Tourists are scammed out of tens of millions of VND when booking hotel rooms in Da Lat.

(NLĐO) – While trying to book hotel rooms in Da Lat for a group of friends to travel to at the end of the year, customers were scammed out of tens of millions of VND by a fake fanpage.

Speaking to the Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper , Ms. Ngoc Bich (residing in Tan Binh district, Ho Chi Minh City) said she had just reported to the local police station about being scammed out of nearly 40 million VND in deposit money for a hotel in Da Lat.

Specifically, she and her group of friends recently needed to book a hotel room for a weekend in Da Lat. She found the Túi Ba Gang Hotel (Ward 1, Da Lat, Lam Dong) on ​​a travel fan page.

After discussing her room requirements, check-in date, and receiving a "Reservation Receipt" with complete information, address, check-in date, and payment amount, Ms. Bich was asked to transfer 3.5 million VND as a deposit. However, immediately after she transferred the money, the other party informed her that she had transferred the money for the wrong purpose and would refund the deposit.

"The imposter told me I transferred money to the wrong account number and with the wrong transaction details, and that I needed to wait for my account to be reactivated before the deposit would be refunded. The scammer even made a video call instructing me on how to get the deposit back. However, the more I followed the instructions, the more money was deducted from my account. When I lost nearly 40 million VND, I was shocked to realize I had been scammed, " Ms. Bich recounted.

Initially, Ms. Bich transferred a deposit of 3.5 million VND, but she was scammed out of a total of nearly 40 million VND through the fraudulent scheme of impersonating a hotel's fanpage in Da Lat.

Upon contacting the Túi Ba Gang hotel, the reporter learned that not only Ms. Bích but many others had also been scammed out of deposits ranging from a few million to tens of millions of dong using similar tactics.

Staff at the hotel said they received complaints from guests and have temporarily suspended social media advertising, stopped accepting bookings via Facebook, and reported the impersonation to the police in Da Lat. The hotel also posted a warning on its official fan page about the impersonation.

Reporters have observed that impersonation of 3-4 star hotels is quite common in tourist cities like Da Lat, Nha Trang, and Vung Tau during the year-end period. The Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper recently reported on the rampant online hotel booking scams.

A common scam involves asking customers to transfer a deposit to confirm their booking. After receiving the deposit, the scammers will continue to lure customers into clicking on fake links promising further discounts on bookings and online payments…

However, upon clicking these links, many customers had extra money deducted from their accounts without receiving any offer.

Many 3-4 star hotels in tourist cities like Da Lat, Nha Trang, and Vung Tau are being impersonated by scammers who create fake fan pages to commit fraud. The image shows the Túi Ba Gang hotel in Da Lat being impersonated, resulting in numerous people losing money due to transferring deposits to the scammers.

According to tourism authorities, impersonating accommodation establishments, especially 3-4 star hotels in tourist cities, to scam people out of bookings is not a new trick and often becomes prevalent during peak tourist seasons. The common tactic is to offer rooms at prices lower than the official rates published by the establishment to attract tourists.

Lam Dong province recently requested the police to investigate and strictly handle individuals who are scamming people through fake hotel fan pages. The Ba Ria - Vung Tau tourism management agency also sent a document to relevant authorities at all levels requesting support in promptly handling and preventing malicious individuals from impersonating accommodation establishments to commit fraud.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/dat-phong-khach-san-o-da-lat-khach-bi-lua-hang-chuc-trieu-dong-196241223101635132.htm