It’s been a wild 24 hours for Carnival Cruise Line’s social media department. On June 18, 2025, the cruise line finally announced updates to their loyalty program after years of hinting at a need for change. While cruisers were expecting a “massive dollop” of change, per Carnival Brand ambassador John Heald, it’s clear that few were expecting what we actually got. Instead of updating the Very Important Fun Person (VIFP) loyalty program, Carnival announced it would discontinue it altogether. In its place, the brand announced the new Carnival Rewards. We’ve scoured all of the documents, read (and re-read the FAQs) and have followed social media for the past 24 hours to provide you everything you need to know about this change.
Carnival’s VIFP Loyalty Program
We cover Carnival’s current VIFP loyalty program in a separate post, so we won’t re-hash those details here. However, the most important thing to note about the current program is that status is earned over the course of a lifetime cruising with the brand. Those who continue to sail and demonstrate loyalty earn status.
The biggest challenge with the current program is that, unlike Royal Caribbean or Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival’s highest tier is 200 sailing days. The other two cruise lines? Cruisers need 700 points to reach the top tier! As a result, Carnival has seen significant growth and congestion in their Platinum and Diamond tiers, causing an inability to provide the benefits they promise for their most loyal cruisers.
In fact, the cruise line shared that guests in the Diamond level have quadrupled over the last several years. Something needed to be done.
What Cruisers Expected: VIFP Changes
Cruisers have been speculating for years about what changes Carnival would make to their popular VIFP Loyalty Program. Most speculated things like Double Diamond or adding a level between Gold and Platinum to help cruisers have something to work toward.
As someone with nearly 450 days sailing with Carnival, I was personally hoping for Double and Triple Diamond. Or maybe some sort of gemstone I’ve yet to even hear of! Something that would give loyal cruisers something to continue to work toward.
Of course, that would mean Carnival would have to spread out the current perks offered to loyal cruisers. Removing popular guest favorites like Priority Boarding from Platinum cruisers would likely create upset, but it was needed to manage expectations and deliver the perk. Carnival knew that they were in a “no win” situation.
For those cruisers like me that were Double Diamond, Triple Diamond, etc. – we suggested perks that wouldn’t cost the cruise line additional margin. For example, offer your Double Diamond a choice between Wifi or curated shore excursion on each sailing. Your Triple Diamond? Give them both. That gemstone we’ve never even heard about? Give them it all and add in some free drinks every day. These are all things the cruise line already offers and would have a minimal impact on margin, but would be seen as big rewards.
But that’s not what Carnival did at…
What Cruisers Got: Carnival Rewards
Instead of making changes to the existing VIFP Loyalty Program, Carnival announced that they would sunset it altogether. Instead, they would go in a new direction: Carnival Rewards. The new program still has an earning component and a perks component. However, it adds a brand-new points component. The points are a new form of currency that allow you to pay for things like onboard experiences or even the cruise fare itself.
We break down each of the components below:
Carnival Rewards Earning
The new loyalty program still has similar perks that exist today, however, earning looks completely different. Instead of days sailed, Carnival Rewards focuses solely on dollars spent with the cruise line. For every dollar cruisers spend on cruise fare, pre-cruise purchases, onboard purchases, gratuities, vacation protection, and Carnival transfers, they receive 3 Stars toward their loyalty status. Additionally, you earn 1 Star for every point you earn in the casino – making the program especially beneficial for high rollers.
While a new way to measure isn’t so bad, the biggest issue cruisers have with the new approach is that you must re-earn your loyalty level every 2 years. And those who have already demonstrated loyalty to the brand in the VIFP Loyalty Program? They will have to do the same. Current loyalty levels will be honored for 2 years after program launch (May 31, 2028), with the exception of Diamond. That status will be honored for six years (May 31, 2032). But once the grandfathered period expires, ALL cruisers will need to re-earn their status with Carnival. This is HUGE and something we’ve talked about in our Carnival Rewards Launch video.
But let’s put a pin in the re-earning controversy for a moment and let’s look at two scenarios to better explain earning.
Scenario #1:
Let’s say your cruise fare is $2,450 for a balcony stateroom on your 7-day sailing. You pre-book Wifi and an excursion for $170 and $150, respectively. On board, you spend another $200 in the shops. And you pay your gratuities at the end of the cruise. Overall, you’ve spent roughly $3,100. In Carnival Rewards, that equates to 9,300 Stars.
Scenario #2:
In this scenario, you decide to spoil yourself and book a suite for $4,800. But you don’t need Wifi and you do your own thing on shore. You decide to splurge and buy that tennis bracelet you’ve had your eye on and drop $4,000 at Effy. And of course, you pay your gratuities. You’re also a gambler and earn 3,000 points on your sailing. Based on 3 Stars per dollar spent and 1 Star per casino point, you earn nearly 30,000 Stars on your sailing.
As you can see, the more you spend, the more Stars you earn toward your loyalty. Said simply: Carnival Rewards defines loyalty based on how much you can afford, not how loyal you actually are to the brand.
Carnival Rewards Loyalty Levels
Now that you understand Stars and how you earn them, we’re going to look at each of the tiers you can reach in the new Carnival Rewards. Unlike the current VIFP Loyalty Program, Carnival Rewards simplifies the number of of tiers by eliminating the Blue level. Cruisers now start right at Red.
Red Tier
Anyone that has sailed Carnival in the past will note the elimination of the classic “Blue Card” from the lineup. Carnival Rewards entry tier is the Red level. Everyone becomes Red once signing up. There are no Stars associated with this tier.
Gold Tier
The next level in the program is the Gold Tier. To earn Gold, you’ll need at least 10,000 stars. Said differently, you’ll need to spend at least $3,333 with Carnival to reach this level. Our cruiser in Scenario 1 above didn’t reach Gold, however, our cruiser in Scenario 2 tripled the number of Stars needed for this level and is well on their way to Platinum.
Platinum
To reach Platinum, cruisers will need to spend quite a bit more to earn 50,000 Stars. That equates to a spend of $16,667 – quite a jump from Gold spend requirements. Neither cruiser in our scenarios above reached this level, however, the cruiser in Scenario 2 will likely get here on just their second sailing if they keep up their spend and casino play.
Diamond
Like the current VIFP Loyalty Program, Diamond is still the top tier of Carnival Rewards. To get here, you’ll need to DOUBLE what you earned at the Platinum level and earn 100,000 Stars. For those doing the math, that’s $33,334 you’ll need to spend with Carnival Cruise Line.
Carnival Rewards Perks
Carnival Rewards Perks are very similar to what cruisers see today in the VIFP Loyalty Program. Below is a breakdown of the perks provided for each level courtesy Carnival Cruise Line.
While you’ll find your free bottle of water at the lower levels, and priority everything at the higher levels, there are several notable changes.
- Carnival announced the elimination of the Diamond and Platinum VIFP Reunion Party. Instead, the cruise line will offer a second free drink for Diamond and Platinum members. In our opinion, this is a big downgrade and a bit of slap in the face to loyal cruisers. The VIFP Reunion Party was a highlight that many cruisers looked forward to and never missed on their cruise.
- Free Laundry changes for Diamond and Platinum. Instead of unlimited and 3 bags that exist today for each level respectively, the new program will now award cruisers a set number of bags based on the length of sailing. Truthfully, most cruisers didn’t need “unlimited laundry,” on a 7-day sailing, so this change is negligible.
- Carnival is eliminating VIFP gifts like hats, backpacks, the tote bags. Instead, their FAQ about the new program states that there will be plenty of Carnival Logo merchandise that cruisers can purchase in the gift shop… Most loyal cruisers don’t need 15 VIFP baseball caps, so we get this change, but telling loyal cruisers to go purchase logoed merch in the gift shop is definitely not how I would have answered that FAQ!
- Elimination of Diamond Perks. Carnival Rewards axes several Diamond perks, including free luggage tag set upon reaching Diamond, free specialty dining meal, and free one-time upgrade.
There are a couple other perks that are sunset in the new program, but those are the big ones.
Carnival Rewards Points
Another component to the program are Carnival Rewards Points. We’re going to publish an entire article on this component of the program as talking about both Stars and Points at the same time gets confusing. If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for our This Cruise Life Newsletter so you know when that gets posted.
Carnival Reward Controversy
While the elimination of some perks has created disappointment amongst loyal Carnival cruisers, it’s the requirement to re-earn status that has created controversy. Thousands of loyal Carnival cruisers have taken to social media to express their disappointment. Many threaten to take their business elsewhere if Carnival doesn’t make changes.
While Carnival has seen demand in record numbers they’ve never seen before, the reality is, so have other cruise lines. And several of those lines have perks programs that far exceed Carnival’s (in our opinion). Plus, multiple cruise lines offer status matching. Check out information on Virgin Voyages and MSC Cruises status match via the following links:
The controversy has gotten so loud that Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald took to social media the morning after the announcement to share that implementation of the new program is still a year out. He shared that there’s still time for changes, however, he was clear that he’s not promising anything.
Final Thoughts
If we would have seen the headline, “Carnival discontinues popular VIFP Loyalty Program” prior to Carnival’s announcement, we wouldn’t have believed it.
The question we have: Will Carnival cruisers actually jump ship for another brand? And will Carnival Cruise Line even care? They regularly tout that they are the number one cruise line for first-time cruisers. Perhaps there is data (or maybe just a hunch) that they have enough cruisers to fill the pipeline and don’t have to worry about people abandoning them.
Some execs may think, “Well hey, Southwest just eliminated Free Bags and people are still flying with them!” But in our opinion, that’s much, much different. When you are flying somewhere, it’s because you have somewhere you need to be. As a result, travelers will choose the price point or schedule that works best for them during the timeframe they require.
Cruising, on the other hand, is not essential. I’m not cruising because there’s somewhere I need to get to. I have much more flexibility on when and where I cruise (versus an airline getting me from point a to point b). Unlike Southwest Airlines, if I don’t like how you’re treating me, I can just find a different vacation to take altogether. It doesn’t even have to be a cruise (but why wouldn’t you??!).
Time will tell if Carnival Cruise Line makes changes to the newly announced Carnival Rewards.
VIPF GOING AWAY. IT DIDN’T HAVE MUCH BUT I ENJOYED IT. SO MIGHT AS WELL GO TO OTHER LINES
It’s so true. While Carnival has continued to make cutbacks over the past several years, we’ve remained loyal. While we’ve been honest about our thoughts on the declines in service, food quality, and overall experience, we’ve still defended the brand for what it does provide at a reasonable price point, but even that is no longer true. We get a much better value sailing with Norwegian than we do on Carnival, and the perks are better. While Carnival will always have the FUN ships, we’ve learned that cruisers can find fun wherever it is they choose to sail. If you need any help determining what’s the right next line to try, don’t hesitate to reach out! -Mark
This November will be my last cruise on CARNIVAL!
So this is the way you treat your loyal customers! I’m very disappointed and DISGUSTED
JOHN BAD CALL
Like you, we will continue with the Carnival cruises we have on the books, however, don’t have any plans to book additional ones with the exception of special occasions (new ship launches, etc.). Both service and quality have declined over the past several years and this change – in my opinion – is a slap in the face of those cruisers that helped build the brand to what it is today. A sad day for us when these changes were announced. -Mark
The MSC Cruises status match link is incorrect. It’s just a summary of the MSC voyager program.
Thank you for pointing that out! I’ll work on getting that updated with a page that brings you to all of the details of the MSC Status Match Program. Appreciate you letting me know. -Mark
I feel like vomiting with Carnival recently changing of the VIFP program! I wasted 20+ years! NOW BETRAY, And now when I give them gratuities, (I am rewarded)???
I’m supposed to pay for substandard service in the casino they won’t even give you the plastic $.25 lanyard to hold your card. They don’t give you any money in there anymore. So many things. Very disheartened! And now, I will try other cruise lines and Carnival competitors!
Like you, we’re very disappointed with the changes that Carnival Cruise Line is making to their VIFP Loyalty Program. As someone headed toward TRIPLE DIAMOND with the cruise line, I’m brokenhearted. We’ve shown Carnival a lot of love over the years, and for them to walk away from that loyalty unless we spend $$$ every 2 years (on their schedule, mind you), it’s a bit of a slap in the face. I’m sorry that you – and so many of us – have had to go through this. But, the silver lining is, there are many other options out there. In fact, we’ve found a couple of lines that we much prefer over Carnival. Perhaps you will, too! -Mark