When you’re desirous to embark on a cruise and have accrued factors, you may not need to pay on your subsequent journey.
On this information, we are going to discover methods that can assist you optimize your factors and miles to scale back the price of your cruise trip. We’ll focus on leveraging loyalty packages and the most effective methods to unlock financial savings in your cruise fare.
Listed here are the highest methods to make use of your factors and miles for a cruise.
Associated: A learners information to choosing a cruise line
Do you have to e-book a cruise with factors and miles?
Whereas varied choices can be found for redeeming your factors and miles towards a cruise, it is very important be aware that the worth you obtain may not all the time be optimum (i.e., lower than TPG’s month-to-month valuations). Within the realm of journey rewards, there are sometimes extra profitable alternatives to leverage your factors and miles for flights or resort stays, the place the worth and adaptability are usually larger.
If in case you have American Specific Membership Rewards factors, Capital One miles or Chase Final Rewards factors, you may be capable of get a redemption worth of 1 to 1.5 cents per level for cruises. On this case, you’d get $100 or $150 off your cruise fare by redeeming 10,000 factors. Whereas this might sound excessive, it falls quick in comparison with the worth some vacationers get when redeeming factors for luxurious lodges or business-class flights.
Some cruise traces have their very own bank cards, however a number of have fashioned partnerships with different manufacturers. For instance, Marriott Bonvoy members can redeem factors on Ritz-Carlton Yacht Assortment cruises at a price of 180,000 factors for a $1,000 financial savings. Nonetheless, these companion choices are sometimes restricted and may require loyalty to a particular journey model.
You’ll be able to all the time use factors to scale back journey bills for any cruise trip. For instance, you should utilize Amex Membership Rewards factors, Bilt Rewards Factors, Capital One miles, Chase Final Rewards factors, Wells Fargo Rewards factors and Citi ThankYou Rewards factors to cowl prices related to airfare, lodges or rental automobiles on your cruise. This usually proves to be a greater use of your rewards.
Nonetheless, if you wish to use your accrued factors to scale back your cruise prices, listed below are varied choices for reserving a cruise with factors and miles.
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Ebook a cruise with bank card factors
You should utilize sure bank card factors to e-book a cruise. Sometimes, you’ll be required to make the reservation by way of the portal supplied by your bank card issuer, however some require calling a reserving middle. You may also be capable of cost the cruise to your card after which redeem your rewards for an announcement credit score in opposition to some (or all) of that buy.
This is easy methods to e-book a cruise on factors with a number of main bank card firms.
American Specific Membership Rewards
The Amex Journey portal has a user-friendly search characteristic that lets you discover totally different cruises primarily based on particular filters comparable to date, vacation spot, cruise line and journey period even earlier than you log in.
To e-book a cruise utilizing Pay with Factors, log in to the journey portal and do the next:
- Choose your most well-liked cruise itinerary and cabin.
- Enter your passenger info.
- When it is time to take a look at, enter your Membership Rewards-enrolled American Specific card info and choose “Sure” to find out what number of Membership Rewards factors your account has.
- You’ll be able to pay for your entire cruise utilizing Pay with Factors or erase a portion of the associated fee and pay the remaining with money.
Alternatively, you’ll be able to search for the cruise you need and name 800-297-5627 to e-book straight with the Amex Journey group over the telephone.
Associated: One of the best bank cards for reserving cruises
Chase Final Rewards
The Chase Journey℠ portal is just like Amex Journey, however the redemption worth is larger.
When reserving by way of Chase, Chase Sapphire Most popular® Card factors may be redeemed for 1.25 cents every towards journey, whereas Chase Sapphire Reserve® factors may be redeemed for 1.5 cents every.
Sadly, Chase’s reserving system would not allow you to e-book cruises by way of Chase’s on-line journey portal. You will need to name the reserving hotline and speak to somebody within the cruise reservations division as an alternative.
To e-book a cruise and pay with Chase Final Rewards factors:
- Discover the cruise itinerary and availability you need by way of the cruise line’s web site. If in case you have a particular cabin in thoughts, have that info useful. Sadly, reviews point out that you just can not e-book Disney Cruise Line sailings with Chase Final Rewards.
- Name a Chase journey specialist straight at 855-234-2542, and be ready to stroll the adviser by way of the cruise line reserving web page on their finish to allow them to discover and e-book the cabin and choices you need. Cruise advisers can be found Monday by way of Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Japanese time and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to five p.m. Japanese time.
- Your cruise adviser will arrange the itinerary for you and, upon checkout, will ask you what number of factors you need to apply in opposition to your remaining steadiness.
Citi ThankYou Rewards
The Citi ThankYou portal doesn’t at present permit cardholders to make use of their ThankYou factors as credit score for a cruise.
Capital One miles
Capital One affords extra flexibility and a extra simple redemption course of than Amex and Chase. Until you switch your miles to an airline or resort companion, every mile is price a flat 1 cent towards journey.
Redeeming factors would not require reserving by way of a portal, releasing you as much as e-book your cruise straight with the corporate or through a journey agent to get further perks. This selection additionally helps you to pursue promotional package deal charges or reductions which may not be obtainable by way of the Amex or Chase portals.
The award redemption course of is simple: Use the cardboard when paying on your cruise package deal, then log in to your account and use the “Cowl your journey purchases” possibility to use your mileage steadiness as a credit score towards the overall quantity you owe in your bank card assertion.
You’ll be able to earn Capital One miles with the Capital One Enterprise Rewards Credit score Card and the Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Credit score Card. Every has various options, so perform some research to determine which card is finest for you.
Associated: Capital One Enterprise Rewards vs. Capital One Enterprise X: Price the additional $300 in annual charges?
Ebook a cruise with airline miles
You can too e-book cruises utilizing airline miles. Nonetheless, like different choices, the worth of your journey rewards is usually underwhelming. The next journey suppliers provide cruise portals that help you redeem rewards:
For instance, within the United Cruises portal, this seven-night Disney cruise out of San Juan, Puerto Rico, prices 239,143 United Airways MileagePlus miles per particular person for an inside cabin — price $3,228 by TPG’s January 2025 valuation of United miles.
In distinction, the identical room and crusing dates price simply $1,674 per particular person when paid for with money — a greater worth than with United miles.
Use factors from cruise line cobranded bank cards to e-book
Right here, you may need to ensure you should utilize your factors towards the cruise fare as an alternative of solely onboard purchases. For instance, the Royal Caribbean Visa Signature® Credit score Card affords a welcome bonus of 30,000 factors after you spend $1,000 or extra on purchases inside 90 days of opening your account. Your redemption selections differ.
As an illustration, you’ll be able to redeem 25,000 factors towards your companion’s cruise fare on a three- or four-night Royal Caribbean cruise (sure situations apply, e.g., might not exceed $500 in worth). Or, you’ll be able to redeem 30,000 factors for a $300 low cost on a Superstar Cruises voyage. To study extra about easy methods to redeem MyCruise Rewards factors, try this PDF.
The data for the Royal Caribbean Visa Signature card has been collected independently by The Factors Man. The cardboard particulars on this web page haven’t been reviewed or supplied by the cardboard issuer.
Redeem Marriott Bonvoy factors
In 2021, Marriott introduced that the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Assortment would take part within the Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program. Members can redeem factors on Ritz-Carlton cruises and luxuriate in elite standing perks on voyages. Nonetheless, the redemption charges aren’t nice.
You’ll be able to redeem at the very least 180,000 factors towards a flat $1,000 financial savings on the cruise fare. After that, you’ll be able to redeem increments of 90,000 factors towards $500 in financial savings, as much as your entire cruise fare. This redemption price is about 0.56 cents per Marriott level, properly under TPG’s January 2025 valuation of 0.85 cents per level.
Associated: Finest methods to earn Marriott Bonvoy factors: From resort stays and bank card spending to journey companions
Moreover, Marriott Bonvoy’s Cruise with Factors program lets you money in Marriott factors for credit score towards any cruise that is bookable on the Cruise with Factors web site.
You’ll be able to redeem factors within the following denominations, all valued at 0.4 cents per level:
- 63,000 factors for $250 off your cruise fare
- 125,000 factors for $500 off
- 250,000 factors for $1,000 off
- 625,000 factors for $2,500 off
- 1,250,000 factors for $5,000 off
To redeem Marriott factors for a cruise, name 800-596-0452.
Use factors and miles for precruise lodges and flights
You may maximize your factors and miles by redeeming them for flights to your departure port and precruise and postcruise resort stays as an alternative of the cruise fare itself. You’ll be able to usually get greater than 1 or 1.5 cents per level with flights and resort stays.
For instance, you would switch your Chase Final Rewards factors to United MileagePlus and get a fantastic redemption worth by reserving a flight to Miami Worldwide Airport (MIA). When you’re an elite member or have a United bank card, you may even have entry to particular member award pricing.
Or you would use 12,000 to 18,000 World of Hyatt factors or an annual Class 1-4 award from the World of Hyatt Credit score Card to pay for a room on the Hyatt Regency Orlando Worldwide Airport (a Class 4 resort) in Florida earlier than heading to Port Canaveral the subsequent day.
Associated: How (and why) you need to earn transferable bank card factors in 2025
Backside line
It is not all the time simple to get nice worth on your factors and miles while you use them towards cruise redemptions — at the very least, not the best way you’ll be able to with business-class flights. Nonetheless, redeeming your factors at no cost or discounted cruise journey is feasible.
That stated, to redeem your rewards for optimum worth, you need to keep away from utilizing airline miles or resort factors for cruises. These are higher used on flights and in a single day stays.
It is a comparable story for bank card currencies. Capital One affords essentially the most flexibility of all the foremost issuers as a result of you’ll be able to e-book your cruise straight or by way of a journey agent. With a number of reserving choices, you’ll be able to make the most of extra perks and entry promotional charges from journey brokers and on-line retailers that are not obtainable by way of bank card portals. You may even stack these offers for extra financial savings by reserving through an airline portal to earn miles.
As soon as booked, the Capital One award redemption course of is simple: Apply your mileage steadiness as a credit score towards your complete bank card assertion. Every mile is price a flat 1 cent towards journey, so that you all the time know the worth for comparability functions.
That is how we would e-book a cruise with factors and miles to get the most effective worth.
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