P&O Cruises are popular among Australians due to their affordability, offering a range of great entry-level cruises for families. Cruises depart from ports in all corners of the country bound for destinations across Asia, New Zealand and the South Pacific. If you’re after a short break, P&O Cruises are particularly ideal with itineraries as short as two nights.
But no matter how long your getaway is, every cruise gets you closer to some great rewards as a member of P&O’s loyalty program, Peninsular Club. In this guide we’ll cover the benefits of this program, plus how you can earn additional rewards when booking your next cruise.
How does Peninsular Club work?
For each night you spend onboard a P&O cruise, you’ll receive 10 points. Once you’ve accumulated 150 points, or spent 15 nights on board, you’re eligible to join Peninsular Club. Points are awarded after you complete a cruise. So unfortunately if you tick over to the next tier midway through your cruise, you won’t be able to access the perks until you next set sail.
Peninsular Club offers six member tiers. And, fun fact – they’re named after the seas and oceans where P&O ships sail! Here are the requirements for each tier.
- Pacific Tier – 150-500 points
- Atlantic Tier – 501-1,000 points
- Mediterranean Tier – 1,001-2,000 points
- Caribbean Tier – 2,001+ points
- Baltic Tier – 2,501+ points, plus 80-200 nights on board within the last three years
- Ligurian Tier – 2,501+ points, plus 201+ nights on board within the last three years
Note that the program’s two highest tiers – Ligurian and Baltic – require you to travel a set number of nights in the three years preceding the start of your next cruise, in addition to earning the required points.
So even if you’ve amassed enough points to move up to these tiers, you’ll also need to have a significant amount of recent cruise travels under your belt. If you don’t meet this requirement to retain Baltic or Ligurian status, you’ll simply soft drop to the next lower tier. This can make it tricky to achieve the program’s top tiers, but there are still excellent perks to enjoy across the entire program.
Peninsular Club member benefits
Members of Peninsular Club can access a host of benefits. While we won’t list the perks of each individual tier here, we’ll summarise the benefits that you can unlock as you progress through the program.
All tiers
- Onboard spend discount of 5-10%, depending on tier
- Gifts for guests under 17
Atlantic tier and above
- Glass of Champagne
- Lapel pin – awarded each time you enter a new tier
Mediterranean tier and above
- Cocktail party on cruises of eight nights or more
Caribbean tier and above
- 10% discount on bespoke P&O Cruises travel insurance
- Priority booking
- Annual gift
- Complimentary half bottle of Champagne per cabin
- Officer-hosted fine dining event on cruises of eight nights or more
Baltic tier and above
- Exclusive cruise discounts of 5% on select departures
- Senior officer-hosted fine dining event on cruises of eight nights or more
- 50% discount on machine washable laundry
Ligurian tier only
- Invitations to inaugural events where available
- Complimentary formal attire pressing
For a full and updated list of Peninsular Club benefits, visit the P&O Cruises website.
How do I join P&O’s loyalty program?
Peninsular Club – like some other cruise loyalty programs – requires you to actually complete a cruise before you can become a member.
In this case, you must have spent at least 15 nights onboard a P&O Cruise, which means you’ll have earned 150 points – the minimum required for the program’s entry-level tier.
Once you’ve racked up those points, however, you’ll automatically be enrolled into Peninsular Club.
In short, if you want to join P&O’s rewards program, you’d better get cruising!
Other ways to earn rewards on P&O cruises
Use a points-earning credit card to book your cruise
Big-ticket purchases like a cruise holiday are a great opportunity to boost your frequent flyer points balance if you play your cards right. Paying for your cruise and any associated costs, such as flights, using a credit card that earns points allows you to earn rewards on purchases you would’ve made anyway.
Plus, if you take advantage of a credit card sign-up offer, like the one below, you can generously boost your balance – and possibly earn enough points to put towards your next holiday! All you need to do is apply, be approved, and meet the minimum spend requirement. If you’re unsure just how far frequent flyer points can take you, check out some of our lavish Experiences using points.
Link a points-earning credit card to your onboard account
P&O Cruises are cashless, meaning you’re unable to directly make purchases using cash. You can, however, use cash onboard to load up your account.
But if you’d prefer to link a credit card to your account, Visa, Mastercard and American Express are accepted.
Similar to the point above, you can earn rewards by linking a credit card that earns points to your onboard account. So if you’re going to be making purchases on your cruise anyway, why not maximise your points while you’re at it?
Also read: Getting started with frequent flyer programs
Featured image: Adobe Stock
Community