Any plans for your next travel adventure? Traveling provides wondrous opportunities for great enjoyment, yet, your dream vacation can easily turn into a nightmare.
Sadly, it’s hard to stop some canny locals, ruthless street tricksters, and credit card bandits from playing dirty tricks on unsuspecting tourists. However, every traveler can take precautionary steps towards a very happy, stress and scam-free holiday!
We’ve rounded up some of the most common tourist scams you could encounter on your travels. Be on your guard, and expect the unexpected!
Have you been the victim of a travel scam? Comment below and let us know about it!
1. Fake Front Desk Call
The fake wakeup call is one of those costly travel scams you always took for granted and never imagined it could happen to you.
Typically, the phone rings in the middle of the night. You answer. On the other end of the line there will be a person pretending to be someone from the front desk of the hotel you’re staying at, explaining that your credit card information needs to be confirmed. They’ll most probably tell you there was a computer crash because of which all their data was mixed up. Even though you’re groggy and sleepy, don’t get fooled! Chances are that the person you’re talking to is actually a con artist who’s trying to empty your bank account. Isn’t this scary?
Avoid it by: Refusing to give any information whatsoever and hanging up the phone. Inform the hotel staff about the unusual request right away. You might as well call the police.