Carnival Rewards (formerly VIFP Club)

Carnival Cruise Line ran the VIFP Club, short for Very Important Fun Person, until August 31, 2026. It switched to Carnival Rewards the next day. VIFP paid for time at sea. Carnival announced the new program on June 18, 2025, with a June 1, 2026 start. On September 15, 2025, after a summer of guest feedback, it promised lifetime Diamond to VIFP Diamonds and a recurring star boost to Platinums. On December 1, 2025, it pushed the launch to September 1, 2026. Each VIFP number became a Carnival Guest Number, and Blue members who enrolled before launch became Red.

Carnival Rewards pays on dollars instead. A member earns 3 Carnival Rewards Points and 3 Status Qualifying Stars for each $1 of eligible spend. Cruise fare, prepaid tips, transfers and Carnival Vacation Protection count. So do onboard and pre-cruise buys that land on the member's own folio, including charges at Celebration Key and RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay. Required cruise fees, taxes, Fly2Fun air, penalties, casino charges and medical bills earn nothing. Spend paid with onboard credit, promotional cruise credit or points also earns nothing. Fare earnings are split evenly across all guests in the cabin, members or not, and a minor's share goes to the adult in charge. Casino play adds 1 point for each casino point left at the end of the cruise and 1 star for each one earned. Carnival Players Club offers stay separate. Points and stars post about 14 days after the trip.

Points are spent directly on Carnival purchases. At booking they can pay a deposit or a whole fare, with no minimum. On board they buy drinks, specialty meals, spa time, Wi-Fi and tours through the HUB app. Pre-cruise use is due in a phased rollout by the end of 2026. Points never pay taxes or fees, and only one guest per cabin can put points toward a booking. Carnival publishes no fixed cash value per point. Its illustrative prices show a Thermal Suite Day Pass at 3,000 points. Points are lost after 3 years with no earning or redeeming, but card members keep theirs. Days sailed still count for milestones. A member gets 5,000 points at 50 days, then 10,000 points, a coin and onboard credit at 100 days and every 100 days after.

Stars set the tier. Red comes at sign-up, Gold at 10,000 stars, Platinum at 50,000 and Diamond at 100,000. The first window runs from September 1, 2026 to December 31, 2028. Later windows last two calendar years. Stars reset to zero when a window closes. A tier earned in one window holds for the rest of it and for the full two years after. Gold adds one free drink on cruises of 5 days or more. Platinum gives two drinks, priority check-in and boarding, online check-in 16 days out and free wash and fold. Diamond adds a guaranteed main dining time, a captain's event, a casino host on request and dedicated sales and service support. VIFP Platinums who enroll keep Platinum to December 31, 2028. They also get 10,000 stars at the start of each window, so they never drop below Gold.

The Carnival Rewards Mastercard, issued by Barclays Bank Delaware, has no annual fee and no foreign transaction fee. It adds 3 points per $1 on Carnival buys on top of the program's 3, for up to 6 in all. It pays 2 points at restaurants and grocery stores other than Target and Walmart. All other spend earns 1 point. Every $1 of card spend also earns 1 star, so status can come from the weekly shop. Card members get 2,500 bonus points after $2,000 of spend each card year, and old FunPoints became Carnival Rewards Points. Only U.S. residents can apply. On September 29, 2026, Carnival Corporation said card issuances rose over 300 percent in the weeks after launch, compared with levels before the program was announced.

Carnival's own words explain the shift. In June 2025 its president said the growth in loyal guests had made it hard to serve Diamond and Platinum members well. By our count, Diamond means about $33,333 of eligible spend per window, or $25,000 when all of it is Carnival spend on the card. Gold needs about $3,333. A big spender on board now outranks a frequent guest on cheap fares, while lifetime Diamonds from VIFP never have to requalify. The change reaches the books too. Carnival Corporation says the program's accounting defers part of each ticket price. It guided fourth-quarter 2026 net yields in constant currency up about 1.7 percent, or 2.3 percent after reflecting that accounting.