Carnival Rewards launched last week with a massive thud. The elimination of the VIFP Loyalty Program and expiring loyalty status had loyal Diamond and Platinum cruisers up in arms. Many have threatened to, or have outright canceled Carnival cruises. Some are calling for the resignation of Carnival President Christine Duffy and Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald.
But what cruisers missed in their anger was a massive part of the program called Carnival Rewards Points. Rewards Points are a new form of currency announced as part of Carnival Rewards. Unlike Stars that count toward status, Carnival Rewards Points can be redeemed for a dinner at Cucina Del Capitano, free internet on your cruise, or even applied to your cruise fare as payment.
Unfortunately for Carnival, they decided to roll out Loyalty Stars, Rewards Points, the sunset of VIFP, the expiration of status, updates to the new Carnival Rewards Mastercard, conversion of FunPoints, elimination of fan-favorite loyalty perks, and more all at the same time!
Carnival Rewards Points
It’s no wonder cruisers are confused. Some have incorrectly linked Carnival Rewards Points to loyalty levels. When you look at how the program is designed, it’s easy to see why. You earn 3 Loyalty Stars per dollar spent to achieve Red, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond status levels. Similarly, you earn 3 Carnival Rewards Points per dollar spent, too. But remember, Rewards Points are a form of currency. They are redeemed on various Carnival purchases.
To make things more complicated, you also get one Carnival Rewards Point per casino point. Oh, and one Loyalty Star per casino point as well. And the Carnival Rewards Mastercard earns Points as well. Eventually, Carnival promises that the Mastercard will also help you earn loyalty (which means Loyalty Stars).
Got it yet? Honestly, it took us several days to process it all. Reading through every FAQ two or three times, reverse-engineering Carnival’s new Loyalty Stars Calculator, reverse-engineering the Carnival Rewards Calculator, and becoming an expert in the Carnival Rewards Mastercard… It was a lot.
How to Earn and Redeem Carnival Rewards Points Tutorial
To help cruisers better understand Carnival Rewards Points Earning and Redemption, we’ve put together a short video on How To Earn and Redeem Carnival Rewards Points. We include a couple fictitious cruisers – Rark and Mocky – and show how they earn and redeem points through Carnival Rewards. We also highlight the difference between Carnival Rewards Points and their cousin, Loyalty Stars.
We hope How To Earn and Redeem Carnival Rewards Points helps YOU better understand the Carnival Rewards Points component of Carnival Cruise Line’s new VIFP Loyalty Program replacement. If you have ANY questions about earning or redeeming Carnival Rewards Points, be sure to let us know in the comments below.
And if you’re still confused about the Loyalty side of the program, we’ve created an easy-to-understand video about the loyalty component of Carnival Rewards.
Do you think Carnival Rewards Points were overshadowed with the announcement? Do they ease the burden of expiring VIFP status? Sound off and let us know!