United Airlines just made cruising a lot more rewarding for MileagePlus members. Through the United Cruises portal, you can now earn up to 200,000 bonus miles when you book an eligible sailing, on top of the miles you'd normally rack up for the purchase.
Here's what each participating cruise line is offering right now:
- Ponant Explorations: up to 200,000 bonus miles
- HX Expeditions: up to 100,000 bonus miles
- Seabourn Cruises: up to 100,000 bonus miles
- Silversea Cruises: up to 100,000 bonus miles
- Holland America Line: up to 25,000 bonus miles
- Paul Gauguin Cruises: up to 25,000 bonus miles
- Princess Cruises: up to 20,000 bonus miles
- Windstar Cruises: up to 10,000 bonus miles
The catch: bonus miles scale with what you spend, not the other way around. That headline 200,000-mile bonus is tied to a 15-night Ponant North Pole expedition with fares starting around $53,000 for a balcony stateroom. If you're chasing a realistic redemption, Windstar's smaller bonuses attach to trips that start under $2,500.
Where this gets genuinely good: the bonus stacks with your existing earning rate. Holders of a United co-branded credit card typically earn 4 miles per dollar on any stateroom, jumping to 7 miles per dollar on balconies and suites. The United Quest Card and United Club Infinite Card both earn bonus miles on United purchases before you even factor in the cruise promotion, capped at 45,000 bonus miles per booking. Combine that with the line-specific bonus and portal-only discounts (some Silversea and Alaska sailings are showing up to 45% off suite fares plus onboard credit), and the math starts to look a lot better than booking direct.
If you hold United Premier elite status, check Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania, and Regent Seven Seas bookings specifically. Premier members get extra perks on those three lines that don't show up for general MileagePlus members.
Should you book now? United hasn't published an end date, which usually means one of two things: it's a rolling promo that could vanish without warning, or it'll quietly taper off line by line. If you already had a cruise on your radar, price it out through the United Cruises portal before booking anywhere else. If you're cruise-curious but not committed, this is worth a bookmark rather than an impulse buy given how much the entry price varies by line.
Don't have a United card yet? The United Explorer Card is the easiest entry point to unlock the higher per-dollar earning rate before you book.
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