Listing vanished after pushing shady bank transfer – prepare to be scammed out of your money!
I tried to book a chalet for New Year’s Eve and it turned into a very worrying experience.
I first found the place on Airbnb. The listing had no reviews and a note asking people to email the host directly because they “manage the property on multiple platforms”. As soon as I emailed, the Airbnb listing disappeared within an hour. Several hours later I was sent photos of an “alternative” chalet and a TripAdvisor link that showed 16 glowing five-star reviews, so I went ahead and made a reservation there.
That’s when the red flags really started. Instead of paying through Airbnb or TripAdvisor’s normal system, I was sent an “invoice” asking me to transfer the full amount (plus deposit) via Remitly / Wise to a random UK Revolut bank account in the name of an “agent”. There was no way to pay directly by card on the platform, and I was repeatedly pushed to open new money transfer accounts to send cash.
When I questioned this and asked how refunds and the deposit would be handled if I was just wiring money to a stranger’s account, the agent became quite rude and eventually cancelled my booking, telling me to “check the TripAdvisor website” instead of answering basic questions. Shortly afterwards, the TripAdvisor listing itself disappeared as well.
Fortunately I didn’t send any money, but in my opinion this setup – removing listings, redirecting off-platform, and insisting on irreversible bank transfers to third-party accounts – feels like a complete scam. I’d strongly advise others to be extremely cautious and only pay through official, protected payment methods on the booking platforms themselves.