You still have to pay the $200 or so in taxes/port fees, but its still a good deal. Sometimes the offers are just for $100 off, so I usually ignore those until I get one a free interior/ocean view stateroom. Having said all of that, I've sat down with $200-300 once or twice each day, and then received an offer in the month or two following. They really just look at how much you buy in with each time you sit down (whether you win or lose), so you'd do better for yourself to sit down and play for an hour or so, and then go to a show/dinner/pool and then come back and buy back in a few times a day. Additionally, it doesn't really matter how much time you spend sitting at a table.
Unfortunately, table gaming doesn't gain you status near as fast as playing machines.
