Carnival Goes Revenue Based Loyalty – Will Royal Caribbean Follow?

Carnival Corporation shocked the cruise world last month when it introduced a MAJOR change to its loyalty program. In June 2026 the cruise line will launch its new Carnival Rewards™ program which will have a huge impact on longtime loyal Carnival guests. In summary, Carnival will move from a “traditional” cruise line loyalty program where guests accrue loyalty points that roughly equate to nights at sea (with bonuses for suites) that confers some kind of elite status to one that rewards spend and accrues points that can be redeemed for cruises, and basically anything else you wish to buy from Carnival. In other words, Carnival is moving towards a revenue-based loyalty program not unlike airlines and hotels.

This change isn’t just about earning points for dollars spent. The one change that I think really should have your attention? Carnival’s elite status will no longer be lifetime. You have to keep cruising and spending to maintain your status. All of the changes to the program have been covered ad nauseam on other sites and there’s no real value in my reviewing them in detail. Instead, I will focus on a burning question……..

What Will Royal Caribbean Do?

I am admittedly a Royal Caribbean fan, 350+ point Diamond Plus member of Crown & Anchor Society, and yes, an owner of a non-life altering number of RCL shares, and have written about Royal Caribbean for years both here and on my own blog. Yes, I am wondering what Royal Caribbean do in response to Carnival’s move to revenue-based loyalty. At the moment, I do not know, but here are a few thoughts.

Cruise line loyalty programs were born in a time when comparatively few people cruised. While there are still millions who have not experienced the joy of a first cruise, the industry has been growing like gangbusters. More and more people have been cruising, and when they do, they’re coming back for more cruises more often. As all those cruisers collect ever higher lifetime elite status, it’s become more difficult to provide the perks that come with that status. Think when Diamonds could access the Concierge Lounges on Royal Caribbean ships. Cruise lines added more status levels and adjusted the number of cruise nights needed to attain status to help address the problem with mixed results.

I have long thought that cruise lines should better reward onboard spending. I’m known to drop more dollars than lots of people I know on premium drinks, spa, speciality dining, and anything that offers a more exclusive experience like Coco Beach Club. Over time, that has no doubt added up to tens of thousands of dollars that was not recognized in any way. A revenue-based program could reward that more appropriately.

That said, I value the Diamond Plus status I’ve earned greatly. It’s the reason that most of my cruises have been with the Royal Caribbean Group brands. Yes, status does matter. At the end of the day, if Royal Caribbean adopted a similar revenue-based program and my earned status went away, it might make me more likely to cruise with someone else or at least consider it. BUT….. I like the Royal Caribbean (and Celebrity) brand, I like their ships, and I like their people and the service they consistently provide. Loyalty matters!

The Bottom Line

I do not know if Royal Caribbean will move to a revenue-based program like Carnival is launching next year. They are a business and there is a business case to be made for doing more to encourage spend and better monetize cruise line loyalty programs. Frankly, I am surprised no one has tried it yet. Now we wait and see.

-MJ