Mike FriedmanWhen it comes to loyalty programs, cruise lines are way behind their colleagues in the airline and hotel businesses. Their cruise rewards program schemes are clunky, don’t have redeemable points and, at times, difficult to interpret. So I’m not sure why the Carnival parent company is launching a new cash back shopping rewards right now (Ocean Rewards), but hey, that’s their prerogative.
It’s no surprise, then, that the Carnival Corporation’s new Ocean Rewards plan for five of its brands (Carnival, Princess, Holland America, Cunard, Seabourn) feels like it was designed by Rube Goldberg. I spent some time navigating the site this morning.
How Ocean Rewards Works
Ocean points are earned through the the Carnival version of a cash back shopping portal. Buy certain items and they’ll give you back a portion of the purchase price in “Ocean Points.” You can redeem these points at the rate of 1 point equals $1 toward the price of a cruise or for various items onboard.
Earning Ocean Rewards Points
You earn points by shopping through OR’s shopping page. They promise up to a 10% (possibly 25%, which I will talk about below) refund on what you buy in proprietary currency, although it will vary by item. You can earn points for booking a hotel, buying gift cards or shopping for what seems like a random selection of goods. The gift cards show the most promise, some offering as much as six points per dollar spent.
Noticeably absent? Cruises themselves.
Redeeming Ocean Rewards Points
It took me a while to figure this one out. You need to sign up for the cruise reward program and then go to the redemption page, where you have to fill out a form to get a virtual membership card. Some time after you do that, a slider will appear on the redemption page, which you can use to indicate how many points you want to redeem. Thirty minutes later, it will deposit funds in your account. Got it?
They have, however, managed to do two smart things with the program:
- You can use your bank of points at any participating brand. Normally, brands operate in silos, e.g., If you’ve taken 50 Princess cruises, you still don’t get any benefits at Holland America, even though both are owned by the same company.
- Points can be used for any cruise purchase, online or offline. Since the cost of providing many products onboard the ship is significantly less than what you will pay for them, they can afford to offer you better value.
Ocean Rewards “Pain Points”
I’m a big fan of eliminating “pain points,” or the hurdles, no matter how small, that you have to overcome to complete a task. For instance, if it takes two clicks on links to get to a site, that second click is a pain point.
- Unnecessary Clickage: Speak of the devil. Ocean Rewards is difficult to navigate and requires too much work to get started. Why should I have to take so many steps to sign up, for instance? Why not just send me a card when I first register? And why can’t I see what rewards are available? You’re unable to access the redemption page until after you’ve earned enough points for it. Why not give me a “goal item” to shoot for.
- A Membership Fee?: Good lord, stop selling me things! Cruises are notorious for nickel and diming, but I hate the fact that they offer a “loyalty plan” with a premium offering that you have to pay for. You’re already making a commission when I buy stuff. No double-dipping.
- Offer Points On Cruise-Related Items: Don’t want to devalue the product by offering points for purchasing a cruise? Fine. But the points could certainly be a way to attract people to your proprietary excursions, or serve as a reward for buying an internet package.
Ocean Rewards Is Worth It If…
Rule #1 of our eight rules of points and miles says that you should sign up for every free program, even if you don’t think you will use it. So go ahead and register for the free program. You never know.
But this cruise rewards program is really only good for you if you sail on one of the participating cruise lines, since points can’t be cashed out. And don’t use them to make purchases that you wouldn’t have made otherwise. If you’re not a big drinker, it doesn’t make sense to buy a drink package, simply because it’s available.
And finally, don’t forget our second rule of points and miles: Whenever you buy something, you should get a rebate for it. Unless you know exactly what you want for your cruise, you’ll probably get better value through the cash back shopping portals.
