Chase and Marriott Team for Travel Now, Pay Later Program

Chase and Marriott have teamed to offer new benefits to Marriott Bonvoy loyalty card members.

In addition to the opportunity to earn more points, card members now have access to a new “Travel Now, Pay Later” benefit, the companies said in a news release Friday (July 12).

“With the new Travel Now, Pay Later benefit, card members can now break up qualifying travel purchases into equal monthly payments, with no interest and no plan fees,” the release said. “This benefit is available on purchases between $100 to $5,000 made directly with an airline or at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy. Card members earn points on these purchases, like usual.”

This buy now, pay later (BNPL) offering comes during a summer in which many Americans are planning to travel, with nearly half having had their plans in place for months.

That’s according to the summer travel edition of PYMNTS Intelligence’s “Consumer Credit Economy Monitor” report, which found 48% of U.S. consumers who intend to travel this summer had their summer travel plans firmed up as of April.

“Why the impatience? PYMNTS Intelligence found several key factors are driving consumers to travel more this year,” that report said.

“Forty-one percent of those consumers who are vacationing this summer say they simply have a greater interest in traveling, and that is the reason they want to get out of town (21% say it’s their top motivation). In other words, many Americans may be suffering from post-pandemic cabin fever.”

Optimism connected to money matters is also a key motivator, with 29% of consumers saying improved personal finances helped give them the travel bug, while 19% credit having stable employment. By the same token, lower travel costs are inspiring 16% of tourists, while 12% say their faith in the economy is driving their travel plans.

“But just because consumers are optimistic about their finances doesn’t mean they aren’t concerned about travel costs,” PYMNTS wrote. “According to our report, those with travel plans this summer anticipate spending about $2,400 on their getaways — and 78% say they plan to pay for at least a proportion of their trip with a credit card.”

Last week also saw Marriott launch an online travel booking program designed for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), coming at a moment when business travel is rebounding.

Dubbed Business Access by Marriott Bonvoy, the program includes a suite of online booking tools with benefits and rewards from Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of brands.

“Whether small to medium-sized businesses are looking for convenient online booking capabilities for their employees or better expense management solutions, the all-in-one platform, merged with our portfolio of hotel brands around the world, provides everything they need to manage their business travel needs,” Drew Pinto, executive vice president and chief revenue and technology officer at Marriott International, said in a news release.