Hapi and Upgrade partner to help hotels deploy modern payment options at scale with Flex Pay. In Brief: Hapi and Upgrade have partnered to offer Flex Pay, enabling hotels to implement scalable, modern payment options that support flexible guest payments and improve operational efficiency. The industry's first automation between a payment provider and hospitality integration platform establishes a repeatable model for deploying modern payment options Hapi, hospitality's data connectivity partner, and Upgrade, a financial technology company that offers affordable and responsible credit, mobile banking, and payment products to mainstream consumers, today announced a partnership to help hotels deploy modern payment options at scale via Upgrade's buy now, pay later (BNPL) solution, Flex Pay. The collaboration centers on an integration that automates how hotels support Virtual Credit Card (VCC) and other emerging payment methods. It marks the hospitality industry's first automation between a payment provider and a hospitality integration platform, establishing a repeatable model for bringing new payment options into existing hotel group payment workflows. Together, Flex Pay and Hapi's connectivity platform and Payments Automations give hotels a scalable way to support modern payment options. Already deployed across thousands of hotels, the solution has significantly reduced VCC mishandling, simplified payment reconciliation, and eliminated payment processing errors. Moreover, it represents the first instance of a global hotel chain moving payments "above property." Travelers expect hotels to offer the same flexible payment options they use elsewhere. According to NerdWallet, 17% of 2026 summer travelers plan to use BNPL to pay for travel, reflecting growing demand for more flexible payment experiences. Offering a new payment option is relatively straightforward, but integrating it into the complex hotel group ecosystem is more challenging. Hotels must coordinate multiple reservation systems, property management systems, payment providers, reconciliation processes, and front desk processes across portfolios of properties, each with its own technology environment. Reservation changes, cancellations, payment timing rules, and check-in events only add to that complexity, contributing to manual payment exceptions, disconnected workflows, and an estimated $1.5 billion in inefficient reconciliation processes. When a guest selects Flex Pay during booking, Upgrade settles the reservation with the hotel. Hapi then automatically moves the payment information across the reservation system, PMS, and reconciliation workflows, ensuring each system receives the information it needs at the appropriate time. The integration automatically identifies eligible reservations, applies hotel-specific payment rules in real time, and processes payments based on reservation status and hotel policies. The automation eliminates the need for custom integrations or new front desk procedures. Because payments are processed before guests arrive, staff spend less time resolving payment exceptions during check-in and more time focused on welcoming guests. "Hospitality has no shortage of payment innovation," said Jeff Bzdawka, Hapi CEO. "The challenge is making those innovations work consistently across thousands of properties, multiple technology platforms, and the payment workflows that connect them. Our partnership with Upgrade gives hotels a scalable approach to introducing new payment options without changing the systems and workflows their teams already rely on." Built on Hapi's API and connectivity layer, the solution establishes a repeatable automation framework for modern hospitality payments. By moving payment data seamlessly between hospitality systems, the same architecture enables hotels to adopt new payment options while allowing technology providers to bring innovations to market more efficiently. "The way people pay for travel is changing, and travelers increasingly expect hotels to offer the same flexibility they experience in other aspects of their lives," said Tom Botts, president, Flex Pay. "As those expectations continue to evolve, our partnership with Hapi makes it easier for hotels to offer those payment experiences, helping them meet evolving guest expectations while creating a smoother booking journey." About Hapi Hapi is hospitality's connectivity partner, dedicated to simplifying the complex hospitality technology landscape by connecting hoteliers and solution providers at scale. Hapi removes long-standing data barriers, enabling hotels, hotel companies, and technology providers to access and utilize data in real-time. This empowers the creation of unique, personalized guest experiences that drive business success. Hapi serves 15,000 hotels globally, including major brands like IHG Hotels & Resorts, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Sonesta Hotels, Rosewood Hotels, and Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Visit us at stayhapi.com to learn more about how Hapi transforms hotel data into real experiences. About Upgrade Upgrade is a financial technology company that offers affordable and responsible credit, mobile banking, and payment products to mainstream consumers. Since its inception in 2017, Upgrade has delivered over $50 billion in credit to over 8 million customers. Upgrade's core products include: BNPL, Home Improvement Financing, Personal Loans, Mobile Banking, Cards, and Auto Financing. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, with an operations center in Phoenix, Arizona, a technology center in Montreal, Canada, and regional offices in Wilmington, Delaware, Atlanta, Georgia, New York City, New York, and Irvine, California. More information is available at https://www.upgrade.com.

Six Flags FlexPay by Upgrade: how Theme Park financing works. Six Flags FlexPay by Upgrade is a third-party financing program that allows guests to purchase season passes and online orders over $49 through monthly installment loans. This partnership shifts credit risk to an outside lender while providing Six Flags with upfront capital, though it introduces credit checks and variable interest rates ranging from 0% to 36% for consumers. Key takeaways. * Six Flags introduced FlexPay by Upgrade, a third-party financing option for season passes and online purchases over $49. * Unlike traditional in-house theme park payment plans, this program requires an actual credit check and applicants must be 18 or older. * Annual percentage rates (APR) range from 0% to 36% based on the borrower's individual creditworthiness. * The system benefits cash-constrained Six Flags by providing upfront capital while transferring credit risk to an outside lender. * Consumers with lower credit scores risk facing the highest interest rates, making park access more expensive for those who can least afford it. How Six Flags FlexPay operates. Theme park season passes have long been sold via installment models, but the introduction of Six Flags FlexPay by Upgrade marks a fundamental shift in how regional park chains handle consumer debt. Rather than managing an internal payment plan where the park acts as the creditor, Six Flags has partnered with San Francisco-based financial technology company Upgrade to offer legitimate consumer loans. When guests check out online for any order totaling $49 or more, they are given the option to apply for FlexPay. Because this is an outside loan, the transaction involves traditional lending mechanisms. Applicants must be 18 years of age or older, submit to a formal credit check, and potentially provide a down payment depending on their financial profile. For the consumer, the most striking detail of this program is the annual percentage rate (APR). While well-qualified buyers may secure a promotional 0% rate, the fine print reveals that rates can climb as high as 36% depending on the borrower's credit history. While early pay-offs carry no penalty, the inclusion of a high-interest credit product changes the calculus of buying a family amusement park pass. Strategic benefits for a cash-strapped operator. From a corporate finance perspective, partnering with an external lender is a clever maneuver for a company facing significant debt and cash flow constraints. Traditionally, amusement parks that offer payment plans must absorb the administrative overhead of tracking missed payments, handling defaults, and waiting an entire year to realize the full revenue of a multi-month pass. By outsourcing the entire operation to Upgrade, Six Flags achieves multiple strategic goals simultaneously: * Immediate Liquidity: Six Flags receives the total purchase price of the season pass or merchandise order upfront from the lender. * Risk Mitigation: If a guest defaults on their monthly loan payments, the financial institution absorbs the loss rather than the theme park operator. * Zero Internal Overhead: The company does not need to build, staff, or maintain an internal collections or customer finance department. * Competitive Parity: Six Flags can proudly advertise a "buy now, pay later" or monthly payment option that looks and feels similar to the installment plans used by competitors like Disney, without risking internal capital. Whenever an enterprise can successfully offer consumer-facing payment flexibility while offloading all associated financial liabilities and collection duties, it represents a win for corporate strategy. The equity problem: who really bears the cost? While the business logic for Six Flags is sound, the consumer-facing reality introduces ethical and financial questions that industry observers must evaluate. Historically, monthly payment plans at theme parks have been marketed as a way to make expensive entertainment accessible to lower-income households or young adults who cannot comfortably drop hundreds of dollars on a season pass all at once. However, an external loan program operates on risk-based pricing. The guests who are least likely to be able to afford a season pass outright are frequently the exact individuals who lack established credit or struggle with high-interest debt. Consequently, these are the borrowers most likely to be assigned the upper tier of the 36% APR spectrum - or face steep penalties if they miss a payment. In practice, FlexPay by Upgrade may inadvertently help the people who need it least - financially stable guests with pristine credit who qualify for the 0% tier - while penalizing vulnerable consumers who are paying off a leisure product over time at predatory interest rates. It transforms a simple day of family fun into a revolving credit liability. Conclusion: navigating Theme Park debt. The introduction of external loan partnerships in the theme park industry signals a new era of corporate cost-cutting and risk-transfer. While savvy consumers with excellent credit scores can utilize these programs to manage their cash flow without incurring extra fees, everyday visitors must read the fine print before signing up for high-interest leisure loans. To hear a deeper discussion on corporate amusement park strategies, including recent roller coaster acquisitions and immersive industry news, make sure to Listen to the full episode of Green Tagged: Theme Park in 30. Join hosts Philip Hernandez and Scott Swenson every week as they break down the top trends shaping the themed entertainment landscape. Frequently asked questions. What is Six Flags FlexPay by Upgrade? FlexPay by Upgrade is an external loan program partnered with financial technology company Upgrade that allows guests to finance Six Flags season passes and online orders over $49 with monthly payments. Does Six Flags FlexPay require a credit check? Yes. Unlike traditional amusement park payment plans that simply divide payments automatically, FlexPay by Upgrade requires an official credit check and evaluates applicants based on their credit history. What are the interest rates for Six Flags FlexPay? Depending on the borrower's credit score and financial background, annual percentage rates (APR) for the program range from 0% up to 36%. Who is eligible to use Six Flags FlexPay? Applicants must be at least 18 years old, reside in a U.S. state where a Six Flags park operates, and meet the lending partner's credit approval criteria. A down payment may also be required. Vintage rubber hose animation styles have long inspired theme park merchandise, but recent controversies involving Knott's Berry Farm pulling controversial shirts expose the hidden risks of recreating the golden age of animation. In this deep dive,... Six Flags' decision to relocate its corporate headquarters from Charlotte to Arlington, Texas by March 2027 highlights a major shift in themed entertainment management. While remote work dominated the pandemic era, turnaround strategies for major am...