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Delta Cruises (formerly SkyMiles Cruises) is a great way to earn SkyMiles. On all bookings, you'll earn a flat 2X SkyMiles per dollar spent and can occasionally leverage lucrative promotions. Depending on how much you're spending on a cruise, this new earning rate can be far more rewarding than the previous program — which was a flat rate based on the length of your cruise.
In this article, we'll cover everything you need to know about earning Delta SkyMiles on cruises.
Page Contents
The New Delta Cruises Platform
Previously, SkyMiles Cruises was set up as a separate company from Delta but allowed both earning and redeeming of SkyMiles for cruises worldwide. Now, the platform is rebranded to Delta Cruises and is operated by World Travel Holdings. World Travel Holdings manages all the cruise booking portals for loyalty programs, such as United, American Airlines, Virgin Red, and Marriott.
Delta Cruises lets SkyMiles members book cruises with 21 cruise lines, including all major lines: Norwegian, Carnival, Princess, Royal Caribbean, etc. In addition to earning miles, you often can find far better deals than booking directly with the cruise line.
Find a better price elsewhere? Delta Cruises offers a 110% refund of the price difference if you find a better deal elsewhere within 48 hours of booking
Earn SkyMiles Through Delta Cruises
Delta Cruises offers a flat 2X miles per dollar spent on cruises. That's a big change from the fixed bonus miles that SkyMiles Cruises used to offer.
With the old platform, members would earn between 1,500 to 13,000 Delta SkyMiles per cruise, depending on the cruise's length and other factors. To get the maximum 13,000 bonus miles, members would need to book a cruise of 13+ nights. The average seven-night cruise would earn 3,000 bonus miles.
Earning 2X miles per dollar could get members significantly more rewards, depending on the cruise they book. Based on reports, the average fare of a cruise in 2024 is roughly $150–$245 per night per passenger. That equates to around $2,100–$3,430 for a seven-night cruise for two. Note: That's just the base fare, not including port fees, onboard spending, and gratuities.
Now, Delta members earn 5,600 miles on that cruise — instead of 3,000 miles offered by SkyMiles Cruises in the past. In recent AwardWallet redemptions, users have gotten an average of 1.34¢ from their Delta SkyMiles. At that rate, you're getting an average return of around $76 on your cruise. That's enough for some economy flights in North America.
A big caveat: The 2X bonus miles only applies to the base fare of the cruise. You won't earn miles on taxes and fees, travel insurance, port charges, or expenses. And these can amount to a large portion of your total cost.
[Expired Offer, Travel Window Still Open] Up to 275,000 Miles on Select Cruises Booked by April 30, 2024
Delta Cruises has offered promotions from time to time. Currently, Delta SkyMiles members can earn up to 275,000 SkyMiles on Regent Seven Seas Cruises booked by April 30, 2024. How many SkyMiles you earn depends on the length of the cruise and whether the cruise departs in 2024 or 2025. Note that not all Regent Seven Seas Cruises have this deal. Make sure to look for the offer when making a booking.
For 2024 departures, SkyMiles members can earn the following bonus SkyMiles:
- 50,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 12 nights or less.
- 75,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 13 or 14 nights.
- 125,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 15–20 nights.
- 275,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 21 nights or more.
Earn the following bonus SkyMiles on 2025 departures:
- 25,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 12 nights or less.
- 50,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 13 or 14 nights.
- 100,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 15–20 nights.
- 250,000 bonus SkyMiles for sailings of 21 nights or more.
Bonus SkyMiles are in addition to earning 2X SkyMiles per dollar spent on the cruise. Many Regent Seven Seas Cruises are available in Delta Cruises for up to 72% off, making this a fantastic deal.
Example cruise
For instance, book a 24-night Radiant Amazon cruise departing on November 17, 2024 for as little as $12,599 ($525 per night). You will earn 25,198 SkyMiles for the 2X miles offer plus 275,000 bonus SkyMiles — for a total of over 300,000 SkyMiles. With AwardWallet users redeeming Delta SkyMiles at 1.34¢, you're getting over $4,000 in miles back on your cruise — nearly 1/3 of the cost of the cruise.
There is no limit to how many bonus miles members can earn with this promotion. The only real limitation is that members must book the cruise in April 2024.
How Does Delta Cruises Compare With Other Airline Cruise Portals?
Delta Cruises isn't the only platform where you can earn rewards miles on cruise bookings. CruisesOnly, a subsidiary of World Travel Holdings, manages booking platforms for several airlines, hotels, and other companies, partnering with the same 21 cruise lines. Some other airlines and hotels you can earn rewards points on cruises include American Airlines Cruises, United Cruises, Alaska Cruises, and Marriott Cruises.
Each of these booking platforms comes with its own rewards. American Airlines Cruises also offers 2X miles. Meanwhile, United MileagePlus cardholders earn a base of 4X miles on cruises.
From an initial search, the prices of cruises appear to be the same across all the cruise booking portals. That makes sense, considering they're all powered by the same booking platform. Thus, you should compare which will give you the type of rewards you want and whether there are any current promotions to boost your earnings.
Our Take
Despite the rebranding, Delta Cruises is essentially a third-party booking platform for 21 cruise lines, including all the major lines. Whether you book directly with the cruise line for the best service or with Delta Cruises to earn bonus miles will be up to your preference. The good news is that you may be able to earn far more SkyMiles than before with your cruise.
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