Carnival Rewards™ Mastercard®

For most travelers, this card falls short of providing compelling value, even with no annual fee to worry about. Earning 1% back in FunPoints means rewards accumulate slowly, and the initial welcome bonus provides almost no upfront boost. You would need to put significant spending on the card just to offset a modest portion of a cruise fare.

Cruisers seeking to cut vacation costs will generally earn more value by choosing a standard flat-rate card that offers 2% cash back on all purchases. Using a higher-earning cash-back card gives you double the return on daily spending, which can then be applied directly toward cruise deposits, shore excursions, or onboard purchases with far more flexibility.