Do you remember playing B-I-N-G-O when you were a little kid? It was always one of my favorites games, though I was rarely lucky enough to win. As I got older, I never thought too much more about it, and always associated it with women’s clubs who would get together on the weekends for a potluck and play round after round with those big stampers.
Then, I started cruising.
The game is widely popular on cruise ships. On a whim, during one of our vacations, my husband and I decided to play 3 cards for $20 — we were hooked! Though we didn’t win any prizes, it was a fun activity to fill some time. I like how I could spent a controlled amount of money for a couple rounds of play, rather than wasting a bunch in the casino. The thrill was still there, but I didn’t feel it was as much of a risk. It’s also a great time for people watching — players really get into their game! You’ll see everything from the normal player (like us, playing 1-2 cards; punching out the numbers) to the die hard fans playing 6 cards a round, complete with a belt buckle full of multi-colored stampers. I’m sure they come on the cruise just to play, and probably play online at one of the many bingo sites. It’s a hoot to watch though!
While we still haven’t won anything big, we will continue to play for the fun of it. We don’t take ourselves too seriously and usually get a couple of cocktails before playing a few rounds. I’m confident one of these days I will come up a winner and be able to get up and shout B-I-N-G-O!
