For those who’re wanting to embark on a cruise and have collected factors, you may not should pay to your subsequent journey.
On this information, we’ll 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 one of the best 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 newcomers information to choosing a cruise line
Do you have to ebook 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 observe that the worth you obtain may not at all times 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 greater.
If in case you have American Specific Membership Rewards factors, Capital One miles or Chase Final Rewards factors, you would possibly have the ability to 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 accommodations or business-class flights.
Some cruise traces have their very own bank cards, however just a few have shaped partnerships with different manufacturers. For instance, Marriott Bonvoy members can redeem factors on Ritz-Carlton Yacht Assortment cruises at a charge of 180,000 factors for a $1,000 financial savings. Nonetheless, these accomplice choices are sometimes restricted and would possibly require loyalty to a particular journey model.
You’ll be able to at all times 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, accommodations or rental vehicles to your cruise. This typically proves to be a greater use of your rewards.
Nonetheless, if you wish to use your collected factors to scale back your cruise prices, listed below are varied choices for reserving a cruise with factors and miles.
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E-book a cruise with bank card factors
You should utilize sure bank card factors to ebook a cruise. Usually, you may be required to make the reservation by way of the portal offered by your bank card issuer, however some require calling a reserving heart. You may additionally have the ability to cost the cruise to your card after which redeem your rewards for a press release credit score towards some (or all) of that buy.
Here is the best way to ebook a cruise on factors with a number of main bank card corporations.
American Specific Membership Rewards
If in case you have an eligible American Specific card that earns Membership Rewards factors, you should utilize these factors to cowl the price of your cruise by way of the Pay with Factors program. With this program, you may redeem Membership Rewards factors at a worth of 0.5 to 0.7 cents per level for many journey purchases. Nonetheless, TPG values Membership Rewards factors at 2 cents every (per our January 2025 valuations) once you maximize this system’s switch companions, so you’ll use them at a decrease worth if you happen to use Pay with Factors.
The Amex Journey portal has a user-friendly search function that lets you discover completely different cruises based mostly on particular filters corresponding to date, vacation spot, cruise line and journey length even earlier than you log in.
To ebook 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 all the cruise utilizing Pay with Factors or erase a portion of the price and pay the remainder with money.
Alternatively, you may lookup the cruise you need and name 800-297-5627 to ebook straight with the Amex Journey group over the cellphone.
Associated: The very best bank cards for reserving cruises
Chase Final Rewards
The Chase Journey℠ portal is much like Amex Journey, however the redemption worth is greater.
When reserving by way of Chase, Chase Sapphire Most well-liked® Card factors could be redeemed for 1.25 cents every towards journey, whereas Chase Sapphire Reserve® factors could be redeemed for 1.5 cents every.
Sadly, Chase’s reserving system would not allow you to ebook cruises by way of Chase’s on-line journey portal. You will should name the reserving hotline and speak to somebody within the cruise reservations division as an alternative.
To ebook 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, studies point out that you simply can not ebook 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 ebook 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 wish to apply towards your ultimate stability.
Citi ThankYou Rewards
The Citi ThankYou portal doesn’t at the moment enable cardholders to make use of their ThankYou factors as credit score for a cruise.
Capital One miles
Capital One presents extra flexibility and a extra simple redemption course of than Amex and Chase. Except you switch your miles to an airline or resort accomplice, every mile is value a flat 1 cent towards journey.
Redeeming factors would not require reserving by way of a portal, liberating you as much as ebook your cruise straight with the corporate or by way of a journey agent to get further perks. This feature additionally enables you to pursue promotional bundle charges or reductions which may not be out there by way of the Amex or Chase portals.
The award redemption course of is easy: Use the cardboard when paying to your cruise bundle, then log in to your account and use the “Cowl your journey purchases” choice to use your mileage stability as a credit score towards the full 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 do a little analysis to resolve which card is finest for you.
Associated: Capital One Enterprise Rewards vs. Capital One Enterprise X: Value the additional $300 in annual charges?
E-book a cruise with airline miles
You can too ebook 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 can 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 individual for an inside cabin — value $3,228 by TPG’s January 2025 valuation of United miles.
In distinction, the identical room and crusing dates value simply $1,674 per individual when paid for with money — a greater worth than with United miles.
Use factors from cruise line cobranded bank cards to ebook
With cruise line cobranded bank cards, you may earn factors for purchases which you could then use to offset the price of your cruise reserving. Nonetheless, this may not be your only option for incomes and redeeming factors.
Right here, you may wish to make certain 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 presents 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 fluctuate.
As an illustration, you may redeem 25,000 factors towards your companion’s cruise fare on a three- or four-night Royal Caribbean cruise (sure circumstances apply, e.g., could not exceed $500 in worth). Or, you may redeem 30,000 factors for a $300 low cost on a Celeb Cruises voyage. To study extra about the best way to redeem MyCruise Rewards factors, try this PDF.
The knowledge 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 offered 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 revel 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 may redeem increments of 90,000 factors towards $500 in financial savings, as much as all the cruise fare. This redemption charge is about 0.56 cents per Marriott level, nicely under TPG’s January 2025 valuation of 0.85 cents per level.
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 accommodations and flights
You would possibly 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 typically get greater than 1 or 1.5 cents per level with flights and resort stays.
For instance, you could possibly switch your Chase Final Rewards factors to United MileagePlus and get an incredible redemption worth by reserving a flight to Miami Worldwide Airport (MIA). For those who’re an elite member or have a United bank card, you would possibly even have entry to particular member award pricing.
Or you could possibly 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 following day.
Associated: How (and why) you must earn transferable bank card factors in 2025
Backside line
It is not at all times simple to get nice worth to your factors and miles once you use them towards cruise redemptions — at the very least, not the best way you may with business-class flights. Nonetheless, redeeming your factors totally free or discounted cruise journey is feasible.
That mentioned, to redeem your rewards for max worth, you must 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 related story for bank card currencies. Capital One presents essentially the most flexibility of all the foremost issuers as a result of you may ebook your cruise straight or by way of a journey agent. With a number of reserving choices, you may reap the benefits of extra perks and entry promotional charges from journey brokers and on-line retailers that are not out there by way of bank card portals. You might even stack these offers for extra financial savings by reserving by way of an airline portal to earn miles.
As soon as booked, the Capital One award redemption course of is easy: Apply your mileage stability as a credit score towards your whole bank card assertion. Every mile is value a flat 1 cent towards journey, so that you at all times know the worth for comparability functions.
That is how we might ebook a cruise with factors and miles to get one of the best worth.
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