These are all scams. Don’t fall for them. Trust your judgment, trust your instincts and follow these simple rules:

1) Be wary of voucher systems. Travel is a time sensitive product, and those who sell travel must fill airline seats, hotel rooms, cruise cabins, etc. for specific dates. Prices for almost every destination in the world vary by season--during the more popular periods prices rise, when the mass of tourists leave, prices fall. So we rarely see deals that are good for an entire year. A very common scam is to lure customers with promise of an terrifically inexpensive air ticket “voucher” for those willing to book land stays through the company. The company then socks the customer with extremely inflated hotel rates, and the prices of the vacation skyrockets, negating any savings on the air tickets.

2) Don’t take the cold call. Legitimate tour operators and travel agents rarely engage in the “cold call” technique--contacting people they don’t know by phone to offer a deal. If you receive a call like this, get the number and name of the company and then hang up (especially if you feel you are being pressured to make a purchase right then and there). Call your local Better Business Bureau, your State Attorney General’s office or a good travel agent, and see if any have information on the company or the legitimacy of the offer. And never, ever give your credit card number over the phone to any company, unless you initiated the transaction.

3) Get all details of your planned trip in advance, and in writing. Find out if there are any cancellation penalties, what your payment covers, if there are any hidden extras or restrictions and make sure that you get it all down on paper.

4) Be wary and use credit cards when possible. Don’t assume that if you see a deal on a reputable auction site that the promotion is legitimate. The auction sites are doing their best to police sales, but some scams do slip through. If you receive a postcard in the mail that you’ve won a free trip, don’t celebrate yet. Fully investigate the organization that’s offering the trip before you give them any personal information. And when in doubt, use a credit card for payment so that you can stop charges should a problem occur. While some reputable smaller tour companies (such as SmarTours and China Focus) ask for cash payments to keep their operating costs down, most will accept credit cards.

If you do encounter a fraudulent company, do a bit of good and report it to the consumer protection division of your State Attorney General’s office. These types of scams are currently under investigation in many states, and every tip helps in wiping out this travel industry scourge.