Carnival MasterCard onboard deal

[windan]

Hi everyone. Does anyone know what the current onboard gift/ points deal is when applying for the Carnival MasterCard while onboard? Thank you

[emmak8]

Sorry, have no experience with this card.

[isaiahsnana]

A few months ago, it was a string back pack and a lanyard.

[Rosefloater]

Sorry, have no experience with this card.

 

What is the point of this post. :confused: If you don't have an answer, then why comment. (Unless you just want to run your post count up).:rolleyes:

 

OP - As isaiahsnana posted - as of April, the gift was a lanyard and backpack.

[Saint Greg]

A year ago I got a string backpack, lanyard, ship on a stick, and some coupons....I got a Mexican necklace and a couple of very small margaritas in Cozumel with the coupons.

Edited August 16, 2015 by Saint Greg

[Out to sea!]

And 5,000 points (but it takes 7,400 points to get $50 OBC).

[love my grandkids]

When first ordered was a good card now much better ones out there so we rarely use this one now a days.

[Wheels87]

And 5,000 points (but it takes 7,400 points to get $50 OBC).

 

I have used this card for four years and have cashed in over 300,000 points, so I hope I can clear some things up for everyone. The above post is accurate, however, there are much better ways to redeem your points for at least 1% cash back, rather than the 0.7% in the example above.

 

First of all, on normal purchases, you get 1 point for every dollar spent on the card. This would include everything from gas, groceries, your power bill, cable bill, restaurants, or whatever else you purchase. Any purchases directly through Carnival, e.g. your cruise fare, excursions or on board sail and sign account gives you 2 points for every dollar. It's that simple. At any time, you can go to your account web-site and see how many points you have in your account to redeem. I currently have a little over 35,000 points waiting to redeem and it goes up every day with every purchase.

 

When you click on the "Manage Rewards" tab, it gives you four options to do so. They are: "Pay with FunPoints" "Onboard Gifts" "Gift Cards/Gift Certificates" and "Merchandise." At this point, I would highly recommend only using the "Pay with FunPoints" tab because you actually get more cash back than with any other. The other categories allow you to purchase onboard credit, gift cards to various retail stores/restaurants, etc., however, you don't get 1%, you get about 0.7% instead. If you choose "Pay with FunPoints" you will see any Carnival purchases that you have made in the last 180 days and will be able to get at least 1%, if not 1.5% cash credited to your account for those purchases. You can also pay for other travel, like recent hotel stays, etc., however, again, you will get less than 1% cash back for those.

 

Below, I will list out the options I have right now when I select the $4,000+ cruise fare that I paid in May:

 

Cash Back Points to redeem

 

$500.00 33,333

$450.00 30,000

$400.00 26,667

 

As you can see, I am getting 1.5% cash back for the points I am redeeming which is much better than the 0.7% cash back if I chose to purchase onboard credit in advance. Also, if you think about it, since I already got 2 points for every dollar spent with Carnival, I could get up to 3% cash back total (2% x 1.5 = 3%).

 

Since the interest rate is a whopping 22.9% APR on this card, the key is to never carry a balance. I have never been charged a single penny in interest because I pay this card off multiple times per month. If you like to carry a balance, then this is NOT THE CARD FOR YOU!

 

I know it seems a little confusing and I would be happy to answer any questions about this. These are real numbers folks and you can take that to the bank!

 

Good luck!

 

Brad

[Wheels87]

I know that this all seems kind of confusing, but trust me, once you see it, you will understand. This card is a great card for people who do not carry a balance and who sail Carnival at least once per year or so.

[csharp419]

Mine is 13.99%apr

[Wheels87]

Mine is 13.99%apr

 

That's quite interesting...at first I thought you either had an introductory rate or were pulling my leg. I just checked it out and the rates have changed. My FICO score is 822 and I have never made a late payment on anything in my entire life, so I am pretty sure that I qualify for the best rate.

 

I will have to give them a call tomorrow.

 

Thanks!

[BattyL]

That's quite interesting...at first I thought you either had an introductory rate or were pulling my leg. I just checked it out and the rates have changed. My FICO score is 822 and I have never made a late payment on anything in my entire life, so I am pretty sure that I qualify for the best rate.

 

I will have to give them a call tomorrow.

 

Thanks!

 

I had the Carnival card. Switched over to the Barclay Arrival Plus. You get 2x the amount on any purchase. I cashed in for $700.00 statement credit a few months ago and have 31,000 points again. I use it for everything. With your credit score you should have no problem getting it either. There were giving 40,000 extra points when I got mine. ;)

[jazm2011]

I have used this card for four years and have cashed in over 300,000 points, so I hope I can clear some things up for everyone. The above post is accurate, however, there are much better ways to redeem your points for at least 1% cash back, rather than the 0.7% in the example above.

 

First of all, on normal purchases, you get 1 point for every dollar spent on the card. This would include everything from gas, groceries, your power bill, cable bill, restaurants, or whatever else you purchase. Any purchases directly through Carnival, e.g. your cruise fare, excursions or on board sail and sign account gives you 2 points for every dollar. It's that simple. At any time, you can go to your account web-site and see how many points you have in your account to redeem. I currently have a little over 35,000 points waiting to redeem and it goes up every day with every purchase.

 

When you click on the "Manage Rewards" tab, it gives you four options to do so. They are: "Pay with FunPoints" "Onboard Gifts" "Gift Cards/Gift Certificates" and "Merchandise." At this point, I would highly recommend only using the "Pay with FunPoints" tab because you actually get more cash back than with any other. The other categories allow you to purchase onboard credit, gift cards to various retail stores/restaurants, etc., however, you don't get 1%, you get about 0.7% instead. If you choose "Pay with FunPoints" you will see any Carnival purchases that you have made in the last 180 days and will be able to get at least 1%, if not 1.5% cash credited to your account for those purchases. You can also pay for other travel, like recent hotel stays, etc., however, again, you will get less than 1% cash back for those.

 

Below, I will list out the options I have right now when I select the $4,000+ cruise fare that I paid in May:

 

Cash Back Points to redeem

 

$500.00 33,333

$450.00 30,000

$400.00 26,667

 

As you can see, I am getting 1.5% cash back for the points I am redeeming which is much better than the 0.7% cash back if I chose to purchase onboard credit in advance. Also, if you think about it, since I already got 2 points for every dollar spent with Carnival, I could get up to 3% cash back total (2% x 1.5 = 3%).

 

Since the interest rate is a whopping 22.9% APR on this card, the key is to never carry a balance. I have never been charged a single penny in interest because I pay this card off multiple times per month. If you like to carry a balance, then this is NOT THE CARD FOR YOU!

 

I know it seems a little confusing and I would be happy to answer any questions about this. These are real numbers folks and you can take that to the bank!

 

Good luck!

 

Brad

 

Excellent post.

Hmm, and interesting that the interest rates are all over the map. Your comment made me want to check mine out. Not that it really matters since I also pay my balance in full every month. But was surprised to see a completely different rate than the 2 of you who mentioned it. 16.24% and that's with an 800+ FICO. Hmm.

[Wheels87]

Excellent post.

Hmm, and interesting that the interest rates are all over the map. Your comment made me want to check mine out. Not that it really matters since I also pay my balance in full every month. But was surprised to see a completely different rate than the 2 of you who mentioned it. 16.24% and that's with an 800+ FICO. Hmm.

 

Perhaps it has something to do with where/how it was acquired. I applied onboard and was instantly awarded the card. Maybe sometimes they default to the highest rate just to sucker you in. I don't know, but it is very confusing.

 

Oh well. Thanks!

[Bostwick girl]

You definitely should give them a call! I usually call once a year and get a reduction every time. My current rate is 9.9%. Also, in addition to the usual 1 or 2 points per dollar, if you go thru the rewards website and use the vendors listed there, you can get extra points on your purchases as well.

[Seattlecruisers98021]

I don't have many points but was checking to see if I could use them for any on board credit. I found that a $50 on board credit is 7200 Points but $50 for the Cruise Cash Bar is only 5000 points. $75 cruise cash bar is 7500 Points. :)

[sublarry]

Mine is 13.99%apr

 

 

Mine is 13.24%

 

 

Sublarry

[Isasprings]

You definitely should give them a call! I usually call once a year and get a reduction every time. My current rate is 9.9%. Also, in addition to the usual 1 or 2 points per dollar, if you go thru the rewards website and use the vendors listed there, you can get extra points on your purchases as well.

 

I just check mine and is 10.13.

[factotumdeb]

Excellent thread. Love the clear explanation as well as the rate checking info!

Thanks again fellow cruisers. :)

[bassmaster150]

I have used this card for four years and have cashed in over 300,000 points, so I hope I can clear some things up for everyone. The above post is accurate, however, there are much better ways to redeem your points for at least 1% cash back, rather than the 0.7% in the example above.

 

First of all, on normal purchases, you get 1 point for every dollar spent on the card. This would include everything from gas, groceries, your power bill, cable bill, restaurants, or whatever else you purchase. Any purchases directly through Carnival, e.g. your cruise fare, excursions or on board sail and sign account gives you 2 points for every dollar. It's that simple. At any time, you can go to your account web-site and see how many points you have in your account to redeem. I currently have a little over 35,000 points waiting to redeem and it goes up every day with every purchase.

 

When you click on the "Manage Rewards" tab, it gives you four options to do so. They are: "Pay with FunPoints" "Onboard Gifts" "Gift Cards/Gift Certificates" and "Merchandise." At this point, I would highly recommend only using the "Pay with FunPoints" tab because you actually get more cash back than with any other. The other categories allow you to purchase onboard credit, gift cards to various retail stores/restaurants, etc., however, you don't get 1%, you get about 0.7% instead. If you choose "Pay with FunPoints" you will see any Carnival purchases that you have made in the last 180 days and will be able to get at least 1%, if not 1.5% cash credited to your account for those purchases. You can also pay for other travel, like recent hotel stays, etc., however, again, you will get less than 1% cash back for those.

 

Below, I will list out the options I have right now when I select the $4,000+ cruise fare that I paid in May:

 

Cash Back Points to redeem

 

$500.00 33,333

$450.00 30,000

$400.00 26,667

 

As you can see, I am getting 1.5% cash back for the points I am redeeming which is much better than the 0.7% cash back if I chose to purchase onboard credit in advance. Also, if you think about it, since I already got 2 points for every dollar spent with Carnival, I could get up to 3% cash back total (2% x 1.5 = 3%).

 

Since the interest rate is a whopping 22.9% APR on this card, the key is to never carry a balance. I have never been charged a single penny in interest because I pay this card off multiple times per month. If you like to carry a balance, then this is NOT THE CARD FOR YOU!

 

I know it seems a little confusing and I would be happy to answer any questions about this. These are real numbers folks and you can take that to the bank!

 

Good luck!

 

Brad

 

So wait.....if you get 1 point per dollar spent, and it takes 33,333 points to get $500....does that mean you just spent $33,333.00 just to get $500?? How does that make any sense?

[RecoveryDude]

So wait.....if you get 1 point per dollar spent, and it takes 33,333 points to get $500....does that mean you just spent $33,333.00 just to get $500?? How does that make any sense?

 

Yes, that's what that means ... but keep in mind it depends on how much "carnival" purchases were made ... as those earn 2X points - and I have this card too ... and I use it like i'm sure this poster does ... I use this card for ALL my "everyday" purchases, that I would typically use my debit card for, but instead, I use this card. A couple times a month, I make payments from my checking account, and I NEVER carry a balance either.

 

In essance, this card "rewards" me for using it as opposed to my debit card.

 

Hope that makes sense and clears things up for you!

 

Jeff aka Recovery Dude :)

[Jana60]

I have used this card for four years and have cashed in over 300,000 points, so I hope I can clear some things up for everyone. The above post is accurate, however, there are much better ways to redeem your points for at least 1% cash back, rather than the 0.7% in the example above.

 

First of all, on normal purchases, you get 1 point for every dollar spent on the card. This would include everything from gas, groceries, your power bill, cable bill, restaurants, or whatever else you purchase. Any purchases directly through Carnival, e.g. your cruise fare, excursions or on board sail and sign account gives you 2 points for every dollar. It's that simple. At any time, you can go to your account web-site and see how many points you have in your account to redeem. I currently have a little over 35,000 points waiting to redeem and it goes up every day with every purchase.

 

When you click on the "Manage Rewards" tab, it gives you four options to do so. They are: "Pay with FunPoints" "Onboard Gifts" "Gift Cards/Gift Certificates" and "Merchandise." At this point, I would highly recommend only using the "Pay with FunPoints" tab because you actually get more cash back than with any other. The other categories allow you to purchase onboard credit, gift cards to various retail stores/restaurants, etc., however, you don't get 1%, you get about 0.7% instead. If you choose "Pay with FunPoints" you will see any Carnival purchases that you have made in the last 180 days and will be able to get at least 1%, if not 1.5% cash credited to your account for those purchases. You can also pay for other travel, like recent hotel stays, etc., however, again, you will get less than 1% cash back for those.

 

Below, I will list out the options I have right now when I select the $4,000+ cruise fare that I paid in May:

 

Cash Back Points to redeem

 

$500.00 33,333

$450.00 30,000

$400.00 26,667

 

As you can see, I am getting 1.5% cash back for the points I am redeeming which is much better than the 0.7% cash back if I chose to purchase onboard credit in advance. Also, if you think about it, since I already got 2 points for every dollar spent with Carnival, I could get up to 3% cash back total (2% x 1.5 = 3%).

 

Since the interest rate is a whopping 22.9% APR on this card, the key is to never carry a balance. I have never been charged a single penny in interest because I pay this card off multiple times per month. If you like to carry a balance, then this is NOT THE CARD FOR YOU!

 

I know it seems a little confusing and I would be happy to answer any questions about this. These are real numbers folks and you can take that to the bank!

 

Good luck!

 

Brad

 

Actually out to sea's post was inaccurate if he was talking about statement credit. It does not cost 7400 points to get $50 statement credit. I have applied for and received $50 statement credit 12 times in the past three years with the last time being only a few weeks ago. Each time the $50 statement credit cost me 5000 points.

[ScottsSweetie]

It takes some planning and work, but using points on cards and through other loyalty programs can really add up.

 

We took a cruise a few years ago - flew to L.A. on frequent flier points (cost us $10 each), rented a car with American Express points, had 2 nights hotel pre-cruise and 1 night post-cruise on hotel points, and a $500 certificate for our cruise.

 

DH travels a lot and usually stays in Hampton Inns (Hilton points). Hilton offers a $250 certificate for 240,000 points. We also have the Hilton Honors credit card which accumulates points into this same system. I also can shop online through the Hilton website and earn points that way. He uses an American Express card for work, and those points can be used either on their own for travel or rental cars, or they can be converted to Hilton Honors points at a rate of 1.5:1 (100 AX points = 150 Hilton points).

 

I just booked a low-budget quick getaway not using any points, but I earned AX points because I put the trip on our personal card (which I will pay off) and we earned 6,000 Hilton points because we booked through their agency.

 

We have redeemed at least $1000 in certificates so far, with $500 worth of certificates waiting for us to use now. Yes, we have spent a lot of money to make these points, but it's money we would be spending anyway - why not let your purchases work for you? :D

[MrPaulAR]

I had the Carnival card. Switched over to the Barclay Arrival Plus. You get 2x the amount on any purchase. I cashed in for $700.00 statement credit a few months ago and have 31,000 points again. I use it for everything. With your credit score you should have no problem getting it either. There were giving 40,000 extra points when I got mine. ;)

This is so much a better card for generic travel. 2 points on every purchase for any travel, not just carnival.

[Plant]

This is so much a better card for generic travel. 2 points on every purchase for any travel, not just carnival.

 

FYI, there's an $89.00 fee after the first year. If you charge a lot it might be worth it, but I try to avoid any cards with fees. YMMV :).