Time for some big cruise news in the travel world. Carnival Cruise Lines has announced a massive change to their VIFP Club that is making members feel like jumping ship. I picture Royal Caribbean and MSC hanging out around the corner like Spirit Halloween hanging around a newly closed retail location, waiting to pounce on dissatisfied members.

Carnival announced changes were coming to their loyalty reward program, but I don’t think anyone knew how big a shift they would make to the program. If you aren’t familiar with the Carnival VIFP (Very Important Fun Person) program, it was a tiered system that provided members with increased benefits as they progressed through the program. Each night counted toward your total. For example, if you had x number of nights on the ships, you would be at x level. With x level, you received certain rewards and perks. These perks included priority check-in, complimentary laundry, complimentary drinks, and priority access to the water shuttle at tender ports. Once you achieved a level, you were that level until you earned the next higher one.

But things are changing, and people aren’t happy. The Facebook groups have the torches and pitchforks out.

The loyalty system is being thrown overboard for a point-based system. Now, instead of earning your level based on nights cruising, you earn it by spending money for the points (cruise fare, spa treatments, excursions, and spending in the casino will earn you points, to name a few). For example, suppose you are a platinum-level VIFP member. In that case, you will need to earn 50,000 points within the two-year window to maintain your status. Using the calculator on their website, it says I would need to sail on 3-4 times a year during the two year window to maintain my status, and unless I go all out in the window, I’d never reach Diamond no matter how many sailings I go on. The next level will be unobtainable for most cruisers, and many feel they will lose two or three levels and be stuck at the first tier forever. The jump from platinum to diamond is another 50,000 points. Diamond level would require 100,000 points (stars) to achieve that status. The perks do not appear to be changing, but I don’t think people care…they are pissed.

The new program doesn’t begin until June 1, 2026. To view their new requirements for the rewards program, please visit https://carnivalrewards.com/. To say it has gone well with cruisers since the announcement would be a lie. Since the program change is still a year away, I wonder if things will change. I know we’ve been sailing on various other cruise lines more and more lately, and this isn’t making me want to continue supporting a company that has decided my years of loyalty are meaningless. One of the lines from the announcement email stated that they didn’t think all the elite-level guests on sailings made anyone feel special. Guess what? I don’t sail to feel special. I sail to experience new places or to relax in the ocean and soak up the sun. I sailed to build my brand loyalty, but I guess I should’ve jumped ship long ago, because our loyalty meant nothing to Carnival in the end. I don’t envy John Heald when he starts getting the heat on Facebook.

I will leave you with a link to the email Carnival sent out to announce their program changes. Click here if you feel the need to throw up a little in your mouth. They pretty much gaslight us into believing it’s our fault for advancing through the system that they need to change it. No, their policies since COVID-19 are mostly to blame, but that is an argument for another time.

Well, I need to get ready for the next trip, so thanks for stopping by the Crossroads!

Brent