No Excuses: Book Now, Pay Later
Hey!! It's starting to warm up again, you know what that means...VACATION SEASON. Fret not, did you know you could book a vacation now and pay later?! YEA!! Most of the sites provided here do not require a deposit at all. Granted, it's about $20-$60 more overall, but think if it as a layaway fee. Others ask that you put a small amount down, by small I mean $1! I've provided a list of my favorite booking sites that allow you to pay later. Keep reading.
Expedia
Expedia is by far one of my favorite sites to book vacations. Why?
You can book hotels, vacation rentals, rental cars, flights, cruises, and activities which means you can accrue rewards faster!
Plus, you can earn 2x rewards if you book from their mobile app.
AND you can enter all of your other loyalty memberships, if the company allows it, you can earn points with them as well!
You can book now to reserve the room at the current price and pay at the hotel. No money down and you have until 24 hours before check-in to cancel the reservation if you need to.
Bundling your hotel and flight together shaves some dollars off
For every 3,500 points, you will receive $25 off, you can use them as you receive them or let them pile up and get a flight, an activity, or book a hotel for FREE
Earn up to 10% cash back with Ebates if you pay when you book
The only thing that sucks is that you have to wait 60 days after you check out or 60 days after your flight for your reward points to become available.
Agoda
Agoda comes in at a close 2nd (really close). They do not have a loyalty program of their own, but...
Points Max allows you to earn points with a lot of major airlines (Delta, United, American, and several others).
When searching for flights, they find rare deals and combine connecting flights with a variety of airlines to give you the lowest price (you my fly one airline going, another coming back)
Book now, pay at hotel option. Free cancellation 48 hours before check-in
Earn 3% cash back with Ebates if you pay when you book
Orbitz
Orbitz is ranked at #3 only because I do not have that much experience booking with them. They made the list because their program has some features that separate them from the rest
Orbitz Reward Dining. Register your credit/debit card and earn Orbucks when you dine at participating restuarants. If you're already enrolled in a dining rewards program through an airline, decide which one you'd benefit the most from. You're only allowed to enroll in one.
$1=$1 in Orbucks, available IMMEDIATELY
Earn 7% cash back with Ebates if you pay when you book
Hotels.com
Hotels.com is cool because they give you credit for each night. Most weekend trips are 2 to 3 nights right? So every 4th trip would earn a free night.
Stay 10 nights, get 1 free. There aren't any restrictions on your free nights
Book now, pay at hotel option
Earn up to 3% cash back with Ebates if you pay when you book
The delayed option is only available for some properties.
Bookit.com
Bookit.com is ideal for booking all-inclusive resorts. They also offer bundles with flights and activities.
You have the option to tack on rental cars and activities. Sometimes if there is a sale going on, they tack on airport transporations or activities for no extra cost
Pay Delay let's you split payment into installments. Most times you can put $1 down and pay 4 equal installments monthly, read all of the terms.
You can pay on multiple cards. That means friends and family can chip in from the start, no tieing up your credit card in hoping everyone doesn't bail on you.
Earn 2.5% cash back with Ebates if you pay when you book
All of these sites allow you to delay payment to reserve rooms or vacation rentals, not flights. BUT, I've heard that there is a site called Airfordable that allows you to pay for flights in installments as long as you pay the entire balance before departure. The process appears to be pretty seamless. I haven't tried it yet, but if you guys get the opportunity to try it out before I do, let me know how you like it.
My ratings are based more on the frequency of use rather than quality. If anything changes, I will keep you guys updated.
Not having to pay large upfront costs makes traveling feel a little more affordable. Just tuck away money until it's time to go. Most cruise lines also allow payment in installments with minimal deposits. Remember, if something comes up and you can't go when you originally planned, cancel and reschedule, there aren't any penalties (as long as you cancel before check-in). No excuses.
Oh, one more thing...if you haven't used Ebates before, you'll get $10 just for signing up. Click here.
Until next time
Demetria