For most of our compatriots, accustomed to buying material things on credit (cars, household appliances, real estate), the idea of spending borrowed money on a trip still seems outrageous. However, if the borrowed funds help to have a good rest and gain strength - why not, after all?
An acquaintance of mine has been vacationing on the islands of the Canary Archipelago for several years in a row. Not being an oligarch or a high-ranking official, he does not hide that he uses a credit card to purchase tours. After the vacation, over about six months, he repays the money, and then slowly begins to look for another island. And this option of recreation suits him just fine. There are at least three ways to borrow money from a bank.
Fast, but expensive
The first path can be called direct in every sense. You can apply directly to a bank that has specialized credit programs, or to a travel agency. Now some of them have partner banks through which they provide loans. You can get online cash loan for either the full cost of the tour or, say, 50%. The overpayment is comparable to a consumer loan, but what about convenience?
In the case of specialized loans, many banks will need two documents to make a decision - a passport and, for example, a foreign passport or a driver's license. If you apply for a loan at a travel agency, you also avoid the need to visit a bank. Therefore, some experts consider a specialized loan the most convenient way to borrow for a vacation. "As a rule, these loans are provided non-cash in express mode, similar to commodity loans in retail chains," says consumer lending market expert Ivan Lebedev. "The client does not need to visit a bank, the travel agency receives a decision online, and the bank issues a loan through a cheap sales channel."
Sound logic suggests that an express loan should be quite expensive, but there may be situations where travel companies offer discounts under joint programs, which allows them to somewhat reduce the final cost for the client.
Obvious disadvantages also include the limited selection of partner banks of a particular travel agency. Moreover, not all companies offer the service of purchasing a tour on credit. You can simply find yourself in a situation where you found the desired tour at a single agency, and it does not cooperate with banks.
Long, but cheaper
The second path is a regular consumer loan. Its obvious advantage is that you can analyze market offers and choose a bank offering loans at the most favorable interest rates.
But here too, not everything is as convenient as it might seem at first glance. For example, not all banks issue loans based on two documents; you will have to get a certificate of income from your workplace, copy and certify your employment record, etc. In addition, the decision to grant such a loan takes at least one to two days, and during this time the favorable offer from the travel agency may slip away.
With a card around the world
The third path is to get a credit card. Getting it from a bank in half an hour is also impossible. It will take 5-7 days to issue it. The rates on such cards are slightly higher than those on consumer loans. However, almost all banks now issue credit cards with a grace period for paying interest, which is usually 50 days. If during this period the client fully repays the debt on the credit card, they do not pay interest.
In addition, funds on a credit card, which usually belong to one of the international payment systems - VISA or MasterCard - are not declared at customs. Moreover, having money on a card account rather than in a wallet during a trip is safer.