There's no polite way to say this; if you take out a loan to pay for a vacation, you may be an idiot. But Americans are doing it -- paying for vacations on installments.
Luke Patterson at Houston's STA Wealth Management says he's yet to have a client suggest this to him.
"It seems like common sense but as we know people spend now and deal with the consequences later and vacation can be very appealing to people; they feel like they deserve it, they've earned it."
Patterson says watch out for the fine print in these vacation loans.
"Don't borrow if you don't need the money but if you decide to do so be sure you sit down and review your finances with your spouse so you both understand the implications of borrowing that money to go on vacation."
Some vacationers claim it's cheaper to pay with installments than use a credit card. But Patterson says a better idea is to dial back your vacation dreams.
"Don't borrow the money to go on vacation if you can help it and don't -- if you decide to do that -- don't borrow more than you can repay and understand the fine print, most importantly."
JetBlue is allowing passengers to pay for flights on an installment plan and there are several companies that offer travel or vacation loans -- but Patterson says that doesn't mean you should do it.