With more and more businesses supporting the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), it’s maybe not surprising to learn that Airbnb already supports two variations of the business model. The service has added a third, at least in the US, and the company calls it “Reserve Now, Pay Later”.
As with most justifications of such payment methods, Airbnb says this is to give US guests “even more flexibility”. As the name suggests, it means you can “reserve a listing without paying anything upfront at the time of booking”. But because of the nature of the payment method, it’s only an option for listings that support “moderate or flexible cancellation policy”.
In practice, while you don’t have to pay the moment you book a place, you’ll have to pay the full amount before the free cancellation period ends. This is so that hosts have time to get another booking in the event of a cancellation.
As mentioned, this is the third BNPL variation that Airbnb now supports, at least in the US. The company has already partnered with Klarna for the actual BNPL. Another is what is called Pay Part Now, Part Later, which splits payments into two, either in 50/50 or 20/80 portions.
(Source: Airbnb)
