Quantum, Spectrum) and total 78 itineraries leaving roundtrip from Singapore. The deployment also served the planned drydocks in Singapore of Voyager OTS and Quantum OTS. Singapore as port destination is among the most attractive to Chinese travellers due to the offered numerous short-breaks (around 80% of all voyages are 3-4-night itineraries) and affordable pre- and post-cruise hotel packages.

In late-September 2017, the company FueLNG (Keppel-Shell joint venture) completed its first commercial LNG bunkering in Port Singapore. The truck-to-ship LNG ('liquefied natural gas') bunker transfer was for the vessel Floating Liquefaction. The LNG bunkering operation was carried out in the period July 22 - September 23 (2017). LNG as ship fuel completely removes SOx and soot particles and reduces NOx (85%) and CP2 emissions (20%).

In June 2018, a shore-to-ship drone delivery service was introduced in Port Singapore via partnership between Airbus and Wilhelmsen Ships Service. Deliveries are made to anchored ships and include mainly essential spare parts, documentation, consumables, medical supplies, water testing kits, cash. The system is based on Skyways (Airbus unmanned drones) and a pier-based command center. Delivery range is up to 3 km (2 ml) from the shoreline. A second station is positioned in Marina South, extending delivery coverage to anchored vessels.

In 2019, Princess Cruises homeported here two liners - Diamond Princess and Sapphire Princess.

Sembcorp Marine Shipyard Singapore

Singapore has one of the most booked cruise ship repair and refurbishment yards. The facility is owned and operated by Sembcorp Marine. Among shipyard's regular customers are Carnival Corporation (P&O Australia, Carnival, Holland America, Princess), RCCL (Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines), Star Clippers, also the Asian lines Star Cruises (Genting), Dream Cruises (Genting), Jalesh-Zen Cruises (India).

Drydock projects are handled at Sembcorp Marine's shipyards 'Tuas Boulevard' and 'Admiralty'. Both facilities have large and deepwater drydocks with capacities to serve world's largest passenger liners. In the period 2008-2018, Sembcorp Marine was contracted for 102 cruise ship drydocking projects, averaging 10 vessels per year. In 2018 were completed 10 drydocks, in 2017 - 16, in 2016 - 9.

Provided by Sembcorp Marine services include shiprepairs, refurbishments, retrofitting, life-extension and specialized projects. Other major projects are vessel conversions and upgrades of offshore platforms, gas carriers, cruise ships, ferries, mega-yachts, oil tankers, containerships, cargo carriers. Shiprepair services include afloat and emergency repairs, underwater repairs, hull cleaning, engine maintenance and repairs, electrical-instrumentation-mechanical repairs, pipe and steelworks, tank cleaning, waste disposal, equipment and specialists providers, staging works, towage.

In May 2019, Sembcorp Marine completed the construction of SSCV Sleipnir - world's biggest/strongest semi-submersible crane vessel. It features two revolving cranes (with combined lifting capacity 20,000 tons / 10K tons each), lifting height 175 m (574 ft), reinforced deck area sized 220x102 m (722x335 ft) and 400 berths (personnel). This is also world's first dual-fuel SSCV (semi-submersible crane vessel) which engines are fueled by both MGO (marine gasoil) and LNG (liquefied natural gas). The SSCV was designed for assembly works at offshore platforms (oil-gas-wind turbines) and also vessel decommissioning projects. It was built at Sembcorp's Tuas Boulevard Yard for Heerema Marine Contractors (HMC) - 1948-founded company, subsidiary of Heerema International Group Services SA. SSCV Sleipnir's construction involved 3700 workers (single-shift).

Fly-cruises from Singapore

On August 17, 2015, RCI-Royal Caribbean International signed with STB (Singapore Tourism Board, under Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry) and CAG (Changi Airport Group, Singapore airport operations and management) a multi-million dollar marketing campaign to promote cruise vacations on Singapore-homeported ships. The campaign targeted RCI's overseas customers with Singapore fly-cruise deals from USA, Australia and Europe. Campaign's period was 2015-2018, with estimated over 170,000 international passengers flying to Singapore on RCI fly-cruises. The projected Asian market growth was over 50% as the series of marketing campaigns also targeted Asian passengers (flying from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea).

• For the period 2015-2018, RCI also increased its Singapore roundtrips to over 40 per year. To attract more fly-cruise passengers, many itineraries were longer (7- to 15-days). In April 2016, Tiger Airways was included in Marina Bay terminal's fly-cruise program, with flights from Changi Airport. Cruise terminal's other airline partners are Air China, China Eastern, China Southern, Qantas, Silk Air, Singapore Airlines.
• On March 6, 2017, Royal Caribbean signed a marketing partnership to increase RCI flight-and-cruise deals to Singapore. The market was estimated at over USD 26 million annually. The partnership was between RCCL, Changi Airport and Singapore Tourism Board. It promoted itineraries out of Singapore on the RCi ships Ovation OTS and Voyager OTS. For the period March-June 2017, the number of flight-cruise tourists to Singapore was around 45,000. On March 6, Ovation OTS docked at Marina Bay Terminal for the very first time.
• In November 2019, RCI signed a 5-year partnership deal (until 2024) with STB and CAG for promoting fly-cruises to Singapore on the homeported here Quantum OTS, with expected ~623,000 international tourists spending ~USD 430+ million on flight+cruise packages. This is ~60% growth in comparison to the previous tripartite partnership (2015-2018) here was homeported Mariner OTS.

In October 2018, Costa Cruises signed a separate tripartite agreement with STB and CAG. The Costa-Singapore deal was for 2019-2022 and targeting over 100,000 international tourists.

Singapore's Changi Airport is connected with direct flights to 320+ cities worldwide. Operating around 6700 flights weekly, the airport is among Asia's major fly-cruise travel hubs. In 2019, Changi Airport launched an intermodal luggage transfer service (from the airport directly to the ship) for fly-cruisers arriving in Singapore and boarding here cruise ships and ferries. This service benefits mainly tourists arriving from China, India and Southeast Asia.

In April 2020 was signed a USD 10 million partnership between EMA (Energy Market Authority) and Keppel O&M (Offshore & Marine) for developing (and completion by 2023) a floating Energy Storage System. The project is based on Keppel’s 'Floating Living Lab' (7,5 MW lithium-ion battery power storage) with daily capacity to power 600+ 4-room apartments.

Cruise itineraries to and from Singapore

Follows a list of destinations visited by cruise ships leaving out of Singapore

• World Cruises - around the world voyages starting in Europe or Australia often visit Singapore and also offer world cruise segments with departures from Singapore (to Europe, China, India, Dubai, etc).
• Mini Cruises (to Thailand, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia) are generally booked as short-breaks (or shopping vacations). Most mini cruise deals from Singapore (with regularly scheduled departures) are offered by local Asian companies.
• The list of visited Southeast Asia mainland and island destinations includes Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia. Luxury ships may also visit the Philippines.
• On westbound World Cruise segments from Singapore, the itineraries visit ports in India, Sri Lanka, UAE, Oman, Jordan, Egypt (with Suez Canal transition), Mediterranean ports (in Greece, Italy, Spain, France, etc).
• Repositioning cruises - Asia to Australia, Australia to Asia, Asia to Europe are all via Suez Canal.
• Repositioning – cruise itineraries to Australia from Singapore usually end in Fremantle-Perth, Brisbane or Sydney. These are seasonally offered deals on ship relocation routes and often include stops in Indonesia. Most Australia-Asia voyages are on P&O and Princess ships.
• Among the cruise lines operating to and from Singapore are both Genting lines (Star Cruises and Dream Cruises), also Celebrity, Costa Asia, Holland America, NCL Norwegian, Carnival Asia (P&O Australia, Princess), Royal Caribbean Asia, TUI.

'Project Orient Limited' (POL) plans to build two ocean cruise liners for a regular passenger shipping service between Europe/UK and Australia (Southampton - Sydney). The scheduled itinerary will be 26 days in one direction (Southampton to Sydney, and the reverse Sydney to Southampton). The included ports of call are Fremantle (at the 20-day mark), also Dubai, Mumbai (India) and Singapore. Each of the STX France-built ships will be 200,000 GT tons and with capacity 1600 pax. The expected cruise pricing starts from around GBP 2900 per person (one-way).

Cruises to Nowhere from Singapore

In early-October 2020, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) started developing new health and safety protocols to allow cruises to nowhere - itineraries leaving roundtrip from Singapore and with no call ports along the route.

The new proposal came after Singapore Airlines announced in September that they would offer 3-hour 'flights to nowhere' (sightseeing roundtrips) from Singapore's Changi Airport. However, Singapore Airlines later cancelled the program due to active criticism from local environmental campaigners.

STB hired DNV-GL (Hovic Norway-based risk management company and accredited registrar and classification society) to create a compliance and certification scheme to help passenger shipping companies who want to restart voyages out of Port Singapore as the country was still in lockdown due to the Coronavirus crisis.

STB's Regional Director of the Americas (Rachel Loh) advised that the companies (ship operators and shipowners) would need to pass an audit for certification to return to cruising plus the ships would be allowed to accommodate only 1/2 of their max passenger capacity for the first 3 months of operation.

There is no official date for when 'Singapore cruises to nowhere' will commence but all operators homeporting in Singapore were eager to restart operations after voluntarily ceasing voyages since March 2020.

Singapore cruise terminal

Newest Singapore cruise port terminal is officially named 'Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore' (abbrev MBCCS). Aka 'International Cruise Terminal', the facility is located next to Marina South Pier.

• port address - 'Herbert Walker Avenue, Singapore SO15 1, United Kingdom'
• UN-LOCODE (United Nations location code) - SGSIN
• developer - Singapore Tourism Board
• operator - SATS-Creuers Cruise Services
• supported by excellent rail and air infrastructure
• deep water channel and berths
• sheltered harbor area
• access unrestricted by tides
• The cruise port is accessible the whole year round - 24/7, 365 days a tear.

Currently, MBCCS terminal has 1 pier with 2 berths, docking capacity two 220,000-ton liners (simultaneously) and max passenger capacity 6800 (at a time).

Other signature facilities in Singapore Harbor (some still under construction) are Marina Bay Financial Centre (abbrev MBFC /3 office towers, 2 residential towers, 1 retail space), Marina Bay Sands (casino property developed by Las Vegas Sands), Singapore Flyer (giant Ferris wheel), Esplanade Park (waterfront area overlooking Singapore River), Gardens by the Bay (nature park of 101 hectares / 250 acres).

Marina Bay Cruise Centre (International Cruise Terminal)

The Singapore's Marina Bay Cruise Centre (aka International Cruise Terminal, abbrev MBCCS) is a new cruise ship terminal located next to Marina South Pier. At construction cost USD 500 million, the terminal's constructing project started in October 2009 and was completed on 22nd May, 2012.

The first cruise ship to visit the new terminal was the Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas (calling on May 26, 2012). The new terminal's opening ceremony was on October 22, 2012.

• Singapore cruise port can accommodate vessel with LOA length up to 1180 ft (360 m), draft up to 38 ft (11.5 m) and GT tonnage (volume) up to 220,000 tons. The passengers capacity is 6800. Operator of Singapore cruise port (Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore ) is SATS-Creuers Cruise Services.
• Singapore Cruise Centre is located 10-min away from MBCCS. MBCCS (the old Singapore cruise port) was expanded in 2008. It is next to Vivo City and 20-min away from Singapore Changi International Airport.
• Cruise ship terminal (dock) address: '61 Marina Coastal Drive, Singapore 018947 , Singapore'
• Terminal building address: 'Singapore Cruise Centre, 2 Maritime Square, Singapore 099255'
• canal (berth) length - 360 m (1180 ft)
• max allowed draft - 11,5 m (38 ft)
• max GRT tonnage - 220,000 tons (the world's biggest cruise ships)
• terminal area size - 120 x 335 m (390 x 1100 ft)
• terminal area space - 28,000 m2 (300,000 ft2), approx 3 football fields
• The new terminal is expected to serve over 1,5 million cruise passengers per year.
• MBCCS has an amazing architectural design by RSP Architects Planners and Engineers Bermello, Ajamil and Partners. The arrival and departure halls are spacious and lively, the roofscape resembles waves that are breaking in the shore. The panels of glass and aluminium are alternating along the terminal length.
• terminal features - arrival/departure hall, GTA (ground transportation area), design (angular form, aluminium/glass panels, multi-dimensional roof /changing it shape as the cruise ship approaches).
• Sea waves break form at the terminal-GTA junction. Broken waves slide up the shore over the ground transportation area. The waves breaking point is the point of separation between the GTA and the cruise terminal. This area is the main entrance to the terminal.

In October 2018, MBCCS revealed its plans to use “Smart Terminal Solution” technology to better handle the increasing passenger and ship traffic. By year 2035, Southeast Asia is expected to receive up to 4,5 million cruise passengers annually. The new technology manages big data by using smart sensors, central command-and-control system, and video analytics, and offers:

• Improved tourist experience via video analytics (enabling system-assisted decision-making). Strategic terminal locations (check-ins and baggage area) benefit from smart sensors providing real-time monitoring of passenger traffic to detect congestions.
• Better resource planning via processing info on passenger demographics, homeport and itinerary length to better service ship calls via predictive analytics.
• Quick response to accidents via apps allowing terminal staff to upload photos and create accident fact report through mobile phones.
• Enhanced surveillance via digital maps for quick access to real-time CCTV footages.
• Improved baggage tagging accuracy via passports scanning.

Cruise ship terminal directions and parking

Singapore has an excellent MRT (subway system) with numerous stations.

• The port is located some 10 min drive away from Marina Bay Cruise Centre and some 20 min from Changi Airport (one of the largest in Southeast Asia and also one of world's busiest).
• Parking space (carpark and bus bay area) are sized 32,000 m2 (340,000 ft2) with max capacity of 6800 passengers.
• By rail - the nearest station is Marina South Pier and also the scheduled for opening in 2021 'Marina South MRT'.
• By bus - Service 402 stops by the cruise terminal from Marina Bay station covering the first 20 bus stops.

In Singapore Harbor are located HarbourFront Terminal (Marina Bay Cruise Centre), and also Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal. The cruise terminal is located close to signature attractions, including:

• Sentosa Island - beaches, swimming with dolphins, live shows, indoor skydiving, segways
• Resorts World Sentosa - Maritime Experiential Museum & Aquarium
• Maritime Square - retail shopping (including at Vivo City mall housing multiple luxury, name-brand boutiques)
• There is a cable car to Sentosa Island.

Singapore tours, shore excursions, hotels

City Tours and Shore Excursions

• Marina Bay Sands: the second integrated resort in Singapore. Take the sampan ride or try the unique restaurants (with top celebrity chefs like Justin Quek and Wolfgang Puck).
• Double helix bridge at Marina Bay: famous architectural wonder, not just a bridge. This favorite photo spot is located next to the Marina Bay floating platform and the Youth Olympic Park. It is breathtaking in the night with its various moods of lighting.
• Universal Studios Singapore: the first themed park in Singapore. Enjoy trilling entertainment time – walk along the Hollywood Boulevard, meet the famous Shrek or visit Jurassic Park.
• Night Safari: thrilling experience. It has won eight times the Singapore Tourism Board’s Best Visitor Attraction Experience.
• St James Power Station: the best place to have a party, choose between nine place or visit all.
• Singapore Flyer: the largest observation wheel in the world. The height of Singapore Flyer in 165 m and its building cost is S$240 million. You will enjoy stunning views of the Marina Bay, the Padang, the Raffles Place, Empress Place and the Singapore River.
• Marina Barrage: located at the city heart, a reservoir with fresh water and the favorite area for water sports enthusiasts. Great place for picnic, it is not unusual to see just married couples to take photos.
• Art galleries: located in Tanjong Pagar Distripark, right to the docks.

Port Singapore cruise ship schedule shows timetable calendars of all arrival and departure dates by month. The port's schedule lists all ships (in links) with cruises going to or leaving from Singapore. To see the full itineraries (ports of call dates and arrival / departure times) and their lowest rates – just follow the corresponding ship-link.

Day	Ship	Arrival	Departure
19 December, 2020 Saturday	Costa Mediterranea	20:00
26 December, 2020 Saturday	Costa Mediterranea	09:00	20:00

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Singapore - user reviews and comments

On this Floating Casino, Grandma Gambles Her Life Away

• Current Affairs

Photography by the author.

“I will leave when I win $500. I’m still $300 short,” Mr Lim tells me as he puts down a $50 chip on the banker to win this round of baccarat.

The cards are dealt, and unfortunately for the player in his 60s, the value of the player’s cards is higher than the banker’s. The $50 chip is swiftly swept into the dealer’s chip tray.

“So now you are $350 short,” I tell Mr Lim, having observed the game standing behind him.

He shrugs.

“It’s like that. That’s why you have to keep playing then you can win.” In the next 15 minutes, he recoups $25.

I leave the table shortly after without knowing if Mr Lim would go on to meet his personal targets for the day. I wonder if he will stay overnight if the bad streak continues.

We are at the casino onboard the Aegean Paradise, a cruise ship that is stationed in international waters off Batam. It is obvious that I stand out among the passengers.

The casino deck is a sea of grey and silver, with about two-thirds of the people here aged 55 and above, including a number of married couples.

Elderly women are typically dressed in blouses with floral prints and carry small sling bags which presumably contain their cash; the men in polo T-shirts, trousers and sandals.

I count only two other gamblers who look my age.

In the embarkation queue, an old man asks if I’m new on the ship as he hasn’t seen me before.

The floating casino, with over 50 tables offering games such as baccarat, blackjack, roulette and sic-bo, is a popular destination for many Singaporean retirees and elderly.

Because of the off-putting $100 entrance levy fee at the casinos at the two integrated resorts (IRs), many are driven to gamble here instead. Paying the fee is already incurring a loss before even stepping foot inside.

A round-trip by ferry to the ship, with meals and drinks provided for, costs $45. Senior citizens even enjoy special concession rates of just $25 on the evening ferry.

Clearly the appeal of Aegean Paradise is geared towards elderly gamblers like Mr Lim looking for a day’s fun and hoping to strike riches.

Most are regulars who have been frequenting the ship’s predecessor, MV Leisure World, which had operated off Singapore since 2000 and was the only one of three casino ships to remain afloat after the opening of the IRs.

Yet many of these gamblers do not think they are addicts.

Most whom I spoke to made the one-hour ferry trip because they want to escape their monotonous lives on the mainland but do not want to take a long coach ride to Genting or Kuala Lumpur.

Gambling here is simply part of the short getaway – if they manage to win some money, then all the better.

They also shrug off my concerns about throwing their savings away in a day.

“Our lives are so short. We also cannot spend all the money if we keep it at home, might as well come here and try our luck and have some fun,” says Madam Chen, a 68-year-old retiree.

Casino Cruise Singapore

According to a 2014 survey done by the National Council on Problem Gambling, the percentage of probable pathological gamblers aged 50 and above had fallen from two per cent in 2011 to 0.5 per cent that year.

Despite the perceived decrease in elderly problem gamblers, the risk is still high in an ageing population. Furthermore, this group of gamblers isless likely to seek help for their addiction because of a lack of awareness of assistance available, or they might be ashamed to do so, says Mythily Subramaniam of the Institute of Mental Health.

The casino is already packed and bustling with activity when I arrive at five minutes past 11 in the morning. The baccarat and roulette tables are mostly crowded with old folks – perhaps because betting is simple and straightforward, unlike the more complicated games of chance such as poker and blackjack.

A minimum bet at the roulette table is $2, which easily draws in the punters.

Chips of different colours and varying stacks are placed on the number board in a flurry, either on a single number or between numbers. Once in a while, players look at the display of previous winning numbers and pause – as though there were a pattern to be discerned – before making another bet.

It is a scene that resembles the start of a game of Risk, when players place their troops all over the game board. In this case, while these gamblers think they are positioning their chips strategically, in reality it is all an elaborate display of hopefulness.

The odds, no matter how hard they try, are never in their favour.

I ask an old lady beside me why she had bet on no less than 15 numbers and combinations.

“Of course must bet a lot lah! How to win big if you only bet on one number or colour?” she replies nonchalantly, as though I had asked a stupid question.

“No more bets!” the croupier calls after spinning the ball in the wheel. There is a momentary silence, as the gamblers pray that the winning number will be theirs.

After multiple bounces, the ball rests on 35, black. There are a few groans and cusses as the croupier sweeps away all the lost bets. I hazard an estimate of almost $500 wiped out in an instant.

The old lady cheers and turns to me, “See?” She was one of two players who won that round, never mind that she had lost her other 14 bets, some of them considerably larger than this winning one.

All that mattered was that she had won some chips from the croupier.

Over at the jackpot room, the atmosphere is much more subdued.

Old folks sit with their eyes glued to the vibrant displays with four fingers robotically tapping on the spin button, like part of a production line in a dystopian world.

They pay no heed to their dwindling cash deposits. The credits may run out, but luck doesn’t, and they instinctively insert another $50 note into the machine when they hit the limit.

No one speaks, and the only sound here is the music from the 50-odd machines that lulls players into a dreamlike sense of hope. Periodically, a public service announcement trumpets the success of a passenger who just won $32,000 from the jackpot machine, encouraging others to keep trying their luck.

Most passengers take the last ferry out at 8.30pm in order to maximise their time at the casino. The last group of passengers arrive at 10pm.

Surprisingly, however, not all of them are here to gamble.

“I’m just here to accompany my friends,” says Mr Ng, a part-time taxi driver in his 60s.

When I ask him why he is not at the gaming tables, he says he quit gambling after a scarring experience when he lost $10,000 in Genting many years ago.

“Gambling is bad,” he reiterates and shows me his HomeTeamNS Passion Card. “Sometimes I go to the HomeTeamNS club at Balestier and I see people my age and older spending the day in front of the jackpot machine. It’s very sad, and some more with the card they get free entry.”

What brings him to a gambling ship then?

Surprise, surprise, he has nothing to do at home and just wants to relax, though he doesn’t explain why he has chosen such a late time to come.

It is also an odd choice of place to unwind, considering that there’s not much else to do on this ship, save for a karaoke room. Maybe he just loves the sea and the smell of cigarette smoke.

At 1am, I find myself watching a game of pontoon, a variation of blackjack.

Leisure World Casino Cruise Singapore

A woman who looks to be in her 60s is bleeding chips, but she is not giving up.

Her betting pattern remains consistently one-dimensional: a $20 bet on her cards and an additional $5 on getting a pair which would pay 10 to one. I’m confused by how she thinks she can even recoup her losses at this rate.

Her chips continue to be swiped away by the dealer, and I’m almost certain she would be forced to leave the table.

She rubs her tired eyes, and struggles to put her chips properly on the betting table. At times, she even reads the number on her cards wrongly.

As luck would have it, she is dealt a king pair and thus, another lifeline. She keeps going, but only barely. Within an hour, she loses another $200, and still there is no variation to her play.

Each time she exceeds 21, she points at the guilty card and curses, as though its existence were a crime.

I soon realise that she’s simply betting on the probability of striking a bountiful winning streak, not the odds of beating the dealer, and it’s painful to watch her cling on to false hope.

A waiter comes to her side and clears her ash tray. She passes him a $20 chip, one of her last few, which he graciously accepts. A little deed of generosity to be repaid with good fortune, perhaps?

Unfortunately, there is no such promise.

At 6.15am, I board the first shuttle ferry back to the island and am joined by the old lady from the pontoon table, who now looks dishevelled in clothes that are at least two-days-old. She drops into a row of seats and immediately dozes off.

There are plenty of gamblers still aboard the Aegean Paradise as we depart for Singapore. Home may be a dull and lonely place to these elderly, but on the third deck of the cruise liner, it is a decaying paradise that promises fortunes.

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