Key Aspects:
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings will now match loyalty status across all three of its cruise brands, giving guests even more travel options and benefits.
- Requests for matching must be submitted before setting sail and status matching will be determined on a cruise-by-cruise basis.
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is the second major cruise company to offer a loyalty match between lines, following Royal Caribbean Group’s similar program.
At a time when cruise line loyalty and status has become a hot button topic, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) has announced its new Loyalty Status Honoring Program across all three of its cruise brands beginning October 15, 2025.
This will include the Latitudes Rewards of Norwegian Cruise Line, the Oceania Club of Oceania Cruises, and the Seven Seas Society of Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
“We want our guests to feel rewarded whenever they choose to sail within our family of award-winning cruise brands,” said Harry Sommer, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
“With the new Loyalty Status Honoring Program, our guests can experience more of what makes each brand special, while still enjoying the loyalty recognition they’ve worked hard to achieve.”
The new integration of all three programs will apply for all sailings departing on or after Wednesday, October 15, 2025 and will apply on all 34 ships in the combined fleets.
On a cruise-by-cruise basis, guests will have their loyalty tier honored at the closest corresponding tier on each brand. The intent is to encourage “brand exploration” by recognizing guests across the different lines.
In effect, guests will gain loyalty in each different cruise line, no matter which one they set sail with.
In this way, if guests feel they want a different experience or if one cruise line may no longer fit their vacation preferences, they can choose a different line and still enjoy loyalty benefits without “starting over” as novice members.
Guests will have to submit requests for their loyalty status from one brand to be honored on another. If guests have loyalty on more than one brand, the match will be made to the highest status a guest has earned. Requests must be submitted at least 10 days before the sailing date.
It is unclear if guests can request the honored status for multiple sailings with a different cruise line, though this may be clarified as the program commences and requests are processed.
Some benefits are excluded from the NCLH Loyalty Status Honoring Program, such as personalized gifts, cabin upgrades, and free cruises. Similarly, charter cruises are not eligible for status honoring. Benefits are subject to change at any time.
Frequent cruisers who have sailed with multiple cruise lines should be aware that this honoring program is only between cruise lines owned by Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings: Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, and Oceania Cruises.
The program does not match the status from other cruise lines, such as Carnival Cruise Line, MSC Cruises, or Virgin Voyages.
Why Status Match Matters
With Carnival Cruise Line’s recent shakeup as it sunsets the Very Important Fun Person (VIFP) program and replaces it with the new Carnival Rewards program, it has become clear to all cruise lines just how much frequent cruisers value loyalty.
Loyal cruisers are, of course, aware that benefits do change over time. Some perks are discontinued because they may no longer be popular or practical, or new loyalty tiers are added as programs continue to grow.
By matching status across its brands, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is demonstrating that it values its guests but also recognizes that their cruising preferences may also change over time.
This is similar to the loyalty status match that Royal Caribbean Group announced in mid-2024, which has permitted their “loyal to Royal” guests to enjoy benefits on Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises as well.
There is no similar program between lines in the Carnival Corporation & plc family, which would include not only Carnival Cruise Line but also Princess Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, Holland America Line, and more.
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Carnival has stated multiple times that the products offered by the different lines, as well as the vast differences in experiences and pricing between them, makes such a program impossible.
