Carnival MasterCard - Should I?

So Carnival (or Barclays Bank Delaware, actually) sent me info on a Carnival MasterCard. Our kids are 5 and 1 right now, and we're thinking when they're 10 and 6 we would take them on a basic cruise. Obviously that's a while from now, so I'm wondering would any of the points I earn with this card expire? Can I save up that long, or do I need to travel more often? If I have to use points within a certain time of earning them, then it's an easy decision to pass on the card. But since I use a credit card to pay for a lot of stuff (two rental properties means lots of extra expenses), then I could wrack up points at a decent rate and maybe get a free cruise or two in 4 years.

So Carnival (or Barclays Bank Delaware, actually) sent me info on a Carnival MasterCard. Our kids are 5 and 1 right now, and we're thinking when they're 10 and 6 we would take them on a basic cruise. Obviously that's a while from now, so I'm wondering would any of the points I earn with this card expire? Can I save up that long, or do I need to travel more often? If I have to use points within a certain time of earning them, then it's an easy decision to pass on the card. But since I use a credit card to pay for a lot of stuff (two rental properties means lots of extra expenses), then I could wrack up points at a decent rate and maybe get a free cruise or two in 4 years.

I have the card and have had it for years and I think you would be better off with a card that has better rewards especially if you have rentals that you can rack points up pretty easy with expenses and stuff.I was just on the site a little bit ago and its 20000 points for a $200 OBC .To me that sucks and there probably are much much better cards with rewards for travel

After reading all the fine print I threw it out, it will take forever to get a free cruise. Your better off with a different card.

I just logged into my MC account to verify.... Points expire 5 years from the issue date.

We try to charge everything we can then pay it off in full each month, just for the sake of racking up points. We just cashed in $400 towards our cruise and those were points we've earned in about a year.

I've been too lazy to shop for better credit card rewards, as I'm sure there's much better deals to be found.

The Carnival MC is a very poor rewards program. I got one when they gave an instant credit for opening one. Then I closed it six months later (so that it counts as a "rated" positive account on your credit report). Barclays has one of the best reward cards in the Barclay Arrival card. Then there is Chase Freedom and Discover Cashback. Look at the rewards amounts and very easily see even charging a Carnival cruise will get your better rewards with other cards. Depending upon what you buy, it is not difficult to earn over twice the points that do not expire and are not confined to just cruise credit. Plenty of people will tell of receiving a few hundred dollars in onboard credit when they could have received twice that amount in cash to apply to their onboard account.

Of course, having a cruise ship on your card may be worth it to you. Maybe put a Carnival sticker on a better card to feel better about that and walk away with twice the rewards? :P

I would suggest that you compare the interest rate on this card to other cards. If it has a higher rate (on general purchases) then you might want to look elsewhere if you carry a balance each month. I found it has a much higher interest rate than other credit cards - although I clear the card each month.

Also I just noticed that in order to cash in points you need a "qualifying transaction" to link the points-cash-in to. As an example I just did a cash-in last month, and I only had one hotel charge from last year to which I could link in order to cash-in points. When I cashed-in points last year I still had 3 of my prior cruises to link to from the prior year.

We've had the card for almost 9 years and have cruised twice for free. I agree that it's not the best card, but it has worked for our needs.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Forums mobile app

I got that Carnival card but got rid of it. But myprimary card is a Royal Caribbean credit card and we already got one person to sail for free on the Allure, and 3 out of our 4 family members are sailing for free this summer when we go on the Enchantment. Points do accrue fast! :)

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I like my Barclay's card. Since I cruise every year we use it to charge things on then pay them off every month instead of putting them on our debit card. My June cruise will have $300 put toward it for purchases made in the last year that we would have written checks for or put on our debit card.

We've also had the Carnival FunPoints Mastercard (formerly Carnival SeaMiles MC) for nine years and have taken 3 free cruises with our points. I also I agree it's not the best rewards card out there, but am satisfied with it and don't feel like chasing after other rewards and flipping cards and whatnot.

This is the only card we use, we use it for everything possible (including our heating propane bill, cell phone bills, electric bill, etc.) and we pay it off in full each month. We've never paid a dime in interest or fees. I hear this card has a high interest rate (I don't even know what mine is, because it doesn't affect me), so if you plan on carrying a balance from month to month, you might want to find a card with a lower APR.

We get all kinds of FunPoints multipliers shopping online through Barclays RewardsBoost (on average, we get about 5 FunPoints per dollar spent) and rack up the points even faster.

It's true that FunPoints expire after 5 years. We've never gone that long without building up enough points for a free cruise.

I suggest to those with this card: the best way to redeem points is as a statement credit after your cruise, after you have paid for it with this card (getting double points) and it becomes a 'qualified purchase'. This is the best bang for your FunPoint buck -- much better redemption rate than small amounts for OBC.;)

There are a couple (I think they're both the same guy, actually:cool:) here that will loudly proclaim that this card sucks and all of us who are satisfied with it are "suckers" for not choosing the credit cards that they like and handling credit cards their way.

Oh, BTW, We'll be taking our 4th free cruise since getting this card in 2005, this September in an aft wrap suite.:D All through practically effortless shopping and spending and bill-paying that we were going to do anyway. Without having to churn cards or jump through spending hoops.

I suggest you look into the benefits, rewards, APRs, customer satisfaction rates etc., if you are shopping for a new credit card, but don't put too much stock in what any stranger on the internet (some of us are stranger than others:p) says about any of them.;) Good luck finding the best credit card for you and happy cruising!

I have the Carnival MasterCard and the rewards points aren't really worth it in my opinion. When I book a cruise or I am onboard with the sail and sign account I use the Carnival Card because you get double points. You can find better rewards credit cards out there

Maybe I should look at my Discover Card a little closer. I don't use it much. My main Visa only lets me buy things from their online store, which does include a $100 Carnival gift card, but it's not a good value.

Thanks for all the responses.

If you use the Discover card for the Carnival gift cards you can earn just be aware that you have to book through their agent then and are subject to whatever fares they have available.

In my opinion the Carnival card is worth it for us. We cruise every couple of years and usually have enough to cover our tips and $200 or more in OBC because when you charge your cruise on it you get double points.

We've been using the Carnival MC since 2009, like others have stated basically like a debit card and paying balance off each month. We also have many rental properties and use the card for those expenses. Like others have stated you receive double points for deposits and final payments on cruises as well as any charges on your on-board account. We have cashed in points twice now towards cruises once $1,400 & last fall a cruise to Europe redeemed for $1,900. So it can work for you and basically sets aside that money for cruises only. :D

Banks can & do change their programs regularly. I wouldn't bank on something 5 years into the future. (Carnival can change how those points are able to be redeemed between now & then too.)

Does anyone know what you do and don't get points for paying.I was thinking of paying my everyday bills on this card and paying it off monthy just for the points ,but not sure if they give points for Car payments and mortgages or utilities etc.

The Carnival MC is a very poor rewards program. I got one when they gave an instant credit for opening one. Then I closed it six months later (so that it counts as a "rated" positive account on your credit report). Barclays has one of the best reward cards in the Barclay Arrival card. Then there is Chase Freedom and Discover Cashback. Look at the rewards amounts and very easily see even charging a Carnival cruise will get your better rewards with other cards. Depending upon what you buy, it is not difficult to earn over twice the points that do not expire and are not confined to just cruise credit. Plenty of people will tell of receiving a few hundred dollars in onboard credit when they could have received twice that amount in cash to apply to their onboard account.

 

Of course, having a cruise ship on your card may be worth it to you. Maybe put a Carnival sticker on a better card to feel better about that and walk away with twice the rewards? :P

Here is another vote for the Barclay Arrival card!

I have not found a way to pay for my mortgage or car payment with my Carnival Card. Many banks do not allow payment with CC's. It can't hurt to call the company you have those payments with to check, though. If you can do it more power to you.

Also not able to pay for utilities that way either. I am able to pay for phone and cable with it though.

my friend has the RC card.. im sure is basically exactly the same.. and it also has terrible rewards.. 1 pt per 1 $ spent... where as my PNC credit card i have through my bank ( PNC is a bank in the philly area for those wondering ) i get 4 points per 1$ spent.. and they have specials where some stores give 40 Points per 1$.. yes 40 points.. so DEF shop around. i suggest a bank issued credit card from where ever you bank.. i currently have 70,000 points on my card and i honestly only use it for gas. my EZpass and a few random other things. nothing major,.

Does anyone know what you do and don't get points for paying.I was thinking of paying my everyday bills on this card and paying it off monthy just for the points ,but not sure if they give points for Car payments and mortgages or utilities etc.

Yes, you get FunPoints for everything you pay for with this card, including your utility bills. If your utility companies, mortagage holder, etc. accept credit cards, this is a great way to rack up extra points.

Our mortgage bank does not take credit cards, and we don't have any car payments, but we pay our electric, propane, cell phone bills, our annual dues for our vacation property, and even our life insurance premiums with our FunPoints MC. Easy 'free' FunPoints.;)

Check with your utility companies, etc. to see if they accept credit card payments and if they chage a fee for doing this (my electric company, for instance, charges a $1.45 "convenience fee" for taking a credit card payment over the phone. But this is barely more than a check and a stamp would cost me if I were to make my payment the 'old way' (in which I would be getting no FunPoints) , so I pay the fee.:cool:

my friend has the RC card.. im sure is basically exactly the same.. and it also has terrible rewards.. 1 pt per 1 $ spent... where as my PNC credit card i have through my bank ( PNC is a bank in the philly area for those wondering ) i get 4 points per 1$ spent.. and they have specials where some stores give 40 Points per 1$.. yes 40 points.. so DEF shop around. i suggest a bank issued credit card from where ever you bank.. i currently have 70,000 points on my card and i honestly only use it for gas. my EZpass and a few random other things. nothing major,.

What do you get with your PNC points? Do you shop from one of those gift catalogues or redeem them elsewhere? What do PNC points equate to?

It's hard to compare your PNC points to FunPoints if they don't have the same kind of "purchasing power". For instance, I would understand what 40 Carnival FunPoints per dollar spent would mean, and how quickly that could lead to a free cruise. And I would understand what a balance of 70,000 Carnival FunPoints would mean. But I have no idea what that amount of PNC points means. But since all these various credit card points, including FunPoints, are just made-up things with made-up values, it's practically impossible to compare points to points.

When 9 out of 10 Cruise Critics say it is a lousy card and the others say it is not the best deal in the world, you may want to think more about this before opening the card.

Yes, you get FunPoints for everything you pay for with this card, including your utility bills. If your utility companies, mortagage holder, etc. accept credit cards, this is a great way to rack up extra points.

 

Our mortgage bank does not take credit cards, and we don't have any car payments, but we pay our electric, propane, cell phone bills, our annual dues for our vacation property, and even our life insurance premiums with our FunPoints MC. Easy 'free' FunPoints.;)

 

Check with your utility companies, etc. to see if they accept credit card payments and if they chage a fee for doing this (my electric company, for instance, charges a $1.45 "convenience fee" for taking a credit card payment over the phone. But this is barely more than a check and a stamp would cost me if I were to make my payment the 'old way' (in which I would be getting no FunPoints) , so I pay the fee.:cool:

Thanks for the response :)

I did check and my mortgage company does not take it and car company does take credit via western union which charges $25 so that's out too lol.I guess I will try all my utilities and insurance (especially car insurance)

I have a cruise scheduled for spring 2015 and also have the Carnival Fun Points master card.

What is the best way to cash in my points for my cruise? I am just trying to get the most out of my points. lol

I use my Discover card to pay for everything I possibly can and pay it off each month. Approximately 3 weeks before we cruise, I redeem my cashback bonus as cash...it's the only cash I take with me. It's nice to not have to budget for tips, purchases on the islands, at airports, cabs, etc... There is always money left at the end of the cruise and it goes immediately into my "Next Cruise" fund.