How to avoid travel website scams

Hoping to take a trip in the warmer weather? Before you start planning, know that some scammers set up websites advertising free or cheap travel deals. Learn to spot these scammy sites and other schemes designed to steal your money and personal information.

As you’re searching online, look for these signs of a scam: Offers for a “free” vacation — but you have to pay fees or taxes to get it. Or a site advertises premium vacation packages at deeply discounted prices you can’t find anywhere else.

As you’re checking emails, know that scammers send phishing emails with travel offers that look like they’re from an airline or hotel you recognize, hoping you’ll click and visit their website. (Those emails: not from the real airline or hotel, by the way.) If you click through, scammers will ask for your personal information in exchange for details about their “great” deals. If you share your information, scammers could steal your money or use your accounts to buy things. 

To avoid scam travel websites:

• Do some research. Look up the name of the travel site, plus words like “scam,” “review,” or “complaint” before you take their deal. And ask people you know for referrals to good travel sites.
• Don’t click on links in unexpected emails or texts. Even if a travel deal looks like it’s from an airline or hotel you recognize, look carefully at the URL before you click. Instead, check the real company’s website directly to see if the deal is real. But type in the URL yourself; don’t click the link.
• Pay attention to how they require you to pay. Don’t pay with wire transfers (like Western Union or MoneyGram), gift cards, or cryptocurrency. Any travel site that demands you pay in one of these ways is a sign of a scam. 

Learn more at ftc.gov/TravelScams. Spot a scam? Tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.