No longer a Dream

Ranchi, May 5: Go on vacation now, pay later is the mantra travel agencies here are chanting to allure customers wishing to go to Bangkok and Malaysia but unable to afford the trip.

The agencies, in association with banks, are also providing loans for customers to pay for membership in holiday clubs.

Sony Mehta, the owner of Skyline Travels, said they are providing loan through a tie-up with ICICI Bank.

“We have tied up with ICICI Bank for personal loans. Our customers can pay EMIs according to their convenience. The trend of taking loans for vacations is slowly catching on as several people want to visit places such as Singapore, Mauritius and Bangkok but cannot get the money up front,” Mehta said.

He said it has become much “easier even for the middle class to enjoy foreign tours, which was not a possibility some time ago”.

“They can take a loan for a trip and, in some cases, need to pay EMIs of only Rs 3,200 for three years. This is an easy system,” Mehta added.

The travel agent said the craze to travel abroad on vacations has increased this season. “We already have 10 clients who are going to Bangkok on bank loans,” Mehta added.

Neeraj Singh, the proprietor of Club Mahendra Holidays, said they are offering 25-year membership options. Membership fee ranges from Rs 1.31 lakh to Rs 6.65 lakh.

“We have 3,700 resorts all over the country and a member can holiday in any one of our resorts located at places such as Manali, Goa and Bangkok. We have facilities such as kitchens at these resorts,” said Singh. Besides, members could also get a week of free holiday every year.

As far as loan repayments are concerned, members can pay EMIs of Rs 3,201, said Singh. “This summer, demand has been pouring in for memberships and we have approximately 300 to 400 members in Jharkhand. More are joining,” Singh added. Anuj Kapoor, a government official, is among those planning to spend his summer holiday at Bangkok.

“It was through our friend that we learnt about the loan facility for holidays. My family was quite happy to hear about such an option,” Kapoor added.