Last Updated
The United States Federal Trade Commission has issued an official consumer alert warning for travelers planning to head to Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean for the upcoming spring holiday travel period.
Scammers are currently preying on travelers looking forward to enjoying a spring beach vacation getaway by offering them a free or low-priced trip to scam them out of their hard-earned money.
The Free Vacation Scam
According to an official consumer alert from the United States Federal Trade Commission, spring holiday travelers have been getting contacted by a number of different alleged travel agencies offering vacation specials for tourists heading to Cancun or the Mexican Caribbean for the holidays.
They often offer tourists an absolutely free vacation getaway if they are willing to pay the official fees required for the trip.
That, of course, means that the vacation is not really free for the traveler.
The Low-Priced Package Scam
They also may contact spring holiday travelers with a special low-priced vacation package full of great amenities and activities at a great price.
The only issue is that the travel organizer lacks specific details of the package, such as what hotel is included in the package and where it is located in Cancun or the Mexican Caribbean, prior to making the reservation.
Now, some of these may be legitimate deals.
However, the traveler may be required to pay for the reservation in advance or pay a sizable deposit in order to lock in the deal and find out the specifics of the package.
If a visitor does not like the accommodations in Cancun or the Mexican Caribbean after making the payment, contacting the travel organizer to get the money back may be a real challenge or not possible at all.
Tips for Travelers
The United States Federal Trade Commission does have three handy tips available in order for spring holiday travelers to avoid being scammed of their spring beach vacation getaway savings.
First, get the name of the travel operator company that is offering the free or low cost spring holiday travel package for Cancun or the Mexican Caribbean.
Then put their name into a Google search with the words “scam”, “review” or “complaint” to review what others have said about their advertised travel package.
Second, don’t agree to a deal or make any payment before finding out the exact details of the special spring holiday travel package being offered.
Get the name and address of the hotel in Cancun or the Mexican Caribbean that is included as part of the special and investigate the accommodations on an independent Internet website such as Expedia or TripAdvisor.
Visitors should also be sure to obtain the cancellation and refund requirements related to the beach vacation travel package before making any payments.
Last, resist making payments for Cancun or Mexican Caribbean spring holiday travel vacation getaway packages with things such as wire transfers, gift cards or even cryptocurrency.
According to the FTC, dishonest travel package scammers will request that tourists use one of those unconventional methods to make payments for their extra special vacation deal.
They say that’s a sure sign of a scam in progress.
Tourists can find more details and tips about current travel scams worldwide, including those involving vacation getaways to Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean, by visiting the United States Federal Trade Commission on the web at ftc.gov/TravelScams.
Travelers can also report Cancun and Mexican Caribbean scams they see at ReportFraud.ftc.gov
Those who end up being a victim of these scams should contact their local law enforcement to file an official report for investigation.
Plan Your Next Cancun Vacation:
Traveler Alert: Don’t Forget Travel Insurance For Your Next Trip!
Choose From Thousands of Cancun and Riviera Maya Hotels, Resorts and Hostels with Free Cancellation On Most Properties
↓ Join the community ↓
The Cancun Sun Community FB group has all the latest travel news, conversations and tourism Q&A’s for the Mexican Caribbean
Subscribe to our Latest Posts
Enter your email address to subscribe to The Cancun Sun’s latest breaking news affecting travelers, straight to your inbox.
International Travel
Wednesday 20th of March 2024
Yes unfortunately, all scammers have being reported as U.S.based organizations or U.S.individuals,not Mexican citizens or organizations, so be careful and do not trust them.
Thanks