Since September 19, many accounts have been selling Bamboo Airways vouchers worth VND1.6 million, flying all domestic routes (except Con Dao), with priority seat selection and free baggage allowance. The vouchers are valid until August 31, 2023.
However, these accounts reveal many questions when providing information to vouchers. Many experts in the tourism field say that just by looking at the post, you can confirm that it is a scam.
Suspicious Points
Ms. Hoang Tuyet, Director of Top One Travel, said that just looking at the price of 1.6 million VND/round trip, applied to all routes including peak season, is enough to see that it is not trustworthy.
"This price is absurd. There is no way it would only cost about 1.6 million VND/round trip to fly during peak season," said Ms. Tuyet. "This person took the image from somewhere and used it to trick people who are greedy for cheap deals."
One photo but shared by many people
Looking at the personal pages of the subjects, Ms. Tuyet also commented that they shared the same photo. Therefore, this could be a group of scammers. The photo also does not clearly show the front and back of the voucher and only shows the usage information.
Exchanging via social networks, a person named VN explained that there is only an electronic voucher when the buyer requests a paper voucher, with both sides taken.
A Bamboo Airways employee said they manage vouchers by code. The vouchers are strictly controlled and have a red stamp on them. Therefore, without a photo of both sides of the voucher, it is difficult to determine whether it is real or fake.
In the image this person shared on his personal page, the voucher usage conditions state "to use the voucher, you must book a ticket at least 7 days before departure date".
However, when the buyer asked, the subject said that it was only necessary to book 3 days in advance. In addition, the voucher worth 1.6 million VND was the final price, without peak season surcharge.
Another problem that can be easily seen on VN's personal pages and the subjects sharing these voucher images is that they often tag themselves in posts of large travel agencies such as Du Lich Hoan My, VietSense, Vinpearl... This is a way to create prestige with inexperienced people.
In addition, only 1.6 million VND/round trip/flight for all routes except Con Dao is a very low price. Therefore, if you actually own this voucher (valid until August 2023), the seller will have almost no worries about unsold products.
One photo but shared by many people.
According to many people working in tourism, if there really was a voucher with that price, they would buy it because it was so cheap. Accepting a discount is very suspicious.
Don't be greedy
Some people with many years of experience in the tourism industry say the other accounts are quite "fake". Although they claim to work for many large travel companies and frequently tag themselves in posts from these companies, these people have almost no mutual friends in the tourism industry.
In addition, with the information of 1.6 million VND/round trip/flight for all routes except Con Dao and no peak season surcharge, Mr. Nguyen Tien Dat, General Director of AZA Travel, commented that it was "unbelievable".
According to Mr. Dat, the process of exchanging vouchers for airline tickets is not as simple as those subjects advertise. For example, a flight with about 200 seats will only have about 3-5 seats for people with vouchers, temporarily called class A tickets.
There may be empty seats, but the number of people who can book A-class tickets is very limited. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese subject said that customers can use the 15 purchased vouchers at any time, as long as they book 3 days in advance and before the deadline of August 31, 2023.
"There are many people who also own that voucher and the number of seats for voucher users is limited. Therefore, it is impossible to use up all 15 vouchers in one flight. When booking tickets on the website, the airline will ask customers whether to use a voucher or pay cash. If paying cash, you can book seats depending on the cost. Meanwhile, if choosing a voucher, the system will automatically classify. Vouchers are just an opportunity to buy airline tickets at low prices, not a guarantee. This is a form of marketing for airlines," Mr. Dat shared.
In general, when purchasing services at these shocking prices, visitors need to note the following points:
Check the seller's personal page to verify their reputation. Compare the seller's selling price with the general market price, do not be tempted by cheap prices. Request to provide personal information (if transacting through a company, it will be safer than an individual). And ask carefully about the conditions of using the voucher.
