Q: My husband and I splurge on a Princess cruise every year or two, but lately, it’s becoming harder for us to afford it. Would it make sense for me to get their Visa credit card for the rewards program?

A: According to Good.is the average cruise ship with a capacity of 2,915 passengers only gets 0.009  MPG (or in other words, a gallon only moves the ship a few dozen feet!). Given the high fuel prices these days, it’s understandable why it costs more to book a cruise!

But is the Princess credit card for cruises going to help make them more affordable? Well, here’s how the rewards work…

• 1 point per dollar on regular spending
• 2 points per dollar on purchases from Princess Cruises, including those made on-board

But that information is useless unless you know what the points can buy! I did some research to find out the redemption options available and here are a few examples…

Cruise Discounts

• 10,000 points = $100 off
• 20,000 points = $200 off
• 40,000 points = $500 off
• 60,000 points = $750 off

As you can see, the lower tiers give you 1 cent value per point. The higher you go, the more bang for your buck. It goes up to 160,000 points which equals $2,000 off… that’s a 1.25% rebate

Free Cruises

• 200,000 points = free cruise up to $3,000
• 265,000 points = free cruise up to $4,000
• 375,000 points = free cruise up to $7,500

The 200k points gets you up to a 1.5% rebate. Keep in mind though, that’s on a cruise “up to” $3,000. So if the price was only $2,000 you would only be getting a 1% rebate.

At the top of the tier, the 375k points equals up to a 2% rebate. But again, keep in mind that if your cruise was only $5,000 you are only getting 1.33%.

Other Options
The credit card rewards can be used to buy onboard services, meals, merchandise, etc. They can also be redeemed for airfare credit at a rate of 1 cent per point (25k, 40k, or 50k points can be used at a time). While these additional options are nice to have, it appears the best value is by using the points for higher tiered discounted/free cruises.

Verdict?

There’s no annual fee, which is a plus. The rewards value is good but mostly at the higher tiers. I would only consider the Princess Cruises credit card if you are a big spender and can rake up hundreds of thousands in points.

More lucrative options…

As mentioned above, 160,000 points (which would require $160,000 in regular spending) will only get you $2,000 off which works out to a 1.25% rebate.  A more rewarding option would be the Blue Sky card from American Express because it gives a straight 1.33% rebate that can be used not just for airfare purchases, but also cruises. And like the Princess Cruises Visa card, it has no annual fee.

Or if you don’t mind paying a low annual fee, the Discover Escape is a top pick because it gives a straight 2% rebate that can be applied to any travel purchase, whether it be a Princess cruise or something else.

This review was written March 2011