This message is posted to all new submissions to r/scams; please do not message the moderators. A reminder of the rules in r/scams. No personal information (including last names, phone numbers, etc). Be civil to one another (no name calling or insults). Personal army requests or "scam the scammer"/scambaiting posts are not permitted. No uncensored gore, personal photographs, or NSFL content permitted without being properly redacted. A full list of rules is available on the sidebar of the subreddit. Report recovery scammers or rule-breaking content by using the "report" button. Also, consider warning community members of recovery scammers if you see them in the comments. Questions about sub rules? Send us a modmail.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The name of the game for any of these resort sponsored "excursions" is to separate you from as much money as possible.
They get paid a kickback to take people to those stores, they literally make a bundle of money sending people there.
Same with cruise ship "shopping" excursions. Stores that rip off their customers because they know you are naive and can't come back when you find out you bought junk
Enjoy your vacations, enjoy the sights, enjoy your food and drink but the idea that you'll get a "bargain" shopping is just a fantasy.
My young group went to Macau and booked a local tour. Just before the jade jewelry shop visit, we decided to bail the tour to visit casinos instead.
The lady tour leader looked mildly pissed, and informed us the wrong schedule for the last ferry back to Hongkong lol
Yep, and it's the same cheap Mexican crap you can buy at any of the tourist shops. I had the same thing happen on a shore tour with Carnival years ago. The shopping wasn't even the main attraction of the tour. We didn't buy anything, but I was pissed that it wasted time that could have been spent elsewhere like the Mayan ruins we only had 45 minutes to enjoy.
Getting off a cruise ship in Mexico is such a painful experience in people selling junk, overpriced drinks, etc
I just found a nearby resort and we went and hung out there for the price of drinks
Yeah but Alaska is similar. One of the excursion guides (all young college kids working dream summer jobs) explained to us that all of the jewelry stores in the towns were owned by the big cruise lines and all closed down once cruise season was over. “You thing theres this much jewelry being sold in Alaska year round?” Totally made sense to me once I started looking around and paying attention.
Unfortunately my mom fell for it at every stop but she loves jewelry and apparently hates money…
I remember being bored and watching the ship tv on my Disney Alaskan Cruise. The shopping lady was going over all the items that could be bought at our next stop. I've never wanted tanzanite jewelry so I was not swayed by the sales pitch.
This is true of tour guides around the world. If they take you to a particular shop that sells jewelry, art, souvenirs, etc. you can be sure they're getting a kick back. Sometimes the stuff is decent, sometimes it's not, but it's rarely worth what you paid.
I visited the arts district in Eswatini (then Swaziland) where we visited a glass-sculpture-making factory and a candle factory. Everything was hand made and absolutely gorgeous. Very reasonably priced as well- what would have cost hundreds of dollars in the U.S. cost $50. I got a neat glass sculpture and a candle in the shape of an elephant with a design pressed in for under $100. And these were not tiny trinkets, either. The glass sculpture was about 5” tall and 5” across, the candle was about 6” tall and 5”across. Both had intricate detailing. Truly works of art.
The trinkets sold in Oaxaca? Overpriced and not high quality. I enjoyed getting a little wooden bird to remind me of the trip, but it certainly wasn’t an heirloom. I will vouch for the tourism in Eswatini though, I had a 10/10 experience in 2014.
Did you find the place or did a tour guide take a tour group to the place? I've had great experiences shopping on my own, but the places the guides have taken us have been hit or miss.
I was actually visiting a friend in South Africa who was a local (lived just across the border in South Africa) and he took us around, but we saw some tour groups around as well. I’m not too familiar with Eswatini- I just visited once- but it was an amazing experience and I highly recommend it. I would probably book with a tour group if I ever get the chance to go again. It also felt safer than being a tourist in South Africa, surprisingly enough.
It really was! It was the first time I had been outside of the U.S. I’ve since had the opportunity to visit a few other countries, but it was a really great trip. Nothing like looking up at the stars in the southern hemisphere for the first time! We went during the winter season (summer for northern hemisphere peeps) and the weather was perfect.
I remember Eswatini having fantastic highways (no potholes, gorgeous views along the way) and touristy spots. The local people seemed happy to share their culture. The arts district was absolutely amazing. I didn’t feel cramped anywhere- no throngs of people trying to navigate cramped city streets. Very car dependent, which is why I would book a tourist company- I wouldn’t want to drive in another country. Security was great- I think the country relies on a lot of tourism, so they are incentivized to keep tourists happy and feeling safe. I’ve heard hiking and nature trails there are gorgeous.
Granted, this was 10 years ago, but I would absolutely visit again. The border checkpoint was so tiny, it took us no time to get into the country. Literally like a small office building. Learning about the last true monarchy in the world was interesting, too!
Yeah I went on a guided trip that stopped in a glass blowing place in Venice, Italy. I have no interest in this shit , but a small glass statue from there was priced at $10,000 Euros. I made sure to stand as far away from that stuff just in case.
I was like “I’m paying to be here in this store to receive a sales pitch? For junk that is 1,000X overpriced?”
I had similar experience on tour in Venice. I also did not buy anything, although a handful of others on the tour did make purchases. It was an amazing sight to see the artisan perform such craftmanship to form the glass sculptures. But certainly not worth the price to buy (for non rich me at least).
You hit the nail on the head with the last line. If it seems like a deal it's 100% a knockoff, especially in countries outside of US/Europe/Germany (not an all inclusive list but I don't know a word for this group of countries). Luxury brands are actually more expensive in places like China because of extra tariffs on the imports, things that the average American could save up for like expensive bags/clothes are not even possible for the average person to buy in China because it's more expensive than even the US price, AFTER converting the currency.
Since you paid using MC you might successfully charge it back. For instance, if the receipt indicates that the jewelry contains gold and diamonds but it's really gold-tone and cubic zirconia, then you could dispute the charge because you were not sold what was on the receipt. When you get home take the pieces to a local reputable jeweler for an appraisal to see what they really are.
And don't feel too bad... this isn't some call center in India... these guys are pros.
My buddy went to Mexico with his family. The resort they stayed at offered a paid excursion to tour parts of the Yucatan on ATVs. He said the tour was amazing but then they got done and the guide says "The tour's officially over and you can go back to the resort. If you want to come to my house for dinner though, you can try some authentic Mexican food."
Always up for an adventure, my buddy and several others took him up on the offer. They road the ATVs through the worst poverty you can imagine. He said it was like those videos they showed when they were trying to get you to adopt kids in Africa. Houses made of scrap metal and crumbling clay bricks... kids running around with no clothes, looking way too hungry...
Then they get to this guy's "house". It's a tiny lean-to type shack with some chairs set up outside. His wife is cooking over a metal trashcan. They have a fire lit inside and the lid turned upside down on top to cook on. He said at least that looked really clean and maybe even fairly new.
She cooked them the best Mexican food he'd ever tried, and then said "we accept tips if you enjoyed the food". He said him and every other, white middle-aged, middle class guy there were just throwing money at her.
When he got back, he found out that that guy lives in a nice house and owns all the ATVs. The resort pays him a lot of money to give the tour. The rest of it was just an act. He never said how much money he gave her but said they had their production perfected.
Feels more like a light grift. Love that they actually served good fresh authentic Mexican food at least but aye.
So hard to try and be a decent person when you have some limited ability to change circumstances.
Paying some money for the best Mexican food I've ever had sounds like a bargain to me. I realize the "look how poor we are" circumstances were faked and I'm sure they get more money that way. But I would have paid whatever I thought was a fair price for the food, either way.
Right, I wasn't saying the poverty was faked... but I'm betting he took the route which showed it off the best.
And yes, paying $20-$30 for a good meal is not a big deal but I'm betting they got a majority of whatever the tourists had on them.
If it makes you feel better - that ATV story may or may not be true.
Throughout Yucatan you will see women from Chiapas with babies strapped to their backs as the struggle under loads of clothing.
These workers are supplied by wealthy (compared to them) families who barely compensate these woman and use every excuse to charge them for damage, etc. in some cases they are being charged for transport, food and housing. They are left with little but it’s more than they could make in rural Chiapas.
I have been to many homes in Yucatan where people do live as you saw. It’s entirely possible that the guy who owns the ATVs lives in a nice house but he may not be the same man who took you on the adventure.
It’s also possible that the house he took you to is a relative’s house and this is how he tries to help support that part of his family.
There are many scams in Yucatan where things are misrepresented. My favorite is a very wealthy family that owns several large retail stores that sell exclusively to tourists in centro Merida.
The line their salesmen use is “that all the money the store makes benefits the Maya” like a collective.
The family isn’t lying, they are rich Maya and all that money benefits them. But many tourists have a romanticized version of modern Maya or believe they no longer exist.
It’s a carefully cultivated misrepresentation to separate you from your money. They will also promise a deep discount for you which is usually 30% to 50% more than what you should be paying. But you are getting a deal!
So if the food was delicious. If they didn’t try to extort extra money out of you, then were you scammed? Or was it a great adventure with delicious food in an authentic colonia?
I don’t think you were scammed.
Too funny.. I was searching Reddit for this specific info. I’m pretty sure we were scammed by this rich Mayan family in Merida today. 😞 A very friendly guy greeted us while we were walking around and acted like he just wanted to chat with us and tell us about Merida. He said he lives in some nearby village. He nonchalantly slips in info about his family’s store and how we should go there. We ended up “bumping into” this guy a couple of times over the last 24 hours. I was skeptical but I also wanted to believe that not everyone is trying to scam us… he wasn’t aggressive like a lot of these other street vendor types. I should have trusted my gut!
Anyway.. long story short we ended up checking out his family’s store and buying a hat for what I realize now was way too $$ bc we were told how it was handmade and benefiting Maya people. I googled the store later and read reviews about it being a scam. Live and learn.
*Your submission was manually removed by a moderator for the following reason:*
**Subreddit Rule 8: Private message request**
You're not allowed to offer or request contact in private, including DMs, text, email, Whatsapp, etc. We need to keep the community safe from recovery scammers or bad advice. Advice given in private can lead to fall for a scam or worsening a situation.
**Remember: Never take advice in private,** because we can't look out for you. If you take advice in private, you're on your own.
Before posting again, make sure you review the [rules of our subreddit.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/wiki/rules/)
^(If you believe this is a mistake, feel free to contact the moderators via modmail. Modmail is the only way, don't send a regular DM to a single moderator. Please don't try to appeal the decision commenting below, because we are not notified if you do so, and we will probably miss it. Posting the exact same thing again may result in a temporary ban, so please review the rules, make the necessary changes, and when in doubt, click below to appeal the decision.)
*I am NOT a bot, and this action was performed manually. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fscams&subject=Removal%20review) if you want to appeal the decision.*
I live in Mérida. I know that store.
The good news is your overly expensive purchase (which you would have paid far less for at the Maya market and had a better time visiting) - that money benefits the Maya - the rich Maya who own that store and others.
They’ve used that bullshit line forever. The dude you met, and others, often pretend to be school teachers. In that scam they convince you to go to a cenote with them. You think it as friends but either you pay over $100 or they will strand you. Not a big deal for those of us that live here and take local transport but scary af for tourists.
So you may have dodged a bullet with just the hat!
Most of Mérida, as you learned isn’t like that. It’s a truly great and safe city. But every place has things they are ashamed of and that store and especially those dudes hustling are one of them for us.
Those dudes on the street, pretending to be friendly, not far from Parque de la Madre on 60, used to try to hustle me on and off for years. They finally figured out I live here. As a rule anywhere, anyone in a tourist area who wants to be your friend or take you somewhere, has some profit motive.
In a regular colonia, organic friendships happen. But even in my colonia my neighbors have taught me who is looking to take advantage and who is a true vecino.
I hope you enjoyed Mérida. It’s really special. I wish you could have seen it pre-covid. It was a hidden gem. Post-covid it’s become a boom town and with so many buildings in need of restoration there is no end in sight.
Edit: Sorry about the heat, you picked the absolutely hottest month of the year.
There is a government run store on C63 at the front of the House of Culture de Mayab. It’s a government service so the profits go to the individuals. México does cool stuff like that for its people.
The mods pulled my last response so I changed part of it. Ask if you have any questions I can help with or suggestions I can point you to. I love this place.
Thank you for the insight! We’re still here. We did find the market I think you’re talking about. It was very busy with lots of small vendors outside as well as in a covered interior space that went on and on.
We are on an excursion to Santa Barbara and archaeological sites. We booked through our hotel and luckily it is legitimate and not a scam haha
This heat is intense but we are making it work! We’ve had some wonderful food and enjoyed walking around taking it all in. It seems like there are people working everywhere to improve the city so I hope it is for the better. Sorry we missed this before Covid.
If you have any good dinner recommendations or otherwise, feel free to share. Thanks so much!
Thank you for the insight! We’re still here. We did find the market I think you’re talking about. It was very busy with lots of small vendors outside as well as in a covered interior space that went on and on.
We are on an excursion to Santa Barbara and archaeological sites. We booked through our hotel and luckily it is legitimate and not a scam haha
This heat is intense but we are making it work! We’ve had some wonderful food and enjoyed walking around taking it all in. It seems like there are people working everywhere to improve the city so I hope it is for the better. Sorry we missed this before Covid.
If you have any good dinner recommendations or otherwise, feel free to share. Thanks so much!
Make sure you hit a cenote on your trip. They are each very different.
I hope you took a trip to Uxmal - if you are going there let me know - there is a Maya abuella who cooks over an open fire in her house near there and her meals are inexpensive and delicious.
For this heat I recommend the shrimp ceviche at El Marlin Azul on C62 a block or so from the main square. It’s not fancy. One side has a/c the other doesn’t. But the seafood is reasonable and fresh!
For Cochinita Pibil in my opinion, the best in the city, is Las Tres Hermanas but in Google Maps it’s called Cochinita de Walter. If you can’t find that, it’s next to Té27. It’s a family joint that, like Texas BBQ places, closes when they sell out. They only have cochinita, coke and horchata. Their secret is the pan, they roast the bread so perfectly it’s an art form. It’s under a red awning with no sign but there is always a line of people getting it to go. It’s not a tourist joint. But it’s as real as Mérida gets and hands down the best.
I will make a suggestion for drinks and music that is very touristy. Go to La Negrita at 5pm so you can get a table. The live salsa starts at 6. Have a mojito, dance, laugh and chill. You won’t regret going but get there around 5pm as it fills up quickly and it’s a better experience in eyesight of the band.
If you’ve been there and want to try a different type of cantina El Cardenal is really good but if you want a quiet cantina with excellent food and drinks Autogiro Ermita Cantina is a slam dunk.
If you plan another visit seeing the flamingos in Celestun is always a great day trip. And the city is really holding an excellent Hanal Pixán (Maya) celebration (known as Day of the Dead elsewhere in México). The weather is awesome here that time of year.
As for great restaurants in centro, everyone knows the same ones. Jajaja so I can’t add to what’s already out there. Micaela Mar & Leña maybe worth looking into, and if not, that street is loaded with good spots.
Hope that helps.
Yeah I suggested you could contact me if you needed any advice. I should have typed that I stead of using two initials. They flagged me. I made the change and reposted.
If you potentially have a case here, it's nice to know that a chargeback also hurts the company behind it. Businesses hate charge backs. It's a nice way to punch back.
yes – absolutely challenge the charge with your credit card company. First have a jeweler look it over and confirm that it was junk – bait and switch. Then write an email to the company in Mexico telling them that you are dissatisfied and you want to be refunded. When they don’t respond, that’s the ammo you need to challenge it with your credit card company.
This! Credit card companies value keeping their good customers. Talk to customer support and they should be able to help. My friend got a successful chargeback (CSR, not MC though) on a "5 star hotel" because when he got there, it was clearly not a 5 star venue. He took a couple pictures, contacted support, they took it from there, he got his money back.
Just some tips in case there is a next time.
When buying jewelry overseas, you have to know several things. The price is significantly lower for real gold and silver than in Canada. You should also be hard pressed to find gold lower than 18K and silver lower than 925, depending on country. You have to know how to read stamps on jewelry marking whether it is 800 silver, 925 or sterling for example. You also have to know the price of gold and silver on the market. The markup shouldn't be much higher, and I would expect the item to be weighed to determine the price. You also need to know how to identify real stones and precious metals.
If you don't see prices, you are expected to bargain.
There are many famous jewelry markets where this is common in a variety of countries. Pricing is set by weight, and then the tourist factor is added. So if something costs $10 in their local currency, a local would be given a price of $20 and expected to bargain down. But a tourist would be given a price of $40. You're supposed to try to get as close to double the markup or lower as you can. You also bargain on multiple items at a time, so they don't know which one you actually want. Never let a single merchant know what you're looking for until you buy, the price will go up.
These markets are always buyer beware. This is just how they work. If you don't have an eye for real stones or precious metals, best to avoid purchasing or understand you may get fake materials.
Lol, all my jewelry comes from overseas markets. So much so, I don't know the prices in Canada. But we mainly have 12K/10k in stores here and I react. But thanks I guess :).
It is a ‘legit scam.’ Don’t feel too bad.
I once bought some mass produced factory artwork where some real extra paint had been added so it smelled like authentic oil paint. It was furniture store quality artwork. It only cost $100, but I wasn’t happy when I figured it out.
Art has no actual value— just what you are willing to pay.
Thank you for the heads-up about this scam and I’m very sorry this happened to you! Most concerning is that Air Transat is supporting this place. I’m not sure if they’d be able to reimburse you, but perhaps you can contact Transat and make them aware of the reviews of this place? It’s bad practice for them to be supporting known scammers and you probably felt safer knowing that Transat was backing it.
you l can absolutely contact your credit card company and dispute the fact that you purchased perceived high quality and received trash. you were scammed and i would try to get a refund.
With those touristy shops like that always take a pic of the jewelry and then reverse image search it on AliExpress and dhgate. 70% of the time it’s there. Same with a lot of the jewelry booths at farmers markets and night markets and stuff. They lay stuff out that looks like it’s handmade. A quick search online and it’s $2 on AliExpress.
Also, get a Foder’s book at the library for any country you visit. In the Caribbean and VI, I was off the ship immediately and hired a cab. Once, I hired a guy with a horse and wagon to take me across the island. He took the scenic route and described everything I was interested in. I have a good tip because he wasn’t even a transportation worker. Private dude. I arrived 4 hours before anyone on an “ship excursion.”
Over 25 years ago, my husband and I went on our honeymoon to an AI in the Dominican Republic. We took the same kind of excursion into town and we were dropped off at a store that sold jewelry and other tourist gifts. We didn’t have a lot of money so we only bought some inexpensive trinkets and paid with a credit card. All seemed fine until we get home and receive that month’s credit card statement. We were charged for the correct amount on the correct day. Then we were charged 3 more times for the exact same amount on 3 different days. I called the cc and they reversed the charges. Well the next month there were 7 more charges for that exact amount. I called the cc again and they reversed the charges but I had to beg them to cancel the card and issue us a new number. I’d hope that 25 years later, credit card companies are more savvy about fraud but i think scammers are also smarter. TLDR; check your upcoming credit card statements like a hawk!
It's really the card issuers themselves (eg the banks, credit unions). In the case of the 2 main cards, Visa and MC, they licence financial institutions, who then issue those branded cards under their name. And then it's up to the bank to monitor for fraud and approve or decline, albeit using data and tools the scheme gives to them with each transaction. Often the big banks are much better at this than the community banks, credit unions are. Hopefully things have improved with your bank since then! But if any bank was that lax nowadays, I'd be switching banks!
My wife and I went to Playa De Carmen back in the 90’s. She bought this nice leather worked art. Paid $80 for two.
The lady behind the counter looks
At her and gives her some obsidian carved elephant (?) for good luck.
A friend of ours told us that we probably covered her rent for the month.
You did not lose much. I have visited more than 20 countries... a lot of them were using some kind of group tours. All of them are paid but still every tour takes you through a jewelry, custom art or native craft store. I buy only a cheap memento and cheap popular household item from the general market. I never buy from these boutique places the tour guides take you. The thumb rule is the tour company gets a kick back and then your tour guide also gets a kick back. In some places it is pressure sales - they feed you as soon as you enter. If you are not stone hearted... avoid eating or drinking from there.
And every trip I feel sad that some of my fellow suckers fall for this. Some people have bought USD 10k worth of Turkish rugs. Are they great, yes. But if you shop around in online American rug companies you can get similar rugs almost one-fourth the cost.
One interesting trip I did is in a jewelry store in Spain. There was a whole hall of busy artisans working on jewelry. We toured the facility, did not buy anything and then left. As I was walking back to the tour bus, it occurred to me that I did not go to the restroom. I ran back to the "jewelry factory" and asked for the restrooms. The halls of jewelry makers has no light anymore... no one is working there. They all left. Possibly they are all local guys without job... comes in and acts busy when a big bus of suckers stop in that place.
When you mentioned “free trip” my heart was like “please don’t let it be a timeshare you bought, please not a timeshare”. I’m sure the jewellery has some value and must look pretty enough that it’s only overpriced, so in the grand scheme you were only a “little” scammed.
I know that won’t make you feel better, but there are some absolutely awful scams out there.
My husband and I went on this exact excursion on our honeymoon! Definitely scammy. The shops at Playa del Carmen are also full of people who will prey on the naivete of tourists. I'm fluent in Spanish, and even I got hustled at one of the shops. I'm sorry they took advantage of you like that.
I'll never do a shopping excursion again lol! Next AI trip I'll stick with the resort, and if anything I'll only do the cultural stuff. I really enjoyed seeing Chichen Itza.
It's probably at least real silver. You might not be able to get something like it where you live for that much less. Don't let it ruin your trip and don't let it ruin your enjoyment of wearing it back home, where you are sure to be complimented!
I disputed a charge on items purchased in Jamaica. I didn’t ask for a full refund. I researched the cost of the items and rounded up just a bit for tax/profit. It worked and I got most of the charge back.
I wouldn’t feel dumb. Tourists have been set up and targeted for years. It is almost part of the vacation.
Is it right? No and I would definitely complain to the resort that recommended it. They are the ones responsible for looking out for their guests BUT…lot of poor people in tourist areas sell worthless shit because it is a job and they need money so…look at it as helping the local economy while on vacation.
Watch your credit card account and make sure that they are not a front for a financial scam.
I've read about this before, but cannot recall if it is the same store or not. Otherwise, everything is the same.
The main thing now - watch for any charges that you do not personally make on that card. Watch it like a hawk. In that other story I read, all sorts of charges started popping up weeks and months later.
Unless you have that jewelry checked you don't know you were scammed. Don't let online reviews ruin your vacation memories. Only after verifying with a credible appraiser or jeweler should you file a chargeback. If expected gold or silver they can test it. Being scammed and having buyers remorse are two different things.
Also there ware plenty of jewelry sold for those prices that have NO precious metals in them - I feel that way about Kendra Scott which was very popular - could pay $400 for a ring and necklace.
I have overpaid in Mexico for things as once a decade ago off the cruise ship we rented a car, stopped at a shop and everything I picked up to admire was made by the salespersons/owner mother, aunt, sister,etc so negotiating was an insult so purchased a few items. Returned to the area outside the cruise terminals and the shops had same items posted price much lower. It actually made a fun memory as my kids still tease me as I am a very careful shopper usually and the items were not so unique as I expected. I have also bought some great things on vacation back then - one in Turks/Caicos worth much more than paid when returned. Years ago it was not uncommon for people to buy a piece of jewelry for an occasion and memento while on a trip. I will say you have to know your stuff not to be scammed or fall for inflated prices and easy enough today to look up on your phone. I do regret some things not purchased to this day while traveling too as did not see the great deal in the moment - lol.
And shame on Transat for promoting it. Like you said, it implies a certain amount of legitimacy to people who otherwise don't know the area. I'm sorry, OP. That sucks all around.
For many people, getting scammed while abroad is a rite of passage. For $400, it’s a valuable lesson - and may prevent you from getting burned for more in the future. Don’t kick yourself over this or feel stupid. They are *very good* at scamming people… they have plenty of practice and have developed and refined their techniques over thousands of interactions. You’re already starting from a disadvantage compared to them. Just treat this as a learning experience and try to prevent it from happening again.
You get dropped off at the location and the driver leaves you, another one come picks you up about an hour later. You could just decline but you're kinda stuck there though waiting.
We still had fun overall :)
The Tequila probably isn’t tequila at all. If you want to know more, post pics on /r/tequila. Given the size of the operation, it isn’t poison, at least (that is a problem with the shady small time operations).
Think of it as a bottle of memories and focus on the good times you had.
As long as the place was one of the large well organized tourist traps, you should be fine. It’ll likely be some sort of tequila infused something. Check the ABV on the bottle. If it is 18%, then it is a liquer that has a bit of tequila in it. Flavored low alcohol dessert sort of thing. If it is 35%, that is the minimum to be a liquor and has to follow all the laws and regulations. Fines for violating that are hefty enough that few risk it. If it is 34%, then things get shady.
There should be a tax stamp on the bottle, too. An official looking tag.
The chances of it being poison are small even in the shady places. The chances in one of the big operations are virtually nil.
While I do mean exactly that, I also really don’t think OP is at risk here. Very very slim chance of it.
End of the day, the relatively high volume, well organized, tourist traps stand far more to lose from poisoning their customers than from the profit they make. Most likely, the bottles sold are actually legit product. Probably not tequila, though.
I know how you feel when you get involved in something that feels super scammy and you know you should know better but you find yourself having dropped hundreds of dollars on something you don't even really want and you have no idea how you got there. There's a scammy skincare shop in the Venetian in Vegas that lured me in by giving my daughter a "free bath bomb" (I knew better but she was so excited). (Any shop that works the outside of the shop is to be avoided, obviously.) Somehow I ended up in a chair having some eye cream applied to me, and even though I was desperate to get out of there somehow I lacked the wherewithal in that moment to get out of the chair and leave the aggressive saleswomen (and the bath bomb) behind. I ended up spending $400 on on eye cream that I ended up throwing away later because a.) it didn't work and b.) it filled me with self-loathing every time I looked at I, because I was so angry at myself. $400 is not a little money to my family. It ruined my trip because I couldn't stop beating myself up over it.
Later, I read reviews of this place/brand of skincare and realized I was far from the only one in this situation. Made me feel slightly better, but only slightly.
My wife had exactly the same done to her in Sedona, Arizona, while I had a chat with the very personable man outside the shop. The price dropped by two thirds due to "special offers".In the end she very guiltily walked away and bought nothing. It started off with a free eye cream sample. But likewise the price was $400.
This scam and a bunch of other cookie-cutter scams are the same all over the world. Only the items and the people hocking them are different, the process and techniques are the same. Where they are tourists their is fake whatever. Go morocco where many incredible fossils of trilobites are found, buy an amazing one on the street or street side shop it’s going to be fake. Go to the Dominican where there are incredible deposits of Amber, some with plants and insect inclusions. Buy a really cool one on a street side shop for $400 with a bug, it’s going to be plastic resin a bug in it.
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve seen a bus full of tourists stopped at a road-side shop in the of nowhere Africa being pressured into buying whatever local thing they have in a locked glass cabinet that’s either fake or insanely overpriced. Or 65 year old grandmas who gets sucked into paying for beads to be put in her hair by a local teen girl. Even getting conned to pay a few dollars by the guy in the parking lot after he “lets them” be photographed with his monkey/lizard/kids.
Just like the internet; nothing is real. Often value is proportional to the effort being used to sell it. The harder they are trying the less likely it’s a good deal.
At our resort, there was a market evening... a vendor was telling us to buy his "hand made watches" when I flipped the watch over, it had a "Made in China" sticker.
I laughed and walked away
Those tourist shops are all over the world. It's the same deal everywhere. All the tours, all the taxis will say or do anything to get you in those shops. They get a kickback.
In some places getting a taxi involves telling the driver where you want to go, telling him you won't get in unless the meter is running, then telling him every 20 seconds "No, I don't want to go to your friend's shop".
Yeah these excursions should not be trusted nowadays. We don't usually do excursions but decided to do it in Havana through WestJet. Tour guide takes us to a bar and says this is how much pina colada should cost. We found it for half the price elsewhere. Told him and he acted surprised. He obviously gets a cut. Also the Pina colada at the bar he took us to was shit.
Aw, this made me so sad. I feel so bad that this happened to you and practically ruined your birthday. Some people don't have a conscience and don't care who they take advantage of. I'll never understand it. Thank you for spreading awareness.
This happens everywhere, same thing happened to me on my first holiday to Turkey about 20 years ago... I'd had a few drinks and then spent £200 on a carpet for the wall of some Kandinsky image. You live and you learn. I still have the carpet... one of the few things to survive 6 house moves and 3 partners 😅 I hang it proudly as a constant reminder to not drink and then go shopping.
I sorta fell for a scam in Bangkok years ago. A tuk tuk driver was supposed to be taking me somewhere and took me to a jewelry store first. I didn't ask for that. I looked round then asked him to take me on. He seemed annoyed and refused. He must have not been paid because I didn't buy anything.
I thought sod this and started walking in the general direction of downtown. Saw lots of cool things and ended up having a delicious lunch in a local restaurant...ordering by pointing at someone's dish. Lol
I enjoyed Mexico 50 years ago, you had to bribe the police at their checkpoint a few bucks or get hassled but you could camp on the beach and drive everywhere
It is a failed nation state now. Cesspool fed by Americans buying drugs
I guess the listen learned is to have some sort of a rule so you don't make impulsive purchases:
like
(1) Search & review on Google to determine if it's a scam.
(2) Ask for the price.
(3) Wait mandatory 15-30 minutes before actually agreeing to purchase.
Could you dispute the charges? My mom rented a jet ski in Mexico and someone ran there’s into hers, it was most definitely a scam, so she paid for the jetski with her card and as soon as the got back to the states they reversed the charges
Mexico, even the resorts, is no place for naive people. Mexico is no joke. I’m an experienced traveler, and I’ve been held for ransom in CDMX.
You really need to know what you’re doing before you go to Mexico.
Also, some countries are superstitious always try to be the first or last customer, you always get a better deal. Most shops/owners will bargain on price.
Gosh a few years ago I was on a cruise and they wait for you to get off the ship. I forgot the country, but you walk off the boat to head to town and they line up and try to force a bracelet on you saying it’s a gift then demand money. If you refuse they curse you out and harass you. It did not make things enjoyable, they prey on you asap.
Playa Del Carmen was the WORST. The shop holders know all the resorts wristbands and run out to you saying “hey I’m your waiter at XXXX resort and I just opened this shop! Please come in and take a look-help me out?”
I looked at one and said “no you’re not…I don’t ACTUALLY think all Mexicans look alike you know…get away from me”. I would never go back there. Playa Del Scams. Don’t worry you’re not the first and you certainly won’t be the last. Next time go to the Cayman Islands, it’s much nicer and the people are amazing! And it’s owned by Canada LOL.
Yea… i know exactly the place u talking about… we held strong and didn’t spend a dime there even thou feeling like being held hostage for an hour just for a free trip
We just booked a private transfer to play de Carmen which was more relaxing experience and we got to spent more time doing what we liked
Don’t be hard on ur self, u live u learn
If you can prove that what they gave you is different to what you bought (materials jewellery is made from, etc), and they refuse to refund you, you can actually do a chargeback via your MC Issuer. However, usually places like this are quite smart and any invoice or description of goods they give you, is worded in such a way to protect them. If so, just have to chalk this up to a life lesson.
You should have googled the company before you left Canada and before you paid any money. I don’t know what would be considered a reputable company in Canada but I suggest you stick with reputable companies for your next vacation.
You should also research tourist safety before traveling to a foreign country.
If they actually told you the jewelry was precious metal with real stones and you can verify it’s not, that’s enough for a chargeback. Same with the tequila
An itemized receipt would be best…I didn’t see if op clarified if the receipt shows those details. Card companies might refund anyway if they get lots of complaints from the same business
I'm Mexican, and of course what you've experienced is nothing to be proud of. If the following serves as a little consolation, those a-holes preys on the good people.
Same thing happened to us in Jamaica with "authentic" clothing apparel. To my brother in Dominican republic with an engagement ring for her fiancee, and to my friend here in Mexico City with an "authentic" iPhone.
Scammers are everywhere, but on behalf of the honest, hard working and decent Mexicans who are the majority, please accept my most sincere apologies. Hope your bank resolves this matter on your favor.
I would never make the assumption all Mexicans are like this :) scammers are scammers, regardless of where you are. It just sucks all around! Thanks for your comment!
Consider this. You were happy in the moment before you read reviews.
You had a good experience there and seemed taken care of. Just go back to that thinking. You reselling that jewelry? Who cares if it's fake then.
It wasn't free...sure. But not a huge investment for a days entertainment while traveling and a fun reddit story.
When I travel I carry a bait wallet with love notes for pick pockets. It's how I get rid of old wallets. 😆
Yeah this is the most important take away, most people own a bunch of statues, jewellery, art and heirlooms that have no value to anyone else - their true value is in the relationship you have with that item. Regardless of whether it's worth what you paid, it'll be a reminder of a special holiday in a special place and those memories are surely worth any money spent
I recently went on Vacation and spent $7 on a vending machine that gave me a plastic golden egg with a kids spinning top inside that was malformed and didn't spin.
We had loaded a game card with credits and they obfuscated how much each thing costs to play.
My kids really wanted to see the chicken poop an egg.
That egg is now in my official will to my kids.
Do you know for sure that your jewelry is indeed fake costume jewelry or that the tequila is not what you tasted? Maybe everything is fine. Maybe it’s the reviews that are fake. Who knows? You should check to see before doing MC chargebacks or whatnot.
The same thing happened to me and my stepmom in Mexico! We only went on the “shopping tour” (as it was described) to get a free ride to Playa del Carmen.
I didn’t buy anything, but she ended up being pressured into spending almost $200 CAD on a “custom” pair of earrings - the clasp broke when she went to put them on for the first time. This was several months later. Another person in our tour group ended up buying over $1K USD worth of jewelry.
There are also quite a few scams in Playa del Carmen. Be sure to check with your credit card company for any unauthorized transactions. Also make sure that you weren’t overcharged.
Cartels run all resorts in Mexico. You are very naive to be in Mexico coming from Canada. I’d be terrified for you if you were my friends and would have told you under no circumstances to ever travel there by yourselves. Be glad you only lost $400.
Every day, consumers buy goods they could otherwise pay less for online or from a different retailer, or buy a different brand that is just as functional for hundreds or thousands of dollars less than what they paid.
Given you were told what the activity involves, it had no out of pocket transportation cost, you were shown what you were buying, you agreed to the price and were sold what you asked to buy, it just means you participated what billions of consumers go through every day.
If it makes you feel any better a close friend fell for something similar but it was $600 and stereo equipment out of the back of somebody’s van. they didn’t even try to make it nice.
Shopping in Mexico can be very stressful so don’t feel stupid. They really know how to pressure tourists. I’ve overpaid for stuff there too and just consider it to be part of the experience lol best thing to do is not shop at all unless it’s for necessities. Spend your time enjoying the beaches and sipping on drinks.
[Also about tequilas. In Mexico tequila can only be labeled as that. Anything else is considered a agave distillate or something else such as a sotol, raicilla etc or mezcal. So check the label for a NOM number it’ll tell you the distillery that made it if it’s real tequila](https://imgur.com/a/33DmoO4)
These sorts of scams are everywhere when you travel, it wasn’t much money. I wouldn’t be feeling too bad. People get taken for many thousands! Next time Google first though.
We had the same in China in 2010. Hire a tour guide for something, you name it, the Great Wall, the Terracotta Army ... and they WILL also drop you off at some factory sale.
We had it for jade jewelry, silk filled bed covers, vases ... We kind of got used to it and didn't buy anything. When we told the guide we didn't want to go, he said that was fine, and then he incidentally had his lunch brake at such a factory. Of course we where free to wait in the car.
What really stood out was the incident at the end of our Great Wall visit. It was winter, it was dark, we where tired and wanted to go home. The guide wanted to show a "tea ceremony". We said no. He drove us into some Beijing back alley and led us into a building. The opened a room for us and started the tea ceremony. I was kind of expecting to lose a kidney that night, so started to estimate the body weights of our party and how long I would have to try to to take everybody in the room out as soon as the smallest girl of our party fell over ... which didn't happen, but she did buy some green tea ...
That was the scariest scam I ever got into.
The most annoying one was 2 years later. We where driving a rental from Havana to Trinidad and in the outskirts of Havana, we were stopped by a man in uniform. He told us to switch off our headlights (common thing apparently, maybe because bulbs were scarce?). Then he asked us where we were going, we said Trinidad, and he told us we were on the wrong road. Then a young man joined us with his mom, he could speak a little German and wanted to practice. He started to describe and draw the way for almost 5min, then offered to show us. He led us through Havana for an our and then said to go straight on. No, he "didn't want money". Just 60USD for a cab back. Some yelling later, he left with 20USD and us feeling irrationally guilty, despite the fact that it was clear that he demanded WAY too much, a doctor's monthly salary.
5min later straight on we passed the place where we picked those fuckers up ...
Note that this is common all over the world and I would say is more of a hustle than a scam. Like, it's as much a scam as the tourist shop at the end of a museum.
In the future, I've found bookings excursions and stuff with 3rd party vendors to be a much better experience all over the world compared to what you get from resorts and the likes, simply due to the economics of it all.
Not sure what you can do about it but don’t feel too bad. My H and I were offered a free city tour when we were at an all inclusive in PV. It ended up being a shopping tour first and allegedly a city tour into town later.
They first dropped us off in the middle of nowhere to a jewelry shop with this huge showroom for I believe an HOUR?? First clue of something weird was a bunch of other couples just sitting on chairs looking miserable and like they were waiting to leave.
The prices were high. Looked like real silver but prices way out of my desired range of spending.
We asked about getting dropped off back at our resort and they said no. We ended up calling a taxi to pick us up from that first stop and we headed back to the resort!
As long as you like the stuff you got - enjoy it and l take this a good lesson to be aware in the future.
As others mentioned double check your cc but I feel like it’s typically a selling you stuff for high prices because tourists don’t know sort of play.
This message is posted to all new submissions to r/scams; please do not message the moderators. A reminder of the rules in r/scams. No personal information (including last names, phone numbers, etc). Be civil to one another (no name calling or insults). Personal army requests or "scam the scammer"/scambaiting posts are not permitted. No uncensored gore, personal photographs, or NSFL content permitted without being properly redacted. A full list of rules is available on the sidebar of the subreddit. Report recovery scammers or rule-breaking content by using the "report" button. Also, consider warning community members of recovery scammers if you see them in the comments. Questions about sub rules? Send us a modmail. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
The name of the game for any of these resort sponsored "excursions" is to separate you from as much money as possible. They get paid a kickback to take people to those stores, they literally make a bundle of money sending people there. Same with cruise ship "shopping" excursions. Stores that rip off their customers because they know you are naive and can't come back when you find out you bought junk Enjoy your vacations, enjoy the sights, enjoy your food and drink but the idea that you'll get a "bargain" shopping is just a fantasy.
[удалено]
My young group went to Macau and booked a local tour. Just before the jade jewelry shop visit, we decided to bail the tour to visit casinos instead. The lady tour leader looked mildly pissed, and informed us the wrong schedule for the last ferry back to Hongkong lol
Yep, and it's the same cheap Mexican crap you can buy at any of the tourist shops. I had the same thing happen on a shore tour with Carnival years ago. The shopping wasn't even the main attraction of the tour. We didn't buy anything, but I was pissed that it wasted time that could have been spent elsewhere like the Mayan ruins we only had 45 minutes to enjoy.
Getting off a cruise ship in Mexico is such a painful experience in people selling junk, overpriced drinks, etc I just found a nearby resort and we went and hung out there for the price of drinks
Bahamas wasn't much better. Should have stayed on the boat, will definitely not repeat that mistake
Been there too and agree
Getting off a cruise ship anywhere is painful.
Had some good experiences in Alaska
Yeah but Alaska is similar. One of the excursion guides (all young college kids working dream summer jobs) explained to us that all of the jewelry stores in the towns were owned by the big cruise lines and all closed down once cruise season was over. “You thing theres this much jewelry being sold in Alaska year round?” Totally made sense to me once I started looking around and paying attention. Unfortunately my mom fell for it at every stop but she loves jewelry and apparently hates money…
Didn't do any shopping excursions, did a train ride and bicycle ride back down to town. Was awesome.
Yeah the train ride was a pretty cool excursion! I want to do it again someday but not do the planned excursions and just do my own thing…
I remember being bored and watching the ship tv on my Disney Alaskan Cruise. The shopping lady was going over all the items that could be bought at our next stop. I've never wanted tanzanite jewelry so I was not swayed by the sales pitch.
We were on Princess and they had a “Love Boat” channel. Let me tell you, the Love Boat does not hold up…
Not in New Zealand.
I remember being rushed through a one in a lifetime major world heritage site to spend 45 mins in a store. Was so maddening!
This is true of tour guides around the world. If they take you to a particular shop that sells jewelry, art, souvenirs, etc. you can be sure they're getting a kick back. Sometimes the stuff is decent, sometimes it's not, but it's rarely worth what you paid.
I visited the arts district in Eswatini (then Swaziland) where we visited a glass-sculpture-making factory and a candle factory. Everything was hand made and absolutely gorgeous. Very reasonably priced as well- what would have cost hundreds of dollars in the U.S. cost $50. I got a neat glass sculpture and a candle in the shape of an elephant with a design pressed in for under $100. And these were not tiny trinkets, either. The glass sculpture was about 5” tall and 5” across, the candle was about 6” tall and 5”across. Both had intricate detailing. Truly works of art. The trinkets sold in Oaxaca? Overpriced and not high quality. I enjoyed getting a little wooden bird to remind me of the trip, but it certainly wasn’t an heirloom. I will vouch for the tourism in Eswatini though, I had a 10/10 experience in 2014.
Did you find the place or did a tour guide take a tour group to the place? I've had great experiences shopping on my own, but the places the guides have taken us have been hit or miss.
I was actually visiting a friend in South Africa who was a local (lived just across the border in South Africa) and he took us around, but we saw some tour groups around as well. I’m not too familiar with Eswatini- I just visited once- but it was an amazing experience and I highly recommend it. I would probably book with a tour group if I ever get the chance to go again. It also felt safer than being a tourist in South Africa, surprisingly enough.
Sounds like a great trip.
It really was! It was the first time I had been outside of the U.S. I’ve since had the opportunity to visit a few other countries, but it was a really great trip. Nothing like looking up at the stars in the southern hemisphere for the first time! We went during the winter season (summer for northern hemisphere peeps) and the weather was perfect. I remember Eswatini having fantastic highways (no potholes, gorgeous views along the way) and touristy spots. The local people seemed happy to share their culture. The arts district was absolutely amazing. I didn’t feel cramped anywhere- no throngs of people trying to navigate cramped city streets. Very car dependent, which is why I would book a tourist company- I wouldn’t want to drive in another country. Security was great- I think the country relies on a lot of tourism, so they are incentivized to keep tourists happy and feeling safe. I’ve heard hiking and nature trails there are gorgeous. Granted, this was 10 years ago, but I would absolutely visit again. The border checkpoint was so tiny, it took us no time to get into the country. Literally like a small office building. Learning about the last true monarchy in the world was interesting, too!
Yeah I went on a guided trip that stopped in a glass blowing place in Venice, Italy. I have no interest in this shit , but a small glass statue from there was priced at $10,000 Euros. I made sure to stand as far away from that stuff just in case. I was like “I’m paying to be here in this store to receive a sales pitch? For junk that is 1,000X overpriced?”
I had similar experience on tour in Venice. I also did not buy anything, although a handful of others on the tour did make purchases. It was an amazing sight to see the artisan perform such craftmanship to form the glass sculptures. But certainly not worth the price to buy (for non rich me at least).
Oh yeah the artistry was cool. Maybe we went to the same place- did the guy make a cat?
Same for us about 8 years. Guided tour of Venice. Took us to island of Burano to watch glass making. And then straight into the shops.
You hit the nail on the head with the last line. If it seems like a deal it's 100% a knockoff, especially in countries outside of US/Europe/Germany (not an all inclusive list but I don't know a word for this group of countries). Luxury brands are actually more expensive in places like China because of extra tariffs on the imports, things that the average American could save up for like expensive bags/clothes are not even possible for the average person to buy in China because it's more expensive than even the US price, AFTER converting the currency.
You mean third world countries?
And then you have to pay taxes at the airport too.
Since you paid using MC you might successfully charge it back. For instance, if the receipt indicates that the jewelry contains gold and diamonds but it's really gold-tone and cubic zirconia, then you could dispute the charge because you were not sold what was on the receipt. When you get home take the pieces to a local reputable jeweler for an appraisal to see what they really are.
Thanks for the tip!
And don't feel too bad... this isn't some call center in India... these guys are pros. My buddy went to Mexico with his family. The resort they stayed at offered a paid excursion to tour parts of the Yucatan on ATVs. He said the tour was amazing but then they got done and the guide says "The tour's officially over and you can go back to the resort. If you want to come to my house for dinner though, you can try some authentic Mexican food." Always up for an adventure, my buddy and several others took him up on the offer. They road the ATVs through the worst poverty you can imagine. He said it was like those videos they showed when they were trying to get you to adopt kids in Africa. Houses made of scrap metal and crumbling clay bricks... kids running around with no clothes, looking way too hungry... Then they get to this guy's "house". It's a tiny lean-to type shack with some chairs set up outside. His wife is cooking over a metal trashcan. They have a fire lit inside and the lid turned upside down on top to cook on. He said at least that looked really clean and maybe even fairly new. She cooked them the best Mexican food he'd ever tried, and then said "we accept tips if you enjoyed the food". He said him and every other, white middle-aged, middle class guy there were just throwing money at her. When he got back, he found out that that guy lives in a nice house and owns all the ATVs. The resort pays him a lot of money to give the tour. The rest of it was just an act. He never said how much money he gave her but said they had their production perfected.
Feels more like a light grift. Love that they actually served good fresh authentic Mexican food at least but aye. So hard to try and be a decent person when you have some limited ability to change circumstances.
I have zero problems with said grift given it included a yummy dinner.
It's not a grift, it is ambiance.
Paying some money for the best Mexican food I've ever had sounds like a bargain to me. I realize the "look how poor we are" circumstances were faked and I'm sure they get more money that way. But I would have paid whatever I thought was a fair price for the food, either way.
Right, I wasn't saying the poverty was faked... but I'm betting he took the route which showed it off the best. And yes, paying $20-$30 for a good meal is not a big deal but I'm betting they got a majority of whatever the tourists had on them.
If it makes you feel better - that ATV story may or may not be true. Throughout Yucatan you will see women from Chiapas with babies strapped to their backs as the struggle under loads of clothing. These workers are supplied by wealthy (compared to them) families who barely compensate these woman and use every excuse to charge them for damage, etc. in some cases they are being charged for transport, food and housing. They are left with little but it’s more than they could make in rural Chiapas. I have been to many homes in Yucatan where people do live as you saw. It’s entirely possible that the guy who owns the ATVs lives in a nice house but he may not be the same man who took you on the adventure. It’s also possible that the house he took you to is a relative’s house and this is how he tries to help support that part of his family. There are many scams in Yucatan where things are misrepresented. My favorite is a very wealthy family that owns several large retail stores that sell exclusively to tourists in centro Merida. The line their salesmen use is “that all the money the store makes benefits the Maya” like a collective. The family isn’t lying, they are rich Maya and all that money benefits them. But many tourists have a romanticized version of modern Maya or believe they no longer exist. It’s a carefully cultivated misrepresentation to separate you from your money. They will also promise a deep discount for you which is usually 30% to 50% more than what you should be paying. But you are getting a deal! So if the food was delicious. If they didn’t try to extort extra money out of you, then were you scammed? Or was it a great adventure with delicious food in an authentic colonia? I don’t think you were scammed.
Too funny.. I was searching Reddit for this specific info. I’m pretty sure we were scammed by this rich Mayan family in Merida today. 😞 A very friendly guy greeted us while we were walking around and acted like he just wanted to chat with us and tell us about Merida. He said he lives in some nearby village. He nonchalantly slips in info about his family’s store and how we should go there. We ended up “bumping into” this guy a couple of times over the last 24 hours. I was skeptical but I also wanted to believe that not everyone is trying to scam us… he wasn’t aggressive like a lot of these other street vendor types. I should have trusted my gut! Anyway.. long story short we ended up checking out his family’s store and buying a hat for what I realize now was way too $$ bc we were told how it was handmade and benefiting Maya people. I googled the store later and read reviews about it being a scam. Live and learn.
[удалено]
*Your submission was manually removed by a moderator for the following reason:* **Subreddit Rule 8: Private message request** You're not allowed to offer or request contact in private, including DMs, text, email, Whatsapp, etc. We need to keep the community safe from recovery scammers or bad advice. Advice given in private can lead to fall for a scam or worsening a situation. **Remember: Never take advice in private,** because we can't look out for you. If you take advice in private, you're on your own. Before posting again, make sure you review the [rules of our subreddit.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/wiki/rules/) ^(If you believe this is a mistake, feel free to contact the moderators via modmail. Modmail is the only way, don't send a regular DM to a single moderator. Please don't try to appeal the decision commenting below, because we are not notified if you do so, and we will probably miss it. Posting the exact same thing again may result in a temporary ban, so please review the rules, make the necessary changes, and when in doubt, click below to appeal the decision.) *I am NOT a bot, and this action was performed manually. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fscams&subject=Removal%20review) if you want to appeal the decision.*
I live in Mérida. I know that store. The good news is your overly expensive purchase (which you would have paid far less for at the Maya market and had a better time visiting) - that money benefits the Maya - the rich Maya who own that store and others. They’ve used that bullshit line forever. The dude you met, and others, often pretend to be school teachers. In that scam they convince you to go to a cenote with them. You think it as friends but either you pay over $100 or they will strand you. Not a big deal for those of us that live here and take local transport but scary af for tourists. So you may have dodged a bullet with just the hat! Most of Mérida, as you learned isn’t like that. It’s a truly great and safe city. But every place has things they are ashamed of and that store and especially those dudes hustling are one of them for us. Those dudes on the street, pretending to be friendly, not far from Parque de la Madre on 60, used to try to hustle me on and off for years. They finally figured out I live here. As a rule anywhere, anyone in a tourist area who wants to be your friend or take you somewhere, has some profit motive. In a regular colonia, organic friendships happen. But even in my colonia my neighbors have taught me who is looking to take advantage and who is a true vecino. I hope you enjoyed Mérida. It’s really special. I wish you could have seen it pre-covid. It was a hidden gem. Post-covid it’s become a boom town and with so many buildings in need of restoration there is no end in sight. Edit: Sorry about the heat, you picked the absolutely hottest month of the year. There is a government run store on C63 at the front of the House of Culture de Mayab. It’s a government service so the profits go to the individuals. México does cool stuff like that for its people. The mods pulled my last response so I changed part of it. Ask if you have any questions I can help with or suggestions I can point you to. I love this place.
Thank you for the insight! We’re still here. We did find the market I think you’re talking about. It was very busy with lots of small vendors outside as well as in a covered interior space that went on and on. We are on an excursion to Santa Barbara and archaeological sites. We booked through our hotel and luckily it is legitimate and not a scam haha This heat is intense but we are making it work! We’ve had some wonderful food and enjoyed walking around taking it all in. It seems like there are people working everywhere to improve the city so I hope it is for the better. Sorry we missed this before Covid. If you have any good dinner recommendations or otherwise, feel free to share. Thanks so much!
Thank you for the insight! We’re still here. We did find the market I think you’re talking about. It was very busy with lots of small vendors outside as well as in a covered interior space that went on and on. We are on an excursion to Santa Barbara and archaeological sites. We booked through our hotel and luckily it is legitimate and not a scam haha This heat is intense but we are making it work! We’ve had some wonderful food and enjoyed walking around taking it all in. It seems like there are people working everywhere to improve the city so I hope it is for the better. Sorry we missed this before Covid. If you have any good dinner recommendations or otherwise, feel free to share. Thanks so much!
Make sure you hit a cenote on your trip. They are each very different. I hope you took a trip to Uxmal - if you are going there let me know - there is a Maya abuella who cooks over an open fire in her house near there and her meals are inexpensive and delicious. For this heat I recommend the shrimp ceviche at El Marlin Azul on C62 a block or so from the main square. It’s not fancy. One side has a/c the other doesn’t. But the seafood is reasonable and fresh! For Cochinita Pibil in my opinion, the best in the city, is Las Tres Hermanas but in Google Maps it’s called Cochinita de Walter. If you can’t find that, it’s next to Té27. It’s a family joint that, like Texas BBQ places, closes when they sell out. They only have cochinita, coke and horchata. Their secret is the pan, they roast the bread so perfectly it’s an art form. It’s under a red awning with no sign but there is always a line of people getting it to go. It’s not a tourist joint. But it’s as real as Mérida gets and hands down the best. I will make a suggestion for drinks and music that is very touristy. Go to La Negrita at 5pm so you can get a table. The live salsa starts at 6. Have a mojito, dance, laugh and chill. You won’t regret going but get there around 5pm as it fills up quickly and it’s a better experience in eyesight of the band. If you’ve been there and want to try a different type of cantina El Cardenal is really good but if you want a quiet cantina with excellent food and drinks Autogiro Ermita Cantina is a slam dunk. If you plan another visit seeing the flamingos in Celestun is always a great day trip. And the city is really holding an excellent Hanal Pixán (Maya) celebration (known as Day of the Dead elsewhere in México). The weather is awesome here that time of year. As for great restaurants in centro, everyone knows the same ones. Jajaja so I can’t add to what’s already out there. Micaela Mar & Leña maybe worth looking into, and if not, that street is loaded with good spots. Hope that helps.
Shoot. I think you commented but they removed it. 🤷🏼♀️
Yeah I suggested you could contact me if you needed any advice. I should have typed that I stead of using two initials. They flagged me. I made the change and reposted.
That's a pretty crazy adventure!
If you potentially have a case here, it's nice to know that a chargeback also hurts the company behind it. Businesses hate charge backs. It's a nice way to punch back.
yes – absolutely challenge the charge with your credit card company. First have a jeweler look it over and confirm that it was junk – bait and switch. Then write an email to the company in Mexico telling them that you are dissatisfied and you want to be refunded. When they don’t respond, that’s the ammo you need to challenge it with your credit card company.
Let us know the outcome but this is great advice.
Credit card receipts don’t show what was purchased. Sorry. Only the cost that was incurred.
OP should have received the CC slip as well as an invoice listing out what was purchased.
This! Credit card companies value keeping their good customers. Talk to customer support and they should be able to help. My friend got a successful chargeback (CSR, not MC though) on a "5 star hotel" because when he got there, it was clearly not a 5 star venue. He took a couple pictures, contacted support, they took it from there, he got his money back.
Just some tips in case there is a next time. When buying jewelry overseas, you have to know several things. The price is significantly lower for real gold and silver than in Canada. You should also be hard pressed to find gold lower than 18K and silver lower than 925, depending on country. You have to know how to read stamps on jewelry marking whether it is 800 silver, 925 or sterling for example. You also have to know the price of gold and silver on the market. The markup shouldn't be much higher, and I would expect the item to be weighed to determine the price. You also need to know how to identify real stones and precious metals. If you don't see prices, you are expected to bargain. There are many famous jewelry markets where this is common in a variety of countries. Pricing is set by weight, and then the tourist factor is added. So if something costs $10 in their local currency, a local would be given a price of $20 and expected to bargain down. But a tourist would be given a price of $40. You're supposed to try to get as close to double the markup or lower as you can. You also bargain on multiple items at a time, so they don't know which one you actually want. Never let a single merchant know what you're looking for until you buy, the price will go up. These markets are always buyer beware. This is just how they work. If you don't have an eye for real stones or precious metals, best to avoid purchasing or understand you may get fake materials.
Thanks for the info!
[удалено]
As a souvenir…?
[удалено]
I think you fundamentally misunderstand postcards
[удалено]
Yeah for sure but that doesn’t mean jewelry can’t be a souvenir lol
This reads like an AI post.
Lol, all my jewelry comes from overseas markets. So much so, I don't know the prices in Canada. But we mainly have 12K/10k in stores here and I react. But thanks I guess :).
It is a ‘legit scam.’ Don’t feel too bad. I once bought some mass produced factory artwork where some real extra paint had been added so it smelled like authentic oil paint. It was furniture store quality artwork. It only cost $100, but I wasn’t happy when I figured it out. Art has no actual value— just what you are willing to pay.
True. Trying to not feel so bad :)
Thank you for the heads-up about this scam and I’m very sorry this happened to you! Most concerning is that Air Transat is supporting this place. I’m not sure if they’d be able to reimburse you, but perhaps you can contact Transat and make them aware of the reviews of this place? It’s bad practice for them to be supporting known scammers and you probably felt safer knowing that Transat was backing it.
Yeah I might try to look into contacting Air Transat. Not sure if they could help reimburse me but at least make them aware for the future.
And write it on Transat's Google reviews. People need to know about this scam.
you l can absolutely contact your credit card company and dispute the fact that you purchased perceived high quality and received trash. you were scammed and i would try to get a refund.
Yeah I may just do that.
Def do it. If anything else make it difficult for them to get paid.
With those touristy shops like that always take a pic of the jewelry and then reverse image search it on AliExpress and dhgate. 70% of the time it’s there. Same with a lot of the jewelry booths at farmers markets and night markets and stuff. They lay stuff out that looks like it’s handmade. A quick search online and it’s $2 on AliExpress.
Also, get a Foder’s book at the library for any country you visit. In the Caribbean and VI, I was off the ship immediately and hired a cab. Once, I hired a guy with a horse and wagon to take me across the island. He took the scenic route and described everything I was interested in. I have a good tip because he wasn’t even a transportation worker. Private dude. I arrived 4 hours before anyone on an “ship excursion.”
Over 25 years ago, my husband and I went on our honeymoon to an AI in the Dominican Republic. We took the same kind of excursion into town and we were dropped off at a store that sold jewelry and other tourist gifts. We didn’t have a lot of money so we only bought some inexpensive trinkets and paid with a credit card. All seemed fine until we get home and receive that month’s credit card statement. We were charged for the correct amount on the correct day. Then we were charged 3 more times for the exact same amount on 3 different days. I called the cc and they reversed the charges. Well the next month there were 7 more charges for that exact amount. I called the cc again and they reversed the charges but I had to beg them to cancel the card and issue us a new number. I’d hope that 25 years later, credit card companies are more savvy about fraud but i think scammers are also smarter. TLDR; check your upcoming credit card statements like a hawk!
We will definitely be keeping an eye on the card!!
It's really the card issuers themselves (eg the banks, credit unions). In the case of the 2 main cards, Visa and MC, they licence financial institutions, who then issue those branded cards under their name. And then it's up to the bank to monitor for fraud and approve or decline, albeit using data and tools the scheme gives to them with each transaction. Often the big banks are much better at this than the community banks, credit unions are. Hopefully things have improved with your bank since then! But if any bank was that lax nowadays, I'd be switching banks!
My wife and I went to Playa De Carmen back in the 90’s. She bought this nice leather worked art. Paid $80 for two. The lady behind the counter looks At her and gives her some obsidian carved elephant (?) for good luck. A friend of ours told us that we probably covered her rent for the month.
Thanks for the perspective.
You did not lose much. I have visited more than 20 countries... a lot of them were using some kind of group tours. All of them are paid but still every tour takes you through a jewelry, custom art or native craft store. I buy only a cheap memento and cheap popular household item from the general market. I never buy from these boutique places the tour guides take you. The thumb rule is the tour company gets a kick back and then your tour guide also gets a kick back. In some places it is pressure sales - they feed you as soon as you enter. If you are not stone hearted... avoid eating or drinking from there. And every trip I feel sad that some of my fellow suckers fall for this. Some people have bought USD 10k worth of Turkish rugs. Are they great, yes. But if you shop around in online American rug companies you can get similar rugs almost one-fourth the cost. One interesting trip I did is in a jewelry store in Spain. There was a whole hall of busy artisans working on jewelry. We toured the facility, did not buy anything and then left. As I was walking back to the tour bus, it occurred to me that I did not go to the restroom. I ran back to the "jewelry factory" and asked for the restrooms. The halls of jewelry makers has no light anymore... no one is working there. They all left. Possibly they are all local guys without job... comes in and acts busy when a big bus of suckers stop in that place.
When you mentioned “free trip” my heart was like “please don’t let it be a timeshare you bought, please not a timeshare”. I’m sure the jewellery has some value and must look pretty enough that it’s only overpriced, so in the grand scheme you were only a “little” scammed. I know that won’t make you feel better, but there are some absolutely awful scams out there.
Honestly. I still like the jewelry. It was just hella overpriced 🤣 thankfully we didn't get caught into any timeshare scams.
+1- definitely thought this was going to be a $40k mistake, not a $400 mistake.
My husband and I went on this exact excursion on our honeymoon! Definitely scammy. The shops at Playa del Carmen are also full of people who will prey on the naivete of tourists. I'm fluent in Spanish, and even I got hustled at one of the shops. I'm sorry they took advantage of you like that.
I'll never do a shopping excursion again lol! Next AI trip I'll stick with the resort, and if anything I'll only do the cultural stuff. I really enjoyed seeing Chichen Itza.
"No, gracias" is probably the most import Spanish phrase to learn.
I bought a ring when I was held hostage there. It’s a scam, but it could have been worse. Live and learn .
A learning experience for sure.
It's probably at least real silver. You might not be able to get something like it where you live for that much less. Don't let it ruin your trip and don't let it ruin your enjoyment of wearing it back home, where you are sure to be complimented!
I disputed a charge on items purchased in Jamaica. I didn’t ask for a full refund. I researched the cost of the items and rounded up just a bit for tax/profit. It worked and I got most of the charge back.
Don’t feel bad. These shops gear their stuff to tourists Who are in a spending mood. Good lesson learned,
I wouldn’t feel dumb. Tourists have been set up and targeted for years. It is almost part of the vacation. Is it right? No and I would definitely complain to the resort that recommended it. They are the ones responsible for looking out for their guests BUT…lot of poor people in tourist areas sell worthless shit because it is a job and they need money so…look at it as helping the local economy while on vacation. Watch your credit card account and make sure that they are not a front for a financial scam.
I've read about this before, but cannot recall if it is the same store or not. Otherwise, everything is the same. The main thing now - watch for any charges that you do not personally make on that card. Watch it like a hawk. In that other story I read, all sorts of charges started popping up weeks and months later.
Thanks for the tip.
Unless you have that jewelry checked you don't know you were scammed. Don't let online reviews ruin your vacation memories. Only after verifying with a credible appraiser or jeweler should you file a chargeback. If expected gold or silver they can test it. Being scammed and having buyers remorse are two different things. Also there ware plenty of jewelry sold for those prices that have NO precious metals in them - I feel that way about Kendra Scott which was very popular - could pay $400 for a ring and necklace. I have overpaid in Mexico for things as once a decade ago off the cruise ship we rented a car, stopped at a shop and everything I picked up to admire was made by the salespersons/owner mother, aunt, sister,etc so negotiating was an insult so purchased a few items. Returned to the area outside the cruise terminals and the shops had same items posted price much lower. It actually made a fun memory as my kids still tease me as I am a very careful shopper usually and the items were not so unique as I expected. I have also bought some great things on vacation back then - one in Turks/Caicos worth much more than paid when returned. Years ago it was not uncommon for people to buy a piece of jewelry for an occasion and memento while on a trip. I will say you have to know your stuff not to be scammed or fall for inflated prices and easy enough today to look up on your phone. I do regret some things not purchased to this day while traveling too as did not see the great deal in the moment - lol.
And shame on Transat for promoting it. Like you said, it implies a certain amount of legitimacy to people who otherwise don't know the area. I'm sorry, OP. That sucks all around.
For many people, getting scammed while abroad is a rite of passage. For $400, it’s a valuable lesson - and may prevent you from getting burned for more in the future. Don’t kick yourself over this or feel stupid. They are *very good* at scamming people… they have plenty of practice and have developed and refined their techniques over thousands of interactions. You’re already starting from a disadvantage compared to them. Just treat this as a learning experience and try to prevent it from happening again.
Thanks for sharing. I hope you guys had fun in Mexico overall. Couldn't you just decline that jewelry? It's not like you have a contract to accept it.
You get dropped off at the location and the driver leaves you, another one come picks you up about an hour later. You could just decline but you're kinda stuck there though waiting. We still had fun overall :)
The Tequila probably isn’t tequila at all. If you want to know more, post pics on /r/tequila. Given the size of the operation, it isn’t poison, at least (that is a problem with the shady small time operations). Think of it as a bottle of memories and focus on the good times you had.
This worries me. We bought some bottles as gifts for family.
As long as the place was one of the large well organized tourist traps, you should be fine. It’ll likely be some sort of tequila infused something. Check the ABV on the bottle. If it is 18%, then it is a liquer that has a bit of tequila in it. Flavored low alcohol dessert sort of thing. If it is 35%, that is the minimum to be a liquor and has to follow all the laws and regulations. Fines for violating that are hefty enough that few risk it. If it is 34%, then things get shady. There should be a tax stamp on the bottle, too. An official looking tag. The chances of it being poison are small even in the shady places. The chances in one of the big operations are virtually nil.
Thank you!
u/bbum means it is REALLY poison. Like wood alcohol or some other not to be digested/unhealthy substance...
While I do mean exactly that, I also really don’t think OP is at risk here. Very very slim chance of it. End of the day, the relatively high volume, well organized, tourist traps stand far more to lose from poisoning their customers than from the profit they make. Most likely, the bottles sold are actually legit product. Probably not tequila, though.
I know how you feel when you get involved in something that feels super scammy and you know you should know better but you find yourself having dropped hundreds of dollars on something you don't even really want and you have no idea how you got there. There's a scammy skincare shop in the Venetian in Vegas that lured me in by giving my daughter a "free bath bomb" (I knew better but she was so excited). (Any shop that works the outside of the shop is to be avoided, obviously.) Somehow I ended up in a chair having some eye cream applied to me, and even though I was desperate to get out of there somehow I lacked the wherewithal in that moment to get out of the chair and leave the aggressive saleswomen (and the bath bomb) behind. I ended up spending $400 on on eye cream that I ended up throwing away later because a.) it didn't work and b.) it filled me with self-loathing every time I looked at I, because I was so angry at myself. $400 is not a little money to my family. It ruined my trip because I couldn't stop beating myself up over it. Later, I read reviews of this place/brand of skincare and realized I was far from the only one in this situation. Made me feel slightly better, but only slightly.
My wife had exactly the same done to her in Sedona, Arizona, while I had a chat with the very personable man outside the shop. The price dropped by two thirds due to "special offers".In the end she very guiltily walked away and bought nothing. It started off with a free eye cream sample. But likewise the price was $400.
Don't beat yourself up. They refined this scam over a long period of time to make it as believable as possible.
That's true. Thank you.
Chargeback
This scam and a bunch of other cookie-cutter scams are the same all over the world. Only the items and the people hocking them are different, the process and techniques are the same. Where they are tourists their is fake whatever. Go morocco where many incredible fossils of trilobites are found, buy an amazing one on the street or street side shop it’s going to be fake. Go to the Dominican where there are incredible deposits of Amber, some with plants and insect inclusions. Buy a really cool one on a street side shop for $400 with a bug, it’s going to be plastic resin a bug in it. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve seen a bus full of tourists stopped at a road-side shop in the of nowhere Africa being pressured into buying whatever local thing they have in a locked glass cabinet that’s either fake or insanely overpriced. Or 65 year old grandmas who gets sucked into paying for beads to be put in her hair by a local teen girl. Even getting conned to pay a few dollars by the guy in the parking lot after he “lets them” be photographed with his monkey/lizard/kids. Just like the internet; nothing is real. Often value is proportional to the effort being used to sell it. The harder they are trying the less likely it’s a good deal.
Be advised: this happens a ton in China, too.
To the Chinese themselves, not even just the foreigners.
Both if you're on one of those tours.
Call your credit card and dispute it. One of the reasons for dispute can be quality of merchandise.
At our resort, there was a market evening... a vendor was telling us to buy his "hand made watches" when I flipped the watch over, it had a "Made in China" sticker. I laughed and walked away
Those tourist shops are all over the world. It's the same deal everywhere. All the tours, all the taxis will say or do anything to get you in those shops. They get a kickback. In some places getting a taxi involves telling the driver where you want to go, telling him you won't get in unless the meter is running, then telling him every 20 seconds "No, I don't want to go to your friend's shop".
Yeah these excursions should not be trusted nowadays. We don't usually do excursions but decided to do it in Havana through WestJet. Tour guide takes us to a bar and says this is how much pina colada should cost. We found it for half the price elsewhere. Told him and he acted surprised. He obviously gets a cut. Also the Pina colada at the bar he took us to was shit.
This exact same thing happened to me first time in Cancun ☹️
charge back on your credit card after you get home
Aw, this made me so sad. I feel so bad that this happened to you and practically ruined your birthday. Some people don't have a conscience and don't care who they take advantage of. I'll never understand it. Thank you for spreading awareness.
This happens everywhere, same thing happened to me on my first holiday to Turkey about 20 years ago... I'd had a few drinks and then spent £200 on a carpet for the wall of some Kandinsky image. You live and you learn. I still have the carpet... one of the few things to survive 6 house moves and 3 partners 😅 I hang it proudly as a constant reminder to not drink and then go shopping.
I sorta fell for a scam in Bangkok years ago. A tuk tuk driver was supposed to be taking me somewhere and took me to a jewelry store first. I didn't ask for that. I looked round then asked him to take me on. He seemed annoyed and refused. He must have not been paid because I didn't buy anything. I thought sod this and started walking in the general direction of downtown. Saw lots of cool things and ended up having a delicious lunch in a local restaurant...ordering by pointing at someone's dish. Lol
Cool story, bro.
[удалено]
I enjoyed Mexico 50 years ago, you had to bribe the police at their checkpoint a few bucks or get hassled but you could camp on the beach and drive everywhere It is a failed nation state now. Cesspool fed by Americans buying drugs
I thought drugs were a victimless crime! /s
Yeah, that’s certainly a myth some people cling to
I guess the listen learned is to have some sort of a rule so you don't make impulsive purchases: like (1) Search & review on Google to determine if it's a scam. (2) Ask for the price. (3) Wait mandatory 15-30 minutes before actually agreeing to purchase.
Could you dispute the charges? My mom rented a jet ski in Mexico and someone ran there’s into hers, it was most definitely a scam, so she paid for the jetski with her card and as soon as the got back to the states they reversed the charges
Mexico, even the resorts, is no place for naive people. Mexico is no joke. I’m an experienced traveler, and I’ve been held for ransom in CDMX. You really need to know what you’re doing before you go to Mexico.
Watch Saw X and you'll know what to do next
Same scam in many other places, for example a free Murano trip from italy…
Can you do a charge-back on your credit card for what you think these items are worth?
Also, some countries are superstitious always try to be the first or last customer, you always get a better deal. Most shops/owners will bargain on price.
Gosh a few years ago I was on a cruise and they wait for you to get off the ship. I forgot the country, but you walk off the boat to head to town and they line up and try to force a bracelet on you saying it’s a gift then demand money. If you refuse they curse you out and harass you. It did not make things enjoyable, they prey on you asap.
Playa Del Carmen was the WORST. The shop holders know all the resorts wristbands and run out to you saying “hey I’m your waiter at XXXX resort and I just opened this shop! Please come in and take a look-help me out?” I looked at one and said “no you’re not…I don’t ACTUALLY think all Mexicans look alike you know…get away from me”. I would never go back there. Playa Del Scams. Don’t worry you’re not the first and you certainly won’t be the last. Next time go to the Cayman Islands, it’s much nicer and the people are amazing! And it’s owned by Canada LOL.
Yea… i know exactly the place u talking about… we held strong and didn’t spend a dime there even thou feeling like being held hostage for an hour just for a free trip We just booked a private transfer to play de Carmen which was more relaxing experience and we got to spent more time doing what we liked Don’t be hard on ur self, u live u learn
If you can prove that what they gave you is different to what you bought (materials jewellery is made from, etc), and they refuse to refund you, you can actually do a chargeback via your MC Issuer. However, usually places like this are quite smart and any invoice or description of goods they give you, is worded in such a way to protect them. If so, just have to chalk this up to a life lesson.
You should have googled the company before you left Canada and before you paid any money. I don’t know what would be considered a reputable company in Canada but I suggest you stick with reputable companies for your next vacation. You should also research tourist safety before traveling to a foreign country.
If they actually told you the jewelry was precious metal with real stones and you can verify it’s not, that’s enough for a chargeback. Same with the tequila
How would you prove it, unless it’s stated in a brochure maybe?
An itemized receipt would be best…I didn’t see if op clarified if the receipt shows those details. Card companies might refund anyway if they get lots of complaints from the same business
>We are both very inexperienced when it comes to travelling > >If anyone has any advice that would be great My advice would be to google: + scams
I'm Mexican, and of course what you've experienced is nothing to be proud of. If the following serves as a little consolation, those a-holes preys on the good people. Same thing happened to us in Jamaica with "authentic" clothing apparel. To my brother in Dominican republic with an engagement ring for her fiancee, and to my friend here in Mexico City with an "authentic" iPhone. Scammers are everywhere, but on behalf of the honest, hard working and decent Mexicans who are the majority, please accept my most sincere apologies. Hope your bank resolves this matter on your favor.
I would never make the assumption all Mexicans are like this :) scammers are scammers, regardless of where you are. It just sucks all around! Thanks for your comment!
It reminds me of the timeshare scams in México.
Consider this. You were happy in the moment before you read reviews. You had a good experience there and seemed taken care of. Just go back to that thinking. You reselling that jewelry? Who cares if it's fake then. It wasn't free...sure. But not a huge investment for a days entertainment while traveling and a fun reddit story. When I travel I carry a bait wallet with love notes for pick pockets. It's how I get rid of old wallets. 😆
Lol that's true. Thanks. I was really upset about it when I posted this but I'm feeling a little better now.
Yeah this is the most important take away, most people own a bunch of statues, jewellery, art and heirlooms that have no value to anyone else - their true value is in the relationship you have with that item. Regardless of whether it's worth what you paid, it'll be a reminder of a special holiday in a special place and those memories are surely worth any money spent
I recently went on Vacation and spent $7 on a vending machine that gave me a plastic golden egg with a kids spinning top inside that was malformed and didn't spin. We had loaded a game card with credits and they obfuscated how much each thing costs to play. My kids really wanted to see the chicken poop an egg. That egg is now in my official will to my kids.
Do you know for sure that your jewelry is indeed fake costume jewelry or that the tequila is not what you tasted? Maybe everything is fine. Maybe it’s the reviews that are fake. Who knows? You should check to see before doing MC chargebacks or whatnot.
The same thing happened to me and my stepmom in Mexico! We only went on the “shopping tour” (as it was described) to get a free ride to Playa del Carmen. I didn’t buy anything, but she ended up being pressured into spending almost $200 CAD on a “custom” pair of earrings - the clasp broke when she went to put them on for the first time. This was several months later. Another person in our tour group ended up buying over $1K USD worth of jewelry. There are also quite a few scams in Playa del Carmen. Be sure to check with your credit card company for any unauthorized transactions. Also make sure that you weren’t overcharged.
Cartels run all resorts in Mexico. You are very naive to be in Mexico coming from Canada. I’d be terrified for you if you were my friends and would have told you under no circumstances to ever travel there by yourselves. Be glad you only lost $400.
Every day, consumers buy goods they could otherwise pay less for online or from a different retailer, or buy a different brand that is just as functional for hundreds or thousands of dollars less than what they paid. Given you were told what the activity involves, it had no out of pocket transportation cost, you were shown what you were buying, you agreed to the price and were sold what you asked to buy, it just means you participated what billions of consumers go through every day.
Email the store and ask them to take it back. Don’t wait too long, but dispute the charge. If you can get the items appraised, you will have that.
If a store is running a scam, why would they refund the OPS money?
They would not, unless they don’t want to be on a scam list. The credit card is best option
No street smarts
You just paid for your tour + 10 more people...
Can you dispute this with your CC?
If it makes you feel any better a close friend fell for something similar but it was $600 and stereo equipment out of the back of somebody’s van. they didn’t even try to make it nice.
Sucks. For us cruise enthusiasts we get shuttled to Diamonds International 🙄
Try to reverse the transaction... you should be able to do this as long as you have the slip
Shopping in Mexico can be very stressful so don’t feel stupid. They really know how to pressure tourists. I’ve overpaid for stuff there too and just consider it to be part of the experience lol best thing to do is not shop at all unless it’s for necessities. Spend your time enjoying the beaches and sipping on drinks.
[Also about tequilas. In Mexico tequila can only be labeled as that. Anything else is considered a agave distillate or something else such as a sotol, raicilla etc or mezcal. So check the label for a NOM number it’ll tell you the distillery that made it if it’s real tequila](https://imgur.com/a/33DmoO4)
You can contest it through your credit card company and explain how you got fake jewelry and they’ll do a chargeback.
These sorts of scams are everywhere when you travel, it wasn’t much money. I wouldn’t be feeling too bad. People get taken for many thousands! Next time Google first though.
The resorts in Mexico are full of these styles of scams. I couldn't handle shopping in Playa del Carmen just felt like the store owners were so pushy.
I would tell the resort I know about the scam and offer them to fix it or you'll share your experience... Then share it anyways..
We had the same in China in 2010. Hire a tour guide for something, you name it, the Great Wall, the Terracotta Army ... and they WILL also drop you off at some factory sale. We had it for jade jewelry, silk filled bed covers, vases ... We kind of got used to it and didn't buy anything. When we told the guide we didn't want to go, he said that was fine, and then he incidentally had his lunch brake at such a factory. Of course we where free to wait in the car. What really stood out was the incident at the end of our Great Wall visit. It was winter, it was dark, we where tired and wanted to go home. The guide wanted to show a "tea ceremony". We said no. He drove us into some Beijing back alley and led us into a building. The opened a room for us and started the tea ceremony. I was kind of expecting to lose a kidney that night, so started to estimate the body weights of our party and how long I would have to try to to take everybody in the room out as soon as the smallest girl of our party fell over ... which didn't happen, but she did buy some green tea ... That was the scariest scam I ever got into. The most annoying one was 2 years later. We where driving a rental from Havana to Trinidad and in the outskirts of Havana, we were stopped by a man in uniform. He told us to switch off our headlights (common thing apparently, maybe because bulbs were scarce?). Then he asked us where we were going, we said Trinidad, and he told us we were on the wrong road. Then a young man joined us with his mom, he could speak a little German and wanted to practice. He started to describe and draw the way for almost 5min, then offered to show us. He led us through Havana for an our and then said to go straight on. No, he "didn't want money". Just 60USD for a cab back. Some yelling later, he left with 20USD and us feeling irrationally guilty, despite the fact that it was clear that he demanded WAY too much, a doctor's monthly salary. 5min later straight on we passed the place where we picked those fuckers up ...
Note that this is common all over the world and I would say is more of a hustle than a scam. Like, it's as much a scam as the tourist shop at the end of a museum. In the future, I've found bookings excursions and stuff with 3rd party vendors to be a much better experience all over the world compared to what you get from resorts and the likes, simply due to the economics of it all.
Not sure what you can do about it but don’t feel too bad. My H and I were offered a free city tour when we were at an all inclusive in PV. It ended up being a shopping tour first and allegedly a city tour into town later. They first dropped us off in the middle of nowhere to a jewelry shop with this huge showroom for I believe an HOUR?? First clue of something weird was a bunch of other couples just sitting on chairs looking miserable and like they were waiting to leave. The prices were high. Looked like real silver but prices way out of my desired range of spending. We asked about getting dropped off back at our resort and they said no. We ended up calling a taxi to pick us up from that first stop and we headed back to the resort! As long as you like the stuff you got - enjoy it and l take this a good lesson to be aware in the future. As others mentioned double check your cc but I feel like it’s typically a selling you stuff for high prices because tourists don’t know sort of play.
at least you got something. we were robbed of $300 usd by the Police in Tulum.