Book-now, pay-later financing allows you to book your travel right away but pay for it over time in smaller installments.
Just be aware that repayment terms, interest rates and credit reporting policies vary for any kind of buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) option. So compare carefully and make sure you can comfortably afford the payments before you commit.
- Best for flexible travel financing: Flex Pay
- Best for lodging: Expedia
- Best for families: Affirm
- Best for retail vacation purchases: Afterpay
- Best for rewards: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
- What are book-now, pay-later options and how do they work?
- Should you use book-now, pay-later for vacations?
- How will book-now, pay-later affect my credit?
- FAQs about book-now, pay-later
Best for flexible travel financing: Flex Pay
Why Flex Pay stands out: Flex Pay partners with leading companies, including major cruise lines, airlines and theme parks, to make it easy to book a trip and spread out the cost. Flex Pay’s partner page lists all travel companies and destinations that use its service. You can book directly through those companies and then use Flex Pay to pay.
Flex Pay is a BNPL option from Upgrade personal loans. It reports its accounts and payment activity to all three of the main credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — so using Flex Pay could potentially have some impact on your credit.
Pros
- No late fees
- Broad range of travel partners
- Finance up to $25,000
Cons
- APRs up to 36%.
- Limited repayment terms.
- Not available in Iowa, West Virginia, or Washington, D.C.
Best for lodging: Expedia
Why Expedia stands out: Expedia has two options you can use to pay for hotels without having to pay the bill upfront: You can filter hotels with the “reserve now, pay later” feature, book the hotel through Expedia, and then pay when you arrive. Or you can choose a three- to 24-month repayment plan through Affirm, Expedia’s BNPL partner.
Booking with an Affirm payment plan could impact your credit — Affirm reports its accounts and payment activity to Experian and TransUnion.
Pros
- Interest-free options in some cases, based on credit
- Finance directly through Expedia site
Cons
- APRs up to 36%
- Limited to Expedia partners
Best for families: Affirm
Why Affirm stands out: Affirm doesn’t just work with Expedia to provide book-now, pay-later financing. It also has partnerships with other family-friendly travel companies like Royal Caribbean cruises, Great Wolf Resorts and Hotels.com. You can use Affirm’s “Travel” page to select the hotels, resorts or flights you need, then book through their websites and select Affirm as your payment option. Remember that using Affirm can impact your credit because it reports to two of the credit bureaus (Experian and TransUnion).
Pros
- Payment plans up to 48 months
- Interest-free financing possible based on credit
- No late fees
Cons
- No refunds on interest paid on returned purchases
- APRs as high as 36%
- Down payment may be required
Read reviews about Affirm.
Best for retail vacation purchases: Afterpay
Why Afterpay stands out: As you plan your trip, you can use Afterpay to buy new luggage, clothing, sunscreen or other items for your vacation. Afterpay has partnerships with a lot of retailers that will allow you to finance your purchase, and you may be eligible for interest-free financing. You can shop using the Afterpay app or online on the partner retailers’ websites.
Afterpay does not report to the credit bureaus, so using this financing won’t affect your credit.
Pros
- Interest-free financing with a six-week, four-payment plan
- Larger trips may be eligible for terms as long as 24 months that are repaid with interest
- Financing from $100 to $20,000
Cons
- Hefty late fees
- Credit card payments only accepted on some payment plans
Read our full review of Afterpay.
Best for rewards: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
Why Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card stands out: The Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card lets you earn unlimited 1.5 points for every $1 you spend on your day-to-day purchases, and you can redeem your points as a statement credit to reimburse yourself for travel expenses like flights or hotel stays.
Plus, you can qualify for a sign-up bonus of 25,000 points if you make $1,000 in purchases over the first 90 days after account opening. That bonus offer equates to $250 of travel spending.
Like with any credit card issuer, Bank of America reports account and payment activity to the credit bureaus.
Pros
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Hard credit check when you apply
- No bonus rewards categories
Read more about the Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card.
What are book-now, pay-later options, and how do they work?
Book-now, pay-later” is a way of referring to buy-now, pay-later options for travel-related costs. Also known as point-of-sale loans, these services typically act as a short-term financing option — letting you split the cost of an upcoming vacation into weekly or monthly installments. Some shorter repayment plans may offer interest-free terms.
When you use book-now, pay-later, the company pays the retailer or travel company upfront on your behalf, and you then repay the amount over the agreed-upon term.
Book-now, pay-later services are sometimes more cost-effective than loans or credit cards, but how much you can finance, types of payment plans and costs may vary based on your credit.
Should you use book-now, pay-later for vacations?
Using book-now, pay-later for an upcoming vacation can make travel more affordable in the moment, but it’s still a form of borrowing and debt. Before committing to a plan, make sure the payments will fit into your budget.
Also remember that interest rates can cause your overall travel costs to be much higher than they’d be when paying in cash. For example, say you finance a $10,000 cruise to Alaska, and you use a book-now, pay-later plan with a 24-month term and 18% APR. By the time you pay off the trip, your payments would include nearly $2,000 in interest charges, bringing the total to about $11,981. Some platforms also charge fees for late payments, another way costs can add up.
When checking into buy-now, pay-later options, you can use the Credit Karma loan calculator to estimate payments and overall repayment cost.
How will book-now, pay-later affect my credit?
Some BNPLs including book-now, pay-later options for travel report payment plans and payment activity to the major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian or TransUnion). If you qualify for financing, the loan may show up on your credit report, potentially impacting your eligibility for other forms of credit, such as mortgages or auto loans. The impact could be positive or negative, depending on a number of other factors.
If you use book-now, pay-later for a vacation and later miss payments, the company may report the delinquent payments to the credit bureaus, which can significantly damage your credit.
Our methodology: How we pick the best personal loans
Credit Karma’s editors evaluate the best personal loans by reviewing key features of dozens of popular lenders. Those features fall into three important categories:
- Affordability: We start by checking if a lender’s rates are competitive: are they higher than average or are they lower than many competitors? From there, we analyze if fees — particularly an origination fee — may make your loan more unaffordable. Last, we’ll check if the lender offers rate discounts for items such as automatic payments that may reduce your rate.
- Customer-friendly features: Taking out a personal loan is a big financial commitment, so we prioritize lenders that make things easier for you. For instance, do they offer a wide range of loan amounts for people with different borrowing needs? Do they offer at least several loan terms to give you more flexibility with your monthly payment? And, crucially, can they fund your loan quickly? A lender will also get bonus points for offering direct payments for debt consolidation or other customer-friendly features.
- Transparency: We believe personal loan terms should be easy to find and decipher. Prequalification, which lets you check what rate you may qualify for without a hard credit inquiry, is particularly important. We also check to see if a lender has been recently penalized by regulators.
Estimate personal loan costs
To better understand the total cost of any personal loans you’re considering, use an online calculator like Credit Karma’s simple loan calculator. A loan calculator can help you estimate your monthly payment and how much you’d pay in interest versus principal over the length of the loan.
FAQs about book-now, pay-later
You can finance a vacation with a 0% introductory APR credit card, personal loan, or a book-now, pay-later provider. Depending on the option you choose, you may be able to spread out the cost over several weeks, months, or even years.
Airlines that offer buy-now, pay-later options include American Airlines, Delta, Southwest, and United. Airlines typically offer financing options through partners like Affirm or Flex Pay.
Paying with savings is the cheapest way to finance a vacation since you don’t have to worry about interest or fees. If that’s not an option, a 0% introductory APR credit card or an interest-free book-now, pay-later platform may be useful alternatives.
Yes, you can use Affirm or Afterpay to pay for flights, but availability differs by airline. Affirm and Afterpay may only be available with certain carriers or flights.
How buy-now, pay-later (or book-now, pay-later) platforms affect your credit differs by provider. Some report accounts and payment activity to the major credit bureaus, but others don’t. Buy-now, pay-later platforms may impact your credit if you don’t repay what you owe.
Expedia allows you to book some hotel stays without paying upfront. Instead, you can reserve your room and pay the bill when you check in. Experian also partners with Affirm to offer longer-term financing options.
*Approval Odds are not a guarantee of approval. Credit Karma determines Approval Odds by comparing your credit profile to other Credit Karma members who were approved for the personal loan, or whether you meet certain criteria determined by the lender. Of course, there’s no such thing as a sure thing, but knowing your Approval Odds may help you narrow down your choices. For example, you may not be approved because you don’t meet the lender’s “ability to pay standard” after they verify your income and employment; or, you already have the maximum number of accounts with that specific lender.