Tagged Pages Archive | Yvr
2012
25
September
Don't fall for the '$128 for 2 roundtrip flights' OneStopTravel scam
25
September
Over the past little while, I've had a lot of people ask me about a deal they've seen pop up on a variety of those 'daily deal' type sites (you know the ones, the Groupon-esque clones that were all the rage last year, and initially had some legitimately great deals but have now all turned into a wasteland of spa treatments and massages you can never get an appointment for).
The offer I'm referring to specifically is the one claiming that you can buy '$128 for 2 roundtrip flights', usually to somewhere like Europe or Hawaii. The offer will claim that this is a '$1100 value' and you're 'saving 90%' off the usual airfare cost.
Here's a real-life example from DealTicker:
You just know there has to be a catch right? Outrageous taxes and fees tacked on? It's true that the airport taxes & fees are not included, but that's not the real catch here. Let's take a look at the terms & conditions...
The key part to this scam (it doesn't deserve to be called a 'deal') is that you also *must* book your accommodations through the website specified (usually escapetheordinaryonline.com) and that you're required to purchase a minimum number of nights.
People that fall for this scam will find themselves forced to book accommodations at rates that are vastly inflated to what the hotel would normally cost. In the end, once they've done the math, they'll find that they actually ended up paying more than they would have had they booked their flights + hotel on their own.
Of course, it's the headline that suckers people in. The headline could read '2 free roundtrip flights' and it would still be a bad deal for you in the end. But of course, that would be a little too obvious that something wasn't right, making people more suspicious before purchasing. Giving it a price like $128 is an attempt to give it an air of legitimacy.
The purveyor of this scam seems to be a company claiming the name of OneStopTravel, apparently based out of Orlando, Florida. Googling around, you won't even find a website for them. Unless it actually is the site located at OneStopTravel.com (I wasn't really sure), in which case, the look of it should set off enough alarm bells already.
The site they force you to book your accommodations through is listed as escapetheordinaryonline.com, and has a contact e-mail address using the domain myholidaybreak.com (another dodgy looking site).
Run, don't walk.
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2012
5
September
Vancouver to Paris, France - $698 roundtrip after taxes
5
September
2012
30
August
Is it possible to get a good deal on a flight within Canada ?
30
August
2012
8
August
Let's Talk Turkey - A how-to guide for planning your trip
8
August
Back in mid June, KLM Canada held a little contest that resulted in some temporarily amazing prices to Istanbul from across the country. Judging by the number of e-mails, Tweets, and Facebook messages I received, I think it's safe to say there will be thousands more Canadians than usual visiting Turkey later this year and in the spring of 2013.
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2012
3
July
Vancouver to Georgetown, Guyana - $507 roundtrip after taxes
3
July
This is one for the truly adventurous travelers out there. Most people likely don't even know where Guyana is, much less have it on their travel wish-list. I have a feeling a lot of people might guess that Guyana is in Africa for some reason.
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2012
3
July
Vancouver to San Juan, Puerto Rico - $331 roundtrip after taxes
3
July
2012
12
June
Vancouver to Istanbul, Turkey - from $700 roundtrip after taxes!
12
June
I've been waiting a long time for this! Turkey has always been near the top of my list of places on this planet that I want to check out (and it's a long list). Fares are *never* cheap though, and usually hover around a minimum of $1300-$1400 roundtrip after taxes.
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2012
11
June
KLM asking people to vote on which city they should put on sale
11
June
UPDATE:
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2012
2
June
Vancouver to Bangkok, Thailand - $775 roundtrip after taxes
2
June
UPDATE: Due to the popularity it looks like the example dates I posted have sold out. I've replaced them with some other dates.
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2012
30
May
Vancouver to Scotland - $563 roundtrip after taxes (and some cheap ones to Amsterdam and London)
30
May
June 12-20 and June 12-27 from Vancouver to Glasgow, Scotland just dropped to $563 roundtrip after taxes.
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