Due to confusion at cruise homeports that has led to some embarkation snafus, Carnival Cruise Line has clarified just how the loyalty perk of priority embarkation is meant to work.

This follows some miscommunication reported by guests in recent days, but the cruise line assures guests that priority embarkation is still available for guests who qualify, regardless of the homeport or arrival appointment window time.

Priority Boarding Still Valid

Rumors have swirled online recently that Carnival Cruise Line was removing the priority boarding benefit from VIFP guests as well as the Faster to the Fun benefits package.

The concern apparently began with confusion while embarking at Galveston – where Carnival Breeze, Carnival Dream, and Carnival Vista are currently homeported – with some priority guests reporting being sent to the back of the embarkation line when they arrived at the terminal, despite having “PRIORITY” printed on their boarding passes.

Instead, guests have reported being told they must adhere to the arrival time window they selected while checking in prior to their cruise, even if they had the priority designation. The rumor expanded with more reports that this was to be the case at all Carnival homeports.

Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald, who addresses hundreds of questions and requests from Carnival guests each day, discussed the matter with Carnival executives, and has clarified the procedure.

“There seemed to be some confusion on the wording we had online about this,” Heald said. “The practice is to allow Priority guests to join the Priority queue whenever they arrive and this will be reworded in our online information and reiterated to the home port embarkation teams.”

Carnival’s website states “Guests will only be allowed to check-in during their pre-selected arrival appointment,” but also clarifies that “Priority guests may board anytime between the earliest opening hour and at the latest, an hour before departure.”

A designated priority entrance or embarkation line is found in every homeport terminal but signage and location can vary, which may make the line more difficult to locate if travelers are arriving at a very busy time. Carnival is working to inform homeport teams about the procedure to ensure everyone receives the priority benefit if they are eligible.

Who Gets Priority Boarding?

Priority embarkation and debarkation is one of the most popular benefits given to Carnival’s most loyal “Very Important Fun Person” (VIFP) guests, those who have reached Platinum and Diamond status.

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To reach the Platinum level of loyalty, cruisers must have at least 75 loyalty points with the cruise line. To reach Diamond, the minimum is 200 points. Guests receive one point for every day they sail with Carnival – 3 points for a 3-night cruise, 7 points for a 7-night cruise, etc.

Travelers who purchase the “Faster to the Fun” package also receive the priority embarkation benefit. Faster to the Fun is available on a limited basis on Carnival cruises, with prices varying depending on the sailing date, cruise length, and number of guests in the cabin. The package only needs to be purchased once per stateroom for all guests in that cabin to receive the benefits.

At times, the benefit may not be available, such as when there are so many Diamond and Platinum guests booked on a particular sailing that it is impractical to offer priority boarding. This was recently the case on Carnival Venezia‘s maiden voyage. The benefit is also occasionally canceled on longer Carnival Journeys cruises that typically host many seasoned travelers.

To facilitate social distancing and prevent crowds as cruising resumed after the pandemic shutdown, priority boarding was also not initially available when cruising restarted, but was reinstated in November 2022, several months after Carnival ships began sailing again.

Carnival Cruise Line is being sued by a popular pizza restaurant in Miami and is subsequently countersuing to invalidate the restaurant’s claim.

The lawsuit is all over the naming rights for “Miami Slice” and how it applies to the restaurant versus Carnival Celebration and the pizzeria in the 820 Biscayne neighborhood, also named “Miami Slice.”

Pizza Worth Suing For

Carnival Cruise Line unveiled its 820 Biscayne neighborhood aboard Carnival Celebration in March 2022, months before the new ship debuted. The Miami-themed zone, located on Deck 8, includes the ship’s pizzeria, named “Miami Slice” to keep with the theme and offering the typical Carnival pizza offerings.

“Miami has been our home for 50 years, and in bringing a brand new ship to its port, we wanted to show some extra love to the city that helped us become who we are today,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, when the new neighborhood was announced.

Part of that real-life neighborhood, however, doesn’t quite love Carnival Cruise Line in return. The artisanal pizzeria Miami Slice, located just 2.5 miles from the cruise terminals of PortMiami, has sued Carnival for trademark infringement, claiming the cruise line has intentionally trampled the restaurant’s hard-won reputation by usurping the name.

“Not only did Carnival intentionally and unlawfully name the Carnival Celebration’s fast casual pizza restaurant ‘Miami Slice,’ Carnival added insult to injury by adopting a confusingly similar market presentation including astonishingly similar all capital lettering and featuring a similar limited menu of five styles of pizza in a quick service format,” the initial lawsuit reads.

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The suit was filed in April 2023, and also claims that the similarity in naming, presentation, lettering, and menu offerings will be damaging to the restaurant by becoming “confusingly associated with cruise line food.”

The 183,521-gross ton Carnival Celebration debuted in November 2022 and is homeported from PortMiami, sailing 6-, 7-, and 8-night Eastern, Western, and Southern Caribbean itineraries.

Carnival Countersues

Carnival Cruise Line has now filed a counterclaim, alleging that “Miami” is a style of pizza and as such, the generic term makes the restaurant’s name trademark registration invalid.

According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Carnival claims that Miami-style pizza features a Cuban flavor profile with thicker crust, thin sauce, and both mozzarella and gouda cheese.

In fact, the Miami-based The Big Cheese restaurant does serve a “Miami Slice” pizza with ham, ricotta, and pineapple topped with cinnamon (really), and Carnival also provided several other advertisements from different restaurants promoting “Miami-style” pizzas.

Furthermore, the name “Miami Slice” has been used by other companies, including a 6-part Bravo documentary about Miami plastic surgeons and a “Cozy Mysteries” book series.

Comparing the Restaurants

While copyright infringement lawsuits rarely target vastly different businesses that could not possibly be confused for one another, the fact that both the Miami restaurant and the Carnival Celebration eatery are pizza restaurants could lead to some misconceptions about whether or not they are, in fact, affiliated.

Miami Slice, which was founded in 2019, offers New York style slices with artisanal flair. The restaurant only offers five types of pizza: Margherita de la Casa, Pepperoni Proper, La Salsera with vodka sauce and pesto, Leeks on Bacon with garlic confit cream, and Mushroom Truffle.

Carnival Celebration‘s pizza menu offers Margherita, Pepperoni, Quattro Formaggi (four cheese), La Habana with ham and chorizo, and Picadillo with ground beef.

The Miami restaurant is an open-kitchen, bar-style service setting, while the cruise ship’s pizza is a grab-and-go counter with nearby seating.

While it is true that both restaurants have similarities, the same could be said about many other pizza restaurants, as the casual service setting and popular flavors of margherita and pepperoni are common for pizza restaurants worldwide.

Do you think the two restaurants could be confused? Have you enjoyed any slices aboard Carnival Celebration? Share your thoughts on the Cruise Hive boards!