Hotel & Travel Scams

What is this scam?

Hotel and travel scams target Indians during moments of anticipation — planning a holiday, honeymoon, or religious pilgrimage. Fraudulent booking websites, fake travel agents, and non-existent resorts collect full payment for travel arrangements that either do not exist or are dramatically inferior to what was advertised. Pilgrimage routes — Tirupati, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi, Char Dham, Amarnath — are particularly targeted.

How it works — step by step

1. 1

   Fake booking website clones MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, Yatra, or hotel official site — identical appearance, different URL.

2. 2

   Fake travel agent collects full package payment for tour — hotel, flights, transfers — then disappears.

3. 3

   Pilgrimage package fraud: collects money for Char Dham or Vaishno Devi — provides substandard accommodation or abandons group mid-journey.

🚩 Red flags — warning signs

• ⚠️Booking website URL is slightly different from the official site
• ⚠️Price significantly lower than all other platforms for the same property and dates
• ⚠️Payment requested only via bank transfer, UPI, or cash — legitimate travel platforms accept cards
• ⚠️No written itinerary with actual hotel names and confirmation numbers provided before full payment
• ⚠️Travel agent operates only on WhatsApp — no verifiable physical office

✅ What to do if you've been targeted

1. 1Book hotels directly on the hotel's official website — verify the URL carefully
2. 2Verify travel agent licence at tourism.gov.in
3. 3Always get a detailed written itinerary with hotel confirmation numbers before paying the full amount
4. 4Pay with credit card where possible — credit cards offer better fraud protection than UPI for travel
5. 5File consumer complaint at consumerhelpline.gov.in: 1915 for travel-related fraud

📋 Official resources & complaint portals

• →tourism.gov.in
• →Consumer Helpline: 1915
• →cybercrime.gov.in