Carnival Announces New Loyalty Program

Carnival Cruise Line has announced that its VIFP (Very Important Fun Person) Loyalty Program will be sunset in 2026 and be replaced by “Carnival Rewards.” Here is the full letter that was sent to customers and travel advisors:

Whether it’s their first or 50th cruise, Carnival is committed to making sure every guest has a memorable vacation and that we demonstrate our appreciation for sailing with us. We know, however, that some guests cruise with us more than others and some guests spend more than others — and that there is often an expectation of a certain level of recognition and benefits that reflects their patronage.

With your help, our company has grown in many ways: the number of ships in our fleet, the size of our ships, the number of homeports and the number of guests who sail with us each year. As we think about how we can better reward our guests for their business, we have concluded that a change to our VIFP Club guest recognition program is the best step forward. It was designed in a simpler time when status was based on the number of days spent on our ships. In a smaller, growing company with a modest customer base, that kind of program works. But as The World’s Most Popular Cruise Line, the current program does not allow us to deliver the recognition to guests based only on sailing frequency.

As currently configured, status levels have never been adjusted, therefore reaching status is a permanent, lifetime achievement and every week more guests are moving into our top tier Platinum and Diamond statuses. For example:

From 2021 to 2024, we have more than doubled the number of Platinum guests and more than tripled the number of Diamond guests in the VIFP program.

On our Excel class ships, on average, more than 1200 guests are Platinum or Diamond, making it nearly impossible to provide meaningful priority benefits, and we face the same situation on virtually all other ship classes and itineraries.

When so many guests have elite status, it is much more difficult to make everyone feel special. These realities will only continue to erode the recognition and rewards of the current VIFP Club program, and we feel that change is necessary in order to better recognize our guests and give them more choice in how they are rewarded.

As a result, in June 2026 we will be updating our VIFP Club program to Carnival Rewards. Making this announcement in June 2025 gives our guests plenty of time to learn more about the changes and continue to earn status in the VIFP Club program ahead of the cutover. Our announcement also includes a transition plan so that your earned status will carry over for a set multi-year period in the Carnival Rewards program (as outlined below).

Carnival Rewards will see the introduction of a new points-based system that can be earned through cruise fares and onboard spending. More importantly, the points provide many ways to spend on Carnival cruises and onboard activities — providing guests the chance to personalize their rewards when and how they want. Spend activity on cruise fares, onboard activity and other activities will also earn new status qualifiers (stars) that can be accumulated to earn status.

The new program will be closely tied to everyday spending on the co-branded credit card with Barclays — the Carnival Rewards Mastercard — giving cardmembers the opportunity to earn points and status even faster. More details on the credit card offering will be announced later. In addition, upon launch of the Carnival Rewards program, current cardmembers, as well as any new cardmembers between now and the launch of the updates, will have the balance of their Fun Points converted to Carnival Rewards points in their Carnival Rewards account.

These enhancements will allow each guest to customize their rewards and allow us to address the need for changes to the program. It will also result in other offerings being adjusted, such as VIFP Club logo gifts being phased out with the VIFP program’s sunset. However, the ability to quickly accumulate points through cruise spending and our co-branded credit card will allow guests to redeem their points for purchases including their cruise fare or spend points for purchases while cruising, including our retail shops, shore excursions, specialty dining and spa services.

As we roll out Carnival Rewards, here are some key things to know:

The existing Red, Gold, Platinum and Diamond levels will remain, but how guests will earn status in the future will be different. Those status level requirements can be reviewed at our dedicated webpage at carnivalrewards.com.

Your status on June 1, 2026, will be based on your status as of May 31, 2026 (for sailings that have returned as of that date).

In conjunction with the Carnival Rewards launch on June 1, 2026, existing status will be honored for a two-year period, starting on June 1, 2026 and ending May 31, 2028 (with the exception of our Diamond guests as outlined below) unless subsequent activity qualifies the guest for a higher status level.

Diamond-level guests will retain their Diamond status for a 6-year period ending May 31, 2032.

Guests will earn points from their purchase of a cruise along with spending onboard and beginning on June 1, 2026, purchases made with the Carnival Rewards Mastercard.

As long as there is activity within a three-year period, points will not expire, so guests can also choose to accumulate their points over time and save them for more valuable rewards.

No matter a guest’s status, we will incorporate ways to recognize their achievement of various milestones including the number of cruise days sailed.

For now, there is no impact to a guest’s VIFP Club status, their account, or how we will deliver our existing onboard experience. Today’s announcement is the start of a conversation about the changes ahead and how you can maximize the opportunities with the Carnival Rewards program. Over the coming weeks and months, we will be sharing more information about Carnival Rewards and we ask that you review all the information and get familiar with the details of the enhancements being made, including at carnivalrewards.com.

We recognize that this is a big change from our current program but these changes provide our guests with more ways to earn and maintain status with more valuable benefits and greater flexibility in how they choose to use their rewards. We have worked hard to develop Carnival Rewards so that our guests have more choices, more rewards and more reasons to vacation with us. We will be communicating more details over the coming weeks and months. We appreciate your business and your loyalty to Carnival Cruise Line.

THE REACTION

Reaction on social media was immediate and mostly negative. The most common criticisms were that after the grandfathered period, currently loyalty levels would be lost. In the posts Premier Custom Travel read, there was also often confusion about exactly how this program would work, what was being taken away, and when it would all go into effect.

To help our customers better understand this new program, here are the FAQs that Carnival has provided:

FAQ

Carnival Cruise Line has announced that it is updating its loyalty program to offer a more valuable and more rewarding experience for its guests. The new era of Carnival loyalty – Carnival Rewards – launches on June 1, 2026.

For the time being, there is no impact to the existing VIFP Club program, guest status, account, or how we will deliver our existing onboard experience.  The preview of the changes is the start of a conversation about how Carnival Rewards will deliver guest benefits and recognition when it formally launches in June 2026.  With that in mind, here’s some information to get our guests and travel advisor partners up to speed.

When do the loyalty program changes go into effect?

Our updated loyalty program, Carnival Rewards, will officially launch on June 1, 2026.

Will the loyalty program continue to be called the VIFP Club?

No, the Carnival guest loyalty program will instead be called Carnival Rewards to reflect the new ways we will recognize and reward our guests.

Do existing VIFP Club members need to do anything?

First, it’s important to stress that there is no immediate impact on our guests or how we deliver on current onboard offerings.  This announcement is the start of a conversation ahead of the new program that will launch on June 1, 2026.

As far as the process to transition to Carnival Rewards, we aim to make the process as seamless as possible for our existing VIFP Club members.  Starting in June 2026, every guest’s existing VIFP member number will be called ‘Carnival Guest Number.’ And to fully participate in Carnival Rewards, we will ask our guests to join by “opting-into” the program by accepting the new program’s terms and conditions, in accordance with applicable law.

We will enable guests to accept the terms in advance of the June 2026 cutover so everyone has ample time to prepare.  We will provide more information about this process at a later time. The main thing we are asking Carnival guests to do right now is stay informed of the Carnival Rewards program so they know about the changes, and they are ready to hit the ground running to earn valuable points they can use for a future Carnival cruise vacation when the program launches.

Will guests retain their existing VIFP Club number?

Yes, starting June 2026, guests’ existing VIFP Club membership number will become your ‘Carnival Guest Number.’  Any exceptions will be clearly communicated to impacted guests.

What’s the concept behind the Carnival Rewards program?

The travel industry starting with airlines and hotels pioneered the popularity of loyalty and rewards programs, and as they have grown and evolved, brands have moved to linking spending, not just frequency, in the calculation of rewards and benefits.  By giving guests the ability to earn points on Carnival cruise purchases and credit card activity, we are creating a system where guests can save for and/or spend in whatever way best suits their travel plans.  Our guests will be able to use their points to pay for cruise fares and onboard experiences in ways they choose and when they want them.

What categories of spend can I earn points on in Carnival Rewards? And what can I redeem those points on?

Guests will be able to earn points on a variety of purchases made through Carnival.  Points can be earned on spend towards cruise fare, gratuities, transfers, Carnival Vacation Protection, pre-cruise and onboard purchases.   Points that have been earned can also be used to pay for purchases on those same categories.  In addition, guests will also earn points based on the number of points they earn in the casino.

What are Status qualifying Stars? What are stars for and how do I earn them?

Guests will be able to also earn Status Qualifying Stars on all the same purchases that qualify to earn Carnival Rewards points.  Stars can be earned on spend towards cruise fare, gratuities, transfers, Carnival Vacation Protection, pre-cruise and onboard purchases as well as on the number of points earned in the casino. Status Qualifying stars as the name suggests are the counter used to track your progress towards status in Carnival Rewards. Status that’s earned in a two- year window would be kept for two more years at the end of the earning period. Stars, unlike points, will be earned over a two-year period and will be reset at the end of the two- year period.

What categories of spend are not eligible to earn points and stars?

The categories of spend that are excluded from earning points include but may not be limited to cruise fare’s taxes and fees when booking a cruise (i.e., the “Required Cruise Fees and Expenses” as well as “Government Taxes and Fees” – both as defined in our cruise contract), air travel purchased through Carnival (Fly2Fun) and certain other fees.  In addition, certain fare types such as charters and packaged rates are excluded from earning points and redemption.

In addition, all forms of payment that are spent on eligible categories will qualify to earn points with some exceptions.  Those exceptions are for purchases using your Carnival Rewards points, Onboard Credits (OBCs) that you may receive as well as Carnival-funded Future Cruise Credits (FCCs) that were not originally funded by guests’ own spend.

What will be the status levels in the Carnival Rewards program?

The status level categories (Red, Gold, Platinum and Diamond) will stay the same with the exception of the current entry-level Blue tier, which will be eliminated.  All Blue tier guests will be rolled into the Red tier status. What will change, however, will be the rewards and recognition benefits for each of these tiers and the way to qualify for them.

From the guest perspective the VIFP Club is easy to understand and seems to be working well.  What’s the rationale for changing from the existing program?

The Carnival VIFP Club was launched in 2012 as an update to the previous Carnival Guest Recognition program, and it indeed proved very popular as guests accumulated sailing days and achieved higher tiered status.  However, the rapid growth of our company, the popularity of cruising, and our growing customer base have combined to erode the recognition and rewards of the current VIFP offering.

Furthermore, the way guests gain status in the VIFP Club is based on sailing days, and the status qualifying levels have not changed since 2012.  So, every month, more and more guests are achieving top tier Platinum and Diamond status, which is a positive as it relates to our guest loyalty, but is a challenge with regard to delivering meaningful rewards and recognition.  In just the last three years, we have doubled the number of Platinum guests and quadrupled the number of Diamond guests.  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.  On our popular Carnival Journeys cruises, for example, we can no longer offer priority boarding and early stateroom access because essentially the entire manifest is populated with top tier guests. As the adage goes, when everyone is special, no one feels special.

While we announced the coming Carnival Rewards changes in June 2025, guests will continue to earn status in the existing VIFP program through May 31, 2026 (for cruises that have been completed by that date), and will carryover and retain their earned status in Carnival Rewards on June 1, 2026, based on the following schedule:

Diamond guests will keep their Diamond status for six years in the updated Carnival Rewards program (until May 31, 2032) and then after that period can retain their Diamond status based on the Carnival Rewards cruise activity, cruise spend and credit card activity (if they choose to have a Carnival Rewards Mastercard by Barclays).

All other guests will keep their status for two years, through May 31, 2028, unless their cruise activity, cruise spend and credit card activity (if they choose to have a Carnival Rewards Mastercard by Barclays) qualifies them for higher status earlier.

In general, as we roll out Carnival Rewards, there will be a fixed two-year window starting June 1, 2026 (next one on June 1, 2028, then June 1, 2030 and so on) for earning status, which will be honored for the next two years (with the exception of the one-time six-year window for Diamond guests).

By eliminating lifetime status for guests, won’t some guests feel like you’re taking away something that they worked hard to attain?

Some very well might, but the program is designed to allow guests to maintain their status if they choose and gives more opportunities to earn status and rewards.  It will, however, be tied to spending activity, consistent with loyalty rewards programs across the travel sector.  We recognize that change can be difficult, but the current program based on cruise frequency makes it difficult to properly recognize our loyal guests.

If I’m a Platinum or Diamond guest who has worked hard to achieve status – and qualify for valuable perks like priority boarding and early stateroom access – how am I supposed to like this change?

We’re honoring Diamond status for six years, until 2032, and all other guests including Platinum guests will have their existing status honored for two years, giving ample time to maintain Platinum status or move to Diamond for those who wish to do so.   In addition, in Carnival Rewards, Diamond and Platinum guests will continue to enjoy some of their most valued benefits including priority embark and debark when available.   Not all cruises offer priority boarding, especially on itineraries heavily booked with top-tier guests, like Carnival Journeys cruises.  And in the future, as guests earn points in Carnival Rewards, they will be able to use their points towards their cruise fare or to purchase experiences of value to them, including faster to fun priority boarding, if their status no longer qualifies them for that benefit.

Carnival cruisers are very loyal and they love collecting the pins and other logo gifts that have traditionally been offered.  And they also are very proud of achieving various milestones, like their 50th cruise.  How will these changes impact these VIFP Club features?

We still plan to recognize milestone moments in a newly revamped Milestone program. We will keep the cherished Platinum/Diamond ship-specific pin in the new program, but other means of recognition may change.  Even though the VIFP Club gift and gold pin will go away, there will be plenty of Carnival-branded items on board for sale that our guests can use their points for by converting them to onboard credits.

Can Carnival explain in more detail how guests will qualify for status in Carnival Rewards?

When Carnival Rewards launches on June 1, 2026, guests will maintain their status based on their VIFP Club status (as of sailings that returned by May 31, 2026) for a two-year period through May 31, 2028 with the exception of Diamond guests, who will retain their status for a total of six years through May 31, 2032.

Putting aside how existing guests in our VIFP Club program will start off when Carnival Rewards launches, guests have two years to earn status by collecting Status Qualifying Stars, and once a status level is achieved, it will be valid for at least two full calendar years.  The first two-year ‘qualifying period’ will begin on June 1, 2026 and end on May 31, 2028.  The number of qualifying stars a guest earns by the end of that ‘qualifying period’ will determine what status they have in the subsequent two-year ‘enjoyment period’ running from June 1, 2028 through May 31, 2030.  And, in fact, if a guest reaches the required number of stars for a given tier, they do not need to wait until the next ‘enjoyment period’ to begin enjoying that status.  For example, if a Gold guest earns enough stars to reach Platinum in the middle of the first two-year period (i.e. June 2027), they will be upgraded to Platinum status and get to enjoy it for the remainder of the qualifying period (through May 31, 2028) and then the full subsequent two-year enjoyment period (through May 31, 2030), for a total of three years.  However once June 1, 2028 rolls around, their Status Qualifying Stars will reset to zero and their activity during the subsequent two-year qualifying period (through May 31, 2030), will then determine what status they will enjoy starting in the enjoyment period beginning in June 2030.  The approach is a very similar one to how airlines award their frequent fliers status where they have one year to qualify for status and then one year to enjoy it, however Carnival Rewards will give guests a two-year period to qualify and then a minimum of two years to enjoy that status, and even up to four years depending on how fast they earned that status in the prior qualifying period.

What happens to my Carnival Mastercard?  Didn’t guests already have the ability to earn and redeem points?

Under the current Carnival Mastercard with Barclays, guests earn FunPoints® through spend on Carnival and other purchases that can be converted to statement credits towards Carnival and for gift certificates in various categories.

Upon launch of the Carnival Rewards program, current cardmembers, as well as any new cardmembers between now and the launch of the updates, will automatically be transferred to the Carnival Rewards Mastercard and any Fun Points they have will also be combined with their Carnival Rewards account.  They do not have to take any action at this time and can keep spending and making purchases on their current Carnival Mastercard.

The Carnival Rewards Mastercard will have enhanced benefits that will be even more closely tied to Carnival Rewards and status. More information on the Carnival Rewards Mastercard will be coming soon.

As a current Carnival Mastercard member, how do I make sure my points transfer when the updates go into effect?

Cardmembers’ will automatically have their Carnival Mastercard linked to their Carnival Rewards account when the changes go into effect. The balance of your Fun Points will be combined with your Carnival Rewards account. There is no action needed from cardmembers to ensure your points transfer.

I am a resident of a country outside the US, can I get the Carnival Co-branded Credit card?

No, unfortunately the Carnival Co-branded credit card is only for U.S. residents. We currently do not have a co-branded credit card or partnership for Canada, Australia or other countries outside the U.S.

We hope this blog helps you to better understand the new program and the changes coming to the Carnival loyalty program. We want to be clear that Premier Custom Travel is not taking a position on this new program nor offering editorial comment. We are simply reporting the news and giving an analysis of the response.

Should any of our customers have specific questions about how this may impact currently booked or future cruises, please feel free to reach out directly to your certified travel advisor.