Fake ticket agents, tour operators in USA

Last updated on 15 Aug 2019

United States of America

Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York City, Orlando, San Francisco

How it works:

Set-up: offline, there are touts who pose as official ticket staff or tour agents. For instance, they wear a vest with the words “SJQ Sightseeing tours/Liberty Tours”. Online, there are fraudulent sites which sites/tickets at too good to be true prices.
Version 1: selling you a “ticket” to an attraction/ferry that is free to enter! E.g. Ferry to Staten Island, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Battery Park, etc.
Version 2: selling you a used ticket.
Version 3: charging more than the face value of the tickets.
Version 4: offering to help you get discounted tickets at the ticket office upstairs. After payment is collected, he disappears.
Version 5: claiming that there is a long queue and offering you a ticket to skip the queue. You find out later that there is no such ticket and no such queue.
Version 6: there are websites peddling fake tickets as well, as well as fake discounted ticket sellers on classified sites like Craigslist (e.g. for theme parks like Sea World, Disney World, Disneyland, Universal Studio, etc).

Places to beware:

Chicago: Soldier Field
Honolulu: USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor / WW II Valor in the Pacific National Monument, Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve, Aloha Pearl Harbor Tours
Los Angeles: Universal Studios Hollywood,Union Station
New York City: Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty, Broadway, Rockefeller Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Madison Square Garden, Battery Park
New Orleans: selling you a ticket to Mardi Gras, which is free
Orlando: Disney World, Disneyland
San Francisco: Alcatraz Island

What to do:

Buy direct from company/official counters or engage a reputable tour agent or tour operator.
Offline operators: ask – is the operator licensed? Is there a website, office and working phone number? Are there real online reviews? What does the price cover – is it too cheap?
Reputable operators: some reputable local names to consider include USA Guided Tours (known for its expertly guided, award winning premium bus tours conducted with luxury tour buses), etc.
Online platform: day tour platforms like GetYourGuide (leading globally) also has some bestselling tickets (e.g. Empire State Building, One World Observatory, 9/11 Memorial, etc).

Tell us your story

2 user stories related to this scam

Going to dispute it with my credit card

ldjs 18 Oct 2018 3 0

i got call from someone who I purchased package with them for $399 http://www.bestdealsvegas.vegas However, I have hard time to get hold with them after I purchased the package. called their number and customer service number always going to the voice mail. Said 7 days cancellation but did not specify where to send cancellation. I am going to dispute it with my credit card.

Have anyone had any experience with this place? Thanks

Comment

Battery Park ticket scammers

Rac 29 Apr 2017 6 1

I was walking towards battery park to get the ticket to the statue of liberty. There was those people with blue coat.

They asked me where we were going. I said it we are going to battery park to get the ticket to statue of liberty. She said the line is so long. I have to wait 3 hours just to get the ticket and 3 hours for the boat and she said for kids they require birth certificate to get the ticket.

It sounded very odd to me and I told them that that was not true because I have been there before and we didn’t need them. The lady said rules has changed. I actually believed them.

I asked her so if I take this tour will I be able to see the statue of liberty and Ellis Island. She said no. The boat will stop so that you can take a picture but you won’t be able to get in the island.

After asking the price which was almost 200$+ for one kid and two adult. I told her we will go wait in the line for 3 hours and if they ask for birth certificate we won’t go.

We went to battery park to get the ticket there was not even a long line. We asked the trooper if we need a birth certificate he said it was not needed. The total was 37$ to get the ticket for 3. Once we got our ticket after 30 minutes we were on our way to liberty island.

I still can’t believe I was almost scammed.

Comment

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Fake ticket agents, tour operators in USA

2 user stories related to this scam

Going to dispute it with my credit card

Battery Park ticket scammers

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