Insider Strategies for First-Class Cruise Perks Without the Premium Price

Summary

Smart Travel: Upgrade Your Getaways – Episode Summary

In the latest episode of Smart Travel: Upgrade Your Getaways, hosted by NerdWallet’s travel experts, Sally French and Meghan Coyle, listeners are treated to an in-depth exploration of cruising—why 2025 is poised to be the year of cruising, insider tips for getting the most out of cruise vacations, and strategies to maximize travel budgets using credit cards.

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1. Introduction and Recent Cruise Adventures

The episode kicks off with Sally sharing her recent experiences aboard two inaugural cruise ships:

• MSC World America: Hosting nearly 7,000 guests, this colossal vessel is packed with family-friendly amenities, including a ropes course, multiple water slides, and a retractable glass-roof pool for year-round enjoyment. Sally was particularly impressed by the live Queen show, highlighting the ship’s commitment to top-tier entertainment. (06:03-09:16)

• Norwegian Aqua: Slightly smaller but equally impressive, the Norwegian Aqua features a unique hybrid roller coaster water slide—the Aqua Slide Coaster—which propels rafts at over 30 mph using a magnetic lift. Additionally, the ship boasts a Prince show with Broadway-caliber choreography and an innovative Indulge Food Hall offering diverse small plates from various cuisines. (09:24-11:55)

2. Current Travel News

Before delving into cruising, Sally and Meghan discuss recent updates in the travel industry:

• Southwest Airlines Fare Changes: Southwest has revamped its fare classes to more utilitarian names like Choice, Choice Preferred, and Choice Extra. Starting in the third quarter of 2025, assigned seating will be available, with perks for Rapid Rewards Priority Credit cardholders and elite members. Sally notes, “Having one of these cards can really make it seem like you're getting a lot of value out of holding them” (01:15-02:33).

• United Club Access Modifications: United Airlines now requires the primary cardholder or an authorized user to be present when using United Club passes, and entry must occur within three hours of departure. This shift is part of a broader trend addressing overcrowding in airline lounges. (02:33-04:32)

• Transfer Bonuses: Chase Ultimate Rewards is offering a 25% bonus on transfers to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club through June 15th and to KLM Air France’s Flying Blue program through May 31st. These bonuses can be combined with monthly promotional offers for enhanced value. (04:32-04:44)

• Under Canvas Promotions: From June 15th to September, guests staying at Under Canvas properties can earn additional American Airlines AAdvantage Bonus Miles per dollar spent, especially when stacking with World of Hyatt points via the World of Hyatt credit card. (04:44-05:43)

3. Deep Dive into Cruise Highlights

Sally provides a comprehensive overview of her cruise experiences:

• MSC World America:

  • Family-Friendly Features: Including an 11-floor spiraling slide and multiple water slides designed for family fun.
  • Adult Amenities: A serene botanic garden pool with a retractable glass roof allows for uninterrupted relaxation regardless of weather.
  • Entertainment: High-quality live performances, notably the Queen show, which Sally describes as "killer choreography" (07:04-09:16).

• Norwegian Aqua:

  • Aqua Slide Coaster: A high-speed roller coaster water slide that offers exhilarating thrills.
  • Indulge Food Hall: A new dining concept featuring diverse small plates across various cuisines, with standout options like a Texas barbecue serving smoked turkey breast.
  • Prime Entertainment: The Prince show surpasses expectations with Broadway-level production values (09:24-11:55).

4. The Resurgence and Future of Cruising

Amidst lingering pandemic concerns, cruising is making a robust comeback:

• Growth Projections: Triple A forecasts that 19 million Americans will cruise in 2025, a 4.5% increase from the previous year and 34% higher than pre-pandemic levels. (12:29-12:44)

• New Ships on the Horizon:

  • Disney: Introducing the Disney Destiny and Disney Adventure ships, following the debut of the Disney Treasure in 2024.
  • Norwegian: Launching the Norwegian Luna in April 2026, mirroring the Aqua’s success.
  • Virgin Voyages: The Brilliant Lady is set to sail in September 2025.
  • Royal Caribbean: Expanding with the Legend of the Seas series starting in 2026, complementing the Icon of the Seas, currently the largest cruise ship globally (12:53-14:10).

5. Comparing Cruise Value to Land Vacations

Sally and Meghan emphasize the cost-effectiveness and convenience of cruising compared to traditional land-based vacations:

• All-Inclusive Pricing: Cruises typically bundle lodging, standard meals, and entertainment into one upfront cost, reducing the complexity of budgeting for multiple expenses.

• Cost Savings: For instance, a Disney cruise can be up to 33% cheaper than a comparable trip to Orlando, factoring in hotel stays, theme park tickets, and dining costs. (14:10-16:18)

• Fewer Hidden Costs: Unlike land vacations, cruises minimize unexpected expenses such as parking fees or transport costs, although some extras like specialty dining and spa services are available at additional charges. Sally notes, “If you're not a drinker then you're not paying for alcohol anyway” (14:10-15:38).

6. Exclusive Insights and Tips from Experts

Insights from industry professionals enrich the discussion:

• Adam Malone, CMO of Norwegian Cruise Line, underscores the importance of maintaining elite status without expiration to reward long-term loyalty: “I have a hard time telling her that you're starting over” when addressing high-frequency cruisers. (22:14-23:17)

• Melissa Katie, a seasoned solo cruiser, shares her passion for solo cruising, highlighting cost benefits and the camaraderie found in dedicated solo lounges: “Sometimes cruise lines will coordinate events where we're all gonna meet for dinner at 6... or if you want to be alone, you can skedaddle and be alone.” (24:03-26:19)

7. Maximizing Savings with Credit Cards

The hosts provide strategic advice on leveraging credit cards to enhance cruise experiences and accumulate travel rewards:

• Chase Sapphire Reserve: Recommended for its $300 annual travel credit and 3 points per dollar on travel spending, making it a versatile choice for general travel expenses, including cruises. Additionally, the card offers valuable travel insurance benefits, as Sally recounts her experience of avoiding potential losses during a hurricane-induced cruise cancellation. (18:44-20:22)

• Norwegian Cruise Line World MasterCard: A no-annual-fee option that earns three World Points per dollar on Norwegian purchases and two points on air and hotel bookings. With Bank of America's preferred rewards program, users can boost earnings by up to 75%, translating to a 5.25% return on cruise bookings for high-tier members. (20:22-21:44)

• Capital One Venture X Rewards: Although a premium card with a $395 annual fee, it offers 2 miles per dollar on all purchases and the flexibility to transfer miles to partners like Flying Blue, providing indirect benefits for Delta flyers. (28:12-29:43)

• General Cashback Cards: For those seeking flexibility without specific cruise affiliations, cards like the Wells Fargo Active Cash and Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards offer 2% cashback on all purchases or selected categories, respectively. (27:30-28:38)

8. Listener Q&A

Addressing a listener's question from Colleen in Minnesota, Sally and Meghan discuss optimal credit card choices for someone who holds a Delta Amex card but frequently shops at Costco, which doesn't accept Amex:

• Citi Costco Anywhere Visa: Offers 2% back at Costco and 4% on gas up to $7,000 annually, making it suitable for heavy gas spenders. (26:37-27:30)

• Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards: Provides 2% back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% on a chosen category for the first $2,500 each quarter, with potential boosts for preferred rewards members. (27:43-28:12)

• Capital One Venture X Rewards: Suggested as an alternative for those willing to navigate transfer partner limitations, allowing indirect Delta flight benefits through Flying Blue transfers. (28:38-29:43)

Conclusion

Sally and Meghan wrap up the episode by reinforcing the value of cruising as a cost-effective, all-inclusive vacation option, especially when coupled with strategic credit card use. They encourage listeners to research and select cruise lines and cabins that align with their personal preferences and budget, ensuring memorable and financially savvy getaways.

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Notable Quotes:

• Sally French: “Having one of these cards can really make it seem like you're getting a lot of value out of holding them” (02:33).

• Adam Malone, CMO of Norwegian Cruise Line: “I have a hard time telling her that you're starting over” regarding elite status (23:17).

• Melissa Katie, Solo Cruiser: “Sometimes cruise lines will coordinate events where we're all gonna meet for dinner at 6... or if you want to be alone, you can skedaddle and be alone” (25:16).

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For more detailed insights and to explore the best credit card options for your next cruise, visit NerdWallet’s Smart Travel podcast page and access their comprehensive guides linked in the episode description.

Transcript

[Megan Coyle]

Sally, you've spent enough days at sea. I think it's finally time we get the full report on the cruises you just went on.

[Sally French]

Megan, I am so excited for this episode. I've been waiting for this. I recently went on two cruises back to back. I was working through the cruises, so I sat with my laptop, ocean views. And then after I was done with work, I got to go to the pool deck, the piano bar. Absolutely fantastic.

[Megan Coyle]

And a lot of water slides. I think I saw a ton of.

[Sally French]

Photos from those multiple water slides, including a roller coaster water slide called the Aqua Slide coaster. We will get to that.

[Megan Coyle]

Whoa. Okay. But for many travelers, a cruise is the ideal vacation, and they might be surprised to find that it's cheaper than a traditional land vacation.

[Sally French]

That's exactly right. We are going to be talking about cruises, but first, the news. Welcome to Smart Travel, a deep dive into the tips, tools and tactics to maximize your travel dollars.

[Megan Coyle]

I'm Meagan Coyle.

[Sally French]

And I'm Sally French.

[Megan Coyle]

And we're the travel nerds ready to help you plan your next big trip. As always, we'll talk about a few credit card companies that are nerd wallet partners in this episode, but that doesn't influence how we discuss them. The benefits, terms and fees mentioned were accurate at the time of posting, but things can change. Some offers may have expired by the time you're listening. For the latest details, follow the links in the episode description.

[Sally French]

One of these days, I'm really hoping to start the news section off with something other than bad news about Southwest.

[Megan Coyle]

Megan, that day is not today, unfortunately.

[Sally French]

Southwest fairs used to have fun names like Want to Get away. But now all the fair classes have boring names. Choice Choice Preferred, and Choice Extra. And don't forget, the basic fair they introduced previously is still there. The cheaper the fair you buy, the fewer seats you have to choose from when the assigned seating goes into effect.

[Megan Coyle]

And it's like, happening kind of soon. The assigned seating is supposed to be available to book starting in the third quarter of 2025. Southwest cardholders and elite members will have the ability to pick a standard or in some cases, preferred seat assignment within 48 hours of departure. So this is like kind of an extra perk. If you have a Southwest card or if you have elite status is now you can kind of get a free upgrade to some of the better seats that you have to pick.

[Sally French]

On the bright side, having one of these cards can really make it seem like you're getting a lot of value out of holding them, especially for a relatively low annual fee. So the Southwest Rapid Rewards Priority Credit card has a $149 annual fee, but it comes with an annual $75 Southwest travel credit and 7,500 Rapid Rewards points, while also now allowing holders access to things like that priority seating even on the lowest fare classes.

[Megan Coyle]

If you are a Southwest Flyer, it seems like having one of the co branding credit cards is almost a requirement to make it just a little better. Also some other changes happening to airlines and airline cards. The United Club Access changes went into effect last week. So if you have a United credit card that gets you one time United Club passes every year, this change affects you. It used to be that you could just give those passes to anyone, but now the primary card holder or the authorized user must be present when you go to the lounge and you also can't go for as long. You have to enter within three hours of your flight's departure time.

[Sally French]

Oof. This is a trend we are seeing. All sorts of airline lounges are looking to crack down to deal with overcrowding. So we've seen things like cracking down on how many guests you can bring and whatnot. United is just extending that trend and.

[Megan Coyle]

They'Re also expanding some of their lounges and redesigning them. Benjamin Din, our colleague we had on the podcast last week, went to the reopening of the United Polaris lounge at Chicago's O'Hare Airport last week and it looks so much more modern than the old design, although there's still like kind of a lot of marble. It's also 50% bigger, which is really.

[Sally French]

Nice, really nice to see because as we mentioned, that overcrowding is becoming increasingly an issue, so at least a larger lounge should help deal with that.

[Megan Coyle]

You should read Ben's review of the new lounge on the NerdWallet website. We'll put a link to the review in the episode description. By the way, a bunch of new transfer bonuses came out last week. Chase Ultimate Rewards is doing a 25% bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club through June 15th and a 25% bonus to KLM Air France's Flying Blue program through May 31st.

[Sally French]

And you know this is a great opportunity. You can stack this with the 25% flying blue transfer bonus with the Flying Blue monthly promo offer. These are their deals on award flights to and from Europe from a list of cities. Now that list changes every month. San Francisco is on the list this month, so let's go. That's where I live.

[C]

Woo.

[Megan Coyle]

They need to put LA back on the list. It's been months There are some other great transfer bonuses going on right now too. We have an article about all the transfer bonuses going on and we'll link to it in the episode description as well.

[Sally French]

Now, moving on to some domestic news. We have been talking a lot on this show lately about Under Canvas. This is a glamping brand. It is owned by Hyatt. They really leaning into promoting this brand. And it comes just in time for camping and national park season.

[Megan Coyle]

Yes. First days beginning June 15th and running through September, at any of the Under Canvas properties, you can earn one American Airlines a Advantage Bonus Mile per $1 spent on your stay at Under Canvas. That's on top of the World of Hyatt points you already receive.

[Sally French]

Now, you do have to register to earn those extra points. We will post a link to where you can register in the show description. Again, this is a nice one because you can stack it with the World of Hyat credit card if you have it. So with that card card members can earn 20 total bonus points per $1 spent at under Canvas. That one applies to stays between June 1 and September 7. Again, you also have to register on a separate link to qualify for that and you have to do that before June 10th. Wow.

[Megan Coyle]

We love a stack. And Hyatt and American changed their partnership this year and you don't earn miles on your Hyatt's days anymore. So this is a bit of a blast from the past. I'll take it.

[Sally French]

Yeah. All right. That's the news for now, y'all. I just spent the last week living at sea on not one, but two different cruise ships.

[Megan Coyle]

Did you steal Hermione Granger's Time Turner?

[Sally French]

No, I did something that felt a little bit unhinged at the time of booking, but it was also perfect in every way. I did three nights sailing on one ship that was the all new MSC World America. Then I spent one night in Miami. And then I hopped aboard a second ship, the Norwegian Aqua, where I spent another three nights.

[Megan Coyle]

Oh my goodness. If I gathered anything from your Instagram pictures, Sally, then spoiler alert. It looks like you had the best week ever on these cruises.

[Sally French]

I did Shameless Plug. You can see those photos on my Instagram at Save with Sally, where you can see what I was up to. And while we're at it, let's shamelessly plug you Megan over at Miles with Megan company. That's Megan with an H. Oh yeah.

[Megan Coyle]

But no cruise photos on my account yet. I need to add some. I've been on a bunch of cruises because my grandma loves Them. My whole family did one just last year in the Mediterranean on Princess Cruises.

[Sally French]

That is so sweet. All right, so cruises are the topic of today's episode. We are diving into why 2025 is shaping up to be the year of cruising and why it might just be your smartest vacation yet.

[Megan Coyle]

But first, I want to hear about those ships you just checked out.

[Sally French]

Ooh, Megan, I can tell you. So these ships, the MSC World America from MSC Cruises and Norwegian Aqua from Norwegian Cruise Line, have so much to do. They are filled with all sorts of tech innovations, just general design improvements. Now, both of the sailings I did were for the inaugural voyages of boat ships.

[Megan Coyle]

Wow, that really worked out timing wise.

[Sally French]

Oh, it was absolutely perfect. So I will say, because it was the inaugural voyage, you cannot just book these on cash. These were invite only trips reserved for people like cruise staff, travel agents, people who work on the ship, and media like me. So just to be transparent, when I talk about my sailings on both of these ships, I did not pay for these as I was invited media. Secondly, these ships were not nearly at full capacity, so my experience might also be different from future sailings on these ships.

[Megan Coyle]

Good to know.

[Sally French]

So what were your highlights on the MSC World America? I loved how much there was to do and it makes sense. The ship is huge. It has capacity for nearly 7,000 guests. That is not even including the crew, which is more than 2,000 people.

[Megan Coyle]

That's absolutely giant. It's in the ranks of the largest cruise ships in the world. Definitely not the largest, as Royal Caribbean holds that title.

[Sally French]

Ooh, who can forget Royal Caribbean's infamous icon of the seas, which has capacity for about 7,600 people. But clearly MSC World America is not far behind.

[Megan Coyle]

Just to put this in perspective, the last cruise I did was on the Sun Princess for my grandma, and that ship has a capacity of 4300 guests. And I thought that ship was like, pretty big. So I'm dying to know what else was on this ship you were on. Let's start with the MSC World America.

[Sally French]

I loved the whole top area of this ship. Basically designed for families with kids. And I am a kid at heart, so. Me too. It has a ropes course, a slide that spirals down 11 floors, multiple water slides. There was one where you could race the other person next to you. That's all for kids. For true adults, there was a botanic garden pool. Absolutely serene oasis. What was really neat is it has this retractable glass roof so you can still use it even if the weather is bad.

[Megan Coyle]

Ooh. That's nice.

[Sally French]

Yeah. Another thing I absolutely loved. Amazing Queen show, live performers, killer choreography.

[Megan Coyle]

I would have been out of my seat singing along. Queen never gets old. Okay, that was the MSC World America. What about the Norwegian Aqua?

[Sally French]

This ship was much smaller, but still huge. Family friendly amenities as well. The most standout attraction is this cool hybrid roller coaster water slide. I rode it three times.

[Megan Coyle]

A roller coaster water slide. Now those are my two favorite things in one, I saw your pictures, but you should tell the listeners how it works.

[Sally French]

Yeah. So basically you board this raft and once you're in, there's this magnetic lift that comes behind you. It shoots you off. So you go up the hill at more than 30 miles per hour.

[Megan Coyle]

Oh, my gosh, that's fast. Oh, yeah, it was Space Mountain at Disneyland. Doesn't even go that fast. I like those fast launches though, because it doesn't give you enough time to get nervous.

[Sally French]

Although I was totally nervous when they make you board and sit in the raft before takeoff. So nervous either way. Once you blast off the hill, then you're at the top of the slide and then you just kind of raft down like a traditional water slide. Super fun. I also told you I loved the Queen show on msc. I thought that was the best show I'd seen. But then I got on the Norwegian Aqua and they had a Prince show. Honestly, it was even better. I have to say. Amazing dance numbers. I know. So same choreographer who worked on Broadway shows like Motown the Musical.

[Megan Coyle]

It makes me really happy when cruises invest in the entertainment because it might be one of the few times you get to see a Broadway style show if you don't pay to see them when they come to your town or if you don't see them in New York. And these performers are super talented. I know several people who have performed on cruise ships, including a few ice skaters because I used to be one.

[Sally French]

Yes. Oh my gosh. I love when a cruise ship has an ice rink. Like, talk about floating city with full ice rink. Amazing.

[Megan Coyle]

Just to be clear though, I have never ice skated on a cruise. I just know people who have.

[Sally French]

So fun. Okay, we also have to talk about the food. Definitely one of the best cruise lines at sea in terms of food is the Norwegian Aqua.

[Megan Coyle]

Okay, what was the best thing you ate?

[Sally French]

Well, you know, I cannot narrow it down to one, so I will go with their new concept called Indulge Food Hall. Basically, you sit at a table that has an iPad. The Indulge Food hall is on a few other Norwegian ships, but this one added a Few new restaurants, including a plant based restaurant. So with this you order whatever you want and a waiter brings your food to you.

[Megan Coyle]

That's very ghost kitchen esque. What kind of food are we talking?

[Sally French]

Yeah, well, not totally ghost kitchen because you can actually see them cooking it in the windows like right beside you. But what's really cool is everything is a small plate. You can try a ton of things. There are all sorts of cuisines represented. So there is an Indian place with the good stuff like chicken tikka masala. There's a place called Noodles spelled N U D L S Noodles that serves all sorts of noodle dishes, pad thai, gnocchi, all the cultures. Honestly, my favorite though was a Texas barbecue place because you can order smoked turkey breast.

[Megan Coyle]

Oh my gosh. I know you're serious about hitting those protein quotas, so I'm sure you beeline straight there when you saw barbecue.

[Sally French]

You know me so well, Megan. By the way, we will post links to my reviews of both of those ships. They have tons of photos so you can see what I'm talking about for yourself.

[Megan Coyle]

We have a packed show ahead. We'll discuss new ships on the horizon, why people love cruises and the best credit cards to pay for them, and more. But first, this Sally. So remember those early pandemic headlines, Floating petri dishes.

[Sally French]

You know, Megan, the tides have turned. Earlier this year, Triple a projected that 19 million Americans will cruise in 2025. That would be a 4.5% jump from last year and that's 34% higher than pre pandemic levels in 2019.

[Megan Coyle]

It's a super impressive comeback story.

[Sally French]

Absolutely. And there are so many new ships on the horizon, which is a clear indicator that the cruise operators project even more growth.

[Megan Coyle]

So later this year, Disney is debuting not one, but two new ships. The Disney Destiny and the Disney Adventure. That's on the heels of the Disney Treasure ship which debuted at the end of 2024. Very excited to see what those look like.

[Sally French]

Oh, same. We got to get on those. I was just on the Norwegian Aqua. They are actually putting out a very similar ship called the Norwegian Luna that's coming out in April 2026. Very similar to the one I just sailed on.

[Megan Coyle]

Of course, I've also had my eyes on Virgin Voyages. Their next ship, Brilliant lady, will set sail in September 2025 and I'll round.

[Sally French]

Out our list with just one more.

[Megan Coyle]

Though of course there are so many more new ships.

[Sally French]

Of course, yes. But I am eager to see the Royal Caribbean Legend of the Seas that begin sailing in 2026.

[Megan Coyle]

Their ships are so huge and over the top. That's including Icon of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in the world. We have a story about it on NerdWallet.

[Sally French]

I loved clicking through that story. The photos in it were total eye candy. They have this thing called the Hideaway which is a giant Vegas style beach club. The Central park which is a garden on the ship. The Thrill Island Zone has six water slides. I feel like this next ship has to match that and probably more.

[Megan Coyle]

I'll definitely put that link in the episode description.

[Sally French]

The listeners need to see those photos. Now I mentioned earlier the phrase offering more and I want to talk about the value of cruise ships.

[Megan Coyle]

Now they can have a huge upfront sticker price which can be a turn off when you see thousands of dollars for your one week vacation.

[Sally French]

I totally feel you. And I do think though when booking, a lot of travelers don't realize either how much is included on a cruise ship or alternatively they are overlooking the hidden costs that can come up as a nasty surprise on a traditional land based vacation.

[Megan Coyle]

That's true. Now every cruise line has its own policies, but typically your cruise fare includes lodging, meals at the standard restaurants on board and most entertainment.

[Sally French]

Yeah, and you know we talked about like the Prince show or the Queen show and I felt like that could have been a $200 ticket on land right there. So it's all rolled up into the.

[Megan Coyle]

Price of your cruise and it's so convenient to go. You just like walk down the hallway. They also usually upcharge you for some extras like specialty dining. These are separate restaurants that you can book at alcohol packages, services like the spa and sometimes certain activities like gym classes, the arcade and attractions like those golfing things. Go karts, bungee jumping, whatever your heart desires.

[Sally French]

Yeah. So if you are willing to forego those upcharges, and honestly I am, there is so much to do that I don't even feel like I have time to do the bungee jumping anyway. Especially on cruise lines like Norwegian or Princess where the food is so good at the standard restaurants. I mentioned the Indulge Food hall. That's a standard restaurant and it was honestly my favorite that I didn't even want to go to the paid ones. Again, if you're not a drinker then you're not paying for alcohol anyway. Often a cruise can sometimes be cheaper than a similar vacation on land.

[Megan Coyle]

To save money you'd also have to plan your own shore excursions. And that's where things can get really pricey. You should tell everyone about that story you wrote about Disney vacation costs.

[Sally French]

Yes. So we priced out all sorts of Disney vacations in an article I did for NerdWallet. So we looked at for say a trip to Orlando, you would stay at a Disney hotel, you would pay for Disney theme park tickets and pay for Disney restaurants versus just going on a Disney cruise where everything is included. What I found was super interesting. Disney cruises can often end up costing as much as 33% less. Been a similar quality in length Disney World vacation. Once you add up all those little costs by going to Orlando, that cruise is actually cheaper.

[Megan Coyle]

But there is no Space Mountain on the Disney cruise, so you have to take that into account. You can read the full write up of the comparison. There's a link in the episode description. You guys know where to find it. I've been on a Disney cruise and I did love it, so I'll put that out there.

[Sally French]

And the other nice thing about cruises is there are far fewer unanticipated expenses than what you will see on a land vacation. I feel like I never know how to account for things like parking costs or how to budget for how much that Uber actually will cost. Now I will say there are some hidden costs still on cruises. I learned this the hard way when I got hit with a 20% automatic service charge in the spa when I got my nails done.

[Megan Coyle]

To be fair, that's becoming more common in businesses on land too. Like that's happened to me at a hotel recently.

[Sally French]

Absolutely. So these little charges can happen anywhere. I do like that. Unless you opt for those extra services like the spa that I did. You do, when booking a cruise, have a clear sense of the overall upfront costs at booking.

[Megan Coyle]

And to add on to that, with cruises, you typically pay once and you're done. So that means no awkward Venmo request from your cousin who owes you for dinner.

[Sally French]

Yeah, I hate that.

[Megan Coyle]

Oh, and also, I kind of like the theme cruises. I'm very interested. I've seen cruises for themes like Star Trek, Comic Con, Hallmark movies, Broadway. Like just anything you want. You can find it on a cruise.

[Sally French]

Last year I wrote about a Taylor Swift cruise.

[Megan Coyle]

Truly a cruise for every fandom for sure.

[Sally French]

And the experts agree. So while I was sailing, I met up with my friend Matt Roseboom. He is publisher of Attractions magazine. They cover theme parks and all sorts of other family entertainment, including cruises. He's been reporting on this stuff for over a decade now and I got some tips from him.

[Megan Coyle]

All right, let's hear it.

[Sally French]

So you cover all sorts of entertainment and family attractions. Why do people like cruising?

[D]

It's you. You pack once, you unpack once and that's it. You don't have to mess with any things included. You get to see other countries, other stops if you want to get off the island. We've gone on cruises just because the ships are so amazing. We just stay on the cruise all the time. Don't even get off.

[Sally French]

Last question. What is your best money saving tip for cruises?

[D]

You just got to check different times of the year. Be flexible with your time. Don't get a bigger cabin than you need. You're not in there that much. A lot of people like a window or a balcony. If you like to sit on a balcony, get one. If you don't care, don't get one. Get a room without a balcony. You'll save some money.

[Sally French]

So those giant state rooms are overrated now.

[Megan Coyle]

It wouldn't be a nerd wallet podcast without talking about credit cards and how those could possibly save you money on cruises or at least help you earn points for other travel.

[Sally French]

There are cruise branded credit cards out there, but unless you are sailing with that same cruise line all the time, like multiple times per year, most people are probably best with a general travel credit card.

[Megan Coyle]

I'd recommend travelers book on something like the Chase Sapphire Reserve. It comes with a 300 annual travel credit which would be automatically applied to your first qualifying travel purchase, which could be a cruise. And after that it earns 3 points per dollar on travel spending, including cruises.

[Sally French]

And Megan, I like that you made that recommendation for the card's underrated benefits. I'm talking about things like travel insurance that can come in handy if you end up not actually being able to cruise. I actually boarded a cruise last year in Florida at the tail end of Hurricane Milton. Luckily, my timing meant that everything went off without a hitch, but had that cruise been scheduled just a couple days earlier, that travel insurance would have come in handy.

[Megan Coyle]

Now that card has a $550 annual fee, so it's definitely not for everyone. That one is also best if you're trying to earn a lot of points on your cruise spending, but you might want to redeem those points for other types of travel like flights or hotel stays. If you're trying to use your credit card points or benefits to save on cruises, I'd look for offers like those Amex offers that you can add to your card that may apply to your cruise booking.

[Sally French]

One thing I do want to point out here is that you can book cruises through Amex Travel, but it is not a great redemption rate. Only 0.7 cents per point. Not amazing. If you were trying to use points to cover a cruise purchase, I would probably opt for some type of card that offers cash back at a rate of $0.01 per point.

[Megan Coyle]

It's easy to book a cruise with rewards if you have a card that earns capital one miles. For example, there's a way to redeem your miles to cover the cost of any travel purchase made within the last 90 days. And it's at a rate of $0.01 per point, so better than 0.7 cents.

[Sally French]

Those are all general travel credit cards, but I went on a mission to see if I could find a no annual fee card that gets more than 2 points per dollar spent on CRU. And you know what? I did. The Norwegian Cruise line World MasterCard, which is a co branded credit card with bank of America, has a $0 annual fee. It earns three World Points for every dollar spent on Norwegian purchases and then two points per dollar on eligible air and hotel purchases and one point per dollar spent on all other purchases.

[Megan Coyle]

World Points are worth $0.01 each and you can redeem them for stateroom upgrades, travel discounts, onboard credits, last minute cruises, car rentals, hotel stays, cashback. So this card is best for Norwegian Cruise Line fans. If you don't cruise with them, you probably won't have much to use those points on.

[Sally French]

But if you do, you can earn quite a bit even on non Norwegian purchases. This card is part of bank of America's preferred rewards program. With that, cardholders can earn bonuses between 25% and 75% more on the base earning of 1 point per dollar. So basically, depending on how much money you have with the bank, you are grouped into a tier. Of course, the more money you have in a Bank of America deposit or Merrell investment account, the bigger the bonus.

[Megan Coyle]

And just to give you an idea of the tiers, to get into that top tier with the 75% bonus, you need to have a minimum of $100,000 with the bank.

[Sally French]

Definitely not attainable for many people, but it can make sense if you have say an investment account with Merrell. If you do and you pay for your cruise with this card, Megan, you are looking at a 5.25% return. That's if you are booking with Norwegian Cruise Line.

[Megan Coyle]

That's incredible to see on a no annual fee card. Bank of America has a bunch of cards that participate in this preferred rewards program, so I'd recommend checking those out.

[Sally French]

Good tips. All right, moving on from credit cards, you can Also save money by earning elite status on cruises. It's similar to hotel and airline elite status. But here is a benefit you will find on most cruise lines. Your elite status never expires.

[Megan Coyle]

So nice. It's always so stressful trying to re up the status with airlines and hotels.

[Sally French]

I know. So there are a few exceptions to the no expiration date on cruises like Disney Cruise Line. Actually, a couple of years ago, they changed their elite status policy for the worse. Now status expires after five years of inactivity. So that's still better than what you'll see on most hotels or airlines.

[Megan Coyle]

Let's tell people. What does cruise elite status actually get you?

[Sally French]

It varies by cruise line, of course, but some of the perks of cruise elite status can include discounts on some of those extras we talked about earlier, like drinks packages, wifi, spa treatments, and then sometimes some benefits like early access to book cruises and exclusive discounts.

[Megan Coyle]

Nice.

[Sally French]

So I was able to talk to Adam Malone. He is the chief marketing officer of Norwegian Cruise Line. Adam told me about some of those cruisers with elite status and why he is opposed to putting an expiration date on those benefits.

[E]

There was a guest that had cruised with us over 130 times. I would have a hard time telling her that you're starting over.

[Sally French]

Yeah.

[E]

She has shown us so much loyalty over time that, you know, we want to make them feel rewarded. It's funny, sometimes we get the question about now we're five years out from COVID when we weren't sailing. The last thing I want to do is make somebody who has sailed with us and remained loyal to us for a long time and tell them, hey, you haven't been able to cruise or take a vacation or something happened in your life for a couple of years. Sorry. All those benefits that you're, you know, you're rightfully entitled to would not exist. So I, It's. It's honestly as simple as that.

[Megan Coyle]

Geez, 130 Cruises is a lot. Were there any people like that on your sailing?

[Sally French]

Oh, Megan. It is surprisingly not difficult to find people who have been on 100 or more cruises. And. And I very easily did that. For example, I met this wonderful woman. Her name is Melissa. Katie. She was solo cruising on the Aqua and just having the time of her life. Now, she previously worked as an entertainer on a few different cruise ships, but she loves cruising so much that she still does it for fun. She had some neat insights on solo cruising, so here's what she said about it.

[C]

I love solo cruising. I'm like a huge nerd about it. I loved it because it was cheaper. Because on certain cruise lines where they have the Solo package, you get a completely discounted rate. Sometimes it's cut in half. So they're not. They're not penalizing you for not having a partner. Amazing haters about it. And then they have solo lounges, which is really great, where you have a dedicated space to hang out with solo cruisers. They have a coffee bar so you can get your espresso.

[Sally French]

Okay. Amazing.

[C]

Your own private bar where they have a bartender. That's just for the solos. They have juice, water, snacks throughout the day and just a place to meet fellow people. And sometimes cruise lines will coordinate events where they're like, okay, we're all gonna meet for dinner at 6, and if you don't want to be alone that night.

[Sally French]

Right.

[C]

You at least have a group of people to go with. Or if you want to be alone, you can skedaddle and be alone.

[Sally French]

What are the best cruise lines for cruising solo? Yeah.

[C]

Okay. So I think, honestly, it depends on your vibe.

[Sally French]

Okay.

[C]

So I am not a partier. I. I like a quiet drink at the bar. So for me, like, Carnival wouldn't be a choice for me for going solo because I don't really want to be.

[Sally French]

Out partying at the club with people. Okay.

[C]

I haven't cruised Princess yet. I will be doing that soon, and I have a feeling it's going to be really great for solo because it's a more upscale, classy vibe, from what I've heard, and I've enjoyed ncl because if you do want to party, there's the option. But also if you want to go to the more chill places, like, I was just at a wine bar.

[Sally French]

Right.

[C]

Cool thing. And it was great. So it kind of. You can go either way, but you won't feel peer pressured to do one thing. So just know your vibe and especially, like, research the ship itself. Not even the whole line, but each ship.

[Sally French]

Okay.

[C]

And see what's going on and what you vibe with.

[Megan Coyle]

Yeah. I think her advice is sound. No matter whether you're traveling solo or with a group. There are a ton of different cruise lines out there. So if you want the best experience, do your research and find one that fits the vacation vibe you're looking for.

[Sally French]

Exactly right. All right, let's cruise on over to a listener question. This one comes from Colleen in Minnesota.

[Megan Coyle]

She says we have the amex card to get delta points, but we shop at Costco a lot. What would be a good card for that since they don't take Amex.

[Sally French]

Ooh, hitting us up with a Costco question. Colleen Just when I professed my love for Costco sheet cake last week.

[Megan Coyle]

I'm partial to the hot dog and drink for $1.50 personally, but this is a great question trying to maximize your savings by buying in bulk and earning travel rewards.

[Sally French]

But this one is tricky since Delta cards are issued by Amex and Costco only accepts Visa. If you want to pay with a credit card, I would say go with a cashback card and just use that money to either pay for a Delta flight in cash or just save that money to pay for any old everyday expense.

[Megan Coyle]

There's the Citi Costco Anywhere Visa card. It earns 2% back at Costco, which is surprisingly meh since the best co branded cards offer 3% or more at the actual brand.

[Sally French]

But hey, it earns 4% on gas on up to $7,000 per year, so might be good if you're a big spender on gas.

[Megan Coyle]

Otherwise there are some great cash back cards. We'll post a link in the show description to NerdWallet's guide to the best cashback cards, but cards we like include the Wells Fargo Active cash, which earns 2% cash back on all purchases, not just Costco.

[Sally French]

You might also consider something like the bank of America Customized Cash Rewards credit card. At first glance, it earns 2% back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% cash back on a category you can choose from on a list that's on the first $2,500 in combined choice category grocery store wholesale club purchases that quarter. But if you are part of a Bank of America's preferred rewards program, which we just talked about, then yes, you could boost that rate by up to 75%.

[Megan Coyle]

That means you could earn up to 3.5% cash back at Costco, depending on your tier of preferred reward status. The catches at Preferred Rewards is based on your balance, which we already talked about.

[Sally French]

Yes, another way to optimize your Costco runs is to look into rotating category cards. These offer bonus points on different categories every quarter, sometimes 5%.

[Megan Coyle]

Five percent is killer, but these can be annoying because these cards require you to opt into the category every quarter.

[Sally French]

Plus you only get the benefit that quarter. This is great if you can game it and align your annual Costco haul to the quarter that the bonus is 5%, but sometimes I find these things more trouble than they are worth. And then Colleen, I'm not sure if you would be open to a premium travel credit card, but you might be interested in something like the Capital One Venture X Rewards credit card. It earns 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases, so that would be Costco. From there you can transfer those miles to Capital One's transfer partners.

[Megan Coyle]

You mentioned being a Delta Flyer. So Delta is not a transfer partner of Capital One, but Air France and klm. Their loyalty program is called Flying Blue. They are one of the Capital One transfer partners. So since Air France and KLM are part of the SkyTeam alliance with Delta, you can actually transfer capital one miles to flying Blue in order to book a flight on Delta and possibly get some great redemptions that way.

[Sally French]

Tricky workaround. I love it. Of course, that card has a $395 annual fee, so not for everyone. But it has a travel credit which can go a long way in justifying the annual fee. Plus additional benefits like airport lounge access.

[Megan Coyle]

All right, that's the Show Cruisers. If you didn't pay for a WI fi package, make sure to download some smart travel episodes to listen to offline.

[Sally French]

I love it. And follow the show on your favorite podcast app, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio to automatically download new episodes. And if you are listening on Spotify, please leave us a comment or a question right there on the Spotify platform.

[Megan Coyle]

This episode was produced by Hilary Georgie. Claire Soci helped with fact checking and a big thank you to Nick Karisimi for editing our audio. You make us sound good. Thank you.

[Sally French]

So good. Thank you all. And here is our brief disclaimer. We are not financial or investment advisors. This info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes. It may not apply to your specific circumstances.

[Megan Coyle]

Thanks for listening. As always, we hope you're inspired to keep your passport full and your wallet even fuller. See you next episode.