Ultimate All-Inclusive Deal Finder
'How To Get The Best Deal' Guides
Ultimate Package Deal Finder

Saturday, November 9th 2024

"I'm a travel junkie who's hooked on deals from YOW." - Chris Myden



2012
25
September
Don't fall for the '$128 for 2 roundtrip flights' OneStopTravel scam

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.

Hit Like if you like this public service announcement! Click Share to warn your friends on Facebook.









People That Liked This Page Also Liked:

tags for this post You may also want to check out pages that were tagged with:

Be The First To Know About The Next Amazing Deal!

Head to the YOW Deals Alerts Page where you can choose to be notified by e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, or RSS Feed the moment an amazing travel deal from Ottawa is found.

Setting up alerts allows you to be one of the first to see a new deal, before it sells out.
And don't worry, alerts are only sent when it's truly an amazing deal.

Like Our Site? Follow Us!

Subscribe to Our Feed!

Comments from Facebookers

Comments from Everyone Else

Become a trendsetter and be the first person to make a comment on this post!

Comments are automatically closed 30 days after the post is made.










Join The YOW Deals Facebook Group
    What happens when over 16,000 people     from Ottawa...

    * crowdsource the best deals from YOW?

    * offer up their unbiased travel advice?

    Join the group and find out!


(click 'Join Group' when you arrive)