Christmas bonuses are a comin'

There is Christmas cake for sale in my supermarket... It's a matter of time until the selection boxes start appearing…There's no hiding from it, there really isn't long until Christmas. You can bet your bottom dollar that the casinos are sitting round tables right now discussing bonuses for the festive period. Some go to town, others incrementally raise their standard offering and others close their eyes and hope it goes away.

I mention all this for two reasons. One, Christmas is normally a great opportunity to get bigger and betters bonuses and to line player pockets. Secondly, the bonuses normally mean extra deposits at a time where holidays are being paid for, travel costs are being run up and, of course, gifts are being purchased.

For that reason the festive season, more than any other, should see you stick to your budgets and follow the tenets of responsible gambling, which are:

• Don't expect gambling to make you the money you need now or for Christmas.
• Always spend what you can afford to lose
• Set budgets and limits
• Don't gamble more to get back what is already lost
• Don't gamble when you're depressed or angry.

If you follow the above then you can enjoy the holiday vibe put out by the casinos and the extra dosh they put into your account, without fearing the consequences. But which bonuses to look out for, you ask. Well, the best way is to see what's been offered in the past.

A few casino operators have injected extra spice by offering an advent calendar style bonus program throughout December. Where a 25% bonus is offered here, free spins there – it all adds up to an engaging experience. My particular favourite were the free slot tournaments or free entry into some of the bigger ones with limited players, so keep an eye out for those.

Supersized deposit bonuses: yup, it's going to happen. Many of the casinos are going to offer existing players a hefty sum in bonus money for those that deposit over the Christmas period. Look for 100% matches up to £100 or even £250 but always check the terms and conditions. I also recommend that you deposit large sums only into casinos that have paid out to you in the past, are big brands or come highly recommended.

You can be sure that some operators are going to be using loyalty points as the basis for rewarding all manner of gifts. Taking the form of bonus chips and actual physical gifts, don't be surprised to see some casinos handing out iPods, cameras, free chips, laptops or even trips to exotic locales. In some cases, the bigger outfits will look to handout things money can't buy, like VIP seats to football matches.

All in all, if you play sensibly I'm positive there will be a lot to cheer about this Christmas as an online casino player. I've already heard that Jackpot Games casino will be offering an extra-large Christmas welcome bonus offer to selected affiliates this year!