Cruise Passenger Fights Royal Caribbean Ban Over Card Counting Claim

An Australian cruise passenger accused of counting cards has won the right to continue a legal challenge against Royal Caribbean. Mark Timothy Grant previously had five complimentary cruises cancelled and was placed on a no-sail list for alleged violations of casino rules, including card counting.

Grant says the free sailings resulted from gambling through Royal Caribbean’s casino program. Cruise Hive has previously reported on the complimentary cruises offered as rewards through the program, which can be redeemed for future sailings.

While Grant did not specify the exact ships he was sailing on at the time, at least one of the rewards was earned during a Royal Caribbean cruise on February 7, 2024. It’s also unclear how many sailings Grant earned the rewards on.

Using one of these free cruise rewards, Grant had booked a January 17, 2025 South Pacific sailing aboard the 4,180-guest Quantum of the Seas from Brisbane with his partner and son. However, three days before boarding, Grant received a call from Royal Caribbean informing him that all five of his bookings had been cancelled.

Despite this call, Grant arrived at the terminal on January 17, but was refused boarding, with no explanation given. Royal Caribbean later told the tribunal that the cruise line’s global security team had placed him on a no-sail list, following a review of his play activity.

Royal Caribbean says the decision is a result of Grant of violating its casino rules, with the cruise line identifying card counting as part of the dispute. While Royal Caribbean’s casino etiquette guide does not specifically call out counting cards, it does clearly prohibit “advantage play”.

Tribunal Says Case Can Continue

Initially, Grant disputed Royal Caribbean’s actions with the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT), seeking AU$22,040.83 in compensation for the five cancelled cruises. This initial claim was dismissed on November 3, 2025 because the tribunal determined it lacked jurisdiction.

Grant later appealed this decision. The appeal was granted on September 14, 2026, with Senior Member Samantha Traves remitting the matter for reconsideration.

“The services (being the free cruise) was supplied as a reward for gambling onboard,” Senior Member Traves wrote in the decision. “RCC is a trader, being a person who in trade or commerce ‘carries on a business of supplying goods or providing services’.”

“The contract did not need to be for the payment of money to the applicant; it needed to give rise to a claim for the payment of money,” the decision further clarified.

The ruling does not determine whether Grant counted cards, whether Royal Caribbean was entitled to ban him, or whether he is owed the AU$22,040.83. Grant’s dispute will now return to QCAT, where the underlying question of whether any compensation is owed remains unresolved. 

Grant Has Challenged Casino Ban Before

This Royal Caribbean incident is not the first time Grant has challenged allegations of advantage play from casinos. He and another player, Nathan Trent Anderson, previously faced exclusions from two Star Entertainment casinos in 2018, The Star Gold Coast and Treasury Brisbane. 

Star Entertainment’s allegations against Grant explicitly included card counting as well as behavior akin to “edge sorting.” This is an advantage play technique where a player attempts to determine the likely value of a card by observing subtle differences in their back patterns.

That case was likewise taken to QCAT, where Grant acknowledged noticing asymmetrical cards, but denied engaging in edge sorting. The tribunal ultimately concluded there were no reasonable grounds for the exclusions and set them aside.

The previous case involved a different casino operator, different allegations and a different legal question, and has no bearing on whether Royal Caribbean’s current ban was justified. The cruise line’s allegations against Grant will instead be considered as part of the ongoing dispute now returning to QCAT.