$100 Cruise Onboard Credit for the Rest of Your Life!

Here’s an overview on cruise shareholder benefits and how to get FREE onboard credit for the rest of your life.

“TeachingMillionaires.com has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. TeachingMillionaires.com and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.”

Ready to Set Sail?

“Children grow up, they don’t grow down” is our family mantra. We travel and plan adventures every chance we get. When it comes to big family trips where all food, lodging, and entertainment is already taken care of for us, there is nothing better than a cruise.

Cruise itineraries are usually published a couple years in advance, and I’m currently scratching my travel itch by booking three future trips with Norwegian Cruise Line. These reservations only require a small, fully refundable deposit. I paid using my Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card to take advantage of the superb Trip Cancellation / Trip Interruption Insurance.

What Are Cruise Shareholder Benefits?

How do I maximize these vacations? There is one truly unique tip to help you book a dream cruise and save money called cruise shareholder benefits.

The cruise shareholder benefits work like this … if you own a minimum of 100 shares of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. at time of sailing – ticker symbol NCLH – you get the following:

• $250 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 15 Days or More.
• $100 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 7 to 14 Days.
• $50 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 6 Days or Less.

This means you can get $100 onboard credit for week long cruises for the rest of your life! You read that last sentence right.  EACH of my three trips have $100 onboard credit because I own 100 shares of Norwegian Cruise Line stock.

I also get $100 onboard credit on any 7-14 day NCL cruise I book in the future.

Is Buying Cruise Stock a Good Idea?

Remember, onboard credit is as good as cash. You can use it to offset purchases made at the ship’s duty-free shops, shore excursions, spa packages, and it can even be used at the casino for a small fee.

With three future cruises already booked, I am getting $300 worth of value from this benefit.  There is a Shareholder Benefit Request Form you need to complete and certain terms and conditions apply.

Of course, I am not giving you investment advice, but the pandemic crippled the travel industry. Cruise stock prices plummeted. 100 shares of NCLH are cheaper than at any point a few years ago.

This was the perfect time for me to buy and secure these investor benefits for all my future sailings. Also, I fully expect NCLH stock to recover and become more valuable over time.

I chose Robinhood to purchase my 100 shares of NCLH cruise stock because of its ease of use, and they let you use $1,000 immediately even before your initial transfer is complete.  Trades are commission-free, and you can get one FREE stock just for signing up.

Webull and M1 Finance are other great options for buying stocks without paying any fees.

My family has a special place in our hearts for Norwegian because of its freestyle cruising vibe. If you’re partial to a different cruise line, these shareholder benefits appear to apply to Oceania, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, and Royal Caribbean and Carnival also have similar programs.

Ways You Can Save More Money

Want even more savings? Check your American Express card for a discount by activating Amex Offers. I took advantage of a one-time offer for $150 off $500 spent at NCL. 

These offers are targeted offers, so not every person or card has the same ones available.

The email confirming the cash back is usually sent instantaneously. Then it takes a few days for the $150 credit to show up on your account. These Amex Offers have been very lucrative for us over the years.

This is one of the reasons I consider American Express to be a valuable addition to anyone’s wallet. If you are eligible, I strongly recommend the AMEX Blue Business Plus card. It has no annual fee and earns 2X Membership Rewards points on every purchase up to $50,000 per year.

PS:  Wondering what I’m going to use that $100 onboard credit for?  Adding to my ornament and model ship collection of course!

David is a science teacher, world traveler, and credit card enthusiast.  He lives in downstate New York with his family of four and loves the outdoors. Check him out on Twitter @David_LaMagna.

Listen to Teacher Millionaires Podcast

“TeachingMillionaires.com has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. TeachingMillionaires.com and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered. I am not a financial advisor. The information I share is for educational purposes only and shouldn’t be considered as certified financial or legal advice. It is imperative you conduct your own research. I am sharing my opinion only.”