By Shae Rozzi, Fox23 News
The end of the school year is approaching and if you’re planning a summer vacation, there are certain words you’ll want to avoid during your online search.
Most of us are ready to pack our bags and go on vacation. But with high gas prices chewing away a family finances, Amie Mitchell with the Better Business Bureau of Eastern Oklahoma warns all of us to be careful looking for deals.
“Everybody wants a great deal and those best deals are normally found very last minute or planned way in advance, right?” asks Amie. “So in that in between it can be a little bit difficult by just searching.. ya know ‘cheapest vacation’ or ‘best deal’ you may pop up with some scams.”
She says to be extra cautious if any part of the vacation is offered for free.
“So people are always looking for a good deal and we’ll see a lot ‘free cruise’ or ‘free vacation’. This is where some of your time share scams come in, so just be careful. Anytime you are looking or searching for this vacation or whatever, be really cautious when it starts saying free. Know what free really means. Does that mean that you’re going to sit in a meeting for 2 hours during your vacation, or does that mean elements of the vacation are free, so really be careful with knowing exactly what is and isn’t free.” says Amie.
And that is really important to point out. There are timeshare opportunities that offer free stay or free amusement park passes. That doesn’t necessarily mean the timeshare is a scam. But it is a timeshare, and you have to know what you would be getting into if you sign up for one.
If you want to avoid the possible timeshare trap, she says to stick with booking your vacation through websites you know or travel agents you trust.
“If you’re going to do your flight, your hotel and all the combined, go to the websites that you know are legitimate. Or, the hotel’s website directly, the flight’s directly, everything like that.” says Amie.
When it comes to travel insurance, the BBB says that’s really your decision if you’re going to want any money back from your trip if you have to cancel.
If you’re pregnant, or a loved one has ongoing health issues and chances are greater you’ll have to cancel, you may want to consider getting travel insurance. the BBB says just make sure you read what it actually covers.
