If social media is any indication, Carnival passengers are not happy at all with a new loyalty scheme that the cruise line just announced. Now, at least some of the passengers that have been the most loyal to the cruise line are threatening to take their business elsewhere.
Here’s what to know…
Carnival’s Current “VIFP” Program Being Overhauled
Since 2012, Carnival’s VIFP (Very Important Fun Person) program has been one of the standards in cruise line loyalty.
The concept was simple. For every night you sail on a cruise, you earned a point. So a week-long cruise earned a passenger seven points. And as you sailed more and earned more points, your status would also rise, going from blue for your first sailing to red, gold, platinum and then diamond.
Carnival passengers are known to be some of the most loyal, and achieving higher status — and the perks that come with it — is a goal of many of them. High status such as platinum or diamond (awarded after 200 points) has traditionally shown that you’ve spent years or decades sailing the cruise line.
Meanwhile, the points never expired, and a passenger’s status never fell. The cruise you took 20 years ago counted toward higher status just like one that you took last month.
But now Carnival is drastically overhauling everything about its loyalty program, starting at the name and going all the way down to having your status decline if you don’t spend enough over a set period of time.
The (Complicated) Basics of the New Loyalty Plan
Starting in June 2026 — one year from now — Carnival’s VIFP program is going to be retired. Taking its place is an all new program called Carnival Rewards.
Touted as “a faster way to earn status and benefits,” the new Carnival Rewards gives you status not based on how many nights you sail, but instead how much money you spend.
First, all current Carnival VIFP members will maintain their current status with the new Carnival Rewards program when it’s introduced next year. However, that status will only last for two years for most people. Diamond-level passengers will keep their status for six years at the start of the new deal.
Starting in June 2026, passengers will then have two years to earn “status qualifying stars” that go toward keeping their loyalty level. These are earned at a pace of three stars for every dollar spent on Carnival purchases. So if you spend $2,500 on cruise fare for a vacation, you earn 7,500 stars. Buy a shore excursion for $100? That’s an additional 300 stars. Spend $10 on a cocktail? That’s 30 stars.
Those earning at least 10,000 stars during the two-year period (June 1, 2026 – May 31, 2028) will earn gold status. Passengers earning 50,000 stars see platinum level. And those earning at least 100,000 stars earn diamond level status. Status is good from whenever earned through the next two-year earning window. But if you don’t keep up spending, then your status will reset.
Here’s an explainer video from Carnival:
At the same time, while earning these “stars” toward status, you also earn “points” at the same pace. So for every dollar you spend, you’re earning three stars and three points.
With these points, you can use what you’ve earned to pay for purchases with Carnival.
If it sounds a bit confusing, don’t worry, you’re definitely not alone. It’s a much more complicated plan than what passengers had been used to using. And all the details don’t seem to be explained in full detail just yet.
What you should know is that essentially all passengers will have to continue spending with Carnival to keep their loyalty status over the longer term. Meanwhile, the number of nights sailed by itself will mean little for continued loyalty.
Why Carnival Had to Make a Move to Change its Loyalty Program
So why change anything at all? Carnival explains that the old system of counting every cruise day toward loyalty status was causing issues with the sheer number of people with high status growing each year.
“In just the last three years, we have doubled the number of Platinum guests and quadrupled the number of Diamond guests,” the new program’s FAQs explains. “While we love that we have such a loyal customer base and that they are cruising more often, our ships and our team cannot offer special recognition when so many people on board are categorized as top tier guests.”
“On a typical ship, anywhere from a quarter to a third of our guests are Platinum and Diamond. As the adage goes, when everyone is special, no one feels special.”
Social Media Response Is Universally Negative
While Carnival is trying to explain the reasoning behind the new program, many people are upset with what they’ve seen so far. Two posts about the new program on Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald’s Facebook page elicited roughly 4,000 reactions and more than 8,000 comments.
The vast majority are from passengers that are not happy.
“I could have easily accepted these changes had Carnival grandfathered in existing loyalty statuses. That I am being pressured into spending far more, every two years, in order to keep it, is the final straw for me,” wrote one commenter.
“Y’all just made Royal’s [Royal Caribbean’s] day. I’m sure they’re seeing an increase in site traffic this morning,” wrote another.
“Based on these comments…..I’d imagine there might be some “revisions” made to this announcement in the future lol. Unless they actually don’t care about loyalty,” one person said.
“Guess we are looking at other lines and I’m diamond…..my kids are almost platinum or just turned it and now you expect them to spent 17k in 2 years to keep it……Carnival has no loyalty to their sailors anymore and it’s sad 😕,” fumed another.
We scrolled through dozens of comments, and they all universally pan the new program.
Many make mention about taking their business to other cruise lines. Others ask good points about how points are shared between passengers. For instance, when a couple sails, do they both get the total points from the cost of the trip or are they shared across the two accounts?
There is definitely more explanation needed for the ins and outs of the new Carnival Rewards. It’s a complicated plan with tons of moving parts that simply weren’t there with the VIFP program.
One thing that is clear? At least right now, Carnival fans don’t like what they hear.
