Key Aspects:
- Carnival Cruise Line has revealed the dated, ship-specific designs for the Carnival Rewards Diamond and Platinum pins.
- Guests at those status levels can pick up the appropriate pin from the onboard photo gallery for sailings beginning September 1, 2026 and later.
- Pins for Gold status guests have been discontinued with the Carnival Rewards program.
Loyal cruise guests love to collect items that document their cruise history, whether those are onboard identification cards, photos for a gallery wall, holiday ornaments, or in the case of Carnival Cruise Line, loyalty pins.
The dated, ship-specific pins have been popular Carnival souvenirs throughout the now-ending Very Important Fun Person (VIFP) program, with each pin showcasing the ship name, year of the sailing, and a unique annual design. Subtle differences in coloration and style differentiated the loyalty level of the pins, whether Gold, Platinum, or Diamond.
Carnival Cruise Line’s brand ambassador, John Heald, has now revealed the design for the loyalty pins under the Carnival Rewards program that begins on Tuesday, September 1, 2026.
“Here are the images of the Carnival Rewards Platinum and Diamond ship specific pins which can be collected from the photo gallery on cruises that start from September 1 onward,” Heald confirmed in a Facebook post on Monday, August 31.
The designs for both circular pins are very similar. An image of the applicable Carnival cruise ship is centered in the circle, with “Carnival Rewards” and the iconic Carnival cruise ship whale tail funnel logo at the top.
The pin’s year is at the bottom of the design, a key feature many guests want to note their cruise history rather than a generic, undated design that would not highlight when guests enjoyed different ships.
For Platinum guests, the framing of the pin is silver and has red, gold, and platinum dots in graduated sizes in the upper left quadrant to denote the status level. “Platinum” is also written along the upper border of the pin.
Diamond pins are slightly different with red, gold, platinum, and diamond dots in the upper left quadrant. The diamond dot is largest and has a faceted look but it is unclear whether it may actually be a gemstone or just a brighter white metal. “Diamond” is written along the pin’s upper border, the same as with the Platinum design.
Carnival Cruise Line has typically released new pin designs every year with different stylized elements and a unique overall look. It is unknown whether the new Carnival Rewards pins will also have different designs from year-to-year.
Who Gets the Pins?
The commemorative pins are available to Platinum and Diamond level guests, though pins for the Gold loyalty level have been discontinued.
To collect their pins, guests will need to visit the Pixels Photo Gallery onboard during their sailing. A list of Diamond and Platinum guests is available there and guests’ names are checked off as they claim the appropriate pins.
The need to visit Pixels to claim the commemorative pins has been the practice since 2021 when cruises restarted after the industry-wide pandemic suspension. Previously, pins were left in guests’ staterooms, but the change was implemented to minimize how many individuals come-and-go into staterooms.
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By having guests collect their pins, the gifts are not discarded or lost if guests prefer not to keep them, which can also be better inventory management.
Cruise Hive has reported when the pins do run out and guests are not able to collect them, however. This may happen toward the end of the year when supplies become more limited.
In January 2026, shipping delays with new pins for the year caused many guests to miss out on the collectible. John Heald confirmed during those delays that guests could contact customer service after their sailings to request pins to be mailed to them if they were unable to get them onboard.
